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Argos Data Collection and Location System
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Argos Data Collection and Location System
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This page contains philatelic information on the Argos Data Collection and Location System (and Data Collection System (DCS) on geostationary satellites). Catalog numbers, years of issue, and notes on the satellites featured are given when available. If readers know of additional information or images, please contact the authors using the e-mail addresses at the bottom of this page.
Argos is a satellite-based system which collects, processes, and disseminates environmental data from fixed and mobile platforms worldwide, as well as the ability to geographically locate the source of the data anywhere on the Earth. Since 1978, Argos has provided data to environmental research and protection communities that, in many cases, was otherwise unobtainable. Many remote automatic observing stations report via Argos.
Argos was developed under a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) between the Centre National d'Etudes Spatiales (CNES), the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA), and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA). The system utilizes both ground and satellite-based resources to accomplish its mission. This includes instruments carried aboard the NOAA polar-orbiting environmental satellites (POES), receiving stations around the world, and major processing facilities in France and the U.S.
The necessary equipment for Argos has been placed aboard various satellites:
Argos is not an acronym, rather, it is the chosen name for the system. Unlike the Search and Rescue Satellite Aided Tracking (SARSAT) system designed specifically for the rescue of persons in distress, the Argos system is intended for environmental data collection and limited other use. However, many of the system characteristics are similar, such as global coverage provided by the use of the same polar-orbiting weather satellites to collect and transfer the data to ground stations. Reference: http://noaasis.noaa.gov/ARGOS/.
The Argos system/program should not be confused with the ARGOS (Advanced Research Global Observation Satellite) astronomy mission launched in 1999.
| Launch covers, anniversary-of-launch covers, and launch-related event covers (farther below) |
Postal items (stamps, souvenir sheets, aerogrammes, postal cards, etc.) (immediately below) |
|---|---|
| Argos | Argos |
| DCS | DCS |
Below is a list of Argos and DCS postal items (stamps, souvenir sheets, aerogrammes, postal cards, etc.).
| Country | Catalog Number* | Type of Item** | Year of Issue | Notes on Content |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Argos Data Collection and Location System | ||||
| French Southern and Antarctic Territories | C50 (Mi128) | 1979 | "Programme Argos" | |
| French Southern and Antarctic Territories | C114 (Mi281) | 1991 | "Albatros - Argos" | |
| French Southern and Antarctic Territories | C147 (Mi383) | 1998 | "Manchots Argos" (penguin with radio transmitter) | |
| Malagasy Republic | 969 (Mi1248) | One of MS6 (972b (967-972)) | 1990 | "Système Argos" and "Programmes de Suivi Appliqués aux Éléphants en Namibie" (Tracking Programs for Namibian Elephants) |
| Malagasy Republic | 969a (BL135) | SS1 (969) | ||
| Malagasy Republic | 1304A (Mi1799Aa-1804Aa) | On one of MS6, 972b overprinted in silver | 1996 | |
| Malagasy Republic | 1304B (Mi1799Ab-1804Ab) | On one of MS6, 972b overprinted in gold | 1996 | |
| Micronesia | 297 (BL40) | SS1 | 1998 | Ocean buoy data collection via satellite (Argos implied) |
| South Africa | None | Cachet on cover | 1981 | "Campagne ballons Argos" |
| United States | None | Cachet on (Nimbus-3 post-launch) cover | 1970 | Wyoming elk tracking, likely using Interrogation Recording and Location System (IRLS) |
| Data Collection System (DCS) on geostationary satellites1 | ||||
| No (non-launch cover) postal items found | ||||
*Scott catalog number, unless prefixed with Mi or BL for Michel.
**SS# = souvenir sheet, MS# = miniature sheet, where # = number of stamps in sheet, and the numbers in parentheses are the catalog numbers of the stamps in the sheet.
1Data Collection System (DCS) is similar to Argos, but is carried on geostationary satellites.
Below is a list of Argos and DCS on satellite launch covers.
| Country | Cancel Date | Cancel Location | Type of Item | Notes on Content |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Argos Data Collection and Location System | ||||
| United States | 1969-04-14 | Vandenberg AFB, CA | (Orbit) cachet on cover | Nimbus-3 launch, "Interrogation Recording and Location System" (IRLS), precursor to Argos |
| United States | 1970-04-08 | Vandenberg AFB, CA | (Orbit) cachet on cover | Nimbus-4 launch, "Interrogation Recording and Location System" (IRLS), precursor to Argos |
| United States | 1978-10-13 | Vandenberg AFB, CA | (RCA) cachet on cover | TIROS-N launch, (Argos) "Data Collection System" |
| Data Collection System (DCS) on geostationary satellites1 | ||||
| United States | 1975-10-16 | Kennedy Space Center FL | (Space Voyage) cachet on cover | GOES-1 launch, "will collect and relay environmental data for weather detection and prediction, observation of ocean currents, monitor of water levels, etc." |
| United States | 1975-10-16 | Cape Canaveral FL | (Orbit) cachet on cover | GOES-1 launch (not GEOS)2, "receive and transmit environmental info up to 10,000 manned and unmanned data collection platforms" |
| United States | 1977-07-14 | Cape Canaveral FL | (Orbit) cachet on cover | GMS-1 (mislabeled SMS-3) launch, "receive and transmit environmental info up to 10,000 manned and unmanned data collection platforms" |
| United States | 1977-11-22 | GSFC, MD | (GSFC) cachet on cover | Meteosat-1 launch, "data collection from remote stations, both land and buoys" |
| United States | 1978-06-16 | Cape Canaveral FL | (Centennial?) cachet on cover | GOES-3 launch, "can collect weather data from up to 10,000 ground stations in six hours" |
| United States | 1981-08-10 | Greenbelt MD | (Space Voyage) cachet on cover | GMS-2 launch, picture of data being collected from a ship and an ocean buoy |
| Japan | 1981-08-11 | Minamitane | (Space Voyage) cachet on cover | GMS-2 launch, picture of data being collected from a ship and an ocean buoy |
| Japan | 1981-08-11 | Tsukubagakuen | (Space Voyage) cachet on cover | GMS-2 launch, picture of data being collected from a ship and an ocean buoy |
| United States | 1983-04-28 | Greenbelt MD | (GSFC) cachet on cover | GOES-6 launch, "collects local environmental data" |
| United States | 1986-05-03 | Greenbelt MD | (GSFC) cachet on cover | GOES-G launch [failed], "data collection, data relay" |
| United States | 1987-02-26 | Greenbelt MD | (GSFC) cachet on cover | GOES-7 launch, "data collection, data relay" |
| United States | 1989-09-05 | Greenbelt MD | (Space Voyage) cachet on cover | GMS-4 launch, picture of data being collected from a ship and an ocean buoy |
| Japan | 1989-09-06 | Tsukubagakuen | (Space Voyage) cachet on cover | GMS-4 launch, picture of data being collected from a ship and an ocean buoy |
| Japan | 1989-09-06 | Tsukubagakuen (scenic cancel)3 | (Space Voyage) cachet (different color) on cover | GMS-4 launch, picture of data being collected from a ship and an ocean buoy |
1Data Collection System (DCS) is similar to Argos, but is carried on geostationary satellites.
2GOES, not Geodetic Earth Orbiting Satellite (GEOS) as indicated on this cover.
3Scenic cancels contain drawings, as opposed to only characters and numbers.
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