Space Elk and The First GPS

Adventure Almanac

In 1970, a few elk near Jackson Hole, Wyoming, became famous. Researchers had the bold idea to try and track elk migrations using the Nimbus III weather satellite. It was the first attempt to track a living thing from space. Newspapers from around the world followed the adventures of the Space Elk and the development of satellite tracking. It was the peak of the space race between the Soviet Union and the United States, and no one could anticipate what would happen next. With their research, the Craighead brothers and Monique changed wildlife conservation practices forever. In this episode, we follow the adventures of Monique, the researchers, and the elk from the National Elk Wildlife Refuge to see how science doesn’t always work out as planned, but sometimes it makes an interesting story.

https://adventurenerds.com/podcast/space-elk-and-the-first-gps/

Visit us at Adventure Nerds for a map of the elk migration, a bibliography, and more information about the first experiment with GPS. Remember to sign up for our newsletter while you are there, and follow us for more exciting stories.

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