The GLOMR satellites were DARPA (Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency) satellites designed to demonstrate the ability to read out, store, and forward data from remote ground-based sensors. GLOMR was first scheduled for deployment from a modified Get-Away Special container on Space Shuttle mission STS-51B, but failed to eject because of a battery problem. It was reflown and deployed successfully from STS-61A, and reentered after 14 months.

 

GLOMR II, also known as USA 55 and SECS (Special Experimental Communications System), was roughly the size of basketball and had greater data storage, more redundancy, and more space-qualified hardware than its predecessor.

 

spacecraft	launch date	launch vehicle	launch site	orbit	mass
GLOMR	Nov 1, 1985	STS-61	Cape Canaveral	304 × 332 km × 57°	52 kg
GLOMR II	Apr 5, 1990	Pegasus	Edwards AFB	489 × 668 km × 94.1°	68 kg