Tabernacle Choir sings ok farewell to grads, centennial marvelous evening, highlighting a year of remarkable activities and events which have truly celebrated the past as well as providing impetus for the future,” WSC President Stephen D. Nadauld said. Pres. Nadauld noted that Weber State’s centennial celebration had included performances by the Moscow Classical Ballet, sculptures, art works, original symphonies, convocations, political satirist Mark Russell, a gala birthday party, the first WSC Athletic Hall of Fame and many other events. “It has been a great year, full of fun and exciting events,” he said. Slightly over 2,300 students, more than the entire enrollment of the class of 1958-59, received their diplomas, wsc President Stephen D. Nadauld conducts the college's 101st Commencement Exercises. The ceremony marks the end of Weber State's Centennial Year. he Mormon Tabernacle Choir presented an evening of patriotic music as a record number of graduates received their diplomas during Weber State’s 101ist Commencement Exercises. The choir sang in lieu of a commencement speaker to a nearly full Dee Events Center in a ceremony that marked the official end of the college’s centennial year. “This has been truly a memorable and and an exuberant cheer went up as the graduates were told to move their tassels from the right side of their graduation caps to the left in symbolic representation of their graduation. “IT hereby confer upon each of you the appropriate certificate, diploma and degree indicated in the Program of the Day,” President Nadauld said. The Mormon Tabernacle Choir, with close to half of its members having either attended Weber State or had children attend the college, was conducted by WSC alumnus Donald P. Ripplinger and Jerold Ottley with the spoken word by former WSC student body president Spencer Kinard. The college presented posthumous honorary degrees to Lewis W. Shurtliff, president of the school’s first administrative board, Louis F. Moench, first principal, and former president H. Aldous Dixon. Six individuals with strong ties to Weber State, Robert A. Clarke, James R. Foulger, John S. Hinckley, Blanche Browning Rich, Merlon L. Stevenson, and -Orson Whitney Young, were given Honorary Doctorate of Humanities degrees in recognition of their service to the college. Weber State also presented a special Founder’s Day award to the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints which was accepted by Elder Gordon B. Hinckley, first counselor in the church’s First Presidency. “It was a bold thing which was begun in 1889, and it’s a wonderful thing to witness the centennial celebration of that beginning. Thank you and every good wish to you,” Elder Hinckley said. “To you, our graduates, friends and visitors I extend my congratulations, special thanks and sincere best wishes,” President Nadauld concluded. WSC prepares geostationary satellite for Utah Utah should have a permanent satellite of its own in space, and Weber State aerospace technicians unveiled a satellite in May designed for that purpose. The satellite is not scheduled for launch until 1992, but Robert Twiggs, director of Weber State’s Center for Aerospace Technology, said that once in space the 1,000 pound permanent orbiter could be a tremendous asset for the state. “Unless someone beats us this will be the first amateur geostationary satellite launched,” Twiggs said. A geostationary satellite sits about 23,000 miles above the equator with an orbit speed of 19,000 miles per hour, the exact speed of the earth’s spin. Because of that orbit speed the satellite appears to stay in exactly the. same place in Utah’s sky, and could replace the state’s microwave system, be used by the state’s Highway Patrol or find a myriad of other uses, he said. “We don’t know if all the details can be worked out, but we’d sure like to find out and be the first state in the nation with our own satellite,” Twiggs said. Weber State was the first college in the nation to build and launch a satellite, NUSAT I, which was launched in 1985 from the Space Shuttle Columbia. Since that first launch Weber State has continued to design and build small satellites. The current satellite is being developed in connection with AMSAT, a worldwide, non-profit ham radio organization headquartered in Washington, D.C., and will fly aboard a French Ariane rocket. Normally the Ariane rocket holds two satellites per flight, with a cone insertion that separates the two orbiters. After the first satellite is eyected from the rocket the cone is discarded in order to launch the second craft. What Weber State technologists are doing is building a satellite that fits around the cone. “We’re saying lets take advantage of the cone. We’re providing satellites to fit in the niches,” Twiggs said. The satellite will be eight feet in diameter and three feet thick and was unveiled by AMSAT and Weber State officials. “This is the first full scale model. We’ll take a year or so to revise and improve,” Twiggs said. AMSAT funded the design and con- struction of the first model with a $10,000 grant, and will give the college approximately $18,000 for further refinements. see SATELLITE on page 3