The Basics of Satellite Communications

In the 1950s, it wasn't entirely clear how much gas would be in low Earth orbit or what kind. If there are waves of similar frequency bouncing around, your signal will get lost. Ensign signals can be bounced off the ionosphere, which lets them travel past the horizon. This only happens with certain frequency waves and is heavily impacted by atmospheric conditions. You can also sometimes pick up CB radio transmissions from way far away but it's a limited solution.