lhg_11, 3.4million views. Thank you!
First View of DSS-14 70 Meter Mars Antenna (Azimuth-Elevation)
Please view "Goldstone DSN Tracking Station -- Mojave Desert set (#7 of 16 images)
The Mars station was completed in 1966 as a 64-meter (210-foot) diameter antenna, and begun tracking operations by easily acquiring signals from the 1964 Mariner Mars mission spacecraft across a distance of 328 million kilometers (205 million miles). The 64-meter antenna provided 6-1/2 times the transmitting power and receiving sensitivity of the original DSN 26-meter antennas and extended the range of the DSN 2-1/2 times. The Mars antenna was upgraded to 70 meters in June 1988. The improvement was in preparation for the 1989 Voyager 2 encounter with Neptune, at a distance of 4.5 billion kilometers (2.8 billion miles), and the spacecraft's eventual entry into interstellar space. The extension allows higher data rates to be received over longer distances, thereby increasing the scientific yield of all deep spate missions.
The overall height of the Mars station is 71 meters (234 feet); its total weight, including the concrete pedestal, is 7,262 metric tons (8,000 U.S. tons). The dish and its azimuth-elevation mounting structure on top of the pedestal weigh nearly 2.7 million kilograms (6 million pounds). The structure rotates in azimuth on three flat bearing surfaces that float on a pressurized film of oil about the thickness of a sheet of paper. The pedestal is over 10 meters (33 feet) high and contains 4.4 million kilograms (10 million pounds) of reinforced concrete.
The interior of the pedestal is partitioned into equipment rooms, operating and maintenance areas, and offices. The antenna-pointing control system is installed in a tower-like structure that rises through the (enter of the pedestal but is completely separated from it to provide a stable, vibration free platform. Because of the antenna's narrow receiving beamwidth, pointing accuracies of 0.006 degree are maintained to avoid losses in spacecraft signal power. Regardless of its position, the reflecting surface of the antenna must remain accurate to a fraction of the signal wavelength, meaning that the surface accuracy across the 3,850-square meter (4,600-square-yard) surface is within one centimeter (0.39 inch).
This is the "Big Mama" of parabolic antennae.
© Lawrence Goldman 2010, All Rights Reserved
This work may not be copied, reproduced, republished, edited, downloaded, displayed, modified, transmitted, licensed, transferred, sold, distributed or uploaded in any way without my prior written permission.
First View of DSS-14 70 Meter Mars Antenna (Azimuth-Elevation)
Please view "Goldstone DSN Tracking Station -- Mojave Desert set (#7 of 16 images)
The Mars station was completed in 1966 as a 64-meter (210-foot) diameter antenna, and begun tracking operations by easily acquiring signals from the 1964 Mariner Mars mission spacecraft across a distance of 328 million kilometers (205 million miles). The 64-meter antenna provided 6-1/2 times the transmitting power and receiving sensitivity of the original DSN 26-meter antennas and extended the range of the DSN 2-1/2 times. The Mars antenna was upgraded to 70 meters in June 1988. The improvement was in preparation for the 1989 Voyager 2 encounter with Neptune, at a distance of 4.5 billion kilometers (2.8 billion miles), and the spacecraft's eventual entry into interstellar space. The extension allows higher data rates to be received over longer distances, thereby increasing the scientific yield of all deep spate missions.
The overall height of the Mars station is 71 meters (234 feet); its total weight, including the concrete pedestal, is 7,262 metric tons (8,000 U.S. tons). The dish and its azimuth-elevation mounting structure on top of the pedestal weigh nearly 2.7 million kilograms (6 million pounds). The structure rotates in azimuth on three flat bearing surfaces that float on a pressurized film of oil about the thickness of a sheet of paper. The pedestal is over 10 meters (33 feet) high and contains 4.4 million kilograms (10 million pounds) of reinforced concrete.
The interior of the pedestal is partitioned into equipment rooms, operating and maintenance areas, and offices. The antenna-pointing control system is installed in a tower-like structure that rises through the (enter of the pedestal but is completely separated from it to provide a stable, vibration free platform. Because of the antenna's narrow receiving beamwidth, pointing accuracies of 0.006 degree are maintained to avoid losses in spacecraft signal power. Regardless of its position, the reflecting surface of the antenna must remain accurate to a fraction of the signal wavelength, meaning that the surface accuracy across the 3,850-square meter (4,600-square-yard) surface is within one centimeter (0.39 inch).
This is the "Big Mama" of parabolic antennae.
© Lawrence Goldman 2010, All Rights Reserved
This work may not be copied, reproduced, republished, edited, downloaded, displayed, modified, transmitted, licensed, transferred, sold, distributed or uploaded in any way without my prior written permission.