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NASA's satellite dish is back in operation after more than four decades of disuse. When ready, the NASA antenna will be able to identify aircraft 50 kilometers away..
A giant NASA satellite dish measuring about 29 meters wide, located in carnarvon, in Western Australia, received its first signal in almost 40 years. Deactivated in 198 after collaborating with missions of the American Space Agency (NASA), the historic structure underwent renovations carried out by the Canadian company ThothX, which invested in revitalizing the equipment.
Company announces NASA antenna recovery project
The company aims to make NASA’s satellite dish part of a global satellite tracking network, with applications ranging from communications to strategic defense. The NASA dish restoration project began in 2022, when ThothX signed a 20-year contract to use the facility.
After minor repairs over the last year, the antenna was manually adjusted to pick up the signal from satellite NSS-12, a geostationary satellite that provides essential services such as television broadcasting, banking and military communications in Australia. The achievement represents a key milestone for the project.
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According to Brendan Quine, CEO of ThothX, the precision required to align NASA's satellite dish was a challenge. With the help of just three technicians and simple tools, the 300-ton structure was adjusted to the millimeter until it connected to the satellite. According to Quine, this proves that the project is viable and allows us to move on to the next steps, such as completing the complete renovation.
NASA's antenna repairs included installing a new radio system, cleaning optical components and even removing decades of pigeon droppings. The next phases are expected to include an investment of more than $10 million to modernize the antenna, including applying an anti-corrosive coating to withstand the region's harsh climate.
Antenna will be able to locate aircraft up to 50 thousand kilometers from Earth
The remote location of Carnarvon, about 900 kilometers north of Perth, is considered ideal for monitoring orbital traffic and the activities of “adversaries” in space, according to ThothX. The company plans to use NASA’s satellite dish to track satellites in real time, offering strategic advantages to potential military customers.
With financial support from the local government, which has provided $50 for the project, the aim is to demonstrate the radar's full functionality next year. The company also plans to equip NASA's antenna with technology capable of locating spacecraft up to 50 kilometers from Earth, with an accuracy of three meters.
ThothX already has experience with other innovative projects
The Carnarvon initiative is inspired by ThothX’s experience with another 46-meter dish at the Algonquin Radio Observatory in Canada. That project took 15 years to reach full operation, and the company believes the same success could be replicated in Australia with NASA’s satellite dish.
Phil Youd, Director of ThothX in Australia and manager of the Carnarvon Museum of Space and Technology, celebrated the revitalization of the historic landmark. According to the executive, it is like giving new life to this antenna. It represented a legacy that can now continue to contribute to strategic technological advances.
It’s worth noting that NASA is also making progress with this type of equipment, and in February, an experimental NASA antenna successfully received both radio frequency and near-infrared laser signals from NASA’s Psyche spacecraft. This marks a major advance in the use of optical communications technologies alongside traditional radio waves for deep-space missions.
Very good, this should track sheep because they are very dangerous. There are reports that Chupacabra attacked even in one state. Very good for tracking falling satellites and giant meteors like the ones that wiped out the dinosaurs, as well as other functions, if there is anything, lol. I don't see any value in this, just the meteor that is important. I believe NASA could join forces and find a way to do experiments to help the Earth's coast learn more about it. In the world, the global scientific base obtains data that benefits Earth's development, because every day the Earth dies. The high rate of pollution in the world comes from countries in the first world, their industry, where they claim things about Brazil's pollution, but in reality the country contributes the most to pollution. They complain and do environmental activism, as you can see, Greta, an environmentalist from the United States, pollutes the Earth to its very bones. She is an example of democratic political cynicism, because she shows the truth and lies. The country tells when it says it is an environmentalist. She takes care of the world. If the world is not even taking care of itself, imagine what it is like in space, lol.
After trying to decipher your writing, I stopped at the first few lines and saw that you were just saying a bunch of M37d@ lol
29 meters wide??
It's Wrong
Either it's 29 meters in diameter or it
has a radius of 14,5 m, which would be half the diameter of this circumference antenna.