sagansense:
Although this looks like a simple satellite dish, this beautiful chunk of hardware is the Goldstone Deep Space Communications Complex, developed to communicate with spacecraft in orbit around the earth as well as in the farther reaches of our solar system. Right now, the DSN is and will continue to track Juno as it explores the Jovian system.
Past space exploration missions have relied on the DSN to receive incremental data reception. Such missions include Voyager 1 (charting the first Grand Tour of the Solar System), Cassini (Saturnian system exploration), STEREO A & B, SOHO (solar observation), MRO, Mars Odyssey, MOM, MAVEN, Mars Exploration Rover/Mars Science Laboratory “Curiosity”, Mars Express (Mars exploration), Rosetta (comet exploration/landing), Kepler, Spitzer, Chandra (space telescope/observatory), LRO (lunar exploration) and several other milestone missions.
The DSN complexes - placed 120° apart - provide constant communication with spacecraft as the Earth rotates. Placed remotely in the Mojave Desert, CA near the old mining town of Goldstone, its desolation is necessary for optimal capability. The DSN is truly a network. Facilities near Madrid, Spain and Canberra, Australia complete the Deep Space Network, providing 360° coverage for spacecraft tracking.
For more, visit http://ift.tt/1mkx2Dh
from Tumblr http://ift.tt/2dZvW32
via IFTTT
Although this looks like a simple satellite dish, this beautiful chunk of hardware is the Goldstone Deep Space Communications Complex, developed to communicate with spacecraft in orbit around the earth as well as in the farther reaches of our solar system. Right now, the DSN is and will continue to track Juno as it explores the Jovian system.
Past space exploration missions have relied on the DSN to receive incremental data reception. Such missions include Voyager 1 (charting the first Grand Tour of the Solar System), Cassini (Saturnian system exploration), STEREO A & B, SOHO (solar observation), MRO, Mars Odyssey, MOM, MAVEN, Mars Exploration Rover/Mars Science Laboratory “Curiosity”, Mars Express (Mars exploration), Rosetta (comet exploration/landing), Kepler, Spitzer, Chandra (space telescope/observatory), LRO (lunar exploration) and several other milestone missions.
The DSN complexes - placed 120° apart - provide constant communication with spacecraft as the Earth rotates. Placed remotely in the Mojave Desert, CA near the old mining town of Goldstone, its desolation is necessary for optimal capability. The DSN is truly a network. Facilities near Madrid, Spain and Canberra, Australia complete the Deep Space Network, providing 360° coverage for spacecraft tracking.
For more, visit http://ift.tt/1mkx2Dh
from Tumblr http://ift.tt/2dZvW32
via IFTTT