Earth to Voyager 2: standby for connection - after we tip this water out of the dish
- Reference: 1643613305
- News link: https://www.theregister.co.uk/2022/01/31/earth_to_voyager_2_standby/
- Source link:
And today chatting to the probe got a little harder when the DSN node scheduled to log on – the Deep Space Communication Complex in Canberra, Australia – found itself in the path of a rainstorm.
That facility’s Twitter feed revealed that the rain deposited plenty of water in the subreflector of DSS43 – the big dish at the Canberra Complex.
[1]
How to empty a subreflector before chatting to a very, very, remote space probe? Easy! You move the dish to tip the water out!
You know how sometimes after a shower or swim, that you need to get the water out of your ears.👂🚿
Well, after the rain storm we just had, the subreflector on [2]#DSS43 had a bit of water in it that we tipped out, so we could be ready to communicate with Voyager-2.
📡〰〰〰〰🛰 [3]pic.twitter.com/eu96y4ZoBS — CanberraDSN (@CanberraDSN) [4]January 31, 2022
The Complex also revealed that the best way to wash a dish is to let the rain tumble down.
We sometimes get asked:
"How do you clean the dishes?"
And we answer:
"Well, mother nature does a great job for us."
🌧️
📡 [5]pic.twitter.com/0XonSUXNzO — CanberraDSN (@CanberraDSN) [6]January 31, 2022
The Canberra Deep Space Communications Complex lies in in an idyllic valley just 20 minutes from some of the city’s suburbs. If you’re ever in town, do visit: it has many fine exhibits, and at either end of the day you’re a strong chance of spotting kangaroos. The adjacent nature reserve has a fine platypus enclosure.
And at the Complex itself, you can see the dishes’ daily communication schedules and ponder the fates of the many missions the facility follows. ®
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[1] https://pubads.g.doubleclick.net/gampad/jump?co=1&iu=/6978/reg_offbeat/science&sz=300x50%7C300x100%7C300x250%7C300x251%7C300x252%7C300x600%7C300x601&tile=2&c=2YffBXT3MeBbefPN@M@GoqAAAAIY&t=ct%3Dns%26unitnum%3D2%26raptor%3Dcondor%26pos%3Dtop%26test%3D0
[2] https://twitter.com/hashtag/DSS43?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw
[3] https://t.co/eu96y4ZoBS
[4] https://twitter.com/CanberraDSN/status/1488026056007520256?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw
[5] https://t.co/0XonSUXNzO
[6] https://twitter.com/CanberraDSN/status/1488007145094549508?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw
[7] https://whitepapers.theregister.com/
Re: Rusty scuppers?
If you can tip it out easily, you don't need to add holes, which would reduce your "listening" ability. It's not like Canberra gets monsoonal levels of rain. ;)
Re: Rusty scuppers?
"which would reduce your "listening" ability."
Not as much as you might think.
Every dish I ever came in contact with had weep holes in such places. From what I was told, virtually every such dish is pointed straight up in "storm lockdown" conditions, and seeing as storms are often associated with cold fronts, cold enough to freeze any standing water, they attempt to drain it away as fast as possible rather than ice things up, potentially buggering up delicate adjustments.
monsoonal ?
Even better, a full bore La Nina with a monsoon trough further south that usual. Not as much as 1974, but some of the recent local storms are worthy of a Top End Wet. On the bright side, it is safe to slash the deep grasses except for the risks of bogging.
Re: monsoonal ?
Maybe that should be moonsoonal?
"How do you clean the dishes?"
In a nice energy efficient dishwasher, thanks. You?
Being able to listen to a probe 19 billion kilometres from Earth which probably emits a signal with a power lower than one from a cellphone is absolutely astonishing.
Congrats to all involved in the performance.
160 bits per second...
They can manage 19 billion km! My wifi feels slower than that when I go to the shed at the bottom of the garden....
Rusty scuppers?
Or just poor planning?