Q6 Antenna Structure
| Revision as of 04:39, 2 February 2007 (edit) Paul (Talk | contribs) ← Previous diff |
Revision as of 04:41, 2 February 2007 (edit) Paul (Talk | contribs) Next diff → |
||
| Line 14: | Line 14: | ||
| a thin film of hydraulic oil that covered the shallow dome beneath it, which in | a thin film of hydraulic oil that covered the shallow dome beneath it, which in | ||
| turn sat atop the huge mass of concrete. | turn sat atop the huge mass of concrete. | ||
| + | |||
| + | ==Reference:== | ||
| + | <SMALL> | ||
| + | [1] Technical Information Bulletin, GSFC, MSFN: Vol.1 No.11; July 26, 1963 | ||
Revision as of 04:41, 2 February 2007
- Antenna structure
- Tracking and Ranging
- Brief system details
- RCA Computer
- Key Q6 Mission Activity
- Research activity
- BDA, CRO & RCA: Q6 partners
- Other Q-6 tales
Back to Station Equipment
The first shipment of Gemini equipment - included the FPQ-6 antenna pedestal its heaviest item - arrived in November 1966 and was transported to Carnarvon. An 80-ton crane - the largest vehicle then to have used the North West Coastal Highway - travelled north to lift the pedestal into position.
As befitting a precision instrument, the Azimuth-Elevation antenna structure and 8.8m (29ft) parabolic dish was erected upon a specially designed rigid foundation; a thick concrete base which had been poured onto several foundation piles driven 10 metres into one ancient sand dune on Browns Range.
A NASA Technical Information Bulletin announcing the imminent construction stated:
“The antenna pedestal is a precision, two-axis mount, using hydrostatic bearing in azimuth and phase roller bearings in elevation to provide mobility and support to the counter-balanced, solid-surface antenna. The antenna is positioned through anti-backlash dual-drive pedestal gearing via a high
torque-to-inertia electro-hydraulic valve motor system. … A viscous coupler
located between the valve motor and pedestal drive gearing damped out undesired
mechanical resonances.” [1]
Put simply, the whole 30-ton pedestal, plus the dish, floated and rotated on a thin film of hydraulic oil that covered the shallow dome beneath it, which in turn sat atop the huge mass of concrete.
Reference:
[1] Technical Information Bulletin, GSFC, MSFN: Vol.1 No.11; July 26, 1963
