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<DIV><IMG height=552
src="http://www.lunar.org/docs/nasa/images/dsn_70m_antenna.jpg"
width=577><BR><EM><FONT size=2>For over 40 years, the “Mars” 70-m Deep Space
Network antenna at Goldstone, California, </FONT></EM><EM><FONT size=2>has
vigilantly </FONT></EM></DIV>
<DIV><EM><FONT size=2>listened for tiny signals from spacecraft that are
billions of miles away</FONT></EM></DIV>
<DIV> </DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Tahoma size=6>'Mars Antenna' upgrade</FONT></DIV>
<P><FONT face=Tahoma>NASA's 70 meter dish known as the 'Mars Antenna' has been
propped up in preparation for a joint replacement.</FONT></P>
<P><FONT face=Tahoma>Workers at NASA's Deep Space Network complex in Goldstone,
Calif., have been making precise, laser-assisted measurements to ensure a flat
surface for pouring new grout as part of a major renovation on the 70-meter-wide
(230-foot-wide) "Mars antenna."</FONT></P>
<P><FONT face=Tahoma>While officially dubbed Deep Space Station 14, the antenna
picked up the Mars name from its first task: tracking NASA's Mariner 4
spacecraft, which had been lost by smaller antennas after its historic flyby of
Mars.</FONT></P>
<P><FONT face=Tahoma>This work represents the first time network engineers have
redesigned and replaced the hydrostatic bearing assembly, which enables the
antenna to rotate horizontally. To accomplish this, they lifted the entire
rotating structure of the giant antenna for the first time.</FONT></P>
<P><FONT face=Tahoma>The hydrostatic bearing assembly puts the weight of the
antenna on three pads, which glide on a film of oil around a large steel
ring.</FONT></P>
<P><FONT face=Tahoma>The ring measures about 24 meters (79 feet) in diameter and
must be flat to work efficiently. After 44 years of near-constant use, the Mars
antenna needed a kind of joint replacement, since the bearing assembly had
become uneven.</FONT></P>
<P><FONT face=Tahoma> </FONT></P>
<P><FONT face=Tahoma>Read the full NASA story at<BR></FONT><A
href="http://www.nasa.gov/topics/technology/features/dsn20100714.html"><FONT
face=Tahoma>http://www.nasa.gov/topics/technology/features/dsn20100714.html</FONT></A></P>
<P><FONT face=Tahoma> </FONT></P>
<P><FONT face=Tahoma>Fonte:<STRONG> George Boorer ZL3PN</STRONG>
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