Category: Engineering Projects

New DSES Building Update

An update on the progress of our DSES building project. Our DSES Vice President and Project Manager, Bill Miller, has spent many hours and has made many trips down to the Plishner Site near Haswell Colorado to make this project happen.  After many delays, some due to COVID, in finding contractors for concrete, plumbing, and electrical as well as building manufacturers to provide a 60-foot by 30-foot structure, DSES has finally made some progress.  We still have many hours of interior/exterior work and antenna towers to place before we can move our current operations from the existing communications trailer and the underground bunker.  This future work will still require many trips and hours on site to complete these tasks.  We hope our local Colorado DSES members will be able to provide some help in completing these projects.  DSES will provide dates and times of these trips so members can plan their time at the Plishner Site.  A big thank you to Bill Miller for taking on this project and to those other members who were able to assist him over the past few months. 

Myron Babcock

President/Treasurer

DSES

Deep Space Exploration Society will support the Japanese OMOTENASHI Cube Sat Moon lander

Deep Space Exploration Society will support the Japanese OMOTENASHI Cube Sat Moon lander, by attempting to receive and record its UHF downlink signals enroute to the Moon and after landing. OMOTENASHI is a project created by the Japanese space agency JAXA Amateur Radio Club, and is one of ten Cube Sat satellites on the NASA Artemis 1 lunar mission.

Several hours after Artemis 1 boosts from an Earth parking orbit to a transfer orbit to the Moon, OMOTENASHI should deploy. After 6 days the OMOTENASHI will separate into an orbiter and lander, and the lander will make a hard landing on the Moon. The lander is designed to survive and then transmit signals.

OMOTENASHI & EQUULEUS: the tiny spacecraft onboard the world’s most powerful rocket – Cosmos

OMOTENASHI (in Japanese): mission movie

Bob Haggart’s work building a new porch and stairway for the communications trailer

Bob Haggart N0CTV is working on building a new stairway and porch to the communications trailer at the radio telescope site.  He started the work at home after taking measurements. Today he traveled to the site to continue the work.  With him were his grandson Allen and Allen’s friend Ben. Bob writes:

“We arrived at 11 AM. Worked on the porch and covered the fan with 24″ X 24″ plywood. Ran out of time but did get the porch assembled and painted inside and out. The hand railing is only temporary and will finish next work day on the 17th.”

Bob’s work is replacing a small simple set of metal steps that has given us access to the communications trailer.

The original set of steps to the communications trailer. Bob’s new porch and stairway is replacing this.

The new porch and stairway provide a great improvement.

Bobs has built this new porch and stairway. It is larger, sturdier, and gives much better support. The handrail is temporary. The permanent handrail is planned to be installed on the next group work trip on Nov. 17.

Bob Haggard N0CTV, standing with his work.

Thanks to Bob for all this work, and for improving the access to the communications trailer.