Madrid Deep Space Communications Complex
{{Use dmy dates|date=December 2020}}
{{short description|Radio telescope}}
{{primary sources|date=September 2017}}
{{Infobox Observatory
| name = Madrid Deep Space Communication Complex
| image = Image:Edificio museo, Madrid Deep Space Communications Complex.jpg
| logo = LogoINTA.gif
| logo_size = 100px
| caption = Madrid Deep Space Communication Complex (MDSCC)
| organization = INTA{{\}}NASA{{\}}JPL
| location = Robledo de Chavela (near Madrid), Spain
| coords = {{coord|40|25|45|N|4|14|57|W|type:landmark_region:ES_dim:570|display=inline,title}}
| altitude = 720 m
| weather =
| established = 1961
| website = {{URL|https://www.mdscc.nasa.gov|mdscc.nasa.gov}}
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The Madrid Deep Space Communications Complex (MDSCC; in Spanish and officially Complejo de Comunicaciones de Espacio Profundo de Madrid) is a satellite ground station located in Robledo de Chavela, Spain, and operated by the Instituto Nacional de Técnica Aeroespacial (INTA).{{cite web|title=NASA Deep Space Communications Complex (Robledo de Chavela)|url=https://www.inta.es/INTA/en/donde-estamos/Estaciones-espaciales/#robledo|access-date=December 4, 2022|publisher=Instituto Nacional de Técnica Aeroespacial}} Part of the Deep Space Network (DSN) of NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL), along with its two sister stations at Goldstone, California and Canberra, Australia it is used for tracking and communicating with NASA's spacecraft, particularly interplanetary missions. The DSN and the Near Space Network (NSN) are services of the NASA Space Communications and Navigation program (SCaN).{{cite web|title=SCaN Ground Segment|date=Jan 25, 2021|url=https://www.eoportal.org/other-space-activities/scan#scan-space-communications-and-navigation--the-ground-infrastructure-of-nasa|publisher=eoportal.org|access-date=December 4, 2022}}
Deep Space Network
The MDSCC is part of NASA's Deep Space Network run by the Jet Propulsion Laboratory.[http://deepspace.jpl.nasa.gov/dsn/ Official site for DSN at JPL] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120608040231/http://deepspace.jpl.nasa.gov/dsn/ |date=8 June 2012 }} The facility contributes to the Deep Space Network's mission to provide the vital two-way communications link that tracks and controls interplanetary spacecraft and receives the images and scientific information they collect. The complex is one of three NASA Deep Space Network complexes in the world, located at separations of approximately 120° longitude so that a spacecraft will always be in sight of at least one station; the others are the Goldstone Deep Space Communications Complex located in California, near the city of Barstow, and the Canberra Deep Space Communication Complex in Australia which is close to the city of Canberra.{{Cite journal |last=Latifiyan |first=Pouya |date=April 2021 |title=Space Telecommunications, how? |journal=Take off |publisher=Civil Aviation Technology College |publication-place=Tehran |volume=1 |pages=15 |via=Persian}}
The complex also serves some missions of the European Space Agency.
Functions
The antennas and data delivery systems make it possible to:
- Acquire telemetry data from spacecraft.
- Transmit commands to spacecraft.
- Track spacecraft position and velocity.
- Perform Radio Astronomy (both single-dish and very-long-baseline interferometry) observations.
- Measure variations in radio waves for radio science experiments.
- Monitor and control the performance of the Deep Space Network.
Antennas
Image:MADRID 060508 MXALX 078.jpg
The complex has eight large parabolic antennas, called DSS-61, DSS-53, DSS-54, DSS-55, DSS-56, DSS-63, DSS-65 and DSS-66.[http://www.inta.es/doc/grandesinstalaciones/estacionesdeseguimiento/robledo_nasa_gb_.pdf Official INTA site for the MDSCC] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140325173824/http://www.inta.es/doc/grandesinstalaciones/estacionesdeseguimiento/robledo_nasa_gb_.pdf |date=25 March 2014 }}
{{Excerpt|List of antennas in NASA's Deep Space Network|Madrid Deep Space Communications Complex (MDSCC)}}
See also
References
{{reflist}}
External links
{{commons category|Madrid Deep Space Communications Complex}}
- [http://www.mdscc.org/ Official Site at JPL]
- [http://dss65relocation.blogspot.com/ Blog of the scientists manning the station]
- [http://www.elmundo.es/elmundo/2004/graficos/feb/s1/robledo/robledo.html How the station works, alone and within the DSN (interactive graphic, in Spanish)]
- [https://web.archive.org/web/20140325190134/http://www.isdefe.es/en/sectors-Spacecommunications Official Site at ISDEFE, operator of MDSCC at Robledo]
{{Space program of Spain}}
{{NASA centers}}