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GAO: The DSN is actually falling apart
Guest_BruceMoomaw_*
post May 24 2006, 11:55 PM
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http://www.gao.gov/docsearch/abstract.php?rptno=GAO-06-445
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Guest_Analyst_*
post May 26 2006, 09:14 AM
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No Reply yet, although without the DSN no planetary exploration (unmanned or manned) can happen. The DSN is part of the invisible infrastructure we simply need before we start thinking about actual missions (like (E)ELVs, launch sites etc). It's very sad this essential networt is not in an optimal shape. A lot of missions with high data rates will stress the DSN and there is still only talk (and no money) about arraying a lot of small antennas (9m to 12m each) or optical communication. The DSN is the bottleneck. Part of the problem is no single mission pays for it, it's fixed costs nobody wants to pay but everybody uses the services. The situation also reminds me of the Apollo age infrastructure at KSC (VAB, pads etc.): 40 years and still useable, but how long?

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Guest_Richard Trigaux_*
post May 26 2006, 10:44 AM
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Things will not spontaneously become better.

DSN is based on a set of large antenna all around the world, so that a given source (for instance the MERs on Mars) can be received 24/24 hours.

In more of the quoted problem, a critical failure can occur, like the loss of one of the antenna (crashing down, like it aleady happened to a large dish, or a political setback in a country). I am afraid that for some timezones there is no redundancy, and the loss of only one antenna would create a blind zone, unability to receive certain sources at certain hours.

Anyway the only way to increase both safety and capacity of such a network is to increase the number of antennas all around the world. (whatever it is with few large antennas or many small ones)


With my opinion, such a unvaluable resource should become international and be managed by the UN. But the US government is known not to agree with such options, see with the ICANN. So international funding should come into the network, into the form of new antennas in new places, the whole thing managed like an economical association, and technically by a centralized unifom authority.
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Jim from NSF.com
post May 26 2006, 11:44 AM
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QUOTE (Richard Trigaux @ May 26 2006, 06:44 AM) *
Things will not spontaneously become better.

DSN is based on a set of large antenna all around the world, so that a given source (for instance the MERs on Mars) can be received 24/24 hours.

In more of the quoted problem, a critical failure can occur, like the loss of one of the antenna (crashing down, like it aleady happened to a large dish, or a political setback in a country). I am afraid that for some timezones there is no redundancy, and the loss of only one antenna would create a blind zone, unability to receive certain sources at certain hours.

Anyway the only way to increase both safety and capacity of such a network is to increase the number of antennas all around the world. (whatever it is with few large antennas or many small ones)
With my opinion, such a unvaluable resource should become international and be managed by the UN. But the US government is known not to agree with such options, see with the ICANN. So international funding should come into the network, into the form of new antennas in new places, the whole thing managed like an economical association, and technically by a centralized unifom authority.




Why does it have to be a terrestrial system, an orbital system could work without the international implications.
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djellison
post May 26 2006, 03:28 PM
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QUOTE (Jim from NSF.com @ May 26 2006, 12:44 PM) *
an orbital system could work without the international implications.


Would cost an extraordinary ammount of money, would still require a groundstation, and would be impossible to improve over time.

Doug
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Posts in this topic
- BruceMoomaw   GAO: The DSN is actually falling apart   May 24 2006, 11:55 PM
- - Analyst   No Reply yet, although without the DSN no planetar...   May 26 2006, 09:14 AM
|- - Richard Trigaux   Things will not spontaneously become better. DSN ...   May 26 2006, 10:44 AM
|- - Jim from NSF.com   QUOTE (Richard Trigaux @ May 26 2006, 06...   May 26 2006, 11:44 AM
||- - Richard Trigaux   QUOTE (Jim from NSF.com @ May 26 2006, 11...   May 26 2006, 02:28 PM
||- - djellison   QUOTE (Jim from NSF.com @ May 26 2006, 12...   May 26 2006, 03:28 PM
||- - Jim from NSF.com   QUOTE (djellison @ May 26 2006, 11:28 AM)...   May 26 2006, 07:01 PM
|- - Chmee   QUOTE (Richard Trigaux @ May 26 2006, 06...   May 26 2006, 07:42 PM
- - Analyst   (Upfront and/or operating) costs? Size (70m) and p...   May 26 2006, 12:21 PM
|- - Richard Trigaux   QUOTE (Analyst @ May 26 2006, 12:21 PM) A...   May 26 2006, 02:45 PM
- - RNeuhaus   What would be the solution? More 70 meters antenna...   May 26 2006, 04:03 PM
- - Richard Trigaux   A suggest RNeuhaus, there exist new antenna techno...   May 26 2006, 05:46 PM
- - djellison   Were there any problems w.r.t. politicis, one coul...   May 26 2006, 06:22 PM
- - elakdawalla   There was a lengthy presentation by Bob Preston fr...   May 26 2006, 06:46 PM
|- - Richard Trigaux   QUOTE (elakdawalla @ May 26 2006, 06:46 P...   May 26 2006, 07:12 PM
||- - Bob Shaw   QUOTE (Richard Trigaux @ May 26 2006, 08...   May 26 2006, 11:01 PM
|- - RNeuhaus   QUOTE (elakdawalla @ May 26 2006, 01:46 P...   May 26 2006, 07:29 PM
- - djellison   There is already international involvement to some...   May 26 2006, 07:44 PM
|- - AlexBlackwell   QUOTE (djellison @ May 26 2006, 07:44 PM)...   May 26 2006, 07:48 PM
||- - Bob Shaw   QUOTE (AlexBlackwell @ May 26 2006, 08:48...   May 26 2006, 10:48 PM
|- - Richard Trigaux   QUOTE (djellison @ May 26 2006, 07:44 PM)...   May 26 2006, 08:23 PM
|- - AlexBlackwell   QUOTE (Richard Trigaux @ May 26 2006, 08...   May 26 2006, 08:28 PM
- - djellison   Truth be told, I could go even further and say tha...   May 26 2006, 08:14 PM
|- - Richard Trigaux   QUOTE (djellison @ May 26 2006, 08:14 PM)...   May 26 2006, 08:36 PM
|- - DonPMitchell   QUOTE (Richard Trigaux @ May 26 2006, 01...   May 27 2006, 02:21 AM
|- - Richard Trigaux   Thanks DonPMitchell to bring more exact info than ...   May 27 2006, 07:30 AM
|- - djellison   QUOTE (Richard Trigaux @ May 27 2006, 08...   May 27 2006, 07:39 AM
|- - garybeau   Regardless of how much money is spent upgrading th...   May 27 2006, 01:26 PM
- - djellison   ESA is slowly getting there with a DSN of it's...   May 27 2006, 07:05 AM
- - DonPMitchell   Space programs have a long history of "Not In...   May 27 2006, 03:57 PM
|- - helvick   QUOTE (DonPMitchell @ May 27 2006, 04:57 ...   May 27 2006, 05:04 PM
||- - Richard Trigaux   QUOTE (helvick @ May 27 2006, 05:04 PM) N...   May 29 2006, 01:14 PM
|- - Richard Trigaux   QUOTE (DonPMitchell @ May 27 2006, 03:57 ...   May 29 2006, 12:58 PM
- - DonPMitchell   I agree, Kourou is strategically important, it wou...   May 27 2006, 05:31 PM


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