15 Aug
2009
15 Aug
'09
3:02 p.m.
Greetings!
This thread is bringing back memories.
Eons ago (60's) when I was servicing long range radar for the USAF once a month the third shift crew would have to verify the proper azimuth and elevation orientation of our antennas. We would stop all antenna motion, stop transmitting and crank the receiver gain full up. At a specific instant when the sun just broke over the horizon we would verify if the azimuth and elevation of the antenna was correct by using the large noise burst from the sun. Using this method we could get the antennas within 2 degrees of perfect orientation. It was a foolproof procedure because the location of the sun was always predictable.
Ahh.... the good old days! :-)
73, Dave _ K4DLG