This is a collection of images taken by NK6K during the thermal vacuum test at Orbital in October 1998. Bdale Garbee, N3EUA; Chuck Green, N0ADI; Harold Price, NK6K; and Jim White, WD0E were on hand to test RUDAK. Chuck also had other duties for P3D itself.

The RUDAK team set up across the highway from the spacecraft test site in a hotel with line of sight for the S-band and L-band antennas. We chose to be off site so as not to get in the way of the other spacecraft tests, and because of the wider range of food available.

• Clean room area. P3D was setup in the clean room before going into the chamber. Test equipment was set up in this area. Rick and Bob are tying rope to the antenna cables. This was used to support the RUDAK team across the road.
• RUDAK Station. Everything you need for a RUDAK station. Uplink, downlink, TNC/modem, laptop, official P3D hat. This mini station was used near the clean room before the thermal test started.
• The chamber at Orbital. This was taken before P3D was installed.
• We put antennas on the roof of the building at Orbital for 144, 430, 1296, and 2401 MHz. Bob throws the rope off the roof, and prepares to pull the antennas up the side of the building.
• It turns out that there are rules about who can stand on the edge. Bob stands back while an Orbital worker pulls the rope. Chuck Green is at the bottom.
• We had several tour groups come by, local hams as well as Orbital dignitaries. We'd been asked to take photos of our equipment only, but as you can clearly see in the background of this image, Orbital has a **********, two *********, and a large ***********.
• The working arrangements at Orbital were great. The lighting plays havoc with cameras, though, with a mix of various high output light types. This is the clean room area, Bob and Michael inside, Rick and Lou outside.
• Several RUDAK and spacecraft team members at the RUDAK Suite. Left to right, Peter, Harry, Lou, Harold, Bdale, Jim, Michael, Rick. A temporary station is on the table, we'd later move the couch and set up a table with three stations.
• The station seen above, uploading the operating system software to RUDAK. A very exciting and satisfying moment! (Maybe you had to be there).
• P3D is very large when compared to the rest of the amateur fleet, and it looks large when in the Orlando clean room. Seen in the Orbital clean room, is seems small. Here P3D is on its way out of the clean room to the chamber.
• The clean room gives birth to P3D. Do your own color correction.
• P3D will hang from this support in the chamber.
• Its always a nice spring day at Orbital.
• Lou and his high tech Wouff Hong. For the uninitiated, here is the original low-tech Wouff Hong
• P3D in the cradle that will support the IR heat lamps, seen here hanging above P3D. The point of view of the second image is in the direction seen in the Scope images that were taken inside the chamber during the test. A mirror made of reflective mylar taped to an aluminum plate was placed at a 45 degree angle leaning against the Scope lenses seen here in the foreground.
• Looking down the barrel of the S-band receive antenna toward the P3D roof antenna. The S-band antenna was in the room with us, the L-band antenna was in the other room of the suite.
• Here is the operating position late at night. Can you find all seven kinds of programmer food? Remember to count plain and peanut.
• We're not always snacking. This is the setup as it normally looked, two RUDAKS, no waiting. We're uploading code to RUDAKA and RUDAKB at the same time. We could transmit on 145, 436, and 1296 MHz, and receive on 145, 436, and 2401 MHz. Our antenna farm was subsidized in part by HRO and the Olde Antenna Lab.
• This is the only picture I have of Chuck Green, N0ADI, in the RUDAK room. Chuck shuttled back and forth between the RUDAK room and the spacecraft lab, building test widgets and helping coordinate the activities of the two groups. This is the only time he was still enough to get a pic.
• Peter, DB2OS, had a station at the hotel as well, directly below us. He could receive telemetry and send commands from here.
• Michael Fletcher OH2AUE lived here in the RF measurement den, just beside the chamber. If we lost an uplink or downlink in the maze of modes, telecommands, antennas, and dummy loads, Michael helped find it.
• As part of the RUDAK testing, we ran the JAMSAT Scope Camera. As described above, a mylar mirror was used to get images of P3D in the chamber. The quality of the reflection is poor. Here is a photo taken of a similar "mirror".
• Here is one of the Scope pictures taken inside the chamber by the light of the quartz IR lamps. See more at the JAMSAT Scope page.
• Finally, Lyle Johnson, WA7GXD, wasn't able to be at the thermal vacuum test, but as the lead designer of RUDAK he plays an important role. This picture shows Lyle (in the beard) helping me debug GPS power switching software in the clean room in Orlando earlier this year.

More information on RUDAK and more picture can be found on Bdale's Rudak Page.

Other Pages of Interest

AMSAT Home Page

P3D Lab Web Site

Surrey Satellite Technology Ltd

JAMSAT Scope home page

nk6k@amsat.org

Updated October 30, 1998

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