Deep Space Network (DSN)
Red del Espacio Profundo (DSN)
- Date
- 1958-1965 · confidence medium
- Place
- Goldstone, California, United States
- Credited to
- JPL / NASA
- Field
- Communication
⚠️ Disputed: the sources disagree.
What it is
A network of large antennas in California, Spain (Robledo de Chavela) and Australia (Tidbinbilla) that provides continuous coverage of distant probes. Spaced about 120 degrees apart, one always has the craft in view.
Goldstone began in 1958; Woomera (Australia) and South Africa in 1960-1961; Robledo de Chavela and Tidbinbilla in 1965, and the South African station closed in 1974. The milestone date is approximate, as the network was built in stages up to 1965.
What it led to
- communication and navigation for all planetary probes
- radio science and gravimetry in planetary research
- contact with Voyager from over 20 billion km away