|
Parabolic
reflector withstands wind loads of more than 112 MPH
 When Typhoon Higos slammed into
Japan earlier this month (October 1 and 2) wind gusts exceeding 120
MPH caused extensive damage to the Tokyo area. Four people lost
their lives and 55 others were injured in the storm as high winds
halted trains and prompted officials in some northern cities to urge
people to evacuate fearing landslides. At least 23,000 households
lost power.
Higos, which means "fig" in
the native language of the Pacific island of Guam, was the
third-strongest typhoon to ravage Tokyo since World War II.
VertexRSI's customer, the
Communications Research Laboratory, in nearby Kashima, Japan,
reported that its 34-meter Radio Telescope came through the storm
intact and undamaged even though the parabolic reflector received
wind loads of more than 112 MPH.
 VertexRSI received the following
letter:
Dear Yuki (Watabnabe) san,
Please forward this e-mail to Phat
san and to whom it may concern at Vertex Large Antenna division.
Yesterday, Japanese mainland was
attacked by extremely heavy typhoon Higos. This typhoon was one of
the biggest in the record. Kashima 34m was located very close to the
typhoon path and experienced 50 m/s wind load (112mph ed.). This
morning I saw in the town that roofs of the houses were blown away,
many signs and trees are broken. As you see the attached file, local
tower of power line, several of them are totally destroyed. During
the storm we could do nothing to the telescope. The outside was too
dangerous to walk. We could not even open the door of the houses.
But here I tell you that the
Kashima 34m survived under the heavy condition fortunately. Flying
branch of pine tree were caught by antenna structure. Mechanically
it is working perfect even after the disaster. I really respect the
technology and the related people who design, built and maintain
this antenna. Our precious 34m telescope is all right. Thank you
very much.
Best Regards
Junichi Nakajima CRL, Kashima
Radio Astronomy Applications Group
Bernard Cahlander, vice president
of VertexRSI's Santa Clara unit, said, "The 34-meter Radio
Telescope built for the Communications Research Laboratory in
Kashima, operates in 11 frequency bands in the range of 300MHz to 49
GHz and is used for radio-astronomy and VLBI (Very Long Baseline
Interferometer) research within an international network of similar
units. The telescope was installed and has been in operation since
1989."
"The reflector, pedestals and
components that make up the telescope are designed to withstand
severe weather conditions, but this testimonial reinforces our
pronouncements on quality in a way that cannot be surpassed. We are
very pleased that our customer has such a high regard for the way we
design, build and maintain our equipment."
|
