Where would the DSN Arrays be located?
The DSN Array Project would be located at three sites at, or near, the longitudes of the existing DSN site. These three sites would be located at equal distances apart around the world. Having three equidistant locations ensures that a distant spacecraft has a direct “line of sight” with one of the sites 24 hours a day, every day ensuring continuous communications. The locations selected for array sites are approximately 120 degrees apart in longitude, which enables continuous tracking with a suitable overlap for transferring the spacecraft radio link from one complex to the next. The first new proposed array site would be in the western U.S., with later new array sites being considered for South Africa or Spain and central Australia. What the sites have in common are that all are dry, desert areas, a necessity for the functioning of the antennas. To enable multiple antennas to be built in the same location we also need a large flat landscape. And lastly, to protect our antennas and th
