Science & Tech
La Posta Astro-Geophysical Observatory was a Navy Electronics Laboratory radio-telescope installation near Campo in California’s Laguna Mountains, built in 1964 around a 60-foot dish at about 3,900 feet elevation. Serving as both an astronomical and geophysical research instrument, it contributed to solar radio mapping, environmental disturbance studies, microwave research, propagation research, and ionospheric forecasting. Its work supported communication planning for Apollo launches, when solar activity could affect links between ground stations and space capsules. The observatory was highly self-contained, with turbine-generated power, computer-controlled operations, and closed-circuit monitoring. Decommissioned in 1986, its dish stood unused for years before dismantling began in 2015.
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