This prototype ground station receives and processes 406 MHz beacon messages relayed by the Search and Rescue repeater on the NOAA Geostationary Operational Environmental Satellite (GOES). The messages are extracted from the spacecraft's 1544.4 MHz downlink frequency. A record of messages received and processed by the station is transmitted via an X.25 communications link to the US Mission Control Center (USMCC) in Suitland, Maryland. The station includes a 7-meter prime focus AZ/EL antenna, a down-converter, a receiver subsystem, an input processor subsystem, an X.25 protocol communications subsystem, and a computer (PC-based) processing unit.
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