Madley Communications Centre
Encyclopedia
Madley Communications Centre is British Telecom's earth satellite
tracking station, between Madley
and Kingstone
, Herefordshire
, England
. It claims to be the largest earth station in the world.
, fax
and television
transmission and reception. The station is in the civil parish of Kingstone, although most of the former airfield is in Madley, to the west of the site. A Roman road
passes close to the north of the site.
and the Black Mountains
. This allowed the ground to take the weight of the large receiving dishes, but the most important fact was the lack of background electronic noise
. What nearby electronic noise there was compared to the strength of heat felt on the Moon
from an electric fireplace
on Earth.
airfield RAF Madley
, built in 1940.
.
(Time Division Multiple Access).
Until its closure in 2008, Goonhilly in Cornwall
provided a similar role.
Communications satellite
A communications satellite is an artificial satellite stationed in space for the purpose of telecommunications...
tracking station, between Madley
Madley
Madley is a village and civil parish in the English county of Herefordshire. It is located six miles west of the city of Hereford.-Other settlements:...
and Kingstone
Kingstone, Herefordshire
Kingstone is a large village in rural Herefordshire, England. It is located within the historic area of Archenfield, near the Welsh border and the city of Hereford. The parish church is dedicated to St. Michael and All Angels....
, Herefordshire
Herefordshire
Herefordshire is a historic and ceremonial county in the West Midlands region of England. For Eurostat purposes it is a NUTS 3 region and is one of three counties that comprise the "Herefordshire, Worcestershire and Gloucestershire" NUTS 2 region. It also forms a unitary district known as the...
, England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
. It claims to be the largest earth station in the world.
Earth position
It lies on Colstone Common at . The site dates from 1975 and is in active use for international telephoneTelephone
The telephone , colloquially referred to as a phone, is a telecommunications device that transmits and receives sounds, usually the human voice. Telephones are a point-to-point communication system whose most basic function is to allow two people separated by large distances to talk to each other...
, fax
Fax
Fax , sometimes called telecopying, is the telephonic transmission of scanned printed material , normally to a telephone number connected to a printer or other output device...
and television
Television
Television is a telecommunication medium for transmitting and receiving moving images that can be monochrome or colored, with accompanying sound...
transmission and reception. The station is in the civil parish of Kingstone, although most of the former airfield is in Madley, to the west of the site. A Roman road
Roman road
The Roman roads were a vital part of the development of the Roman state, from about 500 BC through the expansion during the Roman Republic and the Roman Empire. Roman roads enabled the Romans to move armies and trade goods and to communicate. The Roman road system spanned more than 400,000 km...
passes close to the north of the site.
Geology of the area
The site is in a sheltered rock bowl between the Malvern HillsMalvern Hills
The Malvern Hills are a range of hills in the English counties of Worcestershire, Herefordshire and a small area of northern Gloucestershire, dominating the surrounding countryside and the towns and villages of the district of Malvern...
and the Black Mountains
Black Mountains
There are several mountain ranges named the Black Mountains:* Black Mountains * Black Mountains * Black Mountains * Black Mountains * Black Mountains * Black Mountains...
. This allowed the ground to take the weight of the large receiving dishes, but the most important fact was the lack of background electronic noise
Noise (electronics)
Electronic noise is a random fluctuation in an electrical signal, a characteristic of all electronic circuits. Noise generated by electronic devices varies greatly, as it can be produced by several different effects...
. What nearby electronic noise there was compared to the strength of heat felt on the Moon
Moon
The Moon is Earth's only known natural satellite,There are a number of near-Earth asteroids including 3753 Cruithne that are co-orbital with Earth: their orbits bring them close to Earth for periods of time but then alter in the long term . These are quasi-satellites and not true moons. For more...
from an electric fireplace
Electric fireplace
An electric fireplace is an electric heater that mimics a fireplace burning coal, wood, or natural gas. Electric fireplaces are often placed in conventional fireplaces, which can then no longer be used for conventional fires...
on Earth.
History
The site first went into service in September 1978 on the site of the disused World War IIWorld War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
airfield RAF Madley
RAF Madley
RAF Madley was an RAF base situated in Herefordshire, England.The site opened as a training centre for aircrew and ground wireless operators on 27 August 1941. In 1943, the grass airfield was reinforced with Sommerfeld Tracking and the centre's population rose to about 5,000. The site was visited...
, built in 1940.
Structures
There are sixty five dishes, with three main dishes having a diameter of 32 metres and weighs 290 tonnes. Madley 1, the first of the dishes, tracks a satellite about 25000 miles (40,233.5 km) away, positioned over the Equator in geostationary orbitGeostationary orbit
A geostationary orbit is a geosynchronous orbit directly above the Earth's equator , with a period equal to the Earth's rotational period and an orbital eccentricity of approximately zero. An object in a geostationary orbit appears motionless, at a fixed position in the sky, to ground observers...
.
Transmissions
Madley was the first UK satellite site to transmit a fully digital transmission via a system called TDMATime division multiple access
Time division multiple access is a channel access method for shared medium networks. It allows several users to share the same frequency channel by dividing the signal into different time slots. The users transmit in rapid succession, one after the other, each using its own time slot. This...
(Time Division Multiple Access).
Until its closure in 2008, Goonhilly in Cornwall
Cornwall
Cornwall is a unitary authority and ceremonial county of England, within the United Kingdom. It is bordered to the north and west by the Celtic Sea, to the south by the English Channel, and to the east by the county of Devon, over the River Tamar. Cornwall has a population of , and covers an area of...
provided a similar role.
Other use of grounds
The grounds are leased as an educational nature reserve, Madley Environmental Study Centre.External links
- BT Satellite - Madley Communications Centre
- Madley Environmental Study Centre
- Calling Hereford Radio 4 September 2009