                    
|
| Home NCS Installs New SHARES Antenna to Enhance High Frequency Emergency Radio
From October 3-5, communications workers removed the old Shared Resources (SHARES) High Frequency Radio Program antenna from its tower site off of South Courthouse Road, and replaced the ice-damaged antenna with a larger antenna system.
Hazzard said the installation went without problems
and that the NCS will be completing two important steps before the
new SHARES antenna resumes full operations. “We need to first
complete the required RF (radio frequency) sweep tests to ensure
the new unit performs to specifications,” said Hazzard. Once
that is complete, he added that the NCS needs to install new remote
circuits from the NCS’s Arlington operations center/radio
room to the tower site so the NCS can obtain full remote capabilities
to the new antenna. Recently, SHARES operators stood ready to respond to Federal Government needs during the Hurricanes Gustav and Ike, activating to its highest levels before, during and after each landfall.
Questions or comments concerning this site? Please contact the webmaster. |
Arlington,
VA. October 08, 2008 - A new antenna – installed
last weekend in Arlington -- will improve high frequency radio operations
for one of the National Communications System’s (NCS) priority
communications programs, allowing the NCS to better monitor and
participate in backup emergency radio communications in the event
of national emergencies.
Using
a crane, construction workers lifted and installed the 1,600-pound
antenna fixture into place last Sunday. The new antenna –
measuring 65-feet in length and 86-feet in breadth – replaces
a smaller model that has lasted about 12 years. Larry Hazzard, who
leads SHARES operations with the NCS Critical Infrastructure Protection
Branch, said he anticipates that the larger antenna will yield better
performance with improved gain and directivity.
