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The craze among radio
amateurs for building 'Radio Telescopes', was charged by both
the believed discovery of signals from Andromeda in the Crab
Nebulae, which were thought to be possibly intelligent, but also
to be able to track the sputnik sattelite that was orbiting the
Earth and others soon to follow. For some years after WW2 there
was an abundance of cheap ex Gov't radio, radar and electronic
components, equipment and part assemblies available through numerous
shops. The best of these were in Old Compton Street in London's
Soho district or 'Henry's Radio' in Edgeware, London. I often
made trips to these shops and bought components, equipment and
valves to either repair or make up units. Many of these units
were able to be altered to work as converters in front of sets
like the R1155, R107 and R109. And with home made dishes using
fine mesh over wooden frames (even converted copper dish elctric
fire heater backs), on revolving bases, the received signals
caused the imagination to run wild. I expanded my research with
a fascination for making oscillators to work at higher and higher
frequencies. This was possible with the aquasition of 'disc sealed
gold triode valves' discarded from the missisle research laboratories
I worked in. (everything was potted in Araldite with gold connectors
to seal them permanently from atmospheric effects. If they malfunctioned
on test they were discarded .... much to the delight of many
of us). |
