The parabolic dish antenna has been restored to mechanical working condition. The control system has been researched and partially built, the next step is to install the control system. Once the system has been installed it will need to be tested and made operational. Computer software will be written and used for tracking. Initially the control will be from the Observatory Control Room that will be cleaned-up and outfitted with the necessary equipment for operations.

This project involves the knowledge and understanding of receiver systems. A superheterodyne receiver will be installed on the radio telescope. When this receiver has been installed and is operational it will need to be tested.

Receiver calibration is the first jump to a nominal system. Calibration is used so that when an RF emitting source is observed, one can convert the data to calculate an intensity of the celestial source accurately.

Calibration starts by using the output from the receiver, which is a voltage. Then that voltage can be turned into a number that can be related to the intensity of the celestial source doing the emitting. A common way to do this calibration is to calibrate the output in terms of an input temperature. This can be done by installing a noise source at the antenna in the receiver box. This noise source has its intensity calibrated in terms of temperature. From the control room one can switch between the connecting antenna to the receiver input or connecting the noise source to the input of the receiver. By switching back and forth we can compare the noise source to the antenna signal and hence develop a calibration scheme.

Once we have developed a calibration scheme the next point of attack will deal with temperature stability of the receiver. The temperature must be stabilized to keep the gain of the system from drifting. If the gain drifts one can not tell the difference between the gain drift and a change in intensity from the celestial radio source.

Temperature stability can be accomplished in a number of ways. Some of those may include insulating the receiver, liquid cooling, or just putting it in a controlled environment.