Usuda Deep Space Center

Usuda Deep Space Center was founded to transmit operation commands to deep-space explorers and to receive observation data from explorers. The location was chosen for its environment to receive faint signals from explorers at great distances with less jamming such as city noise. The center has been in operation since October 1984. The large parabolic antenna, the core component of the facility, has a 64m-diameter reflector and weighs 1,980 tons in total. The center also has a 10m-diameter antenna and a transmitting/receiving system to retrieve VLBI (Very Long Baseline Interferometry) observation data.

Geographic Position: Long. 138o 21' 54EE, Lat. 36o 07' 54EN
Altitude: 1,456m
Area: 98,302m2

Location 1831-6 Omagari, Kamiodagiri, Saku City, Nagano Prefecture, Japan 384-0306
Tel: +81-267-81-1230
Fax: +81-267-81-1234

Main Facilities

The main facilities of Usuda Deep Space Center are a 64m-diameter parabolic antenna, an S-band and X-band transceiver system, a hydrogen maser standard frequency clock, a satellite control center, and a station operation control center

64m Parabolic Antenna

Faint radio signals from explorers are collected by the 64m parabolic antenna. The signals are then reflected by the sub-reflector protruding from the main reflector and led via beam transmitter to the antenna room, where they are amplified by a low-noise amplifier. Radio waves carrying command signals to operate explorers and ranging signals to measure the distance to explorers are amplified with the power amplifier and then transmitted from the antenna.

Research Building

In this building, optical signals (converted from spacecraft radio signals) are demodulated to obtain observational and spacecraft-monitoring data and to extract ranging signals for measuring distance to spacecraft. The data are transmitted via communication network to researchers in the control center in Sagamihara.

Command data for spacecraft and operational data for ground equipment at Usuda Deep Space Center are transmitted to this building from the control center at Sagamihara via communication network.

Ground Station for Deep Space Exploration and Telecommunication (GREAT)

To fulfill high demand from recent deep space missions, JAXA has started to design and develop a new antenna as a ground station for deep space missions. The new antenna that can communicate by utilizing the Ka-band will take over duties of the present 64 meter antenna to support future missions as well as missions currently in operation.