Big Dish

the long version

"NASA's visionary Deep Space Network (DSN), a communications grid that provides the backbone of antennas and satellite links that track and control spacecraft launched from Earth, continues to play an integral role in the United States' quest to explore space. Douglas J. Mudgway participated in the successful development and operation of the DSN from its infancy in the 1960s to its maturity in the 1990s. In Big Dish, he shares the story of the dedicated engineers who turned the initial vision into reality. Set against the Cold War race for technical supremacy in space, it is a story of international politics, intrigue, and amazing scientific feats." "Mudgway offers unprecedented inside views of both NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory and the antennas that have been indispensable in missions to the farthest reaches of our solar system."--Jacket.