Mie notches seen in small raindrops for the first time by the GRaCE radar

The GRaCE Radar - with TK designed Quasi-Optical circulator and high gain antenna  - has observed Mie notches at a frequency associated with small raindrops for the first time - a world first: Chilboton from the air - GRace is sitting on the Red Star GRaCE - G-band Radar for Cloud Evaluation - is a development of a 200 GHz Monostatic, pulsed, doppler, zenith looking, solid state radar by consortium of  the UK's Rutherford Appleton Laboratory, St.Andrews and Leicester Universities as well as commercial partner TK, funded by the UK's Centre for Earth Observation Instrumentation. The GrACE radar has given this Doppler spectrum - taken during a rainstorm by the Chilbolton-based radar i...

Continue reading

NASA/MIT TROPICS "Pathfinder" radiometer cubesat images Hurricane Ida

We are delighted that the NASA/MIT TROPICS pathfinder cubesat - launched on the 30th June into a polar orbit by SpaceX's Transporter 2 - is operating well, and giving useful mm-wave images of the whole globe - three examples of which  (at 92, 116 and 205 GHz) are below: Thomas Keating had the privilege of designing and making the antenna. There are a full details on NASA's www site here, with more technical details here - showing the progress of Ida ... and an explanatory video here (Thanks to NASA for the images)

Wanted: TOOLMAKER / EDM WIRE TECHNICIAN

TOOLMAKER / EDM WIRE TECHNICIAN We have a vacancy for an experienced toolmaker, preferably with EDM Wire erosion skills to join our team. Skills and Experience: Strong toolmaker experienceEDM Wire erosion desirableUse of CMM and CAD/CAM package would be an advantage We offer a competitive salary, flexible working hours, overtime, profit related bonus, generous holidays, life assurance and pension. Please send your CV by email to David Roberts: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

Calibration Targets for ICI ships to AIRBUS in Madrid

The TK team which has designed, built and tested the On Board Calibration Target (OBCT) for EUMETSAT's Ice Cloud Imager mission (ICI) assembled to wave goodbye to the last three target as they departs for our customer AIRBUS in Spain.... viz FM2, FM3 and the Flight Spare. Built to provide hot radiometric calibration from 183 to 660 GHz, all three Targets have been calibrated to a few tens of mK precision in our TVAC facilities.   From left to right: Nigel Richardson,  Andy Bagley, Marie Parsons, Georg Sebek, Trevor Walker, Kevin Pike (Project Manager) , Josh Martin, Frank Jennings, Stuart Froud and Richard Wylde Missing from the picture are Jorge Fenandez de Toro Espejel, Graham Ba...

Continue reading

TK further strengthens toolmaking sales team

Thomas Keating Ltd welcomes Bob Evans,who has taken the position of sales representative for our toolmaking activities   Bob brings with him over 40 years of manufacturing experience from making press and mould tools to machining aerospace parts, plus cost estimating of tooling, moulding, metal pressings and precision-machined parts. In recent years, he has moved into engineering sales. His experience helps him understand his customers' manufacturing issues and address these in a cost effective manner. Outside work he enjoys walking his dogs in the glorious Derbyshire countryside and watching most sports, recently discovering the joys of watching County Cricket   You can contact Bo...

Continue reading

Black Hole polarization betrays galactic centre local magnetic field

Great to see this image   Magnetic swirl: a view of the M87 supermassive black hole in polarized light. The lines mark the orientation of the polarization, which is related to the magnetic field around the shadow of the black hole. (Courtesy: EHT Collaboration)   in Physics World showing magnetic fied local to the vast Black Hole at the centre of our Galaxy, measured at  230 GHz We have supplied polarizing grids to a number of the institutions involved in the Event Horizon Telescope (EHT) Collaboration