The CAMRAS Foundation responded to a call from NASA to groups or foundations with a large dish. The volunteers were then selected to participate. “NASA has a list of partners and it is very nice to be part of it as an independent foundation. I believe there are only about ten institutions around the world that do that.”
CAMRAS also helped with a NASA mission in 2022. At the time, this concerned Artemis-I, a test flight. The fact that there are actually people on board now also makes it more exciting for the volunteers. “It’s real now: if things go wrong, they really go wrong. If a mission goes wrong with a few dolls on board, it’s a lot less bad and a lot less dramatic. Things really have to go well now.”
If you look around carefully through the telescope, you will see cups of coffee everywhere. But the men still look remarkably fresh and cheerful. They take turns and have a schedule for the night. They have to, because they still have many nights to go.
“We succeeded. We received a great signal!” says volunteer Tammo Jan Dijkema. According to him, it is most interesting when the rocket accelerates. Because the ship is still close to Earth, the signal comes in well. The closer to the moon, the worse the signal.
The signal disappears around 8:00 am. The rocket disappears below the horizon of Drenthe and can no longer be seen with the telescope. Van der Meer: “Now we have to wait until about one o’clock the next night before it rises and then we continue.”
