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Flying WV
West Virginia University · Radio Astronomy Instrumentation Laboratory DSPIRA

Module

Horn Construction

The antenna itself, built from insulation board, lumber, and a can from the paint aisle.

5 lessons, in the order they are meant to be worked through

A finished horn telescope on its wooden stand in a field.

The horn is the telescope. The antenna is pyramidal, with a wooden mount. It uses locally available tools and materials: foil-faced insulation board, aluminum tape, and dimensional lumber. A one-gallon square paint-thinner can forms the feed.

The cradle holds the horn and lets it turn on one axis, so elevation is easy to set. Bolt it to a base of your choosing. The wooden stand described here is sturdy and inexpensive. It is no wider than 75 cm, so it fits through a standard doorway.

These lessons take it from a flat sheet to a finished, mounted instrument. The electronics that go behind it are in the Receiver Electronics module.

Two parts of the build are documented as drawings rather than as lessons:

  • The horn cradle — the frame that carries the horn and sets its elevation.
  • The base stand — a simple, sturdy base for the cradle to bolt to.

A completed horn assembled is a short video showing how the horn-can, cradle and stand go together.

5 lessons in this module

  1. What is Needed to Build a Horn Radio Telescope

    Overview of the different parts of a horn telescope

  2. Horn Construction Information

    An overview of horn construction is described, with appropriate links

  3. Horn and Can Assembly

    Instructions for building horn-can component

  4. Detailed Instructions for Assembling the CAN

    The CAN is made up of a paint thinner can and an antenna

  5. Other Horn Designs

    Links to building other horn designs

All lessons