One of my first jobs was at NASA doing SCADA OS work on a SEL810 used for climate research instrumentation (lidar,~1976). When they gave me the intro they pointed out a gray spot on the otherwise government creme cinder block wall. The 810 had a vacuum column tape drive that was old enough so there were zero parts available, the hub clips were badly worn, and they had no budget for a replacement. On high speed rewind the tape would spool off the takeup reel and out of the vacuum columns, the tape would then pop off the hub and go crashing into that spot on the wall, each and every time. Yet the researchers got their job done.
There was another 810 SCADA system controlling the 6x28 wind tunnel, also one I ‘cared for’. This is that machine, and some of my workmates. Amazing what you can find on the net!
