🛰️ When Eddy Currents Went to Space: The First Satellite Transmission of NDT Data

By Edward Korkowski - eddycurrent.com

In August 1992, something quietly revolutionary happened in the world of nondestructive testing (NDT). At the Prairie Island Nuclear Plant in Minnesota, a team of Zetec engineers did something no one had done before:

They beamed eddy current inspection data into space—and received it in real time across the country.

What sounds routine today was radical at the time. The internet was in its infancy, laptops were the size of briefcases, and most ECT analysis was still performed a stones-throw away from the data acquisition bus. But Zetec’s team saw the future—and built it.

📡 A Satellite, a Steam Generator, and a Vision

Until then, most steam generator inspections were analyzed in trailers or shipping containers connected to the LAN by data cables. Analysts sat side-by-side, zooming and scrolling miles of tubing data, carefully examining the always-on-the-move impedance traces. If you needed expert consultation from headquarters? That meant a phone call and waiting for someone to fly in.

But Zetec’s team had other ideas. By installing a 2.4-meter satellite dish at their Issaquah, Washington headquarters and linking it with GE-SATCOM K1, they created a live, bi-directional data stream. ECT signals collected on the plant floor were viewed and analyzed by senior engineers thousands of miles away.

🧠 Remote Intelligence Before It Was Cool

The significance? This was 1992—before Zoom, Teams, or cloud computing.

To make it work, Zetec engineers had to modify their existing software to handle satellite delays and ensure no data corruption. What they created was a remote diagnostics proof-of-concept that’s still relevant today:

• Reduced on-site staffing without sacrificing quality

• Live expert feedback without delay

• Real-time signal interpretation from anywhere

It was the beginning of something bigger: the shift from on-site analysis to anywhere, anytime inspection expertise.

🧭 Why This Matters Today

Fast-forward to now. Remote analysis, remote data management, remote integrity engineering, remote data review for regulators, cloud-based inspection archiving—none of that would be possible without these early steps.

Zetec’s satellite transmission wasn’t just about sending signals. It was about breaking the boundaries between inspection and interpretation. It proved that signal fidelity, teamwork, and expertise didn’t need to share the same room—or even the same state.

Today, with inspectors spread across countries and critical decisions being made remotely, that 1992 breakthrough reads less like a novelty—and more like a milestone in NDT evolution.

📘 Fun Sidebar: From Tubes to Transponders

Zetec’s 1992 satellite link wasn’t just a tech stunt—it was a proof-of-concept that NDT didn’t have to stop at the control room. When signals could fly across the country, analysis no longer needed to be right around the corner from the instrument and probes.

Want to know more about the evolution of NDT? Explore historical papers, modern training tools, and more at eddycurrent.com — your one-stop hub for all things electromagnetic inspection.