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{
    "url": "https://mailman.amsat.org/hyperkitty/api/list/[email protected]/email/DH6PG2ADFW7A4G3CVUZ4JUPB2TUF22DV/?format=api",
    "mailinglist": "https://mailman.amsat.org/hyperkitty/api/list/[email protected]/?format=api",
    "message_id": "[email protected]",
    "message_id_hash": "DH6PG2ADFW7A4G3CVUZ4JUPB2TUF22DV",
    "thread": "https://mailman.amsat.org/hyperkitty/api/list/[email protected]/thread/DH6PG2ADFW7A4G3CVUZ4JUPB2TUF22DV/?format=api",
    "sender": {
        "address": "amsat-bb (a) wd9ewk.net",
        "mailman_id": "21664df01bef4757931b7cdb42a9e768",
        "emails": "https://mailman.amsat.org/hyperkitty/api/sender/21664df01bef4757931b7cdb42a9e768/emails/?format=api"
    },
    "sender_name": "Patrick STODDARD (WD9EWK/VA7EWK)",
    "subject": "[amsat-bb] Tucson hamfest and DM51/DM52 on Saturday (27 March) -\treport",
    "date": "2010-03-29T19:08:19Z",
    "parent": null,
    "children": [],
    "votes": {
        "likes": 0,
        "dislikes": 0,
        "status": "neutral"
    },
    "content": "Hi!\n\nSaturday was another fun day, between the Radio Society of Tucson's\nspring hamfest and my drive to the DM51/DM52 boundary in southeastern\nArizona after that.  The hamfest had a good turnout, despite its \nlocation being changed at the last minute.  The trip to the grid \nboundary was also enjoyable, since I had not been out there in almost \na year.  I had been in the general area after another hamfest in Tucson \nlast October, but on that day I drove to the Arizona/New Mexico state \nline in DM52 for some passes that afternoon instead of heading to a grid \nboundary.  \n\nThis was the second time the Radio Society of Tucson hosted a hamfest\nin the springtime.  Last year's event was a huge success, after many\nyears of a mid-October hamfest in Tucson.  These events have been \nheld at the same location southeast of downtown Tucson, but there was\na change last Wednesday to the location.  Thankfully, it only moved \nacross the street next to a baseball stadium.  People were showing up\nas early as 0530 local (1230 UTC), even without any lighting turned on\nfor the lot where the hamfest was at.  As everyone started setting up, \nusing flashlights or vehicle headlights until sunrise, small groups\nwould wander to see the merchandise before the official start time\n(0700 local/1400 UTC).  I had an AMSAT table set up then, and was on \nan AO-51 pass just after 1330 UTC.  This would be the only FM satellite\npass for the morning, and I had a nice crowd listening to this western\npass despite it being a half-hour before the official start of the \nhamfest. \n\nAs the sun came up from behind the mountains to the east of Tucson, I \nwas able to do a couple of other demonstrations for the hamfest crowd.  \nAO-7 went by just after 1400 UTC, and I was able to work a few stations.\nLots of hams were curious to know how and when AO-7 came back to life, \nand I was happy to explain that.  There was a low VO-52 pass just after \n1530 UTC, where I worked one station on that pass (Roger W5QEP, in \nLouisiana).  Thanks to Jeff K7WIN, who used my phone's camera, I have \na YouTube video from this VO-52 pass. You can see it at:\n\nhttp://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LA2VEb8xr-c\n\nDavis-Monthan Air Force Base, a few miles/km east of the hamfest site,\nmade working FO-29 impossible at the hamfest.  There is a data-\ncommunications system on the F-16 aircraft at this base, and that system\nwipes out the FO-29 downlink.  FM satellite downlinks don't seem to be \naffected by this system.  It also plays havoc with 70cm repeaters in the\nTucson area.  Otherwise, I would have liked to try that satellite for \nsome of my demonstrations.  \n\nAt most hamfests, I'll get lots of questions on how someone would start \nout on the amateur satellites.  This time, I had more detailed questions\non that topic.  I was asked about specific radios and antennas, and \nwhether those would be suitable for satellite work.  I've been making the\ntrip down to Tucson for the past year and a half for their hamfests, and\nothers have done this before me, so it is nice to see that some are \nthinking beyond the \"what do I need?\" types of questions to see if they \nalready have the gear to try this out.  \n\nThroughout the morning, I saw a few satellite operators like Leo W7JPI,\nRon W6ZQ, Rafael XE2RV, Ed N7EDK, and Jeff K7WIN who all live within\nan hour's drive of Tucson.  It's fun to chat with fellow satellite \noperators, just as I enjoy answering questions from those who are \ninterested in trying this part of the hobby.  Thanks to the Radio \nSociety of Tucson for allowing AMSAT a space at their hamfest, and to \nthose who made contacts with WD9EWK during the 3 on-air demonstrations. \n\n**********\n\nAfter a quick stop for lunch before leaving Tucson, I drove a little\nmore than an hour to the spot I have stopped at in the past along the\nDM51bx/DM52ba grid boundary.  This location, 32 0.000 N 109 54.927 W \n(you can put that into the Google Maps web site, Google Earth, and\npossibly other web sites and programs), is along a road west of US-191 \nand south of the I-10 freeway in Cochise County.  I like this spot, \nsince I am off the main highways yet have a decent view of the sky from \nhere.  Only shallow passes to the west are problematic at that location.\n\nI had enough time to set up and be ready for the first pair of passes\nto the east.  AO-27 was passing by at 2111 UTC, and SO-50 would be in \nview as AO-27 shut off.  Lots of activity on both passes, and I was\nsurprised to hear Drew KO4MA call me at the end of the SO-50 pass at\n2126 UTC.  Since Drew has been working the satellites much longer than\nI have, it was a pleasant surprise to hear Drew tell me he needed both \nof those grids.  \n\nAfter those passes, I had almost an hour and a half until I had three\npasses (AO-27, then SO-50, then AO-51) stacked up.  I went to a nearby\nconvenience store to get some drinks.  When I pulled up, there was a \ncat sitting on top of a drink cooler just inside the front door of the\nstore.  With camera in hand, I snapped a couple photos of the cat.  I\nthen went inside to buy some drinks, and went back to the grid boundary\nfor those passes.\n\nAO-27 switched on around 2252 UTC.  I could only hear about 2 of the 7\nminutes starting around 2254 UTC, since this pass only had a maximum \nelevation of about 6 degrees out there.  I needed all 6 degrees for the\nportion of the pass I could hear.  I worked a couple of stations, then \na station on the SO-50 pass that went down the Pacific coast as AO-27 \nshut off.  Then I swung my antenna eastward, and worked a very busy \nAO-51 pass.  \n\nAfter those 3 passes, I had a break in the action until the next AO-51\npass at 0043 UTC.  I worked a few stations up and down western North \nAmerica, then it was time to set aside the FM setup and go SSB.  I had\nan AO-7 pass just as AO-51 went away from me starting at 0057 UTC, and \nthen an FO-29 pass about an hour later.  \n\nAO-7, at least in mode B, has quickly become a favorite of mine.  I use\ntwo FT-817NDs and my Elk handheld log periodic without computer control,\nand now I am looking to do this when I'm away from home.  I worked 4 \nstations, including one in Mexico (XE1/VE3OQC).  I heard another station\ncalling me (4B1AO), but was not able to make the QSO with Omar.  There \nwere a few others on that pass that I was not able to hook up with.  I \nhope to get more time on AO-7 during road trips out here, so I can be \nconfident I can get on trips where I fly to the destination and can't \nhave everything with me (not without paying a huge sum for baggage fees).\n\nBy the time FO-29 was coming up at 0150 UTC, there was almost no sunlight\nleft in the western sky.  The mountains in that direction helped make \ndarkness arrive sooner.  In any event, I worked four more stations on \nthis pass to wrap up the day on the radio.  I had a nice chat with KC7EQO\nin Washington state, who I had not heard on SSB previously.  Thanks for \nthe call, and for chatting a few minutes!  At the end of the pass, George\nWA5KBH called me in CW.  I switched my transmit radio to CW, and made a \nquick QSO with George as FO-29 was going away from me.  George - I \napologize for my subpar CW sending.  I need to work on that, since I am \ncopying in my head without needing to write anything down.  I'm trying \nto improve my left-handed CW sending - I'm not left-handed.  I am \nenjoying FO-29 since its recent return from the dead, and will be on it \nmore in the near future.\n\n**********\n\nOn the radio, I made 10 QSOs on 3 passes at the hamfest Saturday morning\nfollowed by 60 QSOs on 8 passes at the DM51bx/DM52ba grid boundary in the\nafternoon and early evening.  I have not plotted the grids I worked from\neither location, but know I worked stations throughout the USA as well as\nCanada and Mexico.  I already have blank QSL cards at home for the \nDM51/DM52 grid-boundary QSOs, and will update my card for the hamfest \n(grid DM42me) to show the new location.  If you would like a card for \nQSOs made with WD9EWK on Saturday, please e-mail me the QSO details.  If \nyou are in the log, I will send a card your way.\n\n73!\n\n\n\n\n\n\nPatrick WD9EWK/VA7EWK \nhttp://www.wd9ewk.net/\n\n\n",
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