April 2010 - AMSAT-BB - mailman.amsat.org

Sounds for wisp
by Vincenzo Mone 24 Apr '10

24 Apr '10

Hi folks, anybody has or can tell me where to find the wave files that announce the incoming satellites for the wisp program? I mean also the ones for the new birds Launched recently. Thanks in advanced 73 de Enzo IK8OZV EasyLog 5 BetaTester EasyLog PDA BetaTester WinBollet BetaTester D.C.I. CheckPoint Regione Campania Skype: ik8ozv8520 *************************************** ***** GSM +39 338 9749786 ***** ***** SMS +39 338 9749786 ***** ***** FAX +39 328 7244294 ***** *** 2nd e-mail: vimone(a)tin.it *** ***************************************

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SO-67
by Vincenzo Mone 24 Apr '10

24 Apr '10

Hello to all, right a few seconds ago I had a good pass of SO-67 but unfortunately I did not hear nothing on the frequency of 435.345 on FM mode. Please I would like to know if it is alive or not. Can I hear something? Thanks in advance. 73 de Enzo IK8OZV EasyLog 5 BetaTester EasyLog PDA BetaTester WinBollet BetaTester D.C.I. CheckPoint Regione Campania Skype: ik8ozv8520 *************************************** ***** GSM +39 338 9749786 ***** ***** SMS +39 338 9749786 ***** ***** FAX +39 328 7244294 ***** *** 2nd e-mail: vimone(a)tin.it *** ***************************************

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x37b
by don 24 Apr '10

24 Apr '10

Has any one any info on this? Seems that it can change orbit parameters on command and may be able to stay in orbit, of one sort or another, for up to "270 days", and is designed to replace the space shuttle for "military" applications. No, I'm far from anti military, just interested in the technology that seems to have been developed by NASA and taken over by the USAF......... Cheers, Don ZL1THO

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AO-51 MODE V/S
by Luc Leblanc 23 Apr '10

23 Apr '10

I was alone on the first morning pass and 2 stations on the second one. Signal from AOS to LOS where booming on 2.4 with near 30db at TCA on an overhead pass. W1AW was calling on a couple of pass but they seems to don't hear anything N5UXT was also trying to call him with no success. Could be someone can call them to check if they listen to the correct downlink frequency or they have an issue on 2.4Ghz. Great mode but a bit quiet "-" Luc Leblanc VE2DWE Skype VE2DWE www.qsl.net/ve2dwe DSTAR urcall VE2DWE WAC BASIC CW PHONE SATELLITE

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Fwd: [PNWVHFS] FS... MORE SRRING CLEANING...
by Bob- W7LRD 23 Apr '10

23 Apr '10

I am not connected with this fellow. Just passing this email along, some stuff usable for satellite ops. 73 Bob W7LRD ----- Forwarded Message ----- From: n6eq(a)juno.com To: vhf(a)w6yx.stanford.edu, wswss(a)mailman.qth.net, PNWVHFS(a)googlegroups.com, icom(a)mailman.qth.net Sent: Friday, April 23, 2010 2:02:20 PM GMT -08:00 US/Canada Pacific Subject: [PNWVHFS] FS... MORE SRRING CLEANING... I have the following for sale: 1. ICOM IC-7000... hf/6/2/440 mobile in excellent condition. 1 year old... Manual, 12 volt pwr cord, Hand microphone, $950.00 2. Samlex Sec 1223... Switching dc power supply 23 amp at 13.8 Vdc. Brand new in the box $75.00 3. T.E System 4452G 430-440 Mhz. solid state amp in good condition 25 watts input 180 output. $450.00 4. IC-W32A H.T in good condition... Comes with Maha MH-A302 docking power booster amplifer, 144/440 input 1-5 watts 30 watts output 12v dc. No manual. $185.00 5. 2 ea. Ameritron RCS-8V antenna relay boxes that mount at the tower, no in door control unit. $50.00 ea. 6. SSB SP-2000 Mast mounted 2 meter pre amp $150.00 Prices don't include shipping 7 3 de N6EQ Chuck (760) 948-9025 ____________________________________________________________ Save with Skype Unlimited calls to 40+ countries starting at $5.95 per month. skype.com skype.com -- ~The Voice of the Pacific NorthWest VHF Society~ You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "PNWVHFS" group. To post to this group, send email to PNWVHFS(a)googlegroups.com To unsubscribe from this group, send email to PNWVHFS-unsubscribe(a)googlegroups.com For more options, visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/PNWVHFS

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Re: AMSAT-BB Digest, Vol 5, Issue 185
by Bob DeVarney W1ICW 23 Apr '10

23 Apr '10

Congrats, Loren. That's quite an accomplishment for a portable setup. Just as a yardstick, I got SAT VUCC # 64 back in November of 1996 so you are definitely in exalted company ;-) It's actually quite surprising there aren't more VUCCs done in that length of time. I wonder what the League's statistics are for the "regular" VUCC. Moreover, I wonder how many Satellite WAS or WAC awards have been issued since the 90s. I got sat WAS #299 in December 2004.. WAC is dated 1993, but I wonder if it can even be done now with the current crop of satellites. In the Oscar 10 or -13 days you could almost work it in a single pass. Has anyone heard if a sat DXCC has been done any time in the recent past? BTW, this is your opportunity, guys and gals on the -BB, to beat me up if I owe anyone a QSL card... I am coming out of a long hiatus so I'll put priority on returning those cards that people are really waiting on. Some random, Friday morning musings de Bob W1ICW ( the sat operator formerly known as WE1U ) ________________________________ > From: LOREN RASMUSSEN <lorenrasmussen(a)msn.com> > To: amsat-bb(a)amsat.org > Sent: Thu, April 22, 2010 1:48:49 PM > Subject: [amsat-bb] Satellite VUCC # 194 > > It came in the mail today. It took from > November 2009 through February 2010. > About 600 QSOs. FT-60R and an Arrow. > 36 states confirmed. > Thank you all that returned cards. > Yeah, I'm jazzed. > 73 > Loren > k7cwq > CN94 > > -- "I love the freedoms we got in this country, I appreciate your freedom to burn your flag if you want to, but I really appreciate my right to bear arms so I can shoot you if you try to burn mine." Johnny Cash from "Ragged Old Flag"

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Re: UHF/VHF Polarization Switch
by Bruce Semple 23 Apr '10

23 Apr '10

It just supports switching between RHCP and LHCP. Bruce WA3SWJ At 02:48 PM 4/23/2010, you wrote: >Is this M2 mod for LHCP or RHCL only, or are the linear >polarizations possible also ? > >Stan, W1LE > > >On 4/22/2010 9:31 PM, Bruce Semple wrote: >>Pete - >>I have had one for about 1 1/2 years - on the 70cm antenna. >>When the GO-32 9K6 BBS board was up it made the difference between >>reliably receiving and not. >>(I am working on getting on the AO-51 BBS) >>I know S meter readings are all relative -- I usually see at least >>+20 when the polarization is correct. >>I have roof mounted antennas so I was able to do the modification >>without taking the antenna down. >>I did shift the antenna mounting position on the boom to account for >>the extra length/weight. >>During installation checkout - I did have an issue with the >>protection diode that was installed across the relay -- I had to replace it. >>Other than that -- it has worked fine. >> >>73, >>Bruce >>WA3SWJ >> >> >> >>At 10:48 AM 4/22/2010, you wrote: >> >>>Hello, >>> >>>I've been asked by a club member if anyone has any experience using an M2 >>>VHF/UHF Polarization Switch, and what their opinion of it may be. I can't >>>seem to find any reviews on field performance, thank you. >>> >>>73's Pete >>>WB2OQQ >>>www.massapequanyweather.com >>> >>>_______________________________________________ >>>Sent via AMSAT-BB(a)amsat.org. Opinions expressed are those of the author. >>>Not an AMSAT-NA member? Join now to support the amateur satellite program! >>>Subscription settings: http://amsat.org/mailman/listinfo/amsat-bb >>> >> >>_______________________________________________ >>Sent via AMSAT-BB(a)amsat.org. Opinions expressed are those of the author. >>Not an AMSAT-NA member? Join now to support the amateur satellite program! >>Subscription settings: http://amsat.org/mailman/listinfo/amsat-bb >> >> >

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Satellite VUCC # 194
by LOREN RASMUSSEN 23 Apr '10

23 Apr '10

It came in the mail today. It took from November 2009 through February 2010. About 600 QSOs. FT-60R and an Arrow. 36 states confirmed. Thank you all that returned cards. Yeah, I'm jazzed. 73 Loren k7cwq CN94

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Wanted: Yaesu G-5400B azimuth rotor
by George Henry 23 Apr '10

23 Apr '10

Well, Yaesu just called to say that my azimuth rotor is unrepairable... So, surely someone on the list must have one laying around that they would be willing to part with? (just the az rotor...) Please reply off-list Thanks! George, KA3HSW

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Was: Arecibo, now confusing math
by Andrew Glasbrenner 23 Apr '10

23 Apr '10

If you really want to bang your head against the wall at how man can't agree on anything, take a look at the concept of long and short scales: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Long_and_short_scales Anyone who has worked with big numbers and old data just loves this one. 73, Drew KO4MA -----Original Message----- >From: Bruce Robertson <ve9qrp(a)gmail.com> >Sent: Apr 23, 2010 7:30 AM >To: Idle-Tyme <nss(a)mwt.net> >Cc: AMSAT-BB <amsat-bb(a)amsat.org>, Sil - ZL2CIA <zl2cia(a)amsat.org> >Subject: [amsat-bb] Re: Arecibo on 432 MHz Moon Bounce (some calculations) > >Just to add to this discussion of decimal separators, my Canadian >province of New Brunswick is bilingual, and therefore has overlapping >French-speaking and English-speaking school boards. Those in the >French schools and the 30% of the English who have opted to be taught >in French immersion express pi as 3,14, while in English education >they express it as 3.14. I always do a double-take when I see the >comma there in my kids' homework, but they are very comfortable with >using either system depending on the language of discussion. > >73, Bruce >VE9QRP > >On Thu, Apr 22, 2010 at 4:58 PM, Idle-Tyme <nss(a)mwt.net> wrote: >> Wow that's all messed up? >> I'm 52 and this is the very first time i have ever seen anything like >> this and i have been dealing with science worldwide all my life. wow. >> >> Joe >> >> The Original Rolling Ball Clock >> Idle Tyme >> Idle-Tyme.com >> http://www.idle-tyme.com >> >> On 4/22/2010 1:14 PM, Sil - ZL2CIA wrote: >>> Idle-Tyme wrote: >>>> On 4/21/2010 8:25 PM, i8cvs wrote: >>>>>> Comma or no comma, shouldn't matter >>>>>> 1000 mega watts or 1,000 Mega watts is still one thousand million >>>>>> watts! NOT one thousands watts. true? >>>>>> >>>>>> The Original Rolling Ball Clock >>>>>> Idle Tyme >>>>>> Idle-Tyme.com >>>>>> http://www.idle-tyme.com >>>>>> >>>>> Hi Idle-Tyme >>>>> >>>>> I don't agree with your statement: >>>>> >>>>> 1000 mega watt are one thousand million watt >>>>> 1,000 mega watt or 1.000 mega watt is only one million watt because >>>>> zero after the comma means nothing like 1,0000000000000 is still >>>>> one million watt or 1 MW >>>> NO! it's a comma, not a decimal point! it's one thousand, one >>>> thousand written 1000 or 1,000 is still one thousand they are exactly >>>> the same. >>> That's only true in the English speaking world, and this is the cause >>> of the confusion in this debate. >>> >>> In the Netherlands (and most of Europe), you would write one thousand >>> million watts as 1.000 megawatts. >>> >>> The decimal indicator in Europe is a comma. >>> For example, >>> 1,5 means one and a half >>> 1.000.000 means one million. >>> >>> Sil >>> (ex PA3HIL) >>> >>> > >_______________________________________________ >Sent via AMSAT-BB(a)amsat.org. Opinions expressed are those of the author. >Not an AMSAT-NA member? Join now to support the amateur satellite program! >Subscription settings: http://amsat.org/mailman/listinfo/amsat-bb

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X-37B NORAD 36514
by JC-Aveni 23 Apr '10

23 Apr '10

US Space track X-37B OTV1 Id NORAD : 36514 ; UN Id : 2010 015A 73 Jean-Claude TK5GH

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QubeSat structure question
by William Leijenaar 23 Apr '10

23 Apr '10

Dear AMSATs, I have a question concerning CubeSats structures. I am looking for a way to have a total space of a 1U (10cm x 10cm x 10cm) CubeSat, of which 0.5U (10cm x 10cm x 5cm) is used for electronics and battery and the other 0.5U will be used for light weight deployable solar panels. Has this been done before ? Any ideas ? 73 de William Leijenaar PE1RAH

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Re: Arecibo on 432 MHz Moon Bounce (some calculations)
by Idle-Tyme 23 Apr '10

23 Apr '10

Wow that's all messed up? I'm 52 and this is the very first time i have ever seen anything like this and i have been dealing with science worldwide all my life. wow. Joe The Original Rolling Ball Clock Idle Tyme Idle-Tyme.com http://www.idle-tyme.com On 4/22/2010 1:14 PM, Sil - ZL2CIA wrote: > Idle-Tyme wrote: >> On 4/21/2010 8:25 PM, i8cvs wrote: >>>> Comma or no comma, shouldn't matter >>>> 1000 mega watts or 1,000 Mega watts is still one thousand million >>>> watts! NOT one thousands watts. true? >>>> >>>> The Original Rolling Ball Clock >>>> Idle Tyme >>>> Idle-Tyme.com >>>> http://www.idle-tyme.com >>>> >>> Hi Idle-Tyme >>> >>> I don't agree with your statement: >>> >>> 1000 mega watt are one thousand million watt >>> 1,000 mega watt or 1.000 mega watt is only one million watt because >>> zero after the comma means nothing like 1,0000000000000 is still >>> one million watt or 1 MW >> NO! it's a comma, not a decimal point! it's one thousand, one >> thousand written 1000 or 1,000 is still one thousand they are exactly >> the same. > That's only true in the English speaking world, and this is the cause > of the confusion in this debate. > > In the Netherlands (and most of Europe), you would write one thousand > million watts as 1.000 megawatts. > > The decimal indicator in Europe is a comma. > For example, > 1,5 means one and a half > 1.000.000 means one million. > > Sil > (ex PA3HIL) > >

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Re: Arecibo on 432 MHz Moon Bounce (some calculations)
by Stephen Melachrinos 23 Apr '10

23 Apr '10

Ah, but this focuses on my question: Why is ERP referenced to a dipole? Why did someone assume that Arecibo's stated gain of 60 dB was dBd and not dBi? I've never seen the gain of a dish antenna used in satellite work quoted in dBd. All of the references for calculating gain are based on the isotropic reference. And all of the usages I have seen (in professional satellite work) use ERP and EiRP interchangeably, and the i in EiRP is used to explicitly state "referenced to isotropic." In fact, the amateur community is the only place where there is a fascination with the dipole reference. The dBd specs are useless for any real calculation purposes. Satcom engineering is much simpler if everyone quotes isotropic, and all commercial/government/military satellite link budgets are based on isotropic references. Steve Melachrinos W3HF (Professional) Satcom Engineer since 1979 > "ERP is about 243 MW" and > that comes from the conversion from dBi to dBd.

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Double da Donation!
by Clint BRADFORD 23 Apr '10

23 Apr '10

A reminder - You can make contributions online in the AMSAT Store - and the Dayton Amateur Radio Association (DARA) will match one-for-one any donations made to AMSAT between now and June 30, 2010 up to a maximum of $5,000. No, only your half is tax-deductible for you ... (grin) What a great way to show your support of amateur satellites! Please tell your ham friends and club members! Clint Bradford, K6LCS 909-241-7666

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Re: Arecibo on 432 MHz Moon Bounce (some calculations)
by Edward Cole 23 Apr '10

23 Apr '10

At 02:20 AM 4/22/2010, Stephen Melachrinos wrote: >Ah, but this focuses on my question: Why is ERP referenced to a >dipole? Why did someone assume that Arecibo's stated gain of 60 dB >was dBd and not dBi? I've never seen the gain of a dish antenna used >in satellite work quoted in dBd. All of the references for >calculating gain are based on the isotropic reference. And all of >the usages I have seen (in professional satellite work) use ERP and >EiRP interchangeably, and the i in EiRP is used to explicitly state >"referenced to isotropic." > >In fact, the amateur community is the only place where there is a >fascination with the dipole reference. > >The dBd specs are useless for any real calculation purposes. Satcom >engineering is much simpler if everyone quotes isotropic, and all >commercial/government/military satellite link budgets are based on >isotropic references. > >Steve Melachrinos >W3HF >(Professional) Satcom Engineer since 1979 > > > > "ERP is about 243 MW" and > > that comes from the conversion from dBi to dBd. >_______________________________________________ >Sent via AMSAT-BB(a)amsat.org. Opinions expressed are those of the author. >Not an AMSAT-NA member? Join now to support the amateur satellite program! >Subscription settings: http://amsat.org/mailman/listinfo/amsat-bb In fact the first gain number published over a month ago was 58 dBi. Then I suppose a bunch of hams complained that they didn't understand isotropic gain so the Arecibo folks kindly converted the number to 60 dBd. (i.e. unity isotropic gain, dBi=0, is what a true omni-directional antenna produces in free space) Does anyone on this reflector know the formula for calculating gain of a parabolic dish (Yes, I know-I'm asking if you know)? Did you know that Arecibo dish is spherical and not parabolic? So we can only use the gain number they provide (BTW the UHF line-feed corrects for spherical aberration of the dish surface at Arecibo). Arecibo can track a small amount of angle "because" the dish is spherical. It is my understanding (might be wrong on this) the line-feed can adjust for the amount of surface irradiated (which will change the gain). The formula normally used in radio astronomy and mw engineering is in terms of dBi. Most (not all) eme hams use dBi vs dBd. I am really amazed at this thread on amsat-bb. I thought the satellite community was more globally oriented (International). The different convention in expressing decimal numbers (aka using comma or period) is pretty well known (I thought). US/UK use period and most EU use comma. Most antenna analysis sw express gain in dBi 73, Ed - KL7UW, WD2XSH/45 ====================================== BP40IQ 500 KHz - 10-GHz www.kl7uw.com EME: 144-600w, 432-100w, 1296-60w, 3400-fall 2010 DUBUS Magazine USA Rep dubususa(a)hotmail.com ======================================

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Re: Arecibo on 432 MHz Moon Bounce (some calculations)
by Stephen Melachrinos 23 Apr '10

23 Apr '10

Nigel - There are lots of lots of reasons ... 1. All link budgets use a path loss calculation that's also referenced to an isotropic radiator. If you use antenna gain referenced to a dipole, you'll have to add back the gain of the dipole (referenced to the isotropic radiator). 2. It's the standard way of calculating gain for virtually all professionals in the satellite, radar, deep space, avionics, microwave and many other fields. 3. Arguably, dBi is less ambiguous that dBd. By definition, an isotropic reference has the same gain (0 dB) in all directions. A dipole has a directional pattern, so dBd only makes sense if you also define the direction. I believe the assumption is gain broadside to the antenna, but that is still an assumption. 4. If you don't want to actually do link budgets, so you say reason #1 above is irrelevant, then your only real purpose is to compare two different antennas. And then the difference is always going to be dB, whether the two antennas are specified in dBi or dBd. So I still say to use the universal, unambiguous standard. 5. Finally, and most significantly, your statement "Why would I believe, or want to use, something I can neither have, use or measure? An isotropic antenna doesn't exist." is just as applicable to the ideal dipole that is your reference for dBd as it is to an isotropic radiator. You can't build a dipole that has zero resistance along its physical length, you can't build a dipole that has zero interaction with its feedline, and you certainly can't achieve any placement that perfectly represents the "dipole in free space" assumption upon which the dBd reference is based. In summary, there are plenty of reasons whay virtually anyone who builds or uses antennas for a living, does it in dBi Steve W3HF > Apr 22, 2010 09:15:04 AM, nigel(a)ngunn.net wrote: > I guess because it's impossible to build an isotropic radiator and therefore just as impossible to measure it. > Why would I believe, or want to use, something I can neither have, use or measure? > > An isotropic antenna doesn't exist. > > > In fact, the amateur community is the only place where there is a fascination with the dipole reference.

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Tickets from Space
by Clint Bradford 23 Apr '10

23 Apr '10

PIPS Technology has developed a license plate recognition system that uses two cameras on the ground and one mounted on a satellite to catch speeders. Blog entry at ... http://tinyurl.com/39c9hlp Clint, K6LCS

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Michigan Grid Activation; EN74
by Doug Papay 23 Apr '10

23 Apr '10

All, I will be active this Thursday-Saturday from the northern lower peninsula of Michigan--primarily grid square EN74. Despite the fact that Traverse City is located within EN74, this is a rarely activated grid on satellite. I plan to operate as many passes as my schedule & time permits to give the opportunity for those who don't have this grid to put it in their logbook. Since I will only have the capability to operate FM voice satellite, my operations will be limited to AO-27 and SO-50, as AO-51 is in mode V/S until Sunday evening & HO-68 is not scheduled for FM operation this weekend. My tentative schedule is as follows: Thursday 22-Apr-2010 AO-27 18:48z - 19:03z (from wherever I am at the time, most likely EN63; possibly EN64) Friday 23-Apr-2010 SO-50 04:04z - 04:18z (upon request) SO-50 12:35z - 12:48z AO-27 18:21z - 18:34z* AO-27 20:00z - 20:13z* Saturday 24-Apr-2010 SO-50 04:34z - 04:47z (upon request) SO-50 11:24z - 11:37z AO-27 17:53z - 18:05z* AO-27 19:31z - 19:45z (maybe; EN63) *If there is significant interest, I will consider activating EN64 on Friday and/or Saturday afternoon. Send me an email off-list if you need EN64, if I have significant interest I will make an effort to activate this grid as well during my trip. I will QSL upon request, just send me an email and I will send you a card. No SASE needed, but always appreciated. 73, Doug KD8CAO

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Re: Arecibo on 432 MHz Moon Bounce (some calculations)
by i8cvs 23 Apr '10

23 Apr '10

----- Original Message ----- From: "Sil - ZL2CIA" <zl2cia(a)amsat.org> To: "Idle-Tyme" <nss(a)mwt.net> Cc: "i8cvs" <domenico.i8cvs(a)tin.it>; "AMSAT-BB" <amsat-bb(a)amsat.org> Sent: Thursday, April 22, 2010 8:14 PM Subject: Re: [amsat-bb] Re: Arecibo on 432 MHz Moon Bounce (some calculations) > In the Netherlands (and most of Europe), you would write one thousand > million watts as 1.000 megawatts. > > The decimal indicator in Europe is a comma. > For example, > 1,5 means one and a half > 1.000.000 means one million. > > Sil > (ex PA3HIL) Hi Sil, ZL2CIA In Italy you would write one thousand million watt as 1000 megawatt or alternatively 1000 MW In addition the units in Italy are written without plural and to write megawatts is wrong in Italy but the plural is used in England and USA In any calculator 1.5 means one and half because the calculators are not using comma. In any calculator 1000000. means one million I thing that the best for everybody should be to write numbars as any calculator shows. 73" de i8CVS Domenico

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Deployable Solar Panels on a 1U CubeSat
by Trevor . 22 Apr '10

22 Apr '10

Interesting presentation by Abhishek Bajpayee on deployable Solar Panels at http://www.ustream.tv/channel/CubeSatWorkshop/v3 A number of other presentations from the first two days are also available at this URL 73 Trevor M5AKA Daily Amateur Radio Email/RSS News: http://www.southgatearc.org/ Email Your News To: editor at southgatearc.org Or Upload Using Form At: http://www.southgatearc.org/news/your_news_1.htm ----

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: For sale, Yaesu VX-3R HT, ARR RF switched pre amp ( pre-amp sold)
by Michael Tondee 22 Apr '10

22 Apr '10

The pre-amp is sold. The VX-3R is still available. Thanks to everyone for their interest, Michael -------- Original Message -------- Subject: For sale, Yaesu VX-3R HT, ARR RF switched pre amp Date: Tue, 20 Apr 2010 17:19:26 -0400 From: Michael Tondee <mat_62(a)netcommander.com> To: amsat-bb(a)amsat.org I have for sale a Yaesu VX-3R dual band HT. While it is not full duplex, it works well as the RX side of a mode J handheld station. I've had it less than six months if even that long. It has never even been outside the house and is in like new condition. Of course box, manual, charger and stock rubber duck are all included. I'll also throw in a 3ft. long adapter cable that goes from the SMA jack on the radio to an SO-239 where an external antenna can be used. Price is $110.00 shipped priority mail in the lower 48. The pre amp is an Advanced Receiver Research SP432VDG with N connectors. The RF switching circuit is rated at 25 watts, I actually only ever used it on a receive only setup with the VX-3R. The pre amp has been mast mounted in a weatherproof enclosure. ARR says these units will withstand heat and cold extremes with no problem, they just have to be mounted in a waterproof enclosure if put outside. As with the HT the unit has seen very little use and is like new. Price is $85.00 shipped priority mail in the lower48. I will accept Paypal or a United States Postal Service money order as payment. Sorry, no international shipping. If you are interested, please contact me off list. Thanks for the bandwidth everyone, Michael, W4HIJ

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Congrats to K7CWQ
by Clint Bradford 22 Apr '10

22 Apr '10

Loren, K7CWQ, just received his VUCC award - using a FT-60R and Arrow Sat Antenna as his station. CONGRATULATIONS, Loren! Clint, K6LCS http://www.work-sat.com

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Re: Arecibo on 432 MHz Moon Bounce (some calculations)
by Idle-Tyme 22 Apr '10

22 Apr '10

do you calculators have commas? The Original Rolling Ball Clock Idle Tyme Idle-Tyme.com http://www.idle-tyme.com On 4/22/2010 1:14 PM, Sil - ZL2CIA wrote: > Idle-Tyme wrote: >> On 4/21/2010 8:25 PM, i8cvs wrote: >>>> Comma or no comma, shouldn't matter >>>> 1000 mega watts or 1,000 Mega watts is still one thousand million >>>> watts! NOT one thousands watts. true? >>>> >>>> The Original Rolling Ball Clock >>>> Idle Tyme >>>> Idle-Tyme.com >>>> http://www.idle-tyme.com >>>> >>> Hi Idle-Tyme >>> >>> I don't agree with your statement: >>> >>> 1000 mega watt are one thousand million watt >>> 1,000 mega watt or 1.000 mega watt is only one million watt because >>> zero after the comma means nothing like 1,0000000000000 is still >>> one million watt or 1 MW >> NO! it's a comma, not a decimal point! it's one thousand, one >> thousand written 1000 or 1,000 is still one thousand they are exactly >> the same. > That's only true in the English speaking world, and this is the cause > of the confusion in this debate. > > In the Netherlands (and most of Europe), you would write one thousand > million watts as 1.000 megawatts. > > The decimal indicator in Europe is a comma. > For example, > 1,5 means one and a half > 1.000.000 means one million. > > Sil > (ex PA3HIL) > >

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OZ7SAT? Off the air?
by Mark L. Hammond 22 Apr '10

22 Apr '10

Does anybody (Ib ;) ) know if OZ7SAT is off the air? I haven't seen any telemetry updates in over a week. http://www.amsat.dk/oz7sat/tlm/ Thanks, -- Mark L. Hammond [N8MH]

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Re: Arecibo on 432 MHz Moon Bounce (some calculations)
by Fabio A 22 Apr '10

22 Apr '10

Hello all, just a curiosity, how did you found that the ERP is "... 243,902,443 Million Watts". Thanks 73s Fabio iw8qku ----- Original Message ----- From: "MM" <ka1rrw(a)yahoo.com> To: <amsat-bb(a)amsat.org> Sent: Wednesday, April 07, 2010 3:06 PM Subject: [amsat-bb] Arecibo on 432 MHz Moon Bounce > Hi all: > Here is a EME event you cant miss. > Dust off your CW key, its time for Satellite, QRP EME. > > The 1,000 foot dish has 60 dBi on 432 mc and 400 watts. > That comes out to be approximately 243,902,443 Million Watts ERP. > > enjoy > > wf1f > www.marexgm.org > > (thanks to KB1MGI for passing on this data) > > > Arecibo on 432 MHz Moon Bounce > > The Arecibo Observatory Amateur Radio Club will be putting the > 1000-foot radio telescope on the air for 432 MHz EME from April 16-18. > > It can be heard with a small hand-held yagi pointed at the moon > > The scheduled times of operation are: > > April 16: 1645 - 1930 UTC > > April 17: 1740 - 2020 UTC > > April 18: 1840 - 2125 UTC > > Callsign: KP4AO > > Tx Frequency: 432.045 MHz > > Rx Frequency: 432.050 to 432.060+ > > Tx power: 400 W > > Antenna gain: 60 dBi > > System noise temp: 120 K (cold sky) > > System noise temp: 330 K (when pointed at moon) > > KP4AO can be heard with a small hand-held yagi pointed at the moon and a > good receiver. A 15 dBi antenna and 100 W will be enough to work us on > CW. > > Operators at KP4AO will do their best to work as many stations as > possible. Each session will start with a brief announcement and CQ in > SSB. SSB QSOs may continue for 30 minutes to an hour, if the QSO rate > remains high. > > The mode will be shifted to CW as soon as it is judged that higher QSO > rates would result. > > We will listen for calls at frequencies 5-15 kHz higher than our own, > and even higher if QRM warrants. Callers who s-p-r-e-a-d o-u-t are more > likely to be copied. > > If you've already worked us in any mode, please do not call again -- > give others a chance. > > If we call "CQ QRP", we will listen for stations running 100 W or less > to a single yagi. Please do not answer such a CQ if you are running more > power or have a larger antenna. > > On April 18, if we reach a condition where most calling stations have > been worked, and we judge that operating in the digital mode JT65B would > produce a higher QSO rate, we will switch to JT65B. > > Note that any of these planned operating strategies may be changed as > circumstances dictate. > > We are extremely fortunate to have been granted access to the world's > largest radio telescope for this amateur radio good-will event. We look > forward to working as many stations as possible in the alloted time! > > >From QRZ.COM > > KB1MGI ...snip...

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W1RJA EME event, Echoes of Apollo
by Luc Leblanc 22 Apr '10

22 Apr '10

W1RJA EME event, Echoes of Apollo Aside of the "Pickle dipole" did any one have an idea of their setup? (Amp power and # of beam element) A linear amp and the beam stacking is giving the required ERP on the TX side and the 3db stacking gain seems to make the difference between reception just at the noise level and something above the noise. This EME was a good overall satellite station test. 50 watts and one single beam was too borderline to have a decent 2 way contact but without the real Arecibo ERP TX figures it is hard to say if a setup is below standard equal or above. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZutOfYLPIMY "-" Luc Leblanc VE2DWE Skype VE2DWE www.qsl.net/ve2dwe DSTAR urcall VE2DWE WAC BASIC CW PHONE SATELLITE

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N3FJP Amateur Contact Log and LoTW
by Michae J. Wolthuis 22 Apr '10

22 Apr '10

Is anyone else having problems downloading data from LoTW for N3FJP's AC Log?? I have not been able to download data for about 2 weeks. I can upload. I get an error saying: The data file did not complete normally. Please try downloading the file again. I have tried about 25 times. Any ideas? It has been working so well! Mike Kb8zgl

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Balloon launch now!
by Robert Bruninga 21 Apr '10

21 Apr '10

APRS Balloon? I got an email to an anonomyous list about an APRS balloon launch any minute now from Oswego New York. Donno if anyone on APRS or AMSAT also got it, but here is a link to the launch site twitter account: The scientific transport that was launched at 1832 EDT can be tracked at http://aprs.fi/?call=KB3HCY-11 3 minutes ago via web All ? PBH-10, our test flight, was successful and we plan to launch our first mission at 1800 EDT (2200 UTC) 21 April 2010! Be sure to check our Twitter feed <http://www.twitter.com/PBH3> to for the latest updates. PBH-11 ? Duration record VHF(APRS): 144.390 MHz (North American Frequency) APRS Callsign: KB2ZWZ (Kilo-Bravo-Two-Zulu-Whisky-Zulu) Monitor APRS location at <http://aprs.fi/?call=KB2ZWZ> Downlink is on APRS 144.39 and also some HF: HF: 7.1028 MHz (CW) HF Callsign: K2RAM Monitor periodic status transmissions every 10 minutes at :05, :15, :25, :35, :45, :55 UTC Bob, WB4aPR

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CubeSat workshop
by Bryan Klofas 21 Apr '10

21 Apr '10

Hey Everybody-- The CubeSat workshop at Cal Poly is today through Friday. Presentations are being streamed live, and archived for future viewing: http://www.ustream.tv/channel/CubeSatWorkshop/v3 More information: http://cubesat.org/index.php/workshops/upcoming-workshops Thanks! -- Bryan Klofas, KF6ZEO

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SDO
by Trevor . 21 Apr '10

21 Apr '10

Some great SDO pics and videos at http://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/sdo/news/briefing-materials-20100421.html 73 Trevor M5AKA

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AMSAT-TAPR Banquet
by Martha 21 Apr '10

21 Apr '10

Please be advised that tickets for the AMSAT-TAPR banquet at Dayton will not be sold at the booth. All tickets must be purchased at the AMSAT store found on the AMSAT website. -- 73- Martha

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XE1AO @ DK88 on AO-27 today
by Patrick STODDARD (WD9EWK/VA7EWK) 21 Apr '10

21 Apr '10

Hi! Omar XE1AO will be in grid DK88 for the AO-27 pass at 2050 UTC today. Omar did not mention if he would use his normal call or 4B1AO with the special prefix XE hams are allowed to use this year. Good luck and 73! Patrick WD9EWK/VA7EWK http://www.wd9ewk.net/

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NASA Photos of Icelandic Plume
by Clint Bradford 21 Apr '10

21 Apr '10

NASA Observes Ash Plume of Icelandic Volcano - http://tinyurl.com/y5ucox7 Clint Bradford, K6LCS

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Re: HAMSAT Transponder Performance and Utilization - Reg.
by Elan Portnoy 21 Apr '10

21 Apr '10

I wonder if we might design a form for submission regarding 52's perceived health. If you all want to forward some items to include, I would be glad to brew something up and present it to the list.

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HAMSAT Transponder Performance and Utilization - Reg.
by Mani VU2WMY 21 Apr '10

21 Apr '10

Dear friends, On behalf of the Programme Director, Mission Director, Operations Director and the entire "HAMSAT" project team, I convey their message to the Global Amateur Radio Satellite enthusiasts & users through my mail. It gives us a great pleasure to inform the World Amateur Radio community that, on 4th May 2010, HAMSAT (VO-52) is completing 5 years of successful existence in Space rendering useful and fruitful services to the Amateur radio community. We as well take this opportunity with great pleasure to inform the Global Amateur Radio community, that the overall system health and performance of "Hamsat" - "The gift from INDIA/ISRO to World of Ham Radio" is good and satisfactory. To commemorate this mile stone achievement, we have intended to bring out a 'Comprehensive Performance & Utilization Report' of the payload (Transponder) based on the user feed backs from across the Globe. In this regard, we request all the Amateur Satellite Enthusiasts and users to kindly send us their feed backs about the performance and utilization of the transponder. A detailed report expressing their views, suggestions, comments, ratings and preferably a comparison note made with other linear transponders, those already been flown and currently available one's would be greatly appreciated. The feed backs may kindly be copied to my mail ID as well. I have herewith attached the mail received from Operation Director, HAMSAT. Looking forward to hear from you all. Thanking you 73 de Mani, VU2WMY Secretary & Station-In-Charge Upagrah Amateur Radio Club VU2URC ISRO Satellite Centre Airport Road, Bangalore-560 017. Phone:(O)91-80-2508 2054/2192/2537 Mobile: 91-80-98803 41456 E-mail ID: wmy(a)isac.gov.in vu2wmy_mani(a)yahoo.com isrohams(a)yahoo.com ----- Forwarded message from tprangan(a)istrac.org ----- Date: Wed, 21 Apr 2010 10:00:58 +0530 From: tprangan(a)istrac.org Reply-To: tprangan(a)istrac.org Subject: HAMSAT Transponder Performance and Utilization - Reg. To: wmy(a)isac.gov.in Cc: tprangan(a)istrac.org DEAR MR. SUBRAMANAI, This is to bring to your kind attention that HAMSAT is COMPLETING 5 YEARS of successful existence in space. I am sure, HAMSAT continues to be the DARLING of the HAM Community. To commemorate this event, ISTRAC is bringing out a "5-YEARS OF HAMSAT PERFORMANCE" Report. To make the report a comprehensive one, we would like to add the FOLLOWING INFORMATION. 1 PERFORMANCE of the HAMSAT TRANSPONDER as _perceived by the users_ 2 COMPARISON of the HAMSAT Transponder with her CONTEMPORARIES 3 Details of SATELLITES providing SIMILAR SERVICES 4 Approximate NUMBER OF USERS of HAMSAT in _India / over the globe_ 5 GROWTH of HAMSAT USERS, since launch 6 Approximate HAMSAT TRANSPONDER UTILISATION (transponder interaction period) over the globe (transponder is ON always) 7 Any more INTERESTING INFORMATION on HAMSAT KINDLY _DO THE NEEDFUL_ BY CIRCULATING THIS REQUEST TO OUR HAM FRIENDS. With Best Regards, T.PARIMALARANGAN Operations Director HAMSAT 0-9480333563 (M) 080-22029011 (O) 080-25350132 (R) ----- End forwarded message -----

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VO52 OK??
by John Geiger 21 Apr '10

21 Apr '10

Is VO52 doing ok? Got on a pass a few minutes ago (0330Z) which was a long lasting one here (80 degrees max elevation) and called CQ repeatedly. Didn't hear a single other station on. 73s JOhn AA5JG

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For sale, Yaesu VX-3R HT, ARR RF switched pre amp
by Michael Tondee 20 Apr '10

20 Apr '10

I have for sale a Yaesu VX-3R dual band HT. While it is not full duplex, it works well as the RX side of a mode J handheld station. I've had it less than six months if even that long. It has never even been outside the house and is in like new condition. Of course box, manual, charger and stock rubber duck are all included. I'll also throw in a 3ft. long adapter cable that goes from the SMA jack on the radio to an SO-239 where an external antenna can be used. Price is $110.00 shipped priority mail in the lower 48. The pre amp is an Advanced Receiver Research SP432VDG with N connectors. The RF switching circuit is rated at 25 watts, I actually only ever used it on a receive only setup with the VX-3R. The pre amp has been mast mounted in a weatherproof enclosure. ARR says these units will withstand heat and cold extremes with no problem, they just have to be mounted in a waterproof enclosure if put outside. As with the HT the unit has seen very little use and is like new. Price is $85.00 shipped priority mail in the lower48. I will accept Paypal or a United States Postal Service money order as payment. Sorry, no international shipping. If you are interested, please contact me off list. Thanks for the bandwidth everyone, Michael, W4HIJ

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NH6VB on HO-68
by John Neeley 20 Apr '10

20 Apr '10

This last pass of HO-68 over the Pacific produced another Hawaiian station, Peter, NH6VB. Leo, W7JPI and I were in QSO and at the last 5 minutes of the pass, Peter broke in from Honolulu which was a surprise. He is a local there from what we gathered. He's in BL01 grid square. John W6ZKH

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AO-51 V/S
by Bob- W7LRD 20 Apr '10

20 Apr '10

This last pass worked W6YX and heard Kerry, WC7V. Noticed some very deep fades. 73 Bob W7LRD

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Re: AO-51 V/S
by Bob- W7LRD 20 Apr '10

20 Apr '10

Hi Luc and all I am using a Transystem 3731AA downconverter. Also an old Kenwood TS-700A for the tunable IF. I have compared Keps 13LNC-PH downconverter against the 3731. The 3731 is virtually immune to desense to 2M tx as well as wifi etc. However the Keps (pricey) is affected by the 2M tx. Without the noise blanker turned on in the TS-700 I get lots of snapping, popping from wireless phones, wifi etc. The noise blanker in this old 700 is superb, better that the one in my 910! Go figure! Mind you this is all empirical evaluation using nothing but my ears. I have heard the filter in the 3731 is better than most. I will be shipping some of my dc's soon to a fellow who can give a very accurate evaluation on these devices. Hope this helps Luc, see you on S band! 73 Bob W7LRD ----- Original Message ----- From: "Luc Leblanc" <lucleblanc6(a)videotron.ca> To: amsat-bb(a)amsat.org Cc: eu-amsat(a)yahoogroups.com Sent: Tuesday, April 20, 2010 6:14:17 AM GMT -08:00 US/Canada Pacific Subject: [amsat-bb] Re: AO-51 V/S On 20 Apr 2010 at 2:24, Bob- W7LRD wrote: Date sent: Tue, 20 Apr 2010 02:24:55 +0000 (UTC) From: Bob- W7LRD <w7lrd(a)comcast.net> Subject: [amsat-bb] AO-51 V/S To: amsat-bb(a)amsat.org > > > This last pass worked W6YX and heard Kerry, WC7V. Noticed some very deep fades. > > 73 Bob W7LRD Did anyone ever tested their downconverter who is basically a receiver to measure the amouint of desense the WI-FI , spread spectrum and frequency hopper device and so on produce on 2.4Ghz? Desense is very noticeable on VHF and UHF when a transmitter is transmitting near a receiver as per i can see on a PCR-1000 scope screen there is always a 10db noise floor but i'm not sure if this level is not really much higher as the scope seems to not be fast enough to display the real peak level of all the signal on 2.4Ghz. If a fairly high amount of desense is always present this could explain why the downconverter is lacking sensitivity and why some normal fades appears deeper than they really are. And what is worse is the WI-FI QRM is also right on the received 2.4Ghz amateur band. Here i have to switch off my WI-FI router and my 2.4Ghz camera when i want to listen on 2.4Ghz and the camera is the worse as she give 30 over 9 very wide spread signal. Opinions are welcome. "-" Luc Leblanc VE2DWE Skype VE2DWE www.qsl.net/ve2dwe DSTAR urcall VE2DWE WAC BASIC CW PHONE SATELLITE _______________________________________________ Sent via AMSAT-BB(a)amsat.org. Opinions expressed are those of the author. Not an AMSAT-NA member? Join now to support the amateur satellite program! Subscription settings: http://amsat.org/mailman/listinfo/amsat-bb

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Eastern VHF Conference Arecibo EME video
by Steve Meuse 20 Apr '10

20 Apr '10

This past weekend was the 36th Eastern VHF Conference in Endfield, CT, hosted by the Northeast Weak Signal Group. We had a complete 432 EME station on the air and used the club calsign, W1RJA, to make contact with Arecibo, KP4AO. Dave Olean, K1WHS, and Bob Petersen, KB2RWW, provided a tower, rig, KW amp, antennas and everything else to make it all happen. It was a great event! I put together a 10 minute video of the event up on Youtube: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZutOfYLPIMY enjoy! -Steve N1JFU - http://n1jfu.blogspot.com - smeuse@twitter P.S. (I accidentally mis-named our club in the intro, will fix at some point)

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DN31 and DN41
by Lee Ernstrom 20 Apr '10

20 Apr '10

Hi guys, I will be working SO-50 this morning from the DN31/DN41 line on the 1607-1620 UTC pass with my hand held and Arrow antenna. Hope to work you. If you would like a card from that location please e-mail me at wa7hqd(a)arrl.net and I will send you my QSL. WA7HQD Lee Ernstrom Syracuse, Utah

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Congratulations to arecibo activation
by Juan Antonio Fernandez 20 Apr '10

20 Apr '10

The day before yesterday I could receive arecibo in SSB and I received several reports, CQs and ending transmissions such as "over over". Yesterday I could receive very clear the CW signal, it was a very steadily signal. When they change to JT65 I called to EB4FXD and he told mo how I had to configure the software. The sofltware in an old version could decode 100%. Pedro EB4DKA could receive the signal witn a single CJU and a THF6, so they encouraged me to try the contact. I can´t belive my eyes!, I have never tried an EME contact but with only 20 minutes spare to shut off they sent your report !!!!!!!!. EA4CYQ KP4AO FK68 000 Thank you vey much indeed to arecibo operators, Pedro EB4DKA y Manuel EB4FXD. Every day this hobby is more fantastic. My setup is: - hy-gain 7030SAT with CP installed (15+15CP) - 90 wats solid amplifier - preamplifier - hard line over 35 meters - And old pentium 2 running JT65 Juan Antonio EA4CYQ

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Re: AO-51 V/S
by Ron Miles 20 Apr '10

20 Apr '10

On an earlier pass, worked Kerry WC7V and Dan KD6IRE, 59+ sigs. Thanks Ron

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Icom IC-9100 at Dayton
by Clint Bradford 19 Apr '10

19 Apr '10

Icom is expecting to show the prototype of IC-9100. It will be a combination of the IC-746Pro and IC-910H satellite rig. It will have an optional 1.2 gHz module and an optional D-Star module available that can be added to it. Expected availability is early Fall with more confirmed timing after we start production. Estimated street price for the basic model should be around $3k with more confirmed info after it is in production. Pre-release information can found on the Icom America website. SOURCE: Icom's Pat Marcy Clint Bradford, K6LCS

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Satellite sation for sale
by Peter Wilson 19 Apr '10

19 Apr '10

I have the following for sale FT736R with 2m + 70cm modules + ctcss module Gulf 2m/70cm satelitte antenna SSB 70 cm pre-amp Contact me offline for further information Peter G8KEK AMSAT UK 6897

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New Kenwood HT
by Clint Bradford 19 Apr '10

19 Apr '10

Yes, the new Kenwood HT will be shown at Dayton. Dayton 2010. SOURCE: Kenwood Leo, KJ6HI Clint

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Field Day 2010 Rules
by Bruce 19 Apr '10

19 Apr '10

The rules for AMSAT Field Day 2010 are posted on the amsat.org website. You can reach them by clicking on 'Awards and Contests' in the left margin. The direct link to the page is http://www.amsat.org/amsat-new/awards/ 73...bruce -- Bruce Paige, KK5DO AMSAT Director Contests and Awards ARRL Awards Manager (WAS, 5BWAS, VUCC), VE Houston AMSAT Net - Wed 0100z on Echolink - Conference *AMSAT* Also live streaming MP3 at http://www.amsatnet.com Podcast at http://www.amsatnet.com/podcast.xml or iTunes Latest satellite news on the ARRL Audio News http://www.arrl.org AMSAT on Twitter http://www.twitter.com/amsat

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Last Call
by Martha 19 Apr '10

19 Apr '10

This is the last call for reservations for Dayton. I am turning the rooming list in tomorrow. If you would like to stay with the AMSAT group, please call me today at 301-589-6062. I will not be able to get a room for you after tomorrow. -- 73- Martha

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