April 2014 - AMSAT-BB - mailman.amsat.org

CO6CBF news...
by Patrick STODDARD (WD9EWK/VA7EWK) 04 Apr '14

04 Apr '14

Hi! Hector CO6CBF is traveling around western Cuba, and called to advise of his plans for tonight and tomorrow. He will be on the upcoming FO29 pass around 0149 UTC from EL72/EL82 - he has already worked some passes from this area. For Saturday morning around 1200 UTC, he plans to be on from EL81. Good luck, and 73! Patrick WD9EWK/VA7EWK http://www.wd9ewk.net/

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FUNcubes 2, 3 and 4 in Spring issue of OSCAR News
by M5AKA 04 Apr '14

04 Apr '14

The Spring edition of the AMSAT-UK publication OSCAR News,now available for download by E-members, features a report on the FUNcube-2, 3 and 4 payloads to be carried on three new satellites http://amsat-uk.org/2014/04/04/spring-issue-of-oscar-news-2/ MO-76 $50sat is Revolution Education project of the month http://amsat-uk.org/2014/04/03/mo-76-50sat-is-rev-ed-project-of-the-month/ The final edition of the ARTSAT1:INVADER (CO-77) promotional video has now been added to http://amsat-uk.org/2014/04/03/artsat1invader-designated-oscar-77/ NASA - Roscosmos co-operation http://spacekate.com/2014/is-us-russian-space-co-operation-at-risk/ ---- Trevor M5AKA AMSAT-UK Website http://amsat-uk.org/ Facebook https://www.facebook.com/pages/AMSAT-UK/208113275898396 Twitter https://twitter.com/AMSAT_UK----

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TG9ADQ
by Wyatt Dirks 03 Apr '14

03 Apr '14

Just worked TG9ADQ on fo29. Also heard TG9ANF. They were both cqing on the same freq and neither could hear very well. Listen for them and hopefully get them in the log. I believe they are both using Omni antennas which is the limiting factor I believe. 73 Wyatt AC0RA

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13 colonies special event
by Jeff Griffin 03 Apr '14

03 Apr '14

It has been decided by the 13 colonies special event group that there will be no satellite precipitation in the event this year. I will look at this again next year to see if would be doable. It just doesn't make sense to do a 13 colonies event with only 8 states on the air. 73 Jeff kb2m

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Re: Arrow and ELK antennas
by Clint Bradford 03 Apr '14

03 Apr '14

I just had someone privately email me, berating me for making him click a link for background info on this topic, instead of simple posting it here. OK, here we go ... The Great Antenna Debate - Now that you have the basic information on the Arrow II and Elk Hand Held Satellite Antennas, you'll likely become part of the great debate as to which antenna is better than the other. The fact is, they're both great antennas! You'll have to decide for yourself as it all comes down to personal taste. Read the article by K6LCS - Clint Bradford as he attempts to put a final word on the debate! Every few months a thread starts somewhere on the 'Net - demeaning Arrow Antennas for whatever reason. Or the "Elk vs. Arrow" silliness - where one will tell all that one or the other is vastly superior to the other ... There's plenty of "Elk vs. Arrow" debate on the `Net. A lot of it pure rubbish - and not written by people who have actually purchased and own both units as they make their uneducated allegations. A couple of the re-occurring themes ... "Arrow doesn't publish gain numbers for their antennas." This is true. Maybe a little "arrogant" of Arrow, too (grin). But reliable test data is out there - and thousands of owners will attest that their Arrow Antennas are performing magnificently for what they were designed to do. "The Arrow is hard to transport." Well, I devote my entire Ford Ranger's covered pickup bed to my Arrow when I take it places. Rarely has it been disassembled. But to make it absolutely flat, all one needs to do is unscrew the three 2M element pairs, and you have a flat plane of an antenna. "Arrows are all engineered wrong - they cannot possibly work." A little story for you. While working for HRO-Anaheim a few years ago, I sold an Arrow to a client for working the satellites. I had first-hand experiences with the Arrow, and therefore could wholeheartedly recommend them to others. The gentleman was waiting for me to open up the shop the next morning, with his Arrow in hand. "I know antenna theory, and this antenna cannot possibly work - it is engineered all wrong - I want a refund!" - he demanded. Hmmm. Part of me wanted to discover if he assembled it correctly, and whether or not he actually tested it. But the other part of me was thinking, "Well, I can purchase it myself as an open-box item ... " Which I did. And it is the SAME antenna that I have used the past 6+ years for EVERY demo and presentation I have given. Moral of the story: The Arrow Antenna may not please some engineers. But it sure pleases those who desire to work the FM satellites. "The Arrow Antenna is much heavier ... " I have brand-new, un-opened Elk and brand-new, un-opened Arrow in my hands. The Elk package weighs 35.6 ounces. The Arrow weight 33.6 ounces. Any "weight difference issue" is, well, NOT an issue. And on and on ... EITHER antenna is a great investment. Most of the anti-Arrow nonsense on the `Net remind me of while my wife was proudly carrying her Nikon F in the 1970s (arguably the most significant SLR in 35mm history), others would comment, "Oh, my Pentax / Minolta / Canon is as good as that ... " --- But you never heard any Nikon owner state any such comparison ... (grin) How do the Elk and Arrow compare? Both work the FM birds very well. Either make working the FM sats feel like "cheating" - the gain is that dramatic over any HT whip improvements you might make. But from someone who has purchased both and has used them both, the Arrow "senses" the initial capturing of a sat's signal more definitively than the Elk does. I mean, in front of darned near every audience, I'll declare, "There it is!" - when those close to me don't hear anything of note. But that slight "dip" in the background noise ... no SWR meter can detect it ... you can just hear the beginning of capturing the signal better with the Arrow than with the Elk. This is NOT a scientific conclusion - just my personal observation after working the sats for several years with both antennas. ** And although it takes more patience and finesse to work with "lesser" antennas, remember this: One of the first 2M reception reports from the 250mW transmitter aboard the new ARISSat-1 satellite was from a gentleman using a STOCK DUCK on his Yaesu VX-8 HT! SO ... simple HT antenna improvements (Smiley 270A ... Diamond SHR-320A) are certainly viable options! Antenna suggestions - and DIY projects - on the ANTENNAS page at ... http://www.work-sat.com Clint Bradford - K6LCS (**Editor's Note: I have experienced this phenomenon myself! This really does happen.) /end/

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Re: Arrow and ELK antennas
by Clint Bradford 03 Apr '14

03 Apr '14

A discussion on the "Arrow vs. Elk" issue is posted here ... http://work-sat.com/My_Gear.html And I just saw an Arrow Sat antenna go up on eBay ... the ULTIMATE model, with diplexer ... http://www.ebay.com/itm/331169185629 Clint K6LCS

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PCSAT Spin rate still 0.6 RPM
by Robert Bruninga 03 Apr '14

03 Apr '14

For what it's worth: PCSAT is still maintaining a 0.6 RPM spin about the Z axis. Today for fun, we commanded PCSAT and got 4 minutes of 10 second data. During 100 seconds it completed 1 revolution which equates to 0.6 RPM, the same rate as 13 years ago. >From that we conclude that our (black/white) solar radiation differential pressure spin system is still working fine. AND that the white paint has not changed in 13 years in space (it was very expensive unobtainium two-part white space paint begged from a government launch agency). Only the equatorial antennas are painted black and white on the front and back to give us the Z spin. The others were "Stanley yellow". See the original photo on http://aprs.org/pcsat.html As a refresher, in addition to this 0.6 RPM around the Z axis, there is also the 0.02 RPM tumble about the Z axis since Z has a bar magnet to follow the Earth's magnetic field which then tumbles once over each pole. Users: Routine Digipeating via PCSAT is not encouraged, since every now and then (very rare) we do take a stab at commanding it, and invariably, just when we are getting lucky, someone hits it with a packet for digipeating and robs us of the ONE-PACKET chance we have of getting in. But then we so rarely command it, that it does not make sense to insist that no one use it either. Just glad it is still working (sort of)... Bob, WB4APR

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Arrow and ELK antennas
by Douglas Phelps 03 Apr '14

03 Apr '14

Is the UHF gain the same on both the Arrow and ELK antennas? I think I read that field comparisons seemed to indicate the were close to the same but the UHF part has 7 elements and, although I know its a log periodic antenna, the ELK does not appear to have as much UHF gain. Any help or experience would be appreciated. Doug K9DLP

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Oscar 7 and 73 – The old and the new
by M5AKA 03 Apr '14

03 Apr '14

Oscar 7 and 73 – The old and the new http://amsat-uk.org/2014/04/03/oscar-7-and-73-the-old-and-the-new/ Euroluna Ion Motor CubeSat Video http://amsat-uk.org/2014/04/02/euroluna-ion-motor-cubesat-video/ FUNcube-1 / AO-73 Transponder April 5-6 http://amsat-uk.org/2014/04/02/funcube-1-ao-73-transponder-april-5-6/ Launch date confirmed for UKube-1 which carries a set of AMSAT-UK FUNcube boards providing a 435/145 MHz linear transponder and educational telemetry beacon http://amsat-uk.org/2014/04/01/ukube-1-june-19-launch-date/ ---- Trevor M5AKA AMSAT-UK Website http://amsat-uk.org/ Facebook https://www.facebook.com/pages/AMSAT-UK/208113275898396 Twitter https://twitter.com/AMSAT_UK ----

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Re: Another theory regarding the Fermi Paradox
by Howie DeFelice 03 Apr '14

03 Apr '14

> The Fermi Paradox asks, if there are other intelligent civilizations in the > galaxy, why have they not come to visit us? ...They must have intercepted satellite transmissions of C-SPAN and concluded there is no intelligent life on earth. - Howie AB2S

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