February 2015 - AMSAT-BB - mailman.amsat.org

Test Message
by Mike Jones 16 Feb '15

16 Feb '15

Please disregard

1 0

help
by Mike Jones, W6GYC 16 Feb '15

16 Feb '15

1 0

Re: [amsat-bb] CQ SATELLITE!
by Kevin M 16 Feb '15

16 Feb '15

Gus, I have no wish to debate with you. You are taking my message out of context and trying to turn it into a HEO versus LEO debate. You are discussing having a QSO and I am talking about folks who DON'T. They simply keep announcing their callsigns over and over and over again, announcing that they are using a handheld and all other sorts of details that they have repeated ad nauseum that have NOTHING to do with initiating a QSO whether it's to exchange grid info or have a pleasant chat. I would PREFER it if they WOULD talk about their dog, or their recipes, or their favorite beer, but that doesn't really matter because you were just being sarcastic to make a point that has nothing to do with what I was actually saying. So good luck with that. 73

3 2

CQ SATELLITE! CQ SATELLITE!
by Juan Antonio Fernandez 16 Feb '15

16 Feb '15

It is always the same . . . In SSB mode we can send CQ. In FM mode the first rule is "if you can't listen NO TX". The problema is that SO-50 no TX if no listen to somebody, so people when can`t listen they think that they can't be received by the sat. SO-50 is a specepial case that we will see more frequently on the space. It is the subtone system colateral damage. But if most of us know that the sat is usually collapsed or at least with moderate trafic, it is a reasonable way no call CQ. So my advice: - First of all listen, if there is some station that fit your log, call him. - If you decide to call, the best way is only your call EA4CYQ/P or EA4CYQ handheld. I think your locator it is not neccesary until you Exchange data. When you made a contact, you send your locator and the rest oh hams will listen it. It is a pity listening to Yuri (/mm) calling on a FM Sat from wet grids and other station, which clearly can´t listen him, calling CQ killing the chance of any QSO. To wrap up: - If no listen no TX - CQ only in SSB sats - In FM SATs, your callsign is enough to advertise of your presence. Juan Antonio EA4CYQ

1 0

Re: [amsat-bb] CQ SATELLITE!
by Kevin M 16 Feb '15

16 Feb '15

Clint said: "JOHN - Regarding "handheld" or "demo" designations - It take about a half of one second of air time, and handheld." So the "Iit ties up the satellite" argument is silly." NO. It's NOT a silly argument because of the encouragement of the entire concept and what it gives way to. I have heard things to the effect of: Whiskey Alpha One X-ray Yankee Zulu, Alpha Zebra zero zero, handheld 5 watts in Acmeville (repeatedly, to no one in particular, just taking up airtime) Whiskey Alpha One X-ray Yankee Zulu... on a handheld running five watts... the temperature is below freezing... somebody gimme a QSO! (this was a busy pass, but he called no one and apparently no one wanted to call him) It's USELESS information that wastes PRECIOUS pass time leads to the attitude of not being aware. It is COUNTERPRODUCTIVE to their goals, because instead of giving them a quick QSO, none of the experienced ops wants to call them for the umpteenth time and go through a long drawn out exchange. If they called me briefly, just call letters, I'd call them back just as quickly with a report and done. Then on to the next one, or back to listening for the new grid/DX station that's expected to show up. And so MANY people are running five watts or less using a handheld it doesn't make any sense ANYWAY! Oh, yeah, I actually heard one QSO that went like this: WA1XYZ this is KZ9ABC on a handheld in Alpha Zebra zero zero. KZ9ABC this is WA1XYZ also on a handheld! I'm outside with an Arrow in Zebra Alpha niner niner. You're on a handheld, too... good job! Why is this amazing? The satellite is doing the work and it's only 250 milliwatts! I get that it's new to THEM, but I've worked stations in South America and the Caribbean with TWO watts to a handheld. And I was able to do it without revealing my secret identity as a low power handheld yagi waver during the QSO! Yes, there are times when jokes or frivolous comments are made that may take up pass time, but by and large they are the exception and the people making them are usually situation-ally aware. But you are TEACHING people to basically claim some imagined RF handicap and beg to be given special treatment and do it as a MATTER OF ROUTINE. Look, somebody saying, it's my first QSO is one thing... but to encourage the 'extraneous information' comments as a matter of course is not helping anyone. Please, have enough sense not to do it. And so it goes... on and on and on. 73, de N4UFO/Sushi (I enjoy sushi... and telling you that is about as useful as me telling you I'm using a handheld.)

2 1

Re: [amsat-bb] CQ SATELLITE!
by Clint Bradford 15 Feb '15

15 Feb '15

STEVE: You can use a simple audio "splitter" cable - MonoPrice.com has them for as little as $0.67 - search for Product Number 667. JOHN - Regarding "handheld" or "demo" designations - It take about a half of one second of air time, and handheld." So the "Iit ties up the satellite" argument is silly. Yes, there's a little "debate" on the necessity of the "operating mode" declaration. If you state, "handheld," it used to tell seasoned satellite operators to let you in and get your contact made - knowing you were working low power. Some might use "demo" as their op mode - as they operate in front of a club or hamfest. It is not "improper" to include an op mode - many do not. Clint K6LCS

1 0

W5PFG/P EM01
by Clayton Coleman 15 Feb '15

15 Feb '15

I'll operate from EM01 at 16:33Z today, 15-Feb, on AO-73. If you need this grid, here's a good chance for you to get it confirmed. It's really nice having AO-73 available during the day! I made many great contacts yesterday. 73 Clayton W5PFG

1 0

ANS-046 AMSAT News Service Weekly Bulletins
by Lee McLamb 15 Feb '15

15 Feb '15

AMSAT NEWS SERVICE ANS-046 The AMSAT News Service bulletins are a free, weekly news and infor- mation service of AMSAT North America, The Radio Amateur Satellite Corporation. ANS publishes news related to Amateur Radio in Space including reports on the activities of a worldwide group of Amateur Radio operators who share an active interest in designing, building, launching and communicating through analog and digital Amateur Radio satellites. The news feed on http://www.amsat.org publishes news of Amateur Radio in Space as soon as our volunteers can post it. Please send any amateur satellite news or reports to: ans-editor at amsat.org. In this edition: * Help Wanted: AMSAT Engineering Kicking Off Ground Station Development * More ISS Slow Scan TV Activity * Fox-1 Continues Preparation for Launch * Navassa K1N Dxpedition Active on FO-29 * AMSAT Orlando Hamcation Report SB SAT @ AMSAT $ANS-046.01 ANS-046 AMSAT News Service Weekly Bulletins AMSAT News Service Bulletin 046.01 From AMSAT HQ Kensington, MD. February 15, 2015 To All RADIO AMATEURS BID: $ANS-046.01 Help Wanted: AMSAT Engineering Kicking Off Ground Station Development AMSAT Engineering is looking for hams interested in developing ground station equipment for future satellites. An inexpensive L-Band uplink converter is something that is of interest right now for LEO satellites as part of the recently approved technology funding. If you are interested in helping, please contact AMSAT Engineering by completing the form on the website to tell Jerry Buxton, N0JY, the Vice President of Engineering, how you can volunteer your time and skills to help AMSAT engineering build satellites and other required hardware/software. To volunteer please visit: http://ww2.amsat.org/?page_id=1121 [ANS thanks AMSAT Vice President Engineering, Jerry Buxton, N0JY for the above information] --------------------------------------------------------------------- More ISS Slow Scan TV Activity The Russian Federal Space Agency (Roscosmos) has announced another round of amateur radio Slow Scan Television (SSTV) activity from the International Space Station (ISS) will take place later this month. Continuous operation, using the call sign RS0ISS, is expected from 1000 UT on Saturday, February 21 until 2130 UT on Monday, February 23. Twelve different images depicting space pioneer Yuri Gagarin — the first human to orbit Earth — will be sent on 145.800 MHz FM using the SSTV mode PD180, with a 3-minute off time between transmissions. The equipment used will be the Kenwood D710 transceiver located in the Russian Service Module. It is thought the equipment may be producing about 25 watts output which should provide a very strong signal. Plans are being discussed for transmitting new images from space enthusiasts around the world in the coming months. Additional details will be released. The images received by amateurs world-wide during previous transmissions can be seen at http://www.spaceflightsoftware.com/ARISS_SSTV/ and you are invited to upload any pictures you receive during the upcoming transmissions. All you need to do to receive SSTV pictures direct from the space station is to connect the audio output of a scanner or amateur radio transceiver via a simple interface to the soundcard on a Windows PC or an Apple iOS device, and tune in to 145.800 MHz FM. You can even receive pictures by holding an iPhone next to the radio loudspeaker. On Windows PC’s the free application MMSSTV can be used to decode the signal, on Apple iOS devices you can use the SSTV app for compatible modes. The ISS puts out a strong signal on 145.800 MHz FM and a 2m handheld with a 1/4 wave antenna will be enough to receive it. The FM transmission uses the 5 kHz deviation which is standard in much of the world. Paul Turner G4IJE, co-developer of the SSTV PD modes, says regarding the MMSSTV PD180 mode: “Don’t forget to either enable “Always show RX viewer” or use the “Picture viewer” (magnifying glass icon) to show the picture at its real resolution of 640 x 496. If you just view as normal you will only see 320 x 248 resolution, which kind of defeats the object of using a high resolution mode.” Many more tips and links for various receiving options are available at http://amsat-uk.org/2015/02/11/more-iss-slow-scan-tv/ [ANS thanks AMSAT-UK for the above information] --------------------------------------------------------------------- Fox-1 Continues Preparation for Launch Following the successful conclusion of vibration and thermal/vacuum testing Fox-1 now is stored in a clean environment waiting for launch. However, there is still work going on behind the scenes. AMSAT Vice-President Engineering, Jerry Buxton, N0JY says several required reports are being reviewed by the launch provider. We continue to make necessary updates if they request further information in order to be sure that all of the i's are dotted and the t's are crossed. The paperwork is an ongoing full workload in itself, both during the design and construction and even after Fox-1 was finished. For the remaining schedule, Fox-1 will have its Mission Readiness Review (MRR) at Cal Poly in San Luis Obispo CA on February 24 by a review board of Cal Poly and NASA representatives. Next, Fox-1 will be delivered and integrated into the P-POD at Cal Poly during the week of March 16. Then the countdown begins. [ANS thanks AMSAT Vice-President Engineering, Jerry Buxton, N0JY for the above information] --------------------------------------------------------------------- Navassa K1N Dxpedition Active on FO-29 Thanks to AMSAT, the Navassa Island K1N DXpedition was equipped to work stations via the FO-29 Amateur Radio satellite. Vice President-Operations Drew Glasbrenner, KO4MA, said that AMSAT had provided the DXpedition with a Yaesu FT-817 transceiver and associated equipment to support operation on FO-29’s linear passband. AMSAT also gave the group pass predictions, an operational plan, and training. Several reports of successful contacts have been reported via messages on amsat-bb. In a message relayed by Mark, K0MDJ, from Glenn, W0GJ, the primary voice on FO-29 from Navassa reported, ""We have it down now ... takes four people: one antenna guy, one radio guy, one microphone guy, one logger ... plus a couple photographers. Glen also says they hope to be on every pass from now until they leave, so at least through Saturday." The Navassa team logs their contacts using Clublog: http://www.clublog.org/charts/?c=K1N If you can make a donation you can find the link on the DXpedition's web page: http://www.navassadx.com/ Mike, W4UOO, observed, "A tip of the Hat to Drew ... for delivering the gear and the How-To to some of the K1N team back in January and whatever else he did. There's a big thanks in here! What Great Marketing for Satellite operations. What great fun is being had ... all when it seems nearly impossible, suddenly you're talking to someone. It's great to see K1N/Satellite spots going by also! Love it." [ANS thanks the dozens of posts via amsat-bb for the above information] --------------------------------------------------------------------- AMSAT Orlando Hamcation Report The 2015 Orlando Hamcation - Orlando, FL took place over the weekend of 13-15 Feb at the Central Florida Fairgrounds. AMSAT was represented all three days with a two booth are in the main commercial building. At the booth the ARISSat-1 working demo satellite and Fox-1 Engineering model were on display. The booth also provided a great location for people stop by and get information from VP of Operations Drew Glasbrenner, KO4MA, and Dave Jordan, AA4KN. John Papay, K8YSE, was operating the sats via his remote and rover stations along with other satellite demos. An AMSAT forum was held on Saturday with Board of Directors member Lou McFadin, K5DID, providing an update on all the on-going AMSAT activities including upcoming ARISS activities and the Fox-1 series of cubesats. A special treat for those attending the forum was a special prize drawing. M2 donated one of their new 2m/70cm "Leo-Pack" antenna systems which made its debut at Hamcation. [ANS thanks Dave, AA4KN and the AMSAT Hamcation Team for the above information] /EX In addition to regular membership, AMSAT offers membership in the President's Club. Members of the President's Club, as sustaining donors to AMSAT Project Funds, will be eligible to receive addi- tional benefits. Application forms are available from the AMSAT Office. Primary and secondary school students are eligible for membership at one-half the standard yearly rate. Post-secondary school students enrolled in at least half time status shall be eligible for the stu- dent rate for a maximum of 6 post-secondary years in this status. Contact Martha at the AMSAT Office for additional student membership information. 73, This week's ANS Editor, Lee McLamb, KU4OS ku4os at amsat dot org

1 0

Using Nova tracker in Windows 8.1
by Graham Shirville 15 Feb '15

15 Feb '15

Hi All, As a user of the Nova programme for many years I have hit a problem when it is running on a W8.1 machine. Although, when you have selected XP compatibility mode it installs and works ok, after some time it refuses to read the map files and says that they are not present. It still runs the predictions and antenna drivers fine but no map! All suggestions about how to fix this annoyance will be gratefully received. thanks and 73 Graham G3VZV

2 2

Re: [amsat-bb] Ham Radio Deluxe, Satellite QSOs, and ARRL LotW
by Bryan Green 15 Feb '15

15 Feb '15

David, I've managed to make that work pretty well. Another question: in HRD, how do you set the grid locator when there are multiple grids? HRD as it is now doesn't have enough room in the Locator field to store an entry like "CM79,CM89,CN70,CN80". How do you handle that? Thanks in advance! -- bag On Feb 13, 2015, at 15:16, David W0DHB <dave(a)w0dhb.net> wrote: Hey Bryan For LoTW to recognize a SAT qso from any logger In HRD Logger SAT tab fill in satellite name <image001.png> In Propagation Tab set to Satellit <image002.png> Band should be set to Uplink Band <image003.png> This will also work for eqsl Make sure this box on Ant/Sat tab is unchecked or SAT name and propagation mode are reset after enter Is clicked <image004.png> -----Original Message----- From: amsat-bb-bounces(a)amsat.org [mailto:[email protected]] On Behalf Of Bryan Green Sent: Friday, February 13, 2015 2:41 PM To: amsat-bb(a)amsat.org Subject: [amsat-bb] Ham Radio Deluxe, Satellite QSOs, and ARRL LotW Question: Who here uses Ham Radio Deluxe to log Satellite QSOs and then uploads them to ARRL LotW? I'm not having the best success at making it work. Any pointers are much appreciated. -- bag KL7CN/W6 _______________________________________________ Sent via AMSAT-BB(a)amsat.org <mailto:[email protected]>. AMSAT-NA makes this open forum available to all interested persons worldwide without requiring membership. Opinions expressed are solely those of the author, and do not reflect the official views of AMSAT-NA. Not an AMSAT-NA member? Join now to support the amateur satellite program! Subscription settings: http://amsat.org/mailman/listinfo/amsat-bb <http://amsat.org/mailman/listinfo/amsat-bb>

1 0