January 2016 - AMSAT-BB - mailman.amsat.org

EO-79 transponder activation
by Wouter Weggelaar 03 Jan '16

03 Jan '16

Hi All, Today, 21st of December 2015 at 1038 UTC, it is planned that the EO-79 transponder will be turned on for a prolonged period. The FUNcube transponder subsystem on QB50p1 (EO-79) had been provided by AMSAT-UK and AMSAT-NL and is a similar subsystem as on FUNcube-1, but without the telemetry downlink circuitry. The current software running on EO-79 does experience occasional reboots. When these reboots happen, the transponder is automatically turned off and will have to be turned back on by a command station. The FUNcube team has selected a few command stations to do so, but be advised the transponder may be off. TLEs: AMSAT keps name: EO-79 Celestrak keps Name: QB50P1 Celestrak file: cubesat.txt NORAD # 40025 COSPAR designator 2014-033-R Frequencies: *Uplink:* 435.035-435.065 MHz LSB *Downlink:* 145.935-145.965 MHz USB EO-79 has been set to only beacon the normal AX.25 beacon every 30 seconds instead of 10 seconds. The beacon frequency is 145.815MHz and consists of AX.25 frames on BPSK. more details about the downlink can be found on the ISIS HAM page at http://isispace.nl/HAM/qb50p.html We kindly request you to share your experiences with the BB so everyone can benefit from operating tips and tricks, as well as being up-to-date on the status. We would also welcome any observation related to the transponder behaviour when the AX.25 beacon comes on. Just like FUNcube-1, the crystal oscillator circuits exhibit drift with temperature. This means manual tuning will probably work best. Lastly, the commanding team will not be available over Christmas, so the current activations are planned from today until Thursday 24th and from Monday 28th until Thursday 31st 73 and have FUN Happy Holidays Wouter Weggelaar, PA3WEG AMSAT-NL AMSAT-UK

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Waiting for Solar Panel Efficiency (Ha!)
by Robert Bruninga 03 Jan '16

03 Jan '16

Compare the cost and efficiency of solar panels for cubesats and for your house: http://aprs.org/Energy/solar/efficiency-comparison-cost.png The 10,000 Watt array for your house costs less than a 10 W array for a cubesat satellite. I get tired of the excuse, “Im waiting for higher efficiency cells” when the cost of just doubling the efficiency from 15% to 30% is a factor of 1000 times more expensive. You’ll be dead before the expensive ones even come down by half (much less the 1000 to 1 needed to make them practical). And in fact it will never ever happen. Because a satellite builder will pay a measly $10,000 to DOUBLE the power of his 4 inch satellite and so the market for the highest efficiency cells will always get a premium price because the satellite buyers will always pay max dollars for max power independent of cost. And there will never be a decaying cost or learning curve, because as soon as someone comes up with a 32% solar cell, then the 30% technology is ABANDONED because the space industry will all move to the 32% cells and be happy to pay even more for the higher power and there is practically no market for last year’s 30% cells that cost 1000 times more than existing silicon cells at 15%. And without a growing market for last year’s HIGH efficiency cells, there will never be a learning curve and declining cost. Meanwhile the cheap 15% cells being mass produced for the terrestrial solar market in a MILLION times the volume at 1/1000 the cost already cost less than a window of the same size! Witness the cost reduction of 10 to 1 in the last 10 years and the 2 to 1 reduction in the last 3 years with improvements from 15% efficiency up to around 18% not by changing the technology of the 60 year old simple silicon, but just optimizing the manufacturing process (by the billions)… Solar is here, Now. And it won’t get any cheaper, because as the market expands exponentially the demand for bazillions of watts of solar will soak up every panel produced and homeowners are then competing with massive utility scale purchases of millions of panels. Solar panels now cost less than just a window of the same size. It is no longer the cost of the panels, it is simply the cost of labor that drives the majority of cost now. You can buy solar panels for under $0.70 a watt but to have a contractor installed system is hovering around $3.50 per watt and not going down much at all. Lastly, if you have sun, you KNOW eventually you will be going solar. So once you realize that, you should also realize that every electric bill you pay from now on is just throwing money away which would have been better invested in free electricity and 10% annual return for life on your roof or in your yard. Waiting gains nothing. Even the solar panels I bought 4 years ago at twice the price have already paid for themselves. Waiting would have gained nothing except 4 years of more wasted money to the utility and so many tons of burned coal wasted into the air. Here are some more thoughts… http://aprs.org/solar-now.html Summary, Solar and Satellites… the same but 1000 times cheaper on Earth. Bob, Wb4APR

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FUNcube Warehouse
by David Johnson 03 Jan '16

03 Jan '16

Hi, Normal service is resumed. Apologies for the outage. 73 Dave

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FUNcube Warehouse Problem
by dave＠g4dpz.me.uk 03 Jan '16

03 Jan '16

Hi I made some changes to the warehouse last night to try to fix up capturing UKube packets where the sequence number changed erratically. Unfortunately I broke the FC1 processing, will revert the software in an hour or so. Apologies for any inconvenience caused. 73 Dave, G4DPZ Sent from my iPhone

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ANS-003 AMSAT News Service Weekly Bulletins
by Joseph Spier 03 Jan '16

03 Jan '16

AMSAT NEWS SERVICE ANS-003 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: * Fox-1Cliff and -1D matching contribution offer * iCubeSat 2016, 5th Interplanetary CubeSat Workshop, Oxford, UK - Call for papers and registration * Spring 2016 CubeSat Workshop Abstracts Submission Due January 15 * 2016 NASA Academy * 2016 NOAA Undergraduate Scholarships * Tim Peake Sandringham School UK Contact * AMSAT Events * ARISS News SB SAT @ AMSAT $ANS-003.01 ANS-003 AMSAT News Service Weekly Bulletins AMSAT News Service Bulletin 003.01 >From AMSAT HQ KENSINGTON, MD. DATE January 3, 2016 To All RADIO AMATEURS BID: $ANS-003.01 --------------------------------------------------------------------- Fox-1Cliff and -1D matching contribution offer I just want to thank everyone for the outstanding response to our year-end request for support for the Fox-1Cliff and -1D fundraiser. During the period of December 25th to December 31st, a total of $7052.41 was raised online through the FundRazr app. This includes a pledged $1000 matching donation from a generous donor/member. 73 weeks ago when we announced the launch opportunity for Fox-1Cliff (and later including -1D), we set $25,000 as a goal for online fundraising through social media and the FundRazr app. This amount covers a fractional but significant portion of the launch expense. (The total cost of construction and launch was estimated to be $125,000.) I'm very pleased that as of the 31th of December, we have raised $26,458 from over 250 contributors. Donations have varied from $3 and up, so everyone may contribute and be recognized. There is a continuing need to raise the additional funds necessary to launch Fox-1Cliff and Fox-1D in 2016. Just visit https://fundrazr.com/campaigns/6pz92/ab/561Zd and pick your level of support. Donations of $1000 or more will receive a plaque with a solar panel protective cover after launch, and $100 qualifies for a Fox challenge coin to be delivered in 6-8 weeks when the next shipment arrives. Please see http://www.amsat.org/?p=4843 and http://www.amsat.org/?p=2957 for additional information. Thank you for the support, [ANS thanks Drew Glasbrenner, KO4MA, AMSAT VP Operations for the above information] --------------------------------------------------------------------- iCubeSat 2016, 5th Interplanetary CubeSat Workshop, Oxford, UK - Call for papers and registration iCubeSat 2016 - 5th Interplanetary CubeSat Workshop 24-25 May 2016, Oxford, United Kingdom Call for papers and registration iCubeSat 2016, the 5th Interplanetary CubeSat Workshop, will address the technical challenges, opportunities, and practicalities of interplanetary space exploration with CubeSats. The workshop provides a unique environment for open wide ranging practical collaboration between academic researchers, industry professionals, policy makers and students developing this new and rapidly growing field. Technical Program Talks and round tables will focus on three themes: technology, science, and open collaboration. The program will also include unconference sessions to provide additional opportunities to engage with the interplanetary CubeSat community and potential collaborators. Talks and supporting material will be streamed and archived on the conference website. A lively social program in and around summertime Oxford will be arranged for participants and their guests. Abstract Submission and Dates Talks on astrodynamics, attitude control and determination systems, citizen science, communications, landers, launch opportunities, open source approaches, outreach, payloads, policy, power systems, propulsion, reentry systems, ride-shares, science missions, software, standardization, structures, systems engineering and other related topics are all welcome. 1st June 2015 Registration opens at http://iCubeSat.org/registration 1st April 2016 Abstract upload deadline 15th April 2016 Notification of abstract acceptance 20th May 2016 Presentation (and optional paper) upload deadline Please confirm your interest in presenting or attending as soon as possible (to assist us size the venue) by completing the registration form at http://iCubeSat.org/registration Exhibition CubeSat specialists and other vendors are invited to contact exhibit(a)iCubeSat.org for details of exhibition opportunities. Location The 5th Interplanetary CubeSat Workshop will be held on or near the University of Oxford campus, Oxford, United Kingdom on Tuesday, May 24th and Wednesday May 25th, 2016. Organizers The organizing committee can be contacted at committee(a)iCubeSat.org See you in Oxford! pp iCubeSat 2016 Organising Committee www.iCubeSat.org Download the conference poster: https://icubesat.files.wordpress.com/2015/06/20150606_icubesat2016poster.pdf [ANS thanks the 5th Interplanetary CubeSat Workshop for the above information] --------------------------------------------------------------------- Spring 2016 CubeSat Workshop Abstracts Submission Due January 15 13th Annual CubeSat Developer's Workshop Abstract Submission Deadline is JANUARY 15, 2016! Workshop Dates: April 20-22, 2016 San Luis Obispo, CA, US Please keep abstracts under 500 words, the abstracts should indicate the ideas addressed within the presentation or poster, and the objectives of the presentation/poster. Readers should not have to read the full text to understand the abstract. More importantly, any topic is welcome! See http://cubesat.atl.calpoly.edu/index.php/workshops/upcoming-workshops/ 123--workshop-schedule or http://www.cubesat.org/ [ANS thanks www.cubesat.org/ for the above information] --------------------------------------------------------------------- 2016 NASA Academy The 2016 NASA Academy is being offered at three locations: NASA's Ames Research Center in California, NASA's Glenn Research Center in Ohio, and NASA's Marshall Space Flight Center in Alabama. Applications are being solicited for this 10-week summer experience for college students with emphasis on immersive and integrated multidisciplinary exposure and training. Activities include laboratory research, a group project, lectures, meetings with experts and administrators, visits to NASA centers and space-related industries, and technical presentations. Students learn how NASA and its centers operate, gain experience in world-class laboratories, and participate in leadership development and team-building activities. Applicants must be U.S. citizens (including citizens of the U.S. territories Puerto Rico, Guam, U.S. Virgin Islands and Northern Marianas) majoring in a STEM discipline. The applicants must be undergraduate or graduate students enrolled full-time in accredited universities and colleges in the U.S. and its territories. Students may apply to any of the NASA Academy opportunities by following these steps: 1. Log into the NASA One Stop Shopping Initiative, or OSSI, site at https://intern.nasa.gov. 2. Register and set up an account. 3. Select the "Search Opportunities" tab at the top bar. 4. Select "NASA Center(s) of Interest" under "NASA Center/Facility." 5. Enter "Academy" in the "Keywords" block at the bottom of the screen. 6. Click the "Search" button at the very bottom of screen; a list of Academy Opportunities will then be displayed. 7. Click on the "View" icon in the first column under "Action" to read about the Opportunity of interest, followed by comments on additional instructions for completing the application, including two requested essays. The deadline for receipt of NASA Academy application(s) and associated documents is Feb. 16, 2016. Please direct questions about NASA Academy to NASA-Academy-Application(a)mail.nasa.gov. [ANS thanks the NASA Education Express Message -- Dec. 30, 2015 for the above information] --------------------------------------------------------------------- 2016 NOAA Undergraduate Scholarships The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration is accepting applications for its 2016 Educational Partnership Program Undergraduate Scholarship and 2016 Ernest F. Hollings Scholarship Programs. The Educational Partnership Program Undergraduate Scholarship Program provides scholarships for two years of undergraduate study to students majoring in STEM fields that directly support NOAA's mission. Participants conduct research at a NOAA facility during two paid summer internships. A stipend and housing allowance is provided. Students attending an accredited Minority Serving Institution as defined by the U.S. Department of Education (Hispanic Serving Institutions, Historically Black Colleges and Universities, Tribal Colleges and Universities, Alaskan-Native Serving Institutions, and Native Hawaiian Serving Institutions) are eligible to apply for the program. The institutions must be within the United States or U.S. Territories. Applicants must be U.S. citizens and must earn and maintain a minimum 3.2 grade point average on a 4.0 scale. The Ernest F. Hollings Scholarship Program provides scholarships for two years of undergraduate study with a paid internship at a NOAA facility during the interim summer session. A stipend and housing allowance is provided. Applicants must be U.S. citizens enrolled full-time at an accredited college or university. Applicants also must have and maintain a declared major in a discipline including, but not limited to, oceanic, environmental, biological, and atmospheric sciences; mathematics; engineering; remote-sensing technology; physical and social sciences including geography, physics, hydrology, geomatics; or teacher education that supports NOAA's programs and mission. Participants must earn and maintain a minimum 3.0 grade point average on a 4.0 scale. Applications for both scholarship programs are due Jan. 29, 2016. For more information, visit http://www.oesd.noaa.gov/scholarships/. Please direct questions about these scholarship opportunities to StudentScholarshipPrograms(a)noaa.gov. [ANS thanks the NASA Education Express Message -- Dec. 30, 2015 for the above information] --------------------------------------------------------------------- Tim Peake Sandringham School UK Contact The first UK Amateur Radio school contact by UK astronaut Tim Peake GB1SS from the International Space Station (ISS) will take place on Friday, January 8, 2016 at 0847 GMT with students at Sandringham School, St. Albans in Hertfordshire. The school will use the call sign GB1SAN. The St. Albans based Verulam Amateur Radio Club (VARC) ran an Amateur Radio Foundation License course in December. Three of the candidates were pupils from Sandringham School who took the course in preparation for the contact with Tim Peake. ARISS UK will provide and set up all necessary radio equipment (for example, low earth orbit satellite tracking antennas and radios) to establishing a fully functional, direct radio link with the International Space Station from the school premises. In a ten-minute window when the ISS will be over the UK, an amateur radio contact will be established with Tim, and students will be able to ask him questions about his life and work on board the ISS. Tim will use a frequency of 145.800 MHz FM for the contact and his signal should be receivable across the British Isles and Europe. What equipment do you need to hear the ISS? Almost any 144 MHz FM transceiver will receive the ISS; you can even use a general coverage VHF scanner with an external antenna. As far as the antenna is concerned the simpler the better. A ¼ wave ground plane can give good results because it has a high angle of radiation. Large 2m colinears don’t work quite as well because the radiation pattern is concentrated at the horizon. You can receive the ISS using a 144 MHz hand-held outdoors with its helical antenna but a 1/4 wave whip will give far better results. In the UK we use narrow 2.5 kHz deviation FM but the ISS transmits on 145.800 MHz with the wider 5 kHz deviation used in much of the world. Most rigs can be switched been wide and narrow deviation FM filters so select the wider filter. Hand-held rigs all seem to have a single wide filter fitted as standard. The International Space Station is traveling around the Earth at over 28,000 km/h. This high speed makes radio signals appear to shift in frequency, a phenomenon called Doppler Shift. When the ISS is approaching your location the signal may be 3.5 kHz higher in frequency on 145.8035 MHz. During the 10 minute pass the frequency will gradually move lower reaching 145.7965 MHz as the ISS goes out of range. To get maximum signal you ideally need a radio that tunes in 1 kHz or smaller steps to follow the shift but in practice acceptable results are obtained with the radio left on 145.800 MHz. ISS Amateur Radio Stations There are two amateur radio stations available to astronauts on the ISS. The Russian Service Module has a dual-band Kenwood TM-D710 transceiver (this replaced the older TM-D700). Four antennas are available, three of which are identical and each can support both transmit and receive operations on 2m, 70cm, L band and S band. They also support reception for the Russian Glisser TV system, which is used during spacewalks. The fourth antenna is a 2.5 m long vertical whip that can be used to support High Frequency (HF) operations although at the present time there is no amateur HF equipment. The ESA Columbus Module has two Ericsson M-PA series FM 5 watt handheld radios, one for 145, and the other for 435 MHz, as well as the 2.4 GHz HamTV Digital Amateur Television Transmitter. Antennas are available for 145 and 435 MHz for the Ericsson handhelds; additionally, there are 1260 and 2400 MHz antennas for the HamTV system. Tim Peake will the using the equipment in the ESA Columbus Module. The ISS HamTV will not be available for the Sandringham School contact because the equipment will be turned off to permit other experiments. You’ll be able to listen online to Tim Peake GB1SS on the 145.800 MHz FM downlink by using the SUWS WebSDR radio at http://websdr.suws.org.uk/ Tim Peake ISS School Contacts Announced http://amsat-uk.org/2015/12/15/tim-peake-iss-school-contacts-announced/ Sandringham School http://www.sandringham.herts.sch.uk/ Twitter: https://twitter.com/SandringhamSch1 Verulam Amateur Radio Club http://www.verulam-arc.org.uk/ What is Amateur Radio? http://www.essexham.co.uk/what-is-amateur-radio Find an amateur radio training course near you https://thersgb.org/services/coursefinder/ ARISS http://www.ariss-eu.org/ [ANS thanks ARISS & AMSAT-UK for the above information] --------------------------------------------------------------------- AMSAT Events Information about AMSAT activities at other important events around the country. Examples of these events are radio club meetings where AMSAT Area Coordinators give presentations, demonstrations of working amateur satellites, and hamfests with an AMSAT presence (a table with AMSAT literature and merchandise, sometimes also with presentations, forums, and/or demonstrations). *Saturday, 9 January 2016 – Thunderbird Hamfest 2016 in Phoenix AZ *Friday and Saturday, 19-20 February 2016 – Yuma Hamfest and 2016 ARRL Southwest Division Convention in Yuma AZ *Saturday and Sunday, 12-13 March 2016 – ScienceCity science fair, on the University of Arizona campus in Tucson AZ *Saturday, 19 March 2016 – Scottsdale Amateur Radio Club Spring Hamfest 2016 in Scottsdale AZ *Saturday, 26 March 2016 – Tucson Spring Hamfest in Tucson AZ [ANS thanks AMSAT-NA for the above information] --------------------------------------------------------------------- ARISS News Upcoming Contacts Frederick W. Harnett Middle School, Blackstone, Massachusetts, telebridge via K6DUE The ISS callsign is presently scheduled to be NA1SS The scheduled astronaut is Timothy Peake KG5BVI Contact is a go for: Tue 2016-01-05 17:42:06 UTC 81 deg Sandringham School, St. Albans, Hertfordshire, UK, direct via GB1SAN The ISS callsign is presently scheduled to be GB1SS The scheduled astronaut is Timothy Peake KG5BVI Contact is a go for: Fri 2016-01-08 08:47:47 UTC 83 deg. Watch http://www.ariss.org/upcoming-contacts.html for information about upcoming contacts as they are scheduled. [ANS thanks ARISS, and Charlie, AJ9N 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, Joe Spier, K6WAO k6wao at amsat dot org

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Re: [amsat-bb] Waiting for Solar Panel Efficiency (Ha!) rebuttal
by Robert Bruninga 02 Jan '16

02 Jan '16

> If the project is not operating by now, it'll cost 30% more after midnight. No. The 30% federal tax incentive was to end by the end of 2016, not the beginning. AND does'nt matter anyway, since the do-nothing congress actually included an extenaion in the spending bill. > Putting solar on an asphalt roof ... is a bad idea. Not a place to screw up. Use a reputable contractor with guarantee. They know how to do it right. > 42 panels 50 lbs per (for 11 kW system)... > Remember statics and dynamics?? > ... bracing rafters in a crawlspace is a mug's game. > In Florida in summer? Fatal. 50 lbs per panel over 18 sqft is only a load of 2.8 lbs per square foot and is insignificant compared to the required building code roof design figure of typically 30 psf. (Though in Florida the snow load is considered 0). The good news elsewhere is that solar panels melt snow far faster than a normal roof, so there is no multiday buildup and icing load... > Today as of 3pm EDT the system produced 23 kWh. > Best day so far was 100% FL sunshine and a COLD day: 82 kWh. Congratulations, sounds like you did it anyway... > HF RFI? Undetectable. Thanks, that is great news! > I got the last (3) 3.8kW transformer based inverters in stock. > SMA makes nice gear. Cadwelds, IMC 3/4" conduit. I was totally shocked when I ordered an SMA inverter to add to my other three XANTREX ones which only weighted 25 lbs. The SMA was so heavy I had to invite my son to dinner just to get help getting it from the porch to inside the house! Then had to feed him again a week later to help lift it into place. I think it is over 100 lbs? And compared to the XANTREX, there were may nitpicks I did not like about the SMA at all. But then of course, XANTREX doesn't make grid-tie inverters any more and SMA does seem to have very good reviews. On Thu, Dec 31, 2015 at 12:25 PM, Bob <WB4SON(a)gmail.com> wrote: > > Sort of off the AMSAT topic, but the most recent estimate is that about > 20 > > gigawatts of solar will be added in 2016 -- almost doubling the total > > installed capacity of US solar power. This is being primarily driven by > > residential installations. Utility-scale installations are actually down > > 5%. > > > > One thing that was keeping mass market efficiency down was a glut of > > production capability that existed through 2014. Manufactures were not > > keen on investing in new processes at the same time they were going out > of > > business or consolidating. That glut has been drying up, prompting Elon > > Musk's to build a $1 billion dollar factory in Buffalo NY which will > > produce 1 GW of panels annually by the end of 2016. Those panels are > > expected to be 22.1% efficient. That's a pretty impressive gain in > > efficiency. > > > > Often times market conditions, not technology, dictates what reaches the > > mass market, and that has most certainly been the case in the solar > > industry. That 50% increase in panel efficiency doesn't necessarily mean > > that the cost per watt will be reduced in the short term -- those panels > > may simply sell for 50% more. > > > > 73, Bob, WB4SON > > > > On Thu, Dec 31, 2015 at 6:07 AM, Nick Pugh wrote: > > > >> Good point Bob but include the real estate cost in to the equation and > >> they improve. > >> nick > >> > >> -----Original Message----- > >> From: AMSAT-BB [On Behalf Of Robert Bruninga > >> Sent: Wednesday, December 30, 2015 11:06 AM > >> To: amsat-bb(a)amsat.org > >> Subject: [amsat-bb] Waiting for Solar Panel Efficiency (Ha!) > >> > >> Compare the cost and efficiency of solar panels for cubesats and for > your > >> house: > >> > >> http://aprs.org/Energy/solar/efficiency-comparison-cost.png > >> >

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Re: [amsat-bb] Waiting for Solar Panel Efficiency (Ha!) Grid stability
by Robert Bruninga 02 Jan '16

02 Jan '16

Concerning our solar powered satellite ground stations:... > 6) [concerning]... grid stability. .. > The cheap models I tested had two very dangerous features: > A - they sensed each other as valid grid voltage,... > leaving an engineer unable to cut the power... > B - the grid frequency...would run away upwards Which is why all grid-tie inverters must be compliant with grid standards. Which is also why the local establishment requires permits and inspections and UL certification of all solar grid tie installations and which is also why ALL grid-tied inverters are required by the NEC and inspected to make sure they comply with all relevant standards. 1) They shut down within one half cycle on loss of grid power 2) They shut down on over voltage 3) They shut down on frequency out of tolerance usually anything more than 0.5Hz away from 60 Hz 4) They willl not come back on line until after monitoring the grid for 5 minutes to make sure it is safe and within operating limts. And lastly grid-tie inverters are not like a normal "inverter" at all. They are simply AC current sources that sense the existing 60.0 Hz grid and push current to lead the waveform and thus source power to the grid. Lose the waveform or any other condition, and it just stops. [What about power when the grid is down?] > 7) Our national grid has had 99.9999% uptime... with only 4 interruptions in 2014. Similar here. Typically we lose power about 4 hours a year which is about 99.96% uptime. And a simple deep cycle marine battery powers my home's critical circuits then. Or I plug into the Hybrid car. Bob > On Fri, Jan 1, 2016 at 10:14 PM, Robert Bruninga <bruninga(a)usna.edu> > wrote: > >> > from a technical point of view there is a huge reason >> > to hold off on all these extra feed-ins (net-metering). >> > And that simple reason is grid stability. >> >> True and false.... >> >> It is true that the grid of 1970 has to evolve to avoid problems with grid >> stability. But they have been aware of these problems and have been >> evolving for the last 40 years to get away from the catastrophic results >> of >> business as usual and resulting half-country blackouts. >> >> Although the utilities are glacially slow to adapt, the growth of solar >> and >> wind has also been glacially slow because people just resist change even >> when it is to their advantage. But the GRID has seen it coming and has >> been getting ready. >> >> 10 years ago, they said the grid will go unstable above 2% solar (because >> they NEVER even looked at the weather to estimate tomorrow's load). Now >> the weather model is an excellent forcaster of available power an dload. >> Then 5 years ago they were saying the grid would go unstable at 10%. >> (Absolutely true if they still did nothing to improve their systems from >> the 1970s way of dispatching power But they have not been sitting still). >> >> Guess what, Hawaii has now passed 40% solar and the grid has still not >> gone >> unstable because every day they are improving how they manage the grid. >> Back in 2013, Germany exceeded 60% solar and wind and their grid held up >> fine. Then this year, the Netherlands peaked at 100% solar/wind and their >> grid did just fine. The US can easily keep up with the evolving grid as >> long as we dont get held back by the fossil fuel industry's opposition. >> >> So of course, the stability of the grid is a concern, but that is why we >> have some of the best EE's on the planet working in parallel for 3 decades >> with renwewable growth to stay ahead of the variability of renewable clean >> power. >> >> So I don't fault anyone for commenting on the stability of the grid, but >> it >> is always last year's news and not keeping up with the day to day march >> toward cleaner power. >> >> I attended an IEEE International Conference on Energy last year and >> expected to hear gloom and doom. I heard exactlly the opposite. Every >> paper showing techinques, and how to achieve stability and renewable >> growth were ten times as many as the few claiming doom. And most papers >> were showing how easy it was with positiv results and others how we will >> be >> able to grow the changes to make the grid more responsive. >> >> So keep a jaundiced ear to repetitions of decades or even last year's dire >> predictions... the world is changing despite the billions of dollars being >> spent by the fossil fuel industry to make sure they remain on top. >> >> Bob, Wb4APR >> >> >> >> >> > So regardless of any tariff schemes and/or the power companies trying to >> > keep their market, there is a substantial technical hurdle. I don't know >> > how it is in the US, but I did some research during an internship on >> this >> > in The Netherlands, and as a result, some kinds of inverters were >> outlawed >> > in the EU because they were really dangerous to the grid stability, and >> > also not safe in the end when instabilities did occur. >> > (and not all of those were made in china....) >> > Are they discouraging a growth beyond a certain size just to prevent >> this >> > issue? >> > >> > Maybe this is substantially different in the US, since the grid looks >> > completely different. >> > >> > >> > Wouter PA3WEG >> > >> > >> > >> > >> > On Fri, Jan 1, 2016 at 5:36 PM, Burns Fisher <burns(a)fisher.cc> wrote: >> > >> >> I guess there are a lot of folks interested in this even though it is >> only >> >> peripherally related to satellites...I hope there are not too many >> >> objections. >> >> >> >> But I wanted to ask if anyone has heard this rumor: After a certain >> >> number >> >> of solar connections, power companies will no longer be required to do >> net >> >> metering. I don't know whether a) they would just not allow any more >> new >> >> installations with backfeed at all or b) for new installations they >> would >> >> only pay wholesale, or c) somehow they average retail and wholesale >> prices >> >> for everyone who is backfeeding. >> >> >> >> I can surely understand why a power company would WANT to do that. >> They >> >> are usually getting power that they have to pay extra for at a time >> when >> >> they need it less. But it certainly reduces some of the financial >> >> incentive to install, if true. Anyone know more? It would probably >> >> differ >> >> by state... >> >> >> >> 73, >> >> >> >> Burns W2BFJ >> >> >> >> On Fri, Jan 1, 2016 at 11:21 AM, Robert Bruninga <bruninga(a)usna.edu> >> >> wrote: >> >> >> >> > > If the project is not operating by now, it'll cost 30% more after >> >> > midnight. >> >> > >> >> > No. The 30% federal tax incentive was to end by the end of 2016, not >> the >> >> > beginning. AND does'nt matter anyway, since the do-nothing congress >> >> > actually included an extenaion in the spending bill. >> >> > >> >> > > Putting solar on an asphalt roof ... is a bad idea. Not a place to >> >> screw >> >> > up. >> >> > >> >> > Use a reputable contractor with guarantee. They know how to do it >> >> right. >> >> > >> >> > > 42 panels 50 lbs per (for 11 kW system)... >> >> > > Remember statics and dynamics?? >> >> > > ... bracing rafters in a crawlspace is a mug's game. >> >> > > In Florida in summer? Fatal. >> >> > >> >> > 50 lbs per panel over 18 sqft is only a load of 2.8 lbs per square >> foot >> >> > and is insignificant compared to the required building code roof >> design >> >> > figure of typically 30 psf. (Though in Florida the snow load is >> >> considered >> >> > 0). The good news elsewhere is that solar panels melt snow far >> faster >> >> than >> >> > a normal roof, so there is no multiday buildup and icing load... >> >> > >> >> > > Today as of 3pm EDT the system produced 23 kWh. >> >> > > Best day so far was 100% FL sunshine and a COLD day: 82 kWh. >> >> > >> >> > Congratulations, sounds like you did it anyway... >> >> > >> >> > > HF RFI? Undetectable. >> >> > >> >> > Thanks, that is great news! >> >> > >> >> > > I got the last (3) 3.8kW transformer based inverters in stock. >> >> > > SMA makes nice gear. Cadwelds, IMC 3/4" conduit. >> >> > >> >> > I was totally shocked when I ordered an SMA inverter to add to my >> other >> >> > three XANTREX ones which only weighted 25 lbs. The SMA was so heavy >> I >> >> had >> >> > to invite my son to dinner just to get help getting it from the >> porch to >> >> > inside the house! Then had to feed him again a week later to help >> lift >> >> it >> >> > into place. I think it is over 100 lbs? And compared to the XANTREX, >> >> there >> >> > were may nitpicks I did not like about the SMA at all. >> >> > >> >> > But then of course, XANTREX doesn't make grid-tie inverters any more >> and >> >> > SMA does seem to have very good reviews. >> >> > >> >> > >> >> > On Thu, Dec 31, 2015 at 12:25 PM, Bob <WB4SON(a)gmail.com> wrote: >> >> > >> >> > > > Sort of off the AMSAT topic, but the most recent estimate is that >> >> about >> >> > > 20 >> >> > > > gigawatts of solar will be added in 2016 -- almost doubling the >> >> total >> >> > > > installed capacity of US solar power. This is being primarily >> >> driven >> >> > by >> >> > > > residential installations. Utility-scale installations are >> actually >> >> > down >> >> > > > 5%. >> >> > > > >> >> > > > One thing that was keeping mass market efficiency down was a >> glut of >> >> > > > production capability that existed through 2014. Manufactures >> were >> >> not >> >> > > > keen on investing in new processes at the same time they were >> going >> >> out >> >> > > of >> >> > > > business or consolidating. That glut has been drying up, >> prompting >> >> > Elon >> >> > > > Musk's to build a $1 billion dollar factory in Buffalo NY which >> will >> >> > > > produce 1 GW of panels annually by the end of 2016. Those panels >> >> are >> >> > > > expected to be 22.1% efficient. That's a pretty impressive gain >> in >> >> > > > efficiency. >> >> > > > >> >> > > > Often times market conditions, not technology, dictates what >> reaches >> >> > the >> >> > > > mass market, and that has most certainly been the case in the >> solar >> >> > > > industry. That 50% increase in panel efficiency doesn't >> necessarily >> >> > mean >> >> > > > that the cost per watt will be reduced in the short term -- those >> >> > panels >> >> > > > may simply sell for 50% more. >> >> > > > >> >> > > > 73, Bob, WB4SON >> >> > > > >> >> > > > On Thu, Dec 31, 2015 at 6:07 AM, Nick Pugh wrote: >> >> > > > >> >> > > >> Good point Bob but include the real estate cost in to the >> equation >> >> > and >> >> > > >> they improve. >> >> > > >> nick >> >> > > >> >> >> > > >> -----Original Message----- >> >> > > >> From: AMSAT-BB [On Behalf Of Robert Bruninga >> >> > > >> Sent: Wednesday, December 30, 2015 11:06 AM >> >> > > >> To: amsat-bb(a)amsat.org >> >> > > >> Subject: [amsat-bb] Waiting for Solar Panel Efficiency (Ha!) >> >> > > >> >> >> > > >> Compare the cost and efficiency of solar panels for cubesats and >> >> for >> >> > > your >> >> > > >> house: >> >> > > >> >> >> > > >> http://aprs.org/Energy/solar/efficiency-comparison-cost.png >> >> > > >> >> >> > > >> >> > _______________________________________________ >> >> > Sent via AMSAT-BB(a)amsat.org. 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://www.amsat.org/mailman/listinfo/amsat-bb >> >> > >> >> _______________________________________________ >> >> Sent via AMSAT-BB(a)amsat.org. 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://www.amsat.org/mailman/listinfo/amsat-bb >> >> >> > >> > >> _______________________________________________ >> Sent via AMSAT-BB(a)amsat.org. 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://www.amsat.org/mailman/listinfo/amsat-bb >> > >

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Re: [amsat-bb] [isrohams] Re: [amsatindia] New Year Greetings
by mrraghav＠isac.gov.in 02 Jan '16

02 Jan '16

Dear All, Thank You very Much for the New Year Wishes. I wish you and your family a very very Happy, Prosperous , Healthy and Fulfilling New Year 2016. Regards Raghavendra.M.R. VU3GTI Quoting "'V.MURALI KRISHNA' vmk(a)isac.gov.in [isrohams]" <isrohams(a)yahoogroups.com>: > > > > Dear All, > Thanks for the wishes. > I also Wish you all a very happy and prosperous new year. > > With Warm Regards > V.Murali Krishna. > > Quoting "Balaji VU3PZA kbala(a)isac.gov.in [isrohams]" > <isrohams(a)yahoogroups.com>: > >> >> >> >> >> OM! >> Wish you very happy and prosperous new year 2016. >> with regards >> Balaji (vu3pza) >> 73 de >> Balaji (VU3PZA) >> Managing Committee Member >> Upargrah Amateur Radio Club(VU2URC) >> ISRO Satellite Centre, HAL Airport Road >> Bangalore - 560 017, India. >> Phone:(O)91-80-2508 2404, (R)91-80-2522 0810 >> (M)91-94807 05796 (6pm-8am) >> Fax: 91-80-2508 2406 >> E-mail ID: vu3pza(a)gmail.com, kbala(a)isac.gov.in >> >> >> >> ------------------------- >> >> Confidentiality Notice: This e-mail message, including any >> attachments, is for the sole use of the intended recipient(s) and may >> contain confidential and privileged information. Any unauthorized >> review, use, disclosure or distribution is prohibited. If you are not >> the intended recipient, please contact the sender by reply e-mail and >> destroy all copies of the original message. >> >> ------------------------- >> >> > > > > V MURALI KRISHNA > SCI/ENGR-SE;PFF/IFF/MFF > ISRO SATELLITE CENTRE > HAL AIRPORT ROAD > BANGALORE - 560 017. > INDIA. > EMAIL: vmk(a)isac.gov.in > Phone: > Office: +91-80-25083023 > +91-80-25083028 > > > > ------------------------- > > Confidentiality Notice: This e-mail message, including any > attachments, is for the sole use of the intended recipient(s) and may > contain confidential and privileged information. Any unauthorized > review, use, disclosure or distribution is prohibited. If you are not > the intended recipient, please contact the sender by reply e-mail and > destroy all copies of the original message. > > ------------------------- > > __._,_.___ > > > ------------------------- > Posted by: "V.MURALI KRISHNA" <vmk(a)isac.gov.in> > ------------------------- > > > > > Reply via web post[1] • Reply to sender [2] • > Reply to group [3] • Start a New Topic[4] > • Messages in this topic[5] (2) > > ONE WORLD ONE LANGUAGE - ISRO HAMS > ---------------------------------- > To subscribe for this group, send an email to > isrohams-subscribe(a)yahoogroups.com > Visit Your Group[6] > > > [7] • Privacy[8] • Unsubscribe[9] • Terms of Use[10] > > > > . > > __,_._,___ Links: ------ [1] https://groups.yahoo.com/neo/groups/isrohams/conversations/messages/1769;_y… [2] mailto:vmk@isac.gov.in?subject=Re%3A%20%5Bisrohams%5D%20Re%3A%20%5Bamsatindia%5D%20New%20Year%20Greetings [3] mailto:isrohams@yahoogroups.com?subject=Re%3A%20%5Bisrohams%5D%20Re%3A%20%5Bamsatindia%5D%20New%20Year%20Greetings [4] https://groups.yahoo.com/neo/groups/isrohams/conversations/newtopic;_ylc=X3… [5] https://groups.yahoo.com/neo/groups/isrohams/conversations/topics/1768;_ylc… [6] https://groups.yahoo.com/neo/groups/isrohams/info;_ylc=X3oDMTJmODVlNnRnBF9T… [7] https://groups.yahoo.com/neo;_ylc=X3oDMTJldWpocjhvBF9TAzk3MzU5NzE0BGdycElkA… [8] https://info.yahoo.com/privacy/us/yahoo/groups/details.html [9] mailto:isrohams-unsubscribe@yahoogroups.com?subject=Unsubscribe [10] https://info.yahoo.com/legal/us/yahoo/utos/terms/ ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Confidentiality Notice: This e-mail message, including any attachments, is for the sole use of the intended recipient(s) and may contain confidential and privileged information. Any unauthorized review, use, disclosure or distribution is prohibited. If you are not the intended recipient, please contact the sender by reply e-mail and destroy all copies of the original message. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------

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Re: [amsat-bb] [Bod] Happy New Year
by Mark L. Hammond 01 Jan '16

01 Jan '16

Happy New Year, Dr. Bob! Glad to have you back in the fold. Yes, 2017 stands to be a wonderful year! 73, Mark N8MH At 07:30 AM 1/1/2016 -0500, Robert McGwier wrote: >I think 2016 will be a great year for AMSAT Â organizations around the world and for AMSAT-NA, it will be a major turn around year with multiple spacecraft to be launched and multiple I preparation or under consideration. > >I'm very happy to be active again with my AMSAT friends and around the world.Â The slow evaporation of the damage done by ITAR is readily apparent I our various circles doing technical work. > >It is exciting. > >HNY and 73s >Bob >N4HY > > > >-- >Bob McGwier >Founder, Federated Wireless, Inc >Founder and Technical Advisor, HawkEye 360, Inc >Research Professor Virginia Tech >Dir. Research: Â The Ted and Karyn Hume Center for National Security and Technology >Senior Member IEEE,Â Facebook: N4HYBob,Â ARS: N4HY >Faculty Advisor Virginia Tech Amateur Radio Assn. (K4KDJ) >Director of AMSAT > >_______________________________________________ >Via the BOD mailing list at AMSAT.ORG courtesy of AMSAT-NA >http://www.amsat.org/mailman/listinfo/bod

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Re: [amsat-bb] [amsatindia] New Year Greetings
by Kris Murthy 01 Jan '16

01 Jan '16

Thank you for the warm words of greetings! I take pleasure sending in my New Year Greetings to everyone in the Group, Wish you all a very happy, prosperous, new year, 2016, studded with success, good health and very good activities in the world of Ham Radio! Raj/ VU2RAJ On Fri, Jan 1, 2016 at 2:16 PM, 'Mani [VU2WMY/KJ6LRS]' wmy(a)isac.gov.in [amsatindia] <amsatindia(a)yahoogroups.com> wrote: > > > Warm wishes and greetings to all and to their family members for a 'Very > Happy New Year 2016'. > > 73 de > > Mani [VU2WMY/KJ6LRS] > Secretary & Station-In-Charge > Upagrah Amateur Radio Club VU2URC > ISRO Satellite Centre > HAL Airport Road, Bangalore-560 017. > Phone:(Office)91-80-25082598/25082054/25082192 > Mobile: 91-9880 341 456 > E-mail ID: wmy(a)isac.gov.in > vu2wmy_mani(a)yahoo.com > isrohams(a)yahoo.com > > > ------------------------------ > > Confidentiality Notice: This e-mail message, including any attachments, is > for the sole use of the intended recipient(s) and may contain confidential > and privileged information. Any unauthorized review, use, disclosure or > distribution is prohibited. If you are not the intended recipient, please > contact the sender by reply e-mail and destroy all copies of the original > message. > ------------------------------ > > __._,_.___ > ------------------------------ > Posted by: "Mani [VU2WMY/KJ6LRS]" <wmy(a)isac.gov.in> > ------------------------------ > Reply via web post > <https://groups.yahoo.com/neo/groups/amsatindia/conversations/messages/2782;…> > • Reply to sender <wmy(a)isac.gov.in?subject=Re%3A%20New%20Year%20Greetings> > • Reply to group > <amsatindia(a)yahoogroups.com?subject=Re%3A%20New%20Year%20Greetings> • Start > a New Topic > <https://groups.yahoo.com/neo/groups/amsatindia/conversations/newtopic;_ylc=…> > • Messages in this topic > <https://groups.yahoo.com/neo/groups/amsatindia/conversations/topics/328;_yl…> > (25) > Visit Your Group > <https://groups.yahoo.com/neo/groups/amsatindia/info;_ylc=X3oDMTJldHNwY24xBF…> > > > [image: Yahoo! Groups] > <https://groups.yahoo.com/neo;_ylc=X3oDMTJkbGlhMG81BF9TAzk3NDc2NTkwBGdycElkA…> > • Privacy <https://info.yahoo.com/privacy/us/yahoo/groups/details.html> • > Unsubscribe <amsatindia-unsubscribe(a)yahoogroups.com?subject=Unsubscribe> > • Terms of Use <https://info.yahoo.com/legal/us/yahoo/utos/terms/> > > . > > __,_._,___ >

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