Upcoming ARISS Contact Schedule as of 2016-11-29 06:30 UTC
Quick list of scheduled contacts and events:
Collège Michel Lotte, Le Palais, France, telebridge via LU1CGB
The ISS callsign is presently scheduled to be NA1SS
The scheduled astronaut is Thomas Pesquet KG5FYG
Contact was successful: Mon 2016-11-28 10:38:06 UTC 74 deg (***)
Watch for live audio stream:
http://radio-belleile.fr/contact-iss-michel-lotte-2016/ (sound only, the video will be recorded and available later)
The Museum of Innovation and Science (miSci), Schenectady NY, direct via
W2IR
The ISS callsign is presently scheduled to be NA1SS
The scheduled astronaut is Shane Kimbrough KE5HOD (***)
Contact is a go for: Sat 2016-12-10 19:49:54 UTC 85 deg (***)
Exp. 50 on orbit (***)
Welcome aboard! (***)
Peggy Whitson
Thomas Pesquet KG5FYG
Oleg Novitskiy
****************************************************************************
**
ARISS is always glad to receive listener reports for the above contacts.
ARISS thanks everyone in advance for their assistance. Feel free to send
your reports to aj9n(a)amsat.org or aj9n(a)aol.com.
Listen for the ISS on the downlink of 145.8Ø MHz.
****************************************************************************
***
All ARISS contacts are made via the Kenwood radio unless otherwise noted.
****************************************************************************
***
Several of you have sent me emails asking about the RAC ARISS website and
not being able to get in. That has now been changed to
http://www.ariss.org/
Note that there are links to other ARISS websites from this site.
****************************************************************************
Looking for something new to do? How about receiving DATV from the ISS?
If interested, then please go to the ARISS-EU website for complete
details. Look for the buttons indicating Ham Video.
http://www.ariss-eu.org/
If you need some assistance, ARISS mentor Kerry N6IZW, might be able to
provide some insight. Contact Kerry at kbanke(a)sbcglobal.net
****************************************************************************
ARISS congratulations the following mentors who have now mentored over 100
schools:
Satoshi 7M3TJZ with 123
Gaston ON4WF with 121
Francesco IKØWGF with 118
****************************************************************************
The webpages listed below were all reviewed for accuracy. Out of date
webpages were removed and new ones have been added. If there are
additional
ARISS websites I need to know about, please let me know.
Note, all times are approximate. It is recommended that you do your own
orbital prediction or start listening about 10 minutes before the listed
time.
All dates and times listed follow International Standard ISO 8601 date
and
time format YYYY-MM-DD HH:MM:SS
The complete schedule page has been updated as of 2016-11-29 06:30 UTC.
(***)
Here you will find a listing of all scheduled school contacts, and
questions, other ISS related websites, IRLP and Echolink websites, and
instructions for any contact that may be streamed live.
http://www.amsat.org/amsat/ariss/news/arissnews.rtfhttp://www.amsat.org/amsat/ariss/news/arissnews.txt
Total number of ARISS ISS to earth school events is 1095. (***)
Each school counts as 1 event.
Total number of ARISS ISS to earth school contacts is 1060. (***)
Each contact may have multiple schools sharing the same time slot.
Total number of ARISS supported terrestrial contacts is 47.
A complete year by year breakdown of the contacts may be found in the
file.
http://www.amsat.org/amsat/ariss/news/arissnews.rtf
Please feel free to contact me if more detailed statistics are needed.
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
The following US states and entities have never had an ARISS contact:
Arkansas, Delaware, South Dakota, Wyoming, American Samoa, Guam, Northern
Marianas Islands, and the Virgin Islands.
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
QSL information may be found at:
http://www.ariss.org/qsl-cards.html
ISS callsigns: DPØISS, IRØISS, NA1SS, OR4ISS, RSØISS
****************************************************************************
The successful school list has been updated as of 2016-11-29 06:30 UTC.
(***)
http://www.amsat.org/amsat/ariss/news/Successful_ARISS_schools.rtf
Frequency chart for packet, voice, and crossband repeater modes showing
Doppler correction as of 2005-07-29 04:00 UTC
http://www.amsat.org/amsat/ariss/news/ISS_frequencies_and_Doppler_correction
.rtf
Listing of ARISS related magazine articles as of 2006-07-10 03:30 UTC.
http://www.amsat.org/amsat/ariss/news/ARISS_magazine_articles.rtf
Check out the Zoho reports of the ARISS contacts
https://reports.zoho.com/ZDBDataSheetView.cc?DBID=412218000000020415
****************************************************************************
Exp. 49 on orbit
Shane Kimbrough KE5HOD
Andrei Borisenko
Sergey Ryzhikov
Exp. 50 on orbit (***)
Welcome aboard! (***)
Peggy Whitson
Thomas Pesquet KG5FYG
Oleg Novitskiy
****************************************************************************
73,
Charlie Sufana AJ9N
One of the ARISS operation team mentors
Has anyone done a mod to the IC910 to make it receive out of band - up
to 450.050? If so please drop me a note on what was done and how it
worked. I found one online but would like some verification from
someone who has one working before I commit to it.
Thanks,
Jim
jim(a)coloradosatellite.com
I did not find the bird yesterday november 27th, morning and evening,
but heard part of a frame today morning at about 0755 UTC, orbit number
33418, a good pass above western Europe:
http://f5yg.pagesperso-orange.fr/incoming/HOPE-1_orb33418_28nov2016.mp3
BJ1SA XW XW AAA TTT A4V VNE E
and then orbit number 33419, low above the western horizon:
BJ1SA XW XW AAA TTT A4V VNE ETT TTT (0945 UTC)
BJ1SA XW XW AAA TTT A4V VNE E (0947 UTC)
BJ1S (0952 UTC)
Have a nice day my friends, 73 !
Jean-Pierre F5YG
Hi!
I don't have a KG file to share, but those should not be shared
between radios anyway. Those files are not like the config files
used in the "normal" ham radios like you get from Icom, Kenwood,
and Yaesu. But I can offer some suggestions and advice...
The KG-UV8D is not capable of working SO-50 full-duplex. When you
transmit on 2m, the 70cm receiver is desensed. You won't hear
the satellite again until you stop transmitting. The radio is
capable of working AO-85 full-duplex. I wrote about this on the
AMSAT-BB list a year ago, and you can see that message at:
http://amsat.org/pipermail/amsat-bb/2015-November/056254.html
I do not use memory channels for working AO-85. I use the two
VFOs, open the squelch all the way for the receive VFO, and
transmit from the other VFO. That link has some key settings
I used with that radio.
You can program a group of memory channels to work SO-50 half-
duplex. A guide for that is available from AMSAT's Station and
Operating Hints page at:
http://www.amsat.org/?page_id=2144
(look for the document "Operating FM Satellites")
Or use another HT with your KG-UV8D, so you can transmit from one
radio while listening to the other radio for full-duplex operation.
If you want to use an HT to work both AO-85 and SO-50 full-duplex,
there is only one option currently in production: Kenwood TH-D72A.
The new TH-D74A is not capable of full-duplex operation for any FM
satellite. Wouxun's KG-UV9D, like the KG-UV8D, is capable of working
AO-85 full-duplex, but not SO-50. Along with the KG-UV8D, I wrote
about a few other Chinese-made HTs and tried using them to work
FM satellites full-duplex. They could do that with AO-85, but not
SO-50. You can get to the messages covering the other radios I
wrote about at:
http://amsat.org/pipermail/amsat-bb/2015-December/056269.html
73!
Patrick WD9EWK/VA7EWK
http://www.wd9ewk.net/
Twitter: @WD9EWK
Go AMSAT!
On Mon, Nov 28, 2016 at 2:40 AM, <jim(a)beeson.cc> wrote:
>
>
>
> Anybody use this handheld for AO85 or SO50? I Have read the instruction
> manual - as it is - a few times and STILL am scratching my head. I want to
> set it up to work these two birds - full-duplex - and still work some local
> repeaters. That should be do-able right??? If you have an APP you have
> done and it does something like this can you email it to me please ( .KG
> file) !!!! Thanks !!
>
>
>
>
Upcoming ARISS Contact Schedule as of 2016-11-27 23:30 UTC
Quick list of scheduled contacts and events:
Collège Michel Lotte, Le Palais, France, telebridge via LU1CGB
The ISS callsign is presently scheduled to be NA1SS
The scheduled astronaut is Thomas Pesquet KG5FYG (***)
Contact is a go for: Mon 2016-11-28 10:38:06 UTC 74 deg
Watch for live audio stream:
http://radio-belleile.fr/contact-iss-michel-lotte-2016/ (sound only, the video will be recorded and available later)
****************************************************************************
**
ARISS is always glad to receive listener reports for the above contacts.
ARISS thanks everyone in advance for their assistance. Feel free to send
your reports to aj9n(a)amsat.org or aj9n(a)aol.com.
Listen for the ISS on the downlink of 145.8Ø MHz.
****************************************************************************
***
All ARISS contacts are made via the Kenwood radio unless otherwise noted.
****************************************************************************
***
Several of you have sent me emails asking about the RAC ARISS website and
not being able to get in. That has now been changed to
http://www.ariss.org/
Note that there are links to other ARISS websites from this site.
****************************************************************************
Looking for something new to do? How about receiving DATV from the ISS?
If interested, then please go to the ARISS-EU website for complete
details. Look for the buttons indicating Ham Video.
http://www.ariss-eu.org/
If you need some assistance, ARISS mentor Kerry N6IZW, might be able to
provide some insight. Contact Kerry at kbanke(a)sbcglobal.net
****************************************************************************
ARISS congratulations the following mentors who have now mentored over 100
schools:
Satoshi 7M3TJZ with 123
Gaston ON4WF with 121
Francesco IKØWGF with 118
****************************************************************************
The webpages listed below were all reviewed for accuracy. Out of date
webpages were removed and new ones have been added. If there are
additional
ARISS websites I need to know about, please let me know.
Note, all times are approximate. It is recommended that you do your own
orbital prediction or start listening about 10 minutes before the listed
time.
All dates and times listed follow International Standard ISO 8601 date
and
time format YYYY-MM-DD HH:MM:SS
The complete schedule page has been updated as of 2016-11-27 22:30 UTC.
(***)
Here you will find a listing of all scheduled school contacts, and
questions, other ISS related websites, IRLP and Echolink websites, and
instructions for any contact that may be streamed live.
http://www.amsat.org/amsat/ariss/news/arissnews.rtfhttp://www.amsat.org/amsat/ariss/news/arissnews.txt
Total number of ARISS ISS to earth school events is 1094.
Each school counts as 1 event.
Total number of ARISS ISS to earth school contacts is 1059.
Each contact may have multiple schools sharing the same time slot.
Total number of ARISS supported terrestrial contacts is 47.
A complete year by year breakdown of the contacts may be found in the
file.
http://www.amsat.org/amsat/ariss/news/arissnews.rtf
Please feel free to contact me if more detailed statistics are needed.
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
The following US states and entities have never had an ARISS contact:
Arkansas, Delaware, South Dakota, Wyoming, American Samoa, Guam, Northern
Marianas Islands, and the Virgin Islands.
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
QSL information may be found at:
http://www.ariss.org/qsl-cards.html
ISS callsigns: DPØISS, IRØISS, NA1SS, OR4ISS, RSØISS
****************************************************************************
The successful school list has been updated as of 2016-11-18 08:00 UTC.
http://www.amsat.org/amsat/ariss/news/Successful_ARISS_schools.rtf
Frequency chart for packet, voice, and crossband repeater modes showing
Doppler correction as of 2005-07-29 04:00 UTC
http://www.amsat.org/amsat/ariss/news/ISS_frequencies_and_Doppler_correction
.rtf
Listing of ARISS related magazine articles as of 2006-07-10 03:30 UTC.
http://www.amsat.org/amsat/ariss/news/ARISS_magazine_articles.rtf
Check out the Zoho reports of the ARISS contacts
https://reports.zoho.com/ZDBDataSheetView.cc?DBID=412218000000020415
****************************************************************************
Exp. 49 on orbit
Shane Kimbrough KE5HOD
Andrei Borisenko
Sergey Ryzhikov
****************************************************************************
73,
Charlie Sufana AJ9N
One of the ARISS operation team mentors
I just finished reading JoAnne Maepaa's (K9JKM) excellent PDF on ISS packet operation. Thank you JoAnne.
Couple of questions, please:
1) What "Terminal Emulator" do members use?
2) Looking at the examples in her PDF I noticed "qAR and qAS." What are these terms?
It has been at least 10 years since my brush with packet. I have to really REBOOT my brain, for sure.
Thank you & 73,
Jerry AB5R
Selling my Yaesu FT-847 satellite radio
In mint condition.Original box,manual
Power cable, hand mic and null modem
Cable for use with satpc32.Everything in new condition.$1100 plus ship.
Jeff Wb8rjy
jeff broughton
Please note the following changes:
FN08XW-2C at 2145XW-2F at 2234
Delete: XW-2C at 2319
EN97XW-2A at 2330AO-73 at 0123
FN07AO-73 at 0301SO-50 at 0347
73,
KenVE3HLS
Sent from my Samsung Galaxy smartphone.
Hi!
On Friday (25 November), I didn't want to stay home. I wasn't going to
visit stores or shopping malls, where I'd have to deal with crowds on
"Black Friday". With decent weather throughout Arizona, and especially
no snow on the highways in northern Arizona, I made a quick road trip
to operate from some rarely-heard grids. I also wanted to operate from
a national monument for another National Parks on the Air activation.
Even with the cool weather in northern Arizona, it was a fun day to
work satellites and do some sightseeing before the snow arrives.
I had originally planned to visit the Walnut Canyon National Monument,
east of Flagstaff along the I-40 freeway. I had been to this site in
June, trying to make a NPOTA activation then. I came up short of the
minimum number of stations I needed to work for an official activation
(10), but wanted to rectify that before the end of the year. Walnut
Canyon National Monument is in grid DM45, a rarely-heard grid on the
satellites, so a trip up there would satisfy operators on two fronts.
Then Steve N9IP mentioned on Twitter earlier in the week that he needed
grid DM44. I started looking at pass predictions, trying to see how I
could work a stop in grid DM44 along with working at least a few passes
from Walnut Canyon. Seeing that SO-50 would pass by in the morning, and
not be available later in the day at Walnut Canyon, I planned an early
stop in DM44 to make this happen.
After waking up to a 5am (1200 UTC) alarm clock, I was on the road by
1245 UTC. The first SO-50 pass was due to pass by around 1418 UTC, and
I could be in DM44 at a point about halfway up the I-17 freeway between
Phoenix and Flagstaff. With some hills to the east in this area, the
best spot to work from DM44 was actually on the DM34/DM44 grid boundary,
on a wide shoulder next to Cherry Road (AZ-169), just west of I-17. I
had about 20 minutes to find the spot I wanted to use, document my
location with photos, and set up for the SO-50 pass. I did all of that,
tweeted photos showing my location, and I was ready for SO-50. I also
had to change from a light windbreaker to a heavier jacket, as the
temperature was around 43F/6C at the start of the pass with a stiff
breeze.
The 1418 UTC SO-50 pass was a 16-degree pass to the northeast. Once I
heard the downlink, I started working stations across the USA, along
with Canada and Mexico. I have operated from both DM34 and DM44 earlier
in the year, but there is almost always someone looking for either of
these grids - or both of them. N9IP was the fourth of the 13 stations
I worked during this pass. After LOS, I quickly put the radio and
antenna back in my car, so I could finish my drive up to Walnut Canyon.
When I arrived at Walnut Canyon, I went to the same spot I used in June.
I parked just off the main road between the I-40 freeway and the visitor
center on the edge of the canyon. The national monument includes a strip
of land that connects the visitor center to the freeway, and the spot I
used has a Forest Service road that cuts through the national monument
about a mile north of the visitor center. It is also at 6600'/2011m, and
a bit cooler than it was at the DM34/DM44 grid boundary that was just over
4400'/1341m elevation. The temperature was down to 26F/-3C, something I
rarely see in the Phoenix area. The heavy jacket I put on for the earlier
stop was definitely necessary here.
The first pass I worked from Walnut Canyon was a western SO-50 pass just
before 1600 UTC. This was a surprisingly busy pass, with 13 stations
worked - an official NPOTA activation, just with one pass! I didn't stop
with this pass. A few minutes after SO-50 went away, FO-29 came up a few
degrees to my east. The satellite went up to a maximum elevation of 8.6
degrees. Even with the low elevation, and trees around my location, I
logged 3 QSOs.
During the week leading up to this trip to Walnut Canyon, the 145.825 MHz
packet digipeater on NO-84 had been turned on. It was still on while I
was at Walnut Canyon, and made use of it. The first of two NO-84 passes
was a 28-degree pass. NO-84's digipeater has a weaker downlink than what
we used to hear from the ISS on the same frequency, so it is more of a
challenge to make QSOs. Fernando NP4JV and I made what was my only QSO
on this pass, near my LOS.
About an hour later, there was another pair of passes - FO-29, followed
by NO-84. It was also starting to warm up - the temperature went above
freezing, up to 37F/3C. This time, just before 1800 UTC, FO-29 was
passing very high over northern Arizona. I was able to work 7 stations
from coast to coast in the continental USA, and one Canadian station.
The NO-84 pass around 1820 UTC had a little more activity. I was able
to work both KG6FIY and KK6OTJ in southern California via APRS messages.
Thanks Endaf and Mark for those QSOs! For these trips, working the
orbiting packet digipeaters is just another satellite or two, and it
was fun to have a total of 3 QSOs via NO-84 from Walnut Canyon.
By midday (1900 UTC), the outside temperature had made it up to a
comfortable 53F/12C. The heavy jacket went in the car, and I put my
windbreaker on instead. I had two more passes I planned to work,
one more FO-29 pass at 1935 UTC followed by AO-85 just after 2000
UTC, before heading to Flagstaff for lunch and the drive home.
The 1935 UTC FO-29 pass favored the west coast, and I worked just 2
stations. The AO-85 pass just after 2000 UTC passed across the
continental USA, making for a busier pass. I worked 10 stations from
coast to coast, including AI6GS who was also at an NPOTA site in
southern California (Joshua Tree National Park). This pass would
have made an NPOTA activation by itself, and it has been fun to make
park-to-park QSOs during this year.
After AO-85 went away, I packed up for the drive to Flagstaff for
lunch, and then the drive home. It was a nice day to be in northern
Arizona, as there should be snow falling up there today or tomorrow -
and I don't like driving in northern Arizona snow. Road conditions
were good all day, even for the drive up in the morning with below
freezing temperatures. The only snow I saw was on the tops of the
San Francisco Peaks that overlook Flagstaff, and that's OK with me.
:-)
I made a total of 38 QSOs from Walnut Canyon National Monument: 13
QSOs on the SO-50 pass, 12 QSOs across 3 FO-29 passes, 3 QSOs on 2
NO-84 passes, and 10 QSOs on the AO-85 pass to wrap up this NPOTA
activation. Along with the 13 QSOs made from the DM34/DM44 line
earlier, a good day to be on the satellites.
All of the QSOs I made from the DM34/DM44 grid boundary, as well as
those made at Walnut Canyon, are in Logbook of the World. If anyone
who worked me wants a QSL card, please e-mail me directly with the
QSO details. If you're in my log, I'll send you a card. No card or
SASE required. Working from rarely-heard grids is always fun, and
NPOTA has added to that in 2016. I still hope to make it to one or
two other NPOTA sites in the last few weeks of the year.
73!
Patrick WD9EWK/VA7EWK
http://www.wd9ewk.net/
Twitter: @WD9EWK
Go AMSAT!
Hi!
With the recent change to the UHF radio for the ISS packet digipeater,
this has disappointed some - and made others happy. I enjoyed working
stations through the 145.825 MHz digipeater, but working packet on
437.550 MHz has been fun, and bringing new challenges. Last night,
with 3 ISS passes over Arizona, was a great time for that...
The first of the 3 passes came just before 0130 UTC. Using my TH-D74A
HT and Elk handheld log periodic, I was able to get my position packets
retransmitted on this 9.9-degree pass to the southeast. Unfortunately,
I made no QSOs, and only heard one other station being retransmitted
before my LOS. Although this pass was a bust in terms of adding to my
logbook, the next couple of passes would be more successful. On to
the 0300 UTC pass...
The second of the three evening passes saw the ISS rise higher, to a
maximum elevation of just under 55 degrees. For those in California,
this was basically an overhead pass. After I worked a station on a
similar pass using my TH-D74A and a Diamond RH77CA long duckie antenna
just over a week ago, Mark KK6OTJ in southern California mentioned that
he wanted to try for a QSO where both of us use an HT and long duckie.
I suggested that this pass could work for us, and we went for it. Mark
has a TH-D72A HT, a BNC-to-SMA adapter on his radio, and a Diamond
RH77CA duckie antenna. Other than the radio, we had the same setup on
each end to make this attempt.
With the ISS coming up from the southwest, I thought we would have the
best chance to make this QSO earlier in the pass, certainly before the
midpoint of the pass. I prepared an APRS message for Mark's KK6OTJ-7
packet call sign with the text, "HT/duckie in DM43. QSL?" This is what
I started sending, once the ISS was up from the horizon. Watching the
clock and the AmsatDroid Free tracking app on my mobile phone, we went
through the first 5 minutes of the pass with nothing. Still sending my
APRS message with my grid locator, I saw an ACK come through the ISS
digipeater around 0307 UTC. Mark received my message, and his TH-D72A
sent an acknowledgement back to my TH-D74A. This was quickly followed
by Mark's APRS message, "QSL, Thanks & 73!" I sent a final "rgr" back
to Mark, completing the exchange and the QSO.
After the pass, Mark sent a photo of his TH-D72A's screen showing my
APRS message, and wondering if I had received his message. Apparently,
my radio's ACK for receiving his message didn't make it through the
ISS digipeater, but I had received his message. I tweeted a reply,
showing a listing of the messages - my message to him, then his message
to me, and the final message I sent him - along with a screenshot of
each message from that listing. Thanks for the QSO, Mark, and for the
challenge to do this.
After that high pass, there was still one more pass to work around
0440 UTC. Like the first pass of the evening, this was another shallow
pass - maximum elevation of just under 9 degrees, but to the northwest.
I was hoping to hear Kevin VE6QO in southern Alberta on that pass, and
maybe make a QSO with him. Kevin has been trying to work stations, but
the passes weren't helping me make a QSO. I have a line of thick trees
north of my house, which acts like a wall for the 437.550 MHz signals.
I went back to my Elk log periodic for this pass, knowing that the
Diamond duckie would not be a good antenna for a shallow pass. If I
was able to make an exchange with Kevin before the ISS was north of me,
it might be possible. And that's what we did...
I started sending my position packets once the ISS rose above the
houses west of me. I could see those packets being digipeated, and
then I saw "VE6QO" show up on the top of my TH-D74A's display. I knew
Kevin was there, even though his position wasn't being transmitted. I
made a very short APRS message to him - "dm43", my grid locator - and
started to send that. Kevin was also trying to send me his grid locator,
but the low pass was making this tough. While this was happening, I saw
two other stations showing up on my screen - VA7THO in British Columbia,
and W0JW in Iowa. Kevin and I kept at it, and finally I saw my "dm43"
APRS message being retransmitted. After that, I saw "TU and 73" come
from Kevin's end. I followed that up with a "73" to complete our QSO.
Thanks again, Kevin, for the QSO!
More stations are starting to find their way over to the 437.550 MHz ISS
digipeater. Unfortunately, this also includes the unattended beacons that
were all too common on 145.825 MHz. It appears we will have ISS packet
on 70cm for a while, given that a radio capable of VHF packet may not be
sent to the ISS until late next year. For many FM transceivers capable of
packet operation, using a group of 5 memory channels to compensate for
Doppler is the ticket to being successful working packet on 70cm. Think
of working the 70cm ISS packet digipeater like the combination of AO-85's
uplink and SO-50's downlink, all on one frequency. The uplink frequency
moves up as the downlink frequency moves down, and near the middle of the
pass the two frequencies are the same.
I posted on this list and tweeted the chart I used for programming my HTs
to work the 437.550 MHz digipeater. That chart is also available from
You can get to the chart with this direct link:
http://www.amsat.org/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2014/01/ISS
_Packet_Operation_on_70cm-20161113.pdf
This document, along with K9JKM's guide on ISS packet operation and more,
is available from AMSAT's Station and Operating Hints page:
http://www.amsat.org/?page_id=2144
If you previously worked the ISS packet digipeater on 145.825 MHz, working
the 437.550 MHz is not that different. Dealing with Doppler is a must, and
the higher frequency could lead to issues if your QTH has trees in the way
of your antenna(s), but there are stations looking to do more than transmit
beacons automatically. If you would like to attempt a QSO with me using the
70cm ISS packet digipeater, please e-mail me directly. There should be some
options for QSOs with stations across much of the continental USA, as well
as with many parts of Canada and Mexico.
73!
Patrick WD9EWK/VA7EWK
http://www.wd9ewk.net/
Twitter: @WD9EWK
Go AMSAT!