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

AMSAT VTAPR EasyTrak Interface on E Bay
by Joe Leikhim 05 Apr '16

05 Apr '16

Cleaning out shack for spring! 2 more days Now at $59.50 http://www.ebay.com/itm/162021666834?ssPageName=STRK:MESELX:IT&_trksid=p398… -- Joe Leikhim Leikhim and Associates Communications Consultants Oviedo, Florida JLeikhim(a)Leikhim.com 407-982-0446 WWW.LEIKHIM.COM

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Re: [amsat-bb] CW straight key nowadays (and PSAT)
by Robert Bruninga 05 Apr '16

05 Apr '16

And also PSAT, with its 28.120 linear uplink and FM downlink. Although someone has to be transmitting PSK31 for the auto-transponder to come up, any weak CW in the same spectrum should be heard. Although I should not recommend such use, so as not to disrupt normal band plan operations, it is a nice experiment and since the PSK31 transponder is usually never more than about 5% loaded (1 user maybe?) it's a shame not to experiment with it... -----Original Message----- From: Paul Stoetzer Subject: Re: [amsat-bb] CW straight key nowadays > <snip> ...the following satellites have linear transponders available for use: FO29 AO-7 AO-73 XW-2A XW-2C XW-2F [PSAT 28.121 up and 435.350 FM down.] Watch your power on CW - especially on AO-7 [and PSAT]. A very strong CW signal can make the transponder useless for others, and in the case of AO-7, cause it to mode jump at certain times of the year. 73, Paul, N8HM On Sunday, April 3, 2016, andy thomas via AMSAT-BB <amsat-bb(a)amsat.org> wrote: > Hi > Just sorting out the garden and antennas this Spring day. I have my > preamps wired into the feed lines and want to get on air with a > challenge a bit more than FM. > > So I'm wondering what is currently available to work in CW (Only > straight key and I'm not very fast!)? FO-29, I suppose, but anything else? > 73 de andy G0SFJ > _______________________________________________ > Sent via AMSAT-BB(a)amsat.org <javascript:;>. 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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Upcoming ARISS Contact Schedule as of 2016-04-05 17:30 UTC
by AJ9N＠aol.com 05 Apr '16

05 Apr '16

Upcoming ARISS Contact Schedule as of 2016-04-05 17:30 UTC Quick list of scheduled contacts and events: Kiilinik High School, Cambridge Bay, Nunavut, Canada, telebridge via VK4KHZ The ISS callsign is presently scheduled to be NA1SS The scheduled astronaut is Jeff Williams KD5TVQ Contact is go for: Wed 2016-04-06 18:02:20 UTC 55 deg H.A.L. School, Lucknow, India, telebridge via W6SRJ The ISS callsign is presently scheduled to be NA1SS The scheduled astronaut is Tim Kopra KE5UDN Contact is a go for: Fri 2016-04-08 08:17:46 UTC 26 deg Note: this contact might get rescheduled. (***) Valahia University of Targoviste, Targoviste, Romania, direct via The ISS callsign is presently scheduled to be OR4ISS The scheduled astronaut is Jeff Williams KD5TVQ Contact is a go for : Tue 2016-04-12 13:48:06 UTC 79 deg (***) Colegio Santa Rosa, Yerba Buena, Argentina, direct via LU1KCQ The ISS callsign is presently scheduled to be NA1SS The scheduled astronaut is Jeff Williams KD5TVQ Contact is a go for: Wed 2016-04-13 14:02:54 UTC 34 deg (***) USA Science and Engineering Festival, Washington, D.C., telebridge via IK1SLD The ISS callsign is presently scheduled to be OR4ISS The scheduled astronaut is Timothy Peake KG5BVI Contact is a go for: Sat 2016-04-16 18:19:28 UTC 78 deg (***) **************************************************************************** ** The next window to submit a proposal for an upcoming contact is now open. The window is open from 2016-02-15 to 2016-04-15 and would be for contacts between 2017-01-01 and 2017-06-30. Check out the ARISS website http://www.ariss.org/ or the ARRL website http://www.arrl.org/hosting-an-ariss-contact for full details. **************************************************************************** ** 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. **************************************************************************** *** All ARISS contacts are made via the Ericsson 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: Gaston ON4WF with 121 Satoshi 7M3TJZ with 117 Francesco IKØWGF with 116 **************************************************************************** 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 8061 date and time format YYYY-MM-DD HH:MM:SS The complete schedule page has been updated as of 2016-04-05 17:30 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.rtf Total number of ARISS ISS to earth school events is 1039. Each school counts as 1 event. Total number of ARISS ISS to earth school contacts is 1004. 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, Rhode Island, 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 2016-04-02 02:00 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. 46 on orbit Tim Kopra KE5UDN Timothy Peake KG5BVI Yuri Malenchenko RK3DUP **************************************************************************** 73, Charlie Sufana AJ9N One of the ARISS operation team mentors

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Space Security Survey - Reminder
by Brandon Shirley 05 Apr '16

05 Apr '16

Dear AMSAT community members, I'd like to thank everyone who participated in the Security survey; the Security survey has now closed. If you were planning to take the survey, but have not yet completed it, then please let me know via email and I can keep it open for another day or so. I will notify the winners of this survey's drawing within 1 week. The winners of the overall survey set will be notified after the entire survey set closes. *** The next survey will start today or tomorrow. The next survey will be the Reuse, Interoperability, Portability, Code Complexity Survey. *** V/R, Brandon Shirley b.l.s(a)aggiemail.usu.edu

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New User
by Pete Moscatt 05 Apr '16

05 Apr '16

blockquote, div.yahoo_quoted { margin-left: 0 !important; border-left:1px #715FFA solid !important; padding-left:1ex !important; background-color:white !important; } Hi To All, Ok, I am just getting myself into the world of Satellites and need a little guidance. Up until now I have been reading through Getting Started on the Amateur Radio Satellites by Keith Baker. He makes reference to AO-51 as the satellite to cut ones teeth on. >From what I understand, this bird no longer exists, so, what is now considered as being a beginners satellite? Pete. VK4CCV

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Upcoming ARISS contact with Kiilinik High School, Cambridge Bay, Nunavut, Canada
by n4csitwo＠bellsouth.net 04 Apr '16

04 Apr '16

An International Space Station school contact has been planned with participants at Kiilinik High School, Cambridge Bay, Nunavut, Canada on 06 Apr. The event is scheduled to begin at approximately 18:02 UTC. It is recommended that you start listening approximately 10 minutes before this time.The duration of the contact is approximately 9 minutes and 30 seconds. The contact will be a telebridge between NA1SS and VK4KHZ The contact should be audible over portions of Australia and adjacent areas. Interested parties are invited to listen in on the 145.80 MHz downlink. The contact is expected to be conducted in English. Cambridge Bay is a hamlet located on Victoria Island in the Kitikmeot Region of Nunavut, Canada. It is named for Prince Adolphus, Duke of Cambridge, while the Inuinnaqtun name for the area is Iqaluktuttiaq meaning "good fishing place".This ancestral region of Nunavut has been inhabited for 4,000 years. It is rich in archaeological history and blessed with abundant fish, seals, geese, muskoxen and caribou. Kiilinik High School is one of two public schools located in Cambridge Bay, Nunavut. The school has a population of approximately 200 students and provides education from grades 7 to 12. For this event the Primary School will pair up with the high school for the event. Participants will ask as many of the following questions as time allows: 1. Can you change the orbit and speed of Space Station? 2. What is your favorite part of being an astronaut? 3. Is the passage of time on Space Station different than Earth? 4. What time zone do you follow on Space Station and Why? 5. What do you do in your spare time, do you have the internet? 6. What would happen if a crew member was sick while in space? 7. Do you think we will ever travel outside our solar system and is Space Station helping to solve the issues? 8. How is sleep impacted on Space Station and zero Gravity? 9. You are 400 kms up, zero gravity, far away from family, friends, watching the universe and earth go by, looking and pondering into the universe - what is that like? 10. We understand fire burns differently in space, how do you deal with a fire emergency? 11. Are you doing any research related to travel to other worlds like Mars? 12. Was being an astronaut a childhood dream or did you decide later? 13. What were your first impressions when you arrived on the space station and what will you miss from space? 14. How many people can live on space station at one time and for how long with no supply vessel? 15. How advanced or how far and where can we go during the next 100 years in space and space research? PLEASE CHECK THE FOLLOWING FOR MORE INFORMATION ON ARISS UPDATES: Visit ARISS on Facebook. We can be found at Amateur Radio on the International Space Station (ARISS). To receive our Twitter updates, follow @ARISS_status Next planned event(s): 1. H.A.L. School, Lucknow, India, telebridge via W6SRJ The ISS callsign is presently scheduled to be NA1SS The scheduled astronaut is Tim Kopra KE5UDN Contact is a go for: Fri, 08Apr2016 08:17 UTC ABOUT ARISS Amateur Radio on the International Space Station (ARISS) is a cooperative venture of international amateur radio societies and the space agencies that support the International Space Station (ISS). In the United States, sponsors are the Radio Amateur Satellite Corporation (AMSAT), the American Radio Relay League (ARRL), and the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA). The primary goal of ARISS is to promote exploration of science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) topics by organizing scheduled contacts via amateur radio between crew members aboard the ISS and students in classrooms or informal education venues. With the help of experienced amateur radio volunteers, ISS crews speak directly with large audiences in a variety of public forums. Before and during these radio contacts, students, teachers, parents, and communities learn about space, space technologies, and amateur radio. For more information, see www.ariss.org, www.amsat.org, and www.arrl.org. Thank you & 73, David - AA4KN --- This email has been checked for viruses by Avast antivirus software. https://www.avast.com/antivirus

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SECRET John Glenn Postage Stamp
by Clint Bradford 04 Apr '16

04 Apr '16

Did you know that the release of that famous Project Mercury 4-cent US postage stamp was a SECRET government project? For the first and only time in the country's postal history, the United States Post Office Department (since 1971, known as the "U.S. Postal Service") surprised the public with the release of a "secret" stamp celebrating Glenn's successful mission. The 4-cent "Project Mercury" postage stamp was revealed and immediately put on sale in 305 post offices within an hour of Glenn's triumphant return to Earth at 2:43 p.m. EST (1943 GMT) on Feb. 20, 1962. Here's an opportunity for you to own a 50-stamp, complete plate block set of this historic project - suitable for framing for your home or office. Or, in my case, my home office (grin). https://www.32auctions.com/K6LCS There's also arguably the BEST true, full-duplex HTfor the FM birds available there, too - the Icom IC-W32a - WITH a highly desireable early serial number. Clint Bradford K6LCS (909) 999-SATS (909) 999-7287

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CW straight key nowadays
by andy thomas 04 Apr '16

04 Apr '16

Hi Just sorting out the garden and antennas this Spring day. I have my preamps wired into the feed lines and want to get on air with a challenge a bit more than FM. So I'm wondering what is currently available to work in CW (Only straight key and I'm not very fast!)? FO-29, I suppose, but anything else? 73 de andy G0SFJ

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FUNcube-1 Mode
by Graham Shirville 04 Apr '16

04 Apr '16

Hi All, FUNcube-1 is now switching between education and amateur modes autonomously and is planned to do so until Friday evening (UTC) thanks Graham G3VZV

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Ham Talk Live Webcast Tonight - ARISS with Rosalie White, K1STO
by JoAnne Maenpaa 03 Apr '16

03 Apr '16

Reposting from QRZ.com: Ham Talk Live! Episode #7 - ARISS with Rosalie White, K1STO - Thursday at 9pm ET Coming up this week on Ham Talk Live!, Rosalie White, K1STO will be here to talk about the Amateur Radio on the International Space Station (ARISS) program sponsored by ARRL, AMSAT, and NASA! We will have a look back at the start of the program, the 1000th QSO that was just completed, and the future of the program. We will feature some messages from the ISS, and tell you about a way you can help! Join us Thursday night at 9 pm Eastern time on hamtalklive.com, and call in with your questions! If you can't listen live, you can hear the replay on our web site. Or, you can find us on Spreaker, iTunes, Stitcher, Google Play, YouTube, SoundCloud, or TuneIn. -- 73 de JoAnne K9JKM k9jkm(a)amsat.org

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