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

XW-2B Transponder On
by Paul Stoetzer 26 Apr '16

26 Apr '16

According to reports out of Europe, the transponder on XW-2B is on. I'll be on the 2230Z pass over eastern North America looking for QSOs. XW-2B's uplink passband is 435.090 MHz - 435.110 MHz and the downlink passband is 145.750 MHz - 145.730 MHz. A linear transponder frequency chart is available on AMSAT's website at http://www.amsat.org/?page_id=5033 73, Paul, N8HM

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Reuse, Interoperability, Portability, Code Complexity Survey - Reminder
by Brandon Shirley 26 Apr '16

26 Apr '16

AMSAT community members, This is a reminder email for the Reuse, Interoperability, Portability, Code Complexity Survey. So far about 25 participants have completed the survey, and if you have I am very grateful. Another 20 have stated the survey, and maybe those participants are done with how they want to fill out the survey. I would ideally want about 100-200 respondents, but I have had about 40-80 participants on the previous surveys. If I could get another 20+ participants that would be great. I will keep the survey open until Monday, then we start the last survey... I know you will all miss these emails. This is the longest survey, please note that you can take it in stages as long as you resume or visit the link in the same browser on the same computer and you have cookies turned on as it will remember your session: no other identifying information is collected or stored. You can you use the link below to access the Reuse, Interoperability, Portability, Code Complexity Survey. https://usu.co1.qualtrics.com/SE/?SID=SV_79TOgGac3B4Z77f What follows is more information about the survey and is largely the same as what you have seen before. There is a chance to win some gift cards. Please see below for more information. The survey should take about 15 minutes. Thanks. Please note that the link is anonymous, so you are getting this reminder even if you have already taken the survey. I would like to thank everyone that has participated thus far, I really appreciate it, I know it is an inconvenience and that everyone is really busy. The second part of the survey has background questions that will give context to your answers. Try to fill the background out the same way if you take more than one of the surveys. Answer as many of the questions as you want and as much of each question as you want, partial surveys may still be very helpful. At the end of this survey, you will be redirected to a webpage that asks for an email address. You must enter a valid email address to be considered for survey drawings or the overall survey set drawing. We are currently on the 5th survey, Reuse, Interoperability, Portability, Code Complexity Survey. You have a chance at receiving a gift card for participating in this survey as well as a chance at receiving a gift card for your overall participation in the entire survey set. There will be 2 winners of $25 gift cards for each survey and 2 winners of $200 gift cards for the survey set. The surveys are as follows and will be distributed in the following order: (participate as your mood strikes you) SISDPA : Core Concepts SISDPA : Development Preferences SISDPA : Open Systems Architecture and Modularity SISDPA : Security SISDPA : Reuse, Interoperability, Portability, Code Complexity <== We are here ==== SISDPA : Network V/R, Brandon Shirley b.l.s(a)aggiemail.usu.edu See http://brandon.bluezone.usu.edu/Files/LOISpaceSoftwareAttitudes_Final.pdf for the Letter of Intent (LOI) that explains your role as a participant should you choose to participate. This is a legitimate request for you participation, if you have any questions about the validity of this email you may refer to the Letter of Intent, contact Brandon Shirley via email at mailto:b.l.s@aggiemail.usu.edu, or contact Utah State University's Internal Review Board administrator at (435) 797 - 0567 or email mailto:irb@usu.edu.

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VS-14 -Sentinel-1B and cubesat launch
by GW1FKY＠aol.com 26 Apr '16

26 Apr '16

According to ESA, Sentinel-1B lifted off on a Soyuz rocket, flight VS14, from Europe’s Spaceport in Korou, French Guiana on 25 April 2016 at 21:02 GMT (23:02 CEST). The three CubeSats, each measuring just 0×10×11 cm, piggybacked a ride on Soyuz are: OUFTI-1 from the University of Liege, Belgium, _e-st@r-II_ (mailto:e-st@r-II) from the Polytechnic of Turin, Italy, and AAUSat-4 from Aalborg University, Denmark. The other passenger is the Microscope satellite from France’s CNES space agency. (Source: ESA) Ken Eaton GW1FKY Amsat -UK Amsat NA

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FW: X-Ray vision for the AMSAT DIY'er
by Robert Bruninga 26 Apr '16

26 Apr '16

Our experience with IR cameras brought me to this discovery: I needed to see through a wall to see the studs in a 100 year old plaster and lath wall. It was easy. Just put a radiant space heater on the other side to heat the wall. Then after an hour or so, use an IR camera to view the wall. You can see the studs and anything else that is inconsistent inside the wall. Then I happened to glance with the IR camera at the wall where I had the 1500 W electric heater plugged in, and I could CLEARLY see the wiring in 3D. By moving the camera around I could see the hot wire in 3D and not only see where it was, but how deep or, along which wall in the pocket it was located. I then went on an exploration mission in my basement to see hotspots in my entire electrical system. It was an amazing color display liken to XMAS. Then I noticed a large, unusually bright spot from the basement looking up at the kitchen floor. I was concerned, since it should have been a part of open floor and there should not be any heat source there unless it was an electrical problem beneath the floor. I ran upstairs only to find a cat, sleeping on a thick rug, on a ceramic tile, on a ¾” underlayment, on top of an OAK floor, on top of ¾” tongue and groove subfloor. That’s seeing a cat through 3” of solid wood, ceramic and a rug. Just laying there burning up cat food. I think these cameras are under $500 and even have APPS on cell phones that can do it? You wont be able to see though metal, but through anything else, maybe so. In fact, to perfectly mark the hazy images where I wanted to drill the hole to the stud, I used a small 1” square of aluminum foil. It has low emissivity and always appears DARK against anything else that is warm behind it. But also, notice that the aluminum foil is not only low-E, but it is also IR REFLECTIVE. So it can look very hot (98.6F) if you happen to be standing where the aluminum can reflect your body heat. Bob, WB4APR

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Market Price for Yaesu FT-847 and FC-20 antenna tuner
by wa7eth＠frontier.com 25 Apr '16

25 Apr '16

Anyone know what the current market price is for an FT-847 and FC-20 tuner. Please contact me off list at wa7eth@frontier.com..Thanks. 73'...Ed WA7ETH

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Channel Master TV rotor for sat use?
by Michael 25 Apr '16

25 Apr '16

A few days ago someone made a post that had a link to instructions on using a Channel Master TV rotor with a remote control to rotate a sat antenna. It used PST rotator software to do so. Unfortunately I deleted the post by mistake. Could you please post a link to the details again?

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LVB Tracker with NOVA assistance
by Bill Booth 25 Apr '16

25 Apr '16

I am seeking some assistance in getting the LVB box to work with the Nova Software. I have upgraded my equipment with a new computer W7 still using NOVA tracking software. My old system P4 with WXP and the par port AEA ST-1 worked fine for many years. So I have the LVB calibrated just fine. Whatever I move the rotor to, the display on the LVB shows the same. The software almaost works with the LVB but is off sometimes by maybe 15 degrees on AZ only. Elev seems to be OK. It also changes depending on the sat or the direction the ants are pointing. Another odd part is that the NOVA shows the correct readings, but the small rotor screen is off. I am wondering if it is the selection of rotor interface in the setup. I find the only one to work is the Easy Comm, but I kinda thought that maybe the Yaesu GS-232 was the one to use...... If anyone has any ideas maybe email me direct. -- Bill Booth VE3NXK Sundridge ON, Canada 79.23.37 W x 45.46.18 N FN05ns Visit my weather WebCam at http://www.almaguin.com/wxcurrent/weather.html Organ and Tissue Donation - The Gift of Life Talk to your family. Your decision can make a difference.

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Need help decoding EO-79 packets.
by Jeff A. Boyd 25 Apr '16

25 Apr '16

I have been trying for weeks to set up a system to decode telemetry packets from EO-79 (QB50P1) without success. As I am new at dealing with data from satellites that is not already handled by a dedicated program such as FUNCube Dashboard, which handles Doppler tracking and packet decoding all by itself, I'm still kind of lost as to how all the required components are supposed to come together. If I can figure out EO-79, goes my thinking, then I can go on to tackling other BPSK 1200 baud birds such as the XW-2 constellation. I will list what I'm doing below; if someone can please give me a sanity check it would be greatly appreciated. - Receiver: FUNCube Dongle Pro+, SDR# outputting to a virtual audio cable. - SATPC32 tracking EO-79, correcting for Doppler, and controlling SDR#. - AGW Packet Engine set up with "Sound Card" TNC (the other end of the virtual audio cable), dual port, 1200 baud for each channel. - AGW Online KISS set up to connect to the Packet Engine. WINSock remote port 8000. - Soundmodem by UZ7HO on the same port 8000 and listening to SDR#, which is set for USB, 4kHz bandwidth. SATPC32 is keeping the packet traces in the center of the 4kHz passband, and I can see the traces appearing in the waterfall in Soundmodem. The modems in Soundmodem (2 channels) are set for BPSK 1200 baud, and the reticules match up exactly with the traces I can see in the waterfall. And Soundmodem refuses to decode a single #$%&ing thing. There is an occasional "<NON AX.25 FRAME>" that shows up in the list, and Online KISS will show a bunch of garbage, but this mostly occurs when there is nothing in the waterfall at all. Several sites have said that I'm to connect something to something else using virtual serial ports, but none of them have really given me a straight answer as to where to connect what to what. What am I doing wrong here? Any advice would be ridiculously appreciated. 73 -- J. Boyd, JR2TTS/NI3B the2belo(a)msd.biglobe.ne.jp http://www.flickr.com/photos/the2belo/ http://www.qrz.com/db/JR2TTS Twitter: @Minus2_C

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Upcoming ARISS contact with The Derby High School, Bury, UK
by n4csitwo＠bellsouth.net 25 Apr '16

25 Apr '16

An International Space Station school contact has been planned with participants at The Derby High School, Bury, UK on 25 Apr. The event is scheduled to begin at approximately 12:02 UTC. The duration of the contact is approximately 9 minutes and 30 seconds. The contact will be direct between GB1SS and GB1DHS. The contact should be audible over the UK 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. The Derby High School is a state comprehensive school (11-16 with 855 pupils 2015-16) situated in the town of Bury. The school is co-educational and is proud to be a community school supporting the diverse population of Bury and Radcliffe. 50% of students reside in an area within the top 20% of socio-economic deprivation nationally. The proportion of students who are disadvantaged and supported through the pupil premium is significantly high when compared with most schools. The proportion of students from minority ethnic backgrounds is well above average. The percentage of students who progress to post-16 studies is high. The school opened in 1958 and in 2003 became the first Science and Arts Specialist College in the country. The school motto: Excellence, Tradition and Imagination embodies all that we strive to achieve. We are committed to offering a first class academic education with excellent vocational opportunities and preparation for the world of work. Sport is a strength and all our students learn how to 'live well'; to cook, eat healthily and be physically active. Personal, moral, cultural and social education is crucial to the life of our school. Citizenship and ethical education take centre stage in our school. We seek to equip our children and the wider community, not only to live in the future world, but to shape that future world and create a better tomorrow. We are proud to be the face of modern democratic Britain. Our values are enshrined in the 7 R's: Respectful, Responsible, Reasonable, ready, Resourceful, Resilient and Right Impression The enrichment and engagement opportunities on offer to pupils at The Derby would probably not be bettered anywhere. From humble beginnings in 2002, the program of events and activities has grown from a single educational visit to over 50 activities on offer year on year to all pupils regardless of ability. The success of our program has in turn led to national recognition. In 2012 Mr Paul Kerr won an Institute of Physics Teacher Award for excellence in teaching and in recognition for the outstanding commitment to developing an extensive enrichment program. In 2013 the Science Department won the national TES Award for Educational Excellence in Science, and in 2014 was commended in the Science category at The Education Business Awards. In 2015 Mr Paul Kerr was also a finalist at The STEMNET Awards in the category of STEM Leadership. Participants will ask as many of the following questions as time allows: 1. Tim, You have become an inspiration to young people, how do you feel about this? 2. Is it be possible to detect dark matter whilst in space? 3. How do you get enough electricity to power everything we see on the ISS? 4. Do you think you will get to go on another space mission, and what might it be? 5. Can disease, as we know it on earth, exist in space? 6. What everyday task has become more complicated in space? 7. The Sun looks yellow from Earth, does it look different from space? 8. If you could invite two guests, past or present to join you for dinner on the ISS who would they be and why? 9. Does your heart beat faster or slower in space? 10. Would you encourage your children to become astronauts? 11. Do molecules and atoms behave differently in space? 12. Is it easier to see other planets in the Solar System from the ISS? 13. If you could visit your younger self what would you say about your experience? 14. What is your most important experiment and how will we benefit down here on Earth? 15. Do movies like Gravity give a realistic picture of being in space? 16. You are completing over 200 experiments. How will they benefit us here on Earth? 17. If you fired a bullet in space how far would it go? 18. Why do you wear a mission patch on your space suit? 19. Do seeds grow faster in space than on Earth? 20. Will being back on Earth ever be the same for you? 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. Istituto Comprensivo Statale "Diego Valeri", Campolongo Maggiore, Italy, direct via IZ3YRA The ISS callsign is presently scheduled to be OR4ISS The scheduled astronaut is Tim Kopra KE5UDN Contact is a go for: Fri 2016-04-29 08:34:08 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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Upcoming ARISS Contact Schedule as of 2016-04-25 05:00 UTC
by AJ9N＠aol.com 25 Apr '16

25 Apr '16

Upcoming ARISS Contact Schedule as of 2016-04-25 05:00 UTC Quick list of scheduled contacts and events: About Gagarin from space Saratov, Russia, direct via R4CR The ISS callsign is presently scheduled to be RSØISS The scheduled astronaut is Yuri Malenchenko RK3DUP Contact was successful: Sat 2016-04-23 09:06 UTC (***) St. Petersburg, Russia, direct via RA1AJN The ISS callsign is presently scheduled to be RSØISS The scheduled astronaut is TBD Contact was successful: Sat 2016-04-23 10:41 UTC (***) Wellesley House School, Broadstairs, Kent, UK, direct via GB1WHS The ISS callsign is presently scheduled to be GB1SS The scheduled astronaut is Timothy Peake KG5BVI Contact was successful: Sat 2016-04-23 12:10:50 UTC 62 deg (***) Watch for HamTV coverage Republic of Chuvashia, direct via RA4YEZ The ISS callsign is presently scheduled to be RSØISS The scheduled astronaut is Yuri Malenchenko RK3DUP Contact is a go for Sun 2016-04-23 09:50 UTC The Derby High School, Bury, UK, direct via GB1DHS The ISS callsign is presently scheduled to be GB1SS The scheduled astronaut is Timothy Peake KG5BVI Contact is a go for: Mon 2016-04-25 12:02:27 UTC 49 deg Istituto Comprensivo Statale “Diego Valeri”, Campolongo Maggiore, Italy, direct via IZ3YRA The ISS callsign is presently scheduled to be OR4ISS The scheduled astronaut is Tim Kopra KE5UDN Contact is a go for: Fri 2016-04-29 08:34:08 UTC 64 deg **************************************************************************** ** 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 2016-04-25 05:00 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 1049. (***) Each school counts as 1 event. Total number of ARISS ISS to earth school contacts is 1014. (***) 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 2016-04-25 05:00 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 Exp. 47 on orbit Jeff Williams KD5TVQ Oleg Skripochka RN3FU Aleksey Ovchinin **************************************************************************** 73, Charlie Sufana AJ9N One of the ARISS operation team mentors

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