December 2017 - AMSAT-BB - mailman.amsat.org

LVB Tracker
by radiomb 11 Dec '17

11 Dec '17

Does Amsat plan on producing the LVB tracker in the future? Tnx Mike K4MIA

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Upcoming ARISS Contact Schedule as of 2017-12-12 05:00 UTC
by AJ9N＠aol.com 11 Dec '17

11 Dec '17

Upcoming ARISS Contact Schedule as of 2017-12-12 05:00 UTC Quick list of scheduled contacts and events: Shirokawa Elementary School, Seiyo, Japan, direct via 8J5SS The ISS callsign is presently scheduled to be NA1SS The scheduled astronaut is Paolo Nespoli (***) Contact was successful: Mon 2017-12-11 11:06:25 UTC 70 deg (***) Antietam Elementary School, Woodbridge, VA, direct via KM4TAY The ISS callsign is presently scheduled to be NA1SS The scheduled astronaut is Mark Vande Hei KG5GNP (***) Contact was successful: Mon 2017-12-11 18:30:10 UTC 36 deg (***) Summa-Aldapeta, Donostia-San Sebastián, Spain, direct via EG2SMA The ISS callsign is presently scheduled to be OR4ISS The scheduled astronaut is Joe Acaba KE5DAR Contact is a go for: Tue 2017-12-12 13:01:28 UTC 84 deg Watch for live stream at http://www.summa-aldapeta.com/ISS/ (***) **************************************************************************** ** 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: Francesco IKØWGF with 132 Satoshi 7M3TJZ with 126 (***) Gaston ON4WF with 123 Sergey RV3DR with 100 **************************************************************************** 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 2017-12-06 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.rtf http://www.amsat.org/amsat/ariss/news/arissnews.txt Total number of ARISS ISS to earth school events is 1196. Each school counts as 1 event. Total number of ARISS ISS to earth school contacts is 1145. 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 2017-12-05 07:00 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. 52 on orbit Randy Bresnik Paolo Nespoli IZØJPA Sergey Ryazanskiy Exp. 53 on orbit Mark Vande Hei KG5GNP Alexander Misurkin Joe Acaba KE5DAR **************************************************************************** 73, Charlie Sufana AJ9N One of the ARISS operation team mentors

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Yaesu FIF-232C for sale
by Andrew Glasbrenner 11 Dec '17

11 Dec '17

I have a FIF-232C CAT level adapter and 6 pin DIN cable available to anyone who needs it. This came from a local AMSAT member who passed on, and I believe it was in use with his FT-736. It works with these rigs: FT-650, FT-736, FT-747GX, FT-757GXII, FT-767GX, FT-840, FT-890, FT-990, FT-1000D, <https://www.universal-radio.com/catalog/commrxvr/2786.html> FRG-100, FRG-8800 and FRG-9600. It powers on, but I have no way to further test it. $40 shipped USPS in the US. 73, Drew KO4MA

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Rocket Lab Launch Update
by Wendy and Terry Osborne 11 Dec '17

11 Dec '17

Launch window now at 16:00 NZDT (03:00 UTC) at he earliest. See: https://twitter.com/RocketLab Live stream from here : https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F_oAGlhFezo&feature=youtu.be Starting at 15:30 NZDT (02:30 UTC). 73, Terry Osborne ZL2BAC

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Re: [amsat-bb] FM Satellites: Good Operating Practices for Beginning and Experienced Operators
by Burns Fisher 11 Dec '17

11 Dec '17

Good work Sean! Number 6 seems to be the most controversial. I do believe that many new folks are still interested in catching the "rare" QSO. I'd suggest, though, that instead of prioritizing "rare grids" you prioritize "special short term stations". You might give as examples rare grid squares, portable stations and special event stations (easily recognizable by their 1x1 calls). Maybe even suggest giving priority to weak-sounding stations. Any other ideas about priorities? 73, Burns W2BFJ

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Upcoming ARISS contact with Summa-Aldapeta, Donostia-San Sebastián, Spain
by n4csitwo＠bellsouth.net 11 Dec '17

11 Dec '17

An International Space Station school contact has been planned with participants at Summa-Aldapeta, Donostia-San Sebastián, Spain on 12 Dec. The event is scheduled to begin at approximately 13:01 UTC. The duration of the contact is approximately 9 minutes and 30 seconds. The contact will be direct between OR4ISS and EG2SMA. The contact should be audible over Spain 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 and Spanish. Summa Aldapeta is a Catholic co-educational school owned by three religious orders, The Society of Mary - (Marianist brothers and priests), The Daughters of Mary Immaculate (Marianist sisters) and the Order of the Company of Mary our Lady and operated by agreement with the educational authorities. Through a unique collaboration, it has served the city for more than a hundred years. The school is located in three close premises in the city centre of San Sebastian- Donostia, north of Spain. These three buildings give us the possibility of adapting to the needs of today's students and allow us to have a much closer relationship with students and their families. Nowadays there are around 2,000 students from the age of 1 up to the age of 18 at Summa Aldapeta, with a dedicated staff, truly dedicated to the spirit of educating the whole student, engaged in innovation and new methodologies. We offer our students, families and society an integral and quality education. Our goal in education is to develop every student as a person, educating them to interact and communicate with others, stimulating their abilities, educating them in healthy lifestyles and equality. We share these goals with our families and society. The city has been selected as European Capital of Culture for 2016 (shared with Wroclaw, Poland). Communication in its different ways plays a key role in Cultural exchange among nations. Amateur radio operators have been, since their very beginnings 100 years ago, a perfect example of the idea of culture "solidarity". They have played an active role in many humanitarian interventions in natural disasters, medicine searches or missing people. These are values we want to share in Summa Aldapeta. Participants will ask as many of the following questions as time allows: 1. What did you have to study to be an astronaut? 2. Por qué motivo decidiste ir al espacio? 3. If you had to go to the space forever, would you do it? 4. Resulta difícil convivir con personas de otros países y culturas en la Estación Espacial? 5. What do you do when you feel sick or get injured in the ISS? 6. Qué hacéis cuando tenéis problemas técnicos en la nave? 7. What kind of experiments do you conduct up there? 8. Cómo pasáis el tiempo libre en la Estación Espacial? 9. How often do you contact with your families? 10. Piensas que algún día viviremos en otro planeta? 11. How do you treat the rubbish you produce in the ISS? 12. Cómo recibís las noticias de lo que está ocurriendo en la Tierra? 13. What is the most exciting sensation while you are in the vacuum of space? 14. Habéis vivido alguna vez una situación peligrosa en la soledad del espacio? 15. Is the ISS a comfortable place? 16. Qué es lo que más echarás en falta de la Estación Espacial cuando regreses a la Tierra? 17. How do you have a shower or clean your clothes in the ISS? 18. Cuál es el olor que predomina en la Estación Espacial? 19. When you need surgery, does any of your co-workers do it? 20. Cuál es la misión más complicada a la que os habéis enfrentado en el espacio? 2. Why did you decide to go to space? 4. Is living together with people from different countries difficult? 6. What do you do if you have technical problems in the spaceship? 8. How do you have fun in the ISS? 10. Do you think we will live in another planet someday? 12. How do you catch up with the news on Earth? 14. Have you ever lived a dangerous situation being alone in the space? 16. What will you miss most when you come back to Earth? 18. What does the ISS smell like? 20. Which mission has been the most difficult one in the ISS? 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): TBD 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), the Center for the Advancement of Science in Space (CASIS) and 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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Moxon vs. Turnstile
by KD4ZGW 11 Dec '17

11 Dec '17

What would be the better antenna: moxon or a turnstile?

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Re: [amsat-bb] Behavior on FM Satellites
by Burns Fisher 11 Dec '17

11 Dec '17

I'll probably be sorry to get myself involved in this morass, but I think it is worth saying/repeating: Many operators are in QRZ. If you think they are behaving inappropriately why not send them a note rather than calling out individuals on the bb? I know one of the operators mentioned here and I did in fact send him a note. He had not received anything from anyone previously. He was apologetic and unaware of his transgressions, and also unaware of the bulletin board so he had not seen this conversation. In addition, I know him to be a good guy and generally a good operator on DX and a good contester and thus normally aware of rare grids etc. My points are: 1) Good people make mistakes. 2) Good operators are happy to be corrected. 3) Calling out on a particular social medium does not always reach the person in question. Why not assume they are of good faith and try to make a friendly personal connection? Back to lurk mode---73, Burns W2BFJ

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Re: [amsat-bb] High Speed Telemetry, SDR#, and RTS/SDR (Scott)
by Burns Fisher 11 Dec '17

11 Dec '17

All of the FM Foxes have high speed telemetry capability, but it has never been used on AO-91. We did turn it on with AO-85 a few times, but that was because this was the first Fox satellite and we wanted to test it. AO-91 has no need for it. Fox-1Cliff and Fox-1D both have VGA-quality cameras aboard, and high speed mode will be used to downlink pictures. In other words, I don't know what you heard, but it was not high speed data. Good reason it did not decode :-) 73, Burns W2BFJ On Thu, Nov 23, 2017 at 3:42 PM, Fred Castello <fredcastello(a)gmail.com> wrote: > Is anyone using this particular combination with the Fox 1 Telemetry > Analysis Tool? Today on one of my good passes with AO-91 I believe it was > transmitting high speed telemetry and it seemed no matter what combination > I used, I could not get the tool to decode the high speed telemetry. I > have no problem with the low speed Data Under Voice with this combination. > I have always assumed that the high speed telemetry is on the same > frequency as voice and low speed DUV. I would appreciate any thoughts > anyone has as usual. > Best Regards, > Fred – KF4FC

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Re: [amsat-bb] Behavior on FM Satellites
by Roy Dean 11 Dec '17

11 Dec '17

Original email does indeed show call sign. Not sure why the quoted message doesn't. -Roy K3RLD > Scott via AMSAT-BB? Not seeing a call sign.

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