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

ARISS News Release no. 17-05
by n4csitwo＠bellsouth.net 09 Mar '17

09 Mar '17

ARISS NEWS RELEASE no. 17-05 March 8, 2017 David Jordan, AA4KN ARISS PR aa4kn(a)amsat.org Frank Bauer, KA3HDO 2017 Dayton Amateur of the Year Winner The Dayton Hamvention has selected ARISS International Chair, Frank Bauer, KA3HDO, for its top award, Amateur of the Year for 2017. Each year, Hamvention recognizes radio amateurs known for making major contributions to the art and science of amateur radio, and it's no surprise why Bauer was chosen. A few things from his lengthy list of achievements follow. In 1995, Bauer proposed an experiment for the AMSAT Phase 3D satellite (AO-40) to measure the strength of the signal from the GPS satellite constellation. For years after, the aerospace industry cited this experiment because the results helped engineers improve the GPS system, led to new applications for GPS, and changed navigation at High-Earth Orbit (HEO) and Geosynchronous Orbit (GEO) altitudes, allowing new missions to operate in these orbits. Prior to NASA astronaut Owen Garriott, W5LFL, flying in space and taking along ham radio in 1983, Bauer came up with a plan for, and helped set up and operate, the worldwide retransmission of space shuttle air-to-ground communications by the Goddard Amateur Radio Club station, WA3NAN (now K6DUE). Tens of thousands of hams enjoyed listening to most every shuttle mission's astronaut communications, and amateurs used these to help them make ham contacts with crewmembers who had their amateur licenses. Bauer's work with this system also let to his becoming part of the SAREX (Shuttle Amateur Radio EXperiment) team. Bauer attended Purdue University where he earned its prestigious bachelor's degree and master's degree in aeronautics and astronautics. This led to a long and full career with NASA followed by a move to the private aerospace industry. He earned his amateur radio license in 1974, and has been the AMSAT-NA Vice President for Human Spaceflight for many years. What Bauer has spent, and now spends, the most time and energy on is the Amateur Radio on the International Space Station (ARISS) program. He helped set up the very first meeting of worldwide volunteers at NASA's behest in 1996, working as AMSAT's representative, alongside Rosalie White, K1STO as ARRL's representative. People from the world's AMSAT societies and IARU organizations answered their calls to attend the meeting at NASA Johnson Space center in Houston, and the rest is history--20 years of growing ARISS into how it is today...still growing! White wrote, "Frank didn't just think about where amateur radio in space should be; he always thought about where it was headed--he still does. His multi-faceted background and experience in aerospace, NASA, and amateur radio is the ideal combination resulting in effectively spearheading the ARISS team in offering to hams, students, and the general public, ARISS success after ARISS success." Very hearty congratulations from the ARISS team to Frank Bauer, KA3HDO, on his new title, Dayton Hamvention 2017 Amateur of the Year! 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. Also, join us on Facebook: Amateur Radio on the International Space Station (ARISS) Follow us on Twitter: ARISS_status Contact: David Jordan, AA4KN ARISS PR aa4kn(a)amsat.org --- This email has been checked for viruses by Avast antivirus software. https://www.avast.com/antivirus

1 0

Ft 847 full duplex
by jeffory broughton 08 Mar '17

08 Mar '17

I have owned 3 of fhem.used them on my m2 array on the roof as well as an arrow on a tripod.in both situations I used a mobil diplexer to clean up my third order vhf harmonic and experience. No intermod.jeff broughton WB8RJY

2 1

Nayif-1 Data Warehouse Outage
by David Johnson 08 Mar '17

08 Mar '17

Hi, The data collection server is back up again after several hours. It is now collecting data from dashboards which were pending. I will be changing the runtime implementation during the day to make it more stable. Apologies for the problem. 73 Dave, G4DPZ

1 0

Re: [amsat-bb] NO-84 - more progress
by Brad Schumacher 08 Mar '17

08 Mar '17

I was on the 0410 UTC NO-84 pass tonight and saw nobody else. I was running 5 watts uplink for most of the pass and was able to decode cleanly except at the sub 20 deg elevations. I tried both the 27’ vertical and G5RV Jr. and they both seemed to do just fine even at my lowest power levels. I lowered my uplink frequency to 28.119 Mhz and saw myself at 1250 Hz on the audio spectrum. One change I made was to control my rotor and receive via SatPC32. My Doppler.sqf looks like this: NO-84,435350,28120,FM,USB,NOR,0,0,Wide FM NO-84,435350,0,FMN,,,,Narrow FM I use the first set to get the 28.120 close and manually tune to where I want it then switch to the second one which does not change the uplink Doppler – just the downlink doppler. Ok, not sure if this helps but I am finding this setup to be very reliable and the satellite seems to have a great RX and very strong downlink. An absolute pleasure to work with. Thanks, Brad Schumacher W5SAT --- This email has been checked for viruses by Avast antivirus software. https://www.avast.com/antivirus

1 0

EO-88
by skristof＠etczone.com 08 Mar '17

08 Mar '17

Does anyone know the status of the EO-88 (Nayif-1) Data Warehouse? I just downloaded some telemetry but the dashboard is holding the data and reads 0/23 - Error. So, I've got 23 packets of data waiting to go to the warehouse. Maybe the URL changed? Steve AI9IN

2 1

Chinese mobile rigs on Satellites
by John Geiger 07 Mar '17

07 Mar '17

I see there are quite a few Chinese 25 watt dualband mobile FM rigs out there today at great prices, like under $100. Jetstream, Leixen and quite a few other brands are out there. Has anyone tried these on the FM satellites, and if so, how do they work? 73 John AF5CC

3 3

KG5CCI/P EM54 Tonight!
by David Swanson 07 Mar '17

07 Mar '17

I've had several requests recently to try and hit Mississippi for some folks' WAS award, so tonight I'll run a few hours down the interstate and operate from Southhaven, MS for a for a bit. For sure passes schedule is as follows: 2017-03-08 XW-2A 0109UTC 2017-03-08 SO-50 0145UTC 2017-03-08 AO-73 0215UTC If I make good time driving I *might* be on some of the XW's before 0100z, and if there are huge piles and I can't get to everyone I *might* stick around for Nayif and FO29 at the end, but plan on being there for those 3. I'll be on APRS KG5CCI-5, and updates via Twitter @KG5CCI. 73, Dave.

1 0

Upcoming ARISS contact with 3rd Junior High School, Komotini, Greece
by n4csitwo＠bellsouth.net 07 Mar '17

07 Mar '17

An International Space Station school contact has been planned with participants at 3rd Junior High School, Komotini, Greece on 10 Mar. The event is scheduled to begin at approximately 08:20 UTC. The duration of the contact is approximately 9 minutes and 30 seconds. The contact will be direct between OR4ISS and SV7APQ. The contact should be audible over Greece and adjacent areas. Interested parties are invited to listen in on the 145.800 MHz downlink. The contact is expected to be conducted in English. The 3rd Junior High School of Komotini is one of the 13 schools of Secondary Education that operate in Komotini, a city in the Region of Eastern Macedonia and Thrace, in the north-east of Greece. Our school is one of the oldest in the Municipality of Rodopi. The current building was constructed in 1992. Its a relatively new building with 16 classrooms, and laboratories for Computer Science, Physics, Chemistry, Biology, Music rooms, multiple-function rooms and a fully-equipped library. There are approximately 350 registered students (age 12-15), and 38 teachers of different fields in our school. One of the main characteristics of our school is its multi-cultural character. 25% percent of our students come from repatriated Greek families who lived for about a century in countries of the Former Soviet Union (Russia, Georgia, Armenia, Ukraine, etc) and came back to Greece in 1990 after the collapse of the regime in the countries of Eastern Europe. These students speak both the Greek and the Russian language fluently. 16% percent of our students are Muslims. The existence of a Greek Muslim minority in Thrace has been recognized internationally since 1922. Among them, there is a significant number of Pomaks and Roma students. There are integration classes for students with special educational needs and learning disabilities taught by teachers of Special Education. Additionally, every year many national educational programmes, such as Environmental Education, Health Education, Consumer Education and many Cultural programmes (music, dance, theatre, art, radio, astronomy) are implemented. Our school also has a very active cycling club. Students go on various educational trips every year, visiting other parts of Greece and expanding their learning skills and abilities. Participants will ask as many of the following questions as time allows: 1. What is the most challenging problem of living in space? 2. Can you see the moon closer from Earth, is it different? 3. How do you stabilize the food on the table? 4. How often do you do extravehicular activity? 5. Is it very difficult to become an astronaut? 6. Do you have sufficient oxygen in ISS? 7. If you had just one wish to become true for your job what would it be? 8. If a member of the crew is injured can you give him first aid? 9. When you come back to earth, is it easy for you to walk? 10. Which is the difference between day and night in Earth and in Moon? 11. What is the main target of your expedition? 12. Can you see meteor showers from space? 13. Have you ever seen a comet from space? 14. How long did the preparation for this expedition last? 15. How many hours do you work, do you have shifts? 16. What is the most extreme procedure of your expedition? 17. What is your favorite food in space? 18. How old were you when you decided to become an astronaut and what was the motive of your decision? 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

1 0

Upcoming ARISS contact with Blair Pointe Upper Elementary School, Peru, IN
by n4csitwo＠bellsouth.net 07 Mar '17

07 Mar '17

An International Space Station school contact has been planned with participants at Blair Pointe Upper Elementary School, Peru, IN on 09 Mar. The event is scheduled to begin at approximately 15:21 UTC. The duration of the contact is approximately 9 minutes and 30 seconds. The contact will be direct between NA1SS and WD9GIU. The contact should be audible over the state of Indiana 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. Blair Pointe Elementary School is in small town, Peru, IN. It is a town that is about 70 miles north of Indianapolis, and is in the same county as Grissom Air Reserve Base. It is a school that houses third through sixth graders. Blair Pointe is part of the Peru Community School Corporation that has approximately 2,150 students in all 5 of its buildings. Our school has a diverse population with students coming from rural areas, apartments, mobile home parks, and low and middle income homes. As a school, we provide many opportunities outside of the classroom to learn. A very high population of our students attend our various after school programs such as our remediation program, choir, art club, and robotics. We also have a high focus on the fine arts and through this we are able to provide a lot of learning across subject areas. This year we were able to bring in astronaut Jerry Ross to speak with our students about his space career. In addition, we have a very strong sports program including baseball, soccer, football, track, golf, cross country, wrestling, basketball, tennis, and volleyball. Participants will ask as many of the following questions as time allows: 1. Why and when did you become an astronaut? 2. How many people work on the space station at one time? And why? 3. What is your job on the space station? 4. What do you do when someone gets sick while on the space station? 5. Has anyone ever broken a bone on the space station? Do bones break differently in space? 6. What kind of experiments do you do in space and are they safe or dangerous? 7. What happens if something in space hits the space station and damages the ship? How would you fix it? 8. How do you keep track of all the floating debris? 9. Do the other astronauts sometimes get on your nerves? 10. How does it feel to be away from your family? 11. We all know astronauts have months of training, but has there been one thing you were not ready for in your experience? 12. What is a day like on the ISS? What do you do every day? 13. When you are going into space and start feeling less gravity, do you feel light-headed or nauseous? If so, is there anything in your training to prepare you for this? 14. If your space suit gets torn, how would you fix it, and has it ever happened to you before? 15. Do you ever get hot or cold in space and is there air conditioning on the ISS? 16. Is there wifi in space? 17. Are you ever scared that you might run out of oxygen or that your ship goes away from the Milky Way galaxy? 18. Have you ever become unhooked from the space station? What does it feel like to be floating around in space? 19. Is time in space different from time on Earth? 20. Do you have to be a certain age, height, or weight to go into space? 21. How many missions have you gone on? Do you have a favorite one? Why? 22. How many times did you orbit the Earth on your last trip to space? 23. Do you ever get dizzy from floating around all the time? 24. Would you say space is a harsh environment? Why or why not? 25. What is the hardest thing you need to do up in space? Why? 26. What do you see other than stars? Do you see any weird things in space? 27. What do you do in your free time? What is your favorite thing to do in space? 28. Is it hard to adjust to being back on Earth after being in 0 gravity? 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. 3rd Junior High School, Komotini, Greece, direct via SV7APQ The ISS callsign is presently scheduled to be OR4ISS The scheduled astronaut is Shane Kimbrough KE5HOD Contact is a go for: Fri 2017-03-10 08:20:46 UTC Watch for live stream at http://sv7apq.blogspot.gr/2016/10/as-amateur-radio-enthusiast-i- have.html 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

1 0

NO-84 - more progress
by Mark Lunday 07 Mar '17

07 Mar '17

Tonight, I am pretty sure I saw my downlink signal. Unfortunately it was very weak using the off-center-fed dipole transmit antenna. And...there was a Doppler shift even though I was using DopplerPSK for transmit. The signal did start and stop as I started and stopped DopplerPSK transmit, so I am pretty confident I am seeing my transmission. Maybe a true ¼ whip is needed for transmit... Mark Lunday, WD4ELG Greensboro, NC FM06be wd4elg(a)arrl.net http://wd4elg.blogspot.com SKCC #16439 FISTS #17972 _____________________________________________ From: wd4elg(a)outlook.com Sent: Sunday, March 05, 2017 10:54 PM To: AMSAT BB Subject: NO-84 - the investigation continues Making some progress....0335 UTC pass, I decoded the PSK31 beacon AND decoded W5SAT calling CQ. However, I failed to see my signal on the downlink again. I am using 65 watts and an inverted L for 160 that tunes for 10 meters. The thing should be working, I worked several EU stations on 40 meters with just 5 watts tonight, so it's radiating SOMETHING. I am sending PSK31 with DopplerPSK and then trying with FLDIGI, so it's not the software. I am getting power out per the wattmeter, so it's not the transmit setup. EZNEC shows a mostly cloud-warmer type of pattern for the inverted L on 10 meters, with some small gain at lower angles. Maybe I will try the off-center-fed dipole next. What are other folks using for antennas on the uplink? Mark Lunday, WD4ELG Greensboro, NC FM06be wd4elg(a)arrl.net<mailto:wd4elg@arrl.net> http://wd4elg.blogspot.com SKCC #16439 FISTS #17972

1 0