January 2018 - AMSAT-BB - mailman.amsat.org

Re: [amsat-bb] Saving sat QSO recordings from websites - software?
by Nick Hart 10 Jan '18

10 Jan '18

I'm not sure what sort of computer you may be using. But, if you are on a windows machine, for example, you should be able to right-click on the file link of interest, and save a local copy to your machine. As an example: http://www.papays.com/sat/general.html is the page I'm seeing. Is that that one you're using? The first link: XW-2D_23Nov2017_225420z.mp3 5K0T signing off at less than 1 degree on his end (with joy) The XW-2D_23Nov2017_225420z.mp3 part is an active link. If you right click, you can select "Save Link As" and choose where you want to save the new file on your computer. Hope it helps. ------ Original Message ------ Received: Wed, 10 Jan 2018 10:07:47 AM PST From: Philip Jenkins <n4hf.philip(a)gmail.com> To: AMSAT BB <amsat-bb(a)amsat.org> Subject: [amsat-bb] Saving sat QSO recordings from websites - software? Hi all I'm doing (at least) three more satellite presentations ( and hopefully demos) this spring for ham clubs in the western NC region. I normally play a couple of K8YSE's sat QSOs from his website when I have internet access at the presentations. However, I may not have internet access at two presentations this year, so I'm wondering what software - or methods - I might use to "capture" K8YSE's MP3 files from his website (or satellite pass recordings from others) and save them (in whatever format) on my PC so that I don't need internet access. This would also come in handy for hamfest tables, so prospective AMSAT'ers can actually hear what both FM and analog QSOs sound like. Thanks! Philip N4HF _______________________________________________ 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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Re: [amsat-bb] QIKcom-1: SatNOGS and Listening
by Robert Bruninga 10 Jan '18

10 Jan '18

Listening for QIKCOM-1: Just to be sure. If the antennas were not released by the host, then no one will be able to decode it but we are HOPING that someone can hear it responding by EAR. That is, put your receiver in SSB mode and listen carefully by ear. Then ping it with as much AX.25 FM power as you can. No more often than every 12 seconds, since it has a DUPE filter of 10 seconds. Then see if you can hear a correlation 1 second avfter each uplink for a possible digipeat… Bob *From:* Scott [mailto:scott23192@gmail.com] *Sent:* Wednesday, January 10, 2018 10:08 AM *To:* Robert Bruninga <bruninga(a)usna.edu>; Malcolm Beckett < macbeck22(a)gmail.com> *Cc:* Robert Bruninga <bruninga(a)usna.edu> *Subject:* Re: QIKcom-1: SatNOGS Greetings Bob, it’s been a while since we spoke. Perhaps “Outernet” was the subject previously. Yes, Malcolm was kind enough to refer me to recordings from a number of diverse receiver sources last night and I only found one with actual packets – which decoded to be digipeats through PSAT. Additionally, I had a nice overhead pass of QIKcom-1 last night and as I’ve done many times before, tried to exchange APRS packets with it at up to 50w thru a RHCP yagi gain antenna (X-Quad). No replies were heard, unfortunately. 73! -Scott, K4KDR ------------------------------ ------------------------------ *From:* Robert Bruninga <bruninga(a)usna.edu> *Sent:* Wednesday, January 10, 2018 9:53 AM *To:* Malcolm Beckett <macbeck22(a)gmail.com> ; Scott <scott23192(a)gmail.com> *Cc:* Robert Bruninga <bruninga(a)usna.edu> *Subject:* RE: QIKcom-1: SatNOGS Thanks! Data number 59348 makes sense. At first I was totally confused by the continuous tone traks aAND the fact that they followed Doppler. Meaning they must be coming from the spacecraft. Then I realized that maybe the receiver is Doppler trakcing and so any fixed tone in the passband would then appear to follow Doppler when in fact it was constant. So, now that I ignore those, I can see the packets. Bob *From:* Malcolm Beckett [mailto:macbeck22@gmail.com] *Sent:* Wednesday, January 10, 2018 9:39 AM *To:* Robert Bruninga <bruninga(a)usna.edu>; Scott <scott23192(a)gmail.com> *Subject:* Re: QIKcom-1: SatNOGS Bob, For reference, here's some NO-84 passes: https://network.satnogs.org/observations/?norad=40654 However, the visual appearance will vary based on gain and station configuration. The SatNOGS team responded this morning and eliminated all of the observations I'd found. The weak signals appear to be NO-84 off the back of directional antennas. A few decodes from NO-84 and one terrestrial station. I've copied Scott Chapman, K4KDR, as he tried last night with negative results. My station is portable but relatively robust. As time and weather permit, I may find some acceptable passes and try to warm it up a little! Have a great day, Malcolm On Wed, Jan 10, 2018 at 9:24 AM, Robert Bruninga <bruninga(a)usna.edu> wrote: Yes, that is going to be a problem. They are both on the same frequency along with PCSAT NO44, and so one has to ignor any passes when both are in view. I still think the best test is to be pinging it once every 12 seconds and see if there are any responses. That will be proof. I have not looked at waterfalls before of a good packet, so I don’t know what to expect. Maybe you could capture a waterfall on a strong pass of NO84 and lets nail down an example of a good pass. Bob WB4APR

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Saving sat QSO recordings from websites - software?
by Philip Jenkins 10 Jan '18

10 Jan '18

Hi all I'm doing (at least) three more satellite presentations ( and hopefully demos) this spring for ham clubs in the western NC region. I normally play a couple of K8YSE's sat QSOs from his website when I have internet access at the presentations. However, I may not have internet access at two presentations this year, so I'm wondering what software - or methods - I might use to "capture" K8YSE's MP3 files from his website (or satellite pass recordings from others) and save them (in whatever format) on my PC so that I don't need internet access. This would also come in handy for hamfest tables, so prospective AMSAT'ers can actually hear what both FM and analog QSOs sound like. Thanks! Philip N4HF

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Diplexer recommendation
by Rico van Genugten 10 Jan '18

10 Jan '18

Hi all, I'm slowly assembling my satellite base station setup bit by bit, I have recently mounted an antenna system on my roof consisting of two perpendicular VHF/UHF open-sleeve yagi's mounted at a fixed elevation of 25 degrees on an azimuth rotator, more info here: https://twitter.com/PA3RVG/status/942710621375815680 So I have two feed lines coming into the house, both suitable for VHF and UHF operation. I want to be able to independently select one of the two antennas for RX and TX. This can be realized using two diplexers and two switches, but now for the million dollar question: Which diplexer? I'm curious to know which diplexers you guys use if you use them, and which can be recommended in terms of insertion loss, VSWR and isolation. If you believe the manufacturer specifications they are all great, but I'm more interested in real life performance or test measurements. 73, Rico PA3RVG

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Re: [amsat-bb] Kenwood TS-2000X RX @38k4 Baud
by Mark L. Hammond 09 Jan '18

09 Jan '18

Hello Enzo, Welcome back to radio :) Good to hear from you again. Falconsat-3 has the capability of running a 38k4 downlink, but it's unlikely that we'll try it. I have 2 radios with Symek boards---the TS-790A and the TS-2000X. You can see my photos of the TS-2000X mod here: https://sites.google.com/site/marklhammond/ts-2000x_ifd It may not be worth the risk associated with the modification to your radio. Should we try 38k4, using an SDR receiver and software TNC to decode is probably an easier option to consider. If there were sufficient numbers of interested hams in running at 38k4, we might be able to try it. But for now, it's probably unlikely. The 1.2GHz transmitter in the TS-2000X will be useful with the soon to be launched Fox-1Cliff and Fox-1D! 73, Mark N8MH At 01:59 PM 1/9/2018 +0100, Vincenzo Mone wrote: >Hello, > >I was a bit out of the world of radio due to the renovation of the house. > >In the meantime I took advantage of replacing my old Kenwood TS-790E with a >new Kenwood TS-2000X. > >In the old TS-790, I had the Symek IFD card for receiving 38k4 baud >satellites. > >I wanted to know if there are still satellites that still transmit at that >speed and if it is worth inserting the TS-2000X card. > >Thank you > > > > > >73's de Enzo IK8OZV > >EasyLog 5 BetaTester > >EasyLog PDA BetaTester > >WinBollet BetaTester > >D.C.I. CheckPoint Regione Campania > >Skype: ik8ozv8520 > > > > > > > > > > ************************************* > > ******* GSM +39 328 7110193 ******* > > ****** SMS +39 328 7110193 ****** > > ************************************* > > > >_______________________________________________ >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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Wouxun / Powerwerx KG-UV8E / KG-UV8T as full duplex FM sat handheld?
by Pavel Milanes 09 Jan '18

09 Jan '18

Hi. Has any tested the Wouxun KG-UV8E or the Powerwerx KG-UV8T (It's the same radio) as a full duplex FM radio for satellite work? This is advertised as full duplex radios V/U & U/V... Tip: this are Wouxun KG-UV8D Plus cousins but tri-banders with 222 Mhz. My Baofeng UV-5R is useless on 70m cm RX no matter what I do to protect it from the 2m TX... -- 73 CO7WT, Pavel.

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Kenwood TS-2000X RX @38k4 Baud
by Vincenzo Mone 09 Jan '18

09 Jan '18

Hello, I was a bit out of the world of radio due to the renovation of the house. In the meantime I took advantage of replacing my old Kenwood TS-790E with a new Kenwood TS-2000X. In the old TS-790, I had the Symek IFD card for receiving 38k4 baud satellites. I wanted to know if there are still satellites that still transmit at that speed and if it is worth inserting the TS-2000X card. Thank you 73's de Enzo IK8OZV EasyLog 5 BetaTester EasyLog PDA BetaTester WinBollet BetaTester D.C.I. CheckPoint Regione Campania Skype: ik8ozv8520 ************************************* ******* GSM +39 328 7110193 ******* ****** SMS +39 328 7110193 ****** *************************************

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I did it! 1st QSO
by wa7dxz＠aol.com 09 Jan '18

09 Jan '18

Thanks to KC7MG as my first FO-29/satellite QSO in recent years! Also K4FEG and KL1XI for numbers two and three. Finally got the right down link freq dialed in, duh. Now to get the AZ-EL rotor up. The TS-2000 at 8 watts worked FB, and I guess the little ELK pulled them in. Now to get the IC-910 on the air so I have tones. When I bought the TS-2000, I didn't know it didn't have tones in the SAT mode. Have to figure a work around for that, maybe use it in non SAT mode. Thanks, guys, made my day! 73 Bob wa7dxz DM33

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GPerdict, Icom IC-910H, and Windows 10
by Les Rayburn 09 Jan '18

09 Jan '18

I’m working to get back on the satellites and have SatPC32 restored and working thanks to the generous donation of Doppler.SQR and Subtone files from a couple of list members. Many thanks for that. All efforts to restore Nova for Windows have failed so far. On both my Windows 10 machines, the software refuses to run—even after loading the “patch” program. Shame—I love the ability to “fast forward” in time and visualize upcoming passes on Nova. If anyone has any thoughts on how to make it work on Windows 10, I’d love to hear them. I’ve also downloaded the Windows version of GPredict software, and am very impressed with the platform, with one major exception. The ability to add new satellites, edit visualization, etc. is first rate, but the rig control options are frustrating. http://gpredict.oz9aec.net So far, I’ve been unable to successfully get the software to control my Icom IC-910H. Has anyone else tried this software with the IC-910H? Anyone have it working correctly? 73, Les Rayburn, N1LF 121 Mayfair Park Maylene, AL 35114 EM63nf Member WTFDA, IRCA, NRC. Former CPC Chairman for NRC & IRCA. Elad FDM-S2 SDR, AirSpy SDR2, SDRPlay RSP-1 Pro, Sony XDR-F1HD, Dennon TU-1500RD, Sangean HDT-1, Ray Dees RDS Decoders, Korner 9.2 Antenna, FM-6 Antenna, Quantum Phaser, Wellbrook ALA1530 Loop, Wellbrook Flag, Clifton Labs Active Whip. “Nothing but blues and Elvis, and somebody else’s favorite song…”

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Listening for QIKCOM-1?
by Robert Bruninga 09 Jan '18

09 Jan '18

Anyone looking for something to do with a gain array, might want to track the SIMPL spacecraft while listening on 145.825. This is the host spacecraft that has QIKCOM-1 module on board. The SIMPL ground team reports detecting some S band signals apparently from SIMPL. So that is an indication that maybe the spacecraft powered up. That being the case, then maybe it powered up QIKCOM-1 also. But if the host CPU did not send the antenna release signal, then QIKCOM-1 may be powered up but with antennas all coiled up and still in their slot. But high gain stations might hear something. This is a far fetched scenario, but if someone is looking for something to do, its worth a listen. The object number is 42983 or type SIMPL in spacetrack. QIKCOM-1 beacons once a minute on 145.825 APRS 1200 baud and should respond as a digipeater using the path of ARISS or APRSAT. So rather than wait for the 1 minute beacon, you are welcome to ping it as well. But remember, like all APRS digis, it will ignore dupes for a while. I think the DUP delay was set to ten seconds. And even if you do not decode it, if your 10 kW EIRP signal can get a PING response every 10 seconds or so, then that would be something you might hear. QIKCOM-1 transmits with 4 Watts. But into a shorted antenna, the signal might be down 26 dB or more… something like 10 mw. Not decodable, but detectible by ear maybe. Good luck fishing. Bob, WB4aPR

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