May 2019 - AMSAT-BB - mailman.amsat.org

AO-92 mode
by Bob Keating 04 May '19

04 May '19

Will AO-92 be in V/U mode tomorrow? Thanks. 73, Bob N6REK Sent from my iPhone

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Upcoming ARISS Contact Schedule as of 2019-05-04 05:00 UTC
by aj9n＠aol.com 04 May '19

04 May '19

Upcoming ARISS Contact Schedule as of 2019-05-04 05:00 UTC Quick list of scheduled contacts and events: Mildred Hall School, Yellowknife, NT, Canada, telebridge via LU8YY The ISS callsign is presently scheduled to be NA1SS The scheduled astronaut is David St-Jacques KG5FYI Contact was unsuccessful for: Fri 2019-05-03 18:32:19 UTC 59 deg (***) ARISS is trying to determine what happened. (***) Watch for live stream at: https://youtu.be/ZRVQdYdwbOE Stream should start about 17:30 UTC Moriah Central School, Port Henry, NY, telebridge via K6DUE The ISS callsign is presently scheduled to be NA1SS The scheduled astronaut is Nick Hague KG5TMV Contact is go for: Tue 2019-05-07 13:15:35 UTC 55 deg The ARISS webpage is at http://www.ariss.org/ Note that there are links to other ARISS websites from this site. The main page for Applying to Host a Scheduled Contact may be found at http://www.ariss.org/apply-to-host-an-ariss-contact.html ARISS Contact Applications (United States) The ARISS webpage is at http://www.ariss.org/ Note that there are links to other ARISS websites from this site. International Space Station Astronauts are Calling CQ Students ARISS-US program’s education proposal window is open April 1 - May 15, 2019 March 24, 2019: The Amateur Radio on the International Space Station (ARISS) program is seeking proposals beginning April 1, 2019, from US schools, museums, science centers and community youth organizations (working individually or together) to host radio contacts with an orbiting crew member aboard the International Space Station (ISS) between January 1, 2020 and June 30, 2020. Each year, ARISS provides tens of thousands of students with learning opportunities about space technologies, communications, and much more through the exploration of Amateur Radio and space. The ARISS program connects students to astronauts on the ISS through a partnership between NASA, the Radio Amateur Satellite Corporation, the American Radio Relay League, other Amateur Radio global organizations and the worldwide space agencies. The program’s goal is to inspire students to pursue interests and careers in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) and in Amateur Radio. Educators report regularly that student participation in the ARISS program stimulates interest in STEM subjects and STEM careers. One educator wrote, “Many of the middle school students who took part in and attended the ARISS contact have selected science courses in high school as a result of that contact.” Educators are setting up ham radio clubs in schools and learning centers because of students’ interest. ARISS is looking for organizations that will draw large numbers of participants and integrate the contact into a well-developed, exciting education plan. Students can learn about satellite communications, wireless technology, science research conducted on the ISS, radio science, and other STEM subjects. Students learn to use Amateur Radio to talk directly to an astronaut and ask their STEM-related questions. ARISS will help educational organizations locate Amateur Radio groups who can assist with equipment for a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity for students. The proposal window opens April 1, 2019 and the proposal deadline is May 15, 2019. For proposal guidelines and forms and more details, go to: http://ariss-proposal-webinar-spring-2019.eventbrite.com Proposal webinars for guidance and getting questions answered will be offered April 11, 2019 at 7 pm Eastern Time and April 16, 2019 at 9 pm Eastern Time. Advance registration is necessary. To sign up, go to https://ariss-proposal-webinar-spring-2019.eventbrite.com **************************************************************************************************************************************************************************** ARISS Contact Applications (Europe, Africa and the Middle East) Schools and Youth organizations in Europe, Africa and the Middle East interested in setting up an ARISS radio contact with an astronaut on board the International Space Station are invited to submit an application from September to October and from February to April. Please refer to details and the application form at www.ariss-eu.org/school-contacts. Applications should be addressed by email to: school.selection.manager(a)ariss-eu.org ARISS Contact Applications (Canada, Central and South America, Asia and Australia and Russia) Organizations outside the United States can apply for an ARISS contact by filling out an application. Please direct questions to the appropriate regional representative listed below. If your country is not specifically listed, send your questions to the nearest ARISS Region listed. If you are unsure which address to use, please send your question to the ARISS-Canada representative; they will forward your question to the appropriate coordinator. For the application, go to: http://www.ariss.org/ariss-application.html. ARISS-Canada and the Americas, except USA: Steve McFarlane, VE3TBD email to: ve3tbd(a)gmail.com ARISS-Japan, Asia, Pacific and Australia: Satoshi Yasuda, 7M3TJZ email to: ariss(a)iaru-r3.org, Japan Amateur Radio League (JARL) http://www.jarl.org/ ARISS-Russia: Soyuz Radioljubitelei Rossii (SRR) https://srr.ru/ ****************************************************************************** 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: Satoshi 7M3TJZ with 135 Francesco IKØWGF with 132 Gaston ON4WF with 123 Sergey RV3DR with 114 **************************************************************************** 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 2019-05-04 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 http://www.amsat.org/amsat/ariss/news/arissnews.txt Total number of ARISS ISS to earth school events is 1305. Each school counts as 1 event. Total number of ARISS ISS to earth school contacts is 1248. 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: 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 2019-04-30 02:30 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 Check out the Zoho reports of the ARISS contacts https://reports.zoho.com/ZDBDataSheetView.cc?DBID=412218000000020415 **************************************************************************** Exp. 58 on orbit Oleg Konenenko David St-Jacques KG5FYI Anne McClain Exp. 59 on orbit Christina Koch Aleksey Ovchinin Nick Hague KG5TMV **************************************************************************** 73, Charlie Sufana AJ9N One of the ARISS operation team mentors

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Rocket Launch scrubbed for today
by Wendy and Terry Osborne 04 May '19

04 May '19

See: https://twitter.com/RocketLab/status/1124523563778580481 Try again tomorrow. 73, Terry Osborne ZL2BAC

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Physics Class in Hawaii, AO-91 attempt
by John Bonewitz 03 May '19

03 May '19

Aloha! I’m a Physics Teacher at Kea’au High School (BK29LO). My students have built a yagi antenna and learned how to work amature radio satellites as part of a unit on satellite motion. They have successfully heard themselves on the downlink of AO-91 several times now, but we haven’t managed to make a contact. We are going to try to make another attempt today at 21:58z - 22:10z. It would be amazing if someone could listen for us! My call is KH6JB. I hope this is the right place to post something like this. Forgive me if I’ve left something out! 73 John Bonewitz KH6JB

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Upcoming ARISS contact with Moriah Central School, Port Henry, NY
by n4csitwo＠bellsouth.net 03 May '19

03 May '19

An International Space Station school contact has been planned with participants at Moriah Central School, Port Henry, NY on 07 May. The event is scheduled to begin at approximately 13:15 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 K6DUE. The contact should be audible over the east coast of the U.S. Interested parties are invited to listen in on the 145.80 MHz downlink. The contact is expected to be conducted in English. The school is planning to live stream the event at https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC-bFBNgC1aYdGV493kb5ImA/live Moriah Central School is located in the foothills of the Adirondack Mountains in upstate New York. It is a K-12 public school with nearly 800 students and 50 teachers. Located near the beautiful Lake Champlain, Moriah Central School is home of the Vikings! With many successful academic and athletic programs such as football, basketball, cheerleading, drama club, band, chorus and many student clubs, many opportunities are available for all students. In addition to a new educational technology center, the district is proud of our distance learning lab, amateur radio station, computer programming classes, and other programs designed specifically in helping the surrounding communities in Essex County. Moriah Central School District proclaims its mission to be the provision of a safe, supportive, and academically challenging environment for all students in our community. We are dedicated to the goals of educational excellence, preparation for college and careers, and the development of a high level of citizenship. Participants will ask as many of the following questions as time allows: 1. What is the purpose of the International Space Station and why is it a value to all of humanity? 2. What is the most amazing thing you have seen from the space station? 3. What do you get to do in your free time when you are not working? 4. What types of computer programming languages were used to write the software on board the International Space Station? 5. What is your favorite piece of hardware to use on the space station and what does it do? 6. What types of computers are you using on board, and what operating systems do they run? 7. Do you get to listen to music in space, and if so what do you all like to listen to? 8. What is the most difficult and dangerous thing about living in space? 9. How many people can fit on board the space station safely? 10. What is your favorite science experiment on board? 11. What do you think the importance of future space stations will be? 12. What is the importance of Amateur Radio on the Space Station? 13. What is the status of CIMON (Simon) the Artificially Intelligent robot that was sent to the ISS? 14. How did you become an Astronaut? Does your training for space start right away or do you have to move up in ranking? 15. What is your favorite food in space? 16. Are there any manmade objects on earth you can see from the space station? 17. Do you keep a journal of everything you do on board to remember in the future? 18. What can scientists do on Earth to help you on the Space Station? 19. What is the best part of working with people from different countries every day? 20. What have you learned the most from living and working in Space? 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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Rocket Lab Launch update
by Wendy and Terry Osborne 03 May '19

03 May '19

Hi Folks, The next Rocket Lab Launch looks promising for this evening (NZST). The web stream should be starting at about 05:45 UTC (17:45 NZST). See: https://twitter.com/RocketLab/status/1124494283203940353 See here for the live streaming: https://www.rocketlabusa.com 73, Terry Osborne ZL2BAC

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Re: [amsat-bb] ARRL Antenna book, eggbeater antenna designs (not)
by Robert Bruninga 03 May '19

03 May '19

Eggbeaters are ideal antennas for omnidirectional coverage with dual polarization for strong signals with minimum fades.... But like any antenna, to get gain somewhere, you have to give up gain elsewhere. Here are all the issues and my opinions. 1) Satellites on the horizon are 10 dB farther away than ones above 22 degrees (2000 miles vs 700 miles). 2) Splitting gain into circular polarization (Eggbeaters) loses 3 dB compared to incoming linear polarization 3) Small sats usually have linear antennas or, if they have cross polarization then even if they are RHCP when approaching, they may be LHCP going away, thus you still have a 50/50 chance of having a polarization mismatch, though having both polarizations will minimize most fades. 4) Most small Amateur sateliltes have less than 1W transmitters and simply cannot be heard on the horizon without several dB gain. My Conslusions are: 1) An Egg beater is ideal for STRONG satellites (Think ISS with 10 Watts). It will minimize fades horizon to horizon. 2) But there are NO, NONE, NADA current amateur satellites (not even the ISS right now) at that power level. 4) Hence an eggbeater even with a dB or so gain on the horizon simply is not going to hear anything until the satellite gets above about 20 degrees (when it is 10 dB closer) 5) So, why even bother with an eggbeater. 6) Use a simple 19.5" quarter wave vertical over a ground plane (for 2m). It will have 5 dBi gain above about 15 degrees (several dB better than an eggbeater). 7) and it will ALSO WORK even better as a 7 dBi gain UHF antenna (3/4 wave vertical) above about 25 degrees up to 70 degrees (6 dB better than an Eggbeater)... AND it is DUAL band as well! (on the same coax!) BUT, what about the donut hole overhead for these vertical antennas? Forgetaboutit.!.... The satellite is only above 70 degrees about 1% of the total pass times per day! And then for less than about 30 seconds! To visualize the orbit actual geometry see the scale plot on: http://aprs.org/LEO-tracking.html So, in my humble opinion, a 19.5" vertical whip antenna in the middle of a car roof (neat ground plane) will give pretty good satellite coverage. It will have some fades due to only one polarization, but the strong part of the cycle will be 3 dB stronger than it would be on a dual polarizatiaon antenna. And you don't have to be parked on a mountain. Since again, no omni antenna can hear these weak satellites on the horizon anyway, so as long as the trees are far enough away to give you sky above about 20 degrees, you will have about the best coverage you can get for about a 20" of copper wire and a nice ground plane.. In my opinion anyway. AND*** If you want to hear them all the way horizon to horizon, buy a $65 TV rotator and attach a small 5 to 6 element beam tilted up at about 15 degrees and hear them all! See above web page... Bob, Wb4APR -----Original Message----- From: AMSAT-BB <amsat-bb-bounces(a)amsat.org> On Behalf Of Devin L. Ganger via AMSAT-BB Sent: Friday, May 3, 2019 4:19 PM To: AMSAT-BB(a)amsat.org Subject: [amsat-bb] ARRL Antenna book, eggbeater antenna designs Greetings, programs! I'm looking to work with my son (who will be studying to get his Technician license later this month) on building a UHF/VHF pair of eggbeater antennas. I've found a few papers online, but does anyone have a good reference to a detailed design? Does the ARRL Antenna book latest edition have any significant coverage of eggbeaters at all? I have an older version that has nothing. Also, most of the designs I see are for a single band. If you're deploying a pair for satellite operations, do you simply attach them through a duplexer? I have a Diamond MX-72N that I picked up a while ago for using with dual Baofengs, but it's been sitting in my drawer since I picked up my TH-D72A. It has a 1.6~150MHz lead and a 350~460MHz lead. Thanks in advance for any pointers you might have. -- Devin L. Ganger (WA7DLG) email: devin(a)thecabal.org<mailto:devin@thecabal.org> web: Devin on Earth<http://www.devinonearth.com/> cell: +1 425.239.2575 _______________________________________________ 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: https://www.amsat.org/mailman/listinfo/amsat-bb

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Unacceptable Content on AMSAT-BB
by Robert Bankston 03 May '19

03 May '19

The recent spat of AMSAT-BB posts have been disheartening, resulting in members not involved in the conversations to either unsubscribe or inquire of ways to activate filters. In order to preserve a constructive environment, messages posted to the AMSATBB must contain appropriate content and be respectful of all members and readers of the list. Please take a moment to refamiliarize yourself with Acceptable Use Policy for the AMSAT Public Mailing Lists, located at https://www.amsat.org/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2013/05/AMSAT-AUP.pdf. Further violators of this policy will be subjected to manual moderation or have their ability to post messages suspended. 73, Robert Bankston, KE4ALAMSAT-NA VP of User Services

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AMSAT supporting W6RO satellite activity during Memorial Day weekend (27-29 May 2019)
by Patrick STODDARD (WD9EWK/VA7EWK) 03 May '19

03 May '19

Hi! After the successful "AMSAT on the Queen Mary" event last December, satellite operating will make a return to the RMS Queen Mary during the upcoming Memorial Day weekend (25-27 May 2019), as part of the "Memorial Day Salute to Service" by the Queen Mary. W6RO will be on the satellites, as well as the HF bands, during these 3 days. The Queen Mary will be honoring those who have served in the armed forces, and in particular the Queen Mary's use as a troopship during World War II. The Queen Mary, along with other cruise ships, were pressed into service to ferry Allied soldiers around the world. Along with the other activities planned on the ship, some of which are already listed on the Queen Mary's web site at: https://www.queenmary.com/calendar-of-events/memorial-day/home/ The W6RO station, part of the Associated Radio Amateurs of Long Beach, will participate in these celebrations. W6RO will be on HF with stations located on the Sports Deck, near the ship's bow outside the W6RO Wireless Room. Even though satellites were still considered science fiction by many in the 1940s, W6RO will also work satellites during this event, with the support of AMSAT. The satellite operating will take place in the same area on the ship, around the Sports Deck. Satellite operations are planned for FM, SSB, and possibly the orbiting packet digipeaters. W6RO is located in the Port of Long Beach, in California's Los Angeles County. Long Beach is in grid DM03. QSLs for contacts with W6RO will be handled according to the instructions at: http://www.qrz.com/db/W6RO HF operators will provide a serial number with each HF contact, and this serial number needs to be included with a QSL request for those contacts. Serial numbers will *not* be required when requesting a W6RO QSL card for satellite contacts. W6RO does not participate in Logbook of the World. Thanks to David Akins N6HHR, the manager of the W6RO Wireless Room for the Associated Radio Amateurs of Long Beach, for organizing the radio-related activities for the Memorial Day weekend (including the satellite operations). Thanks also to the management of the Queen Mary, for allowing the radio activities outside the W6RO Wireless Room during this event. 73! Patrick WD9EWK/VA7EWK http://www.wd9ewk.net/ Twitter: @WD9EWK or http://twitter.com/WD9EWK

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Re: [amsat-bb] ARRL Antenna book, eggbeater antenna designs
by Vince Fiscus, KB7ADL 03 May '19

03 May '19

At 03:39 PM 5/3/2019 -0500, you wrote: >Instead of building eggbeaters, pick up a few of these: > >http://www.mfjenterprises.com/Product.php?productid=MFJ-261 > >You'll also need a pair of these: ROFL!

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