- AMSAT-BB - mailman.amsat.org

usb driver needed
by Scott Smith 22 Jun '15

22 Jun '15

Hi, could someone send me (email) the FT232r USB UART driver. I’m having trouble trying to download one. Any help appreciated. 73 de Scott VE6ITV

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Vega Launch Webstream Monday Evening (USA time)
by JoAnne Maenpaa 22 Jun '15

22 Jun '15

Webcast of the Vega launch this evening (USA time) from French Guiana. Payload is Sentinel-2A, the second mission for Europe's Copernicus environment monitoring program (non-ham payload). Coverage begins at 0130 UTC June 23 (2030 June 22 Central USA). Launch is planned for 0152 UTC. Watch the stream on http://www.arianespace.tv/ and click on the 'Follow the next launch live on the internet' button). -- 73 de JoAnne K9JKM k9jkm(a)amsat.org AMSAT VP User Services

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FD2015: W1BIM
by Bill ACITO, W1PA 22 Jun '15

22 Jun '15

It's that time of year again. I'll be the sole Sat Op for W1BIM (Central Mass ARA). We'll be just west of Worcester, MA (6A, WMA, I think) on a football field on a high plateau -- nice low horizon. I'll be focusing on the analog birds, and low passes on the eastern horizon to throttle the insanity. Priority is demonstration and getting the 100 pt bonus and then I'll most likely move to one of the HF CW stations, rather than a full Amsat FD. We'll see. Bill W1PA

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SATPC32 settings for receving telemetry of velox -1 satellite
by shakeel -ur-rehman 22 Jun '15

22 Jun '15

Hi everyone, I have tnc kantronics 9612 I also have icom 9100,. I have connected my icom 9100 with satpc32 and who is changing the doppler in my icom 9100. i donot know how to proceed further to receive any telemtry from any satellite e.g velox-1. Can I receive telemetry without TNC and without anyother software? Can I recive beacon signal of any satellite and how to record its its beacon sound in satpc32 software. Can I receive 50 $ satellite telemtry in satpc32 software. if yes where will be the raw telemtery file located. ICOM 9100 does not have PSK demodulation can I do recive satellite pass with satellite telemtry encoded in PSK but how what will be setting in ICOM 9100. I am trouble and unable to move ahead ,please help. .I am new to satellite . I am tracking using yagi antennas.any help regards Regards

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Re: [amsat-bb] EO-80 FM Transponder doubt
by Kevin M 22 Jun '15

22 Jun '15

Easy way to remember.... Uplink goes from low to high (ground to satellite) Downlink goes from high to low (satellite to ground) 73! Ha ha! Thanks for the explanation... I see i was wrong. Now i can program my radios in the correct way. 73 and thanks. ------------------------------------------------------------------"Control is the need of the fearful mind. Trust is the need of the courageous heart."

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EO-80 FM Transponder Tested (noise floor?)
by Nicholas Mahr 22 Jun '15

22 Jun '15

I notice 2M has a high noise floor when im working AO-7, Theres a few same spots on the passband that have these giant swooshing sounds/etc, It wont be a problem on EO-80 as I as well have found it dosent affect me on FM, maybe EO-79. Looks like we wont have to wait for FOX-1 in september to cover for SO-50... Its really hard to do portable FM operations here where I live, theres lots of trees, so it makes working SO-50 very difficult because of its 250 mw power, I wish they would just increase the power on the thing. 73 KE8AKW

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FUNcube Warehouse Registration
by David Johnson 22 Jun '15

22 Jun '15

Hi, The FC warehouse has been been receviveing data from many users since depleoyemnt, for we which we are very greatful!. Occasionally we get requests for the the re-issuing of Authentication keys when someone has had to do a re-install of the Dashboard, these requests are usually satisfied if a few hours. If you have lost your key and would like to reinstall the software, please send an emeil request with your SiteId to me. 73 Dave, G4DPZ FUNcune Team Member

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PSAT Igates needed
by Robert Bruninga 22 Jun '15

22 Jun '15

We need PSAT IGates in Hawaii, India, China and anywhere in the Southern Hempsiphere. We did a look at the IGates that are successfully injecting PSAT packets and did a map of them on the PSAT page: http://aprs.org/psat.html Notice that this map of stations are not all of the IGATES on 145.825 which includes the ISS, but this is because the ISS is 14 dB stronger than PSAT. So a station with an omni terrestrial antenna that picks up the ISS just fine may not hear PSAT at all. So if you have ever thought about being a satellite IGate, now is the time. And the ideal OMNI antenna for PSAT is a simple 19.5” vertical whip over a large metal ground plane. An even better one (+2 dB) is a ¾ wave vertical whip (58”) over a large metal ground plane. And it is OK to keep this antenna lower to the ground since it will not hear anything below 25 degrees anyway and in fact, the lower it is, with surroundings blocking it, the less interference it will have. IGATES that hear weak signal PSAT show on http://pcsat.aprs.org All 145.825 IGATES show on the http://ariss.net page but they may not hear PSAT. Another reason to keep your Space IGATE antenna low is because they create DONUT Hole Data NULLS. Anyone who transmits a packet on the UPLINK TO one of these sateliltes and is heard by an IGATE direct, will be ignored on the downlink, since the packet has already been heard. Therefere the digipeat will not be recorded by the above FINDU.COM pages… Bob, WB4APR *From:* Robert Bruninga [mailto:[email protected]] *Sent:* Thursday, June 18, 2015 7:34 AM *To:* amsat-bb(a)amsat.org *Cc:* bruninga(a)usna.edu *Subject:* PSAT digipeating and Position Knowledge PSAT continues to work well, both APRS and PSK31. The downlink capture on the PCSAT.APRS.ORG page captures most PSAT packets, but does not capture any digipeated users if they use the ARISS path. Although PSAT supports the VIA ARISS alias so that users can use both ISS and PSAT without changing parameters the FINDU page does not recognize it. At this point it is unclear what paths that FINDU recognizes. These paths are supposed to be digipeated by PSAT: VIA ARISS VIA APRSAT VIA PSAT VIA WIDEn-N Here is what we know: ARISS is not recognized by FINDU. We are not sure if FINDU recognizes APRSAT We are not sure if PSAT recognizes PSAT We have seen VIA WIDEn-N work on FINDU We have been busy with deadlines on our next satellite, but yesterday we figured a workaround on the PSAT ORBIT and MA clock. This morning we sent the commands and will be watching to see if they work. If they did, then PSAT will be able to know where it is, and then we can activate its APRS POSITION packets plus individual beacons over individual continents. Although the S#OOOMM… telemetry was supposed to be ORBIT number and MINUTE of that orbit, the clock is totally off. SO instead of going from 0 to 95 minutes per orbit, the actual count is more like 0-61 minutes per orbit. So, if this works, then MM is not real minutes, but is a number between 00 to 61 on every orbit. And 0 should be when the satellite crosses the equator (actually 5 South latitude) on every orbit northbound. Once we get that under control, then PSAT will know where it is, and it will be able to report its own position. And we can activate its attitude control, and we can activate different bulletins over each continent. Bob, WB4APR

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FC1 Warehouse recovery
by David Johnson 22 Jun '15

22 Jun '15

Hi, If you look at the realtime data today, you may see that the MinMax RealTime values are not populated we are fixing up the database as a result of the erroneous values that were recorded between failure and recovery. 73 - Dave, G4DPZ

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FUNcube-1 / AO-73 glitch + commanded reboot
by Wouter Weggelaar 22 Jun '15

22 Jun '15

Hi All, We have had an anomaly on FUNcube-1 that required us to reboot the satellites MCU (Microcontroller). After a bus freeze, the databus watchdog did kick in as expected and rebooted the satellite. However, we did need to command the satellite back on to automatic mode. When we did so on the 20:00 UTC pass, it came back up in the correct mode. We envisage to switch back to autonomous mode either tonight or tomorrow morning local time. FUNcube is still happy and healthy. This is the 4th reboot since launch, of which one was intentional. Thanks for your reports and concerns. On behalf of the whole team best 73s, Wouter Weggelaar PA3WEG FUNcube team

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Geosynchronous payload inches closer to reality
by Robert McGwier 22 Jun '15

22 Jun '15

Colonel Fred Kennedy, USAF, Space Production Division and Program Manager for the Wide Field of View satellite (hereinafter WFOV) has accepted the proposal to allow Virginia Tech to place a hosted payload consisting of a Software Defined Radio designed and built by Rincon Research Corporation using support equipment and antennas designed by Virginia Tech and other volunteers to this effort. The spacecraft hosted amateur payload will be included in the Aquila M8 bus by Millennium Space Systems who is the integrator for WFOV. Our first role and immediate action item is to raise the $100,000 for Millennium to complete the study of the inclusion of this payload on Wide Field Of View. Following successful completion of this study, Virginia Tech will raise money to defray the cost of integration and launch of this payload. After achieving orbit, volunteers managed by Sonya Rowe and Zach Leffke of Virginia Tech will operate the payload for as long as it is over the US. We at VT with the help of the ARRL will prepare partners in other regions to operate the spacecraft should it be moved in order to allow the WFOV to accomplish its primary mission and be prepared to take over operation of the hosted payload on its return to the area of CONUS. Colonel Kennedy told me how much he admires how unbelievably capable amateurs around the world have been in their many organizations to get spacecraft to orbit and wishes us the best of luck in the onerous task we will have of raising $5M to get this on board. I will be making many details public now that Colonel Kennedy has told us we are a go if we raise the money. I know this is a tall order but (begging the forgiveness of our female audience members) "A coward dies a thousand deaths and a brave man dies only once". I would rather go down trying than cower in a closet. This is not intended as casting aspersions on any individual or organization just saying I must proceed hastily to succeed at all and I cannot afford caution. Let's GO! Bob -- Bob McGwier Co-Founder and Technical Director, Federated Wireless, LLC Research Professor Virginia Tech Senior Member IEEE, Facebook: N4HYBob, ARS: N4HY Faculty Advisor Virginia Tech Amateur Radio Assn. (K4KDJ)

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AO-73 glitch over North America
by Nicholas Mahr 21 Jun '15

21 Jun '15

Hello, Nothing heard from AO-73 17:08 UTC pass in the middle of NA... I did hear a some what of a hetradime sound at the beacon frequency, and it was moving and when i pointed the antenna away from AO-73, it got weaker. Hopefully all it needs is a reset.

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AO-73 glitch over North America
by Paul Stoetzer 21 Jun '15

21 Jun '15

Good morning, At around 1533Z, while the satellite was over North America, the AO-73 transponder switched off. The satellite continued to send telemetry, but from checking the Data Warehouse, it seems all the values are way off. The beacon was quite strong, so it may have been transmitting full power telemetry. 73, Paul, N8HM

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Crossed Yagi boom separation
by ka2pbt 21 Jun '15

21 Jun '15

HI all .... I'm setting up a field day station with my old 2M & 70CM Cushcraft crossed yagis .... Assuming a NON-metallic cross boom, neglecting structural constraints, how far from the center (i.e. elevation rotor and vertical mast) should the antennas be mounted? My google juice isn't working this morning ... but I seem to recall >= 1/2 Wavelength being sufficent. Thanks, --> Rob, KA2PBT

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UT1FG/MM
by Angelo Glorioso 21 Jun '15

21 Jun '15

Gm All, I wanted to let everyone know that UT1FG/MM Yuri is in EL59 right now. Due to his short time here,he will be unable to visit with anyone. I have been talk to him on my repeater on 444.950 PL 114.8. He will be listening on and off. All are welcome to connect. Echolink node : 838977 IRLP: 3914ALLSTAR :29734Dstar Bridge XREF 048B - allstar.n5uxt.net Module B. Alll of these are linked together. Feel free to give him a call. Best of 73, Angelo --------------------------------------------------------- If you don't ask, you will never know!!

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ANS-172 AMSAT News Service Weekly Bulletins
by Lee McLamb 21 Jun '15

21 Jun '15

AMSAT NEWS SERVICE ANS-172 The AMSAT News Service bulletins are a free, weekly news and infor- mation service of AMSAT North America, The Radio Amateur Satellite Corporation. ANS publishes news related to Amateur Radio in Space including reports on the activities of a worldwide group of Amateur Radio operators who share an active interest in designing, building, launching and communicating through analog and digital Amateur Radio satellites. The news feed on http://www.amsat.org publishes news of Amateur Radio in Space as soon as our volunteers can post it. Please send any amateur satellite news or reports to: ans-editor at amsat.org. In this edition: * 2015 Candidates for the AMSAT-NA Board of Directors Announced * 20th 73 on 73 Award Issued * International Space Colloquium at Guildford July 24-26 * QB50p2 FM Transponder Tested * NASA Drafts Solicitation for New Class of Launch Services * NASA, UN Photo Competition Highlights Why Space Matters on Earth SB SAT @ AMSAT $ANS-172.01 ANS-172 AMSAT News Service Weekly Bulletins AMSAT News Service Bulletin 172.01 From AMSAT HQ Kensington, MD. June 21, 2015 To All RADIO AMATEURS BID: $ANS-172.01 2015 Candidates for the AMSAT-NA Board of Directors Announced The 2015 candidates, in alphabetical order by last names are: Barry Baines WD4ASW Jerry Buxton N0JY Steve Coy K8UD Drew Glasbrenner KO4MA Mark Hammond N8MH EMike McCardel KC8YLD Bob McGwier N4HY Bruce Paige KK5DO This year AMSAT-NA will be electing four voting members of the Board of Directors. These will go to the four candidates receiving the highest number of votes. In addition, there will be two alternates chosen, based on the next highest number of votes received. Ballots will be mailed to the AMSAT-NA membership by 15 JUL 2015 and must be received at the AMSAT office by 15 SEP 2015 in order to be counted. Those sent outside North America will go by air mail. If you have not received your ballot package in a reasonable time for your QTH, please contact the AMSAT office. Completed ballots should be returned as promptly as possible, and those from outside North American preferably by air mail. Election of Board members is both an obligation as well as an opportunity by our membership to help shape the future direction of AMSAT. Please take the time to review the candidate statements that will accompany the ballot and determine who you wish to see on the Board. You have the option to vote for up to four candidates. [ANS thanks Alan, WA4SCA, for the above information] --------------------------------------------------------------------- 20th 73 on 73 Award Issued Congratulations to Davide D'Aliesio, IW0HLG, for working 73 different stations on AO-73 since September 1, 2014 and becoming the 20th recipient of the 73 on 73 Award. For more information on the award see http://amsat-uk.org/funcube/73-on-73-award/ [ANS thanks Paul, N8HM, for the above information] --------------------------------------------------------------------- International Space Colloquium at Guildford July 24-26 The AMSAT-UK International Space Colloquium will be held on July 24-26 at the Holiday Inn, Guildford, GU2 7XZ, UK. Among the speakers will be: * Peter Guelzow DB2OS with an update on AMSAT-DL projects, including the Phase 4 satellite * Chris Brunskill, formerly of Surrey Space Centre (SSC), now working at the Space Catapult at the Harwell Campus. He will be presenting an extremely novel project aimed at schools and education * It is hoped the BATC will be able to demonstrate live Digital TV reception from the International Space Station, using the Ham TV system * Drew Glasbrenner, KO4MA, from AMSAT North America will be attending, and presenting the latest news of the FOX satellite(s) due for launch later this year, and also on their Phase 4 project The Colloquium is open to all further information is at http://amsat-uk.org/colloquium/ [ANS thanks AMSAT-UK for the above information] --------------------------------------------------------------------- QB50p2 FM Transponder Tested AMSAT-Francophone report that the FM transponder on QB50p2 (EO-80) has been tested. A Google English translation of the post on their website reads: On June 19, 2014, two 2U CubeSats QB50p1 and QB50p2 were launched as part of the QB50 precursor program into a polar orbit at an altitude of 680 km. The satellite QB50p2 (object 40032) is equipped with a secondary FM transponder payload developed by AMSAT-F. On Tuesday, June 16, 2015 almost 1 year after launch the AMSAT-F FM transponder on QB50p2 was activated by the main control station in The Netherlands for the duration of an orbit. At the Polytechnique in Palaiseau, we were able to receive telemetry in CW and put into action the FM transponder with an output of 1.5W. A very strong signal was received at Palaiseau and by F6HCC in Brittany. The transponder was turned off at the end of the orbit. In a few weeks, the transponder should be activated permanently. The signal is very strong, we will probably use a lower power level of 500 mW or 1 watt. We will inform you later. QB50p1 (EO-79 / FUNcube-3) is equipped with a linear transponder for SSB and CW. The first tests were successfully completed in April and its transponder should also be enabled full-time in a few weeks. Gérard – F6FAO QB50 Amateur Radio Information https://www.qb50.eu/index.php/precursor-amateur-radio-operator AMSAT-Francophone http://tinyurl.com/AMSAT-Francophone The IARU Satellite Frequency Coordination Panel Status pages list these frequencies for the two satellites: QB50p2 has a VHF 9600 bps BPSK telemetry downlink plus a separate RF payload from AMSAT-Francophone which will comprise of a FM voice transponder with UHF uplink and VHF downlink. It can also transmit FX25 telemetry at 9600 bps. * 145.880 MHz 9600 bps BPSK telemetry beacon * 145.840 MHz 9600 bps FSK FX25 [ANS thanks Gerard, F6FAO and AMSAT-UK for the above information] --------------------------------------------------------------------- NASA Drafts Solicitation for New Class of Launch Services NASA’s Launch Services Program has issued a draft Request for Proposal (RFP) for a new Venture Class Launch Services (VCLS), which would be commercial launch services for small satellites and experiments on science missions using a smaller than currently available class of rockets. At present, launch opportunities for small satellites -- often called CubeSats or nanosatellites -- and small science missions are mostly limited to ride-share type arrangements, flying only when space is available on NASA and other launches. The Launch Services Program seeks to develop alternatives to this approach and help foster other launch services dedicated to transporting smaller payloads into orbit. The services acquired through such a contract will constitute the smallest class of launch services used by NASA. This solicitation, and resulting contract or contracts, is intended to demonstrate a dedicated launch capability for smaller payloads that NASA anticipates it will require on a recurring basis for future science and CubeSat missions. CubeSats already are used in markets, such as imagery collection and analysis. In the future, CubeSat capabilities will include abilities, such as ship and aircraft tracking, improved weather prediction, and broader Internet coverage. NASA intends to award one or more firm fixed-price VCLS contracts to accommodate 132 pounds (60 kilograms) of CubeSats a single launch or two launches carrying 66 pounds (30 kilograms) each. The launch provider will determine the launch location and date, but the launch must occur by April 15, 2018. [ANS thanks NASA Launch Services for the above information] --------------------------------------------------------------------- NASA, UN Photo Competition Highlights Why Space Matters on Earth NASA and the United Nations Office for Outer Space Affairs (UNOOSA) have launched a global photography competition to highlight how the vantage point of space helps us better understand our home planet, improve lives, and safeguard our future by aiding sustainable development on Earth. To highlight the role of space-based science and technologies and their applications on Earth, NASA and UNOOSA are inviting the public to submit photos depicting why space matters to us all in our daily lives. To participate, post a picture and description on Instagram using the hashtag #whyspacematters and tagging @UNOOSA. NASA astronaut Scott Kelly, who is three months into a one-year mission aboard the International Space Station, will announce the winning photo each month by posting it from his Instagram account @StationCDRKelly. Kelly and Russian Cosmonaut Mikhail Kornienko are spending a year in space to improve our understanding of the medical, psychological and biomedical challenges faced by astronauts during long-duration spaceflight. Kelly will set a single-mission record for a U.S. astronaut, and the joint expedition will be an important step in human space exploration and research into the effects of long-term space habitation as part of NASA's journey to Mars. "We learn something every time we go to space. And the International Space Station is one of the world's greatest laboratories - where we are helping with advances in medicine, biology, chemistry and materials sciences," said Kelly. "It is the pursuit of these advances off the Earth that help improve lives on Earth. And that is why I am so committed to space exploration and embarking on this year-long mission. I look forward to seeing the images from people around the world on how space technology has impacted them where they live." UNOOSA Director Simonetta Di Pippo said it is "an honor to have Scott Kelly share his experience in space with the United Nations. This campaign will help to promote the use of space science and technologies in such areas as disaster risk reduction, tracking the effects of climate change and in the equality of access to education and telemedicine." With the recent installation of NASA's International Space Station- Rapid Scatterometer (ISS-RapidScat) and the Cloud-Aerosol Transport System (CATS) instruments on the space station, the ISS is being used for full-fledged Earth science research. Scientists worldwide use NASA data to tackle some of the biggest questions about how our planet is changing now and how Earth could change in the future. From rising sea levels to the changing availability of freshwater, NASA enables studies that unravel the complexities of our planet from the highest reaches of Earth's atmosphere to its core. The International Space Station is a convergence of science, technology and human innovation that enables us to demonstrate new technologies and make research breakthroughs not possible on Earth. It has been continuously occupied since November 2000 and, since then, has been visited by more than 200 people and a variety of international and commercial spacecraft. The space station remains the springboard to NASA's next giant leap in exploration, including future missions to an asteroid and Mars. For more information about the International Space Station and its crews and research, visit: http://www.nasa.gov/station For more information about the #whyspacematters competition, visit: http://www.unoosa.org/oosa/contests/whyspacematters/index.html [ANS thanks NASA News Service for the above information] /EX In addition to regular membership, AMSAT offers membership in the President's Club. Members of the President's Club, as sustaining donors to AMSAT Project Funds, will be eligible to receive addi- tional benefits. Application forms are available from the AMSAT Office. Primary and secondary school students are eligible for membership at one-half the standard yearly rate. Post-secondary school students enrolled in at least half time status shall be eligible for the stu- dent rate for a maximum of 6 post-secondary years in this status. Contact Martha at the AMSAT Office for additional student membership information. 73, This week's ANS Editor, Lee McLamb, KU4OS ku4os at amsat dot org

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Impromptu Grid DXpedition: KL7CN/W6 at CN80 on SO-50 at 02:37Z with LotW Confirmation
by Bryan Green 21 Jun '15

21 Jun '15

Hello, all: Sorry for the short notice -- we'll be active as follows: QTH: CN80 in Northern California Satellite: SO-50 Date and time: Today 2015-06-21 02:37Z Confirmation: LotW, etc. -- bag Bryan KL7CN/W6

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QSL Cards
by James Lea - WX4TV 20 Jun '15

20 Jun '15

The kids and I have worked dozens of stations and received nearly as many QSL cards. Rest assured they will be answered. We are in the process of a multi-part long distance move and once we find a home and are settled in, each contact in all our logs will be confirmed. As time allows, I'm starting a business in central Florida, I will get all of us set up with LOTW. Thanks for understanding! 73, WX4TV KM4IPF WA4BBC (AE4FH) WX4TVJ James Lea Sent from my iPhone

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rx PSAT
by Pablo J.M. - LW8EXS 20 Jun '15

20 Jun '15

2:Fm LU1WFU-2 To APU25N Via PSAT*,ARISS*,RS0ISS,WIDE3-3 <UI R Pid=F0 Len=61> [10:53:53R] }LW8EXS>APU25N,TCPIP,LU1WFU-2*:=3439.49S/05924.35W- {UIV32N} 2:Fm PSAT To APRSON Via ARISS <UI R Pid=F0 Len=34> [10:53:54R] T#739,839,352,120,121,391,00000000 2:Fm PSAT To APRSON Via ARISS <UI R Pid=F0 Len=34> [10:56:57R] T#742,860,070,120,121,390,00000000

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AO-7 Missing from Kep's list.
by GW1FKY＠aol.com 20 Jun '15

20 Jun '15

Hi, I noted that in latest Kep's distribution list and also on the web page - AO -7 has been omitted for some reason. I did post to Ray my observation but had no response - Perhaps filtered to stop him getting unwanted posting. Using SATPC-32 it did cause a slight problem due to the fact the satellites set up the boxes for tracking and countdown got out of order. I cut and pasted into my list, AO-7 keps from the Celestrak web site and it corrected the problem Regards Ken Eaton GW1FKY Amsat- UK Amsat NA

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DYI Comms and Control for Amateur Space ...
by Rick Walter 20 Jun '15

20 Jun '15

Just received this ad from Amazon this morning. I thought the group may like to see what is out there. Rick - WB3CSY > > http://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/1449310664/ref=mp_s_a_1_sc_1?qid=1434798241&s… >

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APRS Satgate Antenna page
by Robert Bruninga 19 Jun '15

19 Jun '15

Since the ideal APRS Satellite IGate OMNI antenna is exactly the opposite of the typical terrestrial IGaate antenna, I prepared the following WEB page: http://aprs.org/aprs-satellite-igate-antennas.html It shows how a vertical ¼ or ¾ wave VHF omni equals the performance of a full OSCAR class array (over half the sky) but does it with no moving parts. It makes up for the weak-signal horizon part of the sky by there simply being more omni-IGates. The APRS-IS cloud with all of its IGates is probably one of the largest spatially distributed satellite receiver system in the world (?). But with people used to the 10W transmitter on the ISS, just a few IGates can capture just about every packet from the ISS horizon to horizon on a whip. But with the 14 dB weaker signal from PSAT, we need more SatGates to make up for their smaller skyprint. For the USA we need more than a dozen such Omni-SATgates. To see the significance of the weaker downlink from PSAT, look at the successful IGates on the http://pcsat.aprs.org page compared to the IGates that hear the ISS packets on http://ariss.net Both are listening on 145.825 and passing along every packet they hear. But only TRACKING IGates or good vertical gain satgates hear PSAT. And since we want these running 24/7/365, we do NOT expect people wearing out motors when an omni will do fine (if we have enough). The page also shows how every SATgate with a HIGH and terrestrial type antenna actually creates a DEADZONE around it, effectively blocking any nearby user heaerd direct from appearing on any of the APRS-IS cloud satellite web pages. Hence, Omni-satgate antennas should be low to everything surrounding it w hile still seeing the sky above 30 degrees. If your TH-D7 HT is just sitting there, not in use 99% of the time, then just hook it to a vertical whip and let it be an IGate. With the low antenna it will also probably be safe from all weather lightening too. Put the UHF side on 435.350 and turn up the speaker. When PSAT PSK31 comes into view, you can watch the PSK31 activity as a bonus! Bob, WB4APR

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LoTW and NO-83,84
by David W0DHB 19 Jun '15

19 Jun '15

The latest LoTW config file allows LoTW to recognize NO-83 and NO-84. Running TSQL 2.0.1 and above will bring up a menu to let you update. You don't see the update option if uploading from logging software. Dave W0DHB

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UT1FG/mm
by Nicholas Mahr 19 Jun '15

19 Jun '15

Thanks for info Clayton, If I get all these grids confirmed from him, I can get VUCC Satellite... My dad needs VUCC in Satellite and in vhf/uhf as well...

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PSAT digipeating and Position Knowledge
by Robert Bruninga 19 Jun '15

19 Jun '15

PSAT continues to work well, both APRS and PSK31. The downlink capture on the PCSAT.APRS.ORG page captures most PSAT packets, but does not capture any digipeated users if they use the ARISS path. Although PSAT supports the VIA ARISS alias so that users can use both ISS and PSAT without changing parameters the FINDU page does not recognize it. At this point it is unclear what paths that FINDU recognizes. These paths are supposed to be digipeated by PSAT: VIA ARISS VIA APRSAT VIA PSAT VIA WIDEn-N Here is what we know: ARISS is not recognized by FINDU. We are not sure if FINDU recognizes APRSAT We are not sure if PSAT recognizes PSAT We have seen VIA WIDEn-N work on FINDU We have been busy with deadlines on our next satellite, but yesterday we figured a workaround on the PSAT ORBIT and MA clock. This morning we sent the commands and will be watching to see if they work. If they did, then PSAT will be able to know where it is, and then we can activate its APRS POSITION packets plus individual beacons over individual continents. Although the S#OOOMM… telemetry was supposed to be ORBIT number and MINUTE of that orbit, the clock is totally off. SO instead of going from 0 to 95 minutes per orbit, the actual count is more like 0-61 minutes per orbit. So, if this works, then MM is not real minutes, but is a number between 00 to 61 on every orbit. And 0 should be when the satellite crosses the equator (actually 5 South latitude) on every orbit northbound. Once we get that under control, then PSAT will know where it is, and it will be able to report its own position. And we can activate its attitude control, and we can activate different bulletins over each continent. Bob, WB4APR

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UT1FG/mm
by Nicholas Mahr 19 Jun '15

19 Jun '15

Yep, worked him as well in EL83, near cuba havvana... Hope he gets active again, I have 25+ grids still unconfirmed with him! 73 KE8AKW

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UT1FG/mm
by Glenn Miller - AA5PK 19 Jun '15

19 Jun '15

Worked Yuri on SO-50. He was in EL83. Maritime Traffic oddly shows his destination as "La Habana."

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UT1FG/mm
by Glenn A. Miller 19 Jun '15

19 Jun '15

Worked Yuri on SO-50. He was in EL83. Maritime Traffic oddly shows his destination as "La Habana."

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VP2MKV 2012Z PASS
by Jim White 18 Jun '15

18 Jun '15

Worked the following: KE8AKW WA4SCA K4FEG W0DHB N0LM K0MDJ (MPJ?), can't ready my scribble AJ9K Thanks to everyone who worked us. This was our last pass of the expedition. We will scramble to take down and pack up antennas in the morning and must have the crate sealed by noon - with the Arrow inside. In the afternoon and evening we will operate HF with equipment that stays here at Gingerbread Hill, then leave very early Saturday. 73, Jim VP2MJW (WD0E) operating VP2MKV(HF and sat) and VP2MTT (6 meters - where we have am amazing 502 contacts)

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N8RO/P Operations
by Ronald Oldham 18 Jun '15

18 Jun '15

I will be on a road trip during the period June 22 – July 4 2015. I plan to operate portable from EM50, EM84, EM99, FN13, FM28, FM04, EL79, EL49 and possibly other grids along the way. I will operate on SO-50 and FO-29. I hope to contact many of you during the trip. 73, Ron – N8RO

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NO-84 PSK31 on Field Day
by Paul Stoetzer 18 Jun '15

18 Jun '15

Is anyone planning on including the NO-84 PSK31 transponder in their Field Day satellite station plans? It may be tough since the terrestrial PSK31 segment will be filled with terrestrial signals and it might be tough to pick out satellite signals, but maybe night time passes when 10m is closed will work well. 73, Paul, N8HM

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VP2MKV 1826Z pass
by Jim White 18 Jun '15

18 Jun '15

Thanks to K8YSE for letting me know I was making it.... no others on the pass. Next pass should be lots of US in the footprint. This will be our last pass of the expedition. Jim

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BRICSAT Status ??
by KO6TZ Bob 18 Jun '15

18 Jun '15

Since SatPC32 started speaking German a few days ago, I take it that Light Sail has reentered. So I have been listening for BricSAT NO-83, but I do not hear, see or display any type of data. I have been monitoring 437.975 MHz FM for 9K6 Packet. Is it supposed to be repeating 1K2 data from the uplink of 145.825FM as well as telemetry ??? It should be able to hear NO-84 quit well as a source. Or is the feature not turned on ? With the two satellites in view of each other, the PSK-31 transponder would pose a conflict. I would not expect that transponder to be on. KO6TZ Bob

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Re: [amsat-bb] SatPC32 Question on the Amsat bb
by Paul - K6HR 18 Jun '15

18 Jun '15

Thanks to all who replied. I found the file 'CountDownPos.SQF' after replacing it with a default copy of the file, the CountDown window has returned! Now if I just knew what happened I might know what to avoid. The 'bad' file looked like this: 243 3924 + 5 - - -10 _____ From: Paul - K6HR [mailto:[email protected]] Sent: Wednesday, June 17, 2015 9:17 PM To: 'nx9b(a)comcast.net' Cc: 'amsat-bb(a)amsat.org' Subject: RE: SatPC32 Question on the Amsat bb Hi Jeff, Thanks for the reply. The 'countdown' window does not open when chosen from the ACCY menu and does not appear anywhere on the desktop. _____ From: nx9b(a)comcast.net [mailto:[email protected]] Sent: Wednesday, June 17, 2015 8:32 PM To: paul.hamradio(a)verizon.net Subject: SatPC32 Question on the Amsat bb Hi, Paul, This is Jeff, NX9B. I saw your question about the countdown window in SatPC and thought I would try to help you out. Start SatPC On the Accy pulldown, pick countdown Once the count down window is there, check the "open window at program start" box. PICK 'STORE' IN THE BOTTOM RIGHT CORNER Close SatPC and restart the program. The countdown window should now show up when you start the program. Let me know if this did not help... 73 de Jeff, NX9B

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Re: [amsat-bb] SatPC32 Question on the Amsat bb
by Paul - K6HR 18 Jun '15

18 Jun '15

Hi Jeff, Thanks for the reply. The 'countdown' window does not open when chosen from the ACCY menu and does not appear anywhere on the desktop. _____ From: nx9b(a)comcast.net [mailto:[email protected]] Sent: Wednesday, June 17, 2015 8:32 PM To: paul.hamradio(a)verizon.net Subject: SatPC32 Question on the Amsat bb Hi, Paul, This is Jeff, NX9B. I saw your question about the countdown window in SatPC and thought I would try to help you out. Start SatPC On the Accy pulldown, pick countdown Once the count down window is there, check the "open window at program start" box. PICK 'STORE' IN THE BOTTOM RIGHT CORNER Close SatPC and restart the program. The countdown window should now show up when you start the program. Let me know if this did not help... 73 de Jeff, NX9B

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Re: [amsat-bb] EO-80 FM Transponder Tested (noise floor?)
by Robert Bruninga 18 Jun '15

18 Jun '15

I also am a proponent ot using 2m for weak downlinks because of the 9 dB advantage. But it has been pointed out to me that there is a higher background noise component that needs to be considered. I have not done this. My assumption is that the noise floor at 2m is maybe about 3 dB worse than at 70cm? So 2m still wins, but I'm not sure of what the real noise floor is. Bob, WB4aPR -----Original Message----- From: AMSAT-BB [mailto:[email protected]] On Behalf Of Zach Leffke Sent: Wednesday, June 17, 2015 11:23 AM To: amsat-bb(a)amsat.org Subject: Re: [amsat-bb] EO-80 FM Transponder Tested Paul beat me to the punch as I was typing up my response, but I'm sending it anyway: Path Loss. -> function of lambda (wavelength) squared. So all other things being equal (antenna gains, power levels, range, etc.), you can look at the power ratio of the two. Rough calculation (going from 2m to 70cm): 10log[(0.70/2)^2] = -9.1 dB OR Rough calculation (going from 70cm to 2m): 10log[(2/0.7)^2] = +9.1 dB The thing to watch out for is antenna gains on the ground. The arrow for example has more gain on 70cm (7el) than it does on 2m (3el). So while 2m has a 9-ish dB improvement over 70cm in terms of path loss, the receiver may not see the full 9dB because of the difference in gains on the antenna between the two bands. Again VERY rough approximation (for demonstration purposes only): 3el yagi -> call it 7.5 ish dB of gain 7el yagi -> call it 11.5 ish dB of gain so, about 4 dB of LOST gain (going from 70cm to 2m using the arrow example). So net gain going from 70cm to 2m (all other things equal except the gains on the arrow antenna) 9dB - 4dB = 5dB so your typo was actually fairly close :-) for those planning to use their existing setup for the new birds. -Zach, KJ4QLP On 6/17/2015 10:43 AM, Andrew Koenig wrote: > *9dB (typo) > > On Wed, Jun 17, 2015 at 9:42 AM, Andrew Koenig <ke5gdb(a)gmail.com> wrote: > >> Can you explain the 6dB advantage 2m has over 70cm? I've seen it here >> on the amsat-bb, and in the mesh realm when comparing 2.4GHz and >> 5.8GHz WiFi gear, but it still hasn't "clicked." >> >> 73 de KE5GDB >> >> On Tue, Jun 16, 2015 at 6:56 PM, Paul Stoetzer <n8hm(a)arrl.net> wrote: >> >>> Nick, >>> >>> It should be even stronger than AO-27's 500 mW, AO-27 had a 70cm >>> downlink, the EO-80 downlink is on 2 meters, so EO-80's signal >>> should be up to 9 dB stronger than AO-27 (12 dB stronger if they run >>> it at 1 watt). >>> >>> 73, >>> >>> Paul, N8HM >>> >>> On Tue, Jun 16, 2015 at 7:49 PM, Nicholas Mahr >>> <nicholasmahr1(a)gmail.com> >>> wrote: >>>> Thats very good news, Hopefully the two get activated before field day? >>> Im >>>> most looking forward to EO-80, It should be like AO-27 with 500Mw or 1W. >>>> Good to know both are working well and wish a long life to them. >>>> >>>> 73 KE8AKW >>>> _______________________________________________ >>>> 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 >>> _______________________________________________ >>> 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 >>> >> >> >> -- >> Andrew Koenig >> > > _______________________________________________ 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

7 9

SatPC32
by Nicholas Mahr 18 Jun '15

18 Jun '15

Hello Everyone, I had a few questions on SatPC32.. We used to use Nova For Windows for a long time, but havent used it for many years now... When I load up nova for windows it just has whole bunch of errors, making it unusable, I have even tried downloading the demo from the website but that dont work either, So for many years I have looked for a new 3D program. Im currently using Orbitron, its ok. But I stumbled across SatPC32, First off I saw you can buy this for a discount at the AMSAT store if your a member, which I am. Secondly, can you rotate the globe in 3D view, thats the main selling point on this program for me rather than a flat map, and do you recommend this program? Do alot of people out there use this? And if I can somehow magically fix nova for windows I would use it.. It looks like they dont even really support it anymore, the NLSA website is in ruins basically. But just thought i would ask about this program before buying. 73 KE8AKW

1 0

VP2MKV 2106 pass -- TKS
by Bob Mattaliano 18 Jun '15

18 Jun '15

Hi Jim, Sorry, not a distance record. We moved back to the East Coast in '93. To refresh your memory, FN41 includes our Bristol RI QTH. I worked you at 8 degrees; very fortunately for me while pointing westward as the bird was over the central US. I have a pretty clear shot in that direction. Due south would have required more elevation due to a hill, and it was a pretty narrow window for me during the pass. So, THANKS for being there! Much appreciate all of your efforts. 73, Bob N6RFM in FN41iq

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SatPC32 Countdown Has Disappeared
by Paul - K6HR 18 Jun '15

18 Jun '15

I'm hoping someone can help clear this up! Not sure what happened, but when I start SatPC32 the "Countdown" window no longer appears. I've tried reselecting it from the ACCY menu, also did a reinstallation of the program. Must be something simple I have overlooked but seem at a dead end here. Any advice or suggestions would be most welcome! Paul Delaney - K6HR paul.hamradio(a)verizon.net http://gw.k6hr.ampr.org:8080

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VP2MKV 2106 pass
by Jim White 17 Jun '15

17 Jun '15

Worked N8RO KG5CCI N6RFM (distance record ?) Last two passes from Montserrat FK86 tomorrow at 1826Z and 2012Z. Jim

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VP2MKV FO-29 pass window for Argentina
by LU2DPW Juan Carlos 17 Jun '15

17 Jun '15

Many thanks Jim for oportunity. Please tomorrow 20:06:16 - 20:08:39 UTC look me. I have contact with Puerto Rico, Venezuela and recently Martinique Island. Thanks 73 de Juan LU2DPW - Mercedes(Bs.As) - GF05gi

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Trip Report June 2015 to CN74/CN75, CN84 (with pictures)
by Bryan Green 17 Jun '15

17 Jun '15

(With picture links instead of attachments.) Hello, AMSAT-BB: Recently I made a trip to CN74/CN75 and CN84. Here is my report. A business trip to the Portland, Oregon area (CN85) over the week of June 6, 2015 through June 10, 2015 gave me and my XYL Karen an opportunity to visit her family. They live in CN84, and the family's favorite Indian Casino is very near the gridline of CN74/CN75. I saw an opportunity! Previous remote trips have involved an Icom IC-W32A and an Arrow. This was effective when there were more FM satellites. In the time since I have accumulated some gear compatible with linear satellite work. This is what I took with me: Uplink: Yaesu FT-897D with two internal battery packs and W4RT fast charger. Downlink: Yaesu FT-817ND with expanded internal battery pack and stock charger. Antenna: Arrow II 146/437 with 10BP module removed. Cables: Two 10-foot runs of high-quality RG-58, one for VHF and the other for UHF. Other equipment: Sony ICD-UX70 MP3 Recorder wired inline with FT-817ND and Heil Traveler Dual headset. Tripod purchased at a thrift store. Garmin 72H GPS using WGS-84 data to verify location. Audio cable splitter to allow for remote auditing. Apple iPhone 6 Plus running GoSatWatch 3.2 for pass timing and visualization. I negotiated with the family to schedule our traditional "casino crawl" visit around a low eastern pass of FO-29. The normal extemporaneous nature of scheduling these visits did not allow much advance notification of the operation, but were were able to send an e-mail to this list and broadcast a notification on Twitter a couple hours in advance. DXpedition team members included myself, XYL Karen, and XYL's brother Jason. We located the grid line in the parking lot of a nearby RV park. Here is a diagram of our operating location: https://www.dropbox.com/s/zehycvjjvl0sgfo/Trip%20Report%20June%202015%20to%… Here is a verification of our location: https://www.dropbox.com/s/344iaz4m22l1ifk/Trip%20Report%20June%202015%20to%… Our XYL and her brother were especially accommodating in precisely locating the vehicle at the 45.00000 degree line, and changed the parking spot of our vehicle four times to get it just right. In accordance with VUCC rules, the Transmitter must be at the proper location, and it certainly was. All equipment fit inside a carefully packed and padded standard-sized airline carry-on wheeled bag. It was necessary to partially break down the Arrow, but assembly was quickly accomplished. We set up the tripod, wired in the antenna, situated the radios on the open back hatch of the vehicle, and wired up the audio cables. Jason-Brother monitored the audio and XYL Karen took photos of the operation. https://www.dropbox.com/s/kbmn9slls4z2nfg/Trip%20Report%20June%202015%20to%… https://www.dropbox.com/s/hevqsc1oyo19vqe/Trip%20Report%20June%202015%20to%… After the pass concluded, we disassembled and packed all equipment, and proceeded to give our semi-annual contribution to the Confederated Tribes of Siletz Indians. In all, we made 6 contacts with the following operators: W0DHB N8RO W7LRD AJ9K K7ULS KF7PCL The use of the MP3 recorder was extremely valuable to clarify callsigns after the QSO. Post-Production work: We use Microsoft Excel to log each pass worked along with its parameters. We use Audacity 2.0.5 for decoding and processing the MP3 files. We use Ham Radio Deluxe Logbook 6.2.10.377 for storing QSO records and TQSL 2.0.3 to upload QSLs to Log Of The World. To post-process the DXpedition, we performed the following steps: 1. Created a new profile in TQSL named KL7CN_W7-CN74xx 2. Created a new log in HRD Logbook named KL7CN_W7-CN74xx-SAT. 3. Created a new My Station entry in HRD Logbook named KL7CN_W7-CN74xx. 4. Copied the MP3 file from the recorder to a special Dropbox folder. 5. Renamed the file to 20150612T2217Z KL7CN_W7 CN74xx FO-29.mp3 for ease of location later. 6. Made an entry for the pass in the Excel spreadsheet containing all the pass parameters as generated by GoSatWatch. 7. Listened to each QSO in the MP3 file using Audacity. 8. Made two entries for each QSO -- 1 per grid -- in HRD. Note: HRD has several issues that add extra work for satellite operators. Notably, the Band RX and Freq RX fields must be set manually. Have not been able to convince HRD publisher to fix these issues despite several passionate requests; especially annoying as these fields were previously available in HRD 5.x era. 9. Uploaded QSOs to LotW after double-checking the location setting. Left to do: 10. Generate printed QSL template in MS Word based on another template previously used for these DXpeditions. 11. Mail QSLs to happy recipients. CN84 activity: Repeated these steps for activity in CN84 (at Jason-Brother's house), operating on two passes. Chose early low eastern passes for the benefit of east coast operators. Changes for next time: 1. Obtain a lighter tripod, perhaps a telescope tripod? 2. Establish counter-weight for Arrow, as axial rotation is quite important for resolving satellite fading issues. Sometimes the Arrow would twist off in an odd direction when it was axially rotated. (Not sure if telescope tripods are rotatable axially like camera tripods.) 3. Obtain a powered speaker for audiences. 4. Locate or build some sort of an audio mixer that would allow uplink audio to be mixed in with downlink recording, as downlink recordings of uplink are not always especially audible. 5. Label the base of each element of Arrow for even faster assembly. 6. Obtain preamps, possibly. 7. Consider alternative logging software. Keepers for next time: 1. Although heavy as sin, the extra power of the FT-897D is quite valuable especially on SO-50. Will continue with this. 2. The Garmin 72H GPS is quite sufficient to prove location. 3. The MP3 Audio Recorder. 4. Taking all the gear as a carry-on in the airplane. Notes on passing rather odd-looking equipment through the American TSA: Although the disassembled Arrow and dense batteries of the two transceivers must surely look like a threat or IED in the X-Ray, no one at the TSA looked twice or asked about them. However, my body was inspected quite closely and thoroughly, as extra adipose tissue is surely suspect as improvised plastic explosives. Possible next operation: The grid line of CN94/DN04 is a three-hour drive from Jason-Brother's house in CN84. If overnight accommodations can be arranged, it may be possible to activate these relatively rare grids with the support of the family. There are no Indian Casinos in this area, but it is a beautiful drive. Thanks for reading! Looking forward the next Grid DXpedition! -- bag Bryan KL7CN

1 0

Trip Report June 2015 to CN74/CN75, CN84
by Bryan Green 17 Jun '15

17 Jun '15

Hello, AMSAT-BB: Recently I made a trip to CN74/CN75 and CN84. Here is my report. A business trip to the Portland, Oregon area (CN85) over the week of June 6, 2015 through June 10, 2015 gave me and my XYL Karen an opportunity to visit her family. They live in CN84, and the family's favorite Indian Casino is very near the gridline of CN74/CN75. I saw an opportunity! Previous remote trips have involved an Icom IC-W32A and an Arrow. This was effective when there were more FM satellites. In the time since I have accumulated some gear compatible with linear satellite work. This is what I took with me: Uplink: Yaesu FT-897D with two internal battery packs and W4RT fast charger. Downlink: Yaesu FT-817ND with expanded internal battery pack and stock charger. Antenna: Arrow II 146/437 with 10BP module removed. Cables: Two 10-foot runs of high-quality RG-58, one for VHF and the other for UHF. Other equipment: Sony ICD-UX70 MP3 Recorder wired inline with FT-817ND and Heil Traveler Dual headset. Tripod purchased at a thrift store. Garmin 72H GPS using WGS-84 data to verify location. Audio cable splitter to allow for remote auditing. Apple iPhone 6 Plus running GoSatWatch 3.2 for pass timing and visualization. I negotiated with the family to schedule our traditional "casino crawl" visit around a low eastern pass of FO-29. The normal extemporaneous nature of scheduling these visits did not allow much advance notification of the operation, but were were able to send an e-mail to this list and broadcast a notification on Twitter a couple hours in advance. DXpedition team members included myself, XYL Karen, and XYL's brother Jason. We located the grid line in the parking lot of a nearby RV park. Here is a diagram of our operating location: Here is a verification of our location: Our XYL and her brother were especially accommodating in precisely locating the vehicle at the 45.00000 degree line, and changed the parking spot of our vehicle four times to get it just right. In accordance with VUCC rules, the Transmitter must be at the proper location, and it certainly was. All equipment fit inside a carefully packed and padded standard-sized airline carry-on wheeled bag. It was necessary to partially break down the Arrow, but assembly was quickly accomplished. We set up the tripod, wired in the antenna, situated the radios on the open back hatch of the vehicle, and wired up the audio cables. Jason-Brother monitored the audio and XYL Karen took photos of the operation. After the pass concluded, we disassembled and packed all equipment, and proceeded to give our semi-annual contribution to the Confederated Tribes of Siletz Indians. In all, we made 6 contacts with the following operators: W0DHB N8RO W7LRD AJ9K K7ULS KF7PCL The use of the MP3 recorder was extremely valuable to clarify callsigns after the QSO. Post-Production work: We use Microsoft Excel to log each pass worked along with its parameters. We use Audacity 2.0.5 for decoding and processing the MP3 files. We use Ham Radio Deluxe Logbook 6.2.10.377 for storing QSO records and TQSL 2.0.3 to upload QSLs to Log Of The World. To post-process the DXpedition, we performed the following steps: 1. Created a new profile in TQSL named KL7CN_W7-CN74xx 2. Created a new log in HRD Logbook named KL7CN_W7-CN74xx-SAT. 3. Created a new My Station entry in HRD Logbook named KL7CN_W7-CN74xx. 4. Copied the MP3 file from the recorder to a special Dropbox folder. 5. Renamed the file to 20150612T2217Z KL7CN_W7 CN74xx FO-29.mp3 for ease of location later. 6. Made an entry for the pass in the Excel spreadsheet containing all the pass parameters as generated by GoSatWatch. 7. Listened to each QSO in the MP3 file using Audacity. 8. Made two entries for each QSO -- 1 per grid -- in HRD. Note: HRD has several issues that add extra work for satellite operators. Notably, the Band RX and Freq RX fields must be set manually. Have not been able to convince HRD publisher to fix these issues despite several passionate requests; especially annoying as these fields were previously available in HRD 5.x era. 9. Uploaded QSOs to LotW after double-checking the location setting. Left to do: 10. Generate printed QSL template in MS Word based on another template previously used for these DXpeditions. 11. Mail QSLs to happy recipients. CN84 activity: Repeated these steps for activity in CN84 (at Jason-Brother's house), operating on two passes. Chose early low eastern passes for the benefit of east coast operators. Changes for next time: 1. Obtain a lighter tripod, perhaps a telescope tripod? 2. Establish counter-weight for Arrow, as axial rotation is quite important for resolving satellite fading issues. Sometimes the Arrow would twist off in an odd direction when it was axially rotated. (Not sure if telescope tripods are rotatable axially like camera tripods.) 3. Obtain a powered speaker for audiences. 4. Locate or build some sort of an audio mixer that would allow uplink audio to be mixed in with downlink recording, as downlink recordings of uplink are not always especially audible. 5. Label the base of each element of Arrow for even faster assembly. 6. Obtain preamps, possibly. 7. Consider alternative logging software. Keepers for next time: 1. Although heavy as sin, the extra power of the FT-897D is quite valuable especially on SO-50. Will continue with this. 2. The Garmin 72H GPS is quite sufficient to prove location. 3. The MP3 Audio Recorder. 4. Taking all the gear as a carry-on in the airplane. Notes on passing rather odd-looking equipment through the American TSA: Although the disassembled Arrow and dense batteries of the two transceivers must surely look like a threat or IED in the X-Ray, no one at the TSA looked twice or asked about them. However, my body was inspected quite closely and thoroughly, as extra adipose tissue is surely suspect as improvised plastic explosives. Possible next operation: The grid line of CN94/DN04 is a three-hour drive from Jason-Brother's house in CN84. If overnight accommodations can be arranged, it may be possible to activate these relatively rare grids with the support of the family. There are no Indian Casinos in this area, but it is a beautiful drive. Thanks for reading! Looking forward the next Grid DXpedition! -- bag Bryan KL7CN

1 0

VP2MKV 1516 pass
by Jim White 17 Jun '15

17 Jun '15

Got these WA4NVM NX9G N5JF WB8TGY on CW KC8QDQ NX9B right at our LOS We will try the 2106Z pass here although last night with a pass like that we heard no one. Jim

1 0

VP2MKV June 17 1335 pass
by Jim White 17 Jun '15

17 Jun '15

1735Z pass. Good up and downlink on a 5 degrees pass to the east and northeast. No one to work. Next pass is 1916Z. I it is 78 degrees max ele for us to the west. We will try to work as many as we can. As a reminder it is much easier for me to find you in the passband if you just transmit on 145.985. I am tuning +- 10 or so from my downlink and I can follow your Doppler without difficulty. We may try the 2106Z pass tonight but the last one of these skimmers to the west there was no one on to work. We have had a great and long opening on 6 meters today all the way to Colo. Ken worked a couple hundred on CW and some SSB. We think it was enhanced by tropo here - getting us into the Es spot up near Puerto Rico. On HF we got the RTTY going after some struggles and it is now a total zoo on 14.082. We will probably keep RTTY going today and tomorrow. Tomorrow is our last day of operating. Jim

3 3

Sat Shows in Wayne, NY and ORCO, CA in August
by Clint Bradford 17 Jun '15

17 Jun '15

Clint Bradford, K6LCS, will be presenting 'Working Amateur Satellites With Your HT' session at two clubs in August. Admission is absolutely free, and visitors are WELCOME to attend! Monday, August 10, 2015 - 7:30PM Eastern Wayne (New Jersey) Amateur Radio Club Wayne Public Library 461 Valley Road, Wayne, NJ 07470 Talk-in on 440.950MHz+ 97.4 Monday, August 17, 2015 - 7:00PM Pacific SOARA - South Orange County (CA) Radio Association Norman P. Murray Community Center 24932 Veterans Way, Mission Viejo CA 92692 Talk-in available on either of these SOARA repeaters: 147.645- 110.9 -or- 447.180- 131.8 Between the material presented, the free downloads available on the support Work-Sat.com Web site, and the always-lively Q&A afterward, attendees will be provided with all the information they will need to work FM amateur satellites - and more. Pre-presentation questions are welcomed - send email to: k6lcs(a)ham-sat.info /end/

1 0

Re: [amsat-bb] EO-80 FM Transponder Tested
by Nicholas Mahr 17 Jun '15

17 Jun '15

Thats very good news, Hopefully the two get activated before field day? Im most looking forward to EO-80, It should be like AO-27 with 500Mw or 1W. Good to know both are working well and wish a long life to them. 73 KE8AKW

4 6

Oscar Satellite Page
by Nicholas Mahr 16 Jun '15

16 Jun '15

Hello Everybody, I thought I would just make one quick suggestion, on the Oscar.dcarr.org Page, We need to add new satellites onto the list, Those satellite are: EO-80 EO-79 UKUBE-1 NO-83 NO-84, And anyone new ones I missed please correct/add them! 73 KE8AKW

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My 6-7 June road trip, lots of miles & grids - report
by Patrick STODDARD (WD9EWK/VA7EWK) 16 Jun '15

16 Jun '15

Hi! I'm a little tardy in sending this e-mail out, but wanted to post a report on my road trip to northern Arizona and southern Utah on the weekend of 6-7 June. After over 1100 miles in just over two days, I had fun hosting an AMSAT table at a hamfest, followed by a lot of driving and operating. I made the 3-hour drive up to Show Low, in eastern Arizona the night before the White Mountain Hamfest on 6 June. I drove through rain and some fog up to Show Low, which made the morning a little cooler. A nice crowd showed up for the half-day hamfest, and WD9EWK was on a couple of SO-50 passes followed by an AO-73 pass during the morning. The hamfest was located in grid DM44xg, near the Show Low city hall and the US-60/AZ-260 junction. By 11.30am (1830 UTC), the hamfest was wrapping up. This gave me about 2 hours to get to the first post-hamfest stop of this road trip - the DM54bx/DM55ba grid boundary, along old US-66 and I-40, about an hour north of the hamfest site. The DM54bx/DM55ba grid boundary is a place I have worked from several times in the past few years, most recently in June 2014 after the same hamfest. I planned to work AO-7 and FO-29 from here, so I could get these two grids on the air. The AO-7 pass came first, and I was able to make two SSB QSOs before the satellite was forced from mode B to mode A (thanks KG5CCI & N4UFO!). It is unfortunate that stations still insist on running lots of power when working AO-7, in SSB and especially CW. FO-29 came by a few minutes later, and that was better. Three more stations went in the log on that pass, then it was time to hit the road again. I had received requests to work from grid DM45 during this weekend, and I was able to do that for the later AO-7 and FO-29 passes. I drove about 50 miles/80km west on I-40 to Winslow, near the southeast corner of grid DM45. After making a stop at "the corner in Winslow, Arizona" for some pictures, I drove east to the end of old US-66 and parked in front of an old trading post to work AO-7 and FO-29 from here. These two passes were both almost directly overhead for this location, and this time AO-7 stayed in mode B for the entire pass. Five stations were logged on AO-7, and six more on FO-29. >From Winslow, I drove about 60 miles/100km west to Flagstaff for dinner and fuel, before turning north on US-89 to Page and Lake Powell, at the Arizona/Utah state line. For the drive between Flagstaff and Page, I stopped at two points to work ISS passes. The first stop was north of Flagstaff, still in grid DM45, around 0115 UTC. No QSOs were logged, although I saw several stations on my TH-D72A's display. After that pass, I kept going north on US-89 onto the Navajo Nation reservation. As the last glimmer of sunlight was about to disappear from the western sky, I made another stop at the US-89/US-89A junction near Page just before 0300 UTC. This was at grid DM46ep, with a nice view to the west for this ISS pass. I exchanged APRS messages with KK6RKY in northern California, saw a few other stations, then went back onto US-89 to finish my drive to Page. Once in Page, I stopped in a Wal-Mart parking lot along US-89 to work an AO-73 pass just before 0400 UTC. This was in grid DM46gv, a few miles/km south of Lake Powell, Glen Canyon Dam, and the Arizona/Utah state line. Since it was getting late, and I needed to leave Page early the next morning, I only worked one pass. Six in the log, and that ended my Saturday. As the sun was rising Sunday (7 June) morning, I left Page to reach the DM47xb/DM57ab grid boundary in southern Utah. This was a 130-mile/210km drive, and even with two stops for caffeine on the way I made it to the spot with about 30 minutes to spare. I had operated from this spot in 2009, on a county road southeast of US-163 in San Juan County. This area is also on the Navajo Nation reservation, and north of Monument Valley. After taking the obligatory photos of my station and GPS receiver, I was ready to work an SO-50 pass followed by an AO-73 pass between 1510 and 1550 UTC. Other than making another trip to this part of the country, I had heard from Drew KO4MA that DM47 and DM57 were two of the three grids in this part of the US he did not have confirmed via satellite. Others had also mentioned they either needed one of these grids, or both of them as well. The SO-50 pass was great for working stations from coast to coast. A total of 16 stations, including KO4MA, were logged. The AO-73 pass around 1545 UTC was a very low pass out there, with a maximum elevation of 4 degrees to the east. Despite that, I logged QSOs with AC0RA and K4FEG. Before the western SO-50 and AO-73 passes after 1700 UTC, I drove back to US-163 and stopped at a spot with a great view to the south and Monument Valley. I took lots of pictures out here, and some of those were sent out via Twitter for those who were watching me that morning. After spending most of the 1600 UTC hour sightseeing, I drove back to the DM47/DM57 boundary for the last two passes I'd work out there. Six stations logged on SO-50, followed by 3 on AO-73, to wrap up the DM47/DM57 part of this road trip. Another grid boundary I looked to work from on this trip was the DM56/DM57 boundary, a place I worked from in 2008. This is along the US-191 highway, just north of the Arizona/Utah state line. It was about 75 miles/120km from the DM47/DM57 boundary just off US-163 to the DM56ex/DM57ea boundary on US-191. With a lunch stop along the way, I made it to the spot with about 20 minutes to spare. I planned to work two AO-7 passes and one FO-29 pass, along with the obligatory grid-boundary photography, before making the drive home (almost 6 hours!). The first AO-7 pass around 1930 UTC was not too high, but high enough to be able to hear myself for almost the entire pass. I logged only one QSO, with John K8YSE, near my LOS. Then an hour or so of sightseeing up US-191 and back, before the better AO-7 and FO-29 passes starting around 2125 UTC. The two later passes were productive. I logged 7 QSOs on the AO-7 pass, and 10 QSOs on the FO-29 pass after that. When I was up here in 2008 and 2009, I only worked FM passes. With SO-50 only passing by in the mornings, working the SSB birds was mandatory on this trip up here. When I wasn't trying to work the ISS passes, I left my TH-D72A squawking my location as WD9EWK-9 on this trip. I did not use APRS when I was up there in 2008 or 2009, and I hoped that mountaintop digipeaters would hear me. A few in Utah and Colorado did, and I was able to see myself later on aprs.fi. Some areas were not covered, in particular the two grid boundaries I stopped at in southern Utah, but the highways mostly had good coverage. I could use an app on my mobile phone, but prefer to use APRS with RF. The mobile phone network on the Navajo Nation was dramatically improved since 2009. I had high-speed data access while I was out there, which let me send photos via Twitter and see how well my APRS signals were making it to the Internet. After the trip, I uploaded my log to Logbook of the World. Over half of my 89 QSOs from this trip have been confirmed via LOTW. This is nice to see! I am also planning to print some QSL cards this weekend, to answer some QSL requests that have landed at my PO box. Again, it's not necessary to send me your QSL card or an SASE when you work me on my road trips. An e-mail with the QSO details is sufficient. If you're in the log, I will put a card in the mail to you. If you work me when I'm at home, or near the Phoenix area (in general, when I'm in grids DM33 and/or DM43), then I would appreciate receiving your QSL card. I drove 1145 miles/1843km in just over 50 hours on this trip, and operated from 8 different grid locators in Arizona and Utah (DM44-47, DM54-57) - including 3 grid boundaries (DM47/DM57, DM54/DM55, DM56/DM57). Other than my long drive from the ARRL Centennial Convention in Hartford last year up to northern Maine, it has been a while since I have done a trip like this. It is fun to mix in satellite operating on trips, and I hope to do more of this in the remainder of 2015. 73! Patrick WD9EWK/VA7EWK http://www.wd9ewk.net/ Twitter: @WD9EWK

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RX PSAT-1
by Pablo J.M. - LW8EXS 16 Jun '15

16 Jun '15

2:Fm PSAT To APRSON Via ARISS <UI R Pid=F0 Len=34> [18:26:54R] T#511,869,069,125,124,402,00000000 2:Fm PSAT To APRSON Via ARISS <UI R Pid=F0 Len=12> [18:27:20R] new OLO=038 73s de LW8EXS

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EO-80 FM Transponder Tested
by Paul Stoetzer 16 Jun '15

16 Jun '15

Per a post on the AMSAT-F website, the EO-80 FM transponder was tested today, works, and should be activated permanently in a few weeks. The post also says that EO-79's linear transponder should be available in a few weeks as well. http://www.amsat-f.org/spip/spip.php?article120&lang=fr Looking forward to it! 73, Paul, N8HM

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NanosatC-BR1
by Edson W. R. Pereira 16 Jun '15

16 Jun '15

Hello everyone, The first Brazilian cubesat, NanosatC-BR1, is experiencing battery issues for the last several months and it now seldom emits a beacon in CW. For some time, Paulo PV8DX, was able to detect a beacon signal when the satellite was over the Caribbean sea during daylight. But now, no more signals have been detected. We would like to request assistance from hams in the northern hemisphere to see if NanosatC-BR1 is still transmitting any signals. Any help will be much appreciated. 73, Edson PY2SDR --- - We humans have the capability to do amazing things if we work together. - Nós seres humanos temos a capacidade de fazer coisas incríveis se trabalharmos juntos.

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Re: [amsat-bb] kepler data of AO-73 and Ham Radio Deluxe next pass info
by Peter Kaminski 16 Jun '15

16 Jun '15

Hello David G0MRF, thanks for reply. I fixed the problem. With the update of the latest HRD software my home location (stored in the digimode application part of HDR and not in the Sat application) was changed to 0/0 Deg. So now I put in the old position data in the home location back again and all works ... regards Peter Am 16.06.2015 um 14:58 schrieb David G0MRF: > Hi Peter. > Keps will be fine as long as the date is within about 2 weeks. > The most common error is 1 or 2 hours due to local time and UTC, but > 10 minutes is definitely not that. > Another source of error is the computer clock. They can easily drift > 10 minutes if you have not set up time synchronisation via you > operating system. > If in doubt, go to www.n2yo.com <http://www.n2yo.com> then select > AO-73 from the most tracked list and compare the location shown with HRD > Thanks > David G0MRF > -----Original Message----- > From: Peter Kaminski <info(a)dl9dak.de> > To: AMSAT BB <amsat-bb(a)amsat.org> > Sent: Tue, 16 Jun 2015 12:16 > Subject: [amsat-bb] kepler data of AO-73 and Ham Radio Deluxe next > pass info > > Hello, > > today I received some telemetry frames of FUNcube-1 AO-73 but as I > > checked the pass in Ham Radio Deluxe Sat Tracking I saw that the next > pass > should be in abt. 10 min. later. So I manually reload the Kepler > data from > www.amsat.org/amsat/ftp/keps/current/nasabare.txt <http://www.amsat.org/amsat/ftp/keps/current/nasabare.txt> but always > there is a big > difference between the real pass of AO-73 and the passes > shown in HRD. I use > the latest update of HRD (updating a few days ago). > > So do anyone has the same > problem? May be something happend in the HRD > update? The URL of the kepler > data is OK because I can finde the file on > the amsat server via the link. Any > idea? May be I should try another > kepler data > source? > > regards > Peter > DL9DAK | N9DAK > > -- > > DL9DAK | N9DAK > Peter > Kaminski > Vogt-Wells-Str. 5 > 22529 Hamburg > Germany > > phone: +49 40 > 41477811 > mobile: +49 172 4053333 > skype: peter.kaminski.hh > email: > info(a)dl9dak.de <mailto:[email protected]> > web: > www.dl9dak.de <http://www.dl9dak.de> > > _______________________________________________ > Sent via > AMSAT-BB(a)amsat.org <mailto:[email protected]>. 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 -- DL9DAK | N9DAK Peter Kaminski Vogt-Wells-Str. 5 22529 Hamburg Germany phone: +49 40 41477811 mobile: +49 172 4053333 skype: peter.kaminski.hh email: info(a)dl9dak.de web: www.dl9dak.de

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Re: [amsat-bb] Tropo and FO-29
by Kevin M 16 Jun '15

16 Jun '15

I also heard the '1, 2, 3, 4, 5' clearly, well after your LOS according to the tracker. W4UOO was trying to call you, I believe. I've also been noticing that I will hear FO-29 BEFORE AOS as well on some of these passes lately. -- Not tropo, but talk about working over the horizon... ever work RS-12/13?!!! When in Mode K (15m up and 10m down) you could work a pass from another continent! Biggest shock I ever had was calling CQ with the bird descending over North America (LEO) and getting a call from OK1DIG. =^D There was an article in QST about an op who worked DXCC on RS-12/13 by using this method. Boy, I miss that bird. 73, Kevin N4UFO (ex-AC5DK for any other RS-12/13 ops out there)

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kepler data of AO-73 and Ham Radio Deluxe next pass info
by Peter Kaminski 16 Jun '15

16 Jun '15

Hello, today I received some telemetry frames of FUNcube-1 AO-73 but as I checked the pass in Ham Radio Deluxe Sat Tracking I saw that the next pass should be in abt. 10 min. later. So I manually reload the Kepler data from www.amsat.org/amsat/ftp/keps/current/nasabare.txt but always there is a big difference between the real pass of AO-73 and the passes shown in HRD. I use the latest update of HRD (updating a few days ago). So do anyone has the same problem? May be something happend in the HRD update? The URL of the kepler data is OK because I can finde the file on the amsat server via the link. Any idea? May be I should try another kepler data source? regards Peter DL9DAK | N9DAK -- DL9DAK | N9DAK Peter Kaminski Vogt-Wells-Str. 5 22529 Hamburg Germany phone: +49 40 41477811 mobile: +49 172 4053333 skype: peter.kaminski.hh email: info(a)dl9dak.de web: www.dl9dak.de

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Telemetry PSAT
by Pablo J.M. - LW8EXS 15 Jun '15

15 Jun '15

Jun 15 15:02 UTC 2:Fm PSAT To APRSON Via ARISS <UI R Pid=F0 Len=52> [12:02:16R] s#025171,0z200,ig0ig0ihAihBhhChhChhDhiEhiFgiFgiFgiG 73s. LW8EXS

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2111Z from VP2MKV
by Jim White 15 Jun '15

15 Jun '15

Interesting propagation. We heard ourselves for about 3 or 4 minutes but there were deep fades about every 10 seconds. We suspect constructive/destructive interference from the over-water path. But we never heard another signal. We will not be on tomorrow but should be on Weds and Thursday. Jim

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Re: [amsat-bb] Tropo and FO-29
by Andrew Glasbrenner 15 Jun '15

15 Jun '15

I also meant to add, it was very noticeable when I was operating as VP2EAG from Anguilla, both with the Arrow and HT on UO-14 (sobsob) and with the dish on AO-40 S-band. The first pass on AO-40 was from a hill on the island, with the 18" DSS dish upside down on the windshield/hood to get down to the 6 degree elevation the sat was to the west. I noticed a big signal bump approaching the horizon, and a bit past my predicted LOS, even on 2.4 GHz. Great memories of that, and working from neighboring islands on AO-27 and UO-14, and running dozens of EU stations at 3AM on U/S, even split, spreading them out over 20-30 kHz. 73, Drew KO4MA

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Re: [amsat-bb] Tropo and FO-29
by Andrew Glasbrenner 15 Jun '15

15 Jun '15

Yes! I live 1/2 mile or so from the open Gulf, and it's a clear shot from the tower in some azimuths. I have heard many satellites below the horizon by several degrees. With the right conditions, I've worked Cuba, Mexico, Texas, and Puerto Rico on 2m SSB via tropo with the same antennas. 73, Drew KO4MA -----Original Message----- >From: Clayton Coleman <kayakfishtx(a)gmail.com> >Sent: Jun 15, 2015 4:20 PM >To: Jim White <jim(a)coloradosatellite.com> >Cc: AMSAT-BB <amsat-bb(a)amsat.org> >Subject: Re: [amsat-bb] Tropo and FO-29 > >I was hearing you guys saying "5,4,3,2,1" until SatPC32 showed FK86 at >-2 degrees elevation. I didn't have your six digit locator entered so >there is a margin of error. > >73 >Clayton >W5PFG > >On Mon, Jun 15, 2015 at 3:17 PM, Jim White <jim(a)coloradosatellite.com> wrote: >> Apparently some folks were hearing us after our nominal LOS, I was still >> taking so Ken could zero in the antenna on the horizon. We had stopped >> hearing the downlink at that point. In that direction we are about 500' >> above the ocean with nothing but a steep slope down then water all the way >> to Spain. I'm wondering if there was some tropo on VHF that kept us in it >> for another minute or so, but the UHF fell off when it went over the water >> horizon. >> >> Anyone ever experience anything like that? >> >> We have certainly seen 6 meter tropo around the islands here this week - all >> the way up to Puerto Rico and Haiti. >> >> Jim >> _______________________________________________ >> 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 >_______________________________________________ >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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73 on 73 Award #20 - IW0HLG
by Paul Stoetzer 15 Jun '15

15 Jun '15

Good afternoon, Congratulations to Davide D'Aliesio, IW0HLG, for working 73 different stations on AO-73 since September 1, 2014 and becoming the 20th recipient of the 73 on 73 Award. For more information on the award see http://amsat-uk.org/funcube/73-on-73-award/ 73, Paul Stoetzer, N8HM

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Tropo and FO-29
by Jim White 15 Jun '15

15 Jun '15

Apparently some folks were hearing us after our nominal LOS, I was still taking so Ken could zero in the antenna on the horizon. We had stopped hearing the downlink at that point. In that direction we are about 500' above the ocean with nothing but a steep slope down then water all the way to Spain. I'm wondering if there was some tropo on VHF that kept us in it for another minute or so, but the UHF fell off when it went over the water horizon. Anyone ever experience anything like that? We have certainly seen 6 meter tropo around the islands here this week - all the way up to Puerto Rico and Haiti. Jim

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Antenna Mounted Preamps
by Nicholas Mahr 15 Jun '15

15 Jun '15

Hi All, I need two antenna mounted pre-amps, one for 70CM and one for 2M... We had outside preamps but they got hit my lightning long ago, all we have are preamps in the house. With that being said where you do you recemmend buying a very good antenna mounted preamp? I cannot really find anything anywhere that sells preamps anymore. 73 KE8AKW

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VP2MKV 1921 Z pass
by Jim White 15 Jun '15

15 Jun '15

Good pass. Thanks for everyone's patience. Max 71 degree EL here made for strong signals. Ken the human rotator is getting the hang of it. Following worked: N4UFO K3SV KE8AEW KE8AKW KC9ELU WL9I W5PFG AC2RA W5CBF NC0RA NJ1H W3KXR WI9I WN9Q WA5KBH Thanks also to everyone for clear enunciation of their phonetics. Wish I could say the same on HF (4,582 contacts so far). We are going to try the 2111Z pass here. It only gets 1.7 degrees high at 262 AZ at 2114Z but we are about 500' above the ocean and nothing in the way that direction. Not sure who or what will be in the footprint then. . . If we can just keep the papers, headsets, chair and antenna from blowing off the roof deck . . . again..... Jim

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Satellite FCC Frequency and spacecraft licensing process?
by Robert Bruninga 15 Jun '15

15 Jun '15

Satellite Builders, Is this how Frequency coordination and Satellite Licensing is supposed to work (for a 100% amateur payload)? 1) We obtained IARU coordination letters for our spacecraft 2) We filled out the ODAR report 3) We filled out the SPACECAP nightmare 4) We submitted to the FCC We never got any response. (Never have as far as I can remember going back 5 satellites back to 2001)… But then we have not done one since 2006 until this last one, and with the more formal steps 1,2,3 above, assumed it was more formal now. So, as we prepare to build our Next satellite, IS THIS THE PROCESS? IE, The last step is simply a “notification” and if there is *no* response, then we assume we are legal? I know better than to just knock on FCC doors and **ask** anyone that responds, “is this OK”. Because the bureaucratic response is always NO until you can prove otherwise. We did what we were supposed to do. So is that it? How do I prove it to the Launch Provider? All we have is the IARU coordination letter (plus what we submitted)… Just curious if this is the normal process. Bob, WB4APR

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Re: [amsat-bb] Domenico I8CVS SK
by andy thomas 15 Jun '15

15 Jun '15

Like many others I saddened by the loss of Domenico, who was a source of inspiration, and who now is encountering his own cosmic journey. andy G0SFJ

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Re: [amsat-bb] I8CVS SK
by Grant Zehr 15 Jun '15

15 Jun '15

When I was first getting my AO-40 receiver working I remember having my dish propped up on a lawn chair in the driveway, holding the feed and down-converter in place and at the same time trying to tune my FT-847. It was looking like another evening of failure when suddenly, very clearly, I heard Domenico signing I8CVS. Later I had the chance to visit with him on AO-40 and thank him for being on the satellite. Domenico was a true gentleman and a great help to many others, including myself. His comments on any topic were always worth reading and considering. He will be missed by the entire amateur satellite community. My sincerest condolences to his Family. Grant Zehr AA9LC

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I8CVS
by Thomas Doyle 15 Jun '15

15 Jun '15

Very sad to hear of his passing. I always read all of his postings on the board. He was a great source of information and inspiration. He will be missed. W9KE Tom Doyle

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Re: [amsat-bb] VP2MKV passes
by Jim White 15 Jun '15

15 Jun '15

Yes, sorry. 1521 local, 1921Z. Jim On 6/15/2015 2:07 PM, Clayton Coleman wrote: > Jim, > > Do you mean 1521 local time? I'll be looking for you. 6 degree pass > here in Texas. > > Thanks, > Clayton > W5PFG > > On Mon, Jun 15, 2015 at 12:58 PM, Jim White<jim(a)coloradosatellite.com> wrote: >> Great signals from the roof for the 1339 pass. 20MPH winds with higher >> gusts. Radio working great, strong return signal, strong beacon. No one >> heard but ourselves. >> >> We will be on the 1521Z pass here which gets up to 71 degrees. >> >> Jim >> >> >> _______________________________________________ >> 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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VP2MKV passes
by Jim White 15 Jun '15

15 Jun '15

Great signals from the roof for the 1339 pass. 20MPH winds with higher gusts. Radio working great, strong return signal, strong beacon. No one heard but ourselves. We will be on the 1521Z pass here which gets up to 71 degrees. Jim

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Re: [amsat-bb] I8CVS SK
by Vince Fiscus, KB7ADL 15 Jun '15

15 Jun '15

At 10:53 PM 6/14/2015 +0000, Bob- W7LRD wrote: >I have of folder in my email called "Domenico". It contains many exchanges >over the years I have had with Domenico, as well as many of his posts to >the bb. He taught me a lot for which I am grateful. RIP my friend. >73 Bob W7LRD I second that. He was a valuable resource and his contributions will be missed. KB7ADL

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Gulf Alpha sold - Correction
by Kevin M 15 Jun '15

15 Jun '15

I should say that Gulf Alpha has sold their VHF, UHF and satellite antenna line to Arrow Antennas... not the entire company. Mea culpa.

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Gulf Alpha sold
by Kevin M 15 Jun '15

15 Jun '15

Was listening to a local chat on 6m and a guy was talking about his Gulf Alpha antenna... and that last week when he called to inquire about something, he was told that Gulf Alpha has been sold... Sure enough it's right there on Arrow antennas website: http://www.arrowantennas.com/ Since Arrow makes a decent hand held sat antenna, I will be interested to see what they come up with for fixed installations. I'm hoping a certain AMSAT person might have a talk with them like he did another antenna company. You know who you are. =^D 73 all, Kevin N4UFO

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I8CVS RIP
by paul robinson 15 Jun '15

15 Jun '15

Great sadness!!! A great sat opp! will miss you Dom! Paul 2E1EUB

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Re: [amsat-bb] I8CVS SK
by Richard Tejera 15 Jun '15

15 Jun '15

Pretty sure he had forgotten more than I learned or will ever learn. Rick K7TEJ On June 14, 2015, at 15:53, Bob- W7LRD <w7lrd(a)comcast.net> wrote: I have of folder in my email called "Domenico". It contains many exchanges over the years I have had with Domenico, as well as many of his posts to the bb. He taught me a lot for which I am grateful. RIP my friend. 73 Bob W7LRD Seattle ----- Original Message ----- From: "Piero Baudino" <pbaudino(a)formatnet.it> To: amsat-bb(a)amsat.org Sent: Sunday, June 14, 2015 12:17:15 AM Subject: [amsat-bb] I8CVS SK Dear AMSAT-BB members, I just learned from the family that out dear friend Domenico I8CVS has passed away this morning at 6.00 Italy time after a long illness. At the moment I have no more details. '73 de Piero IZ1ERR _______________________________________________ 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 _______________________________________________ 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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Latest SO-50 pass
by Steve Kristoff 15 Jun '15

15 Jun '15

I was trying the most recent (about 1200 UTC around here) SO-50 pass. I don't mind not making a QSO as it's a busy place, like working a DX pileup. I am wondering if anyone is hearing me though. If it's something in my rig, I'd like to fix it. So, I'm requesting reports if you heard me on this morning's SO-50 pass. Thank you! Steve Kristoff AI9IN skristof(a)etczone.com

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VP2MKV schedule change
by Jim White 15 Jun '15

15 Jun '15

Schedule change. We do expect to be on the two ascending passes this afternoon (June 15). Tomorrow and the next day are up in the air (pun?) due to schedule uncertainty. Jim

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I8CVS SK
by Piero Baudino 15 Jun '15

15 Jun '15

Dear AMSAT-BB members, I just learned from the family that out dear friend Domenico I8CVS has passed away this morning at 6.00 Italy time after a long illness. At the moment I have no more details. '73 de Piero IZ1ERR

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Re: [amsat-bb] Antenna Mounted Preamps
by Glenn Little WB4UIV 15 Jun '15

15 Jun '15

Until you get your grounding issues corrected, you are wasting money on tower mounted preamps. See MIL-HDBK-419 for information. https://www.wbdg.org/ccb/FEDMIL/hdbk419a_vol1.pdf https://www.wbdg.org/ccb/FEDMIL/hdbk419a_vol2.pdf This is the two volumes. Ensure that the tower is properly grounded to the service entrance ground. Eight foot ground rods every 16 feet bonded, 18" below grade with #2 copper. 73 Glenn WB4UIV Lightning mitigation in a previous job. At 11:14 PM 6/14/2015, Nicholas Mahr wrote: >Hi All, >I need two antenna mounted pre-amps, one for 70CM and one for 2M... We had >outside preamps but they got hit my lightning long ago, all we have are >preamps in the house. With that being said where you do you recemmend >buying a very good antenna mounted preamp? I cannot really find anything >anywhere that sells preamps anymore. > >73 KE8AKW >_______________________________________________ >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 --------------------------------------------------------------------------- Glenn Little ARRL Technical Specialist QCWA LM 28417 Amateur Callsign: WB4UIV wb4uiv(a)arrl.net AMSAT LM 2178 QTH: Goose Creek, SC USA (EM92xx) SBE ARRL TAPR "It is not the class of license that the Amateur holds but the class of the Amateur that holds the license" ---------------------------------------------------------------------------

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KL7CN/W7 from CN84 in LotW
by Bryan Green 15 Jun '15

15 Jun '15

Hello, AMSAT-BB! The following stations are in the log from yesterday's operations in CN84. The QSOs are uploaded to LotW: AO-73 at 17:40Z: KC7MG -- well done! K6FW W0DHB W7JPI -- Hi, Leo! SO-50 at 04:40Z: W5CBF WA5KBH NR0T KK6OTJ KA4H -- We made it, Carlton! N6UK N4UFO W1PA -- The best distance for last! About 4080 km on SO-50! Very well done! 73 to all! -- bag Bryan KL7CN

1 0

SatPC32 CAT strings?
by Mark Johns 14 Jun '15

14 Jun '15

Is there a way to modify the command strings sent to the radio by CAT in SatPC32? I'm struggling to get my IC-9100 working for digital packet satellites. Every time SatPC32 or SatPC32ISS update the 9100's frequencies for Doppler shift, they drop the rig out of the DATA mode. I need to find a way to put the DATA mode command into the string of commands sent with the update. The Readme(Icom).txt help file mentions the files IcomName.SQF and IcomPar.SQF, but I do not find these anywhere among the SatPC32 files.-- Mark D. Johns, KØMDJ Decorah, Iowa USA EN43 ----------------------------------------------- "Heaven goes by favor; if it went by merit, you would stay out and your dog would go in." ---Mark Twain

4 4

e-mail blocking
by Kevin M 14 Jun '15

14 Jun '15

On 6/14/2015 3:51 PM, Kevin M via AMSAT-BB wrote: > (sent this direct, but since no reply, assume my e-mail might have hit your spam filter)> ------ On 6/14/2015 John Becker W0JAB wrote: Kevin, Many many people block direct mail from web based service such as YAHOO, HOTMAIL including myself. Really reduces spam by some 96% John ----- Well, thanks for telling me this, John, but believe me, ever since my first computer tech job in 1983 installing CP/M machines for businesses, I've been aware that if there is a way to convince people to screw up a perfectly good computer system, it will be found. Blocking a group of e-mail addresses as a whole doesn't personally seem like a very good idea to me as that way there are a whole lot of people who can't get in touch with me. Instead I just prefer to give out my e-mail judiciously, choose not to forward 'those' types of messages and trust my spam filter... I have almost no spam. On the order of maybe 20 messages a week, if that. Now, I would have replied to you directly to say all this, but since you have said that you have blocked my e-mails domain, I know you would never receive it. (I guess it can be handy for getting in the last word!) But I beg the indulgence of the list to forgive me this one instance of it's use, because I just felt a deep need to share the humor that arose from the irony of exactly how I discovered your incoming message.... That being, apparently Yahoo feels the same way about you as you do about them since I found your message in my Yahoo spam folder. =^) 73, Kevin N4UFO

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Re: [amsat-bb] VP2MKV today
by Kevin M 14 Jun '15

14 Jun '15

(sent this direct, but since no reply, assume my e-mail might have hit your spam filter)> A pointer to an online tracking program that shows the sat footprint would be appreciated. I use this exclusively... http://www.n2yo.com/?s=24278 Heard you guys quite well on 1831z pass Sunday, but it was well into the pass and a short one. You didn't seem to have enough time to catch anyone calling. Then on the 2107z pass, can't tell if you were there or not for all of the stations constantly calling, ditting, sending CW and CQing right where you planned to be. It was like people revving their engines at a NASCAR race... Will keep trying... hope you are able to continue efforts through the week, Jim. All your hard work is appreciated. Moreover, hope you are having a good time! 73 es GL! Kevin N4UFO

1 0

VP2MKV
by Jim White 14 Jun '15

14 Jun '15

1831Z pass this afternoon N8HM KA4H We scrambled to get on the second pass but there was only 3 minutes left. We heard a couple folks but it was too late to work them. We will probably not be on tomorrow but should be on Tuesday, Weds, Thursday. Friday is packup day but we will try to be on. Jim

1 0

TX/RX on PSAT
by Vincenzo Mone 14 Jun '15

14 Jun '15

Please anybody can tell me which programs and how to set them to RX the PSAT with the Funcube Dongle Pro Plus and TX with a Yaesu FT-920 Radio????? I mean what to use to RX/TX???? Thanks Enzo 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 ****** *** 2nd e-mail: vimone(a)tin.it *** *********************************

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KL7CN/W7 from CN74/CN75 in LotW
by Bryan Green 14 Jun '15

14 Jun '15

Hello, AMSAT-BB! The following stations are in the log from yesterday's operations at the CN74/CN75 grid line. The QSOs are uploaded to LotW: W0DHB N8RO W7LRD AJ9K K7ULS KF7PCL -- heard you at the last! 73 to all! -- bag Bryan KL7CN

1 1

ANS-165 AMSAT News Service Weekly Bulletins
by E.Mike McCardel 14 Jun '15

14 Jun '15

AMSAT NEWS SERVICE ANS-165 The AMSAT News Service bulletins are a free, weekly news and infor- mation service of AMSAT North America, The Radio Amateur Satellite Corporation. ANS publishes news related to Amateur Radio in Space including reports on the activities of a worldwide group of Amateur Radio operators who share an active interest in designing, building, launching and communicating through analog and digital Amateur Radio satellites. The news feed on http://www.amsat.org publishes news of Amateur Radio in Space as soon as our volunteers can post it. Please send any amateur satellite news or reports to: ans-editor at amsat.org. In this edition: * Dave Jordan's (AA4KN) article about Fox-1 Featured in July QST * Amateur Radio Newsline's Bill Pasternak, WA6ITF Silent Key * Free Education Webinars From NASA Educator Professional Development * AMSAT-NA BoD Nominations Notice - Last Chance for June 15 Deadline * AMSAT 2015 Field Day Announcement – June 27-28 * Montserrat (FK86) active on satellites June 10 – June 18, 2015 - Update * ARISS Announces Challenge Coin for Donation * Twin Cubesat Mars Flyby Will Support NASA InSight Landing * ARISS News * Satellite Shorts From All Over SB SAT @ AMSAT $ANS-165 ANS-165 AMSAT News Service Weekly Bulletins AMSAT News Service Bulletin 165 >From AMSAT HQ KENSINGTON, MD. DATE June 14, 2015 To All RADIO AMATEURS BID: $ANS-165 Dave Jordan's (AA4KN) article about Fox-1 Featured in July QST Dave Jordan AA4KN, writing on behalf of the Fox Team, has published an article, "Fox-1: The New Era of Amateur Satellites" which will appear in the July 2015 issue of QST. The article introduces the CubeSate program, describes the Fox-1 class of CubeSats, outlines the the student experiments and briefd on using Fox-1. The article is eligible for the cover plaque award. Look for it on pages 43-45 of the Jult QST. [ANS Thanks the ARRL and QST for the above information] --------------------------------------------------------------------- Amateur Radio Newsline's Bill Pasternak, WA6ITF Silent Key The AMSAT News Service has received the sad news of the passing of Amateur Radio Newsline's Bill Pasternak, WA6ITF. James Pastorfield, KB7TBT, reported on Friday, June 12 on behalf of Amateur Radio Newsline that Bill's key had gone silent. Bill had been recently hospitalized; Skeeter Nash, N5ASH, reported that, "Bill was in serious condition after being diagnosed with--as he termed it--”a broken back.” I take this to mean he has fractured at least one vertebrae. He is being treated for the pain associated with such an injury, and thus is not able to write (type), nor can he read for very long." Nash continued, "Don Wilbanks, AE5DW and I discussed the long-term future of the Amateur Radio Newsline, and what is needed to get it back into production. The Newsline team is more committed than ever to get production re-started as soon as possible. Wilbanks wrote, "A dear friend has left us after a long struggle with his health. Bill Pasternak, WA6ITF, as our mutual friend Beau Weaver, W6KHJ so eloquently says, has taken his light into another room. Bill touched lives all over the world through amateur radio. He was like a big brother, an uncle to me. He was my mentor. He was my friend. Rest my friend. I'll see you again one day." Bill was a friend to all a strong advocate to the AMSAT News Service (ANS). He will be missed. [ANS thanks Amateur Radio Newsline for the above information] --------------------------------------------------------------------- Free Education Webinars From NASA Educator Professional Development NASA Educator Professional Development is presenting a series of free webinars open to all educators. Join NASA education specialists to learn about activities, lesson plans, educator guides and resources that bring NASA into your classroom. Registration is required to participate. Simply click on the provided link to register. Eyes on the Solar System: Pluto Audience: Pre-service, In-service, Home School and Informal Educators of Grades 6-12 Event Date: June 16, 2015, at 5 p.m. EDT "Eyes on the Solar System" is a 3-D environment full of real NASA mission data. Explore the cosmos from your computer. Fly with NASA's New Horizon spacecraft as it approaches Pluto and takes very first close up pictures of the dwarf planet and its moons. Learn how to use this free software and see the entire solar system moving in real time. Register online to participate. https://www.etouches.com/131330 ISS Across the Curriculum Series: Solar Energy for Space Exploration Audience: Pre-service, In-service, Home School and Informal Educators of Grades 5-8 Event Date: June 17, 2015, at 3 p.m. EDT Solar Energy for Space Exploration is a series of activities designed to introduce your students to the basics of electrical circuits while using the development of space habitats as a thematic backdrop. Updated online resources and adaptation of classroom activities will be discussed. Register online to participate. https://www.etouches.com/130151 NASA Engineering Design Process 101: An Introduction to Classroom Application Audience: Pre-service, In-service, Home School and Informal Educators of Grades 4-8 Event Date: June 18, 2015, at 6 p.m. EDT Learn more about the engineering design process and its application to real-world problem solving. Explore NASA design challenges and other NASA STEM classroom resources. Engineering design is a common topic across each grade level in the Next Generation Science Standards and an important concept in understanding the world around us. Register online to participate. https://www.etouches.com/130414 For a full schedule of upcoming NASA Educator Professional Development webinars, visit http://www.txstate-epdc.net/events/. Questions about this series of webinars should be directed to Steve Culivan at Stephen.p.culivan(a)nasa.gov. [ANS thanks NASA Education Express Message -- June 11, 2015 for the above information] --------------------------------------------------------------------- AMSAT-NA BoD Nominations Notice - Last Chance for June 15 Deadline 2015 AMSAT-NA Board of Directors Nomination petitions MUST ARRIVE no later than JUNE 15th at the AMSAT-NA office. If the nomination is a traditional written nomination, no other action is required. If it is other than this, i.e. electronic, a verifying traditional written petition MUST BE RECEIVED at the AMSAT-NA office at the above address within 7 days following the close of nominations on June 15th. ELECTRONIC SUBMISSIONS WITHOUT THIS SECOND, WRITTEN VERIFICATION ARE NOT VALID UNDER THE EXISTING AMSAT-NA BYLAWS. Only one day left to submit nominations for the upcoming AMSAT-NA Board of Directors election. Four director’s terms expire this year: Barry Baines, WD4ASW, Alan Biddle, WA4SCA, Mark Hammond, N8MH, and Jerry Buxton, N0JY. In addition, up to two Alternates may be elected for one year terms. A valid nomination requires either one Member Society or five current individual members in good standing to nominate an AMSAT-NA member for Director. Written nominations, consisting of the nominee’s name and call, and the nominating individual’s names, calls and individual signatures should be mailed to: AMSAT-NA, 10605 Concord St, #304 Kensington, MD 20895-2526. In addition to traditional submissions of written nominations, which is the preferred method, the intent to nominate someone may be made by electronic means. These include e-mail, Fax, or electronic image of a petition. Electronic petitions should be sent to MARTHA(a)AMSAT.ORG or Faxed to (301) 822-4371. [ANS thanks Alan Biddle, WA4SCA, AMSAT-NA Corporate Secretary for the above information] --------------------------------------------------------------------- AMSAT 2015 Field Day Announcement – June 27-28 It’s that time of year again: Field Day! Each year the American Radio Relay League (ARRL) sponsors Field Day as a “picnic, a campout, practice for emergencies, an informal contest and, most of all, FUN!” The event takes place during a 24-hour period on the fourth weekend of June. For 2015, the event takes place during a 27-hour period from 1800 UTC on Saturday June 27, through 2100 UTC on Sunday June 28, Those who set up prior to 1800 UTC on June 27 can operate only 24 hours. The Radio Amateur Satellite Corporation (AMSAT) promotes its own version of Field Day for operation via the amateur satellites, held concurrently with the ARRL event. If you are considering ONLY the FM voice satellite SO-50 for your AMSAT Field Day focus – don’t – unless you are simply hoping to make one contact for the ARRL rules bonus points. The congestion on FM LEO satellites was so intense in prior years that we must continue to limit their use to one-QSO-per-FM-satellite. This includes the International Space Station. You will be allowed one QSO if the ISS is operating voice. You will also be allowed one digital QSO with the ISS or any other digital, non-store-and-forward, packet satellite (if operational). Many good contacts can be made on the linear transponder satellites including AO-73, FO-29, and AO-7. During Field Day the transponders come alive like 20 meters on a weekend. The transponders on these satellites will support multiple simultaneous SSB or CW contacts. The 2015 AMSAT Field Day event is open to all Amateur Radio operators. Amateurs are to use the exchange as specified in ARRL rules for Field Day. The AMSAT competition is to encourage the use of all amateur satellites, both analog and digital. AMSAT Field Day information is also posted on the web at: http://www.amsat.org/?page_id=216 [ANS thanks Bruce Paige, KK5DO, AMSAT Director of Contests and Awards, for the above information] --------------------------------------------------------------------- Montserrat (FK86) active on satellites June 10 – June 18, 2015 - Update Jim White WD0E reports on the status of the Montserrat (FK86) activation, "We finally got the crate of antennas out of customs today and have the sat station set up... We will transmit on 145.925 and tune the passband for callers." Montserrat (FK86) – Jim White, WD0E, will be active on satellites from Gingerbread Hill, St. Peters, Montserrat (FK86) as part of the VP2MKV team June 10 – June 18, 2015. WD0E will attempt to post a list of satellite QSOs daily on the AMSAT-BB. There will also be HF activity and an entry in the ARRL June VHF Contest. QSL via N0KV and LoTW. From WD0E: “VP2MKV will operate FO-29 only on selected passes. We will attempt the long hops to the edges of coverage if the equipment performs well at low elevations and obstructions allow. We will attempt to post passes we plan to work 24 hours in advance on amsat-bb. The uplink frequency will be 145.925 and we will tune our downlink for stations calling. The location is 16.776924N 62.214474W in grid FK86vs. Equipment is an ICOM 910H and Arrow antenna. Uplink power will be about 20W. Stations are asked to work us only once on the satellite. If we respond with your call you are in the log.” Tentative pass plan, from WD0E: “We will attempt to be on the first two FO-29 ascending node passes June 11 through 20. If time allows we may be on the third ascending node those days. Those passes happen in late morning to mid afternoon Montserrat time. On those passes we will look first for South America when the satellite is South of us, then North America, then Europe during the short mutual window. If there are 2 meter or 6 meter terrestrial openings during the VHF contest June 13 and 14 we will not be on satellite at those times.” [ANS thanks Jim WD0E for the above information] --------------------------------------------------------------------- ARISS Announces Challenge Coin for Donation Receive an ARISS Challenge Coin for a donation of $100 or more * ARISS is Amateur Radio on the International Space Station. * Licensed hams contact the ISS via Amateur Radio voice, packet/APRS, SSTV, and digital TV. * Students interview astronauts in space and learn about life in space, space research, and radio science. * Hams on the ground experiment with space communications * Amateur Radio supports NASA by providing ISS backup communications * Your donations will help support continuing operations and Amateur Radio equipment upgrades on the ISS. Go to www.amsat.org/ and click on “Donate ARISS” to help keep Amateur Radio on the ISS in orbit! [ANS thanks ARISS for the above information] --------------------------------------------------------------------- Twin Cubesat Mars Flyby Will Support NASA InSight Landing When NASA launches its next mission on the journey to Mars - a stationary lander in 2016 - the flight will include two CubeSats. This will be the first time CubeSats have flown in deep space. If this flyby demonstration is successful, the technology will provide NASA the ability to quickly transmit status information about the main spacecraft after it lands on Mars. The twin communications-relay CubeSats, being built by NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL), Pasadena, California, constitute a technology demonstration called Mars Cube One (MarCO). CubeSats are a class of spacecraft based on a standardized small size and modular use of off-the-shelf technologies. Many have been made by university students, and dozens have been launched into Earth orbit using extra payload mass available on launches of larger spacecraft. The basic CubeSat unit is a box roughly 4 inches (10 centimeters) square. Larger CubeSats are multiples of that unit. MarCO's design is a six-unit CubeSat - about the size of a briefcase -- with a stowed size of about 14.4 inches (36.6 centimeters) by 9.5 inches (24.3 centimeters) by 4.6 inches (11.8 centimeters). MarCO will launch in March 2016 from Vandenberg Air Force Base, California on the same United Launch Alliance Atlas V rocket as NASA's Interior Exploration using Seismic Investigations, Geodesy and Heat Transport (InSight) lander. Insight is NASA's first mission to understand the interior structure of the Red Planet. MarCO will fly by Mars while InSight is landing, in September 2016. "MarCO is an experimental capability that has been added to the InSight mission, but is not needed for mission success," said Jim Green, director of NASA's planetary science division at the agency's headquarters in Washington. "MarCO will fly independently to Mars." During InSight's entry, descent and landing (EDL) operations on Sept. 28, 2016, the lander will transmit information in the UHF radio band to NASA's Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter (MRO) flying overhead. MRO will forward EDL information to Earth using a radio frequency in the X band, but cannot simultaneously receive information over one band while transmitting on another. Confirmation of a successful landing could be received by the orbiter more than an hour before it's relayed to Earth. MarCO's radio is about softball-size and provides both UHF (receive only) and X-band (receive and transmit) functions capable of immediately relaying information received over UHF. The two CubeSats will separate from the Atlas V booster after launch and travel along their own trajectories to the Red Planet. After release from the launch vehicle, MarCO's first challenges are to deploy two radio antennas and two solar panels. The high-gain, X-band antenna is a flat panel engineered to direct radio waves the way a parabolic dish antenna does. MarCO will be navigated to Mars independently of the InSight spacecraft, with its own course adjustments on the way. Ultimately, if the MarCO demonstration mission succeeds, it could allow for a "bring-your-own" communications relay option for use by future Mars missions in the critical few minutes between Martian atmospheric entry and touchdown. By verifying CubeSats are a viable technology for interplanetary missions, and feasible on a short development timeline, this technology demonstration could lead to many other applications to explore and study our solar system. JPL manages MarCO, InSight and MRO for NASA's Science Mission Directorate in Washington. Technology suppliers for MarCO include: Blue Canyon Technologies of Boulder, Colorado, for the attitude- control system; VACCO Industries of South El Monte, California, for the propulsion system; AstroDev of Ann Arbor, Michigan, for electronics; MMA Design LLC, also of Boulder, for solar arrays; and Tyvak Nano-Satellite Systems Inc., a Terran Orbital Company in San Luis Obispo, California, for the CubeSat dispenser system. For information about MarCO, visit: http://www.jpl.nasa.gov/cubesat/missions/marco.php For information about InSight, visit: http://www.nasa.gov/insight Learn more about NASA's journey to Mars at: http://www.nasa.gov/content/journey-to-mars-overview [ANS thanks NASA Press Release 15-122, June 12, 2015 for the above information] --------------------------------------------------------------------- ARISS News Upcoming ARISS Contact Schedule as of 2015-06-13 05:00 UTC >From 2015-06-11 to 2015-07-24, there will be no US Operational Segment (USOS) hams on board ISS. So any school contacts during this period will be conducted by the ARISS Russia team. Watch http://www.ariss.org/upcoming-contacts.html for information about upcoming contacts as they are scheduled. Exp. 42/43 has returned to earth. Congratulations for the job well done! Terry Virts Anton Shkaplerov Samantha Cristoforetti IZØUDF [ANS thanks ARISS, and Charlie, AJ9N for the above information] --------------------------------------------------------------------- Satellite Shorts From All Over Panoramic Tour of ISS ESA astronaut Samantha Cristoforetti has been cataloguing her home of six months to create panoramic images you can rotate and explore. Each section of the Space Station required around 14 fisheye photos stitched together. Areas of interest can be clicked on for more information in another browser window. Eventually, the entire Station will be available to explore right here on this page – follow us to receive updates. http://tinyurl.com/ANS165-ISSTour Can you find the HAMTV transmitter on the floor? [ANS Thanks European Space Agency for the above information] --------------------------------------------------------------------- /EX AMSAT User Services and the Editors of the AMSAT New Service pass on our condolences to ANS Weekly Co-Editor Joe Spier K6WAO and his family on the death of Joe's mother this week. In addition to regular membership, AMSAT offers membership in the President's Club. Members of the President's Club, as sustaining donors to AMSAT Project Funds, will be eligible to receive addi- tional benefits. Application forms are available from the AMSAT Office. Primary and secondary school students are eligible for membership at one-half the standard yearly rate. Post-secondary school students enrolled in at least half time status shall be eligible for the stu- dent rate for a maximum of 6 post-secondary years in this status. Contact Martha at the AMSAT Office for additional student membership information. 73, This week's ANS Editor, EMike McCardel, KC8YLD kc8yld at amsat dot org

1 0

RX MENSSAGE
by Pablo J.M. - LW8EXS 13 Jun '15

13 Jun '15

2015-06-08 21:40:24 ART: PCSAT-5>LW8EXS-6: Hello from Arizona USA

1 0

RX Telemetria PSAT
by Pablo J.M. - LW8EXS 13 Jun '15

13 Jun '15

13 Jun 2015 22:07 UTC 1:Fm PSAT To APRSON Via ARISS <UI R Pid=F0 Len=52> [19:07:05R] s#023520,0z200,000000000000000000000000000000000000 2:Fm PSAT To APRSON Via ARISS <UI R Pid=F0 Len=52> [19:07:05R] s#023520,0z200,000000000000000000000000000000000000 73s - LW8EXS Mercedes ( Buenos Aires ) Argentina

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KL7CN on SO-50 from CN84 at 04:38Z
by Bryan Green 13 Jun '15

13 Jun '15

Will be on SO-50 at 04:38Z from CN84. It's a late pass but the furthest east I could manage; hope to help our far-flung Eastern friends get a new grid Sent from my iPhone

1 0

VP2MKV today
by Jim White 13 Jun '15

13 Jun '15

1344 Z pass this morning we moved to the roof of the villa for a clear view east and had great sigs in and out of the sat, but there was no one else there. I guess the foot print went up the middle of the Atlantic. We shuffled operators around so we were on 6 meters and the sat at the same time. (Some good contacts on 6M, mostly 50.102 CW) 1525 Z pass PV8DX K4FEG KB1RVT KD8CAO W4CVV KF4YYL We will not try the 2117Z 1 degree pass tonight. Tomorrow we will have a headphone splitter in line so the antenna guy can listen and do a better job of staying with the bird. Passes tomorrow 1831Z and 2017Z. A pointer to an online tracking program that shows the sat footprint would be appreciated. Weather continues very hot and windy. 85F and 85 pct humidity, 20 MPH with higher gusts. Wish it cooled off at night like in Colo. Jim

1 0

Antennas neighborhood
by PY5LF 13 Jun '15

13 Jun '15

Hi Very good idea from Miguel LU3EMB ; https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vesJ9ZTmwbI 73 PY5LF Luciano Fabricio Curitiba-PR-BR GG54jm http://www.qrz.com/db/PY5LF

2 1

AO-73 from CN84
by Bryan Green 13 Jun '15

13 Jun '15

Will be on AO-73 from CN84 at 17:39Z around 145.957. Sent from my iPhone

1 0

Packet tutorial?
by Mark Johns 13 Jun '15

13 Jun '15

I ran a fully automated PacSat gateway with WiSP years ago, but have been away from satellites for several years until recently. The QTH, rigs and computers are all different now. Looking at what information I can find about digital birds today, I find it full of references to software I barely remember or have never heard of, and it's all pretty confusing. Has anyone written a RECENT beginners tutorial about DIGITAL satellites? I don't need to learn how to track SO-50 with my HT, but I do need to know about configuring TNCs, virtual or otherwise.-- Mark D. Johns, KØMDJ Decorah, Iowa USA EN43 ----------------------------------------------- "Heaven goes by favor; if it went by merit, you would stay out and your dog would go in." ---Mark Twain

2 1

HalloKepler and New Satellites
by Vincenzo Mone 13 Jun '15

13 Jun '15

Hello to the list, to keep accuracy my satellite keps, i am using HalloKepler, but when I try to input the new Birds NO-83 and NO-84, by their catalog numbers I get them Unknown. Anybody can help me how to input them? Thanks Enzo 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 ****** *** 2nd e-mail: vimone(a)tin.it *** *********************************

1 0

VB Audio Cable & Mixers
by Les Rayburn 12 Jun '15

12 Jun '15

With many of us moving towards SDR based receivers, RDS decoders and loggers, etc. there is increased need to route signals using Virtual Audio Cables. Wanted to make everyone aware of a free alternative to the more popular VAC application. VB Cable is "donation-ware" and works great. http://vb-audio.pagesperso-orange.fr/Cable Their audio mixer is also a wonderful and visual GUI that makes complicated routing simpler for many since you can easily visualize the signal path. Give them a try! -- 73, Les Rayburn, N1LF Maylene, AL EM63 Member NRC, IRCA, & Medium Wave DX Circle Former CPC Chairman for NRC/IRCA ============================== FM DX Sony XDR-F1HD, Sangean HDT-1, Elad FDM-S2, AirSpy. Denon TU-1500RD w/Ray Dees RDS Decoder, FM6 Antenna with CM7777 Mast Pre-Amp, RG-11. "Nothing but blues and Elvis and somebody else's favorite song..." AM DX Elad FDM-S2, Wellbrook ALA1530+ Loop, Clifton Labs Active Whip, Superloop. Quantum Phaser, Kiwa Loop, Palstar MW Pre-Selector

2 1

Panoramic tour of ISS - Columbus Module with HAMTV tx!
by Cor PDØRKC 12 Jun '15

12 Jun '15

Another photo with the HAMTV transmitter visible at the left side near astronaut Samantha Cristoforetti. https://www.flickr.com/photos/nasa2explore/18619237236/ You can download at highest resolution 4928 x 3280 pixels format right side (down) corner. After zoom you can see the two green leds are glowing (for POWER and RF) same as Armand SP3QFE saw on a previous panorama photo. 73s Cor PD0RKC

1 0

CN74 active on FO-29 at 2217Z
by Bryan Green 12 Jun '15

12 Jun '15

KL7CN/W7 will be active from CN74 on FO-29 on the 2217Z pass. Look for me at 435.840. Sent from my iPhone

1 1

correction
by Jim White 12 Jun '15

12 Jun '15

Correction after review of my scribbles, AA5PK was the last station. Jim

1 0

Second pass VP2MKV
by Jim White 12 Jun '15

12 Jun '15

Second pass not as good as it should have been. We weren't hearing as well as we should have. N4ZQ XE1MEX WA4NVM AA5AK Tomorrow 1744 and 1925 passes Jim

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Re: [amsat-bb] satellite qso
by Jim White 12 Jun '15

12 Jun '15

HI John, Yes, you were the first. As listed in order in the previous email. That pass was mostly through the villa for the first half. Apparently the uplink was getting through it but the downlink was blocked. Next pass will be in the clear once it clears the volcano after about 4 minutes or so. The only stations worked were listed in the previous email. Sorry, we are are not going to take time to pass the grid. Just a waste of time in my view. We are in FK86vs, as posted on qrz.com / vp2mkv. We are pleased to give out Montserrat to as many unique calls as possible. We should be able to be on passes as listed on the qrz.com page for at least the next 4 days. We got a late start because our crate of antennas, which we paid to have sent directly to the villa, had to be ransomed out of customs, which took two days and hours and hours of time, two inches of documents, a lot of explaining, along with money. But it's all good now with 6 HF antennas up and a big 6 meter beam. Made a few 6 meter contacts yesterday, nothing today. Our 6 meter beacon board turned out not to be compatible with the keyer so we are not beaconing on 50.102 as previously advertised, but will be listening mostly on 50.125. Hoping for Europe tomorrow morning. HF has been noisy and weak signals until just the past few hours. Jim eOn 6/12/2015 1:26 PM, John Papay wrote: > Tim, > Thanks for getting on FO-29 from VP2M. And thanks for > letting everyone know where you would be transmitting. It > helped me find you since it was 29KHz up from the center > on receive. I heard Drew calling CQ near 850 at my AOS. > When I found you up at 879 I thought he might have already > worked you. But then I heard him work you much later. > > I gave you a long call because I thought you might not know > exactly where you were on receive. I was strong into the bird > but you weren't hearing me very well at first. Later on you > were hearing calls right away. I heard you finish with KB1RVT > at your LOS. I do have a recording which I will post. Did you > work any South Americans? Was I the first NA contact? > > The next pass should be very good for most of the US. I will be > calling you again but this time with K8YSE/7, my internet remotable > station in Mesa Arizona. It's a good idea to give your grid > square on the exchange. Although it is not rare, it's likely a > new one for many who will be trying to work you. > > Thanks very much for making the effort. A new country on the birds > is a big deal. > > 73, > John K8YSE > > > John Papay > john(a)papays.com >

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