- AMSAT-BB - mailman.amsat.org

HO-68 pass recording?
by Andrew Glasbrenner 03 Apr '10

03 Apr '10

Did anyone happen to grab any audio of HO-68 this pass after about 0205 UTC? 73, Drew KO4MA

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Request for a sked via FO-29
by i8cvs 02 Apr '10

02 Apr '10

Hi All, Owing of her excentricity FO-29 is actually at the apogee 1322 km over the atlantic ocean during the south bound orbits. Tomorrow april 3 during revolution 67303 I will be looking for Canada from 21:05 to 21:08 UTC and for the east coast of USA from 21:08 to 21:15 UTC If someone is interested to contact my grid JN70ES (Naples-Italy) please look for me on CW or SSB at 435.840 MHz +/- Dopppler For QSO agreements and more detailed calling procedure please write to me off line. Tanks 73" de i8CVS Domenico

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Re: Question about WISP/TNC3s/FT-847
by Nader Omer 02 Apr '10

02 Apr '10

Hello Jan & All It looks like a (ports) com conflict !! Drive the Rig and the Rotor by any old PC! and use a fast PC for WiSP. 73's Nader

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Delfi-C3 Close approach warning
by wouter weggelaar 02 Apr '10

02 Apr '10

Hi All, While Delfi-C3 is rapidly approaching her second birthday on 28th of April, the team got a warning from The United States Joint Space Operations Center about a close approach of COSMOS debris and Delfi-C3. Today at 14:49 UTC the two objects will approach each other almost heads on with a difference velocity of 15km/s (yes, kilometers a second!). Fortunately, the predicted distance between the objects will be 492m, so they will miss each other. Although these close approach warnings were given to other satellites as well, and the chance that something really happens is very small, we would like to encourage people to listen for Delfi-C3 and send in telemetry. Please have a look at the mission operations page at http://www.delfic3.nl/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=93&Itemid=1… for frequency info and the latest RASCAL downoad. **PLEASE NOTE** Due to Delfi-C3s habit of sometimes switching off from science mode, you might hear nothing while Delfi-C3 is fine. Don't panic! but please do listen the orbits after and post your findings on http://oscar.dcarr.org Thanks on behalf of the Delfi-C3 team, Wouter Weggelaar PA3WEG Delfi-C3 Mission Operations

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FS Complete satellite station.
by Dave Aitch 02 Apr '10

02 Apr '10

I will be un-subscribing from this list on the 4th April. Any further replies regarding the items I have for sale should got to daveocn(a)googlemail.com please. Cheers, Dave. G1OCN. AMSAT UK 5766

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Re: Arrow and EME?
by Oscar Diez 02 Apr '10

02 Apr '10

Hi folks, I think it should be possible to work at least the three big guns out there: W5UN, KB8RQ and RN6BN. With their huge antenna arrays they can hear very low power EME stations. 100-150W into the arrow should work theoretically with those three stations if moon condx are favourable. The best thing is to hang around in the JT65 EME chat under this address: http://www.chris.org/cgi-bin/jt65emeA Usually you only need to wait there till the big guns announce a CQ call there with their used frequency. You can then also take the advantage of realtime communication via this website to arrange a sked in realtime with them and they will keep their ears open for you, hi The "QRPp EME record" so far for RN6BN by the way was working LZ1BB using a 4el. DK7ZB yagi with only 40W into antenna....thus Arrow should work also when power over 100W is used. I can occasionally work down to 8 yagi stations in JT65B mode using a 6el. DK7ZB Yagi and about 130W into Antenna (160W Brick-AMP minus cable loss) For example I worked EA6VQ on Mallorca Island with his 8x17el. M2 array with my relatively small antenna. I can sometimes decode down to 2 yagi high power stations on JT65B RX mode if moon condx are good...but 2-way QSO is not possible with those small counterparts. Here some links from other EME QRPers: http://www.ok2kkw.com/00000104/eme.htm (used 4el. yagi And 100W) http://www.dj7al.de/12906.html (used 4el. F9FT yagi and 200W) http://www.dj7al.de/11026.html (same station testing only HB9CV 2el. and 200W) And here is a nice tutorial to get started in JT65B mode EME operations: http://www.vhfdx.net/jt65bintro.html Best 73 de Oscar DJ0MY

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XE2BSS @ DM30 update - 2 April
by Patrick STODDARD 02 Apr '10

02 Apr '10

Hi! After some equipment issues, Alex XE2BSS was able to get on a weatern AO27 pass yesterday afternoon and work a few stations. He plans to try AO27 and SO50 today and possibly Saturday, before returning home to California. Alex also mentioned his location is grid DM30wr. His station is a full-duplex-capable IC-Z1 and an Elk log periodic. Good luck and 73! Patrick WD9EWK/VA7EWK http://www.wd9ewk.net/

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New APRS Rocket Antenna concept needed
by Robert Bruninga 02 Apr '10

02 Apr '10

I need someone interested in adding quadrature 2 meter antennas to the outside of a 10" diameter sounding rocket by middle May... This launch is going to space (100 miles up) from White Sands on a sounding rocket to then come back down by parachute. Antennas cannot stick out far (maybe an inch?) but can be bent back along the surface. Temperatures will approach 800F during the 10 minute flight. G' forces will be huge. The payload will be (what else) an APRS trackign system and 2-way APRS communications transponder. So, if anyone wants to take on this antenna, lemme know. All I need is the detail design and analysis. The machining is paid-for. Oh, it also needs quadrature GPS antennas, but that can just be a pair of 1.5" monopoles... Bob, WB4APR

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FM on VO-52
by Håkan H 02 Apr '10

02 Apr '10

Hello! It is the firsth of April but i was very surprised to hear a russian station on VO52 with downlink in FM?? is this something new or have i missed something? It was a callsign and clearly a call via satellite. downlink on 145.925mhz. 73 Hakan SM7WSJ

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Hudson Valley Satcom Group Net Tonight 8PM EST ON N2EYH-L
by Cotejaune2＠aol.com 01 Apr '10

01 Apr '10

Sorry for the late notice again. It was posted earlier in the week. Please join us for the net. 73Gary WA2AQH

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Real-time satellite QSO maps
by Gabriel - EA6VQ 01 Apr '10

01 Apr '10

Just a quick note to let you know that DX-Sherlock now provides satellite-specific real-time maps and QSO lists. Have a look at http://www.vhfdx.info/spots/map.php?Frec=SAT <http://www.vhfdx.info/spots/map.php?Frec=SAT&Map=W2L> &Map=W2L I hope you like it. 73. Gabriel - EA6VQ

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Re: Arrow and EME?
by Idle-Tyme 01 Apr '10

01 Apr '10

the best was neither vert or horizontal, and continously changing, well slowly changing faraday rotation. plus why would you want to aste n extra 3 db if you have it to be used? Joe WB9SBD The Original Rolling Ball Clock Idle Tyme Idle-Tyme.com http://www.idle-tyme.com On 4/1/2010 2:27 PM, Mark Lunday wrote: > Would this also be accomplished in "poor man's design" by simply having one > yagi vertical and one horizontal? > > > Mark Lunday > WD4ELG > Greensboro, NC - FM06be > wd4elg(a)arrl.net > http://wd4elg.net > http://wd4elg.blogspot.com > > > > -----Original Message----- > From: amsat-bb-bounces(a)amsat.org [mailto:[email protected]] On > Behalf Of Idle-Tyme > Sent: Thursday, April 01, 2010 1:53 PM > To: amsat-bb(a)amsat.org > Subject: [amsat-bb] Re: Arrow and EME? > > Another very important thing is polarity. > the ability to change polarity can easily me a completed QSO or one > where not a peep was heard. > > In the late 80's early 90's I had a small station of 4 eight element 2 > meter yagis. I think they were a W1JR design? > > anyway I mounted them in a way that i could rotate them in polarity also. > > It was amazing I never thought i could do moonbounce with them but just > for kicks was listening down at the bottom of the band one day and heard > someone CQing and wortking someone off he moon. of course it was W5UN. > but a random call when he finished and we had a complete QSO in the log > with no repeats solid exchange both ways! > > what make this amazing was I was using a kenwood TS700 rig into a old > KLM (remember KLM amps?) a 70 watt one that was tired and only putting > out about 35 watts, into a run of rg 213 50 feet to the antenna, no pre > amps at all. and on CW by ear! no filters either just the standard 2.XX > whatever wide filter. > But the polarity made all the difference! In horizontal mode i heard > NOTHING. but somewhere inbetween H and V he wa solid copy and he had no > problem hearing me too. > > I eventually went on to work about 30 other stations as small as other 4 > yagi stations. The ability to make polarity changes is a GIANT advantage! > > Joe WB9SBD > > The Original Rolling Ball Clock > Idle Tyme > Idle-Tyme.com > http://www.idle-tyme.com > > On 4/1/2010 12:11 PM, Mark Lunday wrote: > >> I have been doing some reading on this also. Although I have not yet made >> any EME contacts, I have been uncovered the following: >> >> 1. Moonrise/moonset will enhance signals because of ground reflections, >> something like 6 dB. Many folks intentionally use moonrise and moonset >> attempts for this reason. >> >> 2. Mast mounted pre-amp is essential >> >> 3. Higher frequencies need more gain (so I have been told). But the 440 >> > MHz > >> part of the arrow antenna should have a LOT more gain than the 2 meter >> > part. > >> 4. Low loss coax is very important, esp at VHF. Keep the runs short and >> > use > >> something equiv to LMR 400 (50 foot of the good stuff is probably under >> $100, and worth it. >> >> 5. Definitely try to set up a sked with W5UN. If you can hear him, then >> > you > >> are halfway there! >> >> 6. Monitor websites like http://www.chris.org/cgi-bin/jt65emeA >> >> 7. 2010 appears to be a promising year for EME, here is a good calendar: >> http://www.vhfdx.net/w5luu.html >> >> >> Mark Lunday >> WD4ELG >> Greensboro, NC - FM06be >> wd4elg(a)arrl.net >> http://wd4elg.net >> http://wd4elg.blogspot.com >> >> >> >> -----Original Message----- >> From: amsat-bb-bounces(a)amsat.org [mailto:[email protected]] On >> Behalf Of MM >> Sent: Thursday, April 01, 2010 8:37 AM >> To: AMSAT-BB(a)amsat.org >> Subject: [amsat-bb] Arrow and EME? >> >> Arrow Antenna and EME: >> >> It is possible to work Earth Moon Earth with an Arrow Antenna. >> >> Of course, it is. You just need to make a schedule with someone on the >> other side of the link with enough Antenna Gain. You also need to be >> running the new digital text messaging mode called JT65B >> >> Link for JT65 >> http://www.physics.princeton.edu/pulsar/K1JT/ >> >> Definitions: >> In this document I will refer to all antenna gain values based on the >> > number > >> of elements. >> >> Example: A Single half-wave Dipole = 0 dBd >> Elements 2 = 3 dBd >> Elements 4 = 6 dBd >> Elements 8 = 9 dBd >> Elements 16 = 12 dBd >> >> The Arrow antenna (Model 146/436-10) has 3 elements on the 2-meter band, >> > so > >> its maximum theoretical "Element Gain" is 4.5 dBd. >> >> With the invention of the JT65 protocols, thousands of Amateur Radio >> stations running a Single Yagi 2-meter antennas, now have access to the >> > Moon > >> and EME contacts. >> >> To make a contact on Moon bounce, the "Total Antenna Gain" from both >> stations is added up and will need to be in the approximate range of >> > 25-30 > >> dBd. With this gain and the average transmitter power of (100-400 watts) >> you will have a 10-20+ percent chance of completing a 2-way EME JT65B >> > link, > >> with another station. >> Note: There are many other factures used in EME gain calculations. For >> simplicity, we will just focus on the antenna Gain. >> >> The amount of Total Antenna Gain required depends on the mode you wish to >> use. The wider the mode, the more gain that is required. The mode JT65B >> > is > >> a very narrow mode and requires less gain. I am not going to go over all >> > of > >> the details of JT65 in this article, look it up. >> >> Gain required by mode: (All values are approximate) >> >> JT65 28-30 dBd (1-Yagi + 4-Yagi) >> CW 30-40 dBd (4-Yagi + 4-Yagi) >> SSB 40-50 dBd (8-Yagi + 8-Yagi) >> FM 60-70 dBd (16 + 24) Guess >> >> >> The Mode JT65B requires approximately 30 dB of Total Antenna Gain for an >> > EME > >> contact. >> If we assume the average 12-element 2-Meter Yagi has 10.5 dBd (round to 11 >> for easy math) of "Element Gain", then the more Yagi's you stack, the >> > more > >> gain you will have. In EME lingo, 1x12 means, you have One Yagi, with 12 >> elements, 4x12 means you have a stack of 4 yagis with 12 elements each >> > (48 > >> elements total) and an approximate gain of 17 dBd. >> >> 1-Yagi = 11 dBd >> 2-Yagi = 14 dBd >> 4-Yagi = 17 dBd >> 8-Yagi = 20 dBd >> 16-Yagi = 23 dBd >> 32-Yagi = 26 dBd >> 64-Yagi = 29 dBd (W5UN) >> >> >> A Single-Yagi station (11 dBd) calling a 4-Yagi (17 dBd) station will >> > have > >> approximately 28 dBd Total Antenna Gain. The 4xYagi stations are very >> common on JT56B EME. >> >> Let's go back to the Arrow Antenna: >> >> We need 30 dBd of total antenna gain. >> The Arrow antenna has 4.5 dBd. >> The Arrow also has a Maximum power limitation of 150 watts (10 watts if >> > hand > >> held). >> >> If you are running the maximum 150 watts on your Arrow antenna, you >> > should > >> be able to work stations with 32 to 64 Yagi's. There are not very many 64 >> Yagi stations out there, however Dave W5UN has been active on JT65 EME >> recently. >> >> If you want more of a challenge, you can try QRP at 5 watts and your Arrow >> antenna. >> Reducing you power from 150 watts to 5-10 watts, will reduce your >> performance by 12 db. >> To compensate for the reduce power, you will just need to find a station >> with a bigger antenna. >> >> There is another big gun on EME. Two weeks ago, Arecibo was on EME, >> > running > >> CW, working EME stations on the 440 band. The antenna used at Arecibo is >> > a > >> simple 1,000 foot dish. The actual gain for 2-meters is not known, >> > however > >> I will assume it is more than 64-Yagi's. >> >> http://www.naic.edu/ >> >> So here is your chance. Make a schedule with Arecibo and go for QRP, EME, >> with a held Arrow antenna, or if you know of any good contacts at Arecibo, >> send me the data and I'll try to arrange a schedule and try it from my >> station. >> >> Other Hardware: >> A good Receiver Preamp (similar to ARR) >> http://www.advancedreceiver.com/ >> >> A good SSB 2-meter Transceiver (the best ever made Yaesu FT-736R) >> http://www.xs4all.nl/~ketel/ham/ft736.htm >> >> Good Coax (RG-8 coax is 11 Millimeter coax. That is ok for 50' EME runs, >> for longer runs use 12+ Millimeter coax) >> >> 73 >> >> WF1F >> www.marexmg.org >> >> >> >> >> >> >> >> >> >> _______________________________________________ >> Sent via AMSAT-BB(a)amsat.org. Opinions expressed are those of the author. >> Not an AMSAT-NA member? Join now to support the amateur satellite program! >> Subscription settings: http://amsat.org/mailman/listinfo/amsat-bb >> >> _______________________________________________ >> Sent via AMSAT-BB(a)amsat.org. Opinions expressed are those of the author. >> Not an AMSAT-NA member? Join now to support the amateur satellite program! >> Subscription settings: http://amsat.org/mailman/listinfo/amsat-bb >> >> >> >> > _______________________________________________ > Sent via AMSAT-BB(a)amsat.org. Opinions expressed are those of the author. > Not an AMSAT-NA member? Join now to support the amateur satellite program! > Subscription settings: http://amsat.org/mailman/listinfo/amsat-bb > > > >

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AA5UK/KH6 Update >>> Where is everybody?
by Adrian Engele 01 Apr '10

01 Apr '10

Folks, I know we have had some atmospheric issues that have made recent passes difficult at best. I am still trying to help a few of you on some low angle passes to get KH6 into your logs. Having said that I am seeing very little activity on the SSB satellites. Last night I again worked several satellites and all I heard was my own voice calling CQ during every pass. Today I worked three passes FO29, VU52 and HO28. I only had one CONUS operator and one KH6 contact on HO28. Very disappointing. So either there is little interest in KH6 or there are timing issues. I am not sure why there is so little participation. I will look at the coming passes until April 4th which will most likely be the last day I operate from Kauai. If I don't start hearing more operators I will shut down early and work on enjoying my vacation. Again sorry for another rant session but the lack of activity frankly puzzles after all the emails and sked requests that I have received over the last 6 weeks. Those operators that have worked me will be the few to get a KH6 card once the log is checked and I go to the printers. Remember "If it was easy, we would all be doing it", under the conditions I have been working under: wind, rain and heavy QRN it has been very challenging these past few days. Aloha from AA5UK/KH6

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Replies please...
by Dave Aitch 01 Apr '10

01 Apr '10

A few days ago I put some satellite equipment up for sale. I have replied to all interested parties directly. Having not heard anything back from the various directly who wanted just about every item that was mentioned, I would appreciate a yes, no or an offer, please. Cheers, Dave. G1OCN AMSAT 5766 Portland. Dorset.

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OX/N0RC active from FQ56
by Daniel "Nick" Kucij 01 Apr '10

01 Apr '10

OX/N0RC, Reid was active on HO-68 from FQ56 this morning. We completed a FM QSO at 1544 UTC, just before HO-68 shut-off. He expects to be active on the next HO-68 FM pass with AOS at his location at 1720 UTC. 73 Nick KB1RVT

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OX/NØRC/P active from Thule on HO-68
by OZ1MY 01 Apr '10

01 Apr '10

Hi all, He was active on HO-68 (XW-1) on the pass with AOS here in Copenhagen at 1527 UTC. The next pass looks good for Europe and NA. HO-68 is scheduled to be in FM (Voice) from 1705 to 1750 UTC. Good luck and have a nice Easter all. 73 OZ1MY Ib

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XE2BSS @ DM30 update
by Patrick STODDARD (WD9EWK/VA7EWK) 01 Apr '10

01 Apr '10

Hi! Alex XE2BSS called me a few minutes ago, to say he did not make it out to the DM30 area in time for the AO-27 and SO-50 passes yesterday. He is now there, and plans to be on from DM30 starting with the AO-27 pass around 2029 UTC this afternoon. He may get on the SO-50 pass that is also around the same time, but will make an effort to be on AO-27 without the PL tone when it comes on. Good luck, and 73! Patrick WD9EWK/VA7EWK http://www.wd9ewk.net/

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AA5UK/KH6 Schedule for 4/01/2010
by Adrian Engele 01 Apr '10

01 Apr '10

Tentative schedule for 4/1/2010: FO-29 @ 17:03 UTC VO-52 @ 18:48 UTC FO-29 @ 18:52 UTC Looking for JA's UA's Alaska HO-68 @ 19:28 UTC SSB FO-29 @ 04:22 UTC VO-52 @ 07:08 UTC FO-29 @ 07:56 UTC tentative Looking for JA's UA's Alaska All passes are subject to weather conditions due to heavy winds expected for next several which is causing QRN on 2m downlinks. Aloha. 73, Adrian AA5UK/KH6

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Thanks to AA5UK/KH6 for the FO-29 QSO tonight!
by Patrick STODDARD (WD9EWK/VA7EWK) 01 Apr '10

01 Apr '10

Hi! Thanks to Adrian AA5UK/KH6 for the FO-29 QSO this evening! It was nice to work another station from Hawaii. I have worked Hawaii a few times, and I worked the grid Adrian has been working from (BL02) a few times last fall when Ron W6ZQ went out there. This was my first non-FM satellite QSO with Hawaii, and it was fun despite being out in my normal "home QTH" (Phoenix city park on the DM33xp/DM43ap grid boundary) well after local sunset. On that FO-29 pass, I heard a few stations blindly calling for Adrian even though he was somewhere else on the downlink. Even if he is trying to work around a particular spot on the downlink, be ready to tune around to find him. For much of that FO-29 pass, he was about 10 kHz below the center of the downlink. Adrian is the rare DX on these passes, and there is more to a transponder's downlink than just the 5 to 10 kHz around the center of the downlink. Adrian will be out there for a few more days before heading home, so if you have a shot to try working him - go for it! 73! Patrick WD9EWK/VA7EWK http://www.wd9ewk.net/

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XE2VAS @ DM31, tomorrow through Sunday 4/4
by Patrick STODDARD 01 Apr '10

01 Apr '10

Hi! Uriel XE2VAS will be driving to Puerto Penasco, better known in English as Rocky Point , tomorrow morning. This town is on the north end of the Gulf of California, an hour south of the Arizona border, in grid DM31. Uriel will have FM gear with him, and hopes to work SO50 and AO27 between tomorrow and Sunday. Please use standard international phonetics and digits when calling XE2VAS, as Uriel is not fluent in English. I am the QSL manager for XE2VAS, so please send me the QSL requests with SASE if you would like a QSL card from Uriel. Good luck and 73! Patrick WD9EWK/VA7EWK http://www.wd9ewk.net/

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Today's Pass Schedule for AA5UK/KH6 BL02ic
by Adrian Engele 31 Mar '10

31 Mar '10

Greetings all, The AO7 pass this morning was very difficult. I am experiencing locally heavy QRN on 2m. I had one email from an XE station that suggested troposcatter could have been affecting my receive as there was 2m propagation from HI to Baja at the time. Very possible. At the low angles that I am working, it would not surprise me. Any other theories? I was on several other passes FO-29 and VU-52 passes this AM and only worked a couple of stations. I heard one W6 station this morning's pass I had a rough time copying you. Drop me a note if you get this email. Sure wish to see more activity on the linear satellites. Here is what I plan for this afternoon (HI): 4/1/2010: FO-29 @ 03:34 UTC FO-29 @ 05:16 UTC I can only work AOS to TCA then I have building blockage. VU-52 @ 06:50 UTC FO-29 @ 07:02 UTC. I am still looking for JA's. I know some of you are still at work but please spread the word locally to others who can be on the air from JA. The opportunity to work KH6 is getting very small. No plans for SO-50 or AO-27 at this time as the schedule is not ideal and there are local KH6 stations that can provide contacts on those satellites as previously indicated. HO-68 19:28 UTC SSB (center of band SSB only) I will make an effort to get on. Hopefully no gremlins this time. 4/3/2010: Full schedule to be announced. I know many are chomping at the bit for HO-68 on FM and it looks like this will be my last opportunity to work this mode. Will try to make it. Again wind and weather conditions permitting: HO-68 18:55 UTC. All for now. I am going sightseeing and work on grabbing some vacation time. Aloha, 73 Adrian AA5UK/KH6

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AO-51 S band today
by Andrew Glasbrenner 31 Mar '10

31 Mar '10

The S downlink may be off for a few minutes today, 3/31 around 2200 to 2210Z for telemetry collection on 435.150. 73, Drew KO4MA AMSAT-NA VP Ops

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Correction
by Martha 31 Mar '10

31 Mar '10

Please note that in my announcement for matching funds, I referred to the Dayton Amateur Radio Club. It is the Dayton Amateur Radio Association -- 73- Martha

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FUNcube at UKSC 2010
by Trevor . 31 Mar '10

31 Mar '10

AMSAT-UK, who are building the FUNcube satellite, attended the UK Space Conference last week, see http://www.uk.amsat.org/content/view/711/68/ Videos from the 5 day conference can be seen at http://www.ustream.tv/channel/uksc-2010 73 Trevor M5AKA Daily Amateur Radio Email/RSS News: http://www.southgatearc.org/ Email Your News To: editor at southgatearc.org Or Upload Using Form At: http://www.southgatearc.org/news/your_news_1.htm ----

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OSCAR-11 Report
by Clive Wallis 31 Mar '10

31 Mar '10

OSCAR-11 REPORT 30 March 2010 OSCAR-11 achieved 26 years in orbit on 01 March! It was designed, built and launched within a period of six months, using commercially available 'off the shelf' components (COTS). Once again, congratulations to Professor Sir Martin Sweeting G3YJO, his team at the University of Surrey and groups of radio amateurs who also contributed to the project. Unfortunately, the satellite wasn't transmitting on its birthday, but was heard briefly, three days later. This report covers the period from 23 February to 30 March 2010. During this time the satellite was heard during three passes on 04 March. Good signals were received, and decoded. There was also an unconfirmed report that it was heard on 25 March. Due to eclipses, deterioration of the battery and other parts of the satellite, it's not possible to predict when the satellite will be heard in the coming months. It is likely that it may be heard occassionally, by stations tuning around the beacon frequency. The on-board clock was 263 days slow, when last heard on 04 March. The increasing error suggests that the clock may be stopping, when the satellite is in eclipse. Sometimes, the date counter also fails to increment. However, the retention of the date and time does suggest that a small amount of power may be still available during eclipses. The Beacon frequencies are - VHF 145.826 MHz. AFSK FM ASCII Telemetry UHF 435.025 MHz. OFF S-band 2401.5 MHz. OFF ------------- RECEPTION REPORTS REQUESTED! Please send reception reports to xxxxx(a)amsat.org (replace xxxxx by g3cwv) or post to amsat-bb. If you have a file, please do not send it but let me know that it is available. You may also like to add your reception report to the live satellite status page, on the website set up by David KD5QGR and Bob WB4APR. The URL is http://oscar.dcarr.org/index.php The satellite transmits on 145.826 MHz., set receiver to NBFM. OSCAR-11 has a characteristic sound, rather like raspy slow morse code, sending "di di dah dah dah dah dah dah dah" sent over a period of five seconds. If you are receiving a very weak signal, switch the receiver to CW or SSB. You should hear several sidebands around the carrier frequency and should be able to hear the characteristic 'morse code like' sound on at least one sideband. Please note that you need a clean noise-free signal to decode the signals, and your receiver must be set to NBFM mode, for a decoder to work. If you need to know what OSCAR-11 sounds like, there is an audio clip on my website www.g3cwv.co.uk/ which may be useful for identification and as a test signal for decoding. ------------- The satellite is now subject to eclipses during every orbit. Long term predictions indicate that eclipses will occur until 2019, when there will be some eclipse free periods until 2023. However these very long term predictions should be regarded with caution, as large tracking errors can accumulate over long periods of time. When eclipses started around 2005 the watchdog timer often switched the transmitter off before the ten day on period had finished, during parts of the eclipse cycle. When eclipses became a permanent feature of all orbits, after April 2008, the transmitter switched off within a single orbit, thus the satellite was effectively non operational. The satellite unexpectedly started regular transmissions in November 2009. Although there was a small variation in the length of eclipses, this wasn't enough to explain why the satellite started regular transmissions. It is possible that a fault developed, which prevented the watchdog timer resetting when the power supply fails, and now the watchdog timer settings are no longer retained during eclipses. The transmitter switches off during eclipses, and the real time clock stops during most of the eclipse. When analogue telemetry was last received, in 2005, it showed that one of the solar arrays had failed, and there was a large unexplained current drain on the main 14 volt bus. After 26 years in orbit the battery has undergone over 100,000 partial charge/discharge cycles, and observations indicate that it cannot power the satellite during eclipses. The current status of the satellite, is that all the analogue telemetry channels, 0 to 59 are zero, ie they have failed. The status channels 60 to 67 are still working. The real time clock is showing a large accumulated error, although during ten minute passes the clock increments correctly to within one second. The day of the month has a bit stuck at 'one' so the day of the month may show an error of +40 days for some dates. The time display has switched into 12 hour mode. Unfortunately, there is no AM/PM indicator, since the time display format was designed for 24 hour mode. The spacecraft computer and active attitude control system have switched OFF, ie. the satellite' attitude is controlled only by the passive gravity boom gradient, and the satellite is free to spin at any speed. The watchdog timer operates on a 20 day cycle. The ON/OFF times have tended to be very consistent. The average of many observations show this to be 20.7 days, ie. 10.3 day s ON followed by 10.4 days OFF. Listeners to OSCAR-11 may be interested in visiting my website. If you need to know what OSCAR-11 should sound like, there is a short audio clip for you to hear. The last telemetry received from the satellite is available for download. The website contains an archive of news & telemetry data which is updated from time to time. It also contains details about using a soundcard or hardware demodulators for data capture. There is software for capturing data, and decoding ASCII telemetry. The URL is www.g3cwv.co.uk . If you place this bulletin on a terrestrial packet network, please use the bulletin identifier $BID:U2RPT148.CWV, to prevent duplication. 73 Clive G3CWV xxxxx(a)amsat.org (please replace xxxxx by g3cwv)

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Re: AA5UK/KH6 Schedule for 3/31/2010
by Adrian Engele 31 Mar '10

31 Mar '10

I have had several of you ask why I am not on the FM satellites. I actually have been on FM. I was recently on AO51 when it was in VU mode. I was on Oahu at the time and I had blockage from the local mountains and hotels on several passes. Even being on the 33rd floor did not helps matters but I was able to work a few people. Many contacts were made in FM mode. AO27 and SO50 schedules simply conflict with my vacation plans on Kauai, sorry. There are several Hams on KH6 who are on almost every weekend and will be happy to work you on those satellites. There is only one operator on Oahu able to work the linear satellites. He can only work down to 30 elevation. At my QTH here in Kapaa, HI I can see the ocean from our deck and I can work the low passes very well that is why I am concentrating on SSB as this makes the most sense due to the limited time I am here on the islands. There are some good morning (HI) passes that I will be able to make and I expect some fairly busy passes over the next four days. Please make an effort to show up based on my posts to the AMSAT BB. Again this evening I worked a pass up Western US Coast into VE and Alaska. I called CQ the entire FO29 pass with no takers. I recently messed up an HO-68 FM pass I heard many stations calling me but my transmit locked up. I finally figured out my SatPC had locked up and this messed up the transmit. A major opportunity was lost. Blame it on the technical gremlins. Sorry. I hope to be on the HO68 FM pass on 4/3/2010 at 18:55 UTC subject to better weather. We are having strong wind gusts up to 50 mph, the next few days. Keeping the radios and Antennas intact are top priority. If I am not on the satellite based on the provided schedule it will mostly be due to the wind. Thanks for listening to my rant. I have appreciated all the kind notes for sked requests (many have been successfully completed) and encouraging emails but I have also been frustrated to be the only station on numerous passes with a good footprint to Hawaii. Even stations with fixed elevation antennas should be able to work the SSB sats Let's get some activity going. I hope this adventure encourages others coming to HI in the future to try a DXpedition from the 50th state to help those that could not make a contact with me this time around to get them HI in their logs. The gear all easily fits in a travel bag! Aloha, Adrian AA5UK/KH6 ________________________________ From: Adrian Engele <aa5uk(a)yahoo.com> To: AMSAT-BB(a)amsat.org Sent: Tue, March 30, 2010 8:26:57 PM Subject: [amsat-bb] AA5UK/KH6 Schedule for 3/31/2010 Here are the plans for 3/31/2010: AO-7 15:51 UTC I have a sked at the start of the pass that will last 2 mn after that I will be around 145.960 to .965 SSB only. FO-29: 16:13 UTC FO-29: 17:58 UTC looking for JA's VU-52: 18:31 UTC 4/1/2010: FO-29: 03:34 UTC FO-29: 05:16 UTC AOS to TCA only due to house blockage VU-52: 06:50 UTC On most passes look for me middle of the band. Aloha! 73, AA5UK/KH6 BL02ic _______________________________________________ Sent via AMSAT-BB(a)amsat.org. Opinions expressed are those of the author. Not an AMSAT-NA member? Join now to support the amateur satellite program! Subscription settings: http://amsat.org/mailman/listinfo/amsat-bb

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AA5UK/KH6 Schedule for 3/31/2010
by Adrian Engele 31 Mar '10

31 Mar '10

Here are the plans for 3/31/2010: AO-7 15:51 UTC I have a sked at the start of the pass that will last 2 mn after that I will be around 145.960 to .965 SSB only. FO-29: 16:13 UTC FO-29: 17:58 UTC looking for JA's VU-52: 18:31 UTC 4/1/2010: FO-29: 03:34 UTC FO-29: 05:16 UTC AOS to TCA only due to house blockage VU-52: 06:50 UTC On most passes look for me middle of the band. Aloha! 73, AA5UK/KH6 BL02ic

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Re: Kenwood TS-711A & TS-811A...SOLD
by John Neeley 31 Mar '10

31 Mar '10

SOLD pending arrangements for delivery. John W6ZKH

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XE2BSS @ DM30, Wednesday (3/31) through Saturday (4/3)
by Patrick STODDARD (WD9EWK/VA7EWK) 31 Mar '10

31 Mar '10

Hi! Alex XE2BSS will be traveling to grid DM30 tomorrow morning, and will be out there through Saturday (4/3) afternoon. He will try to work AO-27 and SO-50 passes from there. Alex will only have FM gear on this trip, so he won't be able to work other birds from there. Alex will be in the city of Caborca, in the Mexican state of Sonora - approximately 90 miles/140km southeast of the Lukeville (Arizona) border crossing. If you work XE2BSS over the next few days, I am his QSL manager. Please send QSL requests for XE2BSS to me, and please include an SASE with those QSL requests. I may be able to post updates while he is down there, as he should have Internet access from there. Thanks and 73! Patrick WD9EWK/VA7EWK http://www.wd9ewk.net/

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4800 bps GMSK TNC
by Nathaniel S. Parsons 31 Mar '10

31 Mar '10

Hi all, Does anyone know of a commercially available TNC that supports GMSK at 4800 bits per second? I have a KAM-XL which has 9600 bps GMSK, and it seems like the KPC-9612+ is also close, with 4800 DFSK (or could a DFSK device talk to a GMSK device?). KISS mode or something similar would also be very nice. Thanks and 73, Nate KC2SVI

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AA5UK/KH6 QRV this evening from BL02ic
by Adrian Engele 31 Mar '10

31 Mar '10

Sorry for late notice I will check to see if AO 7 in in Mode B in 20mn. Then look for me on FO29 and VU52 this evening. I will post tomorrow's schedule. I plan on being on the 15:50UTC AO7 pass which will be bes shot for many towards the eastern edge of the footprint. I will send update later tonight. I also plan on FO29 and VU52 passes during Wednesday morning HI time. Have to run to set up. Please note we are experiencing heavy winds today and it may be difficult handling the ELK antenna. At least the heavy rains have stopped. TTUL Aloha 73, Adrian AA5UK/KH6

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SatPC32 and FT-857
by Joel Black 30 Mar '10

30 Mar '10

It seems that any time I leave SatPC32 to operate my FT-857 on HF, SatPC32 leaves my radio in split mode. Is there a setting or something else I have missed somewhere? Thanks, Joel, W4JBB

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Re: WOUXUN Radio
by Ari Kosonen 30 Mar '10

30 Mar '10

Hi, Joe KK0SD wrote: > Has anyone bought and played with one of these ultra cheap WOUXUN dual band > hand helds that are selling on eBay? Do they hear well enough for satellite operation? I also recently got a Wouxun KG-UVD1P and today gave it a try on HO-68. My antenna is a long telescopic whip, Diamond RH-770 (quite similar to Pryme AL-800). I was very surprised to hear traffic from HO-68 almost immediatelly it was over the horizon. There was many very strong stations and I did not manage to get my 5 W signal through, but at least the receiver-side seems to be very sensitive. There is few quirks in the usage of Wouxun, but with pre-programmed channels and other settings I probably can live with it. Anyway Wouxun's felt quality and usability is sheer improvement compared to earlier HT offerings from China I've seen. I have not made comparisons with other radios yet, but to me Wouxun seems quite promising. I usually use Yaesu FT-60r with Arrow II yagi for my backyard-portable FM-satellite QSOs. The SMA-connector in FT-60 feels quite fragile for long telescopic whips (Yes, I know KC2BHO's adapters might provide a solution), whereas Wouxun's casing provides some support even with standard BNC-SMA(F) adapter, reducing the stress caused by a long whip. In Europe, Wouxun's are available in some reputable vendors, with CE approval (whatever it's worth..). Mine came from eBay, though... 73 de Ari OH3KAV (grid: KP11)

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Re: Matching Funds
by Clint Bradford 30 Mar '10

30 Mar '10

>> ... DARA (Dayton Amateur Radio Association) will match ... Martha - Would "New Membership Fees" be included in this opportunity? I mean, can this be further incentive for new members??? Clint, K6LCS ---------------------------------- Clint Bradford, K6LCS http://www.clintbradford.com

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a call for secondary payloads
by Rocky Jones 30 Mar '10

30 Mar '10

http://spaceflightnow.com/news/n1003/27iridium/` these are all going on Musk Falcon. Robert WB5MZO Life member AMSAT ARRL _________________________________________________________________ Hotmail: Trusted email with Microsoft’s powerful SPAM protection. http://clk.atdmt.com/GBL/go/210850552/direct/01/

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Matching Funds Now Available
by Martha 30 Mar '10

30 Mar '10

DARA (Dayton Amateur Radio Association) will match one-for-one any donations made to AMSAT between now and June 30, 2010 up to a maximum of $5,000. Please support "Getting AMSAT Back into Space" and help us raise the funds needed for our next satellite project. AMSAT's Project "Fox" is a cubesat that will provide a 2 meter-70 Centimeter FM transponder that will match the ground performance of AO-51. You can send your donation to: AMSAT, 850 Sligo Ave #600, Silver Spring MD 20910. If you prefer, you can call me at 301-589-6062 and contribute with a credit card. -- 73- Martha

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9600 baud using Icom 910H
by David H. Jordan 30 Mar '10

30 Mar '10

I'm working with a group that's having a problem decoding 9600 baud data. They are using a 9600 baud modem and an Icom 910H rig. Through testing, they believe the rig is the problem. Does this sound like a familiar problem to anyone? Are there any mods that need to be done to the rig to receive 9600 baud? Dave, AA4KN Sent via BlackBerry from T-Mobile

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F/S Kenwood TS-711A & TS-811A
by John Neeley 30 Mar '10

30 Mar '10

I have my original satellite setup For Sale, which is the Kenwood Twins, the 711A and 811A. Used up until 2 months ago when I got a new Xcvr. Both in good op conditions and physical condition. Asking $350 each. Email me off-line for more info and pix. Can be seen at my QRZ.com page. John W6ZKH

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Re: AO-51 V/S & spanish Taxi QRM
by i8cvs 30 Mar '10

30 Mar '10

----- Original Message ----- From: "Luc Leblanc" <lucleblanc6(a)videotron.ca> To: <amsat-bb(a)AMSAT.Org> Cc: "jlv" <jlv(a)fing.edu.uy>; <domenico.i8cvs(a)tin.it> Sent: Tuesday, March 30, 2010 4:38 AM Subject: Re: [amsat-bb] AO-51 V/S & spanish Taxi QRM On 30 Mar 2010 at 1:58, jlv wrote: Date sent: Tue, 30 Mar 2010 01:58:43 -0300 From: jlv <jlv(a)fing.edu.uy> Subject: Re: [amsat-bb] AO-51 V/S & spanish Taxi QRM To: Luc Leblanc <lucleblanc6(a)videotron.ca>, amsat-bb(a)amsat.org Muchas gracias para la corrección de mi traducción y si puede traducirme el texto siguiente de nuestro amigo Domenico yo os estarán eternamente agradecido... El mensaje de Domenico I8CVS que no comprendo completamente Hi Luc, VE2DWE To solve the above problem you must use a "captivated" N female connector in wich the central pin is NOT alloved to move under pression while pushing the central pin of the N male connector. Best 73" de i8CVS Domenico Hola jlv La traduccion en espanol es la siguiente Hola Luc, VE2DWE Para resolver tu problema es necesario utilizar dentro el amplificador un conector coaxial expecial tipo N hembra nombrado "captivated" en ingles es decir que tene el pin central bloqueado dentro en el teflon asi que este pin no pode tener algun movimiento horizontal quando le pone y atornilla el conector N macho que hace fuerza sovre él con la punta del cable coaxial. Espero que ahora lo entende. Muchos 73" desde i8CVS Domenico

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Re: Schedule for today for AA5UK/KH6 BL02ic>>> No Joy on 05:20 UTC FO-29 pass
by Adrian Engele 30 Mar '10

30 Mar '10

I was just on the 05:20 UTC pass with great coverage over Alaska, Part of western VE and 1/3 of Western CONUS. Not a single taker for BL02 Hawaii. I know there are many of you that need HI for their WAS. I know it is late on your end, but if I can make the effort so can you. I just want to make sure there are people out there reading the AMSAT BB when I will be operating otherwise I will not spend time getting on the air. Ultimately I am on vacation and making the effort when I have the time. 73, Adrian AA5UK/KH6 BL02ic ________________________________ From: Adrian Engele <aa5uk(a)yahoo.com> To: AMSAT-BB(a)amsat.org Sent: Mon, March 29, 2010 2:45:51 PM Subject: Schedule for today for AA5UK/KH6 BL02ic Folks, We had some torrential rains and very heavy wind this morning. There was no way for me to operate the 3/29/2010 15:57 UTC AO7 pass. We are expecting more heavy wind all day but the rains have at least stopped. Essentially there has been heavy rain every morning but today was the worst. Think of going through a car wash. Here is my operational schedule for today 3/30/2010 All times UTC CONUS contacts: FO-29 @ 03:38 UTC FO-29 @ 05:20 UTC VO-52 @ 06:15 UTC JA contacts: I will have a partial pass to JA during FO-29 pass at 07:07 UTC. I will be looking for JA 's on SSB only. I can only make about half the pass as I have a house in the way but I will try. There are some mountains in the distance but the satellite may be able to clear them. I guess we will just have to try and see. All for now. Going to get some rest since I am on vacation. I am starting to look at the HO-68 schedule to see what opportunities open up in the coming days. Aloha, Adrian AA5UK/KH6

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AO-51 V/S & spanish Taxi QRM
by Luc Leblanc 30 Mar '10

30 Mar '10

Mode V/S is fantastic but again QRMed by spanish speaking intruders a taxi fleet "probably" from Mexico they where right on 145.880 Mhz or very near this frequency the dispatcher was calling for all "Per todos" car. It will nice from our Mexican friends if they can at least pin point the origin of the transmission could be someone can at least ask them to move away from the satellite segment? De l' interferencia se constató esta mañana sobre 145.880MHZ la frecuencia de subido sobre AO-51. El QRM "parece" proceder d' una flota de taxi en México. Si nuestros amigos Mexicanos podrían señalar dan un primer tiempo l' origen de esta interferencia y preguntar en un segundo momento si estado en condiciones de cambiar de frecuencia fuera de la banda de transmisión de los satélites aficionado. Muchas gracias para l' ayuda de nuestros colegas Mexicanos Nota: Es posible que l' interferencia pueda originer d' otro país del Centroamérica tambien "-" Luc Leblanc VE2DWE Skype VE2DWE www.qsl.net/ve2dwe DSTAR urcall VE2DWE WAC BASIC CW PHONE SATELLITE

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Use of the K3 for satellites
by Edward Cole 30 Mar '10

30 Mar '10

I now own a new Elecraft K3 and wondering about its use (with xvtrs) on satellite. I have the dual-Rx set up and is capable of full duplex operation. It has computer control via an RS-232 I/F (built in). Just wondering if anyone else has gone this direction? If it is possible then I may consider retiring my FT-847. 73, Ed - KL7UW, WD2XSH/45 ====================================== BP40IQ 500 KHz - 10-GHz www.kl7uw.com 500-KHz/CW, 144-MHz EME, 1296-MHz EME DUBUS Magazine USA Rep dubususa(a)hotmail.com ======================================

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Schedule for today for AA5UK/KH6 BL02ic
by Adrian Engele 30 Mar '10

30 Mar '10

Folks, We had some torrential rains and very heavy wind this morning. There was no way for me to operate the 3/29/2010 15:57 UTC AO7 pass. We are expecting more heavy wind all day but the rains have at least stopped. Essentially there has been heavy rain every morning but today was the worst. Think of going through a car wash. Here is my operational schedule for today 3/30/2010 All times UTC CONUS contacts: FO-29 @ 03:38 UTC FO-29 @ 05:20 UTC VO-52 @ 06:15 UTC JA contacts: I will have a partial pass to JA during FO-29 pass at 07:07 UTC. I will be looking for JA 's on SSB only. I can only make about half the pass as I have a house in the way but I will try. There are some mountains in the distance but the satellite may be able to clear them. I guess we will just have to try and see. All for now. Going to get some rest since I am on vacation. I am starting to look at the HO-68 schedule to see what opportunities open up in the coming days. Aloha, Adrian AA5UK/KH6

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Mode S is on
by Andrew Glasbrenner 29 Mar '10

29 Mar '10

145.88 up, 2401.200 down. I'd appreciate daily reports about the S band transmitter, either emailed or posted to http://oscar.dcarr.org/ 73, Drew KO4MA

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Re: Antenna
by Owen B. Mehegan 29 Mar '10

29 Mar '10

> Date: Mon, 29 Mar 2010 02:27:02 -0400 > From: "Larry Lucas" <lawrencelucas(a)verizon.net> > Subject: [amsat-bb] Antenna > To: <amsat-bb(a)amsat.org> > Message-ID: <C63A57D1C94647FFA4F284AA62981E62@DadsLap> > Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii" > > I am new at this and would like to find the plans to build a simple homebrew > antenna to be able to use satellites. I know there are probably several so > can you direct me to some of the simple and easiest and best? THANKS The IOio seems to be a popular one. I built one and blogged about it, with some tips and photos, here: http://kj6akq.nerdnetworks.org/2010/02/building-an-ioio-satellite-antenna.h… I intend to build one of these micro-diplexers to use with it, but haven't yet: http://k0lee.com/duplexer.htm Good luck! -- Owen B. Mehegan (owen(a)nerdnetworks.org)

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Tucson hamfest and DM51/DM52 on Saturday (27 March) - report
by Patrick STODDARD (WD9EWK/VA7EWK) 29 Mar '10

29 Mar '10

Hi! Saturday was another fun day, between the Radio Society of Tucson's spring hamfest and my drive to the DM51/DM52 boundary in southeastern Arizona after that. The hamfest had a good turnout, despite its location being changed at the last minute. The trip to the grid boundary was also enjoyable, since I had not been out there in almost a year. I had been in the general area after another hamfest in Tucson last October, but on that day I drove to the Arizona/New Mexico state line in DM52 for some passes that afternoon instead of heading to a grid boundary. This was the second time the Radio Society of Tucson hosted a hamfest in the springtime. Last year's event was a huge success, after many years of a mid-October hamfest in Tucson. These events have been held at the same location southeast of downtown Tucson, but there was a change last Wednesday to the location. Thankfully, it only moved across the street next to a baseball stadium. People were showing up as early as 0530 local (1230 UTC), even without any lighting turned on for the lot where the hamfest was at. As everyone started setting up, using flashlights or vehicle headlights until sunrise, small groups would wander to see the merchandise before the official start time (0700 local/1400 UTC). I had an AMSAT table set up then, and was on an AO-51 pass just after 1330 UTC. This would be the only FM satellite pass for the morning, and I had a nice crowd listening to this western pass despite it being a half-hour before the official start of the hamfest. As the sun came up from behind the mountains to the east of Tucson, I was able to do a couple of other demonstrations for the hamfest crowd. AO-7 went by just after 1400 UTC, and I was able to work a few stations. Lots of hams were curious to know how and when AO-7 came back to life, and I was happy to explain that. There was a low VO-52 pass just after 1530 UTC, where I worked one station on that pass (Roger W5QEP, in Louisiana). Thanks to Jeff K7WIN, who used my phone's camera, I have a YouTube video from this VO-52 pass. You can see it at: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LA2VEb8xr-c Davis-Monthan Air Force Base, a few miles/km east of the hamfest site, made working FO-29 impossible at the hamfest. There is a data- communications system on the F-16 aircraft at this base, and that system wipes out the FO-29 downlink. FM satellite downlinks don't seem to be affected by this system. It also plays havoc with 70cm repeaters in the Tucson area. Otherwise, I would have liked to try that satellite for some of my demonstrations. At most hamfests, I'll get lots of questions on how someone would start out on the amateur satellites. This time, I had more detailed questions on that topic. I was asked about specific radios and antennas, and whether those would be suitable for satellite work. I've been making the trip down to Tucson for the past year and a half for their hamfests, and others have done this before me, so it is nice to see that some are thinking beyond the "what do I need?" types of questions to see if they already have the gear to try this out. Throughout the morning, I saw a few satellite operators like Leo W7JPI, Ron W6ZQ, Rafael XE2RV, Ed N7EDK, and Jeff K7WIN who all live within an hour's drive of Tucson. It's fun to chat with fellow satellite operators, just as I enjoy answering questions from those who are interested in trying this part of the hobby. Thanks to the Radio Society of Tucson for allowing AMSAT a space at their hamfest, and to those who made contacts with WD9EWK during the 3 on-air demonstrations. ********** After a quick stop for lunch before leaving Tucson, I drove a little more than an hour to the spot I have stopped at in the past along the DM51bx/DM52ba grid boundary. This location, 32 0.000 N 109 54.927 W (you can put that into the Google Maps web site, Google Earth, and possibly other web sites and programs), is along a road west of US-191 and south of the I-10 freeway in Cochise County. I like this spot, since I am off the main highways yet have a decent view of the sky from here. Only shallow passes to the west are problematic at that location. I had enough time to set up and be ready for the first pair of passes to the east. AO-27 was passing by at 2111 UTC, and SO-50 would be in view as AO-27 shut off. Lots of activity on both passes, and I was surprised to hear Drew KO4MA call me at the end of the SO-50 pass at 2126 UTC. Since Drew has been working the satellites much longer than I have, it was a pleasant surprise to hear Drew tell me he needed both of those grids. After those passes, I had almost an hour and a half until I had three passes (AO-27, then SO-50, then AO-51) stacked up. I went to a nearby convenience store to get some drinks. When I pulled up, there was a cat sitting on top of a drink cooler just inside the front door of the store. With camera in hand, I snapped a couple photos of the cat. I then went inside to buy some drinks, and went back to the grid boundary for those passes. AO-27 switched on around 2252 UTC. I could only hear about 2 of the 7 minutes starting around 2254 UTC, since this pass only had a maximum elevation of about 6 degrees out there. I needed all 6 degrees for the portion of the pass I could hear. I worked a couple of stations, then a station on the SO-50 pass that went down the Pacific coast as AO-27 shut off. Then I swung my antenna eastward, and worked a very busy AO-51 pass. After those 3 passes, I had a break in the action until the next AO-51 pass at 0043 UTC. I worked a few stations up and down western North America, then it was time to set aside the FM setup and go SSB. I had an AO-7 pass just as AO-51 went away from me starting at 0057 UTC, and then an FO-29 pass about an hour later. AO-7, at least in mode B, has quickly become a favorite of mine. I use two FT-817NDs and my Elk handheld log periodic without computer control, and now I am looking to do this when I'm away from home. I worked 4 stations, including one in Mexico (XE1/VE3OQC). I heard another station calling me (4B1AO), but was not able to make the QSO with Omar. There were a few others on that pass that I was not able to hook up with. I hope to get more time on AO-7 during road trips out here, so I can be confident I can get on trips where I fly to the destination and can't have everything with me (not without paying a huge sum for baggage fees). By the time FO-29 was coming up at 0150 UTC, there was almost no sunlight left in the western sky. The mountains in that direction helped make darkness arrive sooner. In any event, I worked four more stations on this pass to wrap up the day on the radio. I had a nice chat with KC7EQO in Washington state, who I had not heard on SSB previously. Thanks for the call, and for chatting a few minutes! At the end of the pass, George WA5KBH called me in CW. I switched my transmit radio to CW, and made a quick QSO with George as FO-29 was going away from me. George - I apologize for my subpar CW sending. I need to work on that, since I am copying in my head without needing to write anything down. I'm trying to improve my left-handed CW sending - I'm not left-handed. I am enjoying FO-29 since its recent return from the dead, and will be on it more in the near future. ********** On the radio, I made 10 QSOs on 3 passes at the hamfest Saturday morning followed by 60 QSOs on 8 passes at the DM51bx/DM52ba grid boundary in the afternoon and early evening. I have not plotted the grids I worked from either location, but know I worked stations throughout the USA as well as Canada and Mexico. I already have blank QSL cards at home for the DM51/DM52 grid-boundary QSOs, and will update my card for the hamfest (grid DM42me) to show the new location. If you would like a card for QSOs made with WD9EWK on Saturday, please e-mail me the QSO details. If you are in the log, I will send a card your way. 73! Patrick WD9EWK/VA7EWK http://www.wd9ewk.net/

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ISS Digipeater active
by Robert Bruninga 29 Mar '10

29 Mar '10

I just noitced that the ISS APRS digipeater is active again. 145.825 using the path VIA ARISS. Looks like about 80 people have used it in the last 2 days (as far back as the web page goes) http://www.ariss.net Enjoy! Bob, WB4APR

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Antenna
by Larry Lucas 29 Mar '10

29 Mar '10

I am new at this and would like to find the plans to build a simple homebrew antenna to be able to use satellites. I know there are probably several so can you direct me to some of the simple and easiest and best? THANKS

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Shanghai Ham Radio Expo
by William Leijenaar 29 Mar '10

29 Mar '10

Hi AMSATs, Is anyone off you going to the Shanghai Ham Radio Expo ? It is from 3 till 5 April 2010 at the Tarsus Hope Exhibition in Shanghai, China. It would be nice to meet some amateur satellite minded people. I will be at the Shanghai Expo presenting my small transponder device and promote the amateur satellites at one off the booths. On Saterday 4 April I will also give a short presentation about satellites and my small transponder device. Hope to see you in Shanghai next weekend... For more info: http://www.chinahamexpo.com/ http://www.chinahamexpo.com/v.asp?cid=14 73 de PE1RAH, William Leijenaar

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KY Space ADAMASAT today
by Rich Dailey 29 Mar '10

29 Mar '10

Launch is scheduled for today. GUI for tracking and other info at : http://ssl.engr.uky.edu/suborbital/adamasat/gui On Twitter: http://twitter.com/KySpaceADAMASat http://twitter.com/KySpace Rich, N8UX

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College Satellite this Thursday evening
by Dr. Jay Garlitz 29 Mar '10

29 Mar '10

It's time for another College Satellite night! We hope to see you on the birds Thursday evening April 1st from 22:00 UTC to 0500 UTC. College Satellite nights are a monthly event held the first Thursday of the month. Mark your calendar and spread the word to college hams/club stations that you know! College club stations plan on being on birds AO51, SO50, AO7, VO52, and more. Welcome and make QSOs with them as we are planning on creating an award for working college club stations on satellite. 73, Dr. Jay Garlitz, AA4FL Gator ARC Faculty Advisor at UF, W4DFU trustee www.gatorradio.org <http://www.gatorradio.org/>

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AO-51 crashed update
by Luc Leblanc 29 Mar '10

29 Mar '10

Unconfirmed report seems to confirm operation switch happen earlier than planned on the schedule. It should be now on S/V mode only explaining the sudden cutoff of all the UHF downlink. "-" Luc Leblanc VE2DWE Skype VE2DWE www.qsl.net/ve2dwe DSTAR urcall VE2DWE WAC BASIC CW PHONE SATELLITE

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Re: AA5UK/KH6 QRV for HO-68 and VU-52 from Hawaii BL02 ic Macrch 28 March 29th
by davekn4ok＠aol.com 28 Mar '10

28 Mar '10

Thanks Tim, I was looking at the log and thought it would be mode B. I better double check and will look for you as well. Best 73's, Dave, kn4ok -----Original Message----- From: Tim - N3TL <n3tl(a)bellsouth.net> To: davekn4ok(a)aol.com Sent: Sun, Mar 28, 2010 4:31 pm Subject: Re: [amsat-bb] Re: AA5UK/KH6 QRV for HO-68 and VU-52 from Hawaii BL02 ic Macrch 28 March 29th Hey Dave, AO-7 will be n Mode A tonight. You won't have a chance to get to him tonight or Monday - according to what he has told me via email. I am going to try for Wednesday morning and, because of the significant stretch of the footprint, hoping that you and everyone else will give us a chance to make a very brief contact. From here, my window is less than a minute - but it's do-able. Adrian represents my only chance to get Hawaii in the log from here, and I'm hopeful I'll have a legitimate chance to do that. I hope you get him, too. Good luck. 73, Tim - N3TL From: "davekn4ok(a)aol.com" <davekn4ok(a)aol.com> To: aa5uk(a)yahoo.com; AMSAT-BB(a)amsat.org Sent: Sun, March 28, 2010 4:49:41 PM Subject: [amsat-bb] Re: AA5UK/KH6 QRV for HO-68 and VU-52 from Hawaii BL02 ic Macrch 28 March 29th Adrian, I will be on the last AO-7 pass this evening from 01:53-02:09 hoping you will fall in my window. You can look for me around 145.952. Your elevation will be very low if at all. The best shot I see for us will be Monday morning 15:50-16:01. If you think you can make this, please let me know. I will again be around 145.952. Enjoy your trip and look for you on the bird. Best 73's, Dave, kn4ok -----Original Message----- From: Adrian Engele <aa5uk(a)yahoo.com> To: AMSAT-BB(a)amsat.org Sent: Sun, Mar 28, 2010 12:20 pm Subject: [amsat-bb] AA5UK/KH6 QRV for HO-68 and VU-52 from Hawaii BL02 ic Macrch 28 March 29th Greetings all, Made it to Kauai yesterday and managed to get on some informal passes. I plan to operate this morning here in HI on some of the following passes: HO-68 FM during 18:49 UTC pass U-52 SSB during 19:10 UTC pass. I also plan on several evening passes after 0300 UTC on AO7, FO29, VU52. Thanks again to the West Coast and XE stations who worked me yesterday evening. reat signals into BL02. See you shortly! Aloha, Adrian AA5UK/KH6 ______________________________________________ ent via AMSAT-BB(a)amsat.org. Opinions expressed are those of the author. ot an AMSAT-NA member? Join now to support the amateur satellite program! ubscription settings: http://amsat.org/mailman/listinfo/amsat-bb _______________________________________________ Sent via AMSAT-BB(a)amsat.org. Opinions expressed are those of the author. Not an AMSAT-NA member? Join now to support the amateur satellite program! Subscription settings: http://amsat.org/mailman/listinfo/amsat-bb

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AA5UK/KH6 QRV for HO-68 and VU-52 from Hawaii BL02 ic Macrch 28 March 29th
by Adrian Engele 28 Mar '10

28 Mar '10

Greetings all, Made it to Kauai yesterday and managed to get on some informal passes. I plan to operate this morning here in HI on some of the following passes: HO-68 FM during 18:49 UTC pass VU-52 SSB during 19:10 UTC pass. I also plan on several evening passes after 0300 UTC on AO7, FO29, VU52. Thanks again to the West Coast and XE stations who worked me yesterday evening. Great signals into BL02. See you shortly! Aloha, Adrian AA5UK/KH6

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Visitor Satisfaction Survey
by Clint Bradford 28 Mar '10

28 Mar '10

I set up a quick "satisfaction survey" earlier this month for visitors to my "How to Work the FM Sats with your Handheld Radio" Web site. I wanted to make sure I was on the right track for what I am trying to accomplish with the site: Provide all the info needed to get on the FM birds painlessly - as a "reference" site for my talks. The responses have been marvelous. I think it is important to keep in touch on all levels with one's audience. To try to elicit as much as I could from visitors, I made sure that the entries were all anonymous. Here's a summary of what I have been told ... - Clint, you fail to cite Orbitron for satellite tracking software ... Orbitron is a Windows app, which I have personally not run. I wasn't impressed with the fact that it has not been updated since September of 2005. But if it is working and accurate for people, that's great. - Clint, you fail to cite SatScape for sat tracking software ... I did try out SatScape. It is a Java app, so it should run on most any Windows PC, Apple, or Linux machine. It took me longer to set it up than, say, Nova for Windows. But it appears to be a supported, solid application. On my MacBook Pro, it makes me close and re-open to accomplish some basic ops. But it is showing current location of my chosen sats correctly. - Clint, SatelliteTracker Plus is a less-expensive app for the iPhone and iPod touch ... It is, indeed. I am just a fan of PocketSat. And you are correct: Of the 102 apps that I have paid for for my iPod touch, PocketSat3 was the most expensive, at $24.95. Maybe it's because I have "grown up" with PocketSat+ for the Palm, and it is "comfortable" to use for me. It certainly is more "pleasant" to look at, with its great graphics of the Earth and sat passes. SatelliteTracker Plus by Susan Mackay looks like a solid app. - Dude, where's the 'Droid apps? Android is a platform that I have NO machines to test. But a participant recommends ... HamSatDroid - http://sites.google.com/site/hamsatdroid/ - I'd like to see projects like easy to build elevation rotors ... Beyond the scope of what I am trying to accomplish with THIS Web site! I want to get fellow hams on the air with the easy-to-work sats, using equipment they probably already own. THEN they can graduate to sats that require elevation rotators. - ... mention the use of a GPS for location Lat/long for tracking programs and Maidenhead for the report ... I am using Maidenhead on my iPod touch. Although my "target audience" for this site is mostly hams at home (and we SHOULD all know our home grid squares, right???), if one travels out of their immediate area, quickly obtaining grid square info is important. I mention this in my presentations (" ... If you're at a fellow ham's house, their QRZ entry shows grid square info ... " and " ... the ARRL.org site has easy-to-use grid square locators ... "). I'll make sure to add a Web site or two for reference on my site. - How to connect a tripod to a yagi or beam. Interesting! The Arrow satellite antennas are tapped for tripod mounting (pull off the foam grip). And the Elk log periodics and their PVC pipe construction just BEG to to mounted in all sorts of different ways by resourceful hams! This is a great topic for a photo album in the future. - ... the need for 440 preamp on the mast ... Not a necessity for the "easy FM sats." When it's not snowing outside (grin). There's been a couple sat antenna construction articles in QST recently, where the use of a pre-amp was called for as if it were "standard operating procedure." But to successfully work several satellites, we're just slightly improving the stock duck on a handheld ... or using handheld Yagis. Pre-amps have their place - but not for my audience at the beginning stages of working the birds. - Maybe a section or two about more advanced amateur satellite operation, such as packet radio, and downloading telemetry and images from satellites such as ITUpSAT1 and the ISS ... homebrew diplexers ... MORE GREAT IDEAS - but I just want to keep the current site "plain and simple" for getting folks started on the birds. THANK YOU ALL for your input! Clint Bradford, K6LCS http://www.work-sat.com 909-241-7666

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Next "HV Satcom" Net
by Stuart Balanger 28 Mar '10

28 Mar '10

*Hi all., The next "HV Satcom" Net is skeduled for ThusdayApril 1 on the 146.97MHz. Mbarc Repeater, (8PM;or 2400 UTC)w/ an Echolink node of "N2EYH-L" Node! More info: www.hvsatcom.org Hope to hear some new people! 73,.Stu (WA2BSS) *

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HO-68 Schedule - 21-28 Mar 2010
by Alan Kung 28 Mar '10

28 Mar '10

28 Mar. 2010 ================================ 16:25...Turn On--FM India, Africa, Middle East, Europe,NA 17:10...Turn Off 18:15...Turn On--FM Africa,Europe,Middle East,NA 19:00...Turn Off 29 Mar. 2010 ================================ 01:10...Turn On--PACKET South America,NA,North Asia 01:55...Turn Off 02:01...Turn On--PACKET North Asia,East Asia,South Asia 02:17...Turn Off 03:00...Turn On--PACKET South America,NA,North Asia 03:45...Turn Off 19:40...Turn On--PACKET Africa,Europe,NA 20:25...Turn Off 30 Mar. 2010 ================================ 00:55...Turn On--FM South America,NA,North Asia 01:40...Turn Off 01:47...Turn On--FM North Asia,East Asia,South Asia 02:02...Turn Off 02:40...Turn On--FM NA,South America,North Asia 03:25...Turn Off 11:15...Turn On--FM South America,Oceania,Asia 12:00...Turn Off 17:35...Turn On--FM India,Middle East,Europe,NA 18:20...Turn Off 19:25...Turn On--SSB/CW Africa,Europe,NA 20:10...Turn Off 31 Mar. 2010 ================================= 01:33...Turn On--PACKET North Asia,East Asia,South Asia 01:47...Turn Off 09:45...Turn On--PACKET Oceania,East Asia,North Asia,Europe 10:30...Turn Off 12:45...Turn On--PACKET South America,Oceania 13:30...Turn Off 16:00...Turn On--PACKET India,Middle East,Africa,Europe,NA 16:45...Turn Off 23:15...Turn On--PACKET NA,North Asia,East Asia,Oceania 24:00...Turn Off 01 Apr. 2010 ================================= 01:13...Turn On--FM North Asia,East Asia,South Asia 01:28...Turn Off 06:30...Turn On--FM NA,North Asia,Middle East, Europe,Africa 07:15...Turn Off 15:00...Turn On--FM Oceania,Asia,Europe,NA 15:45...Turn Off 17:05...Turn On--FM Africa,India,Middle East,Europe,NA 17:50...Turn Off 18:55...Turn On--SSB/CW Africa,Europe,NA 19:40...Turn Off 02 Apr. 2010 ================================ 00:10...Turn On--PACKET South America,NA,North Asia 00:55...Turn Off 02:46...Turn On--PACKET North Asia,East Asia,South Asia 03:01...Turn Off 10:55...Turn On--PACKET Oceania,Asia,Europe 11:40...Turn Off 18:35...Turn On--PACKET Africa,Europe,NA 19:20...Turn Off 22:40...Turn On--PACKET NA,Asia,Oceania 23:25...Turn Off 03 Apr. 2010 ================================ 01:35...Turn On--FM South America,NA,North Asia 02:20...Turn Off 02:29...Turn On--FM North Asia,East Asia,South Asia 02:45...Turn Off 10:40...Turn On--FM Oceania,Asia,Europe,NA 11:25...Turn Off 18:20...Turn On--FM Africa,Europe,NA 19:05...Turn Off 04 Apr. 2010 ================================ 01:20...Turn On--PACKET South America,NA,North Asia 02:05...Turn Off 03:57...Turn On--PACKET North Asia,East Asia,South Asia 04:11...Turn Off 07:25...Turn On--PACKET North Asia,Europe,Africa 08:10...Turn Off 10:25...Turn On--PACKET Oceania,Asia,Europe 11:10...Turn Off 73 Alan Kung, BA1DU HO-68(XW-1) Project Manager www.camsat.cn

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Re: [aprssig] March 27th: APRS Sounding Rocket Launch on the East Coast
by Alan P. Biddle 28 Mar '10

28 Mar '10

According to the Twitter, the launch and TLM was a success: "Packets packets packets...." Congratulations to all concerned! I didn't see anything on APRS.FI, except for the launch crew driving around. Nothing heard direct here in the wilds of TN. Alan WA4SCA

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logging Sat contacts...??
by K7TRK 28 Mar '10

28 Mar '10

I recently received the following comment from a contact that I made: "Hello Ted, eQSL does not provide the option to enter separate transmit and receive frequencies/bands for cases where a station is operating cross-band such as with satellite, so the transmit frequency should be used to select the QSO band. eQSL does provide the user the option to enter a "SAT band" (ie. SAT J, SAT B, etc...) instead of choosing the band directly, this automatically picks the correct band for the user and is based on the uplink frequency (transmit frequency). The eQSL ADIF import specification found at URL http://www.eqsl.cc/qslcard/ADIFContentSpecs.cfm clearly shows that Mode J (V/U) Satellite translates to the 2m band (the "uplink" frequency), and Mode B (U/V) Satellite translates to 70cm, etc... proving that the transmit frequency should be used to select the QSO band. It is a common eQSL mistake to enter the wrong band for satellite contacts (and also to enter incorrect mode ie. "FM" instead of "FM (SAT).)" Many do not pay attention to the details and just accept eQSL's they receive based on callsign, date, and time without thinking about the band or mode that applies to a specific contact." I am curious as to what difference it makes whether the contact is logged as TX or RX. I have a TS2000 and HRD picks up the log info from the main VFO I believe, which is going to be the RX side. The info is then sent to logbook and automatically uploaded to eQSL. I'm not to concerned whether or not eQSL figures it out, but I would like LoTW to be correct and cards for VUDXX. so does it matter?? Thanks, Ted

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WD9EWK @ DM51/DM52 this afternoon
by Patrick STODDARD 27 Mar '10

27 Mar '10

Hi! I am at the DM51bx/DM52ba line now, and plan to stay for a few more passes before heading home. Planned passes include: 2256-2308 UTC on SO50 2305-2317 and 0042-0056 UTC on AO51 0057-0119 UTC on AO7 and *possibly* 0150-0210 UTC on FO29. The 2252 UTC AO27 may be hidden by mountains west of this spot, and not be workable. I will at try for it, but know it may not be workable. Please e-mail with QSO details if you want a QSL from me here, or for QSOs at the hamfest in Tucson AZ (DM42) earlier today. Thanks and 73! Patrick WD9EWK/VA7EWK - near Sunsites AZ http://www.wd9ewk.net/

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ans-087ans Bulletins
by DOMINICK INTERDONATO 27 Mar '10

27 Mar '10

CM SPAM detection: spam X-SID: 9 X-Authuserid: morsesat(a)optonline.net User-Agent: Laszlo Mail 2 AMSAT NEWS SERVICE ANS-087 ANS is a free, weekly, news and information service of AMSAT North America, The Radio Amateur Satellite Corporation. ANS 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. Please send any amateur satellite news or reports to: ans-editor(a)amsat.org ******************************************************************** * The AMSAT team is preparing for the 2010 Dayton Hamvention AMSAT * * Booth and activities. For the latest information go to: * * http://www.amsat.org/amsat-new/hamvention/2010/Dayton.php * ******************************************************************** In this edition: * NASA to Launch Three New CubeSats in November * Amateur Radio Emergency Regulations Proposal * Latest AMSAT Awards * New Agency * Satellite Shorts * Document Signed with Energia * ARISS Status - 22 March 2010 SB SAT @ AMSAT $ANS-087.01 NASA to Launch Three New CubeSats in November AMSAT News Service Bulletin 087.01 From AMSAT HQ SILVER SPRING, MD. March 28, 2010 To All RADIO AMATEURS BID: $ANS-087.01 NASA to Launch Three New CubeSats in November Three small research satellites with amateur radio educational payloads are scheduled for launch in late November. Called CubeSats because of their shape, they come from Montana State University, the University of Colorado and Kentucky Space as part of NASA's Educational Launch of Nanosatellite mission. Kentucky's KySat-1 is believed to be the first CubeSat to carry a 2 meter-to-70 cm FM transponder - truly a crossband repeater in space and one that should be accessible by most radio amateurs within its flight path, authorities said. CubeSats are in a class of small research spacecraft called pico-satellites. They have a volume of about one quart and weigh no more than 2.2 pounds. The University of Florida was selected as an alternate in case one of the three primary spacecraft cannot fly. [ANS thanks Jack, KD1PE, for the above information] /EX SB SAT @ AMSAT $ANS-087.02 Amateur Radio Emergency Regulations Proposal AMSAT News Service Bulletin 087.02 From AMSAT HQ SILVER SPRING, MD. March 28, 2010 To All RADIO AMATEURS BID: $ANS-087.02 FCC propose amendment to Amateur Radio emergency drill regulations There has been much debate in the US recently on the issue of amateur radio operators participating in emergency drills which have been organised the their employers. The FCC is hoping to clarify the rules and allow more flexibility with this amendment. A Proposed Rulemaking was released yesterday containing amendments to Section 97:113 of the Amateur Radio Service Rules regarding using paid employees in government sponsored emergency training drills. For actual filing see: WWW.regulations.gov [ANS thanks Southgate for the above information] /EX SB SAT @ AMSAT $ANS-087.03 Latest AMSAT Awards AMSAT News Service Bulletin 087.03 From AMSAT HQ SILVER SPRING, MD. March 28, 2010 To All RADIO AMATEURS BID: $ANS-087.03 The following have entered into the Satellite Communicators Club for making their first satellite QSO. Jonathan Guthrie, KA8KPN Mesa Community College ARC, KM7CC David Sharpe, KF7DRQ Jim Adams, K0BAM Richard Rowe, KJ4OUQ The following have earned the AMSAT Communications Achievement Award. Randal Schulze, KD0HKD, #509 Michael Vargo, AC8CX, #510 Jose Toste, CU3EQ, #511 The following have earned the W4AMI Achievement Award (for 1000 contacts) Douglas Anoman, KC9MLN, #60 Howard Merritt, KD7ZLF, #61 Chip Weems, W4PBG, #62 The following have earned the South Africa AMSAT Communications A chievement Award Randal Schulze, KD0HKD, #US142 Michael Vargo, AC8CX, #US143 Jose Toste, CU3EQ, #US144 To see all the awards visit http://www.amsat.org or http://www.amsatnet.com Bruce Paige, KK5DO AMSAT Director Contests and Awards [ANS thanks Bruce, KK5DO, for the above information} /EX SB SAT @ AMSAT $ANS-087.04 New Agency AMSAT News Service Bulletin 087.04 From AMSAT HQ SILVER SPRING, MD. March 28, 2010 To All RADIO AMATEURS BID: $ANS-087.04 At a Conference in London held today, it was announced that April 1st 2010 is to be the "launch" date for the establishment of the United Kingdom Space Agency. This will take over responsibility for space from the previous voluntary partnerships of Government Departments and research councils, the British National Space Centre. It is reported that the new agency will bring these together "under one roof". It will also include the Technology Strategy Board and the Met Office. In addition to this announcement, the UK Government has stated that £24m will be invested into The International Space Innovation Centre (ISIC) at Harwell which is also the site of the new ESA technical facility. Lets hope the new Agency looks kindly towards UK cubesat projects like AMSAT-UK's FUNcube! (New possibilities?) For more details see http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/sci/tech/8579270.stm Graham G3VZV [ANS thanks Graham, G3VZV, for the above information] /EX SB SAT @ AMSAT $ANS-087.05 Satellite Shorts AMSAT News Service Bulletin 087.05 From AMSAT HQ SILVER SPRING, MD. March 28, 2010 To All RADIO AMATEURS BID: $ANS-087.05 AMSAT at Dayton Reminders Another reminder that AMSAT has available a block of rooms for Dayton. The hotel is the Country Inn & Suites in Fairborn. The cost is $99 a night. If you are interested, please call me at 301-589-6062 to make a reservation. The block will be gone on April 13th! Don't forget the AMSAT-TAPR dinner on Friday night. You can register for that online at the AMSAT website. [ANS thanks Martha for the above information] ------------------------------------------------------------------------- Listen to 2 Meter Houston AMSAT Net via the Internet The Houston AMSAT Net now has a new Icecast streaming server, thanks to Mike, N0VZC. During our net, Tuesday 8PM Central Time (Wednesday 0100 UTC), our audio can be heard by pasting the following into your URL, Winamp, iPhone, iTunes or almost any other player. radio.arert.net:8000/amsat.m3u We hope that you continue enjoying the Houston AMSAT Net. You can also listen on Echolink in the *AMSAT* conference as well as after the net completes as a Podcast from the iTunes store or your favor- ite Podcast player. [ANS thanks Bruce KK5DO for the above information] /EX SB SAT @ AMSAT $ANS-087.06 Document Signed for ARISSat Delivery AMSAT News Service Bulletin 087.06 From AMSAT HQ SILVER SPRING, MD. March 28, 2010 To All RADIO AMATEURS BID: $ANS-087.06 Protocol Document Signed for ARISSat delivery This week a protocol document was signed between AMSAT, NASA and Energia stating that AMSAT would deliver two satellites to Energia by 1 July 2010. Since we only have one set of solar panels, the second unit will be tested and operational except for the solar panels. The project is on schedule for the July delivery and we look forward to having ARISSat in space later this year. Gould, WA4SXM ARISSat Project Manager for AMSAT [ANS Thankd Gould, WA4SXM, for this information] /EX SB SAT @ AMSAT $ANS-087.07 ARISS Status - 15 March 2010 AMSAT News Service Bulletin 087.07 From AMSAT HQ SILVER SPRING, MD. March 22, 2010 To All RADIO AMATEURS BID: $ANS-087.07 Amateur Radio on the International Space Station (ARISS) Status Report March 22, 2010 1. Upcoming School Contacts Shiogama Daini Junior High School in Shiogama, Japan was scheduled for an Amateur Radio on the International Space Station (ARISS) contact on Thursday, March 25 at 07:44 UTC. To prepare for the contact, students studied astronomy and were introduced to the Hubble Space Telescope. They also learned about radio communications and some continued their s tudies and prepared for their amateur radio license exams. An Amateur Radio on the International Space Station (ARISS) contact has been scheduled for Walnut Creek Elementary School in Azle, Texas on Monday, March 29 at 15:08 UTC. Each student researched and created a model of a selected space object and then presented his work to the class. Retired Lockheed employees and members of local radio clubs gave demonstrations of satellite communications to the youth. The school recently formed an amateur radio club and students have enjoyed learning what radios can do. 2. Greece Students Question Astronaut via ARISS Contact On Tuesday, March 16, Timothy Creamer, KC5WKI connected with students attending 18 Dimotiko Scholeio Peristeriou in Athens, Greece via an Amateur Radio on the International Space Station (ARISS) contact. Students posed 19 questions to the on-orbit astronaut during the ISS overhead pass as an audience of 700 students, teachers and community members gathered to watch the event. Several dignitaries were present, including the General Secretary for Communications of the Ministry of Transportation and Telecommunication of Greece, the Mayor of Peristeri (Athens) and the four vice mayors of Peristeri City. The contact was integrated into the school’s science curriculum covering subjects on astronomy and radio communications. 3. Astronaut Training Status On Monday, March 15, astronaut Paolo Nespoli, IZ0JPA participated in an Amateur Radio on the International Space Station (ARISS) simulated contact with students from Quintino Sella, Biella, Italy with audio available on IRLP (Internet Radio Linking Project). This training session was a terrestrial-based amateur radio contact using ARISS equivalent equipment. Nespoli is slated to fly with Expedition 26 in November 2010. 4. ARISS International Team Meeting Held The Amateur Radio on the International Space Station (ARISS) international team met for the monthly teleconference on March 16. Status reports were given on the Columbus module radio equipment as well as ARISSat-1. Minutes have been posted. See: https://www.rac.ca/ariss/arisstel2010-03-16.htm [ANS thanks Carol, KB3LKI, for the above information] /EX 73, This week's ANS Editor, Dee Interdonato, NB2F nb2f at amsat dot org

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CBC's "Quirks And Quarks" 2010-03-27 Segment On Spaceflight
by B J 27 Mar '10

27 Mar '10

http://www.cbc.ca/quirks/media/2009-2010/mp3/qq-2010-03-27_04.mp3 Some interesting thoughts on the current situation and future possibilities. 73s Bernhard VA6BMJ @ DO33FL __________________________________________________________________ The new Internet Explorer® 8 - Faster, safer, easier. Optimized for Yahoo! Get it Now for Free! at http://downloads.yahoo.com/ca/internetexplorer/

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SO-67 status
by kj4psu＠gmail.com 27 Mar '10

27 Mar '10

Does anyone know when SO-67 will be operational? On their website they predict the end of the month. Any word on a date? Will KJ4PSU Sent from my Verizon Wireless BlackBerry

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Sat recordings
by kj4psu＠gmail.com 27 Mar '10

27 Mar '10

John K8YSE Good morning from Savannah! I would like to thank you for all your hard work in getting the sat recordings on your website. Its really cool to be able to hear myself through the sat. Your technical suggestion has really improved my audio. I'm booming into the bird now. I know it takes a lot of time on your part, but I'm sure everyone appreciates it. www.papays.com/sat Thanks again! Will KJ4PSU Sent from my Verizon Wireless BlackBerry

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AO-7
by john hackett 27 Mar '10

27 Mar '10

To whom it may concern, I no longer edit the AO-7 Resource Page. 73 John. <la2qaa(a)amsat.org> ................................................................................................... > Subject: AO-7 Logbook Website Contact - AO-7 Info For Site > To: emily(a)planetemily.com; la2qaa(a)hotmail.com > From: postmaster(a)planetemily.com > Date: Fri, 26 Mar 2010 10:20:34 -0700 > > The following message was received from the AO-7 Logbook website on 26 Mar, 2010 at 10:20 ................................................................................................................................... Message delete, it was spam. 73 LA2QAA. _________________________________________________________________ Hotmail: Trusted email with powerful SPAM protection. https://signup.live.com/signup.aspx?id=60969

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UK CubeSail satellite
by Trevor . 27 Mar '10

27 Mar '10

The UK CubeSail project to develop a means of reducing space debris was announced yesterday. A 3U CubeSat demonstrator is planned for launch next year, see http://www.southgatearc.org/news/march2010/cubesail.htm 73 Trevor M5AKA Daily Amateur Radio Email/RSS News: http://www.southgatearc.org/ Email Your News To: editor at southgatearc.org Or Upload Using Form At: http://www.southgatearc.org/news/your_news_1.htm ----

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Flying the Shuttle
by Clint Bradford 27 Mar '10

27 Mar '10

WIRED Magazine's take on flying the Space Shuttle simulator ... http://tinyurl.com/flyshuttle Clint, K6LCS http://www.k6lcs.com

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Re: [aprssig] March 27th: APRS Sounding Rocket Launch on the East Coast
by Robert Bruninga 27 Mar '10

27 Mar '10

> Will you be updating CQSRVR as the WALLOPS group again? Yes, anyone that wants real-time info on what is happening should logon to the APRS CQSRVR by sending an APRS message to CQSRVR beginning with the text CQ WALLOPS and then their comment. Hopefully ANYONE with info will post it. I will be at a hamgest and will have NO INFO. So someone at home, please keep us updated on CQSRVR. Bob, WB4APR >Jason Rausch wrote: >> Just a reminder, the Kentucky Space group will be >> attempting another launch tomorrow of their ADAMsat >> APRS payload aboard a sub-orbital sounding rocket >> to be launched from the NASA Wallops Flight Facility, >> in Wallops Island, VA. >> >> Launch window is from 1000-1400 local time. If you >> are on the east coast, be sure to log any packets >> from callsign KJ4HVJ and submit them to the Kentucky >> Space group. >> >> The telemetry logger can be found at: >> >> http://ssl.engr.uky.edu/suborbital/socem >> >> Make sure that you have a TNC capable of a NON-KISS >> interface. The program is not compatiable with KISS >> only TNCs. They will be operating on 144.390 > >> Jason Rausch

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SO-50 Down????
by John Neeley 26 Mar '10

26 Mar '10

Couldnt bring it to life, nor did I hear anyone else on the 2130 Pass over California.. Wonder if it's just me or the bird?? Right 74.4hz start tone with 67 hz normal pl tone... was a 68 deg pass so know I should have been able to throw rocks at it... John W6ZKH

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special Mexican prefix 4B in 2010
by Patrick STODDARD (WD9EWK/VA7EWK) 26 Mar '10

26 Mar '10

Hi! The Mexican Federal Telecommunications Commission ("CoFeTel"), Mexico's "FCC", announced today that hams in Mexico have been authorized the use of the 4B prefix for 2010, to commemorate both the 200th anniversary of Mexican independence and the 100th anniversary of the Mexican Revolution. With this in mind, maybe we will hear some of our Mexican friends using this prefix on the satellites throughout the rest of 2010. The formal announcement of this, in Spanish, is available from the CoFeTel web site at: http://www.cofetel.gob.mx/wb/Cofetel_2008/resolucion_mediante_la_cual_el_pl… (put all of that on one line, with no spaces after the 2008, if the e-mail cuts the link in half) Good luck, and 73! Patrick WD9EWK/VA7EWK http://www.wd9ewk.net/

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Grid trip possible
by newsradio6＠gmail.com 26 Mar '10

26 Mar '10

Is anyone interested in getting grid EN92 or 93? Just looking at my map and chatting with k8yse by email and I realized that a 45min drive from my qth would put me into these grids...might be a plan to pack up the arrow and ht for short trip in the next week or two. Sent wirelessly from my BlackBerry device on the Bell network. Envoyé sans fil par mon terminal mobile BlackBerry sur le réseau de Bell.

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AMSAT Awards
by Bruce 26 Mar '10

26 Mar '10

The following have entered into the Satellite Communicators Club for making their first satellite QSO. Jonathan Guthrie, KA8KPN Mesa Community College ARC, KM7CC David Sharpe, KF7DRQ Jim Adams, K0BAM Richard Rowe, KJ4OUQ The following have earned the AMSAT Communications Achievement Award. Randal Schulze, KD0HKD, #509 Michael Vargo, AC8CX, #510 Jose Toste, CU3EQ, #511 The following have earned the W4AMI Achievement Award (for 1000 contacts) Douglas Anoman, KC9MLN, #60 Howard Merritt, KD7ZLF, #61 Chip Weems, W4PBG, #62 The following have earned the South Africa AMSAT Communications Achievement Award Randal Schulze, KD0HKD, #US142 Michael Vargo, AC8CX, #US143 Jose Toste, CU3EQ, #US144 To see all the awards visit http://www.amsat.org or http://www.amsatnet.com Bruce Paige, KK5DO AMSAT Director Contests and Awards ARRL Awards Manager (WAS, 5BWAS, VUCC), VE Houston AMSAT Net - Wed 0200z on Echolink - Conference *AMSAT* Also streaming MP3 at http://www.amsatnet.com Podcast at http://www.amsatnet.com/podcast.xml or iTunes Latest satellite news on the ARRL Audio News http://www.arrl.org

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Myers Barbeque Grill Antenna
by Farrell Winder 26 Mar '10

26 Mar '10

For AO-40, many stations, I recall, used the R. Myers Communications L.L.C. Model SB-32 DXC 2.4 GHz Parabolic Antenna. Does anyone have the specs showing gain? Would like to see results of some actual gain testing . Could not find any results on Central States antenna measurements tabulations. . Thanks , any info , please reply off line. Farrell Winder, W8ZCF, Cincinnati, Ohio

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Shanghai Ham Radio Expo
by William Leijenaar 26 Mar '10

26 Mar '10

Hi AMSATs, Next weekend (3,4,5 April) I will be at the Shanghai Ham Expo, where I will show my transponder design and I will also promote amateurs satellites to the people. Most of the people on this AMSAT-BB will not travel all the way to China to see this expo, but for the people who have the chance to go to the Shanghai Expo it would be nice to meet them. I will be there with two (none-ham) friends that will join and help me. Maybe there will be some amateur satellite hams that will visit the expo and maybe would like to join me ? (I don't mind nationality, as ham radio is like one big world-wide family) 73 de William Leijenaar, PE1RAH www.leijenaarelectronics.nl

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AO-51 L band frq
by Luc Leblanc 26 Mar '10

26 Mar '10

I was able to find some time yesterday to repair my L band DEM linear always the same issues with the N type connector solder tab on the board who break if the coax is putting some stress on the center pin. I heard someone on AO-51 this morning just at the end of the pass (i don't get his call sign) who told me the L band uplink was 5 to 6 KC up the listed frequency? It could explain why i always have to tuned higher than my PC corrected doppler uplink frequency on L band. Aside of this signals where great aside of the constant background noise probably some kind of radar as reported in the past. At the first over the Atlantic pass the noise was not there it starts when AO-51 was approaching the continent. "-" Luc Leblanc VE2DWE Skype VE2DWE www.qsl.net/ve2dwe DSTAR urcall VE2DWE WAC BASIC CW PHONE SATELLITE

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FS ICOM 910HX plus....
by Dave Aitch 26 Mar '10

26 Mar '10

ICOM 910HX. AG VHF & UHF mast head pre-amps. 23cms 4 x 9 turn helix. 19 ele 70cms beam. 2.4GHz BBQ dish. 2.4GHz transverter. 2m, 70cm, 23cms omni vertical. 4 ele X yagi. VHF Polarphaser PH2/S. YAESU G5600B AZ/EL rotators. HALOSAT AZ/EL control hardware/software. All reasonable offers considered. Dave G1OCN Portland, Dorset. IO80SM

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I: I: Re: [eu-amsat] RE:New digital mode ROS - Satellites ?
by Francesco Grappi 26 Mar '10

26 Mar '10

Hi Mike, Yes I means, of course, the caos when everybody are making experiment everywhere on the satellites transponder over qso, ecc .... All experiment are useful and interesting when they are done properly and educated, I agree 100%. 73" Frank IW4DVZ -----Messaggio originale----- Da: Mike Rupprecht [mailto:[email protected]] Inviato: venerdì 26 marzo 2010 10.52 A: 'Francesco Grappi'; amsat-bb(a)amsat.org Oggetto: AW: [amsat-bb] I: Re: [eu-amsat] RE:New digital mode ROS - Satellites ? Hi Frank, Yes, you are right - we have enough chaos on our FM satellites !!! Believe me, I'm one of the fighters for more discipline. Maybe I understand our hobby a little different. Amateur Radio is for me an experimental hobby. I find it exciting to do new things and learn from it. Digital modes are equal to the analog ones. If I do an experiment at the outer end of the band, the risk of disturbing others seems to be very low. And if you carefully look at the spectrum ( http://www.dk3wn.info/p/?p=13368 ) during this experiment - you will see that no other station was not even close. The bandwidth of the FO-29 transponder is 100 KHz. There's room for everybody. 73, Mike DK3WN -----Ursprüngliche Nachricht----- Von: amsat-bb-bounces(a)amsat.org [mailto:[email protected]] Im Auftrag von Francesco Grappi Gesendet: Freitag, 26. März 2010 09:14 An: amsat-bb(a)amsat.org Betreff: [amsat-bb] I: Re: [eu-amsat] RE:New digital mode ROS - Satellites ? Wichtigkeit: Hoch ROS over Fo-29 satellites ??? Now mixed on Fo-29 transponder ssb we have people that working on Ssb....cw... (right) And fm...digital mode....sstv...and now ROS mode also.... ...may be we have not enough caos on satellites.... ...of course this is my thought...please no flame... but much better to explain how is correct to work satellite following IARU band plane.... 73" Frank IW4DVZ -----Messaggio originale----- Da: amsat-bb-bounces(a)amsat.org [mailto:[email protected]] Per conto di Simon HB9DRV Inviato: giovedì 25 marzo 2010 19.10 A: eu-amsat(a)yahoogroups.com; amsat-bb(a)amsat.org Oggetto: [amsat-bb] Re: [eu-amsat] RE:New digital mode ROS - Satellites ? How good was your Doppler correction? Simon Brown, HB9DRV http://sdr-radio.com From: eu-amsat(a)yahoogroups.com [mailto:[email protected]] On Behalf Of Mike Rupprecht today I tried to experiment with ROS over FO-29. It was not successful. _______________________________________________ Sent via AMSAT-BB(a)amsat.org. Opinions expressed are those of the author. Not an AMSAT-NA member? Join now to support the amateur satellite program! Subscription settings: http://amsat.org/mailman/listinfo/amsat-bb _______________________________________________ Sent via AMSAT-BB(a)amsat.org. Opinions expressed are those of the author. Not an AMSAT-NA member? Join now to support the amateur satellite program! Subscription settings: http://amsat.org/mailman/listinfo/amsat-bb

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Re: Question(Re: Rochester, NY)
by Richard Crow 26 Mar '10

26 Mar '10

Yes, there will be an AMSAT booth at the 2010 Rochester (NY) Hamfest (i.e. "Atlantic Division Conv.") I will be running it again as I have for the past 9 years. 73, Richard, N2SPI

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I: Re: [eu-amsat] RE:New digital mode ROS - Satellites ?
by Francesco Grappi 26 Mar '10

26 Mar '10

ROS over Fo-29 satellites ??? Now mixed on Fo-29 transponder ssb we have people that working on Ssb....cw... (right) And fm...digital mode....sstv...and now ROS mode also.... ...may be we have not enough caos on satellites.... ...of course this is my thought...please no flame... but much better to explain how is correct to work satellite following IARU band plane.... 73" Frank IW4DVZ -----Messaggio originale----- Da: amsat-bb-bounces(a)amsat.org [mailto:[email protected]] Per conto di Simon HB9DRV Inviato: giovedì 25 marzo 2010 19.10 A: eu-amsat(a)yahoogroups.com; amsat-bb(a)amsat.org Oggetto: [amsat-bb] Re: [eu-amsat] RE:New digital mode ROS - Satellites ? How good was your Doppler correction? Simon Brown, HB9DRV http://sdr-radio.com From: eu-amsat(a)yahoogroups.com [mailto:[email protected]] On Behalf Of Mike Rupprecht today I tried to experiment with ROS over FO-29. It was not successful. _______________________________________________ Sent via AMSAT-BB(a)amsat.org. Opinions expressed are those of the author. Not an AMSAT-NA member? Join now to support the amateur satellite program! Subscription settings: http://amsat.org/mailman/listinfo/amsat-bb

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Sat Demos at Timonium MD Hamfest
by Richard Crow 26 Mar '10

26 Mar '10

At the 2010 "Greater Baltimore Hamboree and Computerfest" (Timonium MD Hamfest), the AMSAT booth plans to perform satellite demos on the following passes using callsign N2SPI/P at grid square FM19: AOS LOS Sat @FM19 @FM19 Dnlink Day Date Name (UTC) (UTC) (MHz) --- -------------- ----- ----- ----- -------- Sat March 27, 2010 AO-51 11:51 12:04 435.300 Sat March 27, 2010 VO-52 13:54 14:06 ~145.907 Sat March 27, 2010 VO-52 15:30 15:41 ~145.907 Sat March 27, 2010 AO-27 17:47 18:01 Sun March 28, 2010 AO-51 11:12 11:27 435.300 If you hear us, give us a "shout". 73 - Richard, N2SPI

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AA5UK/KH6 QRV 0204 UTC AO51
by Adrian Engele 26 Mar '10

26 Mar '10

All I'll be qrv in an hour. Hope to be on later tonight after dinner on other says. BL11cg 73 adrian Connected by MOTOBLUR™ on T-Mobile

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UKSpace Conference webcasting
by Graham Shirville 25 Mar '10

25 Mar '10

The UKSpace Conference is taking place this weekend. The programme is available here: http://www.ukspaceconference.org/ Some of the presentations will be webcasted live the info is here: http://www.space.co.uk/UKSpaceConference2010/LiveWebCasts/tabid/817/Default… There are a number presentations on cubesat and other interesting subjects scheduled. 73 Graham G3VZV

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Question (Re; Rochester,NY)
by Stuart Balanger 25 Mar '10

25 Mar '10

*Hi all, Was wondering if AMSAT is going to be @ the Atlantic Division Conv. (June 5;Saturday)(In Rochester,NY)? The reason I ask is, I know that I won't be @ "Dayton Hamvention" but want to go back to Rochester after a long absense! 73,.Stu (WA2BSS) PS Will more than likly will take Amtrak to Rochester from Poughkeepsie,NY (Home of both the Queen City of the Hudson Valley/"Walkway over the Hudson") *

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gps question
by Bob- W7LRD 25 Mar '10

25 Mar '10

Hello Is there a GPS device that has the capability of 1. giving directions 2. showing lat/long or even grid squares 73 Bob W7LRD

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Last-minute change of location for Tucson hamfest on Saturday
by Patrick STODDARD (WD9EWK/VA7EWK) 25 Mar '10

25 Mar '10

Hi! For anyone planning on attending the Tucson spring hamfest on Saturday, 27 March 2010, there has been a last-minute change of location. It will now be hosted in a parking lot next to the Tucson Electric Park baseball stadium, a few blocks west of the normal site at Kino Sports Complex. The stadium is on Ajo Way, east of the I-10 freeway. The Radio Society of Tucson will have signs showing the new location on Saturday morning. All other details regarding the hamfest remain unchanged, and I will be there with an AMSAT table and still do satellite demonstrations throughout the morning. 73! Patrick WD9EWK/VA7EWK http://www.wd9ewk.net/

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Test
by TERRY BROMLEY 25 Mar '10

25 Mar '10

123

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Ao7
by malcolm Hall 25 Mar '10

25 Mar '10

test

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New satellite forum online.
by Eric Knaps, ON4HF 25 Mar '10

25 Mar '10

Hello, A few minutes ago a new satellite forum was born. http://www.on4hf.be/forum Feel free to register and have fun with it! 73, Eric. -- Amateur radio station ON4HF Satellite manager UBA Eric Knaps Waterstraat 30 B-3980 Tessenderlo Belgium Tel. +32472985876 (mobile) www.on4hf.be

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AMSAT-DL symposium
by Eric Knaps, ON4HF 25 Mar '10

25 Mar '10

Hello group, Is there any Belgian station that want to join me to the AMSAT-DL symposium on april 24th this year? I don't like to drive alone and with a few guys it's more fun. You can mail me off list for details... The AMSAT-DL Symposium and AGM will be held in the radome of the spectacular 20 metre dish at Bochum. The event takes place on Saturday April 24, 2010 from 10:00 to 17:00 local time. There will be a lecture programme and an update on AMSAT-DL projects and the results of the joint study between AMSAT-DL and the Federal Republic of Germany Research Center for Aeronautics and Astronautics (DLR). For further details of the Symposium including directions see http://tinyurl.com/ykezgjj AMSAT-DL in Google English http://tinyurl.com/AMSAT-DL Federal Republic of Germany Research Center for Aeronautics and Astronautics (DLR) http://tinyurl.com/GermanyDLR GO-Mars with AMSAT-DL's P5A Mission - Pixel Page http://ticket-to-mars.org/index.pl?lang=en_EN 73, Eric. -- Amateur radio station ON4HF Satellite manager UBA Eric Knaps Waterstraat 30 B-3980 Tessenderlo Belgium Tel. +32472985876 (mobile) www.on4hf.be

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Re: [eu-amsat] RE:New digital mode ROS - Satellites ?
by Simon HB9DRV 25 Mar '10

25 Mar '10

How good was your Doppler correction? Simon Brown, HB9DRV http://sdr-radio.com From: eu-amsat(a)yahoogroups.com [mailto:[email protected]] On Behalf Of Mike Rupprecht today I tried to experiment with ROS over FO-29. It was not successful.

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Dayton Rooms
by Martha 25 Mar '10

25 Mar '10

Another reminder that AMSAT has available a block of rooms for Dayton. The hotel is the Country Inn & Suites in Fairborn. The cost is $99 a night. If you are interested, please call me at 301-589-6062 to make a reservation. The block will be gone on April 13th! Don't forget the AMSAT-TAPR dinner on Friday night. You can register for that online at the AMSAT website. -- 73- Martha

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Jan/Feb Journal
by Martha 25 Mar '10

25 Mar '10

The Jan/Feb issue of the AMSAT Journal is now at the printer. -- 73- Martha

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Doppler Tracking ... Recent Radios
by Clive Wallis 25 Mar '10

25 Mar '10

Hi, The thread about Doppler tracking with an FT-726 has reminded me of a problem I have with an FT-736. I got this radio some time after developing the interface for the 726. I've noticed that when the 736 is under CAT control, none of the manual controls work. I'm wondering whether this applies also to the FT-847 an the ICOM 910 rigs? One advantage of the method used on the FT-726 was that I could trim out any errors in Doppler correction with the manual tuning control knob. This proved very useful for BPSK telemetry. As an alternative, do any of the modern tracking programs allow easy manual correction of RX frequency during a pass? Any comments would be much appreciated. 73 Clive G3CWV Hitchin, North Hertfordshire, UK

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Kenwood TH7-DAG forsale heads up
by Jeff KB2M 25 Mar '10

25 Mar '10

I saw this on the TS-2000 yahoogroup this morning. Looks like a good deal on a clean full duplex TH-D7... 73 Jeff kb2m <http://groups.yahoo.com/group/KenwoodTS-2000/message/30133;_ylc=X3oDMTJyYnV lcXRqBF9TAzk3MzU5NzE1BGdycElkAzIzNTQ3NzkEZ3Jwc3BJZAMxNzA1MDYzMTA4BG1zZ0lkAzM wMTMzBHNlYwNkbXNnBHNsawN2bXNnBHN0aW1lAzEyNjk0ODc4MjA-> for sale th7-da(g) Posted by: "paul glassman" <mailto:[email protected]?Subject=%20Re%3Afor%20sale%20th7-da%28g%2 9> highschooldiving(a)yahoo.com <http://profiles.yahoo.com/highschooldiving> highschooldiving Wed Mar 24, 2010 3:11 pm (PDT) Like new. factory box, manual and everything it came with new. $325 shipped conus. best 73 paul w8jn

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FT-726 automatic Doppler control?
by Ryan Caron 25 Mar '10

25 Mar '10

Anybody ever rig up automatic doppler tuning to a FT-726? Without a CI-V interface (or equivalent) the best idea I can think of is splicing a microcontroller in to push the up, down, and maybe the fast buttons on the microphone during a pass. Then I'd just have to dial in the initial frequency before the pass starts. 73, Ryan KB1LKI AMSAT #37207

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Neptune 30 CubeSat Launch
by Trevor . 25 Mar '10

25 Mar '10

The 2U CubeSat MiniRomit1 is slated to launch on Neptune 30 in December. http://www.southgatearc.org/news/march2010/miniromit_1.htm 73 Trevor M5AKA Daily Amateur Radio Email/RSS News: http://www.southgatearc.org/ Email Your News To: editor at southgatearc.org Or Upload Using Form At: http://www.southgatearc.org/news/your_news_1.htm ----

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ICOM AG-25, 2M Mast Mounted Preamplifier
by Stan, W1LE 24 Mar '10

24 Mar '10

Hello The Net: I recently got in Bob's (W7LRD) preamp for testing, with the following results: 144 MHz G = 27 dB NF = 1.3 dB 145 G = 27 dB NF = 1.1 dB 146 G = 27 dB NF = 0.9 dB 147 G = 26 dB NF = 0.8 dB 148 G = 25 dB NF = 0.9 dB Performance is better than I expected, but lotsa gain. DC voltage applied was 14 Vdc and lowered to 8 Vdc with no change in NF, but a 1 dB reduction in gain. DC current was ~200 milliamperes at 14 V and 117 milliamperes at 8.0 volts applied. Below 8 Vdc, the gain decreases rapidly and the NF increases. I like the wide operating voltage range. The RF connectors are UHF type. There is a larger screw with a plastic washer underneath, but upon removal there is NO adjustment underneath for neither pass band tuning or gain reduction. Reportedly there is a variable capacitor inside to allow tuning, but nothing externally accessible. Has anyone found a adjustment for gain ? Only choice I can think of is to reduce the RF gain on the transceiver when the preamp is menu enabled. If an attenuator is put in line, the TX power would also be attenuated. We do not want to just throw away RF power in an attenuator Stan, W1LE Cape Cod FN41sr Cape Cod ZZZZz

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Tucson (AZ) hamfest and post-hamfest activity on Saturday, 27 March
by Patrick STODDARD (WD9EWK/VA7EWK) 24 Mar '10

24 Mar '10

Hi! I will be at the Radio Society of Tucson's second annual spring hamfest on Saturday, 27 March 2010, at the Kino Sports Complex in Tucson with an AMSAT table. The Kino Sports Complex is on Ajo Way, east of the I-10 freeway and Tucson Electric Park baseball stadium. The hamfest will run from 7am to 11am (1400-1800 UTC). During the hamfest, I will be on various satellites as WD9EWK for on-air demonstrations. Although the hamfest officially starts at 1400 UTC, I plan on being on the air for passes starting around 1300 UTC give or take. FM satellites, along with a few non-FM birds (VO-52 and AO-7), will be used. Although there will be FO-29 passes in the morning, communications systems on figher aircraft at a nearby air base normally wipes out reception of the FO-29 downlink and makes that satellite unusuable from the hamfest site. I may try it on Saturday morning, to see if the situation has changed since the last time I tried FO-29 down there. After the hamfest, I have not decided which route I will take back home to Phoenix. Last fall, I drove to the Arizona/New Mexico state line in grid DM52 after a hamfest. I could make another visit to the DM51/DM52 boundary and/or possibly the DM52/DM53 boundary east of Tucson. If I go west, I could visit other grids like DM32 and/or DM31. Since I have not set any firm plans for my afternoon/evening return, any feedback on grids that you might want to hear on the Saturday afternoon/evening passes (FM birds, and possibly AO-7 or FO-29) would be appreciated. Anyone working WD9EWK either at the hamfest or on the post-hamfest drive back to Phoenix on Saturday who wants a QSL card only needs to e-mail me the QSO details. If you are in the log, I will send the QSL card (or cards). Thanks in advance, and 73! Patrick WD9EWK/VA7EWK http://www.wd9ewk.net/

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New audio stream for Houston AMSAT Net
by Bruce 24 Mar '10

24 Mar '10

The Houston AMSAT Net now has a new Icecast streaming server, thanks to Mike, N0VZC. During our net, Tuesday 8PM Central Time (Wednesday 0100 UTC), our audio can be heard by pasting the following into your URL, Winamp, iPhone, iTunes or almost any other player. radio.arert.net:8000/amsat.m3u We hope that you continue enjoying the Houston AMSAT Net. You can also listen on Echolink in the *AMSAT* conference as well as after the net completes as a Podcast from the iTunes store or your favorite Podcast player. 73...bruce -- Bruce Paige, KK5DO AMSAT Director Contests and Awards ARRL Awards Manager (WAS, 5BWAS, VUCC), VE Houston AMSAT Net - Wed 0100z on Echolink - Conference *AMSAT* Also live streaming MP3 at http://www.amsatnet.com Podcast at http://www.amsatnet.com/podcast.xml or iTunes Latest satellite news on the ARRL Audio News http://www.arrl.org AMSAT on Twitter http://www.twitter.com/amsat

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FT726 value
by John Geiger 24 Mar '10

24 Mar '10

What is the current market value for a Yaesu FT726 with the 2m and 432 modules, and the satellite board installed? It is in good condition, with the hand mic and power cord, but no tone board installed. Or is anyone on the reflector looking for one? 73s John AA5JG

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