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Re: LVBTracker firmware modified to allow for more azimuth calibration points.
by Jorge 05 Feb '23

05 Feb '23

Great job Alex! It looks like a good update for my old tracker. 73, Jorge LU1DA El 4/2/2023 a las 2:43 a. m., Alex Krist via AMSAT-BB escribió: > > Hi there, > > A while ago, perhaps almost two years ago, I modified the LVBTracker > firmware in my Fox Delta ST2-USB so that it would allow for more > calibration points than just the min and max for azimuth. I had added > a remote-control option to an old Yaesu G-450XL, but the output > voltage was very non-linear, which led to terrible aiming of the > antennas. With the mods I made to the firmware it now allows me to > calibrate the controller at 0, 90, 180, 270, and 360 degrees and > aiming is now rather accurate. I wrote about it here: > > https://thehamlab.com/2023/02/02/fox-delta-st2-lvbtracker-calibration-mods/ > > If you feel this could be useful for you, the source code for the > project can be found on GitHub: > > https://github.com/TheHamLab/LVBTracker.KR1ST > > 73, > > --Alex KR1ST > > > ----------------------------------------------------------- > > Sent via AMSAT-BB(a)amsat.org. AMSAT-NA makes this open forum available > to all interested persons worldwide without requiring membership. Opinions expressed > are solely those of the author, and do not reflect the official views of AMSAT-NA. > Acceptable Use and Privacy Policies available athttps://www.amsat.org/about-amsat/ > > View archives of this mailing list at > https://mailman.amsat.org/hyperkitty/list/[email protected] > To unsubscribe send an email to amsat-bb-leave(a)amsat.org > Manage all of your AMSAT-NA mailing list preferences athttps://mailman.amsat.org

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Re: Detail on Cache district school contact
by aj9n＠aol.com 05 Feb '23

05 Feb '23

Hi Loren and all, The announcements I post to the AMSAT-BB are a shortened version of a much bigger file. I try not to clutter up the announcements to the AMSAT-BB too much. I do try to keep things updated in near-real time since everything in ARISS happens very very quickly. Within that announcement, I present the schools that have their confirmed contact times (more about that in a moment). In the announcement you will also find a few lines that I am repeating below from my Saturday posting to address the comment about finding the questions: The complete schedule page has been updated as of 2023-02-04 17:30 UTC. (***) Here you will find a listing of all scheduled school contacts, and questions, other ISS related websites, IRLP and Echolink websites, and instructions for any contact that may be streamed live. https://www.amsat.org/amsat/ariss/news/arissnews.rtf https://www.amsat.org/amsat/ariss/news/arissnews.txt (A side note, Bob Bruninga WB4APR asked me many years ago if I could also have a text file so the file could be sent through easily on a hamsat. I keep this per his request.) If you download one of these 2 files, then you will see the complete listing of the scheduled contact times, the school questions if I have them, and the complete list of the schools that are on our near-term scheduling queue. Some of these schools are about 5 months away from their contact week, some are only a few days out. Just a short word, sometimes I get the questions after the school contact has happened, I post things within 8 to 10 hours of receiving something. The questions are also sent out a few days in advance by Dave AA4KN; another one of the ARISS mentors and PR person. The latest one he sent is labeled ARISS News Release No. 23-04. These releases have the questions as well as a bit more information about the school. Please note, that ARISS does not publish the student names with the questions. We do try to protect the students as much as possible. Now for your question about the contact time that is listed in my announcements. The times you usually see are to be thought of as more of a planning time for the ISS planners. Let me explain more about the process of how a school progresses through our system. When a school gets accepted into the ARISS program to have a scheduled contact, they are first placed into what is known as our Waiting Page (currently there are about 40 schools on this list). These are schools that are often many months to possibly a year or 2 out from a contact. On our Schedule Page (currently there are about 20 schools on this list) are the schools that have waited their turn for other schools to have their contact. These are the ones that we have slotted into a mutually agreed upon week to try and schedule a contact. Think of the Schedule Page as our more near-term contacts list. Roughly about 6 months worth of schools are on this list. We try for 1 contact per week, sometimes that happens, sometimes we get more, sometimes we get none. About a month to 1.5 months out from a school's contact week, the school gets presented a list of date and time options for them to prioritize or reject. So depending on the school location and availability time, the crew schedule, and the ISS orbital mechanics; there may be 2 or 3 possibilities or maybe 7 or 8 or none (in which case we have to change the week). These option times are generated from our ARISS orbital guru (retired NASA) who is actually working with Kep data that is not totally in the public domain. You should think of the times as more of a placeholder/planning time for the ISS planners. As the contact date approaches, the actual contact time starts to jell to a time that might be off from what has been published in the announcements but is using the very latest public domain Kep data. Each school is told to make sure that they keep checking the contact time (our ARISS telebridge stations already know to do this); especially on the day of the actual contact. The latest Kep data that they download is what is in command for the actual time. The ISS is pretty big and thus there is drag which lowers the orbit. So every once in awhile, the ISS gets reboosted; that changes the orbit. And sometimes, the ISS needs to do a collision avoidance maneuver. Hence the Kep data is changing on a daily basis. And sometimes that change happens only a few hours before a contact. Sometimes that change is unplanned. In my postings, I do include this line: Note, all times are approximate. It is recommended that you do your own orbital prediction or start listening about 10 minutes before the listed time. I just ran the orbital track using data from Celestrak for Cache County and this is what I am getting: Tuesday 2023-02-07 AOS 18:45:33, LOS 18:56:14 Max elevation 32 degrees. (I will not be able to hear the ISS during this contact time as I am in the Melbourne, FL area.) Here is what I have posted in my latest posting: Contact is go for: Tue 2023-02-07 18:45:54 UTC 32 deg If you want to hear the ISS from your location, then you will need to run your own predictions using your own software (like SatPC32) or any of the on-line prediction sites. Obviously for your own location, you will need to know your longitude, latitude, and elevation. If you want to see the prediction from the school's or telebridge station location, then use the town data that is closest to them. You may be off a few seconds from the school's actual location. By the way, I will not release the actual longitude, latitude, and elevation information that the school is using. The Cache County contact is going to be Live-streamed. Check my postings for the latest link URLs that I have. As always, I do sometimes get very last minute changes that I will try to post for everyone if that happens. I hope this explains things a bit. If you have any questions, please let me or any of the other ARISS mentors and officers know. ARISS is an all volunteer program and many of us put in a large number of hours into the program. With all of the duties I do for ARISS, I spend about 2 to 3 hours average every day (many times it is more like 8 to 9). All of this for about 10 minutes of talk time with a crewmember on orbit and maybe, just maybe changing a student's thinking that this STEM/STEAM stuff might actually be sort of cool and not that nerdy. By the way, ARISS has a booth at the Orlando Hamcation next weekend. Stop by and say hi. If you think this ARISS work is something you might want to be more involved with, just let us know. We always need other behind the scenes folks. 73, Charlie Sufana AJ9N One of the ARISS mentors ARISS mentor for Cache County In a message dated 2023-02-05 09:18:17 Eastern Standard Time, amsat-bb(a)amsat.org writes: Loren, I have to run but I will give you a complete explanation when I get back home. 73,Charlie AJ9NARISS Mentor for Cache County Sent from my T-Mobile 4G LTE Device -------- Original message --------From: "Loren M. Lang via AMSAT-BB" <amsat-bb(a)amsat.org>Date: 2/5/23 12:50 AM (GMT-05:00)To: AMSAT BB <amsat-bb(a)amsat.org>Subject: [AMSAT-BB] Detail on Cache district school contact Are the questions for Tuesday's ISS School contact posted somewhere or possibly a live feed? Also, I had noticed last week that the beginning of contact time as predicted on N2YO.com was about 4 minutes earlier than the ARISS bulletin had it. Now that it's a few days later, N2YO has an updated AOS time that is much closer to the time on ARISS which hasn't changed. I originally assumed that N2YO would be more accurate than the time posted on a static timeline, but now I'm wondering if ARISS has more insider details than are available from the public TLEs or if N2YO was just using an older data source. -LorenK7IW ----------------------------------------------------------- Sent via AMSAT-BB(a)amsat.org. AMSAT-NA makes this open forum available to all interested persons worldwide without requiring membership. Opinions expressed are solely those of the author, and do not reflect the official views of AMSAT-NA. Acceptable Use and Privacy Policies available at https://www.amsat.org/about-amsat/ View archives of this mailing list at https://mailman.amsat.org/hyperkitty/list/[email protected] To unsubscribe send an email to amsat-bb-leave(a)amsat.org Manage all of your AMSAT-NA mailing list preferences at https://mailman.amsat.org

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Re: Detail on Cache district school contact
by Clint Bradford 05 Feb '23

05 Feb '23

As time allows, students will ask these questions: 1. What is your biggest, personal goal in relation to space? 2. What keeps you pushing your limits when you are struggling to find motivation? 3. Was there a specific book, movie, or show that inspired you to become an astronaut? 4. How excited do you feel about the Artemis program and its upcoming missions? 5. How fast are you able to spin in a weightless environment? 6. Despite all your training and preparation for space, what is something about living in space you didn't expect? 7. What is your favorite part about the ARISS program? 8. What are you currently researching? 9. What is the part of your job you look most forward to? 10. What is the most fun or interesting experiment you have conducted in space? 11. Does sleeping in the sleeping bag trigger insomnia? 12. Do you ever get claustrophobic? 13. Which NASA project do you feel is the most important to us as human beings? 14. When did or what made you first realize you wanted to be an astronaut? 15. What's the most beautiful view you've seen from space? 16. How many repairs do you usually do to/on the space station daily? 17. If able to access music in space, what types do you usually listen to? 18. Is there a food you think is better in space than Earth? 19. Are plants grown aboard the ISS similar in size as the same plant grown on Earth? 20. What is your favorite 'trick' to do in a weightless environment?

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Re: Detail on Cache district school contact
by aj9n 05 Feb '23

05 Feb '23

Loren,I have to run but I will give you a complete explanation when I get back home. 73,Charlie AJ9NARISS Mentor for Cache CountySent from my T-Mobile 4G LTE Device -------- Original message --------From: "Loren M. Lang via AMSAT-BB" <amsat-bb(a)amsat.org> Date: 2/5/23 12:50 AM (GMT-05:00) To: AMSAT BB <amsat-bb(a)amsat.org> Subject: [AMSAT-BB] Detail on Cache district school contact Are the questions for Tuesday's ISS School contact posted somewhere or possibly a live feed?Also, I had noticed last week that the beginning of contact time as predicted on N2YO.com was about 4 minutes earlier than the ARISS bulletin had it. Now that it's a few days later, N2YO has an updated AOS time that is much closer to the time on ARISS which hasn't changed. I originally assumed that N2YO would be more accurate than the time posted on a static timeline, but now I'm wondering if ARISS has more insider details than are available from the public TLEs or if N2YO was just using an older data source.-LorenK7IW

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Re: Detail on Cache district school contact
by Clint Bradford 05 Feb '23

05 Feb '23

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ARISS News Release No. 23-04
by David Jordan 05 Feb '23

05 Feb '23

ARISS News Release No.23-04 Dave Jordan, AA4KN ARISS PR aa4kn(a)amsat.org FORIMMEDIATE RELEASE ARISSContact is Scheduled with Students at Cache County School District, Millville, Utah,USA February5, 2023—Amateur Radio on the International Space Station (ARISS) has receivedschedule confirmation for an ARISS radio contact between an astronaut aboardthe International Space Station (ISS) and students at RidgelineHigh School located in Millville, UT. ARISS conducts 60-80 of these special amateurradio contacts each year between students around the globe and crew memberswith ham radio licenses aboard the ISS. Cache County School District (District) is sponsoring this ARISScontact, which will take place at Ridgeline H.S. in the suburban community ofMillville, UT. The District offers 12-week-long astronomy courses; about 150 astronomystudents in grades 9-12 (ages 14-18 years) from both Ridgeline HS and nearby SkyView HS will be at Ridgeline HS for the contact. The District’s mainorganizational partner for this contact is the Bridgerland Amateur Radio Club(BARC), club call sign W7IVM. Members of BARC have provided technical expertisefor the radio equipment setup and will be operating the ground station duringthe contact. Students have also been learning about amateur radio from BARCmembers during Ham radio license classes, and participating in hands-onactivities during the club’s HF field contests and other ham classes. BARCmembers also provided Ham radio exam sessions for the students and thecommunity. Other activities BARC members provided the astronomy students includedparticipation in amateur radio satellite contacts, and a hidden transmitterhunt. This will be a direct contact via Amateur Radio allowing students to ask their questions ofAstronaut Josh Cassada, amateur radio call sign KI5CRH. The downlink frequencyfor this contact is 145.800 MHZ and may be heard by listeners that are withinthe ISS-footprint that also encompasses the relay ground station. The amateur radio ground station for this contactis in Millville, UT, USA. Amateur radio operators using call sign W7IVM, willoperate the ground station to establish and maintain the ISS connection. TheARISS radio contact is scheduled for February 7, 2023 at 11:45:54 am MST(Utah) (18:45:54UTC,1:45 pm EST, 12:45 pm CST, 10:45 am PST). The public is invitedto watch the live stream at: Astronomy students prepare to talklive with an astronaut on the International Space Station or at The PodCACHE: Making Contact withthe International Space Station _______________________________ Astime allows, students will ask these questions: 1.What is your biggest, personal goal in relation to space? 2.What keeps you pushing your limits when you are struggling to find motivation? 3.Was there a specific book, movie, or show that inspired you to become anastronaut? 4.How excited do you feel about the Artemis program and its upcoming missions? 5.How fast are you able to spin in a weightless environment? 6.Despite all your training and preparation for space, what is something aboutliving in space you didn't expect? 7.What is your favorite part about the ARISS program? 8.What are you currently researching? 9.What is the part of your job you look most forward to? 10.What is the most fun or interesting experiment you have conducted inspace? 11.Does sleeping in the sleeping bag trigger insomnia? 12.Do you ever get claustrophobic? 13.Which NASA project do you feel is the most important to us as human beings? 14.When did or what made you first realize you wanted to be an astronaut? 15.What's the most beautiful view you've seen from space? 16.How many repairs do you usually do to/on the space station daily? 17.If able to access music in space, what types do you usually listen to? 18.Is there a food you think is better in space than Earth? 19.Are plants grown aboard the ISS similar in size as the same plant grown onEarth? 20.What is your favorite 'trick' to do in a weightless environment? About ARISS: Amateur Radio on the InternationalSpace Station (ARISS) is a cooperative venture of international amateur radiosocieties and the space agencies that support the International Space Station(ISS). In the United States, sponsors are the Radio Amateur SatelliteCorporation (AMSAT), the American Radio Relay League (ARRL), the ISS NationalLab-Space Station Explorers, Amateur Radio Digital Communications (ARDC) andNASA’s Space Communications and Navigation program (SCaN). The primary goal ofARISS is to promote exploration of science, technology, engineering, the arts,and mathematics topics. ARISS does this by organizing scheduled contacts viaamateur radio between crew members aboard the ISS and students. Before andduring these radio contacts, students, educators, parents, and communities takepart in hands-on learning activities tied to space, space technologies, andamateur radio. For more information, see http://www.ariss.org MediaContact: DaveJordan, AA4KN ARISSPR Findus on social media at: Twitter:ARISS_Intl Facebook:facebook.com/ARISSIntl Instagram:ariss_intl Mastodon:[email protected] Checkout ARISS on Youtube.com.

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Detail on Cache district school contact
by Loren M. Lang 05 Feb '23

05 Feb '23

Are the questions for Tuesday's ISS School contact posted somewhere or possibly a live feed? Also, I had noticed last week that the beginning of contact time as predicted on N2YO.com was about 4 minutes earlier than the ARISS bulletin had it. Now that it's a few days later, N2YO has an updated AOS time that is much closer to the time on ARISS which hasn't changed. I originally assumed that N2YO would be more accurate than the time posted on a static timeline, but now I'm wondering if ARISS has more insider details than are available from the public TLEs or if N2YO was just using an older data source. -Loren K7IW

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ANS-036 AMSAT News Service Weekly Bulletins
by Paul Stoetzer 05 Feb '23

05 Feb '23

AMSAT NEWS SERVICE ANS-036 In this edition: * AO-95 QRT * VUCC Satellite Standings as of February 1, 2023 * New Satellite Distance Records * ARISS News * Upcoming Satellite Operations * Hamfests, Conventions, Maker Faires, and Other Events * Satellite Shorts From All Over The AMSAT News Service bulletins are a free, weekly news and information service of AMSAT, The Radio Amateur Satellite Corporation. ANS publishes news related to Amateur Radio in Space including reports on the activities of a worldwide group of Amateur Radio operators who share an active interest in designing, building, launching and communicating through analog and digital Amateur Radio satellites. The news feed on http://www.amsat.org publishes news of Amateur Radio in Space as soon as our volunteers can post it. Please send any amateur satellite news or reports to: ans-editor [at] amsat.org You can sign up for free e-mail delivery of the AMSAT News Service Bulletins via the ANS List; to join this list see: https://mailman.amsat.org/postorius/lists/ans.amsat.org/ ANS-036 AMSAT News Service Weekly Bulletins To: All RADIO AMATEURS From: Radio Amateur Satellite Corporation 712 H Street NE, Suite 1653 Washington, DC 20002 DATE 2023 Feb 05 AO-95 QRT After a lingering illness of the battery, AO-95 passed away peacefully on December 23rd. While a miraculous return is always possible, it is not expected. AO-95, known prior to launch as Fox-1Cliff to commemorate amateur satellite pioneer Cliff Buttschardt, K7RR, who became a silent key in 2007, launched on December 3, 2018 on a SpaceX Falcon 9 from Vandenburg Air Force Base. Shortly after deployment, the AMSAT Engineering team received nominal telemetry data from the satellite, but upon the first attempts at commanding, it was discovered that the receiver had failed for unknown reasons. Still, the satellite provided an easy to receive beacon and telemetry data for over four years before the NiCd batteries failed. [ANS thanks Alan Biddle, WA4SCA, AMSAT Fox Operations Team, and AMSAT for the above information] +=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+ The 2023 AMSAT President's Club coins are here now! To commemorate the 40th anniversary of its launch on June 16, 1983, this year's coin features an image of AMSAT-OSCAR 10. Join the AMSAT President's Club today and help Keep Amateur Radio in Space! https://www.amsat.org/join-the-amsat-presidents-club/ +=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+ VUCC Satellite Standings as of February 1, 2023 VUCC Satellite Award/Endorsement Change Summary for January 01, 2023 to February 01, 2023. K8DP 1350 1425 WC7V 1256 1303 MI6GTY 579 970 KF7R 925 N3GS 796 873 NS3L 725 785 K9UO 750 777 KE8RJU 650 725 WD9EWK (DM43) 715 720 KN2K 654 701 F4BKV 600 700 VE6WK 564 700 W8LR 667 687 EA2AA 643 653 XE1L 639 KC1MMC 532 629 DL2GRC New 628 FG8OJ 513 531 VU2LBW 400 513 KB1HY 427 457 KC3KOP New 439 AC9DX 332 427 N8MR 377 425 WB7QXU 325 400 DL6KBG 250 331 XE1UYS 126 327 JH0BBE 226 314 LU3FCA 101 310 AA0MZ 263 276 LU4FTA 223 268 IK7FMQ 190 254 W7YED 163 254 PA7RA 224 242 JG6CDH New 235 DL8GAM 186 220 JH8FIH New 214 JA1GZK 150 205 AG7NR 101 200 IK3ITB 100 200 JL1SAM New 200 IK8YTA 106 162 JG2TSL New 157 JS2GGD 101 157 SP5ULN New 156 JE1TNL New 150 PY2YJ New 150 JO4JKL New 135 KE8RPJ 100 125 IK0WRB New 123 XE1EVP New 123 N6PAZ 100 110 JA1QJI New 109 KB9DAK New 108 N1QDQ New 107 JI5USJ New 104 JE3HCZ New 103 NY1V New 102 4Z1JJ New 100 DH1OK New 100 N9BX New 100 VA7TF New 100 Congratulations to the new VUCC holders. 4Z1JJ is first VUCC Satellite holder from Israel and KM71 JG6CDH is first VUCC Satellite holder from PM43 JI5USJ is first VUCC Satellite holder from PM64 JO4JKL is first VUCC Satellite holder from PM65 JG2TSL is first VUCC Satellite holder from PM94 JH8FIH is first VUCC Satellite holder from QN14 [ANS thanks Jon Goering, N7AZ, for the above information] +=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+ Need new satellite antennas? Purchase Arrows, Alaskan Arrows, and M2 LEO-Packs from the AMSAT Store. When you purchase through AMSAT, a portion of the proceeds goes towards Keeping Amateur Radio in Space. https://amsat.org/product-category/hardware/ +=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+ New Satellite Distance Records A number of new distance records via satellite have been claimed over the past couple of months. First is the massively popular new MEO satellite IO-117. Burt DeMarcq, FG8OJ, worked Shigenori Nasu, JH8FIH, on November 25, 2022 at 08:22 UTC. The distance between FG8OJ in FK96hg63 in Guadeloupe and JH8FIH in QN14qi16 in Japan is 12,823 km. Note that for future claims of IO-117, only live QSOs may be counted and not those completed over multiple orbits using the satellite's delayed messaging capabilities. A new distance record was also claimed via the QO-100 geostationary satellite. PT9AL in GG27os in Brazil worked XW4KV in Laos OK27jj on December 10, 2022 at 14:41 UTC. The distance between the two stations is 17,834 km, eclipsing the previous record held by PR8KW and YC5YC of 17,378 km. Finally, FO-118, launched in December is a LEO satellite carrying three transponders. Familiar faces for the AMSAT Satellite Distance Records have claimed the initial record on all three transponders - the V/u FM transponder, the V/u linear transponder, and the H/u linear transponder (15 meter uplink). F4DXV and VE1CWJ completed transatlantic QSOs on all three transponders. On January 6, 2023 at 04:15 UTC, they completed a QSO via the V/u FM transponder and then switched over to the V/u linear transponder to complete a QSO there one minute later. VE1CWJ was in FN85do83sg and F4DXV was in JN04js20pr. They completed the sweep of all three transponders on January 30, 2023, when they completed a QSO via the H/u linear transponder at 17:16 UTC. VE1CWJ was in the same location while F4DXV was in JN04it22nt for this QSO, for a distance of 4,908 km. Anyone who wants to claim a distance record via an amateur satellite should check the current list at https://www.amsat.org/satellite-distance-records/ and email n8hm at arrl.net if they complete a new record distance. Audio and/or video of the QSO is encouraged but not required. [ANS thanks Paul Stoetzer, N8HM, AMSAT Executive Vice President, for the above information] +=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+ Want to fly the colors on your own grid expedition? Get your AMSAT car flag and other neat stuff from our Zazzle store! 25% of the purchase price of each product goes towards Keeping Amateur Radio in Space https://www.zazzle.com/amsat_gear +=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+ Changes to AMSAT-NA TLE Distribution for February 2, 2023 Two Line Elements or TLEs, often referred to as Keplerian elements or keps in the amateur community, are the inputs to the SGP4 standard mathematical model of spacecraft orbits used by most amateur tracking programs. Weekly updates are completely adequate for most amateur satellites. TLE bulletin files are updated Thursday evenings around 2300 UTC, or more frequently if new high interest satellites are launched. More information may be found at https://www.amsat.org/keplerian-elements-resources/ AMSAT IT, in conjunction with the New England Sci-Tech STEM Education Center assembled a tiger team of software experts from the Olin College of Engineering, Boston Latin School and the Wilson Middle School to investigate the recent disappearance of AO-7 from www.amsat.org/tle/current/dailytle.txt and the legacy naasbare.txt files. The team determined that AMSAT's processing is not robust in the face of minor format differences in the source data received from the USSF's 18th Space Defense Squadron. Specifically, the TLE data provided does not always include the leading zero in AO-7's object number "07530". The official report from the team's leader : "My grandma would say that AMSAT's software is just a little too persnickety". A member of the tiger team agreed to adjust the update script to account for the vagaries of the 18th SDS data. A production quality fix is expected by March 1st, meanwhile manual monitoring and updates will keep AO-7 in the files. There were no changes to the February 2, 2023 distribution. [ANS thanks Ray Hoad, WA5QGD, AMSAT Orbital Elements Manager, and Joe Fitzgerald, KM1P, AMSAT IT, for the above information] --------------------------------------------------------------------- ARISS News Amateurs and others around the world may listen in on contacts between amateurs operating in schools and allowing students to interact with astronauts and cosmonauts aboard the International Space Station. The downlink frequency on which to listen is 145.800 MHz worldwide. Quick list of scheduled contacts and events: Dinskaya, Russia, direct via TBD The ISS callsign is presently scheduled to be RSØISS The downlink frequency is presently scheduled to be 145.800 MHz The scheduled crewmember is Anna Kikina Contact is go for Sun 2023-02-05 14:25 UTC (***) Cache County School District, Millville, UT, direct via W7IVM The ISS callsign is presently scheduled to be NA1SS The downlink frequency is presently scheduled to be 145.800 MHz The scheduled crewmember is Josh Cassada KI5CRH Contact is go for: Tue 2023-02-07 18:45:54 UTC 32 deg Colegio Diocesano Santa María Nuestra Señora, Écija, Spain, telebridge via IK1SLD The ISS callsign is presently scheduled to be OR4ISS The downlink frequency is presently scheduled to be 145.800 MHz The scheduled crewmember is Josh Cassada KI5CRH Contact is go for: Wed 2023-02-08 10:13:59 UTC 74 deg Starting about 15 minutes before AOS, watch for Livestream at http://www.ariotti.com/ Special thanks to our ARISS telebridge ground stations. Approximately 38% of the ARISS school contacts are handled by the ARISS telebridge stations. Thanks to following stations: AB1OC, IK1SLD, K6DUE, NA7V, ON4ISS, VK4ISS, VK4KHZ, VK5ZAI, VK6MJ, and ZS6JON. The crossband repeater continues to be active. If any crewmember is so inclined, all they have to do is pick up the microphone, raise the volume up, and talk on the crossband repeater. So give a listen, you just never know. Comments on making general contacts I have been seeing a lot of traffic on Facebook and I suspect on other social media sites with people asking why they are not hearing the crew make general contacts. First off the crew is very busy on the ISS and they simply may not have the time to just pick up the microphone and talk. Also, one needs to be aware of their normal daily schedule. I have listed below the constraints that we at ARISS have to follow in order to schedule the school contacts. Hopefully this will help you better schedule your opportunities. Typical daily schedule Wakeup to Workday start= 1.5 hours Workday start to Workday end=12 hours Workday end to Sleep= 2 hours Sleep to wakeup= 8.5 hours The crew's usual waking period is 0730 - 1930 UTC. The most common times to find a crew member making casual periods are about one hour after waking and before sleeping, when they have personal time. They're usually free most of the weekend, as well. SSTV events are not that often. So please check out https://www.ariss.org/ for the latest information or watch for the ARISS announcements. And don’t forget that the packet system is active. As always, if there is an EVA, a docking, or an undocking; the ARISS radios are turned off as part of the safety protocol. ARISS Radio Status Columbus Module radios: IORS (Kenwood D710GA) – STATUS - Configured. Default mode is for cross band repeater (145.990 MHz up {PL 67} & 437.800 MHz down). *Powering off for Progress 81 undock on February 7. OFF Feb 6 about 14:30 UTC. ON Feb 7 about 08:35 UTC. *Powering off for Progress 83 docking on February 11. OFF Feb 10 about 18:55 UTC. ON Feb 12 about 14:00. *Powering off for Progress 82 undock on February 18. OFF Feb 17 about 18:25UTC. ON Feb 18 about 11:45 UTC. *Powering off for Soyuz 69 docking on February 22. OFF Feb 21 about TBD . ON Feb 13 about TBD. *Capable of supporting USOS scheduled voice contacts, packet and voice repeater ops. Service Module radios: IORS (Kenwood D710GA) – STATUS - Configured. Default mode is fo packet operations (145.825 MHz up & down) *Powering off for Progress 81 undock on February 7. OFF Feb 6 about 14:30 UTC. ON Feb 7 about 08:35 UTC. *Powering off for Progress 83 docking on February 11. OFF Feb 10 about 18:55 UTC. ON Feb 12 about 14:00. *Powering off for Progress 82 undock on February 18. OFF Feb 17 about 18:25UTC. ON Feb 18 about 11:45 UTC. *Powering off for Soyuz 69 docking on February 22. OFF Feb 21 about TBD . ON Feb 13 about TBD. *Capable of supporting ROS scheduled voice contacts, packet, SSTV and voice repeater ops. The latest information on the operation mode can be found at https://www.ariss.org/current-status-of-iss-stations.html The latest list of frequencies in use can be found at https://www.ariss.org/contact-the-iss.html [ANS thanks Charlie Sufana, AJ9N, one of the ARISS operation team mentors for the above information] -------------------------------------------------------------------- Upcoming Satellite Operations JD1YCC ( G-G HAM Club ) is planning to activate EME operation on 2m/70cm/23cm band at Ogasawara chichi island(JD1/O) from Feb.07 to Feb.13 2023. They plan to QRV on GREENCUBE/IO-117 also (EME) at Moon time. Op will be JJ3JHP/JD1BQD Hiro. [ANS thanks Paul Overn, KE0PBR, AMSAT rover page manager, for the above information] --------------------------------------------------------------------- Hamfests, Conventions, Maker Faires, and Other Events AMSAT Ambassadors provide presentations, demonstrate communicating through amateur satellites, and host information tables at club meetings, hamfests, conventions, maker faires, and other events. AMSAT Ambassador Clint Bradford K6LCS has a few satellite presentations scheduled, most notable is Thames Valley, England (5/11/23) Clint can be reached at: (909) 999-7287 or an email link at https://www.work-sat.com/contact.html. 2023 HamCation(r)Hosting ARRL Southeastern Division Convention. Robert Bankston, KE4AL, AMSAT President, will present "Shaping the Amateur Radio Satellite World of Tomorrow" at 2:00PM - 3:00PM EST Saturday, February 11 in the OS Pavillion. HamCation will be held at Central Florida Fairgrounds and Expo Park, Orlando, FL, Friday, Saturday, and Sunday, February 10-12, 2023 [ANS thanks Paul Overn, KE0PBR, AMSAT Events page manager, for the above information] --------------------------------------------------------------------- Satellite Shorts From All Over + The FO-99 operation schedule for February is available at https://www.jamsat.or.jp/?p=2079 (Thanks to JAMSAT for this information) + A volunteer is being sought to take over the Gridmaster Heat Map on Twitter. Paul Overn, KE0PBR, has announced his intent to “retire” from the project that he has moderated there for the past three years. Paul has assisted many grid chasers by relaying information about rovers, and keeping tabs of which grids are in greatest need. Unless someone steps forward, Gridmaster Heat Map will disappear next month. Thanks to Paul for your valuable contribution to satellite operations! (ANS thanks Paul Overn, KE0PBR, for this information) + A while ago, perhaps almost two years ago, I modified the LVBTracker firmware in my Fox Delta ST2-USB so that it would allow for more calibration points than just the min and max for azimuth. I had added a remote-control option to an old Yaesu G-450XL, but the output voltage was very non-linear, which led to terrible aiming of the antennas. With the mods I made to the firmware it now allows me to calibrate the controller at 0, 90, 180, 270, and 360 degrees and aiming is now rather accurate. I wrote about it here: https://thehamlab.com/2023/02/02/fox-delta-st2-lvbtracker-calibration-mods/ If you feel this could be useful for you, the source code for the project can be found on GitHub: https://github.com/TheHamLab/LVBTracker.KR1ST (Thanks KR1ST for this information) + SuitSat-1 (AMSAT-OSCAR 54) deployed from the ISS 17 years ago February 3rd. It played voice messages in languages recorded by the ARISS partners and students from around the globe. It also sent telemetry data. It was lost 15 days later. SuitSat came back to life in a 2021 short horror film! If you'd like to watch the Sci-Fi Horror short film "Decommissioned" based on the ARISS SuitSat, it can be found on YouTube at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TNtpdvfbTjA (Thanks ARISS for this information) -------------------------------------------------------------------- Join AMSAT today at https://launch.amsat.org/ In addition to regular membership, AMSAT offers membership to: * Societies (a recognized group, clubs or organization). * Primary and secondary school students are eligible for membership at one-half the standard yearly rate. * Post-secondary school students enrolled in at least half time status shall be eligible for the student rate for a maximum of 6 post-secondary years in this status. * Memberships are available for annual and lifetime terms. Contact info [at] amsat.org for additional membership information. 73 and remember to help Keep Amateur Radio in Space! This week's ANS Editor, Paul Stoetzer, N8HM n8hm [at] amsat.org

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Upcoming ARISS Contact Schedule as of 2023-02-04 17:30 UTC
by aj9n＠aol.com 04 Feb '23

04 Feb '23

Upcoming ARISS Contact Schedule as of 2023-02-04 17:30 UTC Quick list of scheduled contacts and events: About Gagarin From Space, students of Aznakayevo, Aznakayevo, Rep. of Tatarstan, Russia, direct via RC4P (***) The ISS callsign is presently scheduled to be RSØISS The downlink frequency is presently scheduled to be 145.800 MHz The latest information on the operation mode can be found at https://www.ariss.org/current-status-of-iss-stations.html The scheduled crewmember is Dimitri Petelin Contact was successful for: Sat 2023-02-04 10:24 UTC (***) About Gagarin From Space, "Secondary secondary school No. 2 named after A.V. Suvorov" and the Center for Children's Creativity, Dinskaya, Russia, direct via RY6AAC (***) The ISS callsign is presently scheduled to be RSØISS The downlink frequency is presently scheduled to be 145.800 MHz The latest information on the operation mode can be found at https://www.ariss.org/current-status-of-iss-stations.html The scheduled crewmember is Anna Kikina Contact is go for Sun 2023-02-05 14:25 UTC Cache County School District, Millville, UT, direct via W7IVM The ISS callsign is presently scheduled to be NA1SS The downlink frequency is presently scheduled to be 145.800 MHz The latest information or on the operation mode can be found at https://www.ariss.org/current-status-of-iss-stations.html The scheduled crewmember is Josh Cassada KI5CRH Contact is go for: Tue 2023-02-07 18:45:54 UTC 32 deg Both of these links have a link to the actual contact Livestream. Astronomy students prepare to talk live with an astronaut on the International Space Station The PodCACHE: Making Contact with the International Space Station Colegio Diocesano Santa María Nuestra Señora, Écija, Spain, telebridge via IK1SLD The ISS callsign is presently scheduled to be OR4ISS The downlink frequency is presently scheduled to be 145.800 MHz The latest information on the operation mode can be found at https://www.ariss.org/current-status-of-iss-stations.html The scheduled crewmember is Josh Cassada KI5CRH Contact is go for: Wed 2023-02-08 10:13:59 UTC 74 deg Starting about 15 minutes before AOS, watch for Livestream at http://www.ariotti.com/. They are also streaming at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7nYFP7qzUtk The crossband repeater continues to be active. If any crewmember is so inclined, all they have to do is pick up the microphone, raise the volume up, and talk on the crossband repeater. So give a listen, you just never know. Note, all times are approximate. It is recommended that you do your own orbital prediction or start listening about 10 minutes before the listed time. All dates and times listed follow International Standard ISO 8601 date and time format YYYY-MM-DD HH:MM:SS The complete schedule page has been updated as of 2023-02-04 17:30 UTC. (***) Here you will find a listing of all scheduled school contacts, and questions, other ISS related websites, IRLP and Echolink websites, and instructions for any contact that may be streamed live. https://www.amsat.org/amsat/ariss/news/arissnews.rtf https://www.amsat.org/amsat/ariss/news/arissnews.txt The successful school list has been updated as of 2023-02-04 17:30 UTC.(***) https://www.amsat.org/amsat/ariss/news/Successful_ARISS_schools.rtf ####################################################################################################################################### Comments on making general contacts I have been seeing a lot of traffic on Facebook and I suspect on other social media sites with people asking why they are not hearing the crew make general contacts. First off the crew is very busy on the ISS and they simply may not have the time to just pick up the microphone and talk. Also, one needs to be aware of their normal daily schedule. I have listed below the constraints that we at ARISS have to follow in order to schedule the school contacts. Hopefully this will help you better schedule your opportunities. Typical daily schedule Wakeup to Workday start= 1.5 hours Workday start to Workday end=12 hours Workday end to Sleep= 2 hours Sleep to wakeup= 8.5 hours The crew's usual waking period is 0730 - 1930 UTC. The most common times to find a crew member making casual periods are about one hour after waking and before sleeping, when they have personal time. They're usually free most of the weekend, as well. SSTV events are not that often. So please check out https://www.ariss.org/ for the latest information or watch for the ARISS announcements. And don’t forget that the packet system is active. As always, if there is an EVA, a docking, or an undocking; the ARISS radios are turned off as part of the safety protocol. The latest information on the operation mode can be found at https://www.ariss.org/current-status-of-iss-stations.html The latest list of frequencies in use can be found at https://www.ariss.org/contact-the-iss.html ######################################################################################################################################## A multi-point telebridge contact means that each student will be on the telebridge from their own home. **************************************************************************************************************************************** ARISS is very aware of the impact that COVID-19 is having on schools and the public in general. As such, we may have last minute cancellations or postponements of school contacts. As always, I will try to provide everyone with near-real-time updates. Watch for future COVID-19 related announcements at https://www.ariss.org/ The following schools have now been postponed or cancelled due to COVID-19: Postponed: No new schools Cancelled: No new schools **************************************************************************************************************************************** The ARISS webpage is at https://www.ariss.org/ Note that there are links to other ARISS websites from this site. The main page for Applying to Host a Scheduled Contact may be found at https://www.ariss.org/apply-to-host-an-ariss-contact.html +++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++ +++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++ ARISS Contact Applications (United States) Call for Proposals The proposal window for US schools and educational organizations to host an Amateur Radio contact with a crew member on board the ISS for contacts to be scheduled for July 1, 2023 – December 31, 2023 has closed. Watch for the next opportunity for proposals for the first half of 2024 sometime in the springtime period of 2023. (***) Please direct any questions to ariss.us.education(a)gmail.com. For future proposal information and more details such as expectations, proposal guidelines and proposal form, and dates and times of Information Webinars, go to www.ariss.org. About ARISS: Amateur Radio on the International Space Station (ARISS) is a cooperative venture of international amateur radio societies and the space agencies that support the International Space Station (ISS). In the United States, sponsors are the Radio Amateur Satellite Corporation (AMSAT), the American Radio Relay League (ARRL), the ISS National Lab and National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA). The primary goal of ARISS is to promote exploration of science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEAM) topics by organizing scheduled contacts via amateur radio between crew members aboard the ISS and students in classrooms or public forms. Before and during these radio contacts, students, educators, parents, and communities learn about space, space technologies, and amateur radio. For more information, see www.ariss.org. +++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++ +++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++ ARISS Contact Applications (Europe, Africa and the Middle East) Schools and Youth organizations in Europe, Africa and the Middle East interested in setting up an ARISS radio contact with an astronaut on board the International Space Station are invited to submit an application from September to October and from February to April. Please refer to details and the application form at www.ariss-eu.org/school-contacts. Applications should be addressed by email to: school.selection.manager(a)ariss-eu.org ARISS Contact Applications (Canada, Central and South America, Asia and Australia and Russia) +++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++ +++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++ Organizations outside the United States can apply for an ARISS contact by filling out an application. Please direct questions to the appropriate regional representative listed below. If your country is not specifically listed, send your questions to the nearest ARISS Region listed. If you are unsure which address to use, please send your question to the ARISS-Canada representative; they will forward your question to the appropriate coordinator. For the application, go to: https://www.ariss.org/ariss-application.html. ARISS-Canada and the Americas, except USA: Steve McFarlane, VE3TBD email to: ve3tbd(a)gmail.com ARISS-Japan, Asia, Pacific and Australia: Satoshi Yasuda, 7M3TJZ email to: ariss(a)iaru-r3.org, Japan Amateur Radio League (JARL) https://www.jarl.org/ ARISS-Russia: Soyuz Radioljubitelei Rossii (SRR) https://srr.ru/ +++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++ +++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++ ARISS is always glad to receive listener reports for the above contacts. ARISS thanks everyone in advance for their assistance. Feel free to send your reports to aj9n(a)amsat.org or aj9n(a)aol.com. Listen for the ISS on the downlink of 145.8Ø MHz unless otherwise noted. ******************************************************************************* All ARISS contacts are made via the Kenwood radio unless otherwise noted. ******************************************************************************* Several of you have sent me emails asking about the RAC ARISS website and not being able to get in. That has now been changed to https://www.ariss.org/ Note that there are links to other ARISS websites from this site. **************************************************************************** Looking for something new to do? How about receiving DATV from the ISS? Please note that the HamTV system has been brought back to earth for troubleshooting. Please monitor ARISS-EU or ARISS-ON for the very latest news on the troubleshooting efforts. If interested, then please go to the ARISS-EU website for complete details. Look for the buttons indicating Ham Video. http://www.ariss-eu.org/ If you need some assistance, ARISS mentor Kerry N6IZW, might be able to provide some insight. Contact Kerry at kbanke(a)sbcglobal.net The HamTV webpage: https://www.amsat-on.be/hamtv-summary/ **************************************************************************** ARISS congratulates the following mentors who have now mentored over 100 schools: Sergey RV3DR with 194 (***) Francesco IKØWGF with 149 Satoshi 7M3TJZ with 148 Gaston ON4WF with 124 Peter IN3GHZ with 115 Steve VE3TBD with 103 **************************************************************************** The webpages listed below were all reviewed for accuracy. Out of date webpages were removed, and new ones have been added. If there are additional ARISS websites I need to know about, please let me know. Total number of ARISS ISS to earth school events is 1601. (***) Each school counts as 1 event. Total number of ARISS ISS to earth school contacts is 1510. (***) Each contact may have multiple schools sharing the same time slot. Total number of ARISS supported terrestrial contacts is 48. Please feel free to contact me if more detailed statistics are needed. ++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++ The following US states and entities have never had an ARISS contact: South Dakota, American Samoa, Guam, Northern Marianas Islands, and the Virgin Islands. ++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++ QSL information may be found at: https://www.ariss.org/qsl-cards.html ISS callsigns: DPØISS, FXØISS, GB1SS, IRØISS, NA1SS, OR4ISS, RSØISS **************************************************************************** Frequency chart for packet, voice, and crossband repeater modes showing Doppler correction as of 2005-07-29 04:00 UTC https://www.amsat.org/amsat/ariss/news/ISS_frequencies_and_Doppler_correcti… Check out the Zoho reports of the ARISS contacts https://reports.zoho.com/ZDBDataSheetView.cc?DBID=412218000000020415 **************************************************************************** Exp. 68 on orbit Sergey Prokopyev Francisco Rubio Dimitri Petelin SpaceX Crew-5 on orbit Josh Cassada KI5CRH Nicole Mann Anna Kikina Koichi Wakata KI5TMN **************************************************************************** 73, Charlie Sufana AJ9N One of the ARISS operation team mentors

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Re: BALLOON ALOFT
by Alan 04 Feb '23

04 Feb '23

For those of us of a certain age (old): https://www.nasa.gov/centers/langley/about/project-echo.html https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Project_Echo The Project Echo balloons were metalized to enhance reflectivity. 73, Alan WA4SCA From: Burns Fisher via AMSAT-BB <amsat-bb(a)amsat.org> Sent: Saturday, February 4, 2023 08:47 To: Pat Kilroy <patkilroy1(a)gmail.com> Cc: amsat-bb(a)amsat.org Subject: [AMSAT-BB] Re: BALLOON ALOFT I wonder if it is "bounceable" to enable making contacts off it as is :-) On Sat, Feb 4, 2023 at 12:47 AM Pat Kilroy via AMSAT-BB <mailto:[email protected]> wrote: https://news.yahoo.com/chinese-spy-balloon-flying-montana-weather-what-to-k… IF THE PAYLOAD TRAIN is captured then, being an engineer and high-altitude balloon experimenter myself, i would volunteer to analyze it with a couple of my AMSAT & ARHAB buddies. It looks like a ULDB balloon type, so toss in another buddy from the NASA Wallops Flight Facility too. Thoughts? Cheers, Pat N8PK-FM19 -- Pat Kilroy 1 ----------------------------------------------------------- Sent via AMSAT-BB(a)http://amsat.org. AMSAT-NA makes this open forum available to all interested persons worldwide without requiring membership. Opinions expressed are solely those of the author, and do not reflect the official views of AMSAT-NA. Acceptable Use and Privacy Policies available at https://www.amsat.org/about-amsat/ View archives of this mailing list at https://mailman.amsat.org/hyperkitty/list/[email protected] To unsubscribe send an email to amsat-bb-leave(a)http://amsat.org Manage all of your AMSAT-NA mailing list preferences at https://mailman.amsat.org

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