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OOPS - for N2NHN
by Gene Marks WB2LLP 20 Sep '06

20 Sep '06

John, You had a good signal into AO-51 at 1100 EDST. Several people tried to call you, but apparently you did not hear them. Good luck with your receive problem. 73 de WB2LLP My apologies to N5AFV for a head/finger problem.

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For N5AFV
by Gene Marks WB2LLP 20 Sep '06

20 Sep '06

John, You had a good signal into SO-51 this noon and several people tried to call you. Good luck with your receive problem. 73 de WB2LLP

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Re: SO-50 1900 pass
by John Mock KD6PAG 19 Sep '06

19 Sep '06

> Tried with a handheld with a whip, heard a couple calls but couldn't make > them out. Anyone have success with a like setup? I used to work AO-27 routinely with a long rubber duck, but i cheated a bit. Most often, i'd use a chain link fence (otherwise a large street lamp pole) as a reflector. I'd try to keep the radio about 1/4 of a 2 meter wavelenth from the fence (which 3/4 of a wavelength at 70cm). It made a big difference compared to operating in open space. One time, i worked both Alaska and Hawaii from the parking structure of the Walnut Creek BART station with a long rubber duck and metal fence as a reflector, and i think it was even on low power. This is not a beginner-type thing to do, but with a good path and a good radio, sometimes it can be made to work. Don't do this without a full duplex dual-bander or two radio, as otherwise you are very likely to cause QRM and make sure you can copy callsigns before transmitting!!! ID as QRP, as then folks may also help you out. 73's and good luck. -- KD6PAG (Networking Old-Timer, Satellite QRPer) P.S. SO-50 have been fairly quiet lately and more usage would be appreciated even on transcontinental passes. [Note: If i'm in your address book, please replace 'qsl.net' with 'amsat.org'.]

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Activity from Hawaii
by John W Lee 19 Sep '06

19 Sep '06

Hello All, Ron, W6ZQ, advises me that he and Rick, WH6FC will be active on SO-50 and AO-51 for the next week or two from Hawaii. They are on the big island now, BK28 and BK29. Ron will be going to Maui next week for a week or two, BL10, BL20, BL21. Good hunting ! Check those westerly passes ! 73, John K6YK

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Re: SO50
by Wayne Estes 19 Sep '06

19 Sep '06

David M0ZLB/KG4ZLB wrote: Bit of a "performance" reconfiguring for the switch on tone and then switching back for the shortish pass! Guess that's why it seems unused over here, no-one can be bothered! Wayne replies: Switching between the two tones can be done with a single mouse click if you control your radio with SatPC32 (version 12.3 or newer). Yes, it can be a nuisance if you have to push a bunch of buttons on your radio to switch tones. But the transponder stays active for 10 minutes, plenty of time to fumble with buttons AND make a few contacts. Wayne Estes W9AE Oakland, Oregon, USA, CN83ik

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PO-28 SK
by Kyle Yoksh 19 Sep '06

19 Sep '06

Thanks for the link, Pat. I have been asking for quite some time for an update, ANY update on this bird. Here is the post for those who may have missed it: AMSAT-UK -- POSAT Written by G3YJO Monday, 18 September 2006 Following the recent kind agreement of Consórcio SAT, the owners of PoSAT (PO28 or 1993-061D) which was launched on the Ariane V59 from Kourou on the 26th September 1993, work has been progressing at SSTL and the Surrey Space Centre to switch transponder frequencies to the amateur satellite service to serve as a voice FM transponder for use by all radio amateurs worldwide. Unfortunately, recent investigations now indicate that the PoSAT onboard NiCd batteries are showing the effects of 12 years in orbit and the approx 100,000 charge /discharge cycles to which they have subjected and are no longer holding sufficient charge to operate the downlinks. This may mean that, sadly after all, it will not be possible for the satellite to be made available for amateur use. We fully understand the benefits that PO28 would offer radio amateurs and work is continuing at Surrey to see if there is any way to revive this 'old lady'. Watch this space for further updates. Martin Sweeting G3YJO --- Original Message --- Date: Tue, 19 Sep 2006 09:29:29 -0400 (EDT) From: McGrane Subject: [amsat-bb] POSAT, PO-28 To: Amsat BB <amsat-bb(a)amsat.org> Greetings To G3YJO, Martin Regarding PO-28 and the NICAD batteries; Could the satellite operate independant of the batteries in sunlight? reference: http://www.uk.amsat.org/ thanks, pat n2oeq

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JOTA weekend and AO-51 Schedule Update
by Andrew Glasbrenner 19 Sep '06

19 Sep '06

I just posted the new AO-51 Schedule that runs to November 6th. Please note that AMSAT is again supporting the Jamboree on the Air event (JOTA) on the weekend of October 21st and 22nd by running dual repeaters on AO-51, with the 435.150 QRP repeater reserved for JOTA contacts on the weekend. Please yield the 435.150 repeater to JOTA contacts, especially between two JOTA stations, for the weekend passes. Otherwise, the normal AO-51 QRP rules apply, 10 watts to omni or handheld antennas only. Visit the schedule at: http://www.amsat.org/amsat-new/echo/ControlTeam.php 73, Drew KO4MA AMSAT LM2332 For the AO-51 Operations Group

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Re: Why do the amsats get more and more complex?
by Jason White 19 Sep '06

19 Sep '06

Thanks to everyone who replied, and to those who may still reply. I suppose what I needed was a subtle shift in point of view and several people provided clear and relevant information which allowed it... I also was under-informed.. time to update my copy of the Satellite Experimenter's Handbook :) What I was misinterpreting is the balance between "what we know works" and "new and experimental". I was under the impression that too much emphasis was being placed on the later, however with a bit of research spurred by the conversation it seems a bit more like ensuring operation by modest stations was a design characteristic of some of the newer sats. I'm still a little skeptical of the SDR transponder, and I probably fall under the category of those who feel that maybe there should be an analog backup, but if it will help with "Alligatoring" I'm all for it (speaking as a small low-budget station..hihi) There is a sort of paradigm shift when you stop thinking of a bird as a "repeater in the sky" and more as, for example, "a martian mission test bed (that also has some parts you get to play with)". I think there is room for both "bleeding edge" and "old stand-by" technology in the amateur satellites, but perhaps my own personal bias tends to lean a bit more conservative in terms of how much of each the final mix should be. As someone said, a model T may be reliable but would you want to drive one to work? Well, maybe not.. but I wouldn't want to commute in an F-16 either! There's a good middle ground somewhere. Thanks again for the good responses, they answered a lot of my questions. 73, Jason - N1XBP

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Re: Why do the amsats get more and more complex?
by Wayne Estes 19 Sep '06

19 Sep '06

This discussion seems to have lost track of some essential facts: 1. Both P3E and Eagle *ARE* smaller and simpler than AO-40. 2. Both P3E and Eagle plan to have a U/V (Mode B) transponder. 3. Eagle plans to have a backup analog transponder path in case the software-defined transponder fails. I'm not happy about the announcement that Eagle won't have a S-band downlink. But the next HEO satellite, P3E, will have a S-band downlink. The Eagle team might reconsider their decision *IF* the P3E S-band downlink proves to be useful and popular. After all, at this point Eagle is just an idea - no satellite has been built yet. Wayne Estes W9AE Oakland, Oregon, USA, CN83ik Financial contributor to P3D, P3E, Eagle, and AO51 projects

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AO-51 Fund Raising...24 hr update
by mike honer 19 Sep '06

19 Sep '06

WOW! Already ten responses, most of them positive, and three of them definitely not. FUND-RAISING 101: from my good wife Anne, who does this for a living...(Fundraising Counsel for non-profits) Success comes from asking: The Right person At the Right time In the Right way For the Right gift And in this situation: The Right person is one who hasn't yet considered joining or making a contribution The Right time is now, while (s)he is excited by the new possibilities The Right way is straightforward, friendly, non-threatening, and encourages participation. The Right gift, which for this kind of solicitation might vary from $10 to a full membership. The idea is to identify those folks and reach out to them. And I can't for the life of me think of how this could demean, threaten, or alienate anyone. And the Ham Spirit will not be trampled upon,spindled, folded, or mutilated. And one of the things that I have learned by osmosis is that It's OK to ask for the money (gift), especially if your case is well made. We will need 10 to 20 widely spaced listeners to record all the calls heard over 3 days, one or two passes per day, during V/U operation of the satellite. Weekends can be very crowded but yield lots of calls. Those lists of calls are forwarded to Martha, and she has agreed to run them against membership and identify those we should reach out to. Maybe we should have custom "AMSAT Outreach" QSLs made up as post cards for this effort. Maybe a contribution of $15 gets a complimentary copy of the Journal. I can't help thinking of the dozen or so newbies I have heard calling on '51 who never heard an answer. What a great way to let them know they are on the right track. Maybe this convinces some more of you that I am on the right track......? Mike, W1BFN

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