Mark Jim, Just wanted to say that I've gone through the same thrill as you with my first contact on the birds. I'm doing it the what you are with a handheld and an Arrow antenna. It took me a good month of just listening and getting used to the procedure, as well as the doppler shift, before I actually made a contact. Like you, my next step will be a basic rotor with a small antenna. As they say, "One step at a time". But the best time I've had is exposing my great niece and nephew (5 and 6 years old) to amateur radio satellites, as well as a small telescope. They probably think their uncle is a bit strange, but they had a lot of fun. Anything we can do to expose them to science will pay off in the future. 73 de Doug KA8QCU
----- Original Message ----- From: "Mark Lunday, WD4ELG" mlunday@nc.rr.com To: "'Jim Danehy'" jdanehy@cinci.rr.com; amsat-bb@amsat.org Sent: Saturday, September 20, 2008 12:39 Subject: [amsat-bb] Re: first impression
Jim
I would like to add to your comments. I have been a ham for 31 years,
and
a
DXer almost from the start. CW has been my mode of choice, and I have
never
run more than 100 watts (I get a lot of grief from the hard-core DXers
for
not using QRO, but that is another story). I have always wondered about AMSAT, but never wanted to invest in the heavy duty equipment and
antennas.
With the sunspot lulls and a new FT817 from my XUL last Christmas and no progress in the sunspot department, I decided to see what all the
excitement
was about. Starting in April with 5 watts and a hand-held Arrow
dual-band
yagi, I had a rejuvenated ham experience working satellites. My hands
shook
with excitement when I made my first QSO through AO-51. The thrill was
just
as great when I worked MODE A on AO-7 two weeks later. The Doppler on
CW
and SSB is an interesting challenge, but the satellite prediction
programs
(thanks, Simon for HRD!) make it much easier. Instead of firing up my
rig
on HF first thing, I now check the satellite passes first to see what is available! My Arrow is mounted on a radio shack rotor in the attic at a fixed elevation of 20 degrees, and I have heard every satellite that I
am
listening for so far. What a thrill! I agree with you Jim, this puts
even
more excitement into the hobby for me. Although so far I have heard
every
bird active, I have already re-worked a couple of hams in just the 30
QSO's
made so far. I like how Patrick WD9EWK is actively evangelizing the satellites, and others are doing the same. I think it's time for a demo
at
my local club meeting, and for groups beyond ham radio. This is another entry point for non-hams into our hobby.
73, look forward to hearing you on the "birds"
Mark Lunday WD4ELG, FM06 wd4elg@arrl.net http://wd4elg.net
Sent via AMSAT-BB@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