Hi all y'all,
As I sit here in Colombia (South America) visiting the XYL (KD5FCQ's) family wishing that I had been able to get through the right channels so I could have been on the air from here with my Arrow and HT, and having been far removed from Field Day this year, I was blown away when I got on to check my emails and it downloaded 100+ messages all at once... hoping to read about how successful Amsat FD was but the subject in the messages of course pretty much tipped off the content.
So I would like to make a few comments, not having had to sit in 100 degree heat for two days nor spend hours tearing down, setting up, tearing down again and setting up again my satellite station. I hope a lot of the furor I perceive is the result of heat and exhaustion and probably heat exhaustion too. Although it's 31 degrees Celsius here in Cali and I think that's about 90 and way humid in U.S. terms, with no air conditioning, so I'm moving kinda slow too...
In the many years past that I have manned our Tri County ARC FD satellite station, having been playing with satellites for a few decades now, one of the first things that comes up from the group (new ones who weren't there to ask the prior year, anyway) is about the bonus points and contacts on "AO-51" (their most recognized FM satellite). I give them the analogy similar to was mentioned in this thread by another, that trying "AO-51 (an FM single channel satellite) is like trying to have a conversation on the local repeater with a large uncontrolled group (no net or round table protocol) where a bunch of folks transmit at once and double and worse and nobody can understand anyone else, for the most part. The all understand that well enough.
So I introduce them to the linear birds, the story of AO-7 is always a winner to capture their attention especially it being older than many of them, and when the see the display of all of the satellites available via SatPC32 (which I show on a monitor for all to see during the entire event as well as some of the Amsat videos from the symposiums and meetings I show between passes) they are excited anew at the fact that there is way more up there than "AO-51". And we're off to the races!
Sure, it won't be for a few hours until these satellites come into range so they disperse and operate and experience the other stations or stay and watch some of the Amsat videos and look at the display board I also set up or chat with us more about satellites, but when the bird comes into range they are back and ready! I have an external speaker in addition to our headsets, so all can see the tracking and watch the antennas (yes, we do the whole computer aided doppler antenna rotator and stuff like that because I did my time with hand tuning and antenna pointing and I know good when I experience it) an the excitement and enthusiasm is contagious even back to the old guy like me which makes it well worth the time spent on the equipment and displays.
Oh, so there are only about 5-10 people at a time at our station... well yes, we're small and in the "country" but it's no less worth the effort. But that's still maybe 20-30 people or more both hams and visitors throughout the FD ops, and of those some will become more interested and even though it may take a few years... now that I am not there for FD this year, there are some others who were just observing a year or two ago who are now willing to take up the challenge and do their best at running a satellite station for the club FD. I don't know their setup or the results yet, I hope to read that in the next few days as they recover from heat and exhaustion and heat exhaustion but I'm jazzed that I (we, ALL of us who get on the satellites and make the contacts that give them the experience) may have played a part in that coming about.
The FM birds are great for demos at the club meeting and hamfests and such, but I leave them alone for FD. Well, not completely... I will check them early Sunday morning and usually get the one contact for one or two birds because it would probably be remiss of me to let the opportunity slip by for the spectators and the points. But only if there are no linear birds up at the time. And the spectators find that the FM contact wasn't necessarily so great compared to the many we could make with one linear satellite on one pass, but it is yet another facet of what is available to them in the amateur radio satellite world.
Don't be sad, don't be mad, don't freak out about the rules for one day of the year where chaos ensues due to the general physics of frequency modulation on one channel with thousands of participants... why not educate and enjoy!
I appreciate your time if you read this far, letting me share my thoughts from far away as a devoted Amsat and ARRL member (please reply off reflector if you have disagreements with my personal choices of memberships) and one who has had the PLEASURE of working satellites with many of you over the years. It's all good.
73, Jerry (HK/) N0JY