- Amsat-dc (INACTIVE) - mailman.amsat.org

Local High-Altitude Balloon Announced
by Kilroy, Patrick L. (GSFC-5680) 20 Oct '11

20 Oct '11

http://www.ftmchenrycap.org/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=10… High-Altitude Balloon Launch in Maryland this Saturday morning, October 22! Flight director: Josh Neel, KB3VTP Mission designation: CHASE-1 Flight Crew: Civil Air Patrol squadron (youth) "Ft. McHenry" from Catonsville, Md. HERE IS THE LINK from my short presentation last night at the GARC meeting. The balloon callsign is KB3VTP-11. Watch for N8PK-9 chasing it on APRS at http://aprs.fi/?call=n8pk*&mt=roadmap&z=11&timerange=259200&_s=ss_call along with others on the chase and recovery team. You may monitor the GARC repeater, WA3NAN/R on 146.835 MHz FM, any time after 9:00 A.M. EDT to compare notes! >From the launch site ten miles west of Hagerstown, MD, we hope to launch by ten, but it is Josh's and his squadron's first high-altitude balloon, so who knows if we run into any delays. (But then again, the payload is not very "field repairable" so it either works or it doesn't.) The filling operations -- the realtime "On the Job Training" -- will be the driving factor in the actual release time, next to weather conditions at the launch site and down range. Position packets will be received before launch by the nearby N3KTX-4 node, thanks to Mike Garber. The launch coordination repeater will be 442.650+ on the same hilltop as N3KTX-4. While in chase we may switch over to the K3PZN/R in Westminster on 145.410 MHz FM. Flight downlinks: 144.390 MHz FM and 433.920 MHz AM. If you'd like to participate on a chase team then give me a call ASAP. Otherwise, please enjoy watching the events unfold from the comfort of your home. Use the repeaters and Web links as your controls. Happy hunting! Cheers, Pat Kilroy N8PK High-Altitude Experiments Advisor Josh Neel's Balloon CHASE-1 Info Page http://www.ftmchenrycap.org/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=10… Other Good Links: WEATHER At Launch Site http://www.wunderground.com/cgi-bin/findweather/getForecast?query=21722 or http://forecast.weather.gov/MapClick.php?CityName=Clear+Spring&state=MD&sit… WINDS ALOFT (Jet Stream) major contributor to track http://www.wunderground.com/US/Region/US/2xpxJetStream.html VISIBILITY http://www.wunderground.com/US/Region/Northeast/2xpxVisibility.html METAR (Key for launch GO or NO GO) http://www.wunderground.com/Aviation/index.html?query=KFDK#METAR We will watch the METAR for Hagerstown (HGR), Frederick (FDK), Westminster (DMW) and Philadelphia (PHL). The payload is not expected to venture near Baltimore-Washington (BWI). METAR explanation: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/METAR FLIGHT RULES in effect http://www.wunderground.com/US/Region/Northeast/2xFlight.html ----------------------------------------- Mr. Patrick L. Kilroy Flight Systems Integration and Test (I&T) Building 5, Mail Code 568 NASA Goddard Space Flight Center Greenbelt, Maryland 20771 Phone: 301-286-1984 E-mail: Patrick.L.Kilroy(a)nasa.gov ----------------------------------------- "People don't care about how much we know, until they know how much we care." - Jack Vieira Outreach: http://simsat.net/

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FW: Center Director Congratulates Nobel Prize Team
by Kilroy, Patrick L. (GSFC-5680) 07 Oct '11

07 Oct '11

It may be bitter-sweet to you today, Dan, but I must say CONGRATULATIONS. -Pat N8PK From: GSFC-Communications Sent: Friday, October 07, 2011 9:22 AM To: GSFC-DL-ALL Subject: Center Director Congratulates Nobel Prize Team Colleagues: I'm sure most of you heard the news this week that a member of the extended NASA family shared the award for the Nobel Prize in Physics. Dr. Adam Riess, an astronomer at the Space Telescope Science Institute and Krieger-Eisenhower professor in physics and astronomy at The Johns Hopkins University, shared the Prize with teammates Brian Schmidt of the Australian National University and Saul Perlmutter, an astrophysicist at the University of California, Berkeley, and the Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory. They were honored for their groundbreaking work in the detection of the accelerating expansion of the universe, attributed to the mysterious "dark energy" now under vigorous study. What makes this Prize even more significant to us here at Goddard and to the team at the Institute is that the Hubble Space Telescope played an important role in this discovery and related confirming studies. Certainly, ground-based telescopes were vital to this discovery, but critical parts of the work were done with NASA's Hubble Space Telescope. I received a note from the Administrator shortly after the Nobel announcement was made, and he noted the Center, and the entire Hubble Team, should feel justifiably proud of our role in facilitating this incredible recognition, which once again showcases the tremendous value of Hubble to the science community around the world. For more than 20 years, a dedicated team of people here and at the Institute have worked tirelessly to keep Hubble operating at the peak of its capabilities, and the world has been rewarded with a steady string of pioneering science and breath-taking images. As Senator Mikulski likes to say, it has become the 'Nation's telescope." I am enormously proud of our contributions to this prestigious honor, and on behalf of the entire Center extend my congratulations to Dr. Reiss and his colleagues, Dr. Schmidt and Dr. Perlmutter, on their award. They, along with our very own Nobel Laureate Dr. John Mather, take their places at the summit of the scientific world, but stand on the shoulders of a tremendous NASA team that together continue to rewrite the textbooks and expand our knowledge of the Universe. Rob Strain Center Director

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Re: SimSat on Facebook
by Pat Kilroy 28 Sep '11

28 Sep '11

Hi Steve, I'm sorry for the confusion. Thank you for helping me figure out this Facebook operation. Even when using the FB "Help" feature, I cannot discern clearly the difference between the FB Group and the FB Page options. I started with creating a Group, and then later created a Page. But last night I deleted the Group (long story) in favor of giving the Page an opportunity to incubate. Here are my requirements, and maybe you and others can comment: I want it to be public but we want to know who is in the membership, and allow folks to post photos, videos, data/telemetry/documents, all in good taste and relevant to our high-altitude balloon experiments, Amateur Satellite efforts, educational training opportunities, fellow- ship, and community outreach goals. I want it to be totally separate from my personal Facebook page which is, to me, mostly an immediate family thing. It would be nice to have an e-mail "broadcast" capability there too, like for rain scrubs on flight day. (It will be more dynamic than the Web page, which will be used for verbose announcements, displaying key results, reposit important reference documents, publish diagrams/documents, archive stuff and serve to allow the logging of our "history.") So, do these "specs" suggest we need a Group or a Page? Thoughts? For now, I believe the correct URL, as long as it may be, is: https://www.facebook.com/pages/SimSat/190820480964810?sk=wall although I hope we can shorten it soon. Once we get this Facebook tool stable then I will update the simsat.net site. I am open to suggestions. Thanks, Pat N8PK -----Original Message----- From: Stephan Greene [mailto:ks1g04@gmail.com] Sent: Monday, May 9, 2011 10:19 PM To: pat(a)patkilroy.com Cc: amsat-dc(a)amsat.org Subject: Re: [amsat-dc] Re: SimSat on Facebook This it? https://www.facebook.com/pages/SimSat/190820480964810 (forget how I found it) Or this: https://www.facebook.com/home.php?sk=group_209591802406934 ? Might want to add a link on the Simsat web page. To find the 2nd link, I did a search for Simsat (bringing up a ton of people from various parts of the world) then clicked on groups. What I assume is the school group is the 1st link that's listed. What I think is the AMSAT-dc group (I sent a join request) is the 2nd. 73 Steve KS1G On Mon, May 9, 2011 at 4:00 PM, Pat Kilroy <pat(a)patkilroy.com> wrote: That MIGHT be a Page, and NOT a Group from the Facebook perspective. Just search the string "simsat" (without the quotes) once you are logged on to your own page in FB. Hope this helps. 73 de N8PK. -- ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Steve Greene ks1g04(a)gmail.com <kay ess one gee zero four>@gmail.com -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

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HEXAGON (KH-9) Viewing Opportunity, Saturday, September 17, One Day Only
by Daniel Schultz 14 Sep '11

14 Sep '11

HEXAGON (KH-9) Viewing Opportunity, One Day Only Newly Declassified Satellite Saturday, September 17 10:00 am to 5:30 pm Steven F. Udvar-Hazy Center Admission: Free, Parking $15 The Smithsonian's National Air and Space Museum and the National Reconnaissance Office are hosting a one-day-only viewing opportunity of the newly declassified HEXAGON (KH-9) satellite in the parking lot of the Steven F. Udvar-Hazy Center. This is the first time the public will be able to view this impressive spacecraft, and it will be the only opportunity to see it in the Washington area for some time. Sixty feet long and 10 feet in diameter, the HEXAGONs were the largest spy satellites the United States has ever placed in space. The satellites took photographs of the Soviet Union and other targets around the world from 1971 to the early 1980s. The one-day display is in conjunction with the NRO’s 50th anniversary celebration.

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Re: Deployed?
by Kilroy, Patrick L. (GSFC-5680) 03 Aug '11

03 Aug '11

Hello Benn, Good to meet you on e-mail. If I heard my ears right, the EVA crew deployed ARISSat-1 at 2:43 P.M. EDT from the ISS without the one antenna attached. Yikes! (So much for a cross-band transponder.) There is a big story to be told about that one, and I will be first in line to hear. Obviously, more news to follow. Cheers, Pat Mr. Patrick L. Kilroy Integration & Test Manager NASA Goddard Space Flight Center Building 5, Mail Code 568 Greenbelt, Maryland 20771 Phone: +1-301-286-1984 E-mail: Patrick.L.Kilroy(a)nasa.gov Web: http://simsat.net/ (outreach) -----Original Message----- From: Bennett Kobb [mailto:bkobb@ieee.org] Sent: Wednesday, August 03, 2011 3:14 PM To: Kilroy, Patrick L. (GSFC-5680) Subject: Deployed? Patrick, did they really deploy the satellite? I thought they couldn't find the UHF antenna! Benn AK4AV

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ARISSat-1 Deploy! Bring Your HT to Work!
by Kilroy, Patrick L. (GSFC-5680) 02 Aug '11

02 Aug '11

ARISSat-1, to be deployed by hand from the ISS tomorrow morning, will be a big hit in schools, clubs and the news media. I hope many of you/us will go outside with an HT to hear some of the initial passes! FIRST PASSES OVER MARYLAND: 03 Aug 11 17:33:38 00:06:03 161 4 135 88 17:39:41 03 Aug 11 19:06:59 00:10:13 222 56 124 55 19:17:12 03 Aug 11 20:43:36 00:09:34 268 19 328 44 20:53:10 03 Aug 11 22:21:19 00:08:14 303 9 344 49 22:29:33 03 Aug 11 23:58:09 00:09:01 316 13 17 77 00:07:10 Eight columns above, l to r: Date, AOS time in UTC, Duration in hh:mm:ss, Max El, Max el Az, LOS Az, and LOS time. MORE INFO: http://amsat.org http://www.amsat.org/amsat-new/tools/predict/ http://www.arissat1.org/v3/ http://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/station/expeditions/expedition28/russian_… http://www.edn.com/article/518993-Amateur_satellite_ready_to_go_in_to_actio… Say Hi and CONGRATULATIONS to fellow Marylanders Frank Bauer, Rick Hambly Tom Clark and Dan Schultz next time you see them! Cheers, Pat Kilroy N8PK MDC

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Funcube Dongle talk in Leesburg this Saturday morning (7/16)
by Greene, Stephan A (N-The SI) 14 Jul '11

14 Jul '11

A presentation on the Funcube Dongle<http://www.funcubedongle.com/> is the topic for this Saturday's Loudoun Amateur Radio Club (LARG)<http://www.k4lrg.org/> meeting. July 2011 LARG Program Date: Saturday July 16, 2011 Time: 9:00 am - 10:00 am Location: Leesburg Holy Trinity Lutheran Church at 605 West Market Street Our Vice President, Bryan - KG4UPR, has announced that the July 2011 LARG Program on Saturday, July 16, 2011, will be a technical presentation on the FunCube Dongle VHF receiver, a software defined radio (SDR), by Frank K0BRA and Bill - N4TS. The program will immediately follow our monthly meeting and should begin around 0900 hours at the Leesburg Holy Trinity Lutheran Church at 605 West Market Street. Directions & general meeting info: http://www.k4lrg.org/Announcements/index.html#Monthly_Meeting (Assuming weather and the rest of my life cooperates, I'll be the 'gent in cyclist-attire) 73, Steve KS1G ks1g04(a)gmail.com<mailto:ks1g04@gmail.com> [sent from my work email - please moderate through to the list.]

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Celebrating Elizabeth Clark
by Rick Hambly (W2GPS) 19 Jun '11

19 Jun '11

Please pass this on to anyone you think would like to know. I apologize if you get this invitation multiple times. We are still working on the mailing list. CELEBRATING ELIZABETH Not often in a person's life are they given a chance To know and love a person as special as Elizabeth Glover Clark. We have all had that privilege. Her husband, Tom, will hold an Open House and Celebration for Elizabeth so that her friends might come together to swap stories and memories. The celebration will be held at the home of Elaine & Rick Hambly. Details are: Date: Sunday, July 3, 2011 Time: 12:00 - 5:00 pm Please bring a side dish to pass. BBQ will be served. Place: 363 Hawick Court, Severna Park, MD 21146 Phone: 410-987-7835 Rick's cell 410-299-2147 Elaine's cell 410-271-3537 Email: rick(a)cnssys.com / Elaine(a)cnssys.com RSVP: Please RSVP by Monday, June 27, 2011

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Re: SimSat on Facebook
by Pat Kilroy 09 May '11

09 May '11

That MIGHT be a Page, and NOT a Group from the Facebook perspective. Just search the string "simsat" (without the quotes) once you are logged on to your own page in FB. Hope this helps. 73 de N8PK.

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Space Day News Please
by JoAnne Maenpaa 09 May '11

09 May '11

Hello everyone, If you were at the Space Day at the National Air and Space Museum this past weekend could you send me a brief description of your participation and impressions/thoughts of the event? I'd like to put an ANS bulletin together congratulating AMSAT and participants. The event, AMSAT display, and ARISS contact looked great on N4HY's photos on facebook. If you took photos please send them in as high resolution as you have (no need to shrink them) and a caption for the photo. A link to accessible storage will work as well, and I'll download them. These will be for the AMSAT Journal. Send photos as attachments to k9jkm(a)comcast.net Thanks! -- 73 de JoAnne K9JKM k9jkm(a)amsat.org Editor, AMSAT News Service

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