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SimSat on Facebook
by Pat Kilroy 09 May '11

09 May '11

WE ARE STARTING a group on Facebook.com for the SimSat project and the PICetSat high- altitude balloon flight experiments coming this summer and fall. You are invited to join! If you are on FB and want to follow all the action posted by our group members then go to your Facebook page, search for the SimSat Group, then click a request to join. Easy! And, of course, we will still post announcements and archive data at http://simsat.net as always but it just won't be quite as dynamic, especially on flight days. Cheers, Pat Kilroy, N8PK Maryland-DC Area

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Re: Join a FUNcube Eval
by Kilroy, Patrick L. (GSFC-5680) 06 May '11

06 May '11

An update: I received my FUNcube Dongle! Initial bench test results receiving a strong PICetSat signal (see http://simsat.net/carrollsat/) look good so far to me. One reluctant evaluator, however, questioned whether the tiny unit was little more than a toy. So, I would like to run some formal tests on it and other receivers at the same time under the same conditions, and then compare results. More testing and evaluation will follow. In the mean time, one fine group in Texas may have stolen my thunder. See below for an insightful message from Ken N8KH, who uncovered the recent NTMS test results and offered additional helpful comments to us. But, as an aside about Ken's pre-amplifier recommendation, I found several amplification stages in the FUNcube Dongle itself that are variable and can be easily changed. I will experiment with them before purchasing another satellite-grade low-noise pre-amp. I also have a nice big DCI filter for 145 MHz and another for 435 MHz to insert between the dongle and antenna if and when needed. Immediately below Ken's message, please see the related links of interest for your convenience. Did YOU order a FUNcube Dongle yet? Keep trying. The next sale should be announced on the FUNcubeDongle Web site soon. Cheers, Pat N8PK -----Original Message----- From: Ken Hendrickson [mailto:khendr01@harris.com] Sent: Thursday, May 5, 2011 11:19 PM To: pat(a)patkilroy.com Subject: MDS & NF Tests (Including FUNcube Dongle) The North Texas Microwave Society (NTMS) just did some testing of minimum detectable signal (MDS) and noise figure (NF) measurements for common IF receivers, including the FUNcube Dongle Pro [and the IC-910H]. (It was published tonight.) The FUNcube performed very well. On both 435 MHz and also 1296 MHz it was within 3 dB of the best out there. As you know, 3 dB is just barely measurable in the laboratory with expensive test equipment, and only barely noticeable on the air. Their report/slides: http://www.NTMS.org/files/MDS_NF_Measurements_IF_Rigs_RevC.pdf If you want to make up that 3 dB, just add a very good pre-amp to the front end. But be careful, and do not overload the FUNcube with too much signal. You don't want much gain -- only the lower noise figure and enough gain to overcome feedline losses. Make sure to measure dynamic range after adding the preamp, to ensure you haven't degraded dynamic range. But to be honest, 3 dB probably isn't worth it. Here are some quick and easy rules of thumb: If you want to double range, you need +6 dB. If you cut the bandwidth in half, you will add +3 dB of performance (at the expense of time). So if you need 6 dB, you can cut the bandwidth in half twice. Use slower signaling, and longer integration times at your receiver, and you will have your 6 dB and doubling of range. The first step to deciding if your FUNcube will really work in your application is to do a link budget. Do you have antenna gain pattern figures? Bandwidths? Power output? Perhaps I can help you out with the link budget. My gut level feel is that your system will work well, but math is better than a gut feeling. 73, Ken N8KH PS Please send the address of the Carroll County amateur radio club meeting on Monday night. -------------------------- LINKS FUNcube Dongle Pro http://www.funcubedongle.com/ SoftRock SDR http://www.wb5rvz.com/sdr/ http://homepages.wightcable.net/~g4zfq/Si570.htm Power SDR http://www.flexradio.com/Products.aspx?topic=PowerSDRv2 http://flexradiowiki.com/frsradoiowiki/index.php?title=Main_Page http://support.flex-radio.com/Downloads.aspx HP 83712A http://www.home.agilent.com/agilent/product.jspx?cc=US&lc=eng&nid=-53690019… MDC High-Altitude Balloon Experiments http://simsat.net/carrollsat/ -------------------------- Sent: Wednesday, April 27, 2011 11:08 AM Subject: Join a FUNcube Eval Cross-posted from amsat-dc(a)amsat.org ... Yesterday I ordered a FUNcube Dongle Pro from Howard Long, G6LVB, and AMSAT-UK at http://www.funcubedongle.com/ for under $200 USD to evaluate. [] I am evaluating this SDR receiver for dual use on the Amateur Satellites and my STEM project of SimSat, specifically, currently, on quality of reception of my high-altitude balloon experiment PICetSat flight modules. We will fly again this summer. Part of the FUNcube Dongle Pro technical FAQ is reproduced below, FYI. I am looking for others who wish to also evaluate the same receiver for whatever one's purpose. Please let me know if you got one or when you get one, and what software you are trying. Thoughts? THANKS and 73, Pat Kilroy, N8PK AMSAT Area Coordinator MDC Area >From http://www.funcubedongle.com/ . . . Technical FAQ Q. What is the FUNcube Dongle Pro frequency range? A. 64-1,700MHz, although straw poll tests on pre-production units indicate that units can be stretched down to 51.5MHz or so. Upper frequency limit is beyond 2,000MHz. In testing, we have determined that there is a gap between about 1,100MHz and 1,270MHz where the design of the local oscillator VCO, PLL and divider chain in the tuner chip don't provide seemless coverage. Q. What can the FUNcube Dongle receive? A. The FUNcube Dongle has no restriction on modulation schemes: it is limited only by the application program running on the host computer. As long as the signal fits within about an 80kHz bandwidth, the FUNcube Dongle is capable of receiving the radio signal. So, for analogue reception, as well as narrow band FM and SSB, it is also possible to receive, for example, sound subcarriers for TV broadcast. Similarly for data reception, as long as a data demodulator has been written that will accept standard soundcard quadrature I/Q reception, that will work too. Q. What is the bandwidth? A. 96kHz is the quadrature sampling rate. Once the ADC's decimation filter skirts have been taken into account, you have about 80kHz. Q. What applications work with the FUNcube Dongle? A. As well as the forthcoming FUNcube front end application, any application that understands a standard stereo soundcard configured for quadrature, or I/Q, reception should work. Examples include Linrad, Spectravue, Rocky and M0KGK. Q. What is the sensitivity? A. Each unit is tested for 0.15uV for 12dB SINAD NBFM at 145MHz and 435MHz. Q. What operating systems are compatible? A. Currently Windows 2000 SP4, XP 32 bit, and Vista and Windows 7 32 and 64 bit have been tested. The sound card element works with Mac OSX and Ubuntu 10.10 32- and 64-bit, but the frequency setting application has not been ported yet. [snip]

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FUNcube Eval in DC-Balto Area
by Pat Kilroy 27 Apr '11

27 Apr '11

Yesterday I ordered a FUNcube Dongle Pro from Howard Long, G6LVB, and AMSAT-UK at http://www.funcubedongle.com/ for under USD$200 to evaluate. The next sale offering is expected on May 3. I am evaluating this SDR receiver for dual use on the Amateur Satellites and my STEM project of SimSat, specifically, currently, on quality of reception of my high-altitude balloon experiment PICetSat flight modules. We will fly again this summer. Part of the FUNcube Dongle Pro technical FAQ is reproduced below, FYI. I am looking for others who wish to also evaluate the same receiver for whatever one's purpose. Please let me know if you got one or when you get one, and what software you are trying. Thoughts? THANKS and 73, Pat Kilroy, N8PK AMSAT Area Coordinator MDC Area Technical FAQQ. What is the frequency range? A. 64-1,700MHz, although straw poll tests on pre-production units indicate that units can be stretched down to 51.5MHz or so. Upper frequency limit is beyond 2,000MHz. In testing, we have determined that there is a gap between about 1,100MHz and 1,270MHz where the design of the local oscillator VCO, PLL and divider chain in the tuner chip don’t provide seemless coverage. Q. What can the FUNcube Dongle receive? A. The FUNcube Dongle has no restriction on modulation schemes: it is limited only by the application program running on the host computer. As long as the signal fits within about an 80kHz bandwidth, the FUNcube Dongle is capable of receiving the radio signal. So, for analogue reception, as well as narrow band FM and SSB, it is also possible to receive, for example, sound subcarriers for TV broadcast. Similarly for data reception, as long as a data demodulator has been written that will accept standard soundcard quadrature I/Q reception, that will work too. Q. What is the bandwidth? A. 96kHz is the quadrature sampling rate. Once the ADC’s decimation filter skirts have been taken into account, you have about 80kHz. Q. What applications work with the FUNcube Dongle? A. As well as the forthcoming FUNcube front end application, any application that understands a standard stereo soundcard configured for quadrature, or I/Q, reception should work. Examples include Linrad, Spectravue, Rocky and M0KGK. Q. What is the sensitivity? A. Each unit is tested for 0.15uV for 12dB SINAD NBFM at 145MHz and 435MHz. Q. What operating systems are compatible? A. Currently Windows 2000 SP4, XP 32 bit, and Vista and Windows 7 32 and 64 bit have been tested. The sound card element works with Mac OSX and Ubuntu 10.10 32 and 64 bit, but the frequency setting application has not been ported yet. [snip] Patrick L. Kilroy pat(a)patkilroy.com or n8pk(a)amsat.org (same address)

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Listening for AO-27 among Other Sats
by Kilroy, Patrick L. (GSFC-5680) 25 Apr '11

25 Apr '11

Hi Bruce, Thank you for your fine information; it was very helpful over the weekend. Only problem, at least as far as AO-27 goes, its schedule was not good for us in the Greater DC area. And won't be for a while. Regardless, I listened once or twice for this particular sat over the weekend and heard nothing. Such was my luck. ;-) Comparing the AO-27 schedule from http://www.ao27.org/AO27 and http://www.amsat.org/amsat-new/tools/predict/ . . . Time (UTC) Mode ------------------------------------------ Mon Apr 25 15:53:50 2011 Digital Med Mon Apr 25 15:54:10 2011 Analogue Med Mon Apr 25 16:01:10 2011 Digital Med Mon Apr 25 16:02:10 2011 OFF Mon Apr 25 17:34:39 2011 Digital Med Mon Apr 25 17:34:59 2011 Analogue Med Mon Apr 25 17:41:59 2011 Digital Med Mon Apr 25 17:42:59 2011 OFF Mon Apr 25 19:15:27 2011 Digital Med Mon Apr 25 19:15:47 2011 Analogue Med Mon Apr 25 19:22:47 2011 Digital Med Mon Apr 25 19:23:47 2011 OFF Mon Apr 25 20:56:15 2011 Digital Med Mon Apr 25 20:56:35 2011 Analogue Med Mon Apr 25 21:03:35 2011 Digital Med Mon Apr 25 21:04:35 2011 OFF Mon Apr 25 22:37:03 2011 Digital Med Mon Apr 25 22:37:23 2011 Analogue Med Mon Apr 25 22:44:23 2011 Digital Med Mon Apr 25 22:45:23 2011 OFF Tue Apr 26 00:17:52 2011 Digital Med Tue Apr 26 00:18:12 2011 Analogue Med Tue Apr 26 00:25:12 2011 Digital Med Tue Apr 26 00:26:12 2011 OFF Tue Apr 26 01:58:40 2011 Digital Med Tue Apr 26 01:59:00 2011 Analogue Med Tue Apr 26 02:06:00 2011 Digital Med Tue Apr 26 02:07:00 2011 OFF Tue Apr 26 03:39:28 2011 Digital Med Tue Apr 26 03:39:48 2011 Analogue Med Tue Apr 26 03:46:48 2011 Digital Med Tue Apr 26 03:47:48 2011 OFF With our pass list from: http://www.amsat.org/amsat-new/tools/predict/ . . . AMSAT Online Satellite Pass Predictions - AO-27 View the current location of AO-27<http://www.amsat.org/amsat-new/tools/predict/satloc.php?lang=en&satellite=A…> Date (UTC) AOS (UTC) Duration AOS Azimuth Maximum Elevation Max El Azimuth LOS Azimuth LOS (UTC) 25 Apr 11 17:20:36 00:13:28 130 23 72 1 17:34:04 25 Apr 11 18:59:18 00:14:40 184 41 270 340 19:13:58 25 Apr 11 20:45:15 00:04:16 261 1 274 295 20:49:31 26 Apr 11 05:35:29 00:10:12 44 8 85 131 05:45:41 It looks like we miss the ON times for the analog and the TLM opportunities. I will recheck later in the week to see if and when it phases back into our favor. Or am I missing something? Thanks again, Pat N8PK -----Original Message----- From: amsat-dc-request(a)amsat.org [mailto:amsat-dc-request@amsat.org] Sent: Saturday, April 23, 2011 03:00 PM To: amsat-dc(a)amsat.org Subject: AMSAT-DC Digest, Vol 6, Issue 15 Message: 2 Date: Sat, 23 Apr 2011 20:48:57 -0400 From: Bruce Semple <bruce.semple(a)verizon.net> Subject: [amsat-dc] AO-27 Transmission schedule To: amsat-dc(a)amsat.org AO-27 's FM repeater operates on a schedule - http://www.ao27.org/AO27/index.shtml Look at the topic "Current TOPR Schedule" Essentially you only get about 7-8 minutes of talk time - followed by about 1 minute of telemetry transmission --- (during which the repeater function is not available) There are telemetry decoding programs available -- and then the satellite turns off the transmitter for a period of time. So - if appears not to be on -- be patient -- it will come on during some part of the pass. Bruce WA3SWJ

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Re: HOPE-1 aka HO-68 and others
by Pat Kilroy 23 Apr '11

23 Apr '11

Hey, Ben, According to the status page Bruce Semple shared with us, http://oscar.dcarr.org/index.php it says the TLM-only downlinks have been heard at least for the past few days. Also, it looks like AO-27 has been OFF when passing over DC today (and longer?) per http://www.ao27.org/ and confirmed by my ears. We'll keep trying. FYI, the recent posts have created nice "what did you hear" conversations on the Goddard Amateur Radio Club repeater, WA3NAN/R, in Greenbelt, MD, on 146.835 MHz FM. Hope to hear more folks on it over the weekend and early next week. Cheers, Pat N8PK -----Original Message----- From: amsat-dc-request(a)amsat.org [mailto:amsat-dc-request@amsat.org] Sent: Saturday, April 23, 2011 03:00 PM To: amsat-dc(a)amsat.org Subject: AMSAT-DC Digest, Vol 6, Issue 15 Send AMSAT-DC mailing list submissions to amsat-dc(a)amsat.org To subscribe or unsubscribe via the World Wide Web, visit http://amsat.org/mailman/listinfo/amsat-dc or, via email, send a message with subject or body 'help' to amsat-dc-request(a)amsat.org You can reach the person managing the list at amsat-dc-owner(a)amsat.org When replying, please edit your Subject line so it is more specific than "Re: Contents of AMSAT-DC digest..." Today's Topics: 1. HO-68 (Bennett Z. Kobb) ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Message: 1 Date: Fri, 22 Apr 2011 22:58:43 -0400 From: "Bennett Z. Kobb" Subject: [amsat-dc] HO-68 To: amsat-dc(a)amsat.org Message-ID: <20110422225843879324.f89a75dc(a)ieee.org> Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii > HOPE-1 aka HO-68 - you can hear the CW beacon Hasn't the CW beacon also been down for a couple months at least? Benn Kobb AK4AV Arlington VA ------------------------------ _______________________________________________ AMSAT-DC mailing list courtesy of AMSAT-NA AMSAT-DC(a)amsat.org http://amsat.org/mailman/listinfo/amsat-dc End of AMSAT-DC Digest, Vol 6, Issue 15 ***************************************

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HO-68
by Bennett Z. Kobb 22 Apr '11

22 Apr '11

> HOPE-1 aka HO-68 - you can hear the CW beacon Hasn't the CW beacon also been down for a couple months at least? Benn Kobb AK4AV Arlington VA

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FM Repeater In the Sky - FYI - Recordings
by Bruce Semple 21 Apr '11

21 Apr '11

To add to Pat's suggestions .... John Papas - K8YSE - records many of the passes and posts the recordings here ==> http://www.papays.com/sat/general.html Another great site for "just getting started" ==> http://web.me.com/clintbradford/Work-Sat/Home.html Clint has a 4 page PDF file with a nice chart on what frequencies to program into your HT to account for the Doppler shifts during the pass. Early morning passes -- 5:00am- 7:00am are much, much less crowded than the ones later in the day when everyone is awake :-) SO-50 is "calmer" than AO-51. AO-51 now requires a 67Hz PL tone (added this week ) The satellite is experiencing longer periods of eclipse - and the batteries are weak -- so the power management software may turn off the FM repeater. The control stations respond as quickly as possible and turn it back on. If you can't hear it -- it may not be you ! A good place to check for "real time" satellite status ==> http://oscar.dcarr.org/index.php As Pat suggested -- check the AMSAT satellite status page ==> http://web.me.com/clintbradford/Work-Sat/Home.html HOPE-1 aka HO-68 - you can hear the CW beacon -- but the FM repeater is down .. I have not heard the ISS FM repeater on lately -- but the APRS digipeater is usually on 145.825 try pushing some packets up to the ISS and then check this site after the pass ==> http://www.ariss.net/ It really is lot's of fun --- Bruce WA3SWJ

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Try an FM Repeater in the Sky
by Pat Kilroy 21 Apr '11

21 Apr '11

Here's something to try this beautiful weekend! Including the International Space Station, there are at least SIX satellites operating in orbit with an FM repeater built in. Wanna try to listen for some with me? Listen on your 2-meter radio. If you have a dual-band with 440 MHz FM then you can talk too. (But we'll talk more about talking later. Let's see if we can hear the sats first.) Suggest a repeater around the Washington- Annapolis-Baltimore area and we can start some chats about this. Or use the amsat-dc(a)amsat.org to share your findings! Maybe start with the ISS, whose primary down- link or output is on 145.800 MHz FM. The other frequencies can be found in many places, including: FREQUENICES AND LATEST SAT STATUS http://amsat.org/pipermail/ans/2011/000507.html and more info all around this link: http://www.amsat.org/ Print out this message with the chart below for the satellite schedule. Make sure the schedule is printed in Courier or Courier New, font size 10, to appear nicely lined up in columns on paper. If desired get the free AMSAT booklet "Working the Easy Sats" at the link below. Heck. See even more links below for more scoop for oldsters and newbies alike. Let's do it. Give it a try. Let's hear from you! Cheers, Pat N8PK SATELLITE SCHEDULE by N8PK using SatPC32 WinAos QTH: -77.0/39.4 T#: 12163 Sat.: 6 [Standard] ---------------------------------------------------------- Day Object AOS (L) LOS Period maxEl AZ ---------------------------------------------------------- 21.04.2011 AO-51 16:40 16:51 11 71 159 - 350 21.04.2011 AO-51 18:23 18:27 04 13 249 - 297 21.04.2011 ISS 19:21 19:26 05 43 211 - 062 21.04.2011 HOPE-1 (HO-6820:02 20:07 05 13 076 - 025 21.04.2011 SUMBANDILA (S20:17 20:22 05 19 114 - 019 21.04.2011 SO-50 20:18 20:19 01 10 110 - 098 21.04.2011 ISS 20:57 21:01 04 19 290 - 031 21.04.2011 HOPE-1 (HO-6821:44 21:58 14 70 152 - 349 21.04.2011 SUMBANDILA (S21:51 21:56 05 24 211 - 323 21.04.2011 SO-50 21:54 22:03 09 71 215 - 030 21.04.2011 HOPE-1 (HO-6823:35 23:44 09 20 225 - 314 21.04.2011 SO-50 23:38 23:42 04 12 299 - 347 WinAos QTH: -77.0/39.4 T#: 12164 Sat.: 6 [Standard] ---------------------------------------------------------- Day Object AOS (L) LOS Period maxEl AZ ---------------------------------------------------------- 22.04.2011 ISS 00:11 00:13 02 10 007 - 043 22.04.2011 ISS 01:45 01:50 05 40 320 - 110 22.04.2011 AO-27 01:53 01:56 03 12 074 - 112 22.04.2011 ISS 03:21 03:25 04 15 265 - 181 22.04.2011 AO-27 03:29 03:39 10 73 010 - 200 22.04.2011 SO-50 04:49 04:53 04 13 016 - 068 22.04.2011 AO-51 04:50 04:58 08 26 039 - 155 22.04.2011 SO-50 06:27 06:37 10 74 331 - 143 22.04.2011 AO-51 06:28 06:37 09 33 353 - 226 22.04.2011 SO-50 08:10 08:14 04 13 276 - 221 22.04.2011 HOPE-1 (HO-6809:16 09:21 05 12 068 - 114 22.04.2011 SUMBANDILA (S09:21 09:27 06 28 036 - 162 22.04.2011 SUMBANDILA (S10:55 10:59 04 16 331 - 250 22.04.2011 HOPE-1 (HO-6811:00 11:15 15 76 018 - 193 22.04.2011 HOPE-1 (HO-6812:50 12:59 09 21 344 - 257 22.04.2011 AO-27 13:09 13:16 07 18 104 - 017 22.04.2011 AO-27 14:47 14:57 10 55 181 - 339 22.04.2011 AO-51 16:02 16:11 09 32 128 - 003 22.04.2011 AO-51 17:40 17:49 09 30 204 - 326 22.04.2011 ISS 18:12 18:16 04 13 161 - 087 22.04.2011 ISS 19:46 19:51 05 41 253 - 044 22.04.2011 SUMBANDILA (S20:01 20:03 02 11 080 - 042 22.04.2011 SO-50 20:43 20:51 08 29 172 - 050 22.04.2011 ISS 21:24 21:26 02 10 331 - 017 22.04.2011 HOPE-1 (HO-6821:28 21:41 13 54 142 - 353 22.04.2011 SUMBANDILA (S21:32 21:38 06 43 190 - 335 22.04.2011 SO-50 22:24 22:32 08 30 248 - 018 22.04.2011 HOPE-1 (HO-6823:17 23:28 11 27 211 - 322 WinAos QTH: -77.0/39.4 T#: 12165 Sat.: 6 [Standard] ---------------------------------------------------------- Day Object AOS (L) LOS Period maxEl AZ ---------------------------------------------------------- 23.04.2011 ISS 00:35 00:39 04 18 344 - 082 23.04.2011 ISS 02:10 02:15 05 47 297 - 143 23.04.2011 AO-27 03:01 03:11 10 57 022 - 181 23.04.2011 AO-51 04:13 04:15 02 10 080 - 101 23.04.2011 AO-27 04:42 04:48 06 17 336 - 252 23.04.2011 SO-50 05:16 05:24 08 26 352 - 107 23.04.2011 AO-51 05:49 05:58 09 72 010 - 198 23.04.2011 SO-50 06:57 07:06 09 42 313 - 171 23.04.2011 SUMBANDILA (S09:03 09:07 04 17 056 - 137 23.04.2011 SUMBANDILA (S10:36 10:42 06 27 346 - 227 23.04.2011 HOPE-1 (HO-6810:44 10:58 14 60 024 - 183 23.04.2011 HOPE-1 (HO-6812:32 12:43 11 27 352 - 246 23.04.2011 AO-27 14:18 14:28 10 73 161 - 349 23.04.2011 AO-51 15:24 15:30 06 15 094 - 022 23.04.2011 AO-27 16:02 16:05 03 11 257 - 289 23.04.2011 AO-51 17:00 17:11 11 69 174 - 344 23.04.2011 ISS 18:36 18:41 05 48 213 - 059 23.04.2011 ISS 20:12 20:16 04 18 291 - 026 23.04.2011 HOPE-1 (HO-6821:11 21:24 13 42 132 - 357 23.04.2011 SO-50 21:12 21:20 08 82 207 - 034 23.04.2011 SUMBANDILA (S21:13 21:20 07 69 172 - 346 23.04.2011 SO-50 22:55 22:59 04 14 287 - 354 23.04.2011 HOPE-1 (HO-6822:59 23:12 13 36 199 - 329 23.04.2011 ISS 23:26 23:27 01 10 007 - 036 WinAos QTH: -77.0/39.4 T#: 12166 Sat.: 6 [Standard] ---------------------------------------------------------- Day Object AOS (L) LOS Period maxEl AZ ---------------------------------------------------------- 24.04.2011 ISS 00:59 01:04 05 45 319 - 110 24.04.2011 AO-27 02:33 02:42 09 30 038 - 162 24.04.2011 ISS 02:36 02:39 03 14 255 - 187 24.04.2011 SO-50 04:07 04:09 02 10 025 - 053 24.04.2011 AO-27 04:13 04:21 08 30 350 - 230 24.04.2011 AO-51 05:09 05:19 10 41 028 - 172 24.04.2011 SO-50 05:45 05:54 09 57 335 - 136 24.04.2011 AO-51 06:49 06:56 07 22 343 - 242 24.04.2011 SO-50 07:27 07:32 05 16 288 - 212 24.04.2011 SUMBANDILA (S10:18 10:24 06 46 358 - 211 24.04.2011 HOPE-1 (HO-6810:27 10:41 14 46 028 - 174 24.04.2011 HOPE-1 (HO-6812:15 12:27 12 34 358 - 235 24.04.2011 AO-27 13:50 14:00 10 42 140 - 359 24.04.2011 AO-27 15:31 15:38 07 22 220 - 316 24.04.2011 AO-51 16:21 16:31 10 49 144 - 357 24.04.2011 ISS 17:27 17:30 03 15 160 - 090 24.04.2011 AO-51 18:01 18:09 08 20 222 - 320 24.04.2011 ISS 19:00 19:05 05 43 253 - 041 24.04.2011 SO-50 20:01 20:08 07 23 161 - 056 24.04.2011 ISS 20:38 20:40 02 11 333 - 010 24.04.2011 SUMBANDILA (S20:55 21:02 07 56 154 - 355 24.04.2011 HOPE-1 (HO-6820:55 21:07 12 33 122 - 001 24.04.2011 SO-50 21:41 21:49 08 38 243 - 019 24.04.2011 HOPE-1 (HO-6822:42 22:55 13 47 187 - 333 24.04.2011 ISS 23:49 23:53 04 19 337 - 080 WinAos QTH: -77.0/39.4 T#: 12167 Sat.: 6 [Standard] ---------------------------------------------------------- Day Object AOS (L) LOS Period maxEl AZ ---------------------------------------------------------- 25.04.2011 ISS 01:24 01:29 05 42 295 - 146 25.04.2011 AO-27 02:06 02:12 06 16 056 - 138 25.04.2011 AO-27 03:44 03:54 10 55 004 - 209 25.04.2011 AO-51 04:31 04:37 06 17 054 - 135 25.04.2011 SO-50 04:34 04:41 07 22 356 - 100 25.04.2011 AO-51 06:09 06:18 09 50 001 - 212 25.04.2011 SO-50 06:14 06:23 09 52 318 - 166 25.04.2011 SUMBANDILA (S09:59 10:06 07 69 010 - 195 25.04.2011 HOPE-1 (HO-6810:10 10:23 13 35 034 - 162 25.04.2011 HOPE-1 (HO-6811:58 12:11 13 44 003 - 225 25.04.2011 AO-27 13:23 13:31 08 24 114 - 009 25.04.2011 AO-27 15:02 15:11 09 40 194 - 334 25.04.2011 AO-51 15:43 15:51 08 22 111 - 011 25.04.2011 AO-51 17:20 17:30 10 45 189 - 335 25.04.2011 ISS 17:50 17:55 05 46 217 - 059 25.04.2011 ISS 19:26 19:30 04 18 295 - 032 25.04.2011 SO-50 20:29 20:38 09 62 199 - 037 25.04.2011 SUMBANDILA (S20:37 20:43 06 32 136 - 005 25.04.2011 HOPE-1 (HO-6820:39 20:50 11 25 111 - 005 25.04.2011 SO-50 22:12 22:17 05 17 279 - 002 25.04.2011 SUMBANDILA (S22:12 22:16 04 14 240 - 302 25.04.2011 HOPE-1 (HO-6822:25 22:39 14 62 177 - 339 25.04.2011 ISS 22:40 22:42 02 10 002 - 048 WinAos QTH: -77.0/39.4 T#: 12168 Sat.: 6 [Standard] ---------------------------------------------------------- Day Object AOS (L) LOS Period maxEl AZ ---------------------------------------------------------- 26.04.2011 ISS 00:14 00:19 05 48 319 - 114 26.04.2011 ISS 01:50 01:53 03 13 259 - 192 26.04.2011 AO-27 03:15 03:25 10 76 016 - 190 26.04.2011 AO-27 04:57 05:01 04 13 321 - 268 26.04.2011 SO-50 05:02 05:11 09 48 340 - 129 26.04.2011 AO-51 05:29 05:39 10 66 019 - 185 26.04.2011 SO-50 06:44 06:50 06 21 295 - 202 26.04.2011 AO-51 07:10 07:14 04 14 328 - 265 26.04.2011 SUMBANDILA (S09:41 09:48 07 52 022 - 181 26.04.2011 HOPE-1 (HO-6809:54 10:05 11 26 041 - 150 26.04.2011 HOPE-1 (HO-6811:41 11:55 14 57 007 - 214 26.04.2011 AO-27 12:57 13:01 04 13 085 - 026 26.04.2011 HOPE-1 (HO-6813:33 13:35 02 10 319 - 299 26.04.2011 AO-27 14:33 14:43 10 75 171 - 344 Other Links: WORKING THE EASY SATS (PDF) http://www.amsat.org/amsat-new/information/faqs/easysat.pdf SATELLITE FAQ http://www.amsat.org/amsat-new/information/faqs/ SATELLITE WEB STATUS http://www.amsat.org/amsat-new/satellites/status.php Happy Passover. Happy Easter! Pat Kilroy pat(a)patkilroy.com

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Space Day at National Air & Space Museum
by Dave Taylor 03 Apr '11

03 Apr '11

Hello all, Once again, NASM has invited AMSAT to organize displays and activities at Space Day. It will be held on Saturday, 7 May from 10:30 to 3:00 at the Air & Space Museum on the mall. I'd like to hear from anyone who has space-related amateur radio artifacts, posters, activities or anything else they'd like to display. We also need volunteers who can staff our tables (either all day or any part), help with setup and tear down, and various other tasks. There are always lots of interesting exhibits to visit and visitors to talk with, so attending is fun and it helps promote ham radio. ARISS will have various flight-type hardware on hand and also expects a radio contact with ISS. -- Dave Taylor, W8AAS

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Celebrate Tuesday April 12: Listen
by Kilroy, Patrick L. (GSFC-5680) 01 Apr '11

01 Apr '11

ARE YOU PLANNING to participate in the ARISSat-1 test on Yuri Gargarin Day, Tuesday, April 12, . . . even a little? Will you be on your own, with friends/ family or perhaps at a school? Tell us about it! (Especially if you need some help.) BACKGROUND All Hams need to know about a special activity unfolding on Tues. April 12. Although the ARISSat-1 is not to be deployed from the International Space Station (ISS) until this summer, NASA connected this educational satellite inside the ISS to an external antenna and will turn it on as a "test" tribute on this historic day. Like most days, there will be six brief ISS passes on April 12. You might be able to hear ARISSat-1 with a very simple radio in the clear on school grounds. Voice messages and telemetry will be heard on the downlink frequency of 145.9500 MHz FM. MORE INFORMATION: http://www.ARISSat.org ISS PASS PREDICTIONS: http://www.amsat.org/amsat-new/tools/predict/ What would you like to do? Ideas? Partner up? Cheers, Pat N8PK n8pk(a)amsat.org P.S. Please forward this message as appropriate.

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