SB SAT @ AMSAT $ANS-294.01
SumbandilaSat Designated as SO-67
AMSAT News Service Bulletin 294.01
>From AMSAT HQ SILVER SPRING, MD.
October 21, 2009
To All RADIO AMATEURS
BID: $ANS-294.01
AMSAT's OSCAR Number Coordinator Bill Tynan, W3XO announced he has
received an e-mail sent to the AMSAT-NA Board of Directors by Hans
van de Groenendaal, ZS6AKV, Secretary SA AMSAT requesting that an
OSCAR number be allocated to SumbandilaSat.
In the e-mail Hans states that the amateur radio transponder on
SumbandilaSat was successfully switched on from the ground by ZS6BPZ
during the test phase on Sunday 18 October 2009 and that several QSOs
were made through the transponder.
The amateur radio payload on SumbandilaSat was developed by SA AMSAT
and incorporated by the University of Stellenbosch into the main pay-
load. The SA AMSAT payload was officially coordinated through the
IARU Satellite Frequency Coordination Panel with an uplink of 145.880
and downlink of 435.350 MHz
Bill replied, "Therefore, by the authority vested in me by the
AMSAT-NA President, I hereby designate this latest amateur radio
satellite as SumbandilaSat Oscar 67 or SO-67. On behalf of AMSAT-NA
and the world's amateur radio satellite community I congratulate those
responsible for building, testing and launching this new satellite.
May it have a long and successful life."
[ANS thanks Bill Tynan, W3XO for the above information]
/EX
AMSAT NEWS SERVICE
ANS-291
ANS is a free, weekly, news and information service of AMSAT North
America, The Radio Amateur Satellite Corporation. ANS reports on the
activities of a worldwide group of Amateur Radio operators who share an
active interest in designing, building, launching and communicating
through analog and digital Amateur Radio satellites.
Please send any amateur satellite news or reports to:
ans-editor(a)amsat.org
**********************************************************************
* AMSAT thanks Frank Bauer, KA3HDO and Janet Bauer and the entire *
* 2009 Symposium Team for a spectacular and inspiring event! *
**********************************************************************
In this edition:
* AMSAT Says "We're Going Back to Space"
* AMSAT, IBM, SUNY-Binghamton Announce NextGen CubeSat Development
* Discussions Continue For New AMSAT Lab Site
* Canadian Hams to Share 430-450 MHz With Military System
* AO-51 Operations Schedule Posted
* Satellite Shorts From All Over
SB SAT @ AMSAT $ANS-291.01
AMSAT Says "We're Going Back to Space"
AMSAT News Service Bulletin 291.01
>From AMSAT HQ SILVER SPRING, MD.
October 18, 2009
To All RADIO AMATEURS
BID: $ANS-291.01
The Board of Directors has adopted the Engineering Task Force
recommendation that low-cost launch options be immediately pursued.
The AMSAT engineering team will develop a 1U CubeSat design effective
immediately. Tony Monteiro, AA2TX, Vice-President of Engineering said,
"We are recommending an approach that gets AMSAT back up in space with
new satellites by leveraging the skills and technology we have today."
The new AMSAT CubeSat's initial capability is planned to add to the
popular low-earth orbit FM transponder fleet allowing hams to continue
to use their existing handheld and portable antenna systems. This also
allows an accessible entry path for new satellite operators to get
started. The existing FM satellites are starting to show their age.
The flight version of ARISSat-1 has been developed to fit into the
CubeSat model. AMSAT's flexible Software Defined Transponder (SDX),
simplified IHU, power control subsystem, external interfaces to ex-
perimental payloads and cameras will now allow a modular approach to
mission design using proven subsystems and components. The ARISSat-1
mission planned in 2010 will be the initial flight test of AMSAT's
modular satellite.
Here are some of the highlights ...
+ AMSAT will develop comparable AO-51 level of performance packaged
into a 1U CubeSat. This includes a U-V transponder, V telemetry,
U command receiver, IHU, power control. This can be done with our
modular design.
+ This will be a U/V FM Transponder, not done before in a 1U CubeSat,
which can be worked with a HT and a simple antenna. CubeSat power
limitations are planned to be addressed through research and devel-
opment of deployable solar-cells.
+ AMSAT will make our open-design satellite modules and technology
available for other satellite teams to build into their missions.
+ This new approach will provide a reliable radio link for future
CubeSats allowing university teams to concentrate on their scientific
objectives.
+ The modular nature of the AMSAT CubeSat system will allow add-on
missions utilizing several different types of modulation and band-
width. These can be pursued with future low-cost CubeSat launch
opportunities.
AMSAT President, Barry Baines, WD4ASW Annual Meeting Powerpoint
Presentation has been posted at http://www.amsat.org
[ANS thanks the AMSAT Board of Directors for the above information]
/EX
SB SAT @ AMSAT $ANS-291.02
AMSAT, IBM, SUNY-Binghamton Announce NextGen CubeSat Development
AMSAT News Service Bulletin 291.02
>From AMSAT HQ SILVER SPRING, MD.
October 18, 2009
To All RADIO AMATEURS
BID: $ANS-291.02
AMSAT will work with a university student engineering team to
develop the NextGen Cubesat.
NextGen Program Manager, Alex Harvilchuck, N3NP introduced this new
program at the AMSAT Symposium. Alex revealed program goals and its
initial plans with a paper in the Proceedings and presentations to
the AMSAT Board of Directors and to the attendees during Symposium
sessions.
NextGen consists of AMSAT volunteer mentors working with IBM Global
Services Systems Engineering Division, and SUNY-Binghamton (also
called University of Binghamton) senior level engineering students
participating in their 'capstone' engineering project.
Alex summarized the NexGen program goals:
+ Intial analysis of ARISSat-1, documenting the systems, and analysis
of the lessons learned from ARISSat-1 and other prior spacecraft to
create a building block architecture for future satellites.
+ Open, modular, evolutionary, and documented design based on this
analysis.
+ Redesigning the ARISSat-1 Power Systems into a next generation power
system using supercapacitors instead of batteries and reducing the
footprint of some of the boards.
+ Analysis and modification to the structure to incorporate deployable
solar panels with a scalable design that will work for 1U, 2U and 3U
sizes.
+ Design a Picosat-class bus structure that AMSAT, or any other Univer-
sity, can use for 1U, 2U, or 3U CubeSat spacecraft. AMSAT could make
the open design available at low-to-no-cost to qualified University
groups.
+ An Engineering Model of the NextGen CubeSat spacecraft bus will be
on display at the Dayton Hamvention AMSAT Booth for everyone to
study.
Alex summarized, "Starting with our initial core team of 34 students,
plus advisers, mentors and volunteers at Binghamton University this
will be an ongoing effort. It is not a one time event, but the start
of a stable, evolutionary design process that will further STEM (Sci-
ence, Technology, Engineering & Mathematics) with the Next Generation
of engineers and amateur radio operators. We are looking for other
individuals and University/School teams to participate in all aspects
of the spacecraft design - RF Systems - Guidance, Navigation, Control
& Experiment Systems - Power & Structure Systems."
Volunteer mentors are needed! Even if you only have an hour a week,
you can mentor a student over the phone or you can peer review a
document that the students are working on. If you have more than an
hour a week, you can implement a small design change to an existing
subsystem; you could respin the board layout to meet a reduced form
factor; you could redesign a module to use different technology.
Contact Alex via e-mail at amsat(a)elkmtn.org .
AMSAT's Board of Directors has approved the support of the University
of Binghamton NextGen Cubesat Proposal and agreed to provide $1,200.00
in immediate funding to the Binghamton Foundation to support student
expenses and initially budgeted $10,000.00 to cover material costs
associated with hardware development between September 2009 and May
2010. The Board will review progress at the end of the first semester.
[ANS thanks Alex, N3NP and AMSAT Board of Directors for the above
information]
/EX
SB SAT @ AMSAT $ANS-291.03
Discussions Continue For New AMSAT Lab Site
AMSAT News Service Bulletin 291.03
>From AMSAT HQ SILVER SPRING, MD.
October 18, 2009
To All RADIO AMATEURS
BID: $ANS-291.03
AMSAT President, Barry Baines, WD4ASW discussed an opportunity under
serious discussions with the University of Florida, Gainesville to
locate AMSAT's satellite laboratory on campus.
Among discussions over the past 12 months, AMSAT has had conversa-
tions with several universities concerning a potential relationship.
This opportunity arose out of an amateur radio talk given at The
Villages ARC by Dave, AA4KN and Drew, KO4MA in April. This lead to
contact with UF's Dr. Norman Fitz-Coy. A Memorandum of Understanding
has been drafted and is currently under review by legal teams. At
this time there is no timeframe for bringing about a formal conclusion
as the MOU discussions continue and internal UF approval still needed.
Relocating the AMSAT Lab from the 'Eastern Shore' to 'The Swamp'
offers significant potential:
+ Location on a major university campus in a state-of-the-art building
+ Integrated into a facility focused on small satellite development
with clean room installation at the host's expense (not AMSAT)
+ Potential for student projects focused on AMSAT needs
+ Broadening of AMSAT's presence in the wider university community
+ Potential research/development opportunities for AMSAT and AMSAT
members
+ Establishing a program that offers significant traction for
education outreach
[ANS thanks AMSAT President, Barry Baines, WD4ASW for the above
information]
/EX
SB SAT @ AMSAT $ANS-291.04
Canadian Hams to Share 430-450 MHz With Military System
AMSAT News Service Bulletin 291.04
>From AMSAT HQ SILVER SPRING, MD.
October 18, 2009
To All RADIO AMATEURS
BID: $ANS-291.04
Amateur Radio Newsline #1678 reported that Industry Canada has
informed Radio Amateurs of Canada that it has authorized the
Department of National Defense to use a digital system called
Enhanced Position Location Reporting System or EPLRS in the
430 to 450 MHz shared 70 centimeter band. The EPLRS system
consists of mobile, fixed, transportable and airborne stations
that use 5 MHz-wide spread spectrum channels to provide strategic
telemetry information for military platforms.
This authorization is on a no-protection, non-interference basis,
which means that no new restrictions will be imposed on Canadian
amateur operations in this band as a result. Industry Canada says
that there is a slight chance of minor interference to amateur radio
systems. Typically in the form of a minor audible clicking noise. If
Canadian amateurs encounter such interference, they are requested to
report it by e-mail to Radio Amateurs of Canada at regulatory at
rac dot ca. The information reported should include the geographical
location, date, time, frequency and mode being used by the amateur
station, and a description of theinterference.
[ANS thanks Amateur Radio Newsline Report 1678 and RAC for the
above information]
/EX
SB SAT @ AMSAT $ANS-291.05
AO-51 Operations Schedule Posted
AMSAT News Service Bulletin 291.05
>From AMSAT HQ SILVER SPRING, MD.
October 18, 2009
To All RADIO AMATEURS
BID: $ANS-291.05
The AO-51 command team has posted the operating schedule for the
remainder of October. For the latest Command Team and Operations
Group news about AO-51 refer to:
http://www.amsat.org/amsat-new/echo/CTNews.php
October 17 - October 18
FM Repeater, V/U
Uplink: 145.920 MHz FM
Downlink: 435.300 MHz FM
JOTA Only FM Repeater, V/U
Please give way to JOTA stations or QSOs with JOTA stations
Uplink: 145.880 MHz FM
Downlink: 435.150 MHz FM
October 19 - October 25
FM Repeater, V/U
Uplink: 145.920 MHz FM
Downlink: 435.300 MHz FM
9k6 BBS, L/U
Uplink: 1268.700 MHz 9k6 FM
Downlink: 435.150 MHz 9k6 FM
October 26 - November 1
FM Repeater, V/US
Uplink: 145.920 MHz FM
Downlink: 435.300 and 2401.200 MHz FM
[ANS thanks AO-51 Command Team Member Mark, N8MH for the above
information]
/EX
SB SAT @ AMSAT $ANS-291.06
Satellite Shorts From All Over
AMSAT News Service Bulletin 291.06
>From AMSAT HQ SILVER SPRING, MD.
October 18, 2009
To All RADIO AMATEURS
BID: $ANS-291.06
+ The American Radio Relay League (ARRL) has a feature story on the
ARISS antennas that will be launched to the ISS on STS-129 in mid-
November and installed on the Columbus module during the mission's
second spacewalk. See:
http://www.arrl.org/news/features/2009/10/05/11110/?nc=1
+ Mineo Wakita, JE9PEL reports that at present FO-29 is only turned
on once a week over Japan for testing of its power system.
+ Bob, N4HY has uploaded his camera phone pictures from the 2009
Symposium at http://twitpic.com/photos/rwmcgwier
+ Although EME is a bit off topic, every ham wishes for antennas
like these. Here is a video from the Echoes of Apollo event:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AHGXp4Afr4g&feature=related
+ Amateur satellite operators in range of the west coast will have
an opportunity to work W6FOG as he sails from San Francisco to
Puerto Vallarta departing on 10/19/09. Neil will be working many
of the ocean grids on the way.
+ Jim, ND9M/VQ9JC is presently deployed on a Navy ship heading for
Sumatra on a humanitarian mission with fresh water for the victims
of the recent earthquakes there. Jim has been active with his FT897
(TX) and the FT817 (RX) using an Arrow antenna and a UPS battery
for power. He operates from the Helicopter Pad on the ship. JIm
says, "There isn't much activity in the Indian Ocean but he is
working VU's and E21's and handing out rare water grids!"
+ Hams like science so here are a couple of links to follow.
National Geographic has a zoomable map of space exploration
http://books.nationalgeographic.com/map/map-day/index After
you close the opening text screen you will see the image zoom
control in the top right of the page.
This page contains an embedded video, "Do the Oceans of Jupiter's
Europa Harbor Life?"
http://www.dailygalaxy.com/my_weblog/2009/10/europas-ice-sheet-enables-an-ox
ygenrich-ocean.html
[ANS thanks everyone for the above information]
/EX
In addition to regular membership, AMSAT offers membership in the
President's Club. Members of the President's Club, as sustaining donors
to AMSAT Project Funds, will be eligible to receive additional benefits.
Application forms are available from the AMSAT Office. And with that
please keep in mind if you want to travel fast, travel alone. If you
want to travel far, travel together. If you want to travel in comfort,
fake an ankle sprain and convince the other travelers to carry you.
73,
This week's ANS Editor,
JoAnne Maenpaa, K9JKM
K9JKM at amsat dot org
SB SAT @ AMSAT $ANS-289.01
ANS Special Bulletin - AO-51 Configuration to Support Scouting JOTA
AMSAT News Service Bulletin 289.01
>From AMSAT HQ SILVER SPRING, MD.
October 16, 2009
To All RADIO AMATEURS
BID: $ANS-289.01
AMSAT-NA is supporting the 52nd Jamboree on the Air (JOTA)
Scouting event by dedicating AO-51 operation to the Scouts.
AMSAT-NA VP Operations, Drew Glasbrenner, KO4MA said, "For
October 17th and 18th, the AO-51 QRP repeater will be allocated
for JOTA use. All users are requested to give way to JOTA stations
or QSOs with JOTA stations."
The frequencies used for this weekend will be 145.880 FM uplink,
and 435.150 FM downlink, no PL tone required. The mode change
should occur at ~00:00 UTC on the 17th (Friday evening in the
US) and run for approximately 48 hours.
AMSAT wishes the Scouts good luck operating via the AO-51 satellite
for the event.
Reports of your JOTA operations should be sent to the AMSAT-BB or
directly to ko4ma(a)amsat.org.
Photo files up to 5 Mb total are also welcome for possible inclusion
in an upcoming AMSAT Journal article.
Keith Pugh, W5IU, reports from Texas, "K2BSA will be operating on
the Amateur Radio Satellites from the National Scouting Museum in
Irving, TX, from 14:00 to 22:00 UTC on Saturday, 17 Oct. 2009. We
will be on as many of the passes listed below as possible. We will
be operating as a portable, hand-held station. Bring your Scouts
and join us on the Birds."
Here are the predicted passes for K2BSA:
WinAos QTH: -97.0/32.9 T#: 11612 Sat.: 6 [Standard]
----------------------------------------------------------
Day Object AOS (U) LOS Period maxEl AZ
----------------------------------------------------------
17.10.2009 SO-50 14:41 14:50 09 10 356 - 098
17.10.2009 AO-07 14:47 15:06 19 37 005 - 225
17.10.2009 VO-52 15:35 15:48 13 35 023 - 176
17.10.2009 SO-50 16:20 16:33 13 76 330 - 155
17.10.2009 VO-52 17:12 17:23 11 16 348 - 228
17.10.2009 AO-27 19:10 19:23 13 20 129 - 003
17.10.2009 AO-27 20:48 21:03 15 39 185 - 340
There will also be an ARISS Contact with Scouts at the museum that
will take place starting at 21:53 UTC. This will be a Telebridge
contact via WH6PN in Hawaii. The contact will be on the EchoLink
AMSAT Conference and on a wide area, 442.400 MHz repeater in the
Dallas/Fort Worth area.
[ANS thanks Keith, W5IU, and Drew, KO4MA for the above information]
/EX
AMSAT NEWS SERVICE
ANS-284
ANS is a free, weekly, news and information service of AMSAT North
America, The
Radio Amateur Satellite Corporation. ANS reports on the activities of a
worldwide group of Amateur Radio operators who share an active interest
in
designing, building, launching and communicating through analog and
digital
Amateur Radio satellites.
Please send any amateur satellite news or reports to:
ans-editor(a)amsat.org
In this edition:
* AMSAT Election of new Officers at the Symposium
* SpaceX Announces Conference
* AO-51 configuration to support Scouting JOTA
* US Senate Bill Introduced
* AO-51 Configured for JOTA
* ARISS Status - October 4, 2009
SB SAT @ AMSAT $ANS-284.01
AMSAT Election of Officers
AMSAT News Service Bulletin 284.01
From AMSAT HQ SILVER SPRING, MD.
October 11 2009
To All RADIO AMATEURS
BID: $ANS-284.01
At the Baltimore Symposium the initial actions of the newly elected BOD
is to elect new officers. The seats were filled as follows:
President Barry Baines, WD4ASW
VP of Engineering Tony Monteiro, AA2TX
VP of Operations Drew Glassbrenner, KO4MA
VP of User Services Gould Smith, WA4SXM
Secretary Alan Biddle, WA4SCA
Treasurer Gunther Meisse, W8GSM
Manager Martha
Congratulations to the newly elected officers.
Also, a fine time was had by all that attended the Baltimore AMSAT
Symposium. Many excellent presentations were given during the event. At
the annual meeting, the newly elected officers were introduced and new
priorities were introduced. AMSAT will offer a DVD of the
presentations.
The Banquet had a great guest speaker, Mr. Collins from the Air and
Space museum.
Plan to attend next years meeting.
(ANS thanks Martha for the above information]
/EX
SB Sat @ $ans-284.02
SpaceX announces Conference
AMSAT News Service Bulletin 284.02
From AMSAT HQ SILVER SPRING, MD.
October 11, 2009
To All RADIO AMATEURS
BID: $ANS-284.02
Space Exploration Technologies (SpaceX) has announced a second user
conference
for its commercial product DragonLab™, a free-flying, reusable
spacecraft
capable of hosting pressurized and unpressurized payloads to and from
orbit.
The event will focus on the needs of European users and take place on
October
29th, 2009, in Haarlem, Netherlands.
DragonLab provides a platform for in-space experimentation, including
recovery
of pressurized and some unpressurized payloads, as well as deployment of
small
spacecraft. As a complete system, DragonLab provides a highly capable
spacecraft platform that includes propulsion, power, thermal control,
environmental control, avionics, communications, thermal protection,
flight
software, guidance, navigation and control, entry, descent and landing,
and
recovery.
The user conference is an opportunity for potential customers to explore
DragonLab's capabilities, as well as present customer-specific interests
and
requirements. The agenda includes an overview of the Dragon spacecraft,
concept of operations, payload accommodations and cost parameters.
DragonLab is an alternate configuration of SpaceX's Dragon spacecraft
which,
along with the Falcon 9 launch vehicle, has been contracted by NASA to
provide
cargo resupply services to the International Space Station as early as
2010.
To express interest in attending the user conference, visit
DragonLabUserConference.com.
Space is limited and all participants must receive confirmation from
SpaceX in
order to attend this workshop. For more information or questions
regarding the
user conference, please email DragonLab(a)spacex.com.
[ANS thanks Lee for the above information]
/EX
SB Sat @ amsat $ans284.03
US Senate Bill Introduced
AMSAT News Service Bulletin 284.03
From AMSAT HQ SILVER SPRING, MD.
October 11, 2009
To All RADIO AMATEURS
BID: $ANS-284.03
RADIO LAW: SENATE BILL INTRODUCED TO STUDY HAM RADIO EMCOMM
A companion bill to the Amateur Radio Emergency Communications
Enhancement
Act of 2009 was introduced in the U.S. Senate on Tuesday, October 6
by Connecticut Democrat Joe Lieberman and Maine Republican Susan
Collins.
Titled Senate Bill 1755, it carries the same name as the House measure
introduced this past April by Representative Sheila Jackson-Lee. The
bill,
if passed, would direct the Department of Homeland Security to undertake
a
study on emergency communications with an emphasis on the role that ham
radio operators play.
S 1755 points out that "There is a strong Federal interest in the
effective
performance of Amateur Radio Service stations, and that performance must
be
given support at all levels of government; and protection against
unreasonable regulation and impediments to the provision of the valuable
communications provided by such stations.
Introduction of S 1755 is the result of many months of groundwork laid
by
the American Radio Relay League and appears to be directly based on the
basis and purpose of the service. This as outlined in Section 97.1 of
the
FCC rules. (ARRL)
[ANS thanks ARRL for the above information]
/EX
SB SAT @ AMSAT $ANS-284.04
AO-51 Configured for JOTA
AMSAT News Service Bulletin 284.04
From AMSAT HQ SILVER SPRING, MD.
October 11, 2009
To All RADIO AMATEURS
BID: $ANS-284.04
AO-51 configuration to support Scouting JOTA
AMSAT-NA is supporting the 52nd Jamboree on the Air (JOTA) Scouting
event by dedicating AO-51 operation to the event.
For October 17th and 18th, the AO-51 QRP repeater will be allocated
for JOTA use. All users are requested to give way to JOTA stations
or QSOs with JOTA stations.
The frequencies used for this weekend will be 145.880 FM uplink,
and 435.150 FM downlink, no PL tone required. The mode change should
occur at ~00:00 UTC on the 17th (Friday evening in the US) and run
for approximately 48 hours.
AMSAT wishes the Scouts good luck operating via the AO-51 satellite
for the event.
Reports of your JOTA operations should be sent to the AMSAT-BB or
directly to ko4ma(a)amsat.org.
Photo files up to 5 Mb total are also welcome for possible inclusion
in an upcoming AMSAT Journal article.
73, Drew KO4MA
AMSAT-NA VP Operations
[ANS thanks the AO-51 Operations Team for the above information]
/EX
SB SAT @ AMSAT $ANS-284.05
ARISS Report for Oct 4,2009
AMSAT News Service Bulletin 284.05
From AMSAT HQ SILVER SPRING, MD.
October 4, 2009
To All RADIO AMATEURS
BID: $ANS-284.045
1. Upcoming School Contacts
An Amateur Radio on the International Space Station (ARISS) contact has
been scheduled for Sint-Michielscollege Brasschaat vzw (SMCB) in
Brasschaat, Belgium on Wednesday, October 7 at 10:20 UTC. Visits to
space and science museums are among the science activities planned for
the children. Guest speakers will include a representative from Verhaert
Space Systems and Dirk Frimout, Belgium’s first astronaut.
An Amateur Radio on the International Space Station (ARISS) contact has
been scheduled with the National Planetarium in Kuala Lumpur, Wilayah
Persekutuan, Malaysia on Thursday, October 8 at 09:34 UTC. The contact
will occur as part of the National Space Challenge, a program that was
created in an effort to instill the talents and desire towards the
understanding of space in primary school aged children. Sixteen schools
will participate.
An Amateur Radio on the International Space Station (ARISS) contact has
been scheduled for Belmont Elementary School in Langley, British
Columbia, Canada on Friday, October 9 at 20:20 UTC. Students are working
on projects with a “Mission Control” theme and the Langley Amateur Radio
Association (L.A.R.A.) is working with the school to organize this
event.
2. Thirsk Participates in ARISS Contact with R.T. Alderman Students
Astronaut Bob Thirsk, VA3CSA participated in an Amateur Radio on the
International Space Station (ARISS) contact with students attending R.
T. Alderman School in Calgary, Alberta, Canada on Monday, September 28.
An audience of 615 people gathered, watched and listened as Thirsk
answered 15 questions posed to him by the students. Media coverage was
provided by a local television station. After the contact, Thirsk
changed the ISS radio beacon text to read, “Hello to RT Alderman
School!”
3. De Winne Speaks with Lisbon, Portugal Students via ARISS
On Thursday, October 1 an Amateur Radio on the International Space
Station (ARISS) contact was held between the Ciência Viva Museum in
Lisbon, Portugal and Frank De Winne, ON1DWN onboard the ISS. Ground
station ON4ISS in Belgium provide the telebridge connection. An audience
of 300 people gathered and watched as twenty-three questions were asked
and answered. The ARISS contact at Ciencia Viva was a major event during
the nationwide celebrated Space Week. The participating students have
been working on space projects for two years and they were highly
motivated to do this science-related activity.
4. ARISS Contact with University of Liege
An Amateur Radio on the International Space Station (ARISS) contact took
place on Friday, October 2 between the University of Liege in Belgium
and on-orbit astronaut Frank De Winne, ON1DWN via telebridge station
ON4ISS in Belgium. Eighteen questions were answered before losing
contact with the ISS. The University of Liege offers the only aerospace
engineering education program in the French part of Belgium. In the
context of the OUFTI-1 project (www.oufti.ulg.ac.be) that aims at
building a CubeSat featuring the amateur radio D-STAR technology, an
amateur radio club was formed at the university.
5. Nicole Stott Participates in ARISS Contact with Italian Students
On Friday, October 2, students attending Scuola Secondaria 1° Grado
“Alighieri – Trevigi” in Casale Monferrato, Prov. Alessandria, Italy
participated in an Amateur Radio on the International Space Station
(ARISS) contact. The youth asked Nicole Stott, KE5GJN 21 questions as an
audience of 200 students, parents and teachers looked on. Local media
provided news coverage. The event was streamed live on the internet and
the audio was fed into the EchoLink AMSAT and JK1ZRW servers. The
contact motivated the youth to study Science, History, Geography,
Information Technology and English.
6. ARISS Contact with Boy Scouts of Canada
On Saturday, October 3, Scouts of Canada in Ottawa, Ontario experienced
an Amateur Radio on the International Space Station (ARISS) contact.
Three hundred scouts and parents were present as Robert Thirsk VA3CSA
answered questions about life and work in space. Thirsk turned over a
few questions to Mr. Guy Laliberte, Circ De Soleil president and
spaceflight participant. Audio was fed into the EchoLink AMSAT and
JK1ZRW servers. The ARISS contact was held in conjunction with the Scout
Science Badge Award system.
7. ARISS News on Amateur Radio Newsline
On October 2, Amateur Radio Newsline Report 1677 reported on Amateur
Radio on the International Space Station (ARISS) astronaut licensing. To
view “Ham Radio in Space: New Ham Astronaut is KF5DBF,” see:
ftp://ftp.arnewsline.org/quincy/News-A/news.txt
/EX
73,
This week's ANS Editor,
Dee Interdonato, NB2F
nb2f at amsat dot org
_______________________________________________
