AMSAT NEWS SERVICE
ANS-207
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
**********************************************************************
* 2009 AMSAT Space Symposium and Annual General Meeting October 9-11 *
* Four Points Sheraton Hotel at the Baltimore Washington Airport *
* Details - http://www.amsat.org/amsat-new/symposium/2009/index.php *
**********************************************************************
In this edition:
* Important Reminder AMSAT Board of Directors Ballots
* AMSAT-UK Announces FUNcube Amateur Radio Satellite
* SuitSat-2 Demo at the Central States VHF Society Conference
* Special Events Stations Commemorate Apollo 11 40th Anniversary
* STS-127 To Deploy Dual Picosats on July 30
* SwissCube Delivery to India, Three Additional CubeSats Planned
* Satellite Shorts From All Over
SB SAT @ AMSAT $ANS-207.01
Important Reminder AMSAT Board of Directors Ballots
AMSAT News Service Bulletin 207.01
>From AMSAT HQ SILVER SPRING, MD.
July 26, 2009
To All RADIO AMATEURS
BID: $ANS-207.01
To All AMSAT Members: As noted in last week's ANS, the original
Board of Directors ballot that was mailed earlier this month to
all AMSAT members and included with important AMSAT information
has an error on it, stating "select no more than three" with five
candidates listed. Replacement ballots of a different color have
now been mailed to all AMSAT members in an an envelope marked
"corrected ballot" and the new ballot states "Select no more than
four" with five candidates listed as well as marked with "corrected
ballot".
Please note that the none of the original ballots will be counted,
so if you mailed the original ballot to AMSAT, you must also mail
the corrected ballot in order to have your ballot be counted. The
due date for submitting ballots has not changed and the corrected
ballot must be received at the Silver Spring, MD no later than the
close of business on September 15, 2009.
[ANS thanks AMSAT HQ for the above information]
/EX
SB SAT @ AMSAT $ANS-207.02
AMSAT-UK Announces FUNcube Amateur Radio Satellite
AMSAT News Service Bulletin 207.02
>From AMSAT HQ SILVER SPRING, MD.
July 26, 2009
To All RADIO AMATEURS
BID: $ANS-207.02
AMSAT-UK has announced a new amateur satellite project - FUNcube.
The project has received major initial funding from the Radio
Communications Foundation (RCF) and is expected be developed in
collaboration with ISIS-Innovative Solutions in Space BV.
FUNcube is an educational single cubesat project with the goal
of enthusing and educating young people about radio, space,
physics and electronics. It will support the educational Science,
Technology, Engineering, Maths (STEM) initiatives and provide an
additional resource for the GB4FUN Mobile Communications Centre.
The target audience consists of primary and secondary school pupils
and FUNcube will feature a 145 MHz telemetry beacon that will provide
a strong signal for the pupils to receive. It is planned to develop
a simple receiver board that can be connected to the USB port of a
laptop to display telemetry in an interesting way. The satellite will
contain a materials science experiment, from which the school students
can receive telemetry data which they can compare to the results they
obtained from similar reference experiments in the classroom.
FUNcube is the first cubesat designed to benefit this group and is
expected to be the first UK cubesat to reach space.
It is anticipated FUNcube will be launched into a Sun Synchronous Low
Earth Orbit about 600-700km above the earth using one of the many
launch opportunities that exist for Cubesat missions. In such an orbit
the satellite passes over Europe approximately 3 times in the morning,
and 3 in the evening, every day, perhaps allowing the morning passes
to be used for educational purposes and the evening passes for Amateur
Radio communications.
FUNcube will carry a UHF to VHF linear transponder that will have up
to 1 watt and which can be used by Radio Amateurs worldwide for SSB
and CW communications. Measuring just 10 * 10 * 10 cm, and with a mass
of less than 1kg, it will be the smallest ever satellite to carry a
linear transponder and the choice of frequencies will enable Radio
Amateurs to use their existing VO-52 or DO-64 station.
A key feature of the satellite is the absence of an On-Board Com-
puter. For reliability and maximum power efficiency, the design
has been kept as straight-forward as possible with satellite
control being achieved using simple commands. See the AMSAT-UK
FUNcube webpage at: http://www.uk.amsat.org/content/view/696/68/
AMSAT-UK has more than 350 individual members and is one of more
than 20 such groups worldwide. AMSAT-UK teams have provided hardware
for more than 10 satellites over the past 35+ years including SSETI
Express in 2005.They are presently involved with the development of
hardware and software for a number of satellite projects including
the European Student Earth Orbiter (ESEO), P3E, SUITSAT2, the Col-
umbus module on the ISS and also the GENSO Ground station network.
The Radio Communications Foundation is a Registered Charity (Number
1100694) set up in 2003 to fund efforts to bring the wonders of radio
into the classrooms, universities and any other public place where
hands on demonstration can influence understanding. The RCF funding
for FUNcube is made possible through the generous bequest from a
"silent key" who wanted the hobby that he loved brought to the
attention of others.
AMSAT-UK: http://www.uk.amsat.org/
Radio Communications Foundation: http://www.commsfoundation.org/
GB4FUN: http://www.gb4fun.org.uk/
FUNcube contact: Graham Shirville G3VZV (g3vzv(a)amsat.org)
[ANS thanks AMSAT-UK for the above information]
/EX
SB SAT @ AMSAT $ANS-207.03
SuitSat-2 Demo at the Central States VHF Society Conference
AMSAT News Service Bulletin 207.03
>From AMSAT HQ SILVER SPRING, MD.
July 26, 2009
To All RADIO AMATEURS
BID: $ANS-207.03
On July 24-25 the Central States VHF Society hosted their 43rd
Conference in the Chicago area. The event attracted radio amateurs
interested in experimentation with weak signal VHF/UHF, microwave,
terrestrial and space communications, and EME.
SuitSat-2 System Engineer Gould WA4SXM was at the Conference with
a functioning prototype of the SuitSat-2 hardware, antennas, and
initial software. The success of the Phoenix ARISS system inte-
gration meeting held July 10-12 was evident as SuitSat-2 trans-
mitted live signals everyone at the Conference could monitor on
145.950 MHz.
The SSTV subsystem was transmitting live pictures in Robot36 mode
captured by the cameras. Reminder: if your computer SSTV capture
software such as MMSSTV is functional viewing existing terrestrial
SSTV transmissions you will be ready to receive SuitSat-2 video.
Gould also gave a presentation to a full house during which he dis-
cussed SuitSat-2 architecture and software. The presentation, as
well as the live display, included these subsystems:
+ Software Defined Radio Transponder
+ Internal Housekeeping Processor Board
+ Power Control Board
+ Interconnect Board
+ Safety Power Interlock
+ Flexible antennas
The SuitSat-2 team plans to deliver the completed flight system to
Russia in December, 2009 with an EVA deployment planned for the Spring
of 2010. Watch the AMSAT Journal for full details as system integration
completes and SuitSat-2 moves toward orbit!
[ANS thanks whomever for the above information]
/EX
SB SAT @ AMSAT $ANS-207.04
Special Events Stations Commemorate Apollo 11 40th Anniversary
AMSAT News Service Bulletin 207.04
>From AMSAT HQ SILVER SPRING, MD.
July 26, 2009
To All RADIO AMATEURS
BID: $ANS-207.04
If you were fortunate to work the Amateur Radio special events
stations that commemorated the 40th anniversay of the Apollo 11
landing on the moon here is a summary of the QSL information:
VE3MOON From the Canada Museum of Science and Technology
In celebration of the 40th anniversary of the first manned moon
landing, the special event callsign VE3MOON will be operating from
14-27 July. The museum team plans to operate via AO-51, SO-50,
VO-52, FO-29, and the ISS. QSL via Darin, VE3OIJ.
AO-51's 40th Anniversary Special Message
AMSAT-NA marked the 40th anniversary of the first manned lunar
landing with a special event on AO-51. AO-51 transmited a special
message commemorating the event on Monday, July 20. A special AO-51
SWL QSL is available to ground stations who copy the downlink. Send
QSL requests marked "Apollo 11" with SASE to the AMSAT office at
850 Sligo Ave. Suite 600, Silver Spring, MD 20910.
Mark, K6HX posted recordings and SSTV images received during this
event on his web page at http://tinyurl.com/kn9bgm. Ed, KL7UW has
his recording at http://www.kl7uw.com/40th_apollo_message.wav.
Special Event Station K5E
The special call sign K5E was active on the satellites until July 24.
If you worked K5E you can claim a special QSL card donated by WA3MVQ.
QSL via Tim, N3TL with a standard size SASE.
EE Times prepared a July 20th special edition that tells the Lunar
Landing story from the viewpoint of a number of engineers. It can
be found on-line at: http://tinyurl.com/npklma. Page 44 features
comments by AMSAT member Steve Bible, N7HPR.
[ANS thanks VE3MOON, AO-51 Operations Team, K5E, and Tom K3IO for
the above information]
/EX
SB SAT @ AMSAT $ANS-207.05
STS-127 To Deploy Dual Picosats on July 30
AMSAT News Service Bulletin 207.05
>From AMSAT HQ SILVER SPRING, MD.
July 26, 2009
To All RADIO AMATEURS
BID: $ANS-207.05
The University of Texas at Austin announced this week they will
deploy a satellite in space on July 30, 2009 at 7:27 AM CDT via
the STS-127 Space Shuttle Picosatellite Launcher (SSPL).
BEVO1 is a 12.5 cm cube and 3 kg in mass. The purpose of the
mission is to collect data from NASA's DRAGON GPS receiver.
BEVO1 has two modes, data and beacon. The data mode is on
over most parts of the United States, and the rest of the time,
the satellite is in beacon mode. Also, anyone tracking BEVO1
can record what they hear at http://paradigm.ae.utexas.edu/ops.
The University of Texas also has additional information at:
http://www.utexas.edu/news/2009/06/09/picosatellite/
BEVO1 Downlink Information:
Beacon Mode
Downlink Freq: 437.325 MHz
Modulation: FM, 200mW, Morse Code, ~20 WPM
Data Mode
Downlink Freq: 437.325 MHz
Modulation:
GMSK, 1W, 9600 baud, AX.25 (default)
FM, 1W, Bell 202, AX.25
NASA describes DRAGONSat as an anticipated eight-year program with
a launch of the satellites approximately every two years. The first
three missions will test individual components and subsystems while
the final mission will culminate with the successful docking of two
satellites. Refer to http://tinyurl.com/m2blyc for additional mission
information.
The University of Texas at Austin has developed BEVO1 and Texas A&M
University has developed AggieSat-2 for this mission. Both satellites
will perform the initial data acquition testing of the DRAGONSat pro-
gram.
[ANS thanks Jahshan Bhatti at the University of Texas at Austin and
Andy, W5ACM for the above information]
/EX
SB SAT @ AMSAT $ANS-207.06
SwissCube Delivery to India, Three Additional CubeSats Planned
AMSAT News Service Bulletin 207.06
>From AMSAT HQ SILVER SPRING, MD.
July 26, 2009
To All RADIO AMATEURS
BID: $ANS-207.06
The Southgate ARC webpage reports the SwissCube Amateur Radio
satellite, and its integration team will shortly be leaving for
the launch site in India. The SwissCube mission has a scientific
and a technology objective to observe and take measurements of
the airglow phenomena. The IARU has coordinated a downlink fre-
quency of 437.505 MHz.
The Technical University of Berlin will launch their BeeSat
cubesat project on this mission. The main objective of BeeSat
is the on orbit verification of newly developed micro wheels
for pico satellite applications. BeeSat will demonstrate the
use of coin size micro wheels for the attitude control. This
satellite is licensed to operate on 436.00 MHz.
University of Wuerzburg, Department of Computer Science will
launch UWE-2 is to test a newly developed attitude determination
system. Other experiments related to "IP in space" will be per-
formed. These experiments follow on from the experiments of the
previous satellite UWE-1. A AX25 and CW downlink on 437.385 MHz
has been coordinated by the IARU.
The Istanbul Technical University will launch ITUpSAT on a mission
to characterize a passive attitude control system and take earth
observation pictures. Main communications will take place on fre-
quencies outside the amateur satellite service, but a 100mW 70cm
CW telemtry beacon is planned to operated on 437.325 MHz.
Space launches are technically challenging and are usually prone
to last minute changes, so the exact launch date for the PSLV is
still not known.
[ANS thanks Trevor, M5AKA, Southgate, and IARU Coordination pages
for the above information]
/EX
SB SAT @ AMSAT $ANS-207.07
Satellite Shorts From All Over
AMSAT News Service Bulletin 207.07
>From AMSAT HQ SILVER SPRING, MD.
July 26, 2009
To All RADIO AMATEURS
BID: $ANS-207.07
+ Congratulations to Andrew Koenig, KE5GDB upon winning the Newsline
Youth Ham of the Year Award! Amateur Radio on the International Space
Station (ARISS) Team member Nick Lance, KC5KBO, who does ham radio
mentoring of students at his local school, was pleased to learn that
his student, Andrew Koenig, KE5GDB, has won the Newsline Youth Ham
of the Year Award. ARISS was one of the main motivators for Andrew
to study for his license, and to stay licensed. He continued his
interest in space by helping with ARISS contacts and by being active
in ham satellite operations. (Via Carol Jackson, KB3LKI, ARISS Weekly
Report)
+ Full information for the 2009 Mid-Atlantic VHF Conference Saturday,
September 26 in Plymouth Meeting, PA is available on-line at:
http://tinyurl.com/mdrbxx (Packrats)
+ Replay of the Falcon-1 launch is available at:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Mfdk_VZMjQI
+ Here's a science oriented web page that may be of interest to the
young visitors to your shack. Visit the NASA: Home and City site
http://www.nasa.gov/externalflash/nasacity/index2.htm to see how
space exploration impacts daily life.
+ John K8YSE says he will prepare special QSL cards from his Delaware
satellite operation July 11-12. Watch for his announcement via the
amsat-bb and his QRZ.com web page.
+ NASA has an interactive web site to allow you to explore the
Apollo 11 landing site:
http://www.nasa.gov/externalflash/apollo11_landing/index.html
+ An on-line HD video of the STS-127 launch is available at:
http://tinyurl.com/lqeqqo (UniverseToday.com)
[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 that because cows eat grass they're lawn mooers.
73,
This week's ANS Editor,
JoAnne Maenpaa, K9JKM
K9JKM at amsat dot org
AMSAT NEWS SERVICE
ANS-200
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:
* BOD Ballot Information
* Walter Cronkite, KB2GSD, SK
* OSCAR 5 In Print
* AO-51 Commemorative QSL
* Solar Eclipse 22nd July
* ARISS Schedule
SB SAT @ AMSAT $ANS-200.1
BOD Ballot Information
AMSAT News Service Bulletin 200.1
>From AMSAT HQ SILVER SPRING, MD.
June 21, 2009
To All RADIO AMATEURS
BID: $ANS-200.1
To All AMSAT Members: You will be receiving an envelope
with important AMSAT information along with your ballot.
PLEASE keep and read all information except the ballot
- there is an error on it (It says vote for three candidates
instead of four). Within the next few days,
we will be sending a new ballot in an envelope marked
"corrected ballot". The new ballot will be a different
color and have the word "corrected" on the top.
That is the one you need to return.
[ANS thanks Martha for the above information]
/EX
SB SAT @ AMSAT $ANS-200.2
Walter Cronkite, KB2GSD, SK
AMSAT News Service Bulletin 200.2
From AMSAT HQ SILVER SPRING, MD.
June 21, 2009
To All RADIO AMATEURS
BID: $ANS-200.2
The Amateur Radio community has lost one of its ambassodors.
Walter Cronkite, amateur call KB2GSD, was a spokesman for the hobby. He
Narrated the "Amateur Radio Today" production by the ARRL. The
ARRL has presented him with many awards.
His love of Space science and the NASA Moon Missions won our
Admiration. His coverage of those showed his interests in technology. Who
Doesn't remember listening to those exciting broadcasts of the Moon
Missions?
Mr. Cronkite had won NASA's respect by winning one of their prestigious
"Ambassodor of Exploration Awards" given by them to the only "outsider"
by NASA.
His contributions and support of Amateur Radio will be remembered
For many years to come.
Note: A prepared special 14 minute audio only tribute to
Walter Cronkite hosted by Mark Abramowicz, NT3V,
that you can download and play from the website at www.arnewsline.org.
[ANS thanks William Pasternack, WA6ITF, for the above information]
/EX
SB SAT @ AMSAT $ANS-200.3
OSCAR 5 In Print
AMSAT News Service Bulletin 200.3
From AMSAT HQ SILVER SPRING, MD.
June 21, 2009
To All RADIO AMATEURS
BID: $ANS-200.3
The Oscar 5 satellite built by Australian Radio Amateurs
at the end of the 60's is mentioned in the latest issue
of SatMagazine.
The July/August issue of SatMagazine covers the Australian
space program and mentions the work of Australian Radio
Amateurs who built Oscar 5. The article on page 59 includes
a picture of Oscar 5 which carried transmitters on 29.450 MHz
and 144.050 MHz and was launched on January 23, 1970, into
an orbit of 1435 x 1481 km with an inclination of 102.0 degrees.
Ther July/Aug 2009 issue of SatMagazine
is at http://www.satmagazine.com/2009/SatMag_JulAug09.pdf
SatMagazine
http://www.satmagazine.com/
----
[ANS thanks Trevor, M5AKA, for the above information]
/EX
SB SAT @ AMSAT $ANS-200.4
AO-51 Commemorative QSL
AMSAT News Service Bulletin 200.4
From AMSAT HQ SILVER SPRING, MD.
June 21, 2009
To All RADIO AMATEURS
BID: $ANS-200.4
News release July 16, 2009:
AMSAT-NA will mark the 40th anniversary of the first manned
lunar landing with a special event on AO-51. AO-51 will
transmit a message commemorating the event Monday, July 20
during evening passes in the U.S. and Europe. The message
will be transmitted on the 435.300 MHz FM downlink and will
contain a Robot 36 SSTV image as well as a voice message.
A special AO-51 QSL will be available to those who copy the
downlink. Send QSL requests marked "Apollo 11" with SASE to
the AMSAT office at 850 Sligo Ave. Suite 600,
Silver Spring, MD 20910.
[ANS thanks Drew, KO4MA, for the above information]
/EX
SB SAT @ AMSAT $ANS-200.5
Solar Eclipse 22nd July
AMSAT News Service Bulletin 200.5
From AMSAT HQ SILVER SPRING, MD.
June 21, 2009
To All RADIO AMATEURS
BID: $ANS-200.5
Solar eclipse is visible at Asia and Pacific on
22nd July. Very limited area is able to see total
solar eclipse.
Many amateur satellites pass above the solar eclipse
area. Electric power generated by solar cells will show
very interesting behavior under solar eclipse. How about
collecting telemetry and ploting solar cell power condition?
Temperature may also show interesting look.
I checked the telemetry transmitting satellite orbit
around Japan. The following satellites pass above
solar eclipse area.
COMPASS-1, FO-29, CO-66, CO-58, DO-64, STARS,
PRISM, SOHLA-1, AO-27, NO-44
There is something to be said for DO-64 condition.
Will DO-64 stop transmitting telemetry under the
solar eclipse?
If AO-27 store telemetry as WOD, WOD shows complete
solar eclipse condition.
Let's try to collect telemtry under solar eclipse!
solar eclipse info
http://eclipse.gsfc.nasa.gov/SEmono/TSE2009/TSE2009.html
[ANS thanks Masa, JN1GKZ for the above information]
/EX
SB SAT @ AMSAT $ANS-200.6
ARISS Schedule
AMSAT News Service Bulletin 200.6
From AMSAT HQ SILVER SPRING, MD.
July 13, 2009
To All RADIO AMATEURS
BID: $ANS-200.6
1. ARISS Contact Between Koichi Wakata and Mugegawa Junior High
On Saturday, July 11, students from Mugegawa Junior High School participated
in an Amateur Radio on the International Space Station (ARISS) contact with
JAXA astronaut Koichi Wakata, KC5ZTA. Wakata answered 17 questions posed to
him by the students. Over three hundred parents and guests attended the
event,
which was covered by five newspapers and a television station.
2. ARISS Contact Held with Technopolis, Belgium
An Amateur Radio on the International Space Station (ARISS) contact was held
between ESA astronaut Frank De Winne, ON1DWN on the ISS and TechnopolisR in
Mechelen, Antwerpen, Belgium. The contact took place on Saturday, July 11
via
telebridge station LU8YY in Argentina. Fourteen questions were asked and
answered
as an audience of 200 looked on. Belgian astronaut Dirk Frimout was present
and gave a talk on space. Three radio and television stations and two
newspapers covered the event. The contact audio was fed into the Internet
Radio Linking Project (IRLP) and EchoLink servers, providing additional
outreach.
3. Successful ARISS Contact with Euro Space Center
On Sunday, July 12, youth visiting the Euro Space Center in Belgium
during Air and Space Day participated in an Amateur Radio on the
International
Space Station (ARISS) contact with ESA astronaut Frank De Winne, ON1DWN on
the
ISS. The contact was made possible through telebridge station WH6PN in
Hawaii.
Twenty-four students asked one question each of the astronaut in front of an
audience of 500 guests. The contact audio was fed into the Internet Radio
Linking Project (IRLP) and EchoLink servers, providing additional outreach.
4. SuitSat-2 Becomes a Satellite
The Orlan spacesuit that was to house SuitSat-2 amateur radio equipment
was recently discarded on a Progress due to space limitations on the ISS.
Work continues on the satellite hardware with plans to use a different
configuration for deployment. The Amateur Radio on the International Space
Station (ARISS) team plans to meet delivery and launch dates for an EVA
deployment in April 2010. For more information,
see: http://www.amsat.org/amsat-new/index.php
5. ARISS Satellite Meeting Held
The Amateur Radio on the International Space Station (ARISS) U.S. team
met in Phoenix, Arizona over the July 10 - 12 weekend. The team performed
integration tests on various components of the SuitSat-2 hardware.
6. Astronaut Training Status
A training session is planned this week for astronaut Tracy Caldwell to
prepare her for her amateur radio license exam. Caldwell is scheduled
to fly with Expedition 23 in April 2010.
7. AMSAT Videos of Dayton Hamvention Available for Viewing
The Radio Amateur Satellite Corporation (AMSAT) has posted videos
taken at the Dayton Hamvention 2009. Several Amateur Radio on the
International Space Station (ARISS) presentations are available for
viewing. (ARISS Status, Will Marchant; Columbus Module Antennas,
Lou McFadin; SuitSat-2, Gould Smith; Spaceflight Participant,
Richard Garriott) See:
http://www.amsat.org/amsat-new/information/videoNews.php
8. ARISS News on Amateur Radio Newsline
On July 10, Amateur Radio Newsline Report 1665 provided a status on the
Amateur Radio on the International Space Station (ARISS) SuitSat-2 program.
To view "Ham Radio in Space: SuitSat-2 Loses the Suit Part but will Still
Fly," see: ftp://ftp.arnewsline.org/quincy/News-A/news.txt
[ANS thanks Carol, KB3LKI, for the above information]
/EX
73,
This week's ANS Editor,
Dee Interdonato, NB2F
nb2f at amsat dot org
SB SAT @ AMSAT $ANS-189.01
SuitSat-2 Transforms Into a Satellite
AMSAT News Service Bulletin 189.01
>From AMSAT HQ SILVER SPRING, MD.
July 8, 2009
To All RADIO AMATEURS
BID: $ANS-189.01
Due to storage considerations on the International Space Station,
the two surplus Orlan space suits in storage on the International
Space Station were discarded via the Progress Cargo Vessel. One of
these suits was to be used to house the electronics for the upcoming
SuitSat-2 mission where the batteries were to be mounted inside the
suit, solar panels attached to the extremities with the electronics,
video cameras and antenna mounted on the helmet by the ISS crew prior
to deployment during an EVA.
The Progress, with the suits included, was undocked from ISS this
past week.
The ARISS International Team has been informed that there is still
space available for shipment of the SuitSat-2 electronics on the
projected cargo flight to the Space Station in January 2010 and the
EVA scheduled for April 2010 still has a 'SuitSat-2' deployment
scheduled.
Consequently, the AMSAT team developing SuitSat-2 electronics on
behalf of ARISS International is focusing on completing development
in anticipation that deployment will still take place in Spring 2010
using a new structure to house it. In addition, the experiment being
developed by Russia's Kursk State University is still expected to
be integrated into the electronics once the US produced equipment
is delivered to Russia this fall. Discussions are currently taking
place between Russian ARISS members and the AMSAT project managers
concerning the design of the new structure and where it will be
constructed with these decisions to be made in the next few weeks.
The AMSAT team building the electronics is meeting July 10-12 in
Phoenix to initiate integration testing of all of the components
built in the US with subsequent testing to continue through the
remainder of the summer in anticipation of shipping equipment to
Russia in the fall.
The removal of the Orlan space suits from ISS removes the 'Suit'
component of this deployment and at some point a new project name
will be used to reflect the change in configuration. However, the
significant importance of this project to both ARISS and AMSAT is
not diminished.
ARISS sees this mission as an important component of education out-
reach as it will provide an opportunity for students around the world
to listen for recorded greetings from space as well as learn about
tracking spacecraft in orbit.
Meanwhile, the deployment of SDX (Software Defined Transponder), the
associated receiver and transmitter modules, and control electronics
is a critical milestone for AMSAT as this upcoming flight provides an
opportunity to flight test the next generation of spacecraft hardware.
Lessons learned from this deployment will be applied to future flight
opportunities as AMSAT moves towards a 'modularization approach' to
spacecraft development with the expectation the future spacecraft
missions will utilize a derivative of SDX and the associated hardware.
[ANS thanks AMSAT VP-Manned Spaceflight Will Marchant, KC6ROL for
the above information]
/EX
AMSAT NEWS SERVICE
ANS-186
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
**********************************************************************
* 2009 AMSAT Space Symposium and Annual General Meeting October 9-11 *
* Four Points Sheraton Hotel at the Baltimore Washington Airport *
* Details - http://www.amsat.org/amsat-new/symposium/2009/index.php *
**********************************************************************
In this edition:
* AMSAT 2009 Space Symposium and Annual General Meeting
* AMSAT Forum videos from Dayton Hamvention
* SuitSat-2 Systems Integration
* AO-51 Engineering Team Continues to Monitor Power Levels
* Certificate Available for 13 Colonies Special Event Station
* Special Event Station 4C50C via Satellite From Mexico
* AMSAT Satellite Communications Achievement Award #500 Issued
* Recognition for SumbandilaSat Design and Development
* Satellite Shorts From All Over
SB SAT @ AMSAT $ANS-186.01
AMSAT 2009 Space Symposium and Annual General Meeting
AMSAT News Service Bulletin 186.01
>From AMSAT HQ SILVER SPRING, MD.
July 5, 2009
To All RADIO AMATEURS
BID: $ANS-186.01
Now is the time for you to prepare your papers and presentations
for the 2009 AMSAT Annual Meeting and Space Symposium to be held
October 9 - 11 at the Four Points Sheraton Hotel at the Baltimore
Washington Airport.
Proposals for papers, symposium presentations and poster presenta-
tions are invited on any topic of interest to the amateur satellite
community. We request a tentative title of your presentation as soon
as possible, with final copy submitted by September 1, 2009 for
inclusion in the printed proceedings.
Abstracts and papers should be sent to Dan Schultz, N8FGV, at
n8fgv(a)amsat.org.
[ANS thanks the 2009 Symposium Committee for the above information]
/EX
SB SAT @ AMSAT $ANS-186.02
AMSAT Forum videos from Dayton Hamvention
AMSAT News Service Bulletin 186.02
>From AMSAT HQ SILVER SPRING, MD.
July 5, 2009
To All RADIO AMATEURS
BID: $ANS-186.02
Videos of the six presentations at the AMSAT Forum at the 2009 Dayton
Hamvention are now on the AMSAT website. Click on this link:
http://www.amsat.org/amsat-new/information/videoNews.php - or -
go to the AMSAT website and click on the AMSAT Video News icon about
halfway down the page in the left column.
The presentations include:
1. Richard Garriott's forum talk (mislabeled on the web site as the
Banquet presentation, actual length about 15 minutes) on his visit
to the ISS.
2. AMSAT Status report, Barry Baines, WD4ASW
3. SuitSat-2 Project Status, Gould Smith, WA4SXM
4. Satellite Operations Status, Drew Glasbrenner, KO4MA
5. ARISS Status, Will Marchant, KC6ROL
6. Columbus Module Antennas, Lou McFadin, W5DID
Be sure and watch Barry's presentation on the Status of AMSAT. Thanks
go to Steve Belter, who recorded, edited and converted the video of
the AMSAT presentations at the 2009 Dayton AMSAT Forum, Rob Meisse
W8GSM for setting them up on his server and to Rick Hambly W2GPS for
updates on this web page.
[ANS thanks Gould, WA4SXM and Steve, N9IP for above information]
/EX
SB SAT @ AMSAT $ANS-186.03
SuitSat-2 Systems Integration
AMSAT News Service Bulletin 186.03
>From AMSAT HQ SILVER SPRING, MD.
July 5, 2009
To All RADIO AMATEURS
BID: $ANS-186.03
Many of the SuitSat-2 team members will converge on Phoenix during
the weekend of July 10-12 for a system integration party. The team
expects to put all of the hardware modules together that have been
developed in many parts of the country. SuitSat-2 Project Manager,
Gould WA4SXM said, "It is great to be at the point that we can start
testing system operations with the hardware and software. The fun
begins Friday July 10." You can keep up with the integration activ-
ities next weekend using Twitter http://twitter.com/GGouldSmith.
[ANS thanks Gould, WA4SXM for the above information]
/EX
SB SAT @ AMSAT $ANS-186.04
AO-51 Engineering Team Continues to Monitor Power Levels
AMSAT News Service Bulletin 186.04
>From AMSAT HQ SILVER SPRING, MD.
July 5, 2009
To All RADIO AMATEURS
BID: $ANS-186.04
Due to the increasing time AO-51 is spending in eclipse AMSAT
Vice-President of Operations, Drew KO4MA reports that transmitter
power levels have needed to be reduced. This way the batteries will
provide enough power to keep the satellite operational when the
solar cells are not providing charging current. AO-51 users have
already noted the weaker signals on the downlinks.
The AO-51 Control Team Web Page for latest operating information will
carry the latest status of the satellite. See:
http://www.amsat.org/amsat-new/echo/CTNews.php
AMSAT now has a Twitter account at http://twitter.com/AMSAT where the
AO-51 Operations Team will try to tweet things too small for ANS bull-
etins or email, but of interest to the general AMSAT community. The
most recent tweet reported, "AO-51 is in "normal" mode, telemetry on
435.150 @ 240mw, V/u repeater on 435.300 @ 290mw."
Gould, WA4SXM, AO-51 Ground Control Station said, "The eclipse time
should start to decrease over the next few days hopefully allowing
improvement in the transmitter power settings."
Gould continues with the news, "The AO-51 telemetry archive is up to
date as of last night. AO-51 telemetry data is available in raw for-
mat, CSA (comma separated variable) format that has the channel data
converted by the configuration equations and there are some Excel files
(most with graphs). There are a number of Excel files with graphs for
June 2009 as that was a very interesting month for AO-51 operation. I
encourage exploration of the data and any insights gleaned."
The telemetry archive can be found at:
http://www.amsat.org/amsat/ftp/telemetry/ao51/
[ANS thanks AO-51 Command Station, Gould WA4SXM for the above
information]
/EX
SB SAT @ AMSAT $ANS-186.05
Certificate Available for 13 Colonies Special Event Station
AMSAT News Service Bulletin 186.05
>From AMSAT HQ SILVER SPRING, MD.
July 5, 2009
To All RADIO AMATEURS
BID: $ANS-186.05
If you worked the stations participating in the Original 13 Colonies
Independence Day Special Event between July 1- 5 you can send for a
commemorative certificate.
Ken requests, "Each station to send a contact log stating the Date,
UTC, Band, & call sign of each contact, along with your QSL card and
$4.00 US. in check, MO. or cash (to help defray printing costs). NO
SASE required. We will furnish postage, certificate and 9"x12"
envelope. No QSL cards will be issued - just the certificate. All
award requests and payment to be sent and made out to the KU2US-
Award Manager address shown on the event log form."
Log form in PDF format: http://tinyurl.com/nbrxzv
Log form in text format: http://tinyurl.com/klv53u
[ANS thanks Ken, KU2US and Tim, N3TL for the above information]
/EX
SB SAT @ AMSAT $ANS-186.06
Special Event Station 4C50C via Satellite From Mexico
AMSAT News Service Bulletin 186.06
>From AMSAT HQ SILVER SPRING, MD.
July 5, 2009
To All RADIO AMATEURS
BID: $ANS-186.06
Omar XE1AO, a regular satellite operator from central Mexico,
reported news of a special callsign that will be showing up
on the satellites between now and 31 August 2009.
The call, 4C50C ("Four Charlie Fifty Charlie"), is part of the
"Trabaja Todo Colima" (Work All Colima) special event currently
taking place in the central Mexican state of Colima. This event
is commemorating the 50th anniversary of the creation of the J.
Roberto Levy radio club in that state.
During the months of June, July, and August, stations from all
over Colima have been on HF and the satellites, trying to put all
10 Colima "municipios" (municipalities, similar to counties in
the USA) on the air. On HF, the special call XE50C has been used
from different parts of Colima. Now, four hams (XE1AO, XE1ATZ,
XE1AY, and XE1J) have been authorized by the Mexican telecommun-
ications regulator CoFeTel to use 4C50C on the satellites as part
of this event.
Initially, XE1AO will attempt to put 4C50C on AO-51's evening
passes along with VO-52 and FO-29 evening passes. Omar and the
other 3 hams hope to expand the use of 4C50C onto SO-50 and AO-27,
plus look at passes at other times of the day during this period.
For hams outside Mexico, XE1J is the QSL manager for these special
calls. The Mexican QSL bureau will take care of QSL requests from
XE hams. Along with the QSL cards, there will be a certificate
available to stations that work stations in at least 7 of the 10
Colima municipalities and also accumulate at least 74 points based
on the location of the stations worked in Colima. Additional
points are available for working certain stations like XE50C and
4C50C.
[ANS thanks Omar XE1AO and Patrick WD9EWK/VA7EWK for the above
information]
/EX
SB SAT @ AMSAT $ANS-186.07
AMSAT Satellite Communications Achievement Award #500 Issued
AMSAT News Service Bulletin 186.07
>From AMSAT HQ SILVER SPRING, MD.
July 5, 2009
To All RADIO AMATEURS
BID: $ANS-186.07
AMSAT Director Contests and Awards, Bruce KK5DO reported, "Since mid
May we have been waiting to see who would get the AMSAT Satellite
Communications Achievement Award #500. Here are the awards issued
in the order they were received. Congratulations to everyone that
submitted for the award!"
The following have earned the AMSAT Satellite Communications Achievement
Award.
Chris Lemon, KB9CL #490
Ernest Howard, W8EH #491
Peter Portanova, WB2OOQ #492
Michael Klomfass, DH5MK #493
James DeYoung, N8OQ #494
Ronald Parsons, W5RKN #495
Thomas Lepley, KX3TL #496
Chris Meyers, KC0YBM #497
Nick Kucij, KB1RVT #498
George Carr, WA5KBH #499
Ward Hall, WC0Y #500
Jim Klassen, N6JMK #501
James Clary, ND9M #502
To see all the awards visit http://www.amsat.org.
[ANS thanks Bruce, KK5DO for the above information]
/EX
SB SAT @ AMSAT $ANS-186.08
Recognition for SumbandilaSat Design and Development
AMSAT News Service Bulletin 186.08
>From AMSAT HQ SILVER SPRING, MD.
July 5, 2009
To All RADIO AMATEURS
BID: $ANS-186.08
In recognition of their design and development of the Amateur Payload
on South Africa's SumbandilaSat Andrew Roos, ZS6AA, and Hannes Coetzee,
ZS6BPZ jointly received the Garth Milne Technology Award. SumbandilaSat
is currently planned to be launched on 21 August on a Soyuz Rocket from
Baikonur.
[ANS thanks Amateur Radio Newsline Report 1664 - July 3 2009 for the
above information]
/EX
SB SAT @ AMSAT $ANS-186.09
Satellite Shorts From All Over
AMSAT News Service Bulletin 186.09
>From AMSAT HQ SILVER SPRING, MD.
July 5, 2009
To All RADIO AMATEURS
BID: $ANS-186.09
+ Jim, ND9M/VQ9JC plans to return to Diego Garcia (VQ9, Grid MI62)
in August. Operation will be on the FM and linear birds shortly
thereafter.
+ The next Hudson Valley Satcom Group nets are Thurday July 9 and
July 23 at 8:00 PM EDT (UTC-4) and will be simulcast on Echolink
node N2EYH-L. More information at http://www.hvsatcom.org
(Stu, WA2BSS)
+ Mark, WA8SME will be giving a demonstration of ham radio satellites
during the ARRL ETP Teachers Institute in Dayton, Ohio on July 7th.
He will be using AO27 on the 1515 EST pass. The equipment will be
an ARROW and HT. The call will be W1AW/8. For those that make con-
tact, if you would like a QSL, send your card to WA8SME, and he'll
get you a card.
+ The Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) has released the
final still images taken by the onboard High Definition Television
(HDTV) from Kaguya, just before it completed its mission by impact-
ing the moon on June 11, 2009. An entire series of images were
taken with an interval of about one minute by the HDTV (Teltephoto)
while Kaguya maneuvered its way to impact in Gill Crater. See:
http://tinyurl.com/mfg32w click on the arrow in top left to navi-
gate to the next photo. (via UniverseToday.com)
+ Launch images from LRO/LCROSS successfull liftoff can be found
on-line at: http://tinyurl.com/n5vqab
+ Dutch journalists Govert Schilling and Jaap Meijers have built a
Twitter page to let people know when a visible ISS pass is coming.
To participate follow the Twitter account @twisst:
http://twitter.com/twisst
+ Simulated contacts are being planned for four licensed astronauts
during the week of June 29. Soichi Noguchi, KD5TVP, Timothy J.
Creamer, KC5WKI, Doug Wheelock, KF5BOC and Satoshi Furukawa, KE5DAW
are tentatively scheduled for these training sessions, which are
terrestrial-based amateur radio contacts using Amateur Radio on the
International Space Station (ARISS) equivalent equipment.
[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 that another name for a boomerang that doesn't work
is a stick.
73,
This week's ANS Editor,
JoAnne Maenpaa, K9JKM
K9JKM at amsat dot org