AMSAT NEWS SERVICE
ANS-302
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 Board Elects Senior Officers for 2012
* Fox-1 Satellite in Development; Working on Partnerships for Launch
* AMSAT News Service Welcomes New Weekly Editor EMike McCardel, KC8YLD
* Japan PRISM Satellite Begins Amateur AX.25 Store-and-Forward Services
* WS4FSM Hosts the Largest School Contact Ever With the ISS
* Report Available for Japan's UNISEC Satellite Projects
* FUNcube-2 Boards Delivered to Clyde Space for UKube-1 Nanosatellite
* South Korea, Brazil, Ukraine Heading for Orbit
* NASA Accepting Student Applications for HASP Balloon Flight
* ARISS Status - 22 October 2012
SB SAT @ AMSAT $ANS-302.01
ANS-302 AMSAT News Service Weekly Bulletins
AMSAT News Service Bulletin 302.01
From AMSAT HQ SILVER SPRING, MD.
October 28, 2012
To All RADIO AMATEURS
BID: $ANS-302.01
AMSAT Board Elects Senior Officers for 2012
Election of AMSAT's Senior Officers was one of the first orders of
business to be settled once the AMSAT Board of Directors meeting
opened on October 25, prior to the start of the 2012 AMSAT Space
Symposium held in Orlando, Florida.
The following positions were voted upon and filled:
Barry Baines, WD4ASW President
Drew Glasbrenner, KO4MA Vice-President Operations
Gould Smith, WA4SXM Vice President User Services
Tony Monteiro, AA2TX Vice-President Engineering
Frank Bauer, KA3HDO Vice-President Human Spaceflight
Mark Hammond, N8MH Vice-President Educational Relations
Alan Biddle, WA4SCA Secretary
Keith Baker, KB1SF/VA3KSF Treasurer
Martha Saragovitz Manager
The following Senior Officer positions remained open at this time
awaiting appointments:
Executive Vice President
Vice-President Marketing
The AMSAT Board of Directors elected on September 15 include:
Barry Baines, WD4ASW
Alan Biddle, WA4SCA
Dr. Thomas A. Clark, K3IO
Drew Glasbrenner, KO4MA
Lou McFadin, W5DID
Tony Monteiro, AA2TX
Gould Smith, WA4SXM
Mark Hammond, N8MH (First Alternate)
Patrick Stoddard, WD9EWK (Second Alternate)
At the Board Meeting AMSAT Vice-President User Services Gould Smith,
WA4SXM, announced the appointment of JoAnne Maenpaa, K9JKM as the
Editor of the AMSAT Journal. JoAnne currently serves as the Senior
Editor of the AMSAT News Service. She will make the transition to
the Journal effective immediately. Lee McLamb, KU4OS once again is
assuming the role as the Senior Editor of the AMSAT News Service.
The Board noted that volunteer positions remain open for both the
Journal team and the AMSAT News Service team.
[ANS thanks the AMSAT Board of Directors for the above information]
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Fox-1 Satellite in Development; Working on Partnerships for Launch
AMSAT Vice-President Engineering, Tony Monteiro, AA2TX presented the
latest status on the design, development, and construction of the
Fox-1A satellite project. This is the 1U cubesat which is slated as
the FM repeater transponder to replace AO-51.
Project ELaNa, NASA's "Educational Launch of NanoSat" managed by
the Launch Services Program at the Kennedy Space Center, accepted
the AMSAT Fox-1 cubesat into this educational launch initiative on
its merits toward meeting NASA's strategic and educational goals.
AMSAT met the NASA goals by designing a satellite mission in support
of education with amateur radio included:
+ The Fox family of cubesats are ham radio transponders that are
designed to host science experiment payloads.
+ AMSAT will partner with universities to develop these science and
educational missions.
+ When the university missions gain a free launch for their primaary
scientific missions AMSAT's amateur radio transponder will also be
aboard.
+ After the primary science/education mission is completed the AMSAT
transponder will become available full-time for amateur radio ser-
vice.
AMSAT will work with NASA in a collaborative agreement where NASA
will cover the integration and launch costs. In the meantime, AMSAT
must still pay for the development costs of the cubesats and find
talented volunteers to work on the design.
Fox-1A's design goals include:
+ Fox-1 is designed to operate in sunlight without batteries once
the battery system fails. This applies lessons learned from AO-51
and ARISSat-1 operations.
+ In case of IHU computer failure Fox-1 will continue to operate its
FM repeater in a basic, 'zombie sat' mode, so that the repeater
remains on-the-air.
+ Fox-1 is designed as the immediate replacement for AO-51. Its U/V
(Mode B) transponder will make it even easier to work with modest
equipment.
+ From the ground user's perspective, the same FM amateur radio
equipment used for AO-51 may be used for Fox-1.
Fox-1 continues AMSAT's long record of success as an all-volunteer
organization providing access to space communications for students
in a curriculum setting as well the private citizen.
AMSAT's Fox-1 project timeline is based on targeting a launch in
the second half of 2013. NASA will determine on which flight each
of the Project ELaNa CubeSats fly.
Watch for news in the AMSAT Journal for details of AMSAT's partner-
ship with universities, the National Science Foundation, and NASA in
seeking grants for getting the first and future Fox generation sat-
ellites into orbit.
[ANS thanks AMSAT Vice-President Engineering, Tony Monteiro, AA2TX
and the AMSAT Board of Directors for the above information]
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AMSAT News Service Welcomes New Weekly Editor EMike McCardel, KC8YLD
EMike McCardel, KC8YLD is joining the AMSAT News Service as one of
the weekly rotating editors. EMike will welcome your news of Amateur
Radio in Space via the ans-editor(a)amsat.org or his KC8YLD(a)amsat.org
e-mail address.
He is active on the amateur satellites using his Yaesu VX8R and VX7R
radios. EMike is already active within AMSAT-NA serving as Associate
Direction of Education working on our educational relations with Mark
Hammond, N8MH. The AMSAT-Edu e-mail list, supporting our educational
outreach and planning, is moderated by EMike.
Recently EMike worked with Mark, N8MH; Dale, KJ6VUC; Tom, KA6SIP;
Dave, KB5WIA; Joe, K6WAO; Barry, WD4ASW; and Alan, WA6DNR as a mem-
ber of the AMSAT team During PACIFICON October 12-14. This effort
included a successful ARISS contact, support in the ARRL Youth Lounge
making CubeSat models, the AMSAT table, and satellite demonstrations.
EMike is an extra class operator. He is a member and past-president
of the Mount Vernon Amateur Radio Club, the Inter-City Radio Club in
Mansfield, OH, and a member of the ARRL. He is the ARRL Ohio Section
Affiliated Club Coordinator, ARRL appointed PIO and VE.
Other club affiliations include the Ohio Single Side Band Net, the
Old Man International Sideband Society, and the Straight Key Century
Club. His interest in emergency communications has lead to taking
two ARECC and several FEMA courses leading to certificates in Inci-
dent Command System/National Incident Management System, and the
National Response Plan.
ANS Bulletins will be coming from EMike as he joins the weekly edi-
tor rotation with Lee, KU4OS and JoAnne, K9JKM. The AMSAT News Ser-
vice Team still has a couple of openings for weekly editors. With 4
editors each would have a bulletin for one week of the month. JoAnne
has taken over as Editor of the AMSAT Journal so ANS has an immediate
opportunity for a new volunteer. Professional writing/editing experi-
ence is NOT a requirement. Your interest and enthusiasm in following
and teaching on amateur radio in space will get you started.
Welcome aboard EMike, KC8YLD!
[ANS thanks AMSAT Vice-President Gould Smith, WA4SXM for the above
information]
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Japan PRISM Satellite Begins Amateur AX.25 Store-and-Forward Service
The team that developed the PRISM satellite have announced it is
being opened up for use by radio amateurs during afternoon passes.
The satellite was built by the University of Tokyo and launched on
January 23, 2009 into a 660 by 670 km orbit. It uses AX.25 packet
radio and can now be used by amateur radio operators as a store-
and-forward message box.
Full details at:
http://www.space.t.u-tokyo.ac.jp/prism/en/HAMservice.html
(Ed. Note - if this link does not work with FireFox try using
Internet Explorer.)
Additional information is posted at: http://www.uk.amsat.org/?p=11174
Downlink Frequency Information
------------------------------
Beacon 437.2500 MHz CW (80 mW)
Data 437.4250 MHz AFSK 1200 BPS (800mW AX.25)
To gain access to the uplink frequency and the store-and-forward pro-
tocol the amateur radio user must agree to comply with the terms of
the HAM Radio Service by clicking on the "Read the Terms" button at
the bottom of the web page. If you agree then click on the "Agree"
item.
Upon agreement to the user terms you will be allowed access to a
technical information page describing the communications protocol
and the uplink frequency.
[ANS thanks the PRISM team at the University of Tokyo for the above
information]
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WS4FSM Hosts the Largest School Contact Ever With the ISS
On Tuesday, October 30, at 11:58AM EDT (15:58 UTC) most of Palm
Beach County's 187,000 students will be watching live as 10 stu-
dents and 2 teachers make contact with the International Space
Station.
The contact will be from the Motorola theater at the South Florida
Science Museum (see: http://www.sfsm.org). Amateur Radio Station
WS4FSM is part of a permanent Ham Radio Center exhibit built and
maintained by the West Palm Beach Amateur Radio Group.
Both a tower mounted tracking antenna and a mast mounted Eggbeater
antenna have been loaned to the club by area Hams for making this
contact.
The event will be televised live by closed circuit TV beginning
about 11:00 AM EDT (15:00 UTC) to classrooms in all the county
schools and streamed on the web at:
https://vodcast.palmbeachschools.org/player/ten1
Parents at home will be able to view this contact on the web stream
and on the school's educational channel and Comcast Cable in South
Florida. The final audience is expected to be over 250,000 live
viewers.
The students were selected from the entire school district, includ-
ing private and home schooler's, and entered by submitting an essay
about their interest in space exploration. Tens of thousands of es-
says were read and sorted by the committee which included educators,
astronomers, scientists, former astronauts, and Ham Radio operators.
The event is being co-sponsored by the Palm Beach Post who ran a
series of articles and published the winning essays.
An educational DVD will be produced for use in the school system at
other times and selected portions will be available on YouTube from
the West Palm Beach Amateur Radio Group.
For information on WS4FSM see:
http://www.wpbarc.com/WS4FSM
For information on the West Palm Beach Amateur Radio Group see:
http://www.wpbarc.com
[ANS thanks Tom Loughney, AJ4XM, President, West Palm Beach Amateur
Radio Group Inc. for the above information]
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Report Available for Japan's UNISEC Satellite Projects
Japan's University Space Engineering Consortium (UNISEC) has compil-
ed a report on the current state of Japanese University Micro/Nano/
Pico-satellite Projects.
The 100 page report is accessible via these "Download" button at the
bottom of this page: http://www.unisec.jp/member/jusat-e.html
[ANS thanks UNISEC for the above information]
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FUNcube-2 Boards Delivered to Clyde Space for UKube-1 Nanosatellite
For this story with additional photos see:
http://www.uk.amsat.org/?p=11133
On Friday, October 19, after some final testing and characterisation
checks completed at the facilities of ISIS BV in Delft, AMSAT-UK hand-
ed over the set of three PCBs that form the FUNcube-2 subsystem on
the UKube-1 spacecraft to Clyde Space Ltd in Glasgow. Clyde Space are
leading the development and assembly of this CubeSat project for the
UK Space Agency.
The PCBs were taken to Glasgow in a Pelicase by Graham Shirville,
G3VZV who handed them to Steve Greenland Systems Engineer at Clyde
Space.
The three PCB's comprise:
+ CCT Board - Command, control and telemetry, interfaces via I2C
with the antenna deployment system and the main OBC
(On-Board Computer).
+ RF Board - Command receiver, telemetry transmitter and linear
transponder of the FUNcube satellite educational pay-
load also includes telemetry sensors.
+ PA Board - 400 mW VHF amplifier and sensors.
FUNcube-2 on UKube-1 will provide a 435/145 MHz (U/V) linear trans-
ponder for amateur radio SSB/CW communications and telemetry for
school students around the world.
The UKube-1 spacecraft is expected to be launched on a Soyuz-2 launch-
er from Baikonur in Kazakhstan in March 2013. UKube-1 is a demonstra-
tion CubeSat mission designed to provide a platform for up to three
technology demonstrator payloads. In addition to these payloads the
satellite will incorporate innovative attitude determination and con-
trol systems, deployable arrays, FPGA on board mission controllers.
There will be four communications systems:
+ A U/V transceiver from ISIS BV, using either 1k2 or 9k6 BPSK
for downlinks.
+ A FUNcube compatible U/V transponder and telemetry transmitter
provided by AMSAT-UK for educational outreach, amateur trans-
ponder operation and redundant telecommand.
+ A 1 watt S Band transmitter from Cape Peninsula University of
Technology, Cape Town, for high data rate mission data down-
linking using up to 1 Mbps QPSK or OQPSK modulation.
+ myPocketQub 442 SuperSprite AU on UHF with 11mW output using
spread spectrum with 100 kHz bandwidth.
These frequencies have been coordination by the IARU Satellite Panel:
+ 1k2 or 9k6 BPSK Telemetry downlink 145.840 MHz
+ FUNcube-2 1k2 BPSK Telemetry downlink 145.915 MHz
+ FUNcube-2 Transponder SSB/CW uplink 435.080 - 435.060 MHz and
downlink 145.930 -145.950 MHz
+ S Band downlink 2401.0 MHz
+ myPocketQub 437.425-437.525 MHz
More information is available at:
http://www.ukspaceagency.bis.gov.uk/21973.aspx
[ANS thanks AMSAT-UK for the above information]
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South Korea, Brazil, Ukraine Heading for Orbit
Brazil-Ukraine
--------------
News posted on Space-Travel.com reports that Brazil and Ukraine are
partners in Alcantara Cyclone Space (ACS), a company which is prepar-
ing for the launch of the Cyclone-4 rockets from Brazil's Alcantara
base in the northeastern Maranhao state.
The Ukrainian Yuzhnoye engineering office is working on the develop-
ment of Cyclone-4, a new Cyclone series vehicle to be commercialized
exclusively by ACS. The Cyclone series of launch vehicles is one of
the most successful series of rockets ever developed building on the
prior successes of the Cyclone-2, and Cyclone-3 series initially bas-
ed on the SS-9 Scarp Intercontinental Ballistic Missile. A new third
stage will enable the Cyclone-4 to inject 5,300 kg in low Earth or-
bit, or 1,600 kg into a geo-transfer orbit. A new 4-meter diameter
payload unit is under development for the Cyclone-4.
Alcantara Cyclone Space plans the first launch from Brazil by 2014.
South Korea
-----------
This week South Korea joined the the exclusive club of countries cap-
able of placing a satellite in space on Friday with a rocket launch
from the Naro Space Center on the country's south coast. The first
stage of the space vehicle is manufactured by Russia, combined with
a solid-fuelled second stage built by South Korea.
Currently, only three Asian countries -- China, India and Japan --
have successfully launched a satellite into orbit.
[ANS thanks Space-Travel.com for the above information]
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MASA Accepting Student Applications for HASP Balloon Flight
NASA is accepting applications from graduate and undergraduate uni-
versity students to fly experiments to the edge of space on a scien-
tific balloon during the fall of 2013.
The High Altitude Student Platform (HASP) is a balloon-borne instru-
ment stack that provides an annual near-space flight opportunity for
12 instruments built by students. HASP houses and provides power,
mechanical support, interactivity and communications for the instru-
ments. It can be used to flight-test compact satellites, prototypes
and other small payloads designed and built by students. HASP can
support about 200 pounds for payloads and test articles. Since 2006,
the HASP program has flown 60 payloads involving more than 500 stu-
dents from 14 states, Puerto Rico and Canada. Flights are launched
from the Columbia Scientific Balloon Facility's remote site in Fort
Sumner, N.M., and typically achieve 15 to 20 hours' duration at an
altitude of about 23 miles.
The balloon competition is a joint project between NASA and the Louis-
iana Space Consortium (LaSPACE) in Baton Rouge. A panel of experts
from NASA's Wallops Flight Facility in Virginia and LaSPACE will re-
view the applications and select the finalists for the next flight
opportunity.
The deadline for applications for the 2013 flight is December 14.
Flight information and application forms can be found on the LaSpace
web: http://laspace.lsu.edu/hasp/Participantinfo.php
A related story was posted by SpaceREF at:
http://spaceref.com/news/viewpr.html?pid=38963
[ANS thanks LaSpace and NASA for the above information]
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ARISS Status - 22 October 2012
1. Successful ARISS Contacts Held
On Tuesday, October 16, CRA Pozohondo in Nava De Abajo (Pozohondo),
Spain hosted
an Amateur Radio on the International Space Station (ARISS) contact via
telebridge station LU8YY in Argentina. ISS astronaut Sunita Williams, KD5PLB
chatted with students, answering 20 of their life-in-space questions. The
activity was tied to lessons in astronomy, photography, radio and English as a
second language. Over 100 students and guests attended. The school has posted
video on its Web site:
http://edu.jccm.es/cra/cra_pozohondo
Students from the Wattsburg Area School District in Erie, Pennsylvania
participated in an Amateur Radio on the International Space Station (ARISS)
contact with on-orbit astronaut Sunita Williams, KD5PLB on Friday, October 19
via telebridge station VK4KHZ in Australia. Approximately 600 students were in
attendance with another 400 participating from their classrooms, connected by
internet. The ARISS contact was part of a comprehensive education plan which
covers Robotics, Astronomy, Amateur Radio and Science.
Scouts visiting the National Scouting Museum in Irving, Texas spoke with Sunita
Williams, KD5PLB via an Amateur Radio on the International Space
Station (ARISS)
contact on Saturday, October 20. The contact was part of the Jamboree
on the Air
(JOTA) weekend event whereby Scouts of all ages from around the world connect
with each other using Amateur Radio equipment. Williams was able to answer over
20 questions put to her by the Scouts and had time for longer than usual
answers due to sharing of the contact by Australian telebridge stations VK6MJ
and VK5ZAI. The audience consisted of around 200 scouts, parents, and friends
and at least three television stations and several newspapers representatives
were present.
2. ARISS International Team Meeting Held
The ARISS International Team monthly teleconference was held on
Tuesday, October
16. A status was given on the HamTV project as well as the new VHF unit to be
flown to the ISS and subsequently installed in the Columbus Module.
Minutes have been posted. See: http://ariss.rac.ca/arisstel2012-10-16.htm
3. Astronaut Training Status
Luca Parmitano, KF5KDP attended his preflight session on October 17. He is
slated to fly with Expedition 36 crew in May 2013.
[ANS thanks Carol, KB3LKI, 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 addi-
tional benefits. Application forms are available from the AMSAT
Office.
Primary and secondary school students are eligible for membership
at one-half the standard yearly rate. Post-secondary school students
enrolled in at least half time status shall be eligible for the stu-
dent rate for a maximum of 6 post-secondary years in this status.
Contact Martha at the AMSAT Office for additional student membership
information.
73,
This week's ANS Editor,
Lee McLamb, KU4OS
ku4os at amsat dot org
AMSAT NEWS SERVICE
ANS-295
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 at amsat.org
In this edition:
* Special Symposium Visitor Hector Martinez, CO6CBF
* 2012 AMSAT Space Symposium Begins This Week in Orlando
* Symposium Speaker and Presentation List is Taking Shape
* Successful ARISS Contacts With Youth
* AO-27 Recovery Work Still in Progress
* JA0CAW Receives 5840.0 MHz Downlink From FITSAT-1
* CAMSAT Announces New Details of CAS-2 Amateur Satellite Mission
* AMSAT-LU Recovers Stratospheric Balloon
* NASA Announcement of (Suborbital) Flight Opportunities #6 Now Open
* NASA History Program Office Spring and Summer 2013 Internships
* Iran Capable of Launching Satellites Weighing Below 10kg
* Satellite Shorts From All Over
SB SAT @ AMSAT $ANS-295.01
ANS-295 AMSAT News Service Weekly Bulletins
AMSAT News Service Bulletin 295.01
>From AMSAT HQ SILVER SPRING, MD.
October 21, 2012
To All RADIO AMATEURS
BID: $ANS-295.01
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Special Symposium Visitor Hector Martinez, CO6CBF
Hector Martinez, CO6CBF will travel from Cuba to the AMSAT Symposium
in Orlando next week. AMSAT extended an invitation for Hector to
attend and to make a presentation. Thanks to the work done by Patrick
Stoddard, WD9EWK/VA7EWK, Hector has been able to obtain a visa to come
to the United States for the Symposium.
Once the invitation was extended, Hector had to approach both govern-
ments and file applications to get a Cuban passport and travel permit
and a US visa. All expenses for his trip must be guaranteed by some-
one outside Cuba. Patrick took on that task personally on behalf of
AMSAT, even signing legally-binding documents for the Cuban government
to that end. Patrick has covered expenses out of his personal funds
since no AMSAT funds are available. Patrick would appreciate donations
to cover the expenses via his callbook address.
AMSAT looks forward to welcoming Hector, CO6CBF at the Symposium!
[ANS thanks Patrick Stoddard, WD9EWK/VA7EWK and the 2012 Symposium
Committee for the above information]
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2012 AMSAT Space Symposium Begins This Week in Orlando
This bulletin is a reminder that the time of the 2012 AMSAT Space
Symposium is quickly approaching. The Symposium will be held on
Friday, October 26th through Sunday, October 28th in Orlando, Flor-
ida at the Holiday Inn at Orlando-International Airport.
The Symposium weekend will feature:
+ Space Symposium with Amateur Satellite Presentations
+ Operating Techniques, News, & Plans from the Amateur Satellite World
+ Board of Directors Meeting open to AMSAT members
+ Meet Board Members and Officers
+ Annual General Membership Meeting
+ Annual Banquet-Keynote Speaker and Door Prizes
Symposium Registration including Proceedings
o Starting September 24, 2012: $ 50.00
o At the Door: $ 55.00
o Saturday Evening Banquet $ 45.00
o Sunday Morning Area Coordinators' Breakfast $ 15.00
o Sunday Trip to the Orlando Science Museum - the preregistration
for the Star Wars Exhibit has closed; however, access to the
rest of the exhibits remains available. Refer to the Museum
link on the Symposium Schedule page for tour details.
o Monday (Oct 29) bus trip to KSC and entrance ticket $ 100.00
See the AMSAT Web Store to complete your on-line registration:
http://store.amsat.org/catalog/index.php?cPath=27
Downloadable paper registration forms in MS-Word format and
PDF format are available on the 2012 Symposium page:
http://www.amsat.org/amsat-new/symposium/2012/index.php
The hotel offers free Internet connection and free airport shuttle.
When you arrive at the Orlando Airport call 407-709-5310 to request
the shuttle.
The Orlando International Airport (MCO) is the closest to the Sympos-
ium and is served by most major air carriers. The hotel address is:
5750 T.G. Lee Blvd - Orlando, FL 32822. A map link is included on
the hotel web page:
http://www.holidayinn.com/hotels/us/en/orlando/mcoap/hoteldetail
Dr. Samuel T. Durrance, NASA Astronaut at the Saturday Evening Banquet
----------------------------------------------------------------------
The featured speaker for the AMSAT 2012 Saturday Evening Banquet on
October 27 will be Dr. Samuel T. Durrance, NASA Astronaut/Payload
Specialist and Professor of Physics and Space Sciences at the Flor-
ida Institute of Technology. For all the details see:
http://www.amsat.org/amsat-new/symposium/2012/BanquetSpeaker.php
2012 AMSAT Symposium Schedule
-----------------------------
To help you plan your trip to Orlando the 2012 Symposium Committee
has posted a high-level schedule of the weekend's events.
Thursday 25 October 2012
AMSAT Board of Directors Meeting 8am - 9pm
Friday 26 October 2012
AMSAT Board of Directors Meeting 8am - Noon
Trips to SkyCraft 9am - Noon
AMSAT Symposium 1pm - 5pm
Saturday 27 October 2012
Symposium 8am - 3pm
AMSAT Annual General Meeting 3:30pm
AMSAT Banquet 6:30pm - 10pm
Sunday 28 October 2012
AMSAT Area Coordinator's Breakfast 7:30am
Trip to the Orlando Science Center 9:00am
Monday 29 October 2012
Special trip to Kennedy Space Center 8am-6pm
The AMSAT Symposium Web Schedule Pages include links for details of
the activities:
http://www.amsat.org/amsat-new/symposium/2012/SymposiumSchedule.php
[ANS thanks the 2012 Symposium Committee for the above information]
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Symposium Speaker and Presentation List is Taking Shape
The Symposium Team is working on finalizing the presentations which
are slated to begin at 1:00PM on Friday afternoon, October 26 and
run through Saturday, October 27 at 3:00PM.
You will hear from AMSAT's experts on topics including:
+ AMSAT Project Fox
o Program Overview
o Mechanical and Thermal Design
o FoxTLM software
o Linux software build environment for Fox
o Fox radiation mitigation
o The Fox Sniffer
+ Overview of the ARISSat-1 Mission
+ AMSAT and Education
o CubeSat Program [email protected]
o Recent Progress of UCF's CubeSat Program
o High School Students Building Satellites
o AMSAT at PACIFICON 2012
+ Special Presentation by Hector Martinez CO6CBF Working Satellites
with a homebrew setup, Cuban Style
+ Future Missions
o Demonstration of MAREA--the Mars-lander ARISS Robotics
Exploration Activity
o FUNcube from AMSAT-UK
o FUNcube Dongle
o NASA's Open Source General Mission Analysis Tool
+ Advanced Technology
o Future of CubeSat Communications: Transitioning Away from
Amateur Radio Frequencies for High-Speed
o Applying the Codec2 Low-Bitrate Voice Codec to Amateur
Satellite Operations
[ANS thanks the 2012 Symposium Committee for the above information]
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Successful ARISS Contacts With Youth
Luxembourg
----------
Students from St. George's International School in Luxembourg par-
ticipated in a Q&A session with Sunita Williams, KD5PLB on Monday,
October 8 via an Amateur Radio on the International Space Station
(ARISS) contact.
The radio connection was handled by telebridge station W6SRJ in
California. Approximately 700 students, teachers and guests were in
attendance - 200 in the gym watched live and another 500 in class-
rooms watched a "live stream" of the contact.
The audience included several VIPs: the UK Ambassador Alice Walpole,
the Head Teacher Heather Duxbury and the Deputy Head Teachers (Kath
Griffiths and Mark Stenton) of both primary and secondary sections.
Guest speakers gave talks on satellites as well as the NASA "Moon
Buggie" project. The contact was one of the educational activities
the students from both sections took part in to learn about electri-
city, astronomy and physics.
Italy
-----
On Tuesday, October 9, Liceo Statale Adelaide Cairoli in Pavia, Italy
took part in its Amateur Radio on the International Space Station
(ARISS) contact via station W6SRJ in California. On-orbit astronaut
Sunita Williams, KD5PLB, was able to answer 18 questions during the
contact as nearly 1100 students gathered for the event.
The school uses amateur radio as a teaching tool and its radio club
provides students the opportunity to speak with other amateurs all
over the world using different languages. This ARISS contact was used
to focus on technology, science and foreign languages. The video
may be viewed here: http://livestre.am/4aJ08
Successful PACIFICON ISS contact
--------------------------------
An Amateur Radio on the International Space Station (ARISS) contact
was held with youth attending the American Radio Relay League (ARRL)
Pacific Division annual convention, PACIFICON in Santa Clara, Cali-
fornia on Saturday, October 13.
Telebridge station IK1SLD in Italy provided the radio connection.
Astronaut Akihiko Hoshide, KE5DNI, on the ISS participated in the
contact which was the featured event of the PACIFICON Youth Program
that emphasized hands-on radio operation, electronics kit building,
orbital mathematics and CubeSat satellite design, among other STEM
activities.
Fellow astronaut Dr. Lee Morin gave a presentation at the event and
exchanged greetings with Hoshide at the end of the ISS pass.
An audience of approximately 150 was present for the contact; 2500
attended the convention.
[ANS thanks Carol Jackson, KB3LKI for the above information]
---------------------------------------------------------------------
AO-27 Recovery Work Still in Progress
AO-27 Command Station Michael Wyrick, N3UC reported on the team's
to recover the satellite and return its FM repeater back to service
after it stopped responding on October 5.
The next day AO-27 was restored back to running on its primary Boot-
loader. Control operators were able to turn on the Transmitter for
a short time. The command team downloaded the memory dump between
October 8-12 to try to determine the cause of the failure. This was
slowed due to interference. Please, if you can't hear the bird in
Analog mode, please don't transmit to it.
On October 14 the command team recovered from the AFSK modem problem
which was one of the initial symptoms of the problems. They were able
to upload the entire kernel. As of October 15 they finished uploading
the high level code to AO-27. The TOPR schedule will be on digital
for the entire pass until the command team collects enough telemetry
and finishes the on-orbit checkout.
AO-27 crashed once again on October 16. The command team once again
recovered to the bootloader state, recovered from another occurrence
of the AFSK modem problem and once again is attempting another soft-
ware upload.
ATTENTION OPERATORS: To prevent interfering with the command team's
recovery efforts, if you can't hear AO-27 in Analog mode, please don't
transmit to it.
The latest AO-27 news is posted on its webpage:
http://www.ao27.org/AO27/index.shtml
Mode V/U (J) FM Voice Repeater Frequencies
Uplink 145.8500 MHz FM
Downlink 436.7950 MHz FM
[ANS thanks AO-27 Command Station Michael Wyrick, N3UC for the above
information]
---------------------------------------------------------------------
JA0CAW Receives 5840.0 MHz Downlink From FITSAT-1
Tetsurou Satou, JA0CAW, successfully received the 5840.0 MHz down-
link from FITSAT-1 while it orbited over Japan. FITSAT-1, was one
of five CubeSats deployed from the International Space Station on
October 4.
He used a 38cm dish with a down-converter to an IF of 1284 MHz, a
BGA2717 LNA and the AMSAT-UK FUNCube Dongle SDR with HDSDR software.
Visit the AMSAT-UK web to view the JA0CAW posted:
http://www.uk.amsat.org/?p=11100
[ANS thanks Tetsurou Satou, JA0CAW for the above information]
---------------------------------------------------------------------
CAMSAT Announces New Details of CAS-2 Amateur Satellite Mission
First announced at the Friedrichshafen Ham Radio 2012 event, the
Chinese Amateur Satellite Group (CAMSAT) has made additional infor-
mation available on the new CAS-2 satellite under development. The
latest news has been posted by AMSAT-UK:
http://www.uk.amsat.org/?p=11108
CAMSAT is building two micro-satellites CAS-2A1 and CAS-2A2 to be
combined into a binary star system for amateur radio communication
and education.
There will be a radio link between two satellites when the satel-
lites are in suitable positions in their orbits, so that the ama-
teur radio communication coverage can be extended. Both spacecraft
are 25kg 270x270x250mm and are planning to launch from Taiyuan into
a sun synchronous, 1000km apogee, 99.5 degree orbit.
Missions of CAS-2A1 satellite:
+ 145 MHz CW telemetry beacon 100mW
+ 145 MHz AX.25 digital telemetry beacon 500mW
+ 145 MHz FM voice beacon 500mW
+ 435/145 MHz mode Linear transponder 50 kHz 500mW
+ 1260/2400 MHz Linear transponder 200 kHz 320mW
+ 435/145 MHz APRS repeater
Missions of CAS-2A2 satellite:
+ 435 MHz CW telemetry beacon 100mW
+ 435 MHz AX.25 digital telemetry beacon 500mW
+ 2400 MHz CW telemetry beacon 200mW
+ 10450 MHz CW telemetry beacon 200mW
+ 145/435 MHz Linear transponder 500mW
[ANS thanks CAMSAT and AMSAT-UK for the above information]
---------------------------------------------------------------------
AMSAT-LU Recovers Stratospheric Balloon
AMSAT-LU launched their LUSEX high altitude balloon from La Pampa,
Argentina on May 19, 2012. The payload included a UHF to VHF (4w)
subtone activated repeater, APRS lu7aa-11, Robot-36 live SSTV, CW,
40/20m CW tlm beacon and two video cameras. Over 200 stations made
contacts through the repeater during the 4 hour flight that reach-
ed 34,000 meters, 111,548 feet.
Initially thought lost during descent the payload was recovered
on October 6 from a muddy, flooded and isolated area by 4x4 Adven-
ture Group. Video and sound taken by two on board TV Cameras spanned
6 hours. They can be viewed at: http://tinyurl.com/AMSAT-LU
Details of the LUSEX Experiment, part of Amsat-LU development and
field tests of AMSAT Argentina's planned LUSEX satellite are posted
at: http://www.lusex.org.ar. See http://www.amsat.org.ar/rescate.jpg
for additional photos.
Pending approval and flight authorization by Argentina Federal Avia-
tion Authorities AMSAT-LU plans another balloon flight during the
November-December timeframe.
AMSAT-UK posted a related story at: http://www.uk.amsat.org/?p=11094
with videos and photos from the flight.
[ANS thanks AMSAT Argentina for the above information]
---------------------------------------------------------------------
NASA Announcement of (Suborbital) Flight Opportunities #6 Now Open
While AMSAT generally seeks orbital flight opportunities, this NASA
announcement for access to flights on parabolic flights, suborbital
Reusable Launch Vehicles (sRLV), and high-altitude balloons may be
of interest to our allied university groups.
The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) Dryden
Flight Research Center has released a solicitation entitled "NASA
Announcement of Flight Opportunities (AFO) for Payloads Maturing
Crosscutting Technologies that Advance Multiple Future Space Mis-
sions to Flight Readiness Status."
These NASA flight opportunities are for payloads that seek to gather
information required for the design, development and refinement of
new technologies. For instance, such information could concern how
certain fluids phenomena behave, how thermal transport changes, or
how human physiology is altered under microgravity.
The full document and program details are posted on NASA's NSPIRES
(NASA Solicitation and Proposal Integrated Proposal and Review Sys-
tem): http://tinyurl.com/NASA-nspires and then select the "Announce-
ment of Flight Opportunities (AFO) - #6" link.
Applications are due on or before 11:59 PM Eastern Time December 21,
2012, and selections will be announced in a target timeframe of Feb-
ruary 2013.
[ANS thanks NASA for the above information]
---------------------------------------------------------------------
NASA History Program Office Spring and Summer 2013 Internships
The NASA History Program Office is seeking undergraduate and gradu-
ate students for spring and summer 2013 internships. The History
Program Office maintains archival materials to answer research ques-
tions from NASA personnel, journalists, scholars, students at all
levels and others from around the world. The division also edits and
publishes several books and monographs each year. It maintains a
large number of websites on NASA history.
Students of all majors are welcome to apply. While detailed prior
knowledge of the aeronautics and space fields is not necessary, a
keen interest and some basic familiarity with these topics are need-
ed. Strong research, writing and editing skills are essential.
Experience with computers, especially hypertext markup language,
or HTML, formatting, is a plus.
Intern projects are flexible. Typical projects include handling a
variety of information requests, editing historical manuscripts,
doing research and writing biographical sketches, updating and
creating websites, and identifying and captioning photos.
Applications for spring 2013 internships are due Oct. 30, 2012.
Summer 2013 internship applications are due Feb. 4, 2013.
For more information, visit http://history.nasa.gov/interncall.htm.
If you have questions about this opportunity, please contact
Bill Barry at bill.barry(a)nasa.gov.
[ANS thanks NASA Education Express Message -- Oct. 18, 2012 for the
above information]
---------------------------------------------------------------------
Iran Capable of Launching Satellites Weighing Below 10kg
An article appearing on SpaceDaily.com says that, "MICROSAT BLITZ
Iran capable of launching nano-satellites weighing below 10 kg:
official", by Staff Writers Tehran (XNA) Oct 19, 2012
Source: http://tinyurl.com/SpaceDaily-Iran (SpaceDaily.com)
Iran Space Agency (ISA) Director Hamid Fazeli said the Islamic
republic has the capability to launch nano-satellites weighing
below 10 kg into space, Tehran Times daily reported Thursday.
Some of Asian countries and an Austrian university have announ-
ced readiness to set their satellites into orbit using Iranian
space shuttles, Fazeli was quoted as saying.
He said Iran is among a handful of countries in the world that
are capable of developing satellite-related technologies.
In February, Iran launched an observation satellite into orbit.
The spacecraft, named Navid (Herald), weighed 50 kg and could
take pictures in low attitudes of about 250 km to 375 km from
the earth.
Iran, a founding member of the United Nations Committee on the
Peaceful Uses of Outer Space, launched its first domestically-
made data-processing satellite, the Omid (Hope), into space in
2009.
[ANS thanks SpaceDaily.com for the above information]
---------------------------------------------------------------------
Satellite Shorts From All Over
+ ISS orbital reboost planned. The thrusters of the Russian Zvezda
service module are planned to be fired for 19 seconds on Wednesday
to raise the station's average orbit altitude by one kilometer to
436 km (270.9 miles). The reboost is in preparation for the docking
of the Soyuz TMA-06M manned spacecraft with Russian cosmonauts Oleg
Novitsky and Yevgeny Tarelkin, and NASA astronaut Kevin Ford plan-
ed to be launched on October 25.
+ On Wednesday, October 10 it was announced in Moscow that UK private
spacefarer Sarah Brightman had passed the required mental and physi-
cal examinations to fly into space. In 2013 she will undertake six
months of training at Star City in Moscow in preparation for her
mission to the International Space Station. Read the entire post at:
http://www.uk.amsat.org/?p=11034
+ Bob McGwier, N4HY says that the Hume Center for National Security
and Technology, and the Bradley Department of Electrical and Com-
puter Engineering at Virginia Tech, are seeking applicants for
junior and mid-level research staff members to support a growing
body of research programs in signals intelligence, military com-
munications, and electronic warfare. Details are posted at:
http://listings.jobs.vt.edu/applicants/Central?quickFind=196236
+ In HamRadioNow.tv, Episode 27, Gary Pierce, KN4AQ interviewed Bill
Brown, WB8ELK, who sends balloons carrying ham radio to the edge of
space, and David Stephenson KJ4OKJ who launches rockets with NASA.
Watch the podcast: http://arvideonews.com/hrn/HRN_Episode_0027.html
Additional programs can be found at: http://HamRadioNow.tv
+ Learn some Finnish as you watch a video from Kauto, OH2LFM with
OH2AUE demonstrating a P3E transponder at SRAL summer camp:
http://tinyurl.com/OH-transponder
+ Watch a video (http://www.uk.amsat.org/?p=11061) by students from
the Univeristy of Manitoba showing what is involved in assembling
a Nanosatellite. T-Sat1 will use the 145 and 437 MHz amateur radio
bands.
+ Lots of good VHF information plus the Updated VE7BQH VHF Antenna
Comparison Tables is found at: http://www.bigskyspaces.com/w7gj/
+ In celebration of Britain's contributions to space discovery and
exploration, Royal Mail is issuing a set of six special stamps to
mark the 50th anniversary of Britain's first launch into the final
frontier. Read the details posted at:
http://spaceref.com/news/viewpr.html?pid=38911
+ Ride along with Endeavour in Los Angeles on its way to museum duty
in a time lapse compilation by photographer/cinematographer Matthew
Givot: http://vimeo.com/51621640
+ The next Hudson Valley Satcom net date is Thursday, October 25
at 8 PM EDT (UTC-4 UTC) on the 146.97 MHz MBARC Repeater
(PL 100). An echolink connection is available on the N2EYH-L node.
More information at: http://www.hvsatcom.org. (Stu, WA2BSS)
[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 addi-
tional benefits. Application forms are available from the AMSAT
Office.
Primary and secondary school students are eligible for membership
at one-half the standard yearly rate. Post-secondary school students
enrolled in at least half time status shall be eligible for the stu-
dent rate for a maximum of 6 post-secondary years in this status.
Contact Martha at the AMSAT Office for additional student membership
information. And with that, please keep in mind the tale of the ham
who went to his dentist to see why his dentures kept decaying rapidly.
The dentist looked at the hams's dentures and remarked, "This is very
odd. They look like something's been eating them. Is there anything
different that you've been eating lately?" The ham said, "Well, my
wife has been making a lot of eggs Benedict recently with hollandaise
sauce." "Ah!" exclaimed the dentist, "That's it. I know just what you
need. I'm going to order you some new dentures with plates made out
of chrome." "Chrome?" exclaimed the ham incredulously, "Why Chrome?"
The dentist replied, "Because, there's no plates like chrome for the
hollandaise."
73,
This week's ANS Editor,
JoAnne Maenpaa, K9JKM
K9JKM at amsat dot org
AMSAT NEWS SERVICE
ANS-291 Special Bulletin
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 at amsat.org
In this edition:
* 2012 AMSAT Space Symposium Begins Next Week in Orlando
SB SAT @ AMSAT $ANS-291.01
ANS-291 AMSAT News Service Special Bulletin
AMSAT News Service Bulletin 291.01
>From AMSAT HQ SILVER SPRING, MD.
October 17, 2012
To All RADIO AMATEURS
BID: $ANS-291.01
---------------------------------------------------------------------
2012 AMSAT Space Symposium Begins Next Week in Orlando
This bulletin is a reminder that the time of the 2012 AMSAT Space
Symposium is quickly approaching. The Symposium will be held on
Friday, October 26th through Sunday, October 28th in Orlando, Flor-
ida at the Holiday Inn at Orlando-International Airport.
The Symposium weekend will feature:
+ Space Symposium with Amateur Satellite Presentations
+ Operating Techniques, News, & Plans from the Amateur Satellite World
+ Board of Directors Meeting open to AMSAT members
+ Meet Board Members and Officers
+ Annual General Membership Meeting
+ Annual Banquet-Keynote Speaker and Door Prizes
Symposium Registration including Proceedings
o Starting September 24, 2012: $ 50.00
o At the Door: $ 55.00
o Saturday Evening Banquet $ 45.00
o Sunday Morning Area Coordinators' Breakfast $ 15.00
o Sunday Trip to the Orlando Science Museum - contact Martha at
the AMSAT Office (888-322-6728 or 301-589-6062) by October 17
to reserve your spot for the tour of the Star Wars Exhibit.
o Monday (Oct 29) bus trip to KSC and entrance ticket $ 100.00
See the AMSAT Web Store to complete your on-line registration:
http://store.amsat.org/catalog/index.php?cPath=27
Downloadable paper registration forms in MS-Word format and
PDF format are available on the 2012 Symposium page:
http://www.amsat.org/amsat-new/symposium/2012/index.php
The hotel offers free Internet connection and free airport shuttle.
When you arrive at the Orlando Airport call 407-709-5310 to request
the shuttle.
The Orlando International Airport (MCO) is the closest to the Sympos-
ium and is served by most major air carriers. The hotel address is:
5750 T.G. Lee Blvd - Orlando, FL 32822. A map link is included on
the hotel web page:
http://www.holidayinn.com/hotels/us/en/orlando/mcoap/hoteldetail
Special Symposium Visitor Hector Martinez, CO6CBF
-------------------------------------------------
Hector Martinez, CO6CBF will travel from Cuba to the AMSAT Symposium
in Orlando next week. AMSAT extended an invitation for Hector to
attend and to make a presentation. Thanks to the work done by Patrick
Stoddard, WD9EWK/VA7EWK, Hector has been able to obtain a visa to come
to the United States for the Symposium.
Once the invitation was extended, Hector had to approach both govern-
ments and file applications to get a Cuban passport and travel permit
and a US visa. All expenses for his trip must be guaranteed by some-
one outside Cuba. Patrick took on that task personally on behalf of
AMSAT, even signing legally-binding documents for the Cuban government
to that end. Patrick has covered expenses out of his personal funds
since no AMSAT funds are available. Patrick would appreciate donations
to cover the expenses via his callbook address.
AMSAT looks forward to welcoming Hector, CO6CBF at the Symposium!
Dr. Samuel T. Durrance, NASA Astronaut at the Saturday Evening Banquet
----------------------------------------------------------------------
The featured speaker for the AMSAT 2012 Saturday Evening Banquet on
October 27 will be Dr. Samuel T. Durrance, NASA Astronaut/Payload
Specialist and Professor of Physics and Space Sciences at the Flor-
ida Institute of Technology. For all the details see:
http://www.amsat.org/amsat-new/symposium/2012/BanquetSpeaker.php
2012 AMSAT Symposium Schedule
-----------------------------
To help you plan your trip to Orlando the 2012 Symposium Committee
has posted a high-level schedule of the weekend's events.
Thursday 25 October 2012
AMSAT Board of Directors Meeting 8am - 9pm
Friday 26 October 2012
AMSAT Board of Directors Meeting 8am - Noon
Trips to SkyCraft 9am - Noon
AMSAT Symposium 1pm - 5pm
Saturday 27 October 2012
Symposium 8am - 3pm
AMSAT Annual General Meeting 3:30pm
AMSAT Banquet 6:30pm - 10pm
Sunday 28 October 2012
AMSAT Area Coordinator's Breakfast 7:30am
Trip to the Orlando Science Center 9:00am
Monday 29 October 2012
Special trip to Kennedy Space Center 8am-6pm
The AMSAT Symposium Web Schedule Pages include links for details of
the activities:
http://www.amsat.org/amsat-new/symposium/2012/SymposiumSchedule.php
[ANS thanks the 2012 Symposium Committee for the above information]
/EX
AMSAT NEWS SERVICE
ANS-281
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 at amsat.org
In this edition:
* Register Today for the 2012 AMSAT Space Symposium in Orlando
* 2012 AMSAT Symposium Schedule
* Five CubeSats Deployed From ISS Now on-Orbit - Signals Received
* AO-27 Reported Down
* PACIFICON 2012 Will Feature ARISS Contact and Satellite Demo Station
* ARISS Successful School Contacts
* US Naval Academy PSAT Features PSK-31 and APRS Transponders
* Cuba Satellite Group Launches Satellite Net in Havana
* FUNcube Dongle Filtered Preamp Available at AMSAT-UK On-line Store
* Satellite Shorts From All Over
SB SAT @ AMSAT $ANS-281.01
ANS-281 AMSAT News Service Weekly Bulletins
AMSAT News Service Bulletin 281.01
>From AMSAT HQ SILVER SPRING, MD.
October 7, 2012
To All RADIO AMATEURS
BID: $ANS-281.01
---------------------------------------------------------------------
Register Today for the 2012 AMSAT Space Symposium in Orlando
This is a reminder that the 2012 AMSAT Space Symposium will be held
on Friday, October 26th through Sunday, October 28th at the Holiday
Inn Hotel at Orlando-International Airport.
See the AMSAT Web Store to complete your on-line registration:
http://store.amsat.org/catalog/index.php?cPath=27
Symposium Registration including Proceedings
o Starting September 24, 2012: $ 50.00
o At the Door: $ 55.00
Downloadable paper registration forms in MS-Word format and
PDF format are available on the 2012 Symposium page:
http://www.amsat.org/amsat-new/symposium/2012/index.php
The Symposium Schedule web page has been updated with links to find
more information about the planned activities. See:
http://www.amsat.org/amsat-new/symposium/2012/SymposiumSchedule.php
[ANS thanks the 2012 Symposium Committee for the above information]
---------------------------------------------------------------------
2012 AMSAT Symposium Schedule
To help you plan your trip to Orlando the 2012 Symposium Committee
has posted a high-level schedule of the weekend's events.
Preliminary 2012 Symposium Schedule
Thursday 25 October 2012
------------------------
AMSAT Board of Directors Meeting 8am - 9pm
Friday 26 October 2012
-----------------------
AMSAT Board of Directors Meeting 8am - Noon
Trips to SkyCraft 9am - Noon
AMSAT Symposium 1pm - 5pm
Saturday 27 October 2012
------------------------
Symposium 8am - 3pm
AMSAT General Meeting 3:30pm
AMSAT Banquet 6:30pm - 10pm
+ The featured speaker for the AMSAT 2012 Saturday Evening Banquet
will be Dr. Samuel T. Durrance, NASA Astronaut/Payload Specialist
and Professor of Physics and Space Sciences at the Florida Insti-
tute of Technology.
Sunday 28 October 2012
----------------------
7:30am AMSAT Area Coordinator's Breakfast
Local trip of Interest TBD
Monday 29 October 2012
----------------------
Special trip to Kennedy Space Center 8am-6pm
The trip will include a round trip bus from the hotel and entrance
to the Space Center. The cost will be about $100. This is a wonderful
experience for those that haven't been and for those that have been
multiple times. We need to get an idea of how many will participate
to select the correct bus. Contact Martha if interested
Watch the AMSAT Symposium Web Pages for the latest information:
http://www.amsat.org/amsat-new/symposium/2012/index.php
[ANS thanks the 2012 Symposium Committee for the above information]
---------------------------------------------------------------------
Five CubeSats Deployed From ISS Now on-Orbit - Signals Received
Five cubesats launched on July 21 and loaded aboard the ISS were
integrated with the J-SSOD small satellite deployer on the the
Japanese Experiment Module, also known as Kibo. They were deployed
with the Kibo robotic arm on October 4, 2012. The orbit for these
CubeSats will be very close to the orbit of the ISS.
NanoRack posted a photo of the deployment at: pic.twitter.com/wZAX5qZL
(Click on the image to view the full-sized photograph)
SpaceRef posted an article and several more photographs on-line at:
http://spaceref.com/news/viewsr.html?pid=42238
+ First Deployment by Astronaut Akihiko Hoshide
o WE-WISH - Telemetry downlink on 437.505 MHz
o RAIKO - non-amateur radio Ku-band beacon
+ Second Deployment by JAXA GS
o TechEdSat - Telemetry downlink on 437.465 MHz.
o NanoRack/F-1 -
> 145.980 MHz: main channel, 1.0W RF output, FM, AFSK 1200bps,
> one telemetry packet every 30 seconds, operates in the dark
> by default (but can be commanded later to operate in sunlight)
> 437.485 MHz: backup channel, 0.2W RF output, FM, PWM CW beacon,
> each beacon transmission lasts about 20 seconds then 60 seconds
> delay, only operates in sunlight
o FITSAT-1
> CW Beacon 437.250 MHz,
> FM Data 437.445 MHz,
> High speed data 5840.00 MHz
FITSAT-1 Heard With Strong Signals
----------------------------------
Signal reports from PY5LF, OH3UW, DK3WN, VU3TYG, G6LVB (using a FUN-
cube Dongle Pro+ and 7" wire antenna), GW1FKY, F5YG, JE9PEL, JN1GKZ,
ST2NH, and others via the amsat-bb list.
FITSAT-1 transmits its beacon frequency 437.250 MHz. This is the
same frequency as the PRISM satellite of Tokyo Univ. FITSAT CW will
transmit, "HI DE NIWAKA JAPAN" with its telemetry data. To receive
a FITSAT-1 QSL card please send your signal report and your postal
address to: fitsat1(a)hotmail.co.jp and also cc to tanaka(a)fit.ac.jp.
A photo of the QSL card is shown at:
http://www.fit.ac.jp/~tanaka/fitsat.shtml
This web page will also be updated with information about the status
of the LED experiment.
HB9FFH has made a telemetry decoder for FITSAT-1, available at:
http://carpcomm.com/satellite/fitsat1
FITSAT students have also developed a similar program for windows:
http://turing.cs.fit.ac.jp/~fitsat/CWFM/FITSAT_CW_Analyzer1.zip
TechEdSat Heard With Weak Signals
---------------------------------
Signal reports received from PY5LF, DK3WN, and JE9PEL indicate that
TechEdSat was received with weak signals on its 437.465 MHz downlink.
Mark Allard, KD6CWM, President of the NASA-Ames Research Center Ama-
teur Radio Club reports their OSCAR/ARISS satellite station, NA6MF,
will be supporting TechEdSat as one of the monitoring stations for
the TechEdSat Amateur Radio beacon.
TechEdSat transmits a custom beacon packet. Details can be found at:
http://www.techedsat.com/. Packets acquired from TechEdSat can also
be submitted to the website for decoding by the TechEdSat team. Use
the 'Packet Submission' link found at the top of the web page.
WE WISH SSTV Picture Received
-----------------------------
PY4ZBZ and JE1CVL received the SSTV picture on 437.505 MHz.
JE9PEL provided a translation of the image that is a sentence of
"JQ1ZIJ MEISEI ARC 2012". A photo of the received picture is at:
http://www.ne.jp/asahi/hamradio/je9pel/21005wis.png
A photo of the SSTV picture received by PY4ZBZ is posted at:
http://www.qsl.net/py4zbz/satelite.htm#ww
Viet Nam F-1 Not Heard
----------------------
Viet Nam's F-1 satellite was scheduled to begin telemetry transmis-
sions 30 minutes after deployment by sending a beacon alternating on
its main and backup channels. At press time no signal reports have
been received from this satellite.
More information and guide to download F-1 telemetry decoder can be
found at http://fspace.edu.vn/?page_id=27. Decoded data can be sub-
mitted via the telemetry decoder or by sending directly to the ground
station: thuvt(a)fpt.edu.vn. Audio recordings are highly appreciated.
[ANS thanks the CubeSat Teams; Vu Trong Thu, XV9AA; Mark Allard,
KD6CWM; and Takushi Tanaka, JA6AVG for the above information]
---------------------------------------------------------------------
AO-27 Reported Down
AO-27 user reports this week reported that the satellite was not
operational. The end-of-transmit cycle AFSK packet telemetry beacon
was reported to become stuck on a single tone. No downlink signal
was received from AO-27 on later passes.
The latest AO-27 news is posted on its webpage:
http://www.ao27.org/AO27/index.shtml
In summary, as of October 6 control operators had recovered AO-27 to
running on the primary Bootloader and were able to turn on the trans-
mitter for a short time. They continue working on uploading the soft-
ware.
Mode V/U (J) FM Voice Repeater Frequencies
------------------------------------------
Uplink: 145.8500 MHz FM
Downlink 436.7950 MHz FM
[ANS thanks James, N3UCC and Michael, N3UC for the above information]
---------------------------------------------------------------------
PACIFICON 2012 Will Feature ARISS Contact and Satellite Demo Station
An Amateur Radio on the International Space Station (ARISS) contact
has been planned with youth participants at PACIFICON 2012, Santa
Clara, CA on 13 October. The event is scheduled to begin at approxi-
mately 18:57 UTC or 11:57 PDT. The contact will be a telebridge be-
tween NA1SS (the ISS) and IK1SLD (in Italy). The contact should be
audible over Europe and the Mediterranean. Interested parties are
invited to listen in on the 145.80 MHz downlink. The contact is
expected to be conducted in English.
PACIFICON 2012, a premiere wireless event, will be held October 12,
13, and 14, 2012 and will host the 2012 American Radio Relay League
(ARRL) National Convention and Exposition.
Over 2,500 amateur radio enthusiasts are expected to attend. The
2012 PACIFICON Youth program includes a "Youth Lounge" and forums
throughout the convention weekend; the Youth program is positioned
in the middle of the exhibit hall and provides STEM educational act-
ivities which include hands on radio operation, electronics kit
building orbital mathematics, CubeSat satellite design, and popular
radio transmitter T-Hunts.
A scheduled ARISS radio contact and a presentation by NASA astronaut,
Dr. Lee M. Morin KF5DDB, will highlight the Youth Lounge activities.
Free admission is provided to Girl Scouts, Boy Scouts, Camp Fire
Girls, Brownie, Cub Scouts, Explorer Scouts, 4-H members, and to all
youth 17 and under. The Youth Forum will include young Amateur radio
enthusiasts Andrea Hartlege KG4IUM, former ARRL South Eastern Division
Vice Director and Katie Stensrud K7KTI, a young Amateur from Nevada,
and many amateur radio educational resources from the ARRL & AMSAT.
PACIFICON 2012 will include numerous amateur radio operations includ-
ing the convention FCC Special Event Station W6P; the ARRL's W1AW/6;
additional stations will be operated remotely from the convention site
as well as one portable satellite earth station and one fully automat-
ed satellite earth demonstration station. PACIFICON 2012 will offer
over 120 educational forums and programs, including a forum hosted
by AMSAT on Amateur Satellite Communications, approximately sixteen
indoor on-the-air exhibits, and eight outdoor on-the-air exhibits
will be hosted.
For more information, please review the PACIFICON 2012 web site at:
http://www.pacificon.org/ or, contact Joe Spier, Associate Director
for Education, AMSAT-NA, at k6wao(a)amsat.org
[ANS thanks Joe Spier, K6WAO and Mark Hammond, N8MH for the above
information]
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ARISS Successful School Contacts
Turkey
------
Izmir SEV Primary School, located in Turkey, had an Amateur Radio
on the International Space Station (ARISS) contact on October 5 via
telebridge station K6DUE in Greenbelt, Maryland.
The school participates in the Partner School Science Program, which
is a program under Global Friendship Through Space Education, a Cali-
fornia-based non-profit organization that promotes friendship among
young people from different countries and cultures through the study
of space-related science and technology. Students communicate about
space-related projects via e-mail, collaborate on research on NASA's
distance-learning Web site, and videoconference between NASA and part-
ner schools. First Lego League Robotic Teams and Destination Imagina-
tion Teams have been a part of school activities annually since 2005.
Invitations to attend this event have been extended to several VIPs
including the minister of transportation, the president of the board
of education, the director of education, the mayor of Izmir and the
governor of Izmir.
Maryland
--------
An Amateur Radio on the International Space Station (ARISS) contact
was held between students at the Waxter Young Women's Academy in
Laurel, Maryland and Akihiko Hoshide, KE5DNI aboard the ISS on Sept-
ember 24. Telebridge station LU8YY in Argentina handled the radio
connection. The girls were able to have all 13 of their questions
answered with enough time left to thank Hoshide for participating.
Phone lines throughout the center were made available so that other
students could listen in as well. The ARISS contact was part of a
comprehensive education plan used to interest students in Science,
Technology, Engineering and Math (STEM).
Nova Scotia
-----------
On September 26, Sacred Heart School of Halifax in Nova Scotia,
Canada participated in an Amateur Radio on the International Space
Station (ARISS) contact with on-orbit astronaut Sunita Williams,
KD5PLB. Telebridge station LU8YY in Argentina connected with Will-
iams, but the international phone line, which was to connect Argen-
tina to Halifax, went down and could not be brought up until after
the ISS had passed overhead. Williams agreed to try the contact again
on the next pass. Ninety minutes later, the audience of 250 got what
they had been waiting for - a successful contact! The students got
in 17 questions, and one student was wished a Happy Birthday by the
ISS commander.
Video of LaFayette Middle School ISS contact
--------------------------------------------
When Jody Carter was 8 years old, his father tried unsuccessfully
to contact the space shuttle via ham radio. Thirty years later,
the second time was the charm. The Times Free Press reports that
just after 11 a.m. Friday, Sept. 21, Carter, who's now a math and
science teacher at LaFayette Middle School, radioed Sunita "Suni"
Williams KD5PLB, commander of the International Space Station. Read
the full story and watch the video at:
http://tinyurl.com/Lafayette-ISS
[ANS thanks Carol Jackson, KB3LKI for the above information]
---------------------------------------------------------------------
US Naval Academy PSAT Features PSK-31 and APRS Transponders
The US Naval Academy in Annapolis, Maryland is developing a new
student satellite, ParkinsonSAT, or PSAT which is a two way APRS
communications transponder for relaying remote telemetry, sensor
and user data from remote environmental experiments or other data
sources back to experimenters via a global network of internet link-
ed volunteer ground stations. The data transponder also includes all
telemetry, command and control for a complete cubesat.
PSAT is a 1.5 unit cubesat so that two PSATs can be launched from
the same P-Pod launcher. The design uses four deployable solar ar-
rays which are stowed down the sides. Half of the 1.5 unit PSAT is
available for auxiliary payloads or experiments. Details of the
PSAT project are available on-line at: http://www.aprs.org/psat.html
PSAT will fly a PSK-31 transponder with a 10 meter uplink and a 2M
FM downlink. PSK-31 will allow up to 30 simultaneous users:
http://aprs.org/psat/PSK31-DESIGN-NOTES.html
Bob Bruninga, WB4APR noted, "PSK-31 is the ideal AMSAT FM trans-
ponder for a cubesat. With an FM downlink, anyone can receive it
with an HT and a laptop with PSK-31 software. And anyone with a
10m PSK-31 uplink can transmit to it. And since the downlink is FM,
everyone tuned in SEES THE SAME WATERFALL and sees EXACTLY where
they are in the downlink. A small uplink doppler adjustment can keep
each station locked to his chosen channel in the passband. Everyone
can talk to everyone if they want, or go one-on-one too."
The SSB uplink and UHF FM downlink transponder fits on a smaller than
3"x3" circuit board being developed by Mirek Kasal at Brno University.
Launch of PSAT is planned in 2015. The 3"x3" transponder may also be
adaptable for other missions.
[ANS thanks Bob Bruninga, WB4APR for the above information]
---------------------------------------------------------------------
Cuba Satellite Group Launches Satellite Net in Havana
Raydel Abreu Espinet, CM2ESP reported this week that the Cuban Satel-
lite Group named Grupo de Radioaficionados para Operaciones Sateli-
tales (GROS) has started a VHF FM Net devoted entirely to the Amateur
Radio Satellites on 145.550 MHz. CM2ESP is the Net Control Station.
The net will be on the air every Friday from 19:00 to 20:00 local
time in Havana.
The net is in range for the Havana Province (capital of Cuba), with
coverage also to the surrounding provinces of Mayabeque and Artemisa.
The net is divided in three sections: News; A Technical Topic; and
Question and Answer Session.
The Cuban Satellite Group named Grupo de Radioaficionados para Opera-
ciones Satelitales (GROS) will continue promoting and creating new
activities to increase the presence of Cuban Amateur Radio Stations
on the satellites and the activation of new grids. Several demonstra-
tions and workshops are currently being scheduled.
[ANS thanks GROS Coordinator Raydel Abreu Espinet, CM2ESP for the
above information]
---------------------------------------------------------------------
FUNcube Dongle Filtered Preamp Available at AMSAT-UK On-line Store
David Bowman, G0MRF, a member of the AMSAT-UK FUNcube team, has des-
igned and manufactured a 2m Filtered Preamp for use with the FUNcube
dongle or any 2m receiver. This is now available for purchase through
the AMSAT-UK web shop.
Two versions of the preamp are available. The first is a kit form in-
cluding all the components required to build the preamp yourself. The
second is a prebuilt version. The stock on the prebuilt version is
very limited. Both kit and prebuilt versions are on sale for £47 plus
postage and packing.
More information is available on the AMSAT-UK web site. Look under
the "Projects" section at http://www.uk.amsat.org to read the cons-
truction notes as well as the measurement report carried out on the
preamp.
The AMSAT-UK web shop is at http://shop.amsat.org.uk and the premps
appear under the "Hardware" category in the catalogue.
A video demonstration of the FUNcube Dongle Pro+ LF/MF/HF/VHF/UHF
Software Defined Radio is posted at: http://www.amsat-uk.org/
[ANS thanks Ciaran Morgan, M0XTD of AMSAT-UK for the above information]
---------------------------------------------------------------------
Satellite Shorts From All Over
+ AMSAT Director Contests and Awards, Bruce Paige, KK5DO says a
correction needs to be made to the AMSAT Field Day Results he
sent last week:
Rank Call Class Score
---- ---- ----- -----
7 WC9C 4E 15 should be corrected to:
7 WC5C 4F 15
An article, photos, and the results will be published in an up-
coming edition of the AMSAT Journal.
+ The traditional e-mail format of the AMSAT News Service Bulletins
is being expanded so that news of Amateur Radio in Space is more
accessible on mobile devices:
AMSAT News Service Archives: http://amsat.org/pipermail/ans/
AMSAT-NA on Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/groups/7828379515/
ANS Bulletins will be posted at: http://www.hamradiotoday.com/
(HamRadioToday is an excellent forum of amateur radio topics.)
ANS Bulletins will be posted at: http://www.qrz.com/
The bulletins will continue to be sent via the ANS List and the
AMSAT-BB in e-mail format.
+ Watch a video by the Minute Physics folks explaining why the sky
is dark at night:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=gxJ4M7tyLRE
+ Astronomy Now and Spaceflight Now have created an interactive
iPad guide to the Curiosity rover mission:
http://tinyurl.com/8peyrz8 (itunes.apple.com)
+ Canadian Special Event Station will be signing CG3X until October 28
to commemorate the 50th anniversary of the first Canadian satellite
"Alouette". QSL via VE3JPP. (DX Newsletter DXNL 1800 - Oct 3, 2012)
+ Hams like science so get a peek at the eXtreme Deep Field, or XDF,
a photo was assembled by combining 10 years of NASA Hubble Space
Telescope photographs taken of a patch of sky at the center of the
original Hubble Ultra Deep Field. That's right, a 10 year time ex-
posure: http://tinyurl.com/Hubble-XDF (SpaceDaily.com) Also see
the article at: http://spaceref.com/news/viewpr.html?pid=38692
+ Cool, new postage stamps for your QSL activities featuring Ameri-
ca's diverse landscapes on photos taken from ultra lights to sat-
ellites are on the Earthscapes stamps. Details of the stamp plus
where to find first-day issues can be found in the article at:
http://spaceref.com/news/viewpr.html?pid=38738
+ Doug, VK3UM reports updates have been made for his EME Calculation
software. New versions are available from Doug's website at
http://www.vk3um.com for:
o EMECalc Ver 8.07 (28th Sep 12)
o EME Planner Ver 1.71. (21st Sep 12)
o EMR Calculator Ver 7.03 (22nd Sep 12)
+ Flex Radio has posted a guide to using SATPC32 with the Flex 5000
VU5K transverter. Along with the SATPC32-specific details, there
is information of use to satellite operators in general. See:
http://support.flex-radio.com/Downloads.aspx?id=404
(via Alan, WA4SCA)
+ The Houston AMSAT Net meets every Wednesday at 0100z (this is Tues-
day evening in North America) on Echolink - Conference *AMSAT* .
The MP3 audio is also streamed http://www.amsatnet.com. After the
net a Podcast is available at:
http://www.amsatnet.com/podcast.xml or iTunes
+ The next Hudson Valley Satcom net dates are Thursday, October 11
and October 25 at 8 PM EDT (UTC-4 UTC) on the 146.97 MHz MBARC
Repeater (PL 100). An echolink connection is available on the
N2EYH-L node. More information at: http://www.hvsatcom.org.
(Stu, WA2BSS)
+ The 2012 Great World Wide Star Count is a citizen science project
running between October 5 to October 19. You are invited to make
night star observations from your QTH and report your results on-
line. To learn more of this project and to participate see:
http://www.windows2universe.org/citizen_science/starcount/index.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 addi-
tional benefits. Application forms are available from the AMSAT
Office.
Primary and secondary school students are eligible for membership
at one-half the standard yearly rate. Post-secondary school students
enrolled in at least half time status shall be eligible for the stu-
dent rate for a maximum of 6 post-secondary years in this status.
Contact Martha at the AMSAT Office for additional student membership
information. And with that, please keep in mind that the light from
the sun, arriving now is 30,000 years old. The energy in the sunlight
we see today started out in the core of the Sun 30,000 years ago. It
spent most of this time passing through the dense atoms that make the
core and just 8 minutes to reach us once it had left the Sun.
73,
This week's ANS Editor,
JoAnne Maenpaa, K9JKM
K9JKM at amsat dot org
This is a reminder that October 6 is the closing date for booking
your room at The 2012 AMSAT Space Symposium and Annual General
Meeting. The 2012 AMSAT Space Symposium will be held on Friday,
October 26th through Sunday, October 28th at the Holiday Inn at
Orlando-International Airport.
The AMSAT discount rate is $99 + taxes per night. The reservation
block code used when calling the hotel directly is AMT. The hotel
telephone number is 407-851-6400.
The direct link to the hotel web page is:
http://www.holidayinn.com/hotels/us/en/orlando/mcoap/hoteldetail
See the AMSAT Web Store to complete your on-line registration:
http://store.amsat.org/catalog/index.php?cPath=27
Downloadable paper registration forms in MS-Word format and
PDF format are available on the 2012 Symposium pages:
http://www.amsat.org/amsat-new/symposium/2012/index.php
Prices for the Symposium are:
+ Symposium Registration including Proceedings
o Starting September 24, 2012: $ 50.00
o At the Door: $ 55.00
+ Saturday Evening Banquet $ 45.00
+ Sunday Morning Area Coordinators' Breakfast $ 15.00
+ Monday (Oct 29) bus trip to KSC and entrance ticket $ 100.00
The Symposium weekend will feature:
+ Space Symposium with Amateur Satellite Presentations
+ Operating Techniques, News, & Plans from the Amateur Satellite World
+ Board of Directors Meeting open to AMSAT members
+ Meet Board Members and Officers
+ Annual General Membership Meeting
+ Annual Banquet-Keynote Speaker and Door Prizes
[ANS thanks the 2012 Symposium Committee for the above information]