AMSAT NEWS SERVICE
ANS-330
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:
* Fox-1 CubeSat Design Published in Proceedings and Web
* 2012 AMSAT Symposium Proceedings Available in the AMSAT Store
* PhoneSat CubeSat to Launch from Wallops in December
* N0D Special Event Station Celebrating The End of the World
* Successful ARISS School Contacts This Week
* Three Astronaut Hams Return Safely From ISS
* Call for Papers for IAA Conference: University Satellite Missions
* Satellite Shorts From All Over
SB SAT @ AMSAT $ANS-330.01
ANS-330 AMSAT News Service Weekly Bulletins
AMSAT News Service Bulletin 330.01
>From AMSAT HQ SILVER SPRING, MD.
November 25, 2012
To All RADIO AMATEURS
BID: $ANS-330.01
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Fox-1 CubeSat Design Published in Proceedings and Web
During the 2012 Symposium AMSAT Vice-President Engineering, Tony
Monteiro, AA2TX and the Fox Engineering team 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.
The Proceedings of the AMSAT-NA 30th Symposium and AMSAT-NA Annual
Meeting, October 26-28 in Orlando, Florida have been put in the on-
line AMSAT Store. Please visit the store at:
http://store.amsat.org/catalog/
The proceedings contains over 30 articles on subjects ranging from
current satellite operations to detailed updates on the Fox Project.
AMSAT's Fox web page at http://www.amsat.org/amsat-new/fox/ now has
been refreshed with the latest information from the Symposium:
+ Fox-1 Mechanical design and component integration diagrams
+ Fox-1 Thermal Design
+ Fox-1 Radiation Environment
+ Preliminary screenshot view of Fox-1 Telemetry Program
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.
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 the Fox Team for the above information]
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2012 AMSAT Symposium Proceedings Available in the AMSAT Store
The Proceedings of the AMSAT-NA 30th Symposium and AMSAT-NA Annual
Meeting, October 26-28 in Orlando, Florida have been put in the on-
line AMSAT Store. Please visit the store at:
http://store.amsat.org/catalog/
The proceedings contains over 30 articles on subjects ranging from
current satellite operations to updates on the Fox Project.
If you could not make the meeting, this is a great source of the
latest information.
Price is $25 + $12 Shipping for USA. See the details on the store
web page and order your copy today!
[ANS thanks Martha at the AMSAT Office for the above information]
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PhoneSat CubeSat to Launch from Wallops in December
The PhoneSat cubesat is planned for launch aboard a new commercial
rocket from Orbital Sciences Corp. Orbital's initial flight of the
Antares-110 vehicle will carry PhoneSat into low earth orbit around
December 17. The vehicle will be launched from a new launch pad LA-0A
at Wallops Island, where the former Conestoga launch pad was located.
Phonesat carries an amateur radio payload on 437.425 MHz, has been
chosen as one of the winners in the Aerospace category for the Pop-
ular Science magazine "Best of What's New 2012" awards.
PhoneSat is a technology demonstration mission consisting of three
1U CubeSats intended to prove that a smartphone can be used to per-
form many of the functions required of a spacecraft bus.
The satellite is built around the Nexus smartphone which will be run-
ning the Android operating system and will be enclosed in a standard
1U cubesat structure. The main function of the phone is to act as the
Onboard Computer, but the mission will also utilize the phone's SD
card for data storage, 5MP camera for Earth Observation, and 3-axis
accelerometer and 3-axis magnetometer for attitude determination.
One of the nanosatellites, powered by the HTC Nexus One smartphone,
will send back pictures of Earth. The other two, running on the Sam-
sung Nexus S, will have two-way S-band radio allowing them to be
controlled from Earth.
With a short lifetime of only about one week, the satellites have
no solar cells and operate on battery only.
More information about the Antares vehcicle can be found at:
http://www.orbital.com/Antares/
A video of the Popular Science award for PhoneSat in the "Best of
What's New 2012" awards can be viewed at:
http://tinyurl.com/PhoneSatNews (YouTube)
NASA Ames web page of the PhoneSat project can be found at:
http://tinyurl.com/PhoneSat-NASA (nasa.gov)
AMSAT-UK posted news of PhoneSat at:
http://www.uk.amsat.org/?p=11544
[ANS thanks NASA, Gunter's Space Page, and AMSAT-UK for the above
information]
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N0D Special Event Station Celebrating The End of the World
That's right, the end is finally near. According to one of the three
Mayan Calendars, the End of the world will occur on Dec 21, 2012. To
celebrate this literally once in a lifetime event, Special Event Sta-
tion N0D (Now Zero Days) will be activated for three days during and
after(?) the end of the world. December 20 is a celebration of the
end of the world. December 21, the day of destruction, we will be on
the air as long as possible. December 22nd, that is a little iffy
right now.
N0D will be activated on the satellites by Allen Mattis, N5AFV, on
December 20, 2012, on December 21, 2012 unless the day of destruc-
tion makes that impossible, and on December 22, 2012 if the world
survives.
More information is available on the Official N0D website:
http://www.nowzerodays.com
You can also e-mail the N0D team at N0D.Doomsday(a)gmail.com
Amateur radio stations around the crumbling globe are invited to con-
tact N0D, who will be operating from a secret undisclosed location.
QSL with SASE to the address in QRZ. If Doomsday actually does happen,
we regret that a QSL will not be possible so hold on to your SASE un-
til the 22nd at least. Check out the website for a preview of the N0D
QSL card.
You can celebrate Doomsday by contacting N0D directly on the air.
Amateurs can also become an official Doomsday station by register-
ing on the website. You will be given a registration number and the
authority to identify yourself as "Official Doomsday Station" fol-
lowed by your Doomsday number.
Official N0D Doomsday apparel will be available soon; T-shirts, Caps
and buttons.
Official Doomsday stations will receive the Doomsday Station Certifi-
cate. Stations contacting at least 10 Official Doomsday Stations dur-
ing the event will be recognized on the web site.
It is not entirely clear exactly how it will happen. Will it be a
cataclysmic shift in the earth's magnetic field, Global Warming on
steroids, earthquakes, volcanoes floods, global thermonuclear war,
Meteor collision, the 10 plagues of Egypt, UFO invasion. who knows?
There are scientists, soothsayers and philosophers on both sides of
the question. Either way it will be an event worth remembering ...
or maybe there will be no one left to remember it?
Check the website for the latest updates: http://www.nowzerodays.com
[ANS thanks Allen Mattis, N5AFV for the above information]
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Successful ARISS School Contacts This Week
Italy
-----
An Amateur Radio on the International Space Station (ARISS) contact
was held with Liceo scientifico Giacinto De Sivo - Fondazione Villag-
gio dei Ragazzi in Maddaloni, Italy on Tuesday, November 20. Amateur
Radio station IK1SLD in Italy provided the radio link. The contact is
incorporated into lessons focused on the developments in astronomy
from a scientific, philosophical, and literary point of view.
India
-----
An Amateur Radio on the International Space Station (ARISS) contact
was held between Sunita Williams, KD5PLB on the ISS and students vis-
iting the GujaratScience City (GSC) in Ahmedabad, Gujarat, India on
Wednesday, November 14 via telebridge station IK1SLD in Italy.
The children got in 15 questions about daily life on the ISS before
losing the radio connection. GSC has high-tech exhibitions covering
space exploration and communications; the contact was part of a spe-
cial outreach program of the GSC, organized to provide students with
hands-on activities related to the ISS. The displays and activities
provide children with the motivation and inspiration for a career and
future in space science and research. The Times of India covered
the event. See:
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/ahmedabad/Excited-kids-go-
on-space-talk-with-Sunita/articleshow/17250710.cms
Video of this event can be viewed on-line at:
http://tinyurl.com/ARISS-Contact-India (Southgate)
Florida
-------
On November 16, Florida's Flagler Palm Coast Amateur Radio Club
(FPCARC) connected with Astronaut Sunita Williams, KD5PLB via an
Amateur Radio on the International Space Station (ARISS) contact.
Indian Trails Middle School hosted the event, but students from
other area schools also participated.
Former NASA astronaut Winston Scott gave a presentation to the stu-
dents. All schools in the district were able to participate in the
event through live internet streaming. Media representatives were
present and articles have been posted.
FlaglerLive.com has a story:
http://flaglerlive.com/46845/ham-radio-iss/
For the Palm Coast Observer article, see:
http://www.palmcoastobserver.com/news/palm-coast/Neighborhood/11172012
5718/
Students-get-visit-from-astronaut-talk-to-space-st
Indiana
-------
Cumberland Elementary School participated in an ARISS contact on Oct-
ober 30. Students had the opportunity to question Indiana native Kevin
Ford, KF5GPP about ISS life. The contact video is now available. See:
http://cumberland-iss.weebly.com
[ANS thanks Carol Jackson, KB3LKI and the 2012-11-19 ARISS Status
Report for the above information]
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Three Astronaut Hams Return Safely From ISS
Expedition 33 Commander Sunita Williams, KD5PLB of NASA and Flight
Engineers Akihiko Hoshide, KE5DNI of Japan Aerospace Exploration
Agency and Yuri Malenchenko, RK3DUP of Roscosmos rode their Soyuz
TMA-05M spacecraft to a safe landingin a remote area near the town
of Arkalyk, Kazakhstan on November. 19, 2012. Williams, Hoshide and
Malenchenko returned from four months onboard the International
Space Station.
NASA ISS Ham Radio Project Engineer Kenneth Ransom, N5VHO summariz-
ed Amateur Radio on the International Space Station (ARISS) succes-
ses for Williams, Malenchenko and Hashide noting 39 contacts with
schools. Of these contacts 14 were via telebridge, while 25 took
place directly between the school and the ISS via Amateur Radio.
During Expedition 32 Sunita added 22 to her previous record of 33
school events which puts her on top for the most career schools talk-
ed to from orbit. Malenchenko made two contacts, one with the Ukraine
and another with Russia, while Hashide completed 15, including four
with his native Japan, as well as with the US, Germany, Australia,
Poland and Italy.
Photos and additional news of the Soyuz landing are on-line at:
http://spaceref.com/news/viewsr.html?pid=42645http://spaceref.com/news/viewsr.html?pid=42643http://tinyurl.com/NovSoyuzLanding (Space-Travel.com)
Expedition 34 is crewed by NASA astronaut Kevin Ford, KF5GPP, and
Russian cosmonauts Evgeny Tarelkin and Oleg Novitskiy.
Sunita Williams recorded an extensive tour of the orbital laboratory
including scenes of each of the station's modules and research facil-
ities with a running narrative of the work that has taken place and
which is ongoing aboard the orbital outpost.
Get your ISS tour at: http://tinyurl.com/ISS-Guided-Tour (YouTube)
[ANS thanks, ARISS, ARRL, SpaceRef.com and Space-Travel.com for the
above information]
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Call for Papers for IAA Conference: University Satellite Missions
The 2nd IAA Conference on University Satellites Missions and Cubesat
Winter Workshop will be held in Rome, Italy from February 3-9, 2013
under the main sponsorship of IAA, GAUSS Srl, ESA, ASI, Italian Air
Force, Sapienza University of Roma, Morehead State University (Ken-
tucky), Von Karman Institute, FILAS, BCC Roma.
The Conference has the goal to provide the international space comm-
unity with a forum for presentations and discussions in the area of
University Satellites. Particular emphasis will be given to the
theme, "Innovative aspects related to science and engineering for
university satellites". Three days will be completely dedicated to
the Cubesat community.
Some of the proposed topics are:
Space Environment, Remote sensing and Earth observation, Innovative
solutions for university satellite subsystems, Launch opportunities,
Space Debris, Ground Segment and Stations Network, New Perspectives
for Cubesats, Cubesats Future Payloads and Experiments, Satellite Or-
bit and Attitude Determination and Control, Micro-propulsion Subsys-
tems, University Platform for biomedical research in Space, Formation
Flying, Cubesat In-Orbit Experience, Cubesats Scientific Missions and
applications" activities.
The preliminary program, logistics, and registration information,
exhibition stand information may be found on the symposium website
at http://www.gaussteam.com in the events section.
Abstract Submission Deadline: December 17, 2012
Acceptance Notification*: December 22, 2012
Paper Submission Deadline*: January 25, 2013
[ANS thanks Filippo Graziani, G.A.U.S.S. President and IAA member,
Conference Chair for the above information]
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Satellite Shorts From All Over
+ Video of ARISS contact from the National Scouting Museum Jamboree
on the Air (JOTA) event in Irving, Texas on October 20 with Sunita
Williams, KD5PLB on the ISS can be viewed at:
http://vimeo.com/53281390
+ NASA's Pete Worden presentation at the Canadian Space Summit on
the topic of Small Satellites for Science and Other Uses and as
an example: Earth Observation, promises and challenges has been
posted by SpaceRef.com at:
http://tinyurl.com/SpaceRefSmallSatellites
+ Andy Foad, G0FTD has made a collection of RF calculations avail-
able in a spreadsheet. This can be downloaded from:
https://sites.google.com/site/g0ftdradio/home/rf-spreadsheets
+ How about the concept of private/commercial CubeSat missions to
Mars? See the exploremars.org posting at:
http://tinyurl.com/CubeSatsToMars
+ The Van Allen Probes Mission, part of NASA's Living With a Star
program, studies the physical dynamics of Earth's radiation belts
and space weather. A video of this mission, including classroom
activities about space weather is posted by Johns Hopkins Univers-
ity Applied Physics Laboratory: http://vanallenprobes.jhuapl.edu/
(Bill, W3XO)
[ANS thanks everyone for the above information]
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/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 ham who's son
pestered his parents for a trip to the zoo. Finally his mother talk-
ed his reluctant father into taking him. "So how was it?" his mother
asked when they returned home. "Great," the son replied. "Did you
and your father have a good time?" asked his mother. "Yeah, Daddy
really liked it," exclaimed the son excitedly, "especially when one
of the animals came home at 30 to 1!"
73,
This week's ANS Editor,
JoAnne Maenpaa, K9JKM
K9JKM at amsat dot org
AMSAT NEWS SERVICE
ANS-323
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
Please, share your copy of ANS with an Educator near you!
In this edition:
* FITSAT-1 plans to flash the LEDs on Christmas Eve.
* Space Education A Key To The Future
* Reminder - Call for Photos From Space Symposium and KSC Tour
* November 20 Deadline for Proposals in NASA's Cubesat Initiative
* Indonesia Announces Plans for 2013 Launch
* 2012 AMSAT Symposium Proceedings Available in the AMSAT Store
* SSTV Images from the ISS Nov 2012
* Successful ARISS Contacts
* US Postal Department Proposes to Discontinue IRCs
* Satellite Shorts From All Over
SB SAT @ AMSAT $ANS-323.01
ANS-323 AMSAT News Service Weekly Bulletins
AMSAT News Service Bulletin 323.01
>From AMSAT HQ SILVER SPRING, MD.
DATE, 2012
To All RADIO AMATEURS
BID: $ANS-323.01
FITSAT-1 (NIWAKI) plans to flash the LEDs on Christmas Eve.
During a recent exchange discussing FITSAT-1 on the AMSAT-BB, Kevin
Deane, KF7MYK asked, "When is the LED MORSE supposed to happen?,"
FITSAT-1 creator Professor Takushi Tanaka, JA6AVG, promptly replied
"We plan to flash the LEDs on Christmas Eve. So we will start testing
around the end of this month."
The LED optical array may be visible to the unaided eye.
There has been much discussion about FITSAT-1 being received in the
USA on 5.8GHz. However another part of FITSAT-1's mission is to flash
the message "Hi this Niwaka Japan" using its array of stacked LEDs.
Whereas, the Morse broadcast has "no practical aim," Tanaka, and his
team of Japanese students, think it would make a good emergency
beacon for natural disasters (or, more worryingly, alien invasions).
The FITSAT-1 CubeSat was developed by students at the Fukuoka Insti-
tute of Technology (FIT) in Japan. In addition to the LED array it
also has a CW beacon on 437.250 MHz, a data link on 437.445 MHz and
a 5840.0 MHz data downlink.
Further FITSAT-1 information is on-line at:
http://www.fit.ac.jp/~tanaka/fitsat.shtml
[ANS thanks Kevin, Deane, Takushi Tanaka, Jaonne Maenpaa and AMSAT-
BB for the above information]
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Space Education A Key To The Future
Educators, who effectively use space themes to inspire students and
strengthen lesson plans, have a great opportunity for additional
support from the nation's premier space advocacy organization.
The Space Foundation is now accepting applications
for its 2013 flight of Teacher Liaisons. This will be the
10th year of this prestigious, nationally recognized program that
provides an honored
few educators numerous benefits and privileges, helps strengthen
their teaching skills, builds re'sume's and influences education at a
national level.
Pre K-20 teachers and other professional or informal educators in
the Pre K-20 arena are eligible to be Space Foundation Teacher
Liaisons.
Teacher Liaisons tend to be Master Teachers who want to
inspire the next generation of students to pursue and excel in the
areas of science, technology, engineering and math (STEM).
Teacher Liaisons do not need to be science or math teachers; they
need only to have a desire to integrate space education within their
curriculum.
Space Foundation Teacher Liaisons serve as active links between the
Space Foundation, NASA and their schools and school districts.
This influential role includes numerous benefits, privileges and
activities such as special recognition during the 29th National Space
Symposium, to be held at The Broadmoor Hotel in Colorado Springs,
Colorado, April 8-11, 2013.
There is no fee to apply, or membership cost.
http://www.spacefoundation.org/educationtemp/tls/user/http://www.satmagazine.com/2012/SM_Nov2012.pdf
[ANS thanks November 2012 SatMagazine for the above information]
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Reminder - Call for Photos From Space Symposium and KSC Tour
The AMSAT Journal looks forward to publishing selected photos of our
2012 Space Symposium, General Meeting, and the Kennedy Space Center
tour. Work is under way for photo and story coverage of these events
in the Journal being planned for the January timeframe.
A few have already sent your photos or links to your on-line album
I have them ... thanks! There will be space for many more photos so
please send them in (if you have not done so).
Select 5-6 of your favorite photos and add a couple of your personal
comments about what you found interesting or cool. The comments can
just be text in the e-mail message ... no formatting is required.
Alternatively, if you use any of the on-line photo album sites you
could just send me the URL for that. I can go there to select photos
but I would appreciate a comment from you about which ones you may
recommend.
Send your input to the Journal In-Box - journal(a)amsat.org - by
December 1. If your message is not getting through due large sized
attachments several smaller e-mail messages are acceptable. You may
also contact me off-list and I'll supply another e-mail address to
try.
[ANS thanks AMSAT Journal Editor JoAnne, K9JKM for the above
information]
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November 20 Deadline for Proposals in NASA's Cubesat Initiative
NASA is seeking proposals for small satellite payloads to fly on
rockets planned to launch between 2013 and 2016. These miniature
spacecraft, known as CubeSats, could be auxiliary payloads on pre-
viously planned missions.
CubeSats are a class of research spacecraft called nanosatellites.
These cube-shaped satellites are approximately four inches long,
have a volume of about one quart and weigh less than three pounds.
Proposed CubeSat investigations must be consistent with NASA's Stra-
tegic Plan and the NASA education vision and goals. The research
must address aspects of science, exploration, technology develop-
ment, education or operations.
Applicants must submit proposals electronically by 4:30 p.m. EST,
Nov. 20, 2012. NASA will select the payloads by Jan. 31, 2013. Sel-
ection does not guarantee a launch opportunity. The selected space
craft will be eligible for flight after final negotiations when a
launch opportunity arises. NASA will not provide funding for the
development of the small satellites.
NASA recently announced the results from the third round of the
CubeSat Launch Initiative. From the first three launch initiatives,
64 payloads made the short list for launch opportunities between
2011 and 2014. They are eligible for launch pending an appropriate
opportunity and final negotiations. The satellites come from 25
states: Alabama, Alaska, California, Colorado, Florida, Hawaii,
Illinois, Indiana, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maryland, Massachusetts,
Michigan, Missouri, Montana, North Dakota, New Hampshire, New Mex-
ico, New York, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Texas, Utah, Vermont and Virginia.
For additional information about NASA's CubeSat Launch Initiative
program, visit:
http://go.nasa.gov/puk9K2 and http://go.nasa.gov/CubeSatOp.
[ANS thanks the NASA Education Express Message for Nov. 8, 2012 for
the above information]
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Indonesia Announces Plans for 2013 Launch
The Indonesian National Society, ORARI, submitted a report during
the IARU Region 3 conference in Viet Nam mentioned the amateur radio
satellites they hope will be launched in 2013:
http://www.iaru-r3.org/15r3c/docs/025.doc
ORARI is supporting LAPAN, the Indonesian Space Agency, to launch
satellites as follows:
+ Satellite LAPAN - A2 (will be launched Mid 2013)
Telemetry 437.425 MHz
+ Satellite LAPAN - ORARI (will be launched Mid 2013)
Downlink Voice 435.880 MHz
Uplink Voice 145.880 MHz
APRS 145.825 MHz
Telemetry 437.325 MHz
These satellites are planned for low inclination orbits which may
limit access from high latitude countries.
[ANS thanks Trevor, M5AKA for the above information]
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2012 AMSAT Symposium Proceedings Available in the AMSAT Store
The Proceedings of the AMSAT-NA 30th Symposium and AMSAT-NA Annual
Meeting, October 26-28 in Orlando, Florida have been put in the on-
line AMSAT Store. Please visit the store at:
http://store.amsat.org/catalog/
The proceedings contains over 30 articles on subjects ranging from
current satellite operations to updates on the Fox Project.
If you could not make the meeting, this is a great source of the
latest information.
Price is $25 + $12 Shipping for USA. See the details on the store
web page and order your copy today!
[ANS thanks Martha at the AMSAT Office for the above information]
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SSTV Images from the ISS Nov 2012
My fascination with ham radio and the International Space Station
stepped up a notch today, as I was able to receive and decode my
first image from the ISS.
Occasionally, the astronauts aboard the ISS turn on the SSTV (Slow
Scan TV) equipment on their amateur radio station and beam signals
from their vantage point back down to us amateurs on the ground.
After being tipped off via the ISS Fan Club website that SSTV was
active, I calculated a suitable overhead path and connected the audio
output of my 2 metre rig to the soundcard on my PC, and tuned in. The
frequency in use for the downlink was 145.800MHz, and I set up a
digital recorder to capture the received audio.
Without too much fiddling about, the image was received pretty well,
with only a tiny bit of noise, and a fairly minor image attribute on
the left.
[ANS thanks Essex Ham (and Trevor, M5AKA) for the above information]
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ARISS UPDATES
Successful ARISS Contact for 1 Circolo Didattico G.Marconi,
Casamassima, Italy
Friday November 9, 2012 at 12:53 UTC, which is 13:53 CEST, students
from 1 Circolo Didattico G.Marconi, Casamassima, Italy established
ARISS contact with JAXA astronaut Akihiko Hoshide KE5DNI onboard the
International Space Station. Astronaut Akihiko Hoshide KE5DNI
operated with the ISS callsign OR4ISS. This was a direct contact
performed by amateur radio club station IZ7RTN installed at
"Cittadella Mediterranea della Scienza", University of Bari, Italy.
The Didactic Center "Marconi" in Casamassima di Bari, South Italy
includes one Primary School and two Nursery Schools. There are more
than 800 students and a teaching staff of 70 teachers, directed by
headmaster Mrs. Rita Rosaria Gagliardi. The Primary School has
multimedia and scientific laboratories, while the students play an
active role in a number of projects on Science, Music, Dance,
Theatre, Physical Education and more.
Mr. Michele Mallardi IZ7EVR, radio contact coordinator for this
event, decided in favor of the setup for a direct contact, with
assistance from the ARISS telebridge station IK1SLD installed at
Casale Monferrato Airport, Piemonte, Italy.
The contact took place at "Cittadella Mediterranea della Scienza",
University of Bari, where an audience of about 250 students, visitors
and Media, including 12 Italian Air Force officers, participated to
the ARISS contact. Before the link voice with ISS, Mr. Michele
Mallardi IZ7EVR presented ARISS program, the operations during an
contact with the ISS via Ham Radio, and the life of the astronauts in
space.
At 12:53 UTC, contact with OR4ISS was established by station IZ7RTN.
Using the Kenwood radio in the Service Module, Akihiko Hoshide KE5DNI
answered all 20 questions from the students, exchanged final
greetings and closed the contact. During the pass, the signal from
the ISS was loud and clear.
Live streaming video was available on:
http://www.cittadellamediterraneascienza.it/webtv.html
ARISS contact was announced by web story on ESA Portal - National
News: http://www.esa.int/esaCP/SEML9F62Q8H_Italy_0.html
Congratulations to the schools staff, ARISS Puglia Team!
-----------
Successful ARISS contact for Italian Schools in Govone, Priocca and
Diano d'Alba, Italy
Thursday November 8, 2012 at 12.04 UTC, which is 13.04 CEST,
students from Institute Comprehensive in Govone, Nino Costa Middle
school in Priocca and Institute Comprehensive in Diano d'Alba, Italy
established ARISS contact with JAXA astronaut Akihiko Hoshide KE5DNI
onboard the International Space Station.
Astronaut Akihiko Hoshide KE5DNI operated with the ISS callsign
OR4ISS. This was a direct contact performed by amateur radio station
IK1SLD, installed for the event in Planetarium in Turin, Italy.
The two Junior High schools Nino Costa of Priocca and T.L. Dalmasso
of Govone are integral part of the Comprehensive School of Govone in
the province of Cuneo. The municipal territories of the Comprehensive
School of Govone are situated on the left bank of the river Tanaro;
this district, which is a hil country, is called "Roero" and it's
famous for its fine wines. The inhabitants live mostly in the plein
where the schools can also be found while on the top of the hill
there is the old town center where is the towmhall. The students came
from the small towns of Govone, Priocca, Magliano Alfieri,
Castellinaldo, San Damiano. The school is attended by about 300
pupils, aged between 3 and 13 years.
Mr. Claudio Ariotti IK1SLD, radio contact coordinator for this
event, decided in favor of the setup for a direct contact, with
assistance from the his ARISS telebridge station (IK1SLD) installed
at Casale Monferrato Airport, Piemonte, Italy and operated by Max
Canepa IW1CNF.
The contact took place at Planetarium in Turin, where an audience of
about 200 students, visitors and Media participated to the ARISS
contact. Before the link voice with ISS, Mr. Claudio Ariotti IK1SLD
presented ARISS program, the operations during an contact with the
ISS via Ham Radio, and the life of the astronauts in space.
At 12:04 UTC, contact with OR4ISS was established by station IK1SLD.
Using the Kenwood radio in the Service Module, Akihiko Hoshide KE5DNI
answered all 20 questions from the students, exchanged final
greetings and closed the contact. During the pass, the signal from
the ISS was loud and clear.
Live streaming video was available on:
http://www.livestream.com/AMSAT_Italia
Video of the contact is available also here:
http://www.livestream.com/AMSAT_Italia
ARISS contact was announced by web story on ESA Portal - National
News: http://www.esa.int/esaCP/SEML9F62Q8H_Italy_0.html
Congratulations to the school's staff, ARISS Team IK1SLD and ARI
Casale!
73
Francesco De Paolis, IK0WGF
ARISS mentor
[ANS thanks ARISS for the above information]
------------
Amateur Radio Newsline Covers ARISS
The November 9 Amateur Radio Newsline report #1839 included an item
about the upcoming ARISS contact with students in Gujarat, India on
November 14.The article, Ham Radio in Space: First Time Ever India
to ISS Student Contact may be viewed at:
http://www.arnewsline.org/storage/scripts/nsln1839.txt
------------
Live Internet Coverage of ARISS Contacts
John Spasojevich, AG9D, who does the live internet audio distribu-
tion of the ARISS contacts, provided this summary of the audio
sources where you may listen.
+ EchoLink *AMSAT* node (101377)
+ Echolink *JK1ZRW* node (277208)
+ IRLP Node 9010 Discovery Reflector Streaming Audio:
https://sites.google.com/site/arissaudio/
Audio on Echolink & web stream is generally transmitted around 20
minutes prior to the contact taking place so that you can hear some
of the preparation that occurs.
IRLP will begin just prior to the ground station call to the ISS.
Please note that on Echolink there are automatic breaks of 1.5 sec-
onds in the audio transmission. These occur every 2.5 minutes during
the event. Breaks on IRLP are manual and occur approximately after
every third question.
John invites anyone interested in more info on how to hear the live
ARISS contact to send an email him at: johnag9d(a)gmail.com.
[ANS thanks John Spasojevich, AG9D for the above information]
---------------------------------------------------------------------
US Postal Department Proposes to Discontinue IRCs
ATTENTION DX'ers who mail to foreign countries for QSL cards:
If the US Postal Service (USPS) gets its way, it will no longer sell
International Reply Coupons (IRCs) after January 27, 2013. According
to the October 23 edition of the Federal Register, there is not
sufficient demand for the USPS to continue offering IRCs to customers;
however, per the Universal Postal Union (UPU) regulations, the USPS
must continue to exchange (redeem) IRCs that have been purchased in
foreign countries and presented at USPS facilities. The current
Nairobi model is valid through December 31, 2013. Comments on this
proposed change will be accepted
http://www.regulations.gov/#!submitComment;D=USPS-2012-0101-0001
through November 23, 2012.
IRCs provide foreign addressees with a prepaid means of responding to
inquiries, solicitations or other types of communications -- such as
QSL cards -- that are initiated by US senders. IRCs are exchangeable
for postage stamps by postal administrations in member countries of
the UPU. Each IRC is equivalent in value to the destination country's
minimum postage price for an unregistered airmail letter. The purchase
price is in the US is currently $2.20 per IRC. -- Thanks to The Daily
DX for some information.
You have until November 23rd to submit your comments on this proposal.
http://www.regulations.gov/#!submitComment;D=USPS-2012-0101-0001
[ANS thanks the American Radio Relay League for the above information]
---------------------------------------------------------------------
Satellite Shorts From All Over
+ MP3 archives of the AMSAT-UK 80M net can be found at:
http://www.dit-dit-dit.com/Downloads.aspx
+ Simon Brown, HB9DRV posted a demo of his SDR-Radio, V2 software
at: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jj5boD62bSY&feature=plcp
+ An SSTV image received November 9 from the ISS on 145.800 along
with a short video can be seen at:
http://www.essexham.co.uk/news/images-from-the-iss-nov-2012.html
(Trevor M5AKA)
+ The bright morning star is Venus. The bright evening star is
Jupiter.
+ IARU Region 3 conference paper from their recent meeting in Viet
Nam are available on-line:
o KiwiSAT - A Project of AMSAT-ZL at:
http://www.iaru-r3.org/15r3c/docs/035.doc
o Other IARU Region 3 conferences papers can be read at:
http://www.iaru-r3.org/15r3c/docs/docs.htm
o A picture of the delegates is at:
http://www.dermandar.com/p/bByKak
+ iPhone interface for Ham Radios
Thomas N2YTF, vice president of the Hall of Science Amateur Radio
Club, demonstrated his iPhone interface at the recent Maker Faire
at the New York Hall of Science in Queens.
Read the article "Tinkerer Invents iPhone Interface for Ham Radios"
http://tinyurl.com/cujjneo
+ A Private Affair For Russia
The first Russian satellite, manufactured by a private company for
private funds will be put into orbit in 2014, most probably onboard
the "Progress" state-owned cargo vehicle-so believes "Sputniks"
General Director Andrei Potapov.
http://www.satmagazine.com/2012/SM_Nov2012.pdf - Page 19
+ The Photo Reconnaissance Satellites of the USS/Russia
Similar to the United States, the former Union of Socialist Soviet
Republics recognized the value of military reconnaissance satellites
early in their development of spaceflight.
http://www.milsatmagazine.com/2012/MSM_Oct2012.pdf - Page 48
+ Fun with model rockets and an iPhone
Make: Projects community member Mike Westerfield shared a pair of
intriguing how-tos detailing how to fly a TI SensorTag and an iPhone
on a model rocket to find acceleration, rotation, and pressure, then
collect and analyze the data using a Bluetooth link to the iPhone
and techBASIC.
http://tinyurl.com/bgf3xam
+ Saturn V Moon Rocket Inforgraphic
http://tinyurl.com/ctybpo7
[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.
73,
This week's ANS Editor,
EMike McCardel, KC8YLD
kc8yld at amsat dot org