AMSAT NEWS SERVICE
ANS-181
The AMSAT News Service bulletins are a free, weekly news and infor-
mation service of AMSAT North America, The Radio Amateur Satellite
Corporation. ANS publishes news related to Amateur Radio in Space
including 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.
The news feed on http://www.amsat.org publishes news of Amateur
Radio in Space as soon as our volunteers can post it.
Please send any amateur satellite news or reports to:
ans-editor at amsat.org.
In this edition:
* ESA Education Office announce six CubeSats chosen for Phase 1 Initiative
* 13 Colonies Special Event Includes Satellite Operations
* 2013 AMSAT-UK International Space Colloquium Starts July 19, 2013
* Two Lithuanian Amateur Radio CubeSats Plan 2013 Launch To ISS
* July Space Station Spacewalks To Be Previewed And Broadcast On NASA TV
* Upcoming ARISS Contacts
* Satellite Shorts From All Over
SB SAT @ AMSAT $ANS-181.01
ANS-181 AMSAT News Service Weekly Bulletins
AMSAT News Service Bulletin 181.01
From AMSAT HQ SILVER SPRING, MD.
June 30, 2013
To All RADIO AMATEURS
BID: $ANS-181.01
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ESA Education Office announce six CubeSats chosen for Phase 1 Initiative
Six student teams and their supervisors have gathered at ESA's ESTEC
centre in The Netherlands for the kick-off of the new Fly Your Satellite!
Programme under the ESA Education Office.
On June 26-28, ESA experts will introduce the objectives and present
the activities to be performed during the first phase of the programme.
In January, ESA's Education Office announced the 'Fly Your
Satellite!' initiative. This is aimed at offering student teams the
opportunity to become familiar with good engineering practice to
build and perform satellite testing in order to increase the chances
of a successful mission. The 2013 edition of the programme is however
only focusing on testing selected university-built satellites that
are already at an advanced stage of development.
'Fly Your Satellite!' builds on the success of the 'CubeSats for the
Vega Maiden Flight' pilot programme. This culminated in 2012 with the
launch of seven student-built CubeSats on the first flight of the new
ESA Vega launcher.
The focus of the kick-off meeting will consist of coordinating the
activity to be performed during the first phase of Fly Your
Satellite! enabling the teams to complete the construction of their
satellite. This will include extensive satellite testing in ambient
conditions under the supervision of ESA specialists who will decide
which satellites should participate in the next phase of the
programme.
The second phase will see the satellites tested in the simulated
conditions of outer space and in those the satellites will experience
at launch. These will include vibration and thermal-vacuum tests.
The six CubeSats chosen for Phase 1 are:
Robusta-1B from France will validate a radiation test methodology
for specific transistor components.
Oufti-1 from Belgium will demonstrate the D-STAR digital
communication protocol and validate high-efficiency solar cells.
ConSat-1 from Canada will analyse radiation characteristics in the
South-Atlantic Anomaly, and test technology payloads.
[email protected] from Italy will test an Active-Attitude Determination
Control System.
AAUSAT4 from Denmark will test an improved version of student built
AIS (Automated Identification System) receivers.
Politech.1 from Spain will carry a student built C-band
communication system, a "GEODEYE" Earth Observation camera for
academic purposes, and solar wind experiments.
Read the full ESA article at
http://www.esa.int/Education/ESA_and_student_teams_kick-off_Fly_Your_Satell…
Fly Your Satellite! initiative
http://www.esa.int/Education/Students_are_you_ready_to_fly_your_satellites_…
space
[ANS thanks AMSAT-UK for the above information]
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13 Colonies Special Event Includes Satellite Operations
The 13 Colonies Special Event Stations will be active on the air
for Independence Week, July 1-6, 2013. Get all of the details at
http://www.13colonies.info/
On the high frequency amateur bands the 13 Colonies stations will
operate from 09:00 AM Eastern Daylight Savings Time (1300Z), on
July 1st, to 12:00 PM (midnight) Eastern Daylight Savings Time,
July 6 (0400Z, July 7).
The 13 Colonies Satellite Stations will be active as shown in
the table below:
STATE SE CALL STATION CALL OPERATOR
----- ------- ------------ --------
NY K2A WB2OQQ Pete
VA K2B NL7VX Steve
CT K2D WA8SME Mark
DE K2E KB2M Jeffrey
MD K2F WA3SWJ Bruce
MA K2H KB1PVH David
NJ K2I KB2M Jeffrey
NC K2J N8MH Mark
SC K2L K4YYL Art
PA K2M WB3U Elizabeth (FM Birds Only)
K3BFS Richard (Linear Birds Only)
Any satellite station can work the 13 Colonies states off the birds.
Please indicate your contacts are Satellite. More information can be
found at http://www.13colonies.info/Satellites.htm
[ANS thanks the 13 Colonies Special Event for the above information]
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2013 AMSAT-UK International Space Colloquium Starts July 19, 2013
The 2013 AMSAT-UK International Space Colloquium will start late
afternoon on Friday, July 19 and will run through until the afternoon
on Sunday, July 21 at the Holiday Inn, Guildford, GU2 7XZ, UK.
It will be preceded by a "Hands-on" CubeSat Workshop. This free
workshop will take place at the nearby University of Surrey on Friday,
July 19 and this will be followed, at the hotel, by the usual
Colloquium "Beginners Session" in the late afternoon.
It is anticipated that both the FUNcube-1 and FUNcube-2 missions will
be launched later this year and the FUNcube team will be on hand to
talk about the missions and the planned educational outreach. A full
demonstration of the Engineering Model, which has been performing
flawlessly for almost a year, will also be provided.
Further details and booking information at
http://amsat-uk.org/colloquium/colloquium-2013/
[ANS thanks Trevor, M5AKA for the above information]
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Two Lithuanian Amateur Radio CubeSats Plan 2013 Launch To ISS
It is hoped that two Lithuanian satellites will be among the
CubeSats sent by Nanoracks LLC to the International Space Station
(ISS) on the SpaceX CRS-3 mission in November, 2013. They will be
deployed from the ISS by the JEM Small Satellite Orbital Deployer (J-
SSOD) of the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA).
The Kaunas University of Technology is developing LituanicaSAT-1
while the Lithuanian Space Federation is working on LitSat-1.
2013 is the 80th anniversary of the historic flight by Lithuanian
pilots Steponas Darius and Stasys Gire.nas in the airplane Lituanica.
On July 15, 1933, they took off from Floyd Bennett Field in New York
and flew across the Atlantic Ocean, covering a distance of 6,411
kilometers without landing, in 37 hours and 11 minutes. Tragically
they crashed by the village of Kuhdamm, near Soldin, Germany just 650
km from their destination of Kaunas in Lithuania.
LituanicaSAT-1 plans to carry a VGA camera, GPS receiver, 9k6 AX25
FSK telemetry beacon and a 150 mW V/U FM voice transponder.
Links:
• Google English web http://tinyurl.com/KosmonautaiLituanicaSAT-1
• Google English Wiki http://tinyurl.com/WikiLituanicaSAT-1
• Facebook https://www.facebook.com/Lituanicasat1
LitSat-1 is understood to be planning a U/V linear transponder for
SSB/CW communications.
Links:
• Lithuanian Space Association in Google English
http://tinyurl.com/LithuanianSpaceAssociation
• Facebook https://www.facebook.com/palydovas
• Google English article http://tinyurl.com/LitSat-1-Article
Google English article on the two Lithuanian CubeSats
http://tinyurl.com/LithuanianCubeSats
1933 Lituanica flight http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lithuanica
[ANS thanks AMSAT-UK for the above information]
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JULY SPACE STATION SPACEWALKS TO BE PREVIEWED AND BROADCAST ON NASA TV
WASHINGTON -- Two Expedition 36 astronauts will venture outside the
International Space Station twice in July on spacewalks to prepare
for a new Russian module and perform additional installations on the
station's backbone.
NASA's Johnson Space Center in Houston will host a NASA Television
briefing to preview the spacewalks at 2 p.m. EDT Tuesday, July 2.
Reporters may attend the briefing at Johnson and other participating
NASA centers, or ask questions by calling Johnson's newsroom at
281-483-5111 no later than 1:45 p.m. Tuesday.
Briefers will include:
-- David Korth, NASA spacewalk flight director
-- Ernest Bell, Spacewalk 22 spacewalk officer
-- Karina Eversley, Spacewalk 23 spacewalk officer
Flight Engineers Chris Cassidy of NASA and Luca Parmitano of the
European Space Agency will conduct the spacewalks July 9 and July 16
from the station's Quest airlock. Each spacewalk is scheduled to last
6 1/2 hours. Cassidy and Parmitano will replace a space-to-ground
communications receiver and wireless video equipment and install
power and cables for a Russian multipurpose laboratory module that
will be launched later this year. The new module will serve as a
research facility, docking port and airlock for future Russian
spacewalks and will replace the Pirs module.
Cassidy, who is designated EV1 for the spacewalks, will wear a U.S.
extravehicular mobility suit bearing red stripes. The spacewalks will
be the fifth and sixth of Cassidy's career. Parmitano, who is
designated EV2, will wear a spacesuit with no stripes and will be
making the first two spacewalks of his career. He will become the
first Italian astronaut to walk in space. Both spacewalkers will wear
helmet cameras to provide up close views of their work.
NASA TV coverage of the spacewalks will begin at 7 a.m. on both July 9
and July 16. Both spacewalks are scheduled to begin at 8:10 a.m.
For NASA TV streaming video, schedule and downlink information, visit:
http://www.nasa.gov/ntv
For more information about the International Space Station and its
crew, visit:
http://www.nasa.gov/station
[ANS thanks NASA for the above information]
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Upcoming ARISS contact with Scuola Secondaria grado "Arturo Toscanini",
Capiago Intimiano, Italy and Scuola Media Massimiliano Kolbe, Vercurago,
Lecco, Italy
An International Space Station school contact has been planned with
participants at Scuola Secondaria 1? grado "Arturo Toscanini",
Capiago Intimiano, Italy and Scuola Media Massimiliano Kolbe,
Vercurago, Lecco, Italy on 29 June. The event is scheduled to begin
at approximately 11:50 UTC.
The duration of the contact is approximately 9 minutes and 30
seconds. The contact will be a combination of direct and telebridge
with the contact starting with IK1SLD, then proceeds to IZ2WLC and
finishes back with IK1SLD . The contact should be audible over Italy.
Interested parties are invited to listen in on the 145.80 MHz
downlink. The contact is expected to be conducted in Italian.
Scuola Secondaria 1? grado "Arturo Toscanini", Capiago Intimiano,
Italy
The school is located in Capiago Intimiano, a small town in the
north part of Italy, 7 km far from Como. Como and the surrounding
area can be clearly seen from space due to the unique shape of Lario
lake (like a Y upside down). It tooks the name from "Arturo
Toscanini", a famous musician and conductor lived across the end of
19th century and early 20th.
There are 10 classes and the students are from 11 years old to 14.
Scuola Media Massimiliano Kolbe, Vercurago, Lecco, Italy
Local secondary school with students aged from 10 to 14. It's
located in a building, built in 1950 by the government, originally
used as a sanatorium converted into school in late 1970.
Vercurago is a small town not far from Lecco, built on the shores of
Garlate's lake (as it comes out of Lario lake and become Adda river).
Participants will ask as many of the following questions as time
allows:
1. Why did you decide to become an astronaut?
2. How do you recycle water?
3. How did you feel on your first day in space?
4. What are the main characteristics of the Earth seen from space?
5. What was your first impression of the ISS?
6. How the northern lights appear from space?
7. How is life in space for six months with only five other people?
8. What is the most difficult activity you've carried out in space?
9. When you see the Earth from the space, what do you think?
10. How do you treat waste?
11. Is the Sun different seen from the space?
12. How do you shave in space?
13. What do you usually do in your free time?
14. How does life in orbit influence vital functions?
15. When you'll come back to the Earth, what will be the first thing
you'll do?
16. When the Earth is in the dark, which are the brightest cities?
17. Can you see pollution on the Earth from the ISS?
18. What kind of studies did you attend to become an astronaut?
19. Which was the strongest emotion you felt when you passed quickly
from the Earth to space?
20. What is the human construction visible from the space station?
21. How hard was the training before departure?
22. What do you eat in space?
23. What did you miss more from the earth?
24. Have you ever experimented how spiders build webs in space?
25. Have you ever had any serious technical problems on the ISS?
26. What kind of experiments are you carrying out?
27. What do you like most about your job?
28. What is the most ambitious project for the future?
PLEASE CHECK THE FOLLOWING FOR MORE INFORMATION ON ARISS UPDATES:
Information about the upcoming ARISS contacts can be obtained by
subscribing to the SAREX maillist. To subscribe, go to
http://www.amsat.org/amsat-new/tools/maillist/ and choose "How to
Subscribe".
Visit ARISS on Facebook. We can be found at Amateur Radio on the
International Space Station (ARISS).
To receive our Twitter updates, follow @ARISS_status
Next planned event(s):
1. Association Intercultura Onlus, Frascati, Italy, telebridge
Sat, 06July2013, 17:02 UTC 40 deg via W6SRJ
ARISS is an international educational outreach program partnering
the participating space agencies, NASA, Russian Space Agency, ESA,
CNES, JAXA, and CSA, with the AMSAT and IARU organizations from
participating countries.
ARISS offers an opportunity for students to experience the
excitement of Amateur Radio by talking directly with crewmembers on-
board the International Space Station. Teachers, parents and
communities see, first hand, how Amateur Radio and crewmembers on ISS
can energize youngsters' interest in science, technology, and
learning. Further information on the ARISS program is available on
the website http://www.ariss.org/ (graciously hosted by the Radio
Amateurs of Canada).
(ANS thanks David Jordan, AA4KN for this ARISS update)
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Satelite Shorts From All Over
Kevin, N4UFO reported on June 25 he was able to work three
transatlantic contacts via AO-7. The stations he contacted included
EA8HB, CT3FM, and G7BTA. Kevin noted, "I must say... three QSOs in one
pass, WOW! That was a lot of fun! AO-7 is a grand old bird, long may
she live! I just had to share how exciting it was!" (via N4UFO on
starcomm-bb)
In the July 2013 edition of the ARRL publication of QST, ARRL Chief
Executive Officer, David Sumner, K1ZZ, presents a feature on CubeSats.
Steve Ford, WB8IMY, presents a column, Eclectic Technology, titled
"More Satellites on the Way", a listing of the 7 satellites due to be
launched in 2013. (via www.arrl.org )
A CubeSat presentation was given by AMSAT Francophone to a
scientific conference held by the Radio Club of Paris F6KVP on May
29, 2013.
A video of the presentation has been made available on the web.
AMSAT-Francophone site in Google English:
http://tinyurl.com/AMSAT-Francophone
Radio Club of Paris F6KVP in Google English:
http://tinyurl.com/RadioClubParis
F6KVP on Twitter:
https://twitter.com/F6KVP
(via AMSAT-UK)
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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.
73,
This week's ANS Editor,
Joe Spier, K6WAO
k6wao at amsat dot org
AMSAT NEWS SERVICE
ANS-300
The AMSAT News Service bulletins are a free, weekly news and infor-
mation service of AMSAT North America, The Radio Amateur Satellite
Corporation. ANS publishes news related to Amateur Radio in Space
including 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.
The news feed on http://www.amsat.org publishes news of Amateur
Radio in Space as soon as our volunteers can post it.
Please send any amateur satellite news or reports to:
ans-editor at amsat.org.
In this edition:
* FUNCube Data Warehouse Ready for Demo
* Satellite contact between Cuba and UK
* New Satellite Segment in IARU Region 2 Bandplan
* Astronaut Rick Mastracchio KC5ZTE to Geocache the ISS
* FUNCube SDR Radio Telescope
* NASA CubeSat Space Missions
* ARISS Team Recognized by NW Indiana Society of Innovators
* ARISS News
* Satellite Shorts From All Over
* All Things Symposium, a Chronology
* AMSAT BoD Meet in Houston October 31 and November 1
* 2013 AMSAT Symposium Presentations
* Symposium Banquet - 30 Years of Amateur Radio In Human Space Flight
* AMSAT Symposium Sunday Battleship Texas Tour
* AMSAT Symposium Monday NASA JSC Tour Monday 8:00 am - 2:30 pm CST
SB SAT @ AMSAT $ANS-300.01
ANS-300 AMSAT News Service Weekly Bulletins
AMSAT News Service Bulletin 300.01
>From AMSAT HQ SILVER SPRING, MD.
DATE October 27, 2013
To All RADIO AMATEURS
BID: $ANS-300.01
FUNCube Data Warehouse Ready for Demo
AMSAT-UK & AMSAT-NL are pleased to announce a new version of the
FUNcube Data Warehouse which will collect, collate, deduplicate and
display data from FUNcube Dashboards running on user PCs (see section
at end).
The URL is: https://warehouse.funcube.org.uk
The intention of the warehouse is to allow access to all the data
received for the duration of the mission rather than from just one or
a series of passes. This will enable educators and others to download
mission telemetry for off-line analysis as part of our STEM outreach
goal.
The warehouse will store information for the following
satellites/devices:
- FUNcube Flight Model
- UKube-1 - FUNcube module
- FUNcube Engineering Model (which will be used for some
demonstrations)
- FUNcube Software Test Stack (which is still be used for
development but may become another demonstration model later)
Please note, that we are still adding functionality and that some
features may not be enabled but it will give a flavour of what will
be there.
The warehouse DOES allow registration for upload of data from the
FUNcube Dashboard (see below) and we would like feedback on the
process. You can register now as a user of the Warehouse and then,
later, apply the settings, that you will be emailed to you, to the
Dashboard software when it is available.
There is a new forum at: http://forum.funcube.org.uk, whose purpose
is to provide support for FUNcube satellite users. Registration on
this forum is separate from the warehouse registration.
FUNcube Dashboard
A Windows PC application has been developed which will allow FUNcube
Dongle (either model) users and those with other, SSB compatible, 2
metre radios to receive and display satellite telemetry in real time
and upload the data to the FUNcube Data Warehouse. If using the
FUNcube Dongle, the software will perform doppler tracking on the
received signal.
As well as real-time processing, the software can replay binary, IQ
and sound files captured on earlier passes.
The Dashboard software is undergoing final testing and will be made
available in about two weeks time.
We are looking forward to a late November launch. News updates can
be found here:
http://funcube.org.uk/
[ANS thanks Dave Johnson, G4DPZ on behalf of AMSAT-UK / AMSAT-NL for
the above information]
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Satellite contact between Cuba and UK
Hector, CO6CBF, reported on the AMSAT-BB October 20, "I am pleased
to report that yesterday I had my first contact on satellites with UK.
"Peter, G4DOL (IO80so) and I (EL92sd) completed a contact
successfully on FO-29. It is the result of a long history which began
six months ago.
"We tried several times but Peter never could hear below a degree
toward my location. I have the same problem in my home station and I
usually go to specific spots to try these kinds of contacts. So, I
suggested him assemble a portable station to operate from a better
spot. He did so and his first smoke test was on October 15th, we
almost completed a contact but Peter could not hear my report; I
couldn't reach a good spot due to the rain. Yesterday, I went to a
very tall building, I got access to the building `s top and operated
from there. Actually, it is a very good spot, it allowed me a great
horizon visibility toward Europe; I was able to work FO-29 until -1.5
degrees.
"We had a very narrow window but there was enough time to exchange
reports, grids and greetings. Our maximum elevation was 1.1 degrees.
I believe it is the first contact between UK and Cuba on FO-29! It is
a 7286 km contact, a new grid and new country for us!
"Please, note that our success was on the 2301z pass, it was very
late in the night for Peter. He had to load his car with antennas,
radio, a battery and drive five miles from his home looking for a
good spot in the windy and dark coast. He was running 50W into a 10
elements yagi and was using 19 elements yagi for the downlink; He
mounted both antennas on a big tripod and had to manage with a "heavy
weigh". Needless to say that Peter did the difficult part and a very
good job!
"I was running a FT-817nd, a 50W homebrew power amplifier and ELK
antenna. Everything was supplied by a 12V 7A Gel battery. I was
operating Half-Duplex but we ran the frequency calculations based on
the great feature implemented on SatPC32 V12.8b. So, it was very easy
to find each other in the pass band. It was my 8th transatlantic
contact with Europe on FO-29!
"Right Now, FO-29 has a big footprint. Please, if you are into the
footprint and want to try a long distance contact, just drop me an
email. I will try until complete a contact with you. Unfortunately,
Cubans cannot operate on AO-7B; FO-29 is our only chance for DX
contacts.
"Thanks very much to Peter for this exciting contact!"
[ANS thanks Hector, CO6CBF for the above information]
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New Satellite Segment in IARU Region 2 Bandplan
Following the IARU Region 2 (the Americas) meeting in September at
Cancun, Mexico, the new Region 2 bandplans for all allocations from
137 kHz to 250 GHz have now been published.
There is a new allocation for the Amateur-Satellite Service from
144.000-144.025 MHz
There is also a reference to NSS – Near Space Stations in the
definitions section. This is believed to be the first mention of High
Altitude Balloons in any amateur radio band plan document. It says
NSS – Near Space Stations:
Equipment located in temporary Near Space Stations (such as those
carried by High Altitude Balloons) can transmit carefully on any
frequency; exceptions are the segments with “exclusive” usage where
“NSS” are not applied. NSS must follow the BW and mode restrictions
of the segment and observe carefully the usual occupation of the band
on the related region to avoid harmful interference. For longer
missions and NSS crossing international and regional boundaries,
extra care must be observed in harmonization of different allocations.
See the new IARU Region 2 bandplans at
http://tinyurl.com/ANS300-IARU-Region-2-bandplans
Read the IARU Region 1 paper Increased Amateur Satellite Service 144
MHz Usage
http://tinyurl.com/ANS300-IARU-Region-1-paper
[ANS thanks Trevor M5AKA and AMSAT-UK for the above information]
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Astronaut Rick Mastracchio KC5ZTE to Geocache the ISS
It’s the Travel Bug® that’s taking the global Geocaching community
on a rocket ride to space. Whether you’re in Mexico or France,
Australia or Korea you’re primed to join the geocaching community in
celebrating the spirit of exploration. There are more than 800
Geocaching in Space events scheduled around the world. Those who
attend Event Caches on either November 6 or November 7 earn the
Geocaching in Space souvenir.
Join the adventure and watch the launch live as Astronaut Rick
Mastracchio packs the Travel Bug along on his 6 month mission aboard
the International Space Station. He’ll use the Travel Bug as a tool
to teach students back on earth about geography and science.
Geocaching HQ is offering a limited edition Geocaching in Space
Mission Patch. Geocaching will donate proceeds from the patch to
Donorschoose.org for use in funding projects that use geocaching as
an educational tool.
Geocaching in Space Event Owners: Be on the lookout for an email
from Geocaching HQ later this week. We’ll serve up details on how to
watch the launch live, how to connect with the 800+ events around the
world and how to celebrate afterwards (hint: geocaching).
For more information on this event visit http://tinyurl.com/ANS300-
GeocacheSapceEvent
While aboard the ISS Mastracchio is expected to recover a travel bug
hidden by Richard Garriott W5KWQ on 10/14/2008.
Visit http://tinyurl.com/ANS300-Geocach for more information on this
geocache.
[ANS thanks Geocaching.com for the above information]
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FUNCube SDR Radio Telescope
Dr David Morgan has released a new paper 'Further Developments of an
SDR Radio Telescope' using the FunCube Dongle Pro+ and SpectrumLab
"Further Developments of an SDR Radio Telescope" details the
equipment configuration and software involved in setting to work a
small 3m diameter amateur radio telescope using the FunCube Dongle
Pro+ software defined radio receiver.
It demonstrates how Spectrum Lab can provide digital filtering to
observe up to 20 individual sub-bands to help overcome interference
issues. David also provides details of gain and noise stability
measurements for the FUNcube Dongle and observations of emissions
from the quiet Sun and the Cygnus arm of the Milky Way.
This paper adds to the work that David has undertaken in the past
and is interesting reading for anyone wanting to experiment with SDR
solutions for amateur radio astronomy.
Paul Hyde G4CSD
BAA RAG Coordinator
Download the paper from
http://tinyurl.com/ANS300-SDRTelescope
BAA RAG website
http://www.britastro.org/radio/
Join the BAA RAG Yahoo Group at
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/baa-rag
FUNcube Pro Plus Yahoo Group
http://amsat-uk.org/funcube/funcube-dongle-sdr/
[ANS thanks Southgate ARN for the above information]
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NASA CubeSat Space Missions
NASA is now accepting proposals for the CubeSat Launch Initiative.
Proposals must be submitted electronically by 4:30 p.m. EST Nov. 26,
2013.
>From the submissions, NASA will select the best proposals by Feb. 7,
2014. Developers whose proposals are selected may have the opportunity
to see their creations launched as an auxiliary payload on a mission
between 2014 and 2017. NASA will not provide funding for the
development of the small satellites and selection does not guarantee a
launch opportunity.
CubeSats are a class of cube-shaped research spacecraft called
nanosatellites. They are approximately 4 inches long, have a volume of
about 1 quart and weigh less than 3 pounds.
CubeSat investigations should be consistent with NASA's strategic plan
and educational vision and goals. The research should address specific
aspects of science, exploration, technology development, education or
operations.
>From the first four rounds of the NASA CubeSat Launch Initiative, 89
payloads from 25 U.S. states made the short list for launch
opportunities in 2011 through 2016. Of the selected CubeSats, 12
satellites have already launched. Twenty-one Cubesats are scheduled
for launch later this year.
For additional information on NASA's CubeSat Launch Initiative
program, visit
http://www.nasa.gov/directorates/heo/home/CubeSats_initiative.html.
[ANS thanks NASA for the above information]
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ARISS Team Recognized by NW Indiana Society of Innovators
The ARISS team who supported and conducted the May 8, 2013
International Space Station school contact with participants at The
Gary Literacy Coalition, Inc, Gary, Indiana have been recognized by
the Northwest Indiana Society of Innovators with induction into their
2013-14 Class of Fellows. This recognition describes these
trailblazers as among the most innovative "thinkers and doers" in
Northwest Indiana.
The Gary Literacy Coalition, Inc. serves as the primary literacy
collaborative in the City of Gary and neighboring communities. GLC
supports, promotes, enhances, and coordinates the accessibility of
literacy opportunities, thus making Gary "A Reading City."
GLC has maintained a close partnership with the Gary Community School
Corporation (GCSC). The GLC/GCSC partnership allows the operation of
the "Learning Partner" Mentoring Project. This mentoring initiative is
a motivational endeavor offering an arm of support to 4th, 5th and 6th
grade students enrolled in the GCSC gender academies; Dr. Bernard C.
Watson Academy for Boys and Frankie Woods-McCullough Academy for
Girls.
The GCSC is an urban public school district challenged to expand and
enhance educational experiences for the approximately 10,000 students
that it serves. A large percentage of these students reside in
single-parent homes and/or low-income families. A collaboration of
students from Lew Wallace STEM Academy, Bernard C. Watson Academy for
Boys, Frankie Woods McCullough Academy for Girls and NU-Tech Academy
will be program participants. These students ranged in grade levels 4
through 12.
A photo of the citation is posted at:
http://tinyurl.com/facebook-ARISS-Award (facebook.com)
The Northwest Indiana Times newspaper article can be viewed at:
http://tinyurl.com/NWTimes-ARISS (nwitimes.com)
[ANS thanks ARRL Illinois Section Manager Tom Ciciora, KA9QPN; ARISS,
and the Northwest Indiana Times for the above information]
---------------------------------------------------------------------
ARISS News
+ A Successful contact was made between Comprensivo Camaiore 3
Camaiore and Astronaut Luca Parmitano KF5KDP using callsign IRØISS.
The contact began 2013-10-19 15:54 UTC and lasted about nine and a
half minutes. Contact was direct and telebridged via IQ5VR. ARISS
Mentor was IKØWGF.
+ A Successful contact was made between Istituto Comprensivo
Marzocchino Di Seravezza, Italy and Astronaut Luca Parmitano KF5KDP
using callsign IRØISS. The contact began 2013-10-19 15:54 UTC and
lasted about nine and a half minutes. direct and telebridged via
IQ5VR. ARISS Mentor was IKØWGF.
+ A Successful contact was made between IPSSEOA, Castellana Grotte
and Liceo Classico e Linguistico C. Sylos, Bitonto, Italy and
Astronaut Luca Parmitano KF5KDP using callsign IRØISS. The contact
began Wed 2013-10-23 12:43:08 UTC and lasted about nine and a half
minutes. Contact was direct via IZ7RTN. ARISS Mentor was IKØWGF.
+ A Successful contact was made between Liceo Classico e Linguistico
C. Sylos, Bitonto Bari, Italy and Astronaut Luca Parmitano KF5KDP
using callsign IRØISS. The contact began Wed. 2013-10-23 12:43 and
lasted about nine and a half minutes. Contact was direct via IZ7RTN
ARISS Mentor was IKØWGF.
Upcoming ARISS Contact Schedule
Kopernik Observatory & Science Center (KOSC), Vestal, NY, direct
via K2ZRO Contact is a go for: Wed 2013-10-30 16:32:51 UTC
Wallingford STEM Academy/Town of Wallingford, Wallingford, CT,
direct via K1SEZ Contact is a go for: Thu 2013-10-31 15:45:11 UTC
[ANS thanks ARISS, Charlie AJ9N and David AA4KN for the above
information]
---------------------------------------------------------------------
Satellite Shorts From All Over
+ VE's requested for Symposium Testing
At this year's AMSAT symposium, one of our foreign visitors will be
taking his FCC amateur radio license exams. If you are an ARRL or
W5YI VE and would like to support this effort of international
goodwill, please contact W5PFG at arrl dot net. Clayton will be
coordinating the session to be held either Friday morning before the
Symposium kick-off or Saturday morning before breakfast.
Source, Clayton W5PFG
+ See Bdale Garbee's KB0G talking about AMSAT's Fox-1 CubeSat at
last year's ARRL and TAPR DCC. It was recorded by HamRadioNow on
September 21, 2012, but somehow was overlooked it when they produced
the rest of the talks. It was produce October 23, 2013 as Episode
105 AMSAT Fox-1 CubeSat (The Missing Episode from the 2012 DCC)
http://arvideonews.com/hrn/HRN_Episode_0105.html
Source HamRadioNow
+ View an animated assembly of the International Space Station
http://i.usatoday.net/tech/graphics/iss_timeline/flash.htm
Source Kenneth N5VHO
+ SSTV Handbook
Martin Bruchanov, OK2MNM, has written a Free e-book for ham radio
operators and radio listeners interested in special communication
modes for image transmission – SSTV, radio facsimile (WEFAX) and
digital SSTV (HamDRM).
You can download the entire book or view on line...
http://www.sstv-handbook.com/
Source Southgate ARN
+ FUNcube-1 is presently at Yasny and is being prepared for launch.
All the latest news can be seen at www.funcube.org.uk and the latest
post includes a link to the launch blog from our launch service
providers.
Source Graham G3VZV
+ The tiny PocketQube satellite WREN, just 5x5x5 cm and weighing 250
grams, aims to transmit amateur radio Slow Scan TV (SSTV) pictures
using the Martin-1 format.
http://amsat-uk.org/2013/10/24/wren-a-ham-radio-sstv-pocketqube/
Source Trevor M5AKA and AMSAT-UK
[ANS thanks the Sources listed for the above information]
---------------------------------------------------------------------
All Things Symposium, a Chronology
+ Please visit http://ww2.amsat.org/?page_id=1555 for the most
current information.
Please visit http://ww2.amsat.org/?page_id=1555 for the most
current information.
Thursday 31 October.
08:00-12:00 AMSAT BOD Meeting (Pasadena).
12:00-13:00 AMSAT BOD Lunch Break (Spirits Private Dining Room)
13:00-18:45 AMSAT BOD Meeting (Pasadena).
18:45-19:45 AMSAT BOD Dinner Break (Spirits Private Dining Room)
19:45-21:00 AMSAT BOD Meeting (Pasadena).
19:00-21:00 Symposium Registration (Outside Corpus Christi/South
Padre)
Friday 1 November
Ongoing VUCC/WAS Card Checking, Bruce Paige, KK5DO, AMSAT Director
Contests and Awards, will be at the symposium Friday, Saturday and
Sunday (Sunday is the trip to the USS Texas so not much time) and
available to check cards for VUCC satellite or WAS satellite.
Morning
08:00-17:15 Symposium Registration (Outside Corpus Christi/South
Padre)
08:00-12:00 AMSAT BOD Meeting (Pasadena).
09:00-12:00 Display Area Open (Port Lavaca)
Afternoon
13:00 13:15 Symposium Opening Remarks and Introductions, President's
Welcome (Corpus Christi/SouthPadre)
13:10-17:20 Presentation of papers (Corpus Christi/SouthPadre)
13:10-17:30 Display Area Open (Port Lavaca)
Evening
17:20-19:30 Informal Dinner on your own
19:30-21:00 AMSAT Reception (Bluez) Cash Bar Available
Saturday November 2, 2013
Ongoing VUCC/WAS Card Checking,
Morning
07:30-12:00 Symposium Registration
08:00-12:00 Display Area Open (Port Lavaca)
08:00 08:10 Opening remarks (Corpus Christi/SouthPadre)
08:00-11:50 More Symposium papers (Corpus Christi/SouthPadre)
Afternoon
11:50-13:00 Lunch break
13:00-15:30 More presentations (Corpus Christi/SouthPadre)
13:00-15:45 Display Area (Port Lavaca)
15:30-15:45 Break/Setup for Annual Meeting
15:45-17:15 AMSAT Annual Meeting & Awards Ceremony (Corpus
Christi/SouthPadre)
Echolink Simulcast
Connect to the *AMSAT* conference server, node number 101377
Note the * before and after AMSAT are part of the Node name and are
important.
Saturday Evening
18:00-19:00 Attitude Adjustment (Pasadena)
18:00-22:00 Cash Bar
19:00 -21:00 Banquet and Keynote Presentation (Pasadena)
Presentation: "30th Anniversary of Amateur Radio and Human Space
Flight" Multi-Media Presentation plus Panel Moderated by AMSAT VP-
Space Flight Frank Bauer, KA3HDO (Including Owen Garriott, W5LFL)
21:00-22:00 Door prize drawing (Pasadena)
Sunday November 3, 2013 (Note: Change from CDT to CST-"Fall back 1
hour")
Ongoing VUCC/WAS Card Checking, Do it before the tour.
Morning
07:30-09:00 Area Coordinators Meeting and breakfast. (Pt. Aransas)
(Breakfast only for those with reservations/All interested are
invited to join the discussion)
08:45-09:45 IARU Satellite Advisor Forum (Port Lavaca)
09:45 Gather for transportation to Special Sunday tour
10:00 Leave for special tour of the Battleship Texas (BB-35)
10:30 Arrive USS Texas
11:00 Begin Tour
Afternoon
14:00 End Battleship Tour/ Group 1 departs for Restaurant/Group 2
for hotel/airport (Group 2 arrive hotel at 1430 after airport drop-off)
14:15 Group 1 arrives restaurant
15:45 Group 1 departs restaurant/split group for airport or hotel
16:00 Group 1 returns to Hotel from tour or arrives at airport
19:00 Informal gather for dinner (Those who are staying for the
Monday JSC tour) TBD place.
Monday November 4, 2013
Morning
07:45 Gather for the Special JSC Tour
08:00 Special tour of JSC & Lunch (Neutral Buoyancy Lab, Building 30
Mission Control, Building 9 ISS Mockup, JSC Amateur Radio Club
Station W5RRR)
Afternoon
12:00 Lunch at Space Center, Houston
14:15 Dropoff at Airport
14:30 Bus returns to hotel
[ANS thanks the AMSAT Office for the above information]
---------------------------------------------------------------------
AMSAT Board of Directors Meet in Houston October 31 and November 1
The AMSAT Board of Directors will meet October 31 and November 1
prior to the AMSAT Symposium in Houston, Texas. The meeting will be
held at the Houston Marriott South at Hobby Airport.
The meetings will begin Thursday October 31, 8am through about 9pm,
and then resume Friday Novemeber 1, 8am through 12 noon. The meeting
will be open to the general membership to the maximum extent possible.
The Board will meet in the Pasadena Room
Current Agenda
Thursday, October 30th (All times are CDT)
Opening Issues
08:00 Welcome and Facilities Barry Baines, WD4ASW
08:05 Agenda review Barry Baines, WD4ASW
Election of Officers Barry Baines, WD4ASW
08:10 President, Executive Vice President, Vice-President
Operations, Vice-President Engineering, VP of User Services,
Secretary, Treasurer, and Manager
08:20 President's Report for 2013 Barry Baines, WD4ASW
08:40 Secretary: Alan Biddle, WA4SCA
-Approval of prior minutes
-Report for 2013
08:50 Treasurer's Report for 2013 Keith Baker, KB1SF
-Accept the 2012 Review
-Appoint a review firm for 2014
-Report on Overall Finances
09:30 Regulatory Issues Barry Baines, WD4ASW
-ITAR
10:00 "15 minute" coffee break
10:15 Manager's Report for 2013 Martha Saragovitz
10:30 Operations Team Report Drew Glasbrenner KO4MA
-IARU Region 1 Proposal
10:50 AMSAT Lab Update/Storage Lou McFadin, W5DID
11:05 User Services Team Report
-AMSAT Journal Joanne Maenpaa, K9JKM
-AMSAT News Service Joanne Maenpaa for Lee, KU4OS
-Weekly Satellite Report Barry Baines, WD4ASW
-Field Operations Patrick Stoddard, WD9EWK
-Dayton Hamvention Alan Biddle, WA4SCA for Steve
Belter, N9IP
12:00 Lunch Break (1 hour) Martha Saragovitz
Tactical - Executive Team Reports (Continued)
13:00 Education Outreach E.Mike McCardel, KC8YLD
13:20 ARRL 2014 Centennial Convention Barry Baines, WD4ASW
13:35 ARISS-US Frank Bauer, KA3HDO
14:15 ARISS International Report David Taylor, W8AAS
14:30 HamTV on ISS Frank Bauer, KA3HDO, Lou
McFadin, W5DID
15:00 "15 minute" coffee break
15:15 AMSAT Symposium Planning Barry Baines, WD4ASW
15:30 AMSAT Logo Alan Biddle, WA4SCA
15:40 AMSAT Store Alan Biddle, WA4SCA, Joe
Fitzgerald, KM1P
16:00 AMSAT's Website Alan Biddle, WA4SCA
& Electronic Services Joe Fitzgerald, KM1P
16:45 "15 minute" coffee break
AMSAT Engineering and Discussion Topics
17:00 Project Fox Engineering Tony Monteiro, AA2TX
18:45 Break for Dinner-Room TBD Martha Saragovitz
Finance and Budget
(CLOSED SESSION)
19:45 AMSAT's Financial Trends Keith Baker, KB1SF
-Performance Review
Open Session
20:15 Initial 2014 Budget (First Cut) Keith Baker, KB1SF
21:00 Adjourn for the day
Friday, November 1st
CLOSED SESSIONS
BOD Members and Invited Guests ONLY -
08:00 Employee Evaluation/Compensation Review Barry Baines, WD4ASW
09:15 Future Launch Opportunities Frank Bauer, KA3HDO
OPEN SESSIONS
09:45 IARU Satellite Coordination Hans Van de Groenendaal, ZS6AKV
10:50 "10 minute" coffee break
Additional Items
11:00 Finalize Budget Keith Baker, KB1SF
11:45 Atta-boys and Girls Tom Clark, K3IO
12:00 Adjourn-Lunch for Board Members and Senior Officers
[ANS thanks the AMSAT Office for the above information]
---------------------------------------------------------------------
2013 AMSAT Symposium Presentations (Corpus Christi/SouthPadre rooms)
Friday, 1 November 2013 (All times are CDT)
1:00 PM Introduction and Welcome
1:10-1:35 PM "AMSAT Education and You" E. Michael McCardel, KC8YLD
1:35-2:05 PM "Upcoming Amateur Radio Cubesats: The Flood has
Arrived" Bryan Klofas, KF6ZEO
2:05-2:25 PM "W5PFG/P: Observations from a Roving Operator" Clayton
Coleman, W5PFG
2:25-2:45 PM "Operating on Satellites from Cruise Ships-Lessons
Learned" Allen Mattis, N5AFV
2:45-3:05 PM "If JFK Was A Ham" Nick Pugh, K5QXJ
3:05-3:20 PM Break
3:20-3:40 PM "The Montgomery College Satellite Radio Rotator
Project" David Bern, W2LNX
3:40-4:05 PM "AMSAT's Internet Presence" Joe Fitzgerald, KM1P
4:05-4:30 PM "Overcrowding of the Two Metre Satellite Band" Hans van
de Groenendall, ZS6AKV
4:30-4:55 PM "Using Amateur Radio Satellites in Education" Rafael
Haag, PY23FF
4:55-5:20 PM "WRAPS Portable Satellite Antenna Rotor" Mark Spencer,
WA8SME
Saturday, 2 November 2013
8:00 AM Introduction and Welcome
8:15-8:40 AM "Cubesats in HEO-A Challenging Mission for AMSAT"
Daniel Schultz, N8FGV
8:40-9:30 AM "Fox Satellite Program Overview" Tony Monteiro, AA2TX
9:30-10:00 AM "Coding and Modulation Design for AMSAT Fox-1", Phil
Karn, KA9Q
10:00-10:15 AM Break
10:15-10:35 AM "Virginia Tech Cubesat Camera for Fox-1" Zach Leffke,
KJ4QLP
10:35-10:55 AM "The Fox-1 IHU and Telemetry Simulator or Making Good
Use of Cheap Evaluation Boards" Burns Fisher, W2BFJ
10:55-11:20 AM "Fox Experiments: Attitude Determination" Mark
Spencer, WA8SME
11:20-11:50 AM "Distributed Ground Station Network Receive Node
Design" Zach Leffke, KJ4QLP
11:50-1:00 PM Lunch
1:00-1:20 PM "SA AMSAT Turns to Innovation for its Cubesat" Hans van
de Groenendaal, ZS6AKV
1:20-1:45 PM "FUNcube Dongle and SDR-Radio Console for Schools
Support" Hector L. Martinez, CO6CBF
1:45-2:05 PM "Fox Experiments-Exploring the Fox-2 Maximum Power
Point Tracking System" Mark Spencer, WA8SME
2:05-2:25 PM "A Brief Overview of the ARISS Program" Dave Jordan,
AA4KN
2:25-2:45 PM "Amateur Radio on the ISS (ARISS)-Interesting Times"
Dave Taylor, W8AAS
2:45-3:30 PM "Amateur Radio on Human Spaceflight Missions-30 Years"
Frank Bauer, KA3HDO
3:30-3:45 Break
3:45-5:15 PM AMSAT Annual Meeting broadcast over Echolink AMSAT
Server and AMSAT Recognition.
To hear the Echolink transmission, connect to the *AMSAT* conference
server, node number 101377.
Note that the * before and after AMSAT are important.
[ANS thanks the AMSAT Office for the above information]
---------------------------------------------------------------------
Symposium Banquet - 30 Years of Amateur Radio In Human Space Flight
In addition to good food and company, the banquet always features an
interesting speaker on a topic related to the space program. A
special highlight of this year's Symposium is the celebration of the
30th anniversary of amateur radio involvement in human space flight
and the evolution of amateur radio into a successful program on board
the International Space Station. ARISS (Amateur Radio on the ISS) is
an international program that supports educational outreach as well
as provides an opportunity for informal contacts between
astronauts/cosmonauts and amateur radio operators around the world.
The recent delivery of "Ham TV" equipment to the Columbus module by
the European Space Agency is a reflection of the continued support
that amateur radio holds for communicating with students.
Astronaut Owen Garriott, W5LFL on STS-9 in November 1983 was the
first astronaut to utilize amateur radio to communicate with
personnel on the ground, allowing the general public to speak with US
astronauts from space, outside the communication channels of NASA's
Mission Control. In recognition of the 30th anniversary of this
historic event, a multi-media panel featuring Owen and other key
individuals who initiated this amazing program will take place on
Saturday evening as part of the banquet, moderated by AMSAT VP-Human
Space Flight Frank Bauer, KA3HDO. The presentation includes not only
remarks by Owen and others in response to Frank's questions, but
video highlights of amateur radio participation in STS-9 and other
Shuttle flights will be shown. Having such a celebration take place
in Houston makes it more special as it allows us to have non-AMSAT
personnel involved with placing amateur radio on the Shuttle and ISS
participate in our special program.
Dinner Menu
Salad with choice of dressing
Chicken or beef sirloin entree
Mashed potatoes
Seasonal vegetables
Desert
Ice tea or coffee
A cash bar will be available 6-10pm CDT for beer, wine, and mixed
drinks
[ANS thanks the AMSAT Office for the above information]
---------------------------------------------------------------------
AMSAT Symposium Sunday Battleship Texas Tour
Tour of Battleship Texas, Sunday 11 am - 2 pm CST
The Battleship Texas BB-35 is the only surviving Navy warship that
served in both World Wars. It is currently opened to the public
while undergoing extensive restoration to ready her for the 100th
anniversary of her commissioning in 2014. A special tour has been
arranged for AMSAT Symposium participants. The tour will be
conducted in small groups by experienced docents and will include
areas of the ship included on general public tours, as well as areas
not generally open to the public. The tour will also feature special
emphasis on the radio room and if restoration activity permits, the
transmitter room which contains the original transmitter equipment
and has never been open to the public. Transportation will be by
organized carpool provided by a combination of those participants
with rental cars, and local hams from the Clear Lake Amateur Radio
Club (CLARC) and the Johnson Space Center Amateur Radio Club
(JSCARC). A late lunch is planned at a popular local restaurant on
the return trip to the Marriott for those who wish to participate.
Symposium participants with rental cars who plan to attend this tour
are requested to contact Lou McFadin if you are willing to be part of
the carpool.
Tour itinerary: (all Times are CST)
09:45 Gather for transportation to Special Sunday tour
10:00 Leave for special tour of the Battleship Texas (BB-35)
10:30 Arrive USS Texas
11:00 Begin Tour
14:00 End Battleship Tour/ Group 1 departs for Restaurant/Group 2 for
hotel/airport (Group 2 arrive hotel at 1430 after airport drop-off)
14:15 Group 1 arrives restaurant
15:45 Group 1 departs restaurant/split group for airport or hotel
16:00 Group 1 returns to Hotel from tour or arrives at airport
Participants needing to return to the Marriott or Hobby Airport
immediately after the tour is concluded at 2 PM will be accommodated
(arranged with a driver volunteer) or they may bring their own
private vehicles.
Sorry, registration for this event has closed.
[ANS thanks the AMSAt Office for the above information]
---------------------------------------------------------------------
AMSAT Symposium Monday NASA JSC Tour Monday 8:00 am - 2:30 pm CST
A special tour of JSC has been arranged for AMSAT Symposium
participants. The tour will include the Sonny Carter Neutral
Buoyancy Lab and the Building 9 Training facility containing high
fidelity full scale mockups of the International Space Station
modules as well as the Soyuz spacecraft. The ISS tour will include
special emphasis of the amateur radio stations on the ISS. The tour
will also include the Building 30 historic mission control room as
well as the current International Space Station control room. After
departing the JSC campus, a short tour of the JSCARC station, W5RRR
will be conducted by members of the JSCARC. Participants will then
have the opportunity to eat lunch at Space Center Houston and visit
the official souvenir shop before the bus returns to the Marriott and
Houston Hobby airport. Please register for the tour early since
charter bus seating capacity is limited. Participants planning to
bring their personal or rental vehicles to leave the tour early to
catch return flights should notify Lou McFadin via email at
AMSAT(a)CFL.RR.COM.
Tour itinerary: (All Times are CST)
07:45 Gather for the Special JSC Tour
8:00 am Bus departs Marriott South Hobby Airport
8:30 am Arrive at JSC visitor control for JSC tour
11:15 am Depart JSC for JSCARC Station W5RRR
11:20 am Arrive at JSCARC Station W5RRR
11:40 am Depart JSCARC Station W5RRR for Space Center Houston
11:50 am Arrive at Space Center Houston (Lunch and souvenir shop)
1:45 pm Depart Space Center Houston for Houston Hobby Airport
2:15 pm Arrive at Houston Hobby Airport
2:30 pm Arrive at Marriott South Hobby Airport
[ANS thanks the AMSAT Office 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
AMSAT NEWS SERVICE
ANS-279
The AMSAT News Service bulletins are a free, weekly news and infor-
mation service of AMSAT North America, The Radio Amateur Satellite
Corporation. ANS publishes news related to Amateur Radio in Space
including 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.
The news feed on http://www.amsat.org publishes news of Amateur
Radio in Space as soon as our volunteers can post it.
Please send any amateur satellite news or reports to:
ans-editor at amsat.org.
In this edition:
* AMSAT SYMPOSIUM - Procrastinator ALERT!!
* Space News in October CQ Magazine
* Cubesat Spaceport Coming to Jacksonville, Florida
* AMSAT-DL Satellite Symposium
* Two Ham Astronauts Depart NASA
* High altitude Ham Radio balloon to study comets
* Amateur Satellites in World Radio Online
* YURI UT1FG/MM ALERT!
* AMSAT Journal Call for Articles
* ARISS News
* Satellite Shorts From All Over
SB SAT @ AMSAT $ANS-279.01
ANS-279 AMSAT News Service Weekly Bulletins
AMSAT News Service Bulletin 279.01
>From AMSAT HQ SILVER SPRING, MD.
DATE October 6, 2013
To All RADIO AMATEURS
BID: $ANS-279.01
AMSAT SYMPOSIUM - Procrastinator ALERT!!
The 2013 AMSAT Space Symposium & Annual General Meeting will be held
November 1-3, 2013 at the Houston Marriott South at Hobby Airport
Some important deadlines loom.
The cutoff date for hotel reservations is now Oct 16, 2013.
Reservations for the Marriott at Hobby can be made at the following
link http://tinyurl.com/kz26tk9 or by calling 713-943-7979
Ask For The AMSAT Block or Use the Code AMSAMSA
Registration for the Symposium continues for $45.00
At the door registration is $55.00.
Registration includes a copy of the Proceedings.
Symposium Registration can be made at the AMSAT Store
http://tinyurl.com/2013Symposium-Registration
Don't forget the Saturday Evening Banquet, $45.00 and the Sunday
morning Area Coordinators' Breakfast, $15.00
For the most up to date information visit the 2013 ASMAT Symposium
website page
http://ww2.amsat.org/?page_id=1555
[ANS thanks the AMSAT Office for the above information]
---------------------------------------------------------------------
Space News in October CQ Magazine
The October, 2013 CQ Magazine includes news of interest to the amateur
satellite world. Ham Radio News on page 2 reports on AMSAT's filing
for clarification on the status of amateur satellites under new US
Government regulations. VHF Plus columnist Joe Lynch, N6CL discusses
the filing in more detail on page 89.
Other news of amateur radio in space in this issue include:
+ News of the HamTV transmitter launched to the ISS is covered on page
88.
+ OSCAR 7 gets mention on page 2.
+ Video from the NASA Cubesat workshop on page 90.
+ The 2013 AMSAT Space Symposium in Houston is mentioned on page 91.
[ANS thanks CQ Magazine for the above information]
---------------------------------------------------------------------
Cubesat Spaceport Coming to Jacksonville, Florida
NASA awards first CubeSat-class launch services contract (30
September 2013) NASA has selected Generation Orbit Launch Services
Inc., of Atlanta, Ga., to provide a CubeSat-class launch via the NASA
Launch Services Enabling eXploration and Technology (NEXT) contract.
NEXT is an element of a strategic initiative led by NASA's Launch
Services Program (LSP), focused on assuring long-term launch services
while also promoting the continued evolution of the U.S. commercial
space launch market.
The NEXT launch service will deliver three 3U-configuration CubeSats
to a 264-mile orbit via a Federal Aviation Administration (FAA)-
licensed launch aboard Generation Orbit's GOLauncher 2 rocket in
August 2016 from Cecil Field Spaceport in Jacksonville, Fla.
NEXT is a pathfinder contract for future acquisitions of launch
services for low-cost and/or high-risk tolerant payloads. It sets
the groundwork for LSP to utilize different contracting strategies
that tailor the spectrum of government insight and approval based on
the risk tolerance of the spacecraft. The total cost value for the
NEXT launch service is approximately $2.1 million. This new contract
resulted from a competitive award set-aside for small businesses only.
GOLauncher 2 will launch CubeSats as the primary payload via the
NEXT contract due to their ability to tolerate the higher risk of a
new nano-class rocket while also helping to provide additional
opportunities for the many CubeSats awaiting launch opportunities
under NASA's CubeSat Launch Initiative (CSLI).
[ANS thanks NASA for the above information]
---------------------------------------------------------------------
AMSAT-DL Satellite Symposium
The AMSAT-DL satellite symposium and AGM will be held in Bochum,
Germany on Saturday, October 5, 2013.
The AMSAT Deutschland Facebook page says
“There will be certainly some exciting news!”
The radome of the amateur radio facility at Bochum houses an
impressive 20 metre dish antenna that was used to bounce amateur
radio signals off the planet Venus.
The AMSAT-DL Symposium lecture schedule
Saturday 05.10.2013
10:15 – 10:30 Welcome
10:30 – 11:15 Stereo A / B status and Turbo Code introduction,
experience report by Mario Lorenz, DL5MLO
11:15 – 11:45 Coffee break
11:45 – 12:15 Asteroid Defense by Wolfgang Wittholt, Fernuni Hagen
12:15 – 12:45 Space Generantion Advisory Council (SGAC) Small
Satellite Project Group (SSPG) presentation and objectives by Dennis
Mattes
12:45 – 14:00 Lunch break
14:00 Current and new projects / project progress / etc then an
official part of the AGM with elections.
AMSAT-DL event announcement
http://tinyurl.com/AMSAT-DL-Symposium
AMSAT-DL
http://tinyurl.com/AMSAT-DL
[ANS thanks Southgate ARN for the above information]
---------------------------------------------------------------------
Two Ham Astronauts Depart NASA
NASA astronauts Gregory E. Chamitoff, KD5PKZ and Ronald J. Garan
KF5GPO are leaving the agency. Chamitoff is joining the faculty of
Texas A&M University in College Station, Texas, and the University of
Sydney in Australia. Garan will work on a range of new
entrepreneurial and humanitarian efforts.
"Greg and Ron will certainly be missed by the Astronaut Office,"
said Bob Behnken, KE5GGX, NASA's chief astronaut. "Greg's passion
for sharing the spaceflight experience will serve him well as he
begins a new adventure in academia and continues to inspire the next
generation of innovators and explorers. I'll miss Ron both as a
contributor to our office and as a classmate. The entire office is
grateful for their service to NASA."
Chamitoff began his 18-year NASA career in 1995 as a space shuttle
guidance and control officer in mission control at the agency's
Johnson Space Center in Houston.
He was selected as an astronaut in 1998.
He flew in space twice, in 2008 as a flight engineer and science
officer for Expeditions 17 and 18 aboard the International Space
Station, and as
a mission specialist during STS-134 in 2011, the penultimate shuttle
mission. During his most recent mission, Chamitoff participated in
two spacewalks to complete assembly of the International Space
Station, taking part in the installation of the Alphamagnetic
Spectrometer. He has spent more than 198 days in space.
Garan, who joined the agency in 2000, is ending a 13-year NASA
career that included more than 178 days in space and four spacewalks.
Garan flew in space twice, first in 2008 as a space shuttle Discovery
mission specialist on STS-124, and again in 2011 aboard the
International Space Station as a flight engineer for Expeditions 27
and 28. Garan retired from the Air Force as a colonel in 2009 after
25 years of service. He has logged more than 5,000 flight hours in
more than 30 aircraft types. He recently served within NASA’s Open
Government Initiative.
For Chamitoff's biography, visit:
http://go.nasa.gov/gcruuu
For Garan's biography, visit:
http://go.nasa.gov/1998pSo
For information about NASA and agency programs, visit:
http://www.nasa.gov
EDITOR's NOTE: Due the the U.S. Governmaent shut down the above
links may not work until which time governmaent services are restored.
[ANS thanks Southgate ARN for the above information]
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High altitude Ham Radio balloon to study comets
An amateur radio balloon operating on 145.765 MHz will be launched
on Sunday from Bangalore, India
The National Institute of Amateur Radio, Hyderabad with Dhruva
Space, India's first small satellite start-up, is supporting the
Indian Institute of Astrophysics with its high altitude balloon
campaign to study the comet ISON.
The Helium filled balloon plans to launch on September 29, 2013 in
the early morning from the Hoskote campus of the Indian Institute of
Astrophysics, Bangalore.
The payload will carry a 145.765 MHz APRS packet radio transmitter
and a GPS GSM tracker, both of these are extremely important in
keeping track of the balloon in flight, as it rises up to 40 km
reaching the upper stratosphere. NIAR are extensively involved in the
efforts of tracing and safely recovery of the payload.
On the afternoon of September 29 there will be a presentation given
on "Amateur Radio For High Altitude Ballooning” by Dhruva Space.
Mr S.Ram Mohan, VU2MYH, Director, National Institute of Amateur
Radio will speak on APRS technologies for tracking.
National Institute of Amateur Radio (NIAR)
http://www.niar.org/
[ANS thanks Southgate ARN for the above information]
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Amateur Satellites in WorldRadio Online
The October issue of WorldRadio Online reports on the IARU's
announcement that Fox-1 will operate in Mode U/V with a 435.180-MHz
uplink and a 145.980 downlink. It also links to AMSAT on YouTube's
video taken at the Dayton Hamvention. Other spories covered include
a video link on operating via SO-50, and a report on the delivery of
the HamTV transmitter to the ISS.
WorldRadio Online is a pay for subscription service.
[ANS thanks WorldRadio Online and CQ Communications, Inc. for the
above information]
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YURI UT1FG/MM ALERT!
Frank, K4FEG received an email from Yuri, UT1FG/mm from port in
Uruguay. He will be leaving port today and he will be sailing SOUTH to
go around the southern tip of South America and will be making port in
Chile. He will be taking on loads in 4 ports in Chile before heading
NORTH towards Panama.
Here is the list of Ports of call for the "SILVER" the ships callsign
is: 5BNC3.
He is expected arrival at San Antonio, Chile is October 14, 2013.
1st port San Antonio/Chile - FF46
2nd port Las Ventanas/Chile - FF47
3rd port Coquimbo/Chile - FG40
4th port Punto Patache - FG49
[ANS thanks Frank, K4FEG for the above information]
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AMSAT Journal Call for Articles
The AMSAT Journal is continuously searching for news, articles,
and photos related to all of the activities of amateur radio
in space. In the past this has included satellite development,
satellite history, ground stations, antennas, hardware devel-
opment, software. We find that some items related to SDR, VHF,
UHF, and microwave operating or roving are directly applicable
to satellite operations.
Educational outreach has been identified as a key area which AMSAT
may use to leverage launch opportunities. The Journal welcomes
news, photos, and articles of ARISS contacts, University research
and development, and STEM programs.
Amateur satellite operators have the gear and expertise to also
receive interesting transmissions from non-amateur spacecraft and
EME. Articles discussing how this is done are useful to our readers
discovering they can do more with the station they have built.
The deadlines for each AMSAT Journal, which is published six times
per year, are:
ISSUE DEADLINE
--------------------- --------------
1. January/February December 20
2. March/April February 20
3. May/June April 20
4. July/August June 20
5. September/October August 20
6. November/December October 20
Our editors will work with you to finalize your article for publi-
cation. Please send the following:
1. Electronic copy of your article in any of the popular word pro-
cessing formats (MS-Word, OpenOffice, plain-text Notepad, etc.)
PDF files containing a custom layout with embedded graphics can-
not be used.
2. Your text must be single column wide. You do not need to do any
formatting to make it appear in the 3 column layout of the fin-
ished magazine. We have to remove all your hard work of pre-
formatting before publication so save yourself the problems of
trying to get columns to line up, etc.
3. You may send a copy of your article with the photos where you
recommend they appear with the text but this is not the version
that will be published. This gives the editors some cues to
maintain continuity with photos/captions and text.
4. We require a text-only copy your article. Embedded photos will
not publish during the layout process. You can leave in a ref-
erence in the text related to the photo associated with that
point in your article as shown here:
... text ... text ... text ... text ... text ... text ...
... text ... text ... text ... text ... text ... text ...
(Insert Graphic 1234 here)
Figure 2. Sample Lorem Ipsum Text
... text ... text ... text ... text ... text ... text ...
... text ... text ... text ... text ... text ... text ...
5. Send a separate text file with the captions to each of the
graphics.
6. Send photos and graphics as separate files. Use as high resolu-
tion pixel format as you can. The preferred graphic format for
the Journal is JPG.
The Journal can publish additional graphic formats including
GIF, BMP, and PNG. Contact the editor before submitting these
formats.
Note that a photo which appears nicely on a web page does not
publish well on the high resolution finished magazine product.
Photos from digital cameras in mega-pixels work well. You do
not need to compress or shrink the file for us.
7. If you use printed circuit board software or schematic drawing
programs we can usually import a PDF copy of the diagram into
the publishing software. Please do not send PDF formatted copies
of the article however.
8. We can freely republish papers you have submitted to prior AMSAT
Symposiums. If you have a good idea that you would like to get
out the AMSAT Journal is an excellent way to expand your audience.
We find that 200-300 copies of the Symposium Proceedings are dis-
tributed. The AMSAT Journal reaches 4000 additional satellite
operators.
9. If your article was previously published in another AMSAT organi-
zation's Journal, or magazine (QST, CQ, CQ VHF, etc.) we will
work with you to secure the permission to republish your work.
Our Journal editors will be happy to work with you to assist getting
your article published. We can help you develop an idea into a fin-
ished article as well as a ready-to-print submission. Ask us via
e-mail and we can get rolling with your article.
During the preparation process it is quite likely that an editor
working on the article might personally contact you with questions
and suggestions. Those suggestions might include extra pictures or
maybe additional references, keeping in mind that some readers
might not have an extensive background on the topic being discussed.
Send your articles and photo/graphics files as attachments to
e-mail to journal(a)amsat.org.
[ANS thanks JoAnne, K9JKM for the above information]
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ARISS News
+ A Successful contact was made between Sarnelli De Donato Middle
School, Polignano a Mare, Bari, Italy and Astronaut Luca Parmitano,
KF5KDP, using callsign NA1SS. The contact began 2013-09-21 10:03 UTC
and lasted about nine and a half minutes. Contact was telebridged via
W6SRJ. The ARISS Mentor was IKØWGF
"Sarnelli De Donato" School is a middle school. It serves the
educational needs of the town because it is the only middle school in
town. It caters for boys and girls, aged 11-14. Located in one of the
region's tourist areas, it is in the suburbs of the pleasant town of
Polignano a Mare, in the south-east of the APULIA region, south-east
of Italy. In its Curriculum the school focus on: Space Communication,
Media Communication, the Environment, Science activities in lab. The
school has a gym, an auditorium, a music room, two computer rooms, a
new scientific laboratory, a video room, 22 classrooms. At present
there are 526 students on roll and they attend the regular class
daily, from 8.00 am to 1.00 pm.
+ A Successful contact was made between Collège de la Combraille, La
Mouniaude À Chatelguyon, France, and Astronaut Luca Parmitano ,
KF5KDP, using callsign NA1SS. The contact began 2013-09-28 08:39 UTC
and lasted about nine and a half minutes. Contact was telebridged via
VK5ZAI. The ARISS Mentors were ON4WF and F6ICS.
"Combraille High school is located 4 hours south from Paris in
beautiful Auvergne region. Our students aged 11-15 study non
vocational subjects. Three foreign languages are taught : English,
German an Spain. The school house has a scientific workshop. It
focuses on the yearly launch of a sounding balloon in partnership
with French Center for Space Studies (C.N.E.S.). The school has had
an astronomy club for five years now.
"We have night star gazing sessions, practice sun observations, take
digital pictures of the sun and the stars, experiment measuring
terrestrial meridian ( Eratosthenes experiment ), built a telescope
(Newton type), participate in science fairs and exhibits, organize
sessions for the public of the local area. Our school club has even
sparked off the creation of a local club (Les Astronomes de la
Combraille) We own and use: One DOBSON 250mm telescope, Two NEWTON
115 x 900 mm, One tracking 120 x 1000mm, One Herschel helioscope, One
digital reflex camera, One CCD webcam."
+ A Successful contact was made between Polska Akademia Dzieci
(Polish Academy of Kids), Gdansk, Poland, and Astronaut Luca
Parmitano KF5KDP using callsign NA1SS. The contact began Sat 2013-10-
05 11:37:33 UTC and lasted about nine and a half minutes. Contact
was telebridged via W6SRJ. ARISS Mentors were SP3QFE and IN3GHZ
"Language Laboratories, School of Genius (SG), is one of the first
Language schools In Poland (est. in 1968). Till today it is a unique
scientific and educational unit, where each student has individually
designes programme of learning in a foreign language, including
Astronomy, Neuropsychology and Robotics. Classes at SG are
individually prepared for each student (including post- and prenatal
teaching ). Individual programmes include updated ICT tools carefully
adapted to the Ss' interest. Language is only the tool used to
communicate.
"The Project Polish Academy of Kids is the first university run by
kids on an international scale, where Young Scientists can freely
choose the field of scientific interest. Lecturers are from 6 to 2
years old and examine magnetic levitation, the missing links of
vertebrates' evolution or dogs, cats and stick insects. They decide
about the scope of research and we, adults, only help them with the
technical aspects and show reliable sources of knowledge. We work
under the patronage of Ministry of Science and Education, Patent
Office, Ministry of Education, Jagiellonian University and many
others. For more details visit website: akademiadzieci.edu.pl.
Polish Academy of Kids was nominated the Science Populariser 2011
and 2012 in the contest organised by Science and Scholarship in
Poland (Polish Press Agency and Ministry of Science and Higher
Education) while the co-founders of Polish Academy of Kids were
awarded the Pol-Cul prize for their contribution to children's
development in Poland and wonthe award of distinction for the best
voluntary initiative in Pomerania."
Upcoming ARISS Contact Schedule
Scuola Media Statale “Salvo D’Acquisto”, Cesano Maderno, Italy,
telebridge via VK6MJ
Contact is a go for: Mon 2013-10-07 07:48:49 UTC
S. K. Seri Suria, Bangsar, Selangor, Malaysia, direct via 9M2RPN
Contact is a go for: Wed 2013-10-09 09:31:14 UTC
Exp. 36/37 on orbit
Fyodor Yurchikhin RN3FI
Karen L. Nyberg
Luca Parmitano KF5KDP
Exp. 37/38 now on orbit. Welcome aboard!
Oleg Kotov
Sergey Ryazansky
Michael S. Hopkins KF5LJG
[ANS thanks ARISS and Charlie, AJ9N for the above information]
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Satellite Shorts From All Over
+ Alan, WA4SCA, reports that the AMSAT News Service is being picked up
and redistributed by the Taiwan Amateur Satellite Association, TAMSAT.
+ The October issue od SatMagazine is now online
http://preview.tinyurl.com/SatMagazine
+ NASA Mars mission escapes government shutdown, will launch
NASA says it next mission to Mars has been cleared for takeoff amid
fears the U.S. government shutdown could cause it to miss its launch
window.
See http://tinyurl.com/ANS279-Mars for full story
[ANS thanks Mars Daily 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.
73,
This week's ANS Editor,
EMike McCardel, KC8YLD
kc8yld at amsat dot org