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ANS-031 AMSAT News Service Weekly Bulletins
by E.Mike McCardel 30 Jan '16

30 Jan '16

AMSAT NEWS SERVICE ANS-031 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: * Weekly engineering report for Phase 4 radio project from AMSAT * Write About Satellites, Space and Radio! * UFO Researcher To Launch CubeSat To Search For E.T. Close To Home * Pair of Satellites ejected from ISS for In-Space Navigation Exercise * LilacSat-2 FM Transponder * 6W8CK on Satellite * IARU Paper: APRS Harmonization and removal of OSCAR sub-band * ISS Orbit Boosted Ahead of March Crew Swap - Check Your Elements * ARISS News * Satellite Shorts From All Over SB SAT @ AMSAT $ANS-031.01 ANS-031 AMSAT News Service Weekly Bulletins AMSAT News Service Bulletin 031.01 >From AMSAT HQ KENSINGTON, MD. [MONTH DAY, YEAR] To All RADIO AMATEURS BID: $ANS-031.01 Weekly engineering report for Phase 4 radio project from AMSAT The Phase 4 Ground weekly report focuses on the current modulation schemes. We're looking at DVB-S2X to receive, and OQPSK to transmit. Repository for documents and software can be found: https://github.com/phase4ground We have nearly 50 volunteers on the mailing list and activity across the country. We're working hard to make a wonderful radio for AMSAT and terrestrial microwave, and we appreciate your support, feedback, comments, and critique. DVB-S2 stands for Digital Video Broadcasting - Satellite - Second Generation. There is a recent extension to this standard, called DVB- S2X, that has very low SNR capabilities and a lot of other goodies. The geo project, ascent, and eventually the high earth orbit project, are expected to transmit using DVB-S2X. This is the foundation of our common air interface. DVB-S2X specifies the modulation and coding for our received signal. There are five major landmarks. One, an input stream adapter. Input streams can be packetized or continuous, from single or multiple sources. This is helpful! Two, forward error correction. Our type is low density parity check codes concatenated with BCH codes. What does this mean? A concatenated code is one that combines two different coding schemes. In coding theory, there's a fundamental problem in that finding a really great code that has very low probability of error usually means that the block length has to go up, and the decoding is more and more complex. When you use two codes together that each have particular strengths, they balance each other out. You can get exponentially decreasing error probabilities, but you only have to pay a polynomially increasing cost in terms of code block length. This may seem complicated, but just remember concatenation is codes doing teamwork, and the standard that we're using is bad ass. Our inner low density parity check code can achieve extremely low error rates near channel capacity. This means, it's about as good as you can get. The outer BCH codes are used to correct sporadic errors made by the LDPC decoder, and to trick it out so that we don't have enormous block lengths and stuff like that. Three, we have a wide range of code rates. The code rate is expressed as a fraction. The top number is how many uncoded bits go in. The bottom number is how many coded bits come out. We have four constellations. This is the the type of transformation from bits to symbols. We have great choices here, and DVB-S2X provides additional choices. Four, there is a variety of spectral shaping available to us in DVB- S2. This is a really neat thing. You can change the pulse shape of a transmitted waveform in order to make it better suited for the radio environment it's expecting to be traveling through. Usually this means making it fit into a bandwidth better. You don't get something for nothing, though, so being too aggressive with the pulse shaping shows up in other aspects. Our particular shaping is different levels of raised-cosign filtering. DVB-S2X provides additional levels of shaping. Five, this standard lets us learn and develop with something very much like cognitive radio. As you can see, there are a lot of choices for coding and modulation. We can specify a fixed coding and modulation. This is called CCM for constant coding and modulation. In the past, people like us looked at a link, designed for the worst case solution, and used coding and modulation that would cover almost all the bases. DVB-S2 has CCM, but it also specifies something called variable coding and modulation, or VCM. The coding and modulation can be changed on a frame-by-frame basis in response to different station types or changes in the channel. In addition to that, there is something called adaptive coding and modulation, or ACM, where modulation and coding automagically adapts. This can happen on a frame by frame basis. DVB-S2 has things called annexes. In annex M, there's a specification for something we've already talked about wanting to do. We want to map the transmitted services or station streams into time slices and then recover information without having to demodulate the entire signal. DVB-S2 follows the usual flow of having input data coded up to remove unnecessary redundancy, which is called source coding, and then it is put into one of two different stream types. Because DVB-S2 is designed for MPEG streams, it has a lot of mechanisms for MPEG data types, and I believe that this is the transport stream path in the drawing. We aren't going to use MPEG, so we fall into the generic stream category. The functional blocks of DVB-S2 include these things in trapezoids. Mode adaptation, which starts to build up the data frames by constructing the right header to go with the data. Stream adaptation, which adds in the right amount of padding and scrambling. Forward error correction, which produces coded frames that are of one of two sizes. Mapping to constellations, which is the modulation. Finally, there is physical layer framing. An open question is how minimal of a station can be supported? Driving it down as low as possible is going to be fun and challenging. What we are anticipating is that the space teams will obtain an implementation of a DVB-S2X transmitter. Talks are already underway for this. Phase 4 ground is going to engineer the various DVB-S2X receivers. Standards documents are already in the repository and work is beginning. Get off the bench and hit the books! So let's talk a bit about some changes in the uplink for phase 4 radios. We were MSK, or minimum shift keying, but we are now OQPSK, or offset quadrature phase shift keying. That is what the payload team is currently designing for. Like MSK, Offset QPSK has no more than a 90 degree phase shift at a time. This is good. In order to create this, you begin with a QPSK signal, where you take two data bits at a time. These two binary data bits make four distinct values. Each of these values are mapped onto four transmit phase shifts. For offset QPSK, the odd and even bits coming into the modulator have a timing offset, of one bit period. Hence the name. That means the in-phase and quadrature signals, the I and the Q, never change at the same time. The power spectral density of QPSK and Offset QPSK is the same. The shift in time doesn't effect that. Uplink experiments are beginning. We started putting together Team HackRF, which will investigate the use of HackRF SDRs as one of the phase 4 radio recipes. Lots of other experiments to work out other recipes for amateurs to experiment need to happen too. If you have a set of hardware and you want to work in parallel, then speak up. The USRPs will get into the act ASAP, some people have BladeRFs, and so on. Review the weekly report at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c0CMv0pJHgY&feature=share [ANS thanks Michelle W5NYV for the above information] --------------------------------------------------------------------- Write About Satellites, Space and Radio! The AMSAT Journal is seeking interesting articles about amateur radio satellites, space and radio – topics that feed the passion of AMSAT members. Whether the focus is working the birds, new products, building a new piece of equipment or an entire station, writing software, training or doing demos, or anything else related to amateur radio in space, please consider sharing your experience and expertise with other AMSAT members by writing for the Journal. Desired article length (rough guidelines): Short articles – 800-1400 words Longer articles – 2000-2500 words Find out more about writer’s guidelines here. Photos, diagrams or other images always help illustrate your points or projects. If you are interested in seeing your byline in The AMSAT Journal and sharing what you’ve learned with other members, email us at journal(a)amsat.org. [ANS thanks Joseph KB6IGK for the above information] --------------------------------------------------------------------- UFO Researcher To Launch CubeSat To Search For E.T. Close To Home An engineer turned UFO researcher is hoping to launch a low-earth orbit CubeSat to search for evidence of extraterrestrial life. Canadian Dave Cote has assembled a seven-person team to design, fund, build and launch the project that he hopes will provide some answers about the origins of recent unidentified object sightings across the globe. “We have had astronauts, military personnel, police officers and the former Defence Minister of Canada come forward stating that extraterrestrial UFOs are real, and that we are being visited,” says Cote. “How can this be ignored and brushed off as nonsense?” Concerned that the public isn’t getting straight answers, the group has turned to crowdsourcing the project on Kickstarter. Measuring roughly the size of a shoebox, CubeSats can pack a lot of science equipment into a small space. They have also made satellite deployment much more affordable, in some cases costing less than the price of a lower-end automobile. Sites like CubeSatShop.com have taken much of the complexity out of ordering needed components. Cote says they’re a “go for launch” already but are looking for more funding so they can pack it with as much science equipment as possible. They aim to include image, infrared, electromagnetic, and radiation sensors. This would give them the capability of not only verifying visual data, but also correlating it with other events such as electromagnetic and radioactive fluctuations. The team plans to measure ionized radiation with a scintillation counter and two cameras will capture a near 360-degree view around the CubeSat. They plan to remove the infrared filters on the cameras to cover more of the visual range. Cote hopes to use amateur radio frequencies to transmit the data back to earth and a worldwide network of ham volunteers to receive it. “We are planning to use the ham frequencies to send data down from the CubeSat to earth in hex or datafax protocol,” says Cote. “From what we understand, we should be able to send a 100kB packet every few minutes and this will enable us to send image thumbnails from space, along with some basic EM data.” While the details of the transmissions have yet to be determined, Cote hopes to assemble a worldwide team of hams willing to receive and log whatever data the satellite captures. “We need help from the ham community, in capturing the data and relaying it to our site,” he says. “There will be a 15-minute window for download from the CubeSat, and then another volunteer would be needed for the next 15-minute time window.” Cote is cautiously optimistic that the satellite will provide corroboration of UFO reports from eyewitnesses on Earth. But even if the satellite doesn’t capture evidence of faraway visitors, he’s hopeful that it will record interesting natural phenomenon like meteors and solar flares. “We can only hope that those who would like to know the truth will step forward and help,” he says. To learn more about the project or to volunteer, visit their KickStarter page. https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/1889966504/cubesat-for-disclosure [ANS thanks Matt W1MST and AmateurRadio.com for the above information] --------------------------------------------------------------------- Pair of Satellites ejected from ISS for In-Space Navigation Exercise A package of two satellites was ejected from the International Space Station on Friday to begin a mission dedicated to a demonstration of autonomous navigation, rendezvous and docking technology. The second LONESTAR mission is comprised of two satellites built by two American Universities to undertake a demonstration of communication cross links, data exchange, GPS-based navigation, relative navigation, stationkeeping and data transmission to the ground. LONESTAR stands for "Low Earth Orbiting Navigation Experiment for Spacecraft Testing Autonomous Rendezvous and Docking" and includes four missions flown over a period of years in a cost-effective technology development program with the goal of mastering autonomous rendezvous and docking. The second LONESTAR mission consists of the AggieSat4 satellite built at Texas A&M and BEVO-2 built by students at the University of Texas. The smaller BEVO-2 satellite is facilitated within a deployer on the AggieSat4 spacecraft to be released once the two have flown well clear of the International Space Station. The two satellites, already packaged, were sent to the Space Station aboard the Cygnus OA-4 mission. Launching satellites to ISS for deployment has the advantage of allowing the satellites to be launched well-packaged to avoid damage and providing the opportunity of an inspection in space to check for any damage encountered during launch before committing them to flight. Given the size of the AggieSat4 satellite, the deployment conducted on Friday made use of the SSIKLOPS deployment mechanism, going by the full name "Space Station Integrated Kinetic Launcher for Orbital Payload Systems." SSIKLOPS can be used to deploy larger satellites of different shapes up to a mass of 110 Kilograms. It is a flat structure that includes grapple fixtures for the robotic arms of the Space Station and a single grapple fixture for the satellite that is to be deployed. The fixture includes clamps and springs for the deployment of the satellite. Overall, the structure is 127 by 61 by 7.6 centimeters in size. It also includes interfaces for the slide table of the JEM Airlock. SSIKLOPS first saw action in 2014 when deploying the SpinSat spacecraft and spent most of its time in storage aboard ISS, awaiting the deployment of future satellites. Final preparations for Friday's deployment were made on Wednesday when ISS Astronauts Scott Kelly and Tim Peake installed the SSIKLOPS deployer on the Slide Table of the Kibo module's airlock followed by the installation of the Small Fine Arm (SFA) Plate on the deployer and the attachment of the LONESTAR satellite package. The slide table was then retracted and the airlock sealed off for depressurization on Thursday. The outer hatch of the airlock was opened and a careful ground- controlled operation started to retrieve the SSIKLOPS deployer and hand it from the Small Fine Arm to the Japanese Robotic Arm that was then positioned for the deployment to ensure the satellite departed to the correct direction, ruling out any possibility of re-contact with ISS on subsequent orbits. Release was triggered just before 16:00 UTC on Friday and the LONESTAR package slowly floated away from ISS, embarking on its mission that will last as long as the satellites can remain in orbit, typically between six and twelve months. Drifting away from the Space Station, LONESTAR showed slight body rates on all three axes as it slowly faded into the distance. The Mission Team confirmed they were happy with the observed body rates and declared the deployment a success. Congratulations were exchanged between the different teams involved in the deployment - NASA's Mission Control, the JAXA Control Center in Japan, Payload Controllers in Huntsville and the payload's operators in Texas. The spacecraft was programmed to power-up automatically ten minutes after release, perform a health check and start transmitting telemetry. Acquisition of signal was expected later on Friday to begin a multi-day checkout campaign ahead of the satellite conducting its de-tumble maneuver to enter a three-axis stabilized attitude setting up for the deployment of BEVO-2. The AggieSat4 satellite, developed and manufactured at Texas A&M University, has a mass of approximately 55 Kilograms and measures 75 x 75 x 35 centimeters in size. The satellite hosts body-mounted solar panels for power generation and is equipped with a three-axis attitude determination and control system with an actuation accuracy of two degrees, making use of reaction wheels and magnetic torquers. The Electrical Power System hosts two battery packs delivering an operational voltage of 34 V and a capacity of 95 Watt-hours. AggieSat4 hosts two low-data-rate (LDR) radios, a high-data-rate (HDR) radio, a crosslink radio for short-range communication with the Bevo-2 satellite, and a DRAGON GPS Payload. AggieSat4 will be tasked with completing a number of mission objectives: demonstrating three-axis stabilization, the collection of GPS data, recording video of the release of BEVO-2 with a 2MP camera, computing and crosslinking relative navigation data based on relative GPS measurements and tracking BEVO-2 based on these navigation solutions. The 4.2-Kilogram BEVO-2 satellite uses the 3U CubeSat Form Factor, 10 x 10 x 34 centimeters, employing an ISIPOD for deployment from AggieSat4. The satellite features 24 solar cells installed on its external panels to deliver power to 6 batteries operating at a voltage of 7.4 V. BEVO-2 has four deployable radio antennas and GPS patch antennas. Attitude determination is accomplished with gyroscopes, magnetometers, a star tracker and sun sensor while attitude actuation employs reaction wheels and magnetic torquers. To connect with AggieSat4 for the exchange of navigation data, the spacecraft hosts a crosslink radio unit while communications with the ground make use of a UHF/VHF terminal for data downlink and command uplink. The satellite is outfitted with a cold gas thruster module holding 90 grams of Dupont R-236fa refrigerant stored at pressure to be released for maneuvers of the satellite for stationkeeping and rendezvous exercises with AggieSat4. As the second of four LONESTAR missions, AggieSat4 and BEVO-2 build on the success of the previous mission in 2009 as part of a program outlined to make successive progress towards the ultimate goal of achieving an autonomous rendezvous and docking of two satellites. The autonomy aspect of LONESTAR is of particular importance for future missions to distant targets where communication delays require spacecraft to act autonomously. [ANS thanks spaceflight101.com for the above information] --------------------------------------------------------------------- LilacSat-2 FM Transponder Paul Stoetzer reports: "I have noticed that LilacSat-2's FM transponder has been on nearly continuously for the past four days They may be keeping it active continuously during the holiday period in China. It's worth checking out if you haven't worked it yet. It's got a good signal and can be easier to track than SO-50 because the carrier stays active for a period when not receiving signals. The downlink antenna also uses circular polarization, so there is less fading when using linear antennas than on SO-50. Uplink: 144.350 MHz FM (No PL) Downlink: 437.200 MHz FM Keep in mind that this uplink frequency is not within the normal 145.800 - 146.000 MHz satellite subband on two meters, though this frequency is within the 144.300 - 144.500 MHz "New OSCAR subband" in the ARRL band plan and is allocated to the Amateur Satellite Service (as is the entirety of 144 - 146 MHz). On passes over the United States, quite a few packet signals can be heard through the transponder. If you use LoTW, the satellite name to use when uploading QSOs is 'CAS-3H.' [ANS thanks Paul N8HM for the above information] --------------------------------------------------------------------- 6W8CK on Satellite Conrad, 6W8CK, will be active on satellites from IK14 near Mbour, Senegal until mid-February. He does not wish to publish his private email, but is interested in skeds with North American stations who are in range. If you are interested in setting up a sked, please look up your mutual windows and email me. I will contact Conrad with a list of operators and mutual windows. He will try to be active on CW near 145.930 on AO-7 and 435.830 on FO-29 during the afternoons, but may also be available on late night / early morning passes for skeds. Conrad is using a Yaesu FT-736R and an Elk antenna mounted up 5 meter above ground. He does occasionally lose power, so keep this in mind if you do not hear him on a particular pass. QSL only via the DARC bureau to his home call, DF7OL. He may also return to Senegal from November 2016 - February 2017. [ANS thanks Paul, N8HM for the above information] --------------------------------------------------------------------- IARU Paper: APRS Harmonization and removal of OSCAR sub-band IARU Region 1 has released the papers for the Interim Meeting to be held in Vienna April 15-17, 2016. Among the papers for the C5 VHF/UHF/Microwave Committee is one on harmonizing APRS. VIE16_C5_41_1.pdf – 144 /435 MHz APRS Harmonisation The paper covers global band planning considerations and among the recommendations says: Emphasise that spaceborne APRS must be confined to globally coordinated amateur satellite sub bands. Therefore items that are ambiguous and generate confusion in national band plans such as ‘Space communications’ and ‘New Oscar Sub band’ should be removed as soon as possible in all Regions in accordance with IARU-AC and Satellite Coordination guidance It is believed that ‘New Oscar Sub band’ refers to the USA’s ARRL 144 MHz band plan and ‘Space communications’ to the Australian WIA 144 MHz band plan. These band plans, as well as those for some other countries, show 144.300 – 144.500 MHz as being for Amateur Satellite use. Direct link for C5 VHF/UHF/Microwave Papers http://tinyurl.com/ANS031-Microwave Links for all committee papers and email addresses of Committee Chairs are at http://tinyurl.com/ANS031-IARU ARRL 144 MHz Band Plan http://www.arrl.org/band-plan WIA 144 MHz Band Plan http://tinyurl.com/ANS031-APRS [ANS thanks AMSAT-UK for the above information] --------------------------------------------------------------------- ISS Orbit Boosted Ahead of March Crew Swap - Check Your Elements The International Space Station raised its orbit Wednesday afternoon before a pair of crews swap places and a cargo ship arrives in March. One-year crew members Scott Kelly of NASA and Mikhail Kornienko of Roscosmos are set to return home March 1 along with Russian cosmonaut Sergey Volkov. Then, Expedition 47 will begin and three new crew members will arrive March 19. New supplies are scheduled to be delivered to the crew March 31 aboard a Progress 63 cargo craft. The orbiting Expedition 46 crew was back at work Tuesday on a series of life science and physics experiments to benefit life on Earth and crews living in space. Commander Scott Kelly explored maximizing the effects of exercise in space while British astronaut Tim Peake studied how living in space affects using touch-based technologies, repairing sensitive equipment and a variety of other tasks. NASA astronaut Tim Kopra researched how materials burn in space. Two cosmonauts resized their Russian Orlan spacesuits today, checked them for leaks and set up hardware before next week’s maintenance spacewalk. Flight Engineers Sergey Volkov and Yuri Malenchenko will work outside Feb. 3 in their Orlan suits to install hardware and science experiments on the orbital lab’s Russian segment. [ANS thanks blogs.nasa,gov for the above information] --------------------------------------------------------------------- ARISS News + A Successful contact was made between Brihaspati Vidyasadan, Kathmandu, Nepal and Astronaut Timothy Peake KG5BVI using Callsign NA1SS. The contact began 2016-01-20 08:37 UTC and lasted about nine and a half minutes. Contact was telebridge via VK5ZAI. ARISS Mentor was 7M3TJZ. This event represents the 984th ARISS contact. A YouTube video of the evnt can be seen here https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=25gCS1JTPxA Upcoming ARISS Contact Schedule as of 2016-01-27 Christ The King School, Rutland, Vermont, telebridge via VK4KHZ) The ISS callsign is presently scheduled to be NA1SS. The scheduled astronaut is Tim Kopra KE5UDN Contact is a go for: Thu 2016-02-04 18:28:16 UTC "Gesmundo Moro Fiore" Secondary School, Terlizzi, Italy, telebridge via LU1CGB. The ISS callsign is presently scheduled to be NA1SS. The scheduled astronaut is Timothy Peake KG5BVI. Contact is a go for: Sat 2016-02-06 09:09:01 UTC [ANS thanks ARISS, Charlie AJ9N and David AA4KN for the above information] --------------------------------------------------------------------- Satellite Shorts From All Over + Congrats to Steve Kristoff, AI9IN, for having worked 5 hams in the EM55 grid. To earn 5 in EM55 award #59, please check out http://www.starcommgroup.org for the awards offered. [ANS thanks Damon Runion, WA4HFN, for the above information] + The Colorado Amateur Satellite Net is held 7PM mountain time on Thursdays 6PM Pacific. 7PM Mountain, 8PM Central, 9PM Eastern For more information visit http://www.amsatnet.info/ [ANS thanks Skyler KD0WHB for the above information] + The Jan/Feb issue of The AMSAT Journal is off to the printer. [ANS thanks Joseph KB6IGK 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, AA8EM (former KC8YLD) kc8yld at amsat dot org

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ANS-024 AMSAT News Service Weekly Bulletins
by Joseph Spier 24 Jan '16

24 Jan '16

AMSAT NEWS SERVICE ANS-024 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: * In Memory of Robert J. (Bob) Carpenter, W3OTC-SK by Bill Tynan, W3XO * AMSAT SKN Winners and Changes for Next Year * Student Internship CubeSat Opportunities in Greenbelt, MD USA * VHF Groups Join Forces to Sponsor "Super Conference" * 2016 NASA Student Airborne Research Program * AMSAT Events * ARISS News * Satellite Shorts From All Over SB SAT @ AMSAT $ANS-024.01 ANS-024 AMSAT News Service Weekly Bulletins AMSAT News Service Bulletin 024.01 >From AMSAT HQ KENSINGTON, MD. DATE January 24, 2016 To All RADIO AMATEURS BID: $ANS-024.01 --------------------------------------------------------------------- In Memory of Robert J. (Bob) Carpenter, W3OTC-SK by Bill Tynan, W3XO Bob, a longtime friend, one-time business partner and devoted AMAST volunteer became a Silent Key Friday, January 8th. Bob was born July 31, 1930 in Washington, DC. I first met Bob in the late 1940s on six meters. At the time, we both lived in Silver Spring, Maryland. After a few QSOs we decided to meet and compare notes. I found that, in addition to the interest we shared in the VHF bands, he was very intrigued with FM broadcasting, as I had been for years. Following graduation from The University of Maryland, in 1951 with a degree of Bachelor of Science in Electrical Engineering, Bob served in the U.S. Air Force, at the US Air Force Research Center in Cambridge, Massachusetts. On completing his Air Force commitment, he joined the Johns Hopkins Applied Physics Laboratory in the DC area where I was employed. Leaving the Laboratory 1955, Bob joined, what was then called the National Bureau of Standards, first in Boulder, Colorado and later at their facility at Gaithersburg, Maryland. In his early work at the Bureau, he was instrumental in the development of technology for passing message traffic via the short bursts of VHF frequency propagation caused by the ionization produced by meteors entering the Earth's atmosphere. When Bob returned to Maryland, he was involved in development of computer networking, retiring from what is now called The National Institute for Standard and Technology in 1992. In 1988, he received the US Department of Commerce Gold Medal Award for Distinguished Service. Following retirement from NIST, Bob became available to assist AMSAT, of which he was an early member, holding AMSAT Life Membership Number 21. His knowledge of computers, was invaluable to Martha in keeping the office computers up to date and the various data bases current. He regularly came into the AMSAT office up until the last few days of his life. Bob was active on six meters up until the time he sold his home in Rockville, Maryland and moved to a retirement facility in nearby Gaithersburg. In earlier years, Bob did extensive traveling in Europe and elsewhere, his favorite country to visit being France. He became quite fluent in the French language. He went on one DXpedition, journeying to the French Caribbean island of Guadalupe. I, and a number of other six meter operators, were able to work a new country through Bob's efforts. As mentioned earlier, Bob and I shared in interest in FM broadcasting. That interest blossomed during the late 1950s when Bob rented half of the house I then owned in Rockville, Maryland. After much discussion of the pros and cons, we decided to construct a station of our own. So, we applied for a Construction Permit (CP) from FCC to build a station in Bethesda, Maryland, a nearby suburb of Washington. Bob handled most of the technical work, while I concentrated on the business side. He always has been more adept at the technical side of radio and electronics than I. After receiving our CP, we went to work in earnest to build the station. Finally, in June, 1961, FCC came out with standards for broadcasting stereo. Bob and I reasoned that, for a new station, such as ours, to have any chance of success, it had to hit the air with stereo. Since there was no stereo broadcasting equipment available at the time, much of what we needed had to be constructed by us. This herculean task could not have been completed without Bob's expertise, but on November 12, 1961, only five months after FCC's establishment of standards for stereo broadcasting, WHFS, the DC area's first stereo FM station, hit the air on 102.3 MHz. Once on the air, Bob kept WHFS on the air while I struggled with the multitude of paperwork associated with running a small business, especially a radio station. Each of us was smart enough to keep our “day jobs,” making running a radio station especially difficult. We sold the station in 1963, affording Bob and me more time for ham radio. It has been a great pleasure to have known Bob all these years. I will miss him and I know that Martha and all of AMSAT will miss him as well. 73, Bob. With thanks to Perry Klein, W3PK, and Tom Pyke, K4DSD, who were responsible for providing valuable information for this tribute to Bob. Martha at the AMSAT Office reports: "The memorial service for Bob Carpenter, W3OTC has been postponed for 1 week due to weather. It is now scheduled to take place at 7:00 PM on Saturday, January 30th at the chapel of Asbury Methodist Village in Gaithersburg MD." [ANS thanks Bill Tynan, W3XO, AMSAT President Emeritus for the above information] --------------------------------------------------------------------- AMSAT SKN Winners and Changes for Next Year Thanks again to all who participated in AMSAT's Straight Key Night 2016, held in memory of Ben Stevenson, W2BXA. The following participants each received at least one Best Fist nomination: AA5PK,. WA5KBH, WA8SME, W3TMZ, W4CVV, W5PFG. Special kudos to Glenn Miller, AA5PK, who received three. Activity was down this year, for a variety of reasons, some having to do with availability of suitable satellites and some to do with changes in amateur radio in general. Since this was AMSAT's 25th annual SKN, it's a good time to consider changes. While Morse as a license qualification has gone the way of the spark gap, amateur CW activity is as popular as ever. Straight keys and "bugs", however, have found a niche primarily with the boat anchor crowd, and AMSAT's insistence on their use in OSCAR SKN is probably holding down participation. Similar considerations have led ARRL to broaden its annual HF event to include all forms of CW, even computer-generated. The idea is to encourage everyone to enjoy CW operation, no matter how they choose to do it. So, in with the new: AMSAT CW Activity Day on OSCAR. As with the old SKN, it will be a fun event, not a contest, and will run for 24 hours on January 1. All forms of CW will be welcome. Instead of best fist nominations, all participants will be encouraged to post "Soapbox" comments to AMSAT-BB. A further announcement will be posted in December 2016. [ANS thanks Ray, W2RS for the above information] --------------------------------------------------------------------- Student Internship CubeSat Opportunities in Greenbelt, MD USA APPLY NOW: Paid NASA Intern Opportunities Summer 2016 The NASA Goddard Space Flight Center is offering student internship positions for the Summer 2016 semester. Applications are being taken on the NASA One Stop Shopping Initiative (OSSI) recruiting web site. Go to: https://intern.nasa.gov --> Student Opportunities --> then click on the first dropdown link to start reading all about the internships and the process of applying. There is no need for students to upload a resume in OSSI when they apply. The resume is essentially built through the student's responses to the questions within the online application. Go to: https://intern.nasa.gov/ossi/web/public/guest/searchOpps/ to search and filter through the many Opportunities at the different NASA locations across the country in addition to the Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Maryland. Search on "cubesat" without the quotes to see examples from which the student may select to apply. One such Opportunity, "CubeSat Ground Station Development," Is being offered by NASA engineer and fellow AMSAT member Pat Kilroy, N8PK. He is looking for university level students with a course of study in engineering. Electrical or Electronics Engineering (EE) or Electrical and Computer Engineering (ECE) majors in their junior class or higher this fall are sought for the 10-week summer program. Pat says experience in hardware and certain skills are required, as described in the text of his Opportunity listing. Open to U.S. citizens. The student application instructions provide a deadline of March 1 to apply, but mentors have already started to evaluate applications and make their selections. The word to the wise is to get in one's application immediately. Don't wait. Applications must be made via the OSSI web. Please be sure to include your Amateur Radio callsign under the Special Skills section -- or that you are studying for it. [ANS thanks NASA and Pat, N8PK for the above information] --------------------------------------------------------------------- VHF Groups Join Forces to Sponsor "Super Conference" The Southeastern VHF Society (SVHFS), North East Weak Signal Group (NEWS) and Mount Airy VHF Radio Club (Pack Rats) are cosponsoring a VHF Super Conference, hosted by the Grid Pirates Contest Group (K8GP) and Directive Systems and Engineering. The conference will take place April 15-17 in Sterling, Virginia. Early registration discounts are available. Conference Proceedings in printed and digital form will be available after the event. Sign up when registering. All registrations include lunch and all-day beverages. The event will feature an array of forums and workshops, a test lab, and a conference banquet. A microwave loop Yagi workshop will be offered during the weekend at an additional fee. The workshop will explain how loop Yagis work, how to adjust them, and how to build one. Free shuttle service will be available to the Udvar-Hazy Air & Space Museum. A second call for papers and presentations for the VHF Super Conference has been issued. The conference sponsors are seeking presentations or papers dealing with all aspects of VHF, UHF, microwave, and higher. Topics may include operating, contesting, homebrewing, software, EME, surplus, antennas, test equipment, amplifiers, and SDR. Photos are encouraged. Steve Kostro, N2CEI, and Paul Wade, W1GHZ, are coordinating Proceedings. Direct submissions and questions to them via e-mail. View the ARRL press release at: http://www.arrl.org/news/vhf-groups-join-forces-to-sponsor-super-conference [ANS thanks the ARRL for the above information] --------------------------------------------------------------------- 2016 NASA Student Airborne Research Program The NASA Airborne Science Program invites highly motivated undergraduate students currently in their junior year to apply for the NASA Student Airborne Research Program, also known as SARP 2016. The program provides students with hands-on research experience in all aspects of a major scientific campaign, from detailed planning on how to achieve mission objectives to formal presentation of results and conclusions to peers and others. Students will assist in the operation of airborne instruments aboard the NASA DC-8 aircraft. They also will analyze remote-sensing data collected during the program from the NASA ER-2. The program takes place in summer 2016. Instrument and flight preparations, and the research flights themselves, will occur at NASA's Armstrong Flight Research Center in Palmdale, California. Postflight data analysis and interpretation will take place at the University of California, Irvine. Successful applicants will be awarded a stipend plus a travel allowance for eight weeks of participation in the program. Housing and local transportation also will be provided. The deadline for applications is Feb. 2, 2016. For more information and to download the program application, visit http://www.nserc.und.edu/sarp/sarp-2016. Specific questions about the program should be directed to SARP2016(a)nserc.und.edu. [ANS thanks the NASA Education Express Message -- Jan. 21, 2016 for the above information] --------------------------------------------------------------------- AMSAT Events Information about AMSAT activities at other important events around the country. Examples of these events are radio club meetings where AMSAT Area Coordinators give presentations, demonstrations of working amateur satellites, and hamfests with an AMSAT presence (a table with AMSAT literature and merchandise, sometimes also with presentations, forums, and/or demonstrations). *Friday and Saturday, 19-20 February 2016 – Yuma Hamfest and 2016 ARRL Southwest Division Convention in Yuma AZ *Friday, 4 March 2016 – presentation for the Associated Radio Amateurs of Long Beach meeting in Signal Hill CA *Saturday and Sunday, 12-13 March 2016 – ScienceCity science fair, on the University of Arizona campus in Tucson AZ *Saturday, 19 March 2016 – Scottsdale Amateur Radio Club Spring Hamfest 2016 in Scottsdale AZ *Saturday, 26 March 2016 – Tucson Spring Hamfest in Tucson AZ *Saturday, 7 May 2016 – Cochise Amateur Radio Association Hamfest in Sierra Vista AZ *Saturday, 4 June 2016 – White Mountain Hamfest in Show Low AZ [ANS thanks AMSAT-NA for the above information] --------------------------------------------------------------------- ARISS News Sucessful Contacts Brihaspati Vidyasadan, Kathmandu, Nepal, telebridge via VK5ZAI The ISS callsign was NA1SS The scheduled astronaut was Timothy Peake KG5BVI Contact was successful: Wed 2016-01-20 08:37:04 UTC 26 deg A telebridge contact via VK5ZAI with students at Brihaspati Vidyasadan, Kathmandu, Nepal was successful 01/20/2016 at 08:37:04 UTC 26 deg. Astronaut Tim Peake, KG5BVI answered 17 questions for students. An audience of about 300 included students from 10 other schools, as well as the British Ambassador to Nepal, the Cultural Affairs Officer from the US Embassy, and a member of the National Human Rights Commission and former Ministry for Science and Technology. Brihaspati Vidyasadan is a 32 year old High school, located in Kathmandu, Nepal. Brihaspati runs classes from nursery to 100 at secondary level and the 10+2 program in Science and Management at the higher secondary Level. Besides these Brihaspati also runs Diploma in Hospitality Management and Tourism in affiliation with Confederation of Tourism and Hospitality (CTH), UK. Brihaspati is known for its academic excellence. To date Brihaspati has produced over 2000 SLC graduates and over 600 +2 graduates who have achieved excellent academic achievements. Brihaspati has also been awarded the "Best School in Nepal" in 2055BS. Brihaspati is also known for its co-curricular and extra-curricular activities including sports, debates and concerts. Over the years the school has achieved Inter-school successes in football (soccer), cricket and basketball at national levels. School has also successes in inter-school competitions like debate, elocution and concerts. For its academic, co-curricular and extra-curricular achievements Brihaspati has been placed among the Class A schools of Nepal by the Ministry of Education, Government of Nepal. Brihaspati staff and students have been known for their innovation in education. The school is reputed to be the first school in Nepal to introduce computer education. Brihaspati houses clubs like Lokopakar, which is a student club that looks into Humanitarian aid. Brihaspati students recently started gThink Inkh, an activity designed using the principles of Extreme Design from Stanford for instilling critical thinking and problem solving skills in students. This program has gained attention of a lot of people in the academia at a very rapid pace. Brihaspati is located in a 25 acre land space at the heart of Kathmandu within the Balmandir compound. It has academic facility that is of very high standards. It houses the Free and Open Source Research Lab and Ham (amateur radio) facility that students and staff have access to. Recently during the earthquake of Nepal, one of the buildings of Brihaspati was used by ham radio operators from Nepal and India to coordinate search and reconciliation of families where over 500 families were reunited with their loved ones. Some local news media video reports are available at http://thehimalayantimes.com/kathmandu/british-astronaut-tells-nepali- students-to-follow-their-cherished-dreams/ http://e-visitnepal.blogspot.se/2016/01/talk-to-astronauts.html http://nagariknews.com/feature-article/story/52883.html Upcoming Contacts A direct contact with students at PSU. Wittayanusorn School, Kho Hong District, Hat Yai, Songkhla, Thailand is scheduled for Sat 2016-01-30 11:06:23 UTC 63 deg. PSU. Wittayanusorn School, established in 2005, is a Prince of Songkla University affiliated private high school in Hatyai, Songkhla Province, Thailand. The school serves approximately 1,200 students in 7th to 12th grade. The school's identity colors are blue and grey. The blue represents sustainability and grey stands for wisdom. The school motto is "wisdom brings lasting success and happiness". The guiding principle is "our soul is for the benefit of mankind". The desired characteristics of our students are "SMART+" which are referred to scientific mind, good manner, aesthetic appreciation, responsibility and reliability, teamwork, and +global citizenship. Green education is our school's uniqueness which focuses on education for sustainable development. PSU. Wittayanusorn School is dedicated to create an exceptional teaching and learning environment in which morality is emphasized, science and mathematics concepts are embedded. The school curriculum is designed to maximize each student's potential for critical thinking, intellectual curiosity, community involvement, and responsible leadership. Additionally, the school has been selected by the Ministry of Science and Technology to be one of the first four regional schools of the country to host a special three-year science classroom program for high school level, grades 10 to 12, according to the proactive human resources development project to upgrade the science and technology capability of the country. The selection of students with high ability in mathematics and science for the science classroom program is carried out by the Institute for the Promotion of Teaching Science and Technology and closely collaborated with Prince of Songkla University. Each student who passes the selection will be entitled to a scholarship from grade 10 onwards, and subjected to certain additional criteria, he/she will be eligible for a scholarship until he/she can complete his/her education up to a doctoral degree level. PSU Wittayanusorn School was accredited with the score 97.02% by the Office of National Education Standards and Quality Assessment on May 26, 2015. Watch http://www.ariss.org/upcoming-contacts.html for information about upcoming contacts as they are scheduled. [ANS thanks ARISS, and Charlie, AJ9N for the above information] --------------------------------------------------------------------- Satellite Shorts From All Over Yuri UT1FG is on the move For those who chase Yuri in new grids, I received an update that he has left port in Montreal and is headed to Algiers. [ANS thanks Drew, KO4MA, AMSAT Vice President for Operations 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, Joe Spier, K6WAO k6wao at amsat dot org

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ANS-017 AMSAT News Service Weekly Bulletins
by Lee McLamb 17 Jan '16

17 Jan '16

AMSAT NEWS SERVICE ANS-017 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: * ARRL President Bestows President’s Award on AMSAT’s Tom Clark, K3IO * Joseph Spier, K6WAO, Appointed VP-Educational Relations * 25 Year AMSAT Office Volunteer Bob Carpenter, W3OTC, SK * Nepal students to speak to Tim Peake * ESA Online Astronaut Selection Tes SB SAT @ AMSAT $ANS-017.01 ANS-017 AMSAT News Service Weekly Bulletins AMSAT News Service Bulletin 017.01 From AMSAT HQ Kensington, MD. January 17, 2016 To All RADIO AMATEURS BID: $ANS-017.01 ARRL President Bestows President’s Award on AMSAT’s Tom Clark, K3IO The ARRL has honored veteran AMSAT personality and Amateur Radio digital pioneer Tom Clark, K3IO (ex-W3IWI), with its President’s Award. ARRL President Kay Craigie, N3KN, presented the award plaque to Clark at a January 10 meeting of the Potomac Valley Radio Club in Blacksburg, Virginia. The plaque, which bears a likeness of ARRL Co-Founder Hiram Percy Maxim, W1AW, recognizes Clark’s 60 years of advancing Amateur Radio technology. Former AMSAT President and current AMSAT Director Bob McGwier, N4HY, stated directly. “There would be no AMSAT to inspire all of this work without Tom Clark,” he said, noting that the organization was in serious trouble after the Phase 3A satellite launch failure. “Tom took over as president of AMSAT, and he saved the organization and inspired all of us to look to the future and aim for the stars,” McGwier said. “All that has followed, including PACSAT and microsats, CubeSats, AO-13, all the way through AO-85, are a direct result of Tom Clark saving AMSAT and providing it leadership as president from 1980 to 1987 and continuous leadership on the Board of Directors of AMSAT from 1976 until today.” McGwier said it was Clark who convinced him in 1985 that the future lay in digital signal processing — DSP. “We started the TAPR/AMSAT DSP project, and it was announced in 1987,” he said. “We showed in our efforts that small stations with small antennas could bounce signals off the moon, and, using the power of DSP, we could see the signals in our computer displays.” McGwier said this led to the SDX, the Software Defined Transponder, included in ARISSat and in AMSAT’s Phase 3E. McGwier said Clark was an early supporter of women in science, too. “Tom is now and always will be a leader, mentor — the chief scientist for all of Amateur Radio,” he said. Clark is an adviser to Virginia Tech as adjunct professor of aerospace and ocean engineering and of electrical and computer Engineering. McGwier said Clark will play a crucial role in the Phase 4B geosynchronous satellite opportunity on the USAF Wide Field of View spacecraft, in which Virginia Tech is a partner. [ANS thanks ARRL for the above information] --------------------------------------------------------------------- Joseph Spier, K6WAO, Appointed VP-Educational Relations AMSAT President Barry Baines, WD4ASW has accepted the resignation of E. Michael "EMike" McCardel, AA8EM, as VP-Educational Relations and appointed Joseph Spier, K6WAO, as his replacement. E. Michael McCardel, AA8EM, of Howard, OH was first appointed as an Associate Director for Educational Outreach under former VP Educational Relations Mark Hammond, N8MH, in 2011 and succeeded Mark as VP Educational Relations in September 2013. Among EMike's biggest successes were establishing a solid relation with ARRL's Education Division and working closely with ARISS as a member of its Executive Team. He was instrumental with keeping ARISS going and restructuring the ARISS program after funding was cut for Teaching From Space (TFS). At the time TFS was the primary NASA partner and education liaison for ARISS. TFS lead the school proposal and selection process in the USA. That process is now lead by ARRL and AMSAT. AMSAT VP Human Spaceflight Frank Bauer, KA3HDO, notes, "EMike has been invaluable to ARISS and I will miss his support. He and I worked behind the scenes to rescue ARISS through our discussions at the ISS Conference in 2014. And his rapport with ARRL is outstanding…something I will miss dearly. I thank EMike for making that all happen for ARISS." EMike also worked at establishing relations with various colleges and universities. He pushed to make aware the importance of AMSAT as an educational organization by emphasizing how education is part of AMSAT's earliest Mission Statements and Objectives and reminding us of all the educational programs and outreaches AMSAT has engaged in during its history. AMSAT President Barry Baines, WD4ASW notes, "EMike made a positive difference and helped set the course in a number of areas involving Educational Outreach, ARISS, and the overall direction of AMSAT. While I regret losing your considerable enthusiasm and talents, I understand the need to 'recalibrate' your priorities." EMike will complete his duties on January 31, citing time and commitments outside of AMSAT as his reason for stepping down. EMike will continue serving AMSAT as one of the rotating editors for the AMSAT News Service (ANS). With EMike's resignation, the appointment of Joseph Spier, K6WAO of Weimar, CA, as the new VP-Educational Relations is also announced. Joe came on board with the Educational Relation's team in 2011 serving as Associate Director then Director for Educational Outreach. EMike noted, "Joe and I started with Educational Relations at the same time and we have always had a great personal and working relationship. Joe is extremely enthusiastic and someone who thinks outside the box. Many have pointed out those similarities between us. However, Joe will bring a different dimension to the position because of his background in engineering. I support Joe as he takes over and am excited to see what new and exciting things are in store for AMSAT Education under his direction." “I’m very pleased that Joe has agreed to become our next VP-Educational Relations”, notes AMSAT President Barry Baines, WD4ASW. “Joe is passionate about integrating amateur radio into educational opportunities at all educational levels. His engineering background will help in interacting with university engineering departments encouraging a greater focus on educational impacts of amateur spacecraft, developing new ways of bringing science to the class room. He recognizes the importance of ARISS in reaching out to students based upon his personal involvement in managing an ARISS contact as part of the 2012 Pacificon Convention. His interaction with young people at the 2014 ARRL Centennial Convention where he encouraged their curiosity about AMSAT’s cubesat design by their holding the engineering mockup while visiting the AMSAT booth created many positive impressions for both the students and their parents. I look forward to working with Joe to further enhance our ability to touch students through amateur radio satellites and develop new ways to incorporate education into AMSAT’s mission.” E. Michael McCardel, AA8EM, former KC8YLD V.P. for Educational Relations, AMSAT-NA [ANS thanks EMike, AA8EM, for the above information] --------------------------------------------------------------------- 25 Year AMSAT Office Volunteer Bob Carpenter, W3OTC, SK Bob Carpenter, W3OTC died on January 8th. Since 1991 Bob had volunteered at the AMSAT Office on a weekly basis. He was our computer specialist and handled the donations for AMSAT. A memorial service will be held on January 23rd at 7:00PM a the Guild Memorial Chapel, Asbury Methodist Village, 211 Russell Ave, Gaithersburg MD. [ANS thanks Martha for the above information] --------------------------------------------------------------------- Nepal students to speak to Tim Peake UK astronaut Tim Peake KG5BVI will be using amateur radio to talk to students at Brihaspati Vidhyasadan School (BVS) in Nepal on Wednesday, January 20. The Himalayan Times reports this is the first link up between a school in Nepal and the International Space Station (ISS). It will be a Telebridge contact via Tony Hutchison VK5ZAI in Australia and is scheduled for Wednesday, January 20 at 08:37:04 UT. The ISS should be in range of the Telebridge station for about 8 minutes. BVS is organizing an Exhibition during the week of the contact from January 19-23. Experts as well as knowledgeable students will be at hand to respond to queries of visiting students who will be able to get acquainted with amateur radio during the exhibition. The Nepal Amateur Radio Operators’ Society is one of the organizations supporting the exhibition. Brihaspati Vidyasadan is a 32 year old High school, located in Kathmandu, Nepal. Brihaspati runs classes from nursery to 100 at secondary level and the 10+2 program in Science and Management at the higher secondary Level. Besides these Brihaspati also runs Diploma in Hospitality Managemant and Tourism in affiliation with Confederation of Tourism and Hospitality (CTH), UK. Brihaspati is known for its academic excellence. To date Brihaspati has produced over 2000 SLC graduates and over 600 +2 graduates who have achieved excellent academic achievements. Brihaspati has also been awarded the “Best School in Nepal” in 2055BS. Brihaspati is also known for its co-curricular and extra-curricular activities including sports, debates and concerts. Over the years the school has achieved Inter-school successes in football (soccer), cricket and basketball at national levels. School has also successes in inter-school competitions like debate, elocution and concerts. For its academic, co-curricular and extra-curricular achievements Brihaspati has been placed among the Class A schools of Nepal by the Ministry of Education, Government of Nepal. Brihaspati staff and students have been known for their innovation in education. The school is reputed to be the first school in Nepal to introduce computer education. Brihaspati houses clubs like Lokopakar, which is a student club that looks into Humanitarian aid. Brihaspati students recently started gThink Inkh, an activity designed using the principles of Extreme Design from Stanford for instilling critical thinking and problem solving skills in students. This program has gained attention of a lot of people in the academia at a very rapid pace. Brihaspati is located in a 25 acre land space at the heart of Kathmandu within the Balmandir compound. It has academic facility that is of very high standards. It houses the Free and Open Source Research Lab and Ham (amateur radio) facility that students and staff have access to. Recently during the earthquake of Nepal, one of the buildings of Brihaspati was used by ham radio operators from Nepal and India to coordinate search and reconciliation of families where over 500 families were reunited with their loved ones. Read The Himalayan Times story at https://thehimalayantimes.com/nepal/nepali-students-to-talk-to-astronaut-in- intl-space-station/ Brihaspati Vidhyasadan School http://www.bvs.edu.np/bvstalkstoiss/ https://www.facebook.com/bvsTalksToISS/ ARISS http://www.ariss.org/upcoming-contacts.html [ANS thanks AMSAT-UK for the above information] --------------------------------------------------------------------- ESA Online Astronaut Selection Test The European Space Agency is offering a trial version of a test developed for future astronauts for you to try at home – and by taking part you will help us select a new generation of astronauts. Read the ESA press release at: http://www.esa.int/Our_Activities/Human_Spaceflight/Astronauts/Test_your_as… ut_skills_and_help_ESA Access the astronaut selection test at: http://www.nlr.org/the-astronaut-selection-test/ [ANS thanks the European Space Agency for the above information] /EX In addition to regular membership, AMSAT offers membership in the President's Club. Members of the President's Club, as sustaining donors to AMSAT Project Funds, will be eligible to receive addi- tional benefits. Application forms are available from the AMSAT Office. Primary and secondary school students are eligible for membership at one-half the standard yearly rate. Post-secondary school students enrolled in at least half time status shall be eligible for the stu- dent rate for a maximum of 6 post-secondary years in this status. Contact Martha at the AMSAT Office for additional student membership information. 73, This week's ANS Editor, Lee McLamb, KU4OS ku4os at amsat dot org

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ANS-010 AMSAT News Service Weekly Bulletins
by E.Mike McCardel 09 Jan '16

09 Jan '16

AMSAT NEWS SERVICE ANS-010 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: * Cruising to the 2016 AMSAT Space Symposium * ARISS-US Receives $5,000 Grant from Yasme Foundation * Best Fist Nominations Due * Your 2015 Space Symposium Photos Needed! * ARISS Commemorative SSTV Event Update * ARISS News * Satellite Shorts From All Over SB SAT @ AMSAT $ANS-010.01 ANS-010 AMSAT News Service Weekly Bulletins AMSAT News Service Bulletin 010.01 >From AMSAT HQ KENSINGTON, MD. [MONTH DAY, YEAR] To All RADIO AMATEURS BID: $ANS-010.01 Cruising to the 2016 AMSAT Space Symposium The 2016 AMSAT Space Symposium will be held aboard a commercial cruise ship departing from the port of Galveston, Texas. Sail dates are November 10-14 aboard the Carnival Liberty. Galveston is conveniently located near Houston, Texas with access from both the George Bush Intercontinental Airport (IAH) and the Houston Hobby Airport (HOU.) This cruise will embark on Thursday afternoon at 16:00 CST and return on the following Monday morning at 08:00 CST. The trip includes two full days at sea and one day in port at Cozumel, Mexico. Symposium presentations and meetings will be conducted during the days at sea to allow free time during the stop in Cozumel. The AMSAT Board of Directors meeting will occur on shore at a Galveston hotel in the days prior to the Symposium. This year's cruise ship venue offers an environment for significant others, families, and friends to attend the AMSAT Symposium event with you. Many activities are available on a cruise ship including musical and theatrical performances, comedy, dancing, and casino gaming. During the stop in Cozumel there are many onshore activities and excursions available for your pleasure. There will be no post- Symposium tour offered since this venue incorporates the Cozumel visit. In preparation for this upcoming Symposium it is recommended you obtain a passport for travel as soon as possible. United States residents may find the most convenient place to obtain a passport is their nearest US Post Office. Not all USPS locations offer this service; check the US Postal Service website: https://www.usps.com/international/passports.htm Details on travel documents required for US citizens to take a Carnival cruise originating at a US Port and returning to the same port may be found here: https://help.carnival.com/app/answers/detail/a_id/1406 AMSAT is offering a group rate and booking code available starting January 5. Please book your cruise directly by calling 1-800-438- 6744 and dialing extension number 70005. Our group name is AMSAT and the group code is 8Z0FR5. It is recommended you make reservations very early since cabins are held for a short period of time. Reservations require a $150 USD per person deposit. The deposit is fully refundable up until September 11. Rates may vary depending upon cabin type selected and occupancy. Please utilize the group code as this directly benefits the Symposium and the amenities we are able to offer attendees. Further details will be released in the coming months via ANS, AMSAT- BB, and the AMSAT Journal. [ANS thanks Clayton W5PFG for the above information] --------------------------------------------------------------------- ARISS-US Receives $5,000 Grant from Yasme Foundation The ARISS-US Team is thrilled to announce that it received a $5,000 grant from the Yasme Foundation, awarded to support the development of the power converters needed as a part of an extensive upgrade to the entire ARISS radio system onboard the International Space Station. Ward Silver, N0AX, President of the Yasme Foundation, www.yasme.org, said the Yasme Board decided to support ARISS, in part, as a catalyst for individuals and other groups to follow suit by donating to the radio system cause. Ward commented: “While you have a long way to go in funding the whole upgrade project, we hope our grant will encourage organizations and individuals to donate to ARISS. Yasme is happy to get that ball rolling.” ARISS International Chair Frank Bauer, KA3HDO, noted that receiving grants from more groups similar to Yasme can result in bigger sponsors being much more likely to donate funds and in-kind resources to the radio project. The 12 ARISS Delegates from around the world had voted in August 2015 to move forward with the planning that will ultimately develop all hardware needed for an upgraded ARISS radio system if funding could be raised. ARISS Chair Bauer, explaining that the power converters are critical to the overall ARISS equipment upgrade, remarked: “The Yasme grant will jump start the project by allowing the ARISS hardware team to build a prototype converter, purchase critical parts for the flight converters, and further develop the design. We will continue our pursuit of other funding so as to realize the completion of the entire upgrade project.” ARISS-US Delegate Rosalie White, K1STO, thanked Silver for his personal effort in delineating ARISS’s hardware needs and goals to the Yasme Board. She added: “Garnering the Yasme grant is a major step in helping ARISS progress with our fundraising for the upgraded system. We are elated to know that Yasme has faith in ARISS and its goals of piquing the interest of young people in science, technology, engineering, math, space, communications, and amateur radio.” Just three weeks ago in mid-December, a group of ARISS-US team members were at Johnson Space Center solidifying plans for the design of this next generation radio system. Other groups and individuals interested in supporting ARISS goals through a donation can contact Frank Bauer, KA3HDO, at ka3hdo(a)verizon.net or can go to the AMSAT Website, www.amsat.org, and submit a donation directly using the ARISS Donate button. ARISS rewards a beautiful ARISS Challenge Coin to donors giving $100.00 or more. About ARISS Amateur Radio on the International Space Station (ARISS) is a cooperative venture of international amateur radio societies and the space agencies that support the International Space Station (ISS). In the United States, sponsors are the Radio Amateur Satellite Corporation (AMSAT), the American Radio Relay League (ARRL), and the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA).The primary goal of ARISS is to promote exploration of science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) topics by organizing scheduled contacts via amateur radio between crew members aboard the ISS and students in classrooms or informal education venues. With the help of experienced amateur radio volunteers, ISS crews speak directly with large audiences in a variety of public forums. Before and during these radio contacts, students, teachers, parents, and communities learn about space, space technologies, and amateur radio. For more information, see www.ariss.org, www.amsat.org, and www.arrl.org. [ANS thanks Yasme ans ARISS for the above information] --------------------------------------------------------------------- Best Fist Nominations Due Ray Soifer, W2RS, would like to thank to all who participated in AMSAT's Straight Key Night on OSCAR 2016. If you haven't already done so, please take a moment to nominate someone you worked for Best Fist. Your nominee need not have had the best fist of those you heard, only of those you worked. Send your nomination to w2rs at amsat.org [ANS thanks Ray W2RS for the above information] --------------------------------------------------------------------- Your 2015 Space Symposium Photos Needed! AMSAT Journal Editor, Joe Kornowski KB6IGK, reports that the AMSAT Journal needs your photos from the 33rd Space Symposium in October 2015. Please send your hi-res photos, with captions if possible, to journal at amsat.org by January 17. [ANS thanks Joe KB6IGK for the above information] --------------------------------------------------------------------- ARISS Commemorative SSTV Event Update The SSTV commemoration of the first ARISS contact events is now tentatively planned for January 16. The transmission mode will be PD120. Because preparations are still in process, it is suggested that you stay tuned to AMSAT-BB and the AMSAT and ARISS web site for the latest information on this event. [ANS thanks ARISS for the above information] --------------------------------------------------------------------- ARISS News + A Successful contact was made between Frederick W. Harnett Middle School, Blackstone, Massachusetts, USA and Astronaut Timothy Peake KG5BVI using Callsign NA1SS. The contact began 2016-01-05 17:42 UTC and lasted about nine and a half minutes. Contact was telebridged via K6DUE. ARISS Mentor was AJ9N. This represents ARISS' 981st contact. + A Successful contact was made between Sandringham School, St. Albans, Hertfordshire, UK and Astronaut Timothy Peake KG5BVI using Callsign GB1SS. The contact began 2016-01-08 08:47:47 UTC and lasted about nine and a half minutes. Contact was direct via GB1SAN. ARISS Mentor was MØXTD. This represents ARISS' 982nd contact. Upcoming ARISS Contact Schedule Scuola Secondaria di Primo Grado “Benedetto Croce”, Civate, Italy, telebridge via VK5ZAI The ISS callsign is presently scheduled to be NA1SS. The scheduled astronaut is Tim Kopra KE5UDN Contact is a go for: Wed 2016-01-13 11:35:44 UTC ARISS is always glad to receive listener reports for the above contacts. ARISS thanks everyone in advance for their assistance. Feel free to send your reports to aj9n(a)amsat.org or aj9n(a)aol.com. ARISS Commemorative SSTV Event Update The SSTV commemoration of the first ARISS contact events is now tentatively planned for January 16. The transmission mode will be PD120. Because preparations are still in process, it is suggested that you stay tuned to AMSAT-BB and the AMSAT and ARISS web site for the latest information on this event and others that ARISS plans to conduct over the next few months. Remember that the official page for all things ARISS is www.ariss.org [ANS thanks ARISS, Charlie AJ9N and David AA4KN for the above information] --------------------------------------------------------------------- Satellite Shorts From All Over + Satellite Operations from Cowtown Hamfest, January 15-16 Keith Pugh W5IU, reports that the Cowtown Hamfest in Forest Hill, Texas, a suburg of Fort Worth, will be held Friday and Saturday, 15- 16 January. Keith intends be on the air for as many passes as he can during the hamfest hours. [ANS thanks Keith W5IU 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, AA8EM (Former KC8YLD) kc8yld at amsat dot org

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ANS-003 AMSAT News Service Weekly Bulletins
by Joseph Spier 03 Jan '16

03 Jan '16

AMSAT NEWS SERVICE ANS-003 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: * Fox-1Cliff and -1D matching contribution offer * iCubeSat 2016, 5th Interplanetary CubeSat Workshop, Oxford, UK - Call for papers and registration * Spring 2016 CubeSat Workshop Abstracts Submission Due January 15 * 2016 NASA Academy * 2016 NOAA Undergraduate Scholarships * Tim Peake Sandringham School UK Contact * AMSAT Events * ARISS News SB SAT @ AMSAT $ANS-003.01 ANS-003 AMSAT News Service Weekly Bulletins AMSAT News Service Bulletin 003.01 >From AMSAT HQ KENSINGTON, MD. DATE January 3, 2016 To All RADIO AMATEURS BID: $ANS-003.01 --------------------------------------------------------------------- Fox-1Cliff and -1D matching contribution offer I just want to thank everyone for the outstanding response to our year-end request for support for the Fox-1Cliff and -1D fundraiser. During the period of December 25th to December 31st, a total of $7052.41 was raised online through the FundRazr app. This includes a pledged $1000 matching donation from a generous donor/member. 73 weeks ago when we announced the launch opportunity for Fox-1Cliff (and later including -1D), we set $25,000 as a goal for online fundraising through social media and the FundRazr app. This amount covers a fractional but significant portion of the launch expense. (The total cost of construction and launch was estimated to be $125,000.) I'm very pleased that as of the 31th of December, we have raised $26,458 from over 250 contributors. Donations have varied from $3 and up, so everyone may contribute and be recognized. There is a continuing need to raise the additional funds necessary to launch Fox-1Cliff and Fox-1D in 2016. Just visit https://fundrazr.com/campaigns/6pz92/ab/561Zd and pick your level of support. Donations of $1000 or more will receive a plaque with a solar panel protective cover after launch, and $100 qualifies for a Fox challenge coin to be delivered in 6-8 weeks when the next shipment arrives. Please see http://www.amsat.org/?p=4843 and http://www.amsat.org/?p=2957 for additional information. Thank you for the support, [ANS thanks Drew Glasbrenner, KO4MA, AMSAT VP Operations for the above information] --------------------------------------------------------------------- iCubeSat 2016, 5th Interplanetary CubeSat Workshop, Oxford, UK - Call for papers and registration iCubeSat 2016 - 5th Interplanetary CubeSat Workshop 24-25 May 2016, Oxford, United Kingdom Call for papers and registration iCubeSat 2016, the 5th Interplanetary CubeSat Workshop, will address the technical challenges, opportunities, and practicalities of interplanetary space exploration with CubeSats. The workshop provides a unique environment for open wide ranging practical collaboration between academic researchers, industry professionals, policy makers and students developing this new and rapidly growing field. Technical Program Talks and round tables will focus on three themes: technology, science, and open collaboration. The program will also include unconference sessions to provide additional opportunities to engage with the interplanetary CubeSat community and potential collaborators. Talks and supporting material will be streamed and archived on the conference website. A lively social program in and around summertime Oxford will be arranged for participants and their guests. Abstract Submission and Dates Talks on astrodynamics, attitude control and determination systems, citizen science, communications, landers, launch opportunities, open source approaches, outreach, payloads, policy, power systems, propulsion, reentry systems, ride-shares, science missions, software, standardization, structures, systems engineering and other related topics are all welcome. 1st June 2015 Registration opens at http://iCubeSat.org/registration 1st April 2016 Abstract upload deadline 15th April 2016 Notification of abstract acceptance 20th May 2016 Presentation (and optional paper) upload deadline Please confirm your interest in presenting or attending as soon as possible (to assist us size the venue) by completing the registration form at http://iCubeSat.org/registration Exhibition CubeSat specialists and other vendors are invited to contact exhibit(a)iCubeSat.org for details of exhibition opportunities. Location The 5th Interplanetary CubeSat Workshop will be held on or near the University of Oxford campus, Oxford, United Kingdom on Tuesday, May 24th and Wednesday May 25th, 2016. Organizers The organizing committee can be contacted at committee(a)iCubeSat.org See you in Oxford! pp iCubeSat 2016 Organising Committee www.iCubeSat.org Download the conference poster: https://icubesat.files.wordpress.com/2015/06/20150606_icubesat2016poster.pdf [ANS thanks the 5th Interplanetary CubeSat Workshop for the above information] --------------------------------------------------------------------- Spring 2016 CubeSat Workshop Abstracts Submission Due January 15 13th Annual CubeSat Developer's Workshop Abstract Submission Deadline is JANUARY 15, 2016! Workshop Dates: April 20-22, 2016 San Luis Obispo, CA, US Please keep abstracts under 500 words, the abstracts should indicate the ideas addressed within the presentation or poster, and the objectives of the presentation/poster. Readers should not have to read the full text to understand the abstract. More importantly, any topic is welcome! See http://cubesat.atl.calpoly.edu/index.php/workshops/upcoming-workshops/ 123--workshop-schedule or http://www.cubesat.org/ [ANS thanks www.cubesat.org/ for the above information] --------------------------------------------------------------------- 2016 NASA Academy The 2016 NASA Academy is being offered at three locations: NASA's Ames Research Center in California, NASA's Glenn Research Center in Ohio, and NASA's Marshall Space Flight Center in Alabama. Applications are being solicited for this 10-week summer experience for college students with emphasis on immersive and integrated multidisciplinary exposure and training. Activities include laboratory research, a group project, lectures, meetings with experts and administrators, visits to NASA centers and space-related industries, and technical presentations. Students learn how NASA and its centers operate, gain experience in world-class laboratories, and participate in leadership development and team-building activities. Applicants must be U.S. citizens (including citizens of the U.S. territories Puerto Rico, Guam, U.S. Virgin Islands and Northern Marianas) majoring in a STEM discipline. The applicants must be undergraduate or graduate students enrolled full-time in accredited universities and colleges in the U.S. and its territories. Students may apply to any of the NASA Academy opportunities by following these steps: 1. Log into the NASA One Stop Shopping Initiative, or OSSI, site at https://intern.nasa.gov. 2. Register and set up an account. 3. Select the "Search Opportunities" tab at the top bar. 4. Select "NASA Center(s) of Interest" under "NASA Center/Facility." 5. Enter "Academy" in the "Keywords" block at the bottom of the screen. 6. Click the "Search" button at the very bottom of screen; a list of Academy Opportunities will then be displayed. 7. Click on the "View" icon in the first column under "Action" to read about the Opportunity of interest, followed by comments on additional instructions for completing the application, including two requested essays. The deadline for receipt of NASA Academy application(s) and associated documents is Feb. 16, 2016. Please direct questions about NASA Academy to NASA-Academy-Application(a)mail.nasa.gov. [ANS thanks the NASA Education Express Message -- Dec. 30, 2015 for the above information] --------------------------------------------------------------------- 2016 NOAA Undergraduate Scholarships The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration is accepting applications for its 2016 Educational Partnership Program Undergraduate Scholarship and 2016 Ernest F. Hollings Scholarship Programs. The Educational Partnership Program Undergraduate Scholarship Program provides scholarships for two years of undergraduate study to students majoring in STEM fields that directly support NOAA's mission. Participants conduct research at a NOAA facility during two paid summer internships. A stipend and housing allowance is provided. Students attending an accredited Minority Serving Institution as defined by the U.S. Department of Education (Hispanic Serving Institutions, Historically Black Colleges and Universities, Tribal Colleges and Universities, Alaskan-Native Serving Institutions, and Native Hawaiian Serving Institutions) are eligible to apply for the program. The institutions must be within the United States or U.S. Territories. Applicants must be U.S. citizens and must earn and maintain a minimum 3.2 grade point average on a 4.0 scale. The Ernest F. Hollings Scholarship Program provides scholarships for two years of undergraduate study with a paid internship at a NOAA facility during the interim summer session. A stipend and housing allowance is provided. Applicants must be U.S. citizens enrolled full-time at an accredited college or university. Applicants also must have and maintain a declared major in a discipline including, but not limited to, oceanic, environmental, biological, and atmospheric sciences; mathematics; engineering; remote-sensing technology; physical and social sciences including geography, physics, hydrology, geomatics; or teacher education that supports NOAA's programs and mission. Participants must earn and maintain a minimum 3.0 grade point average on a 4.0 scale. Applications for both scholarship programs are due Jan. 29, 2016. For more information, visit http://www.oesd.noaa.gov/scholarships/. Please direct questions about these scholarship opportunities to StudentScholarshipPrograms(a)noaa.gov. [ANS thanks the NASA Education Express Message -- Dec. 30, 2015 for the above information] --------------------------------------------------------------------- Tim Peake Sandringham School UK Contact The first UK Amateur Radio school contact by UK astronaut Tim Peake GB1SS from the International Space Station (ISS) will take place on Friday, January 8, 2016 at 0847 GMT with students at Sandringham School, St. Albans in Hertfordshire. The school will use the call sign GB1SAN. The St. Albans based Verulam Amateur Radio Club (VARC) ran an Amateur Radio Foundation License course in December. Three of the candidates were pupils from Sandringham School who took the course in preparation for the contact with Tim Peake. ARISS UK will provide and set up all necessary radio equipment (for example, low earth orbit satellite tracking antennas and radios) to establishing a fully functional, direct radio link with the International Space Station from the school premises. In a ten-minute window when the ISS will be over the UK, an amateur radio contact will be established with Tim, and students will be able to ask him questions about his life and work on board the ISS. Tim will use a frequency of 145.800 MHz FM for the contact and his signal should be receivable across the British Isles and Europe. What equipment do you need to hear the ISS? Almost any 144 MHz FM transceiver will receive the ISS; you can even use a general coverage VHF scanner with an external antenna. As far as the antenna is concerned the simpler the better. A ¼ wave ground plane can give good results because it has a high angle of radiation. Large 2m colinears don’t work quite as well because the radiation pattern is concentrated at the horizon. You can receive the ISS using a 144 MHz hand-held outdoors with its helical antenna but a 1/4 wave whip will give far better results. In the UK we use narrow 2.5 kHz deviation FM but the ISS transmits on 145.800 MHz with the wider 5 kHz deviation used in much of the world. Most rigs can be switched been wide and narrow deviation FM filters so select the wider filter. Hand-held rigs all seem to have a single wide filter fitted as standard. The International Space Station is traveling around the Earth at over 28,000 km/h. This high speed makes radio signals appear to shift in frequency, a phenomenon called Doppler Shift. When the ISS is approaching your location the signal may be 3.5 kHz higher in frequency on 145.8035 MHz. During the 10 minute pass the frequency will gradually move lower reaching 145.7965 MHz as the ISS goes out of range. To get maximum signal you ideally need a radio that tunes in 1 kHz or smaller steps to follow the shift but in practice acceptable results are obtained with the radio left on 145.800 MHz. ISS Amateur Radio Stations There are two amateur radio stations available to astronauts on the ISS. The Russian Service Module has a dual-band Kenwood TM-D710 transceiver (this replaced the older TM-D700). Four antennas are available, three of which are identical and each can support both transmit and receive operations on 2m, 70cm, L band and S band. They also support reception for the Russian Glisser TV system, which is used during spacewalks. The fourth antenna is a 2.5 m long vertical whip that can be used to support High Frequency (HF) operations although at the present time there is no amateur HF equipment. The ESA Columbus Module has two Ericsson M-PA series FM 5 watt handheld radios, one for 145, and the other for 435 MHz, as well as the 2.4 GHz HamTV Digital Amateur Television Transmitter. Antennas are available for 145 and 435 MHz for the Ericsson handhelds; additionally, there are 1260 and 2400 MHz antennas for the HamTV system. Tim Peake will the using the equipment in the ESA Columbus Module. The ISS HamTV will not be available for the Sandringham School contact because the equipment will be turned off to permit other experiments. You’ll be able to listen online to Tim Peake GB1SS on the 145.800 MHz FM downlink by using the SUWS WebSDR radio at http://websdr.suws.org.uk/ Tim Peake ISS School Contacts Announced http://amsat-uk.org/2015/12/15/tim-peake-iss-school-contacts-announced/ Sandringham School http://www.sandringham.herts.sch.uk/ Twitter: https://twitter.com/SandringhamSch1 Verulam Amateur Radio Club http://www.verulam-arc.org.uk/ What is Amateur Radio? http://www.essexham.co.uk/what-is-amateur-radio Find an amateur radio training course near you https://thersgb.org/services/coursefinder/ ARISS http://www.ariss-eu.org/ [ANS thanks ARISS & AMSAT-UK for the above information] --------------------------------------------------------------------- AMSAT Events Information about AMSAT activities at other important events around the country. Examples of these events are radio club meetings where AMSAT Area Coordinators give presentations, demonstrations of working amateur satellites, and hamfests with an AMSAT presence (a table with AMSAT literature and merchandise, sometimes also with presentations, forums, and/or demonstrations). *Saturday, 9 January 2016 – Thunderbird Hamfest 2016 in Phoenix AZ *Friday and Saturday, 19-20 February 2016 – Yuma Hamfest and 2016 ARRL Southwest Division Convention in Yuma AZ *Saturday and Sunday, 12-13 March 2016 – ScienceCity science fair, on the University of Arizona campus in Tucson AZ *Saturday, 19 March 2016 – Scottsdale Amateur Radio Club Spring Hamfest 2016 in Scottsdale AZ *Saturday, 26 March 2016 – Tucson Spring Hamfest in Tucson AZ [ANS thanks AMSAT-NA for the above information] --------------------------------------------------------------------- ARISS News Upcoming Contacts Frederick W. Harnett Middle School, Blackstone, Massachusetts, telebridge via K6DUE The ISS callsign is presently scheduled to be NA1SS The scheduled astronaut is Timothy Peake KG5BVI Contact is a go for: Tue 2016-01-05 17:42:06 UTC 81 deg Sandringham School, St. Albans, Hertfordshire, UK, direct via GB1SAN The ISS callsign is presently scheduled to be GB1SS The scheduled astronaut is Timothy Peake KG5BVI Contact is a go for: Fri 2016-01-08 08:47:47 UTC 83 deg. Watch http://www.ariss.org/upcoming-contacts.html for information about upcoming contacts as they are scheduled. [ANS thanks ARISS, and Charlie, AJ9N 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, Joe Spier, K6WAO k6wao at amsat dot org

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