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AMSAT NEWS SERVICE
ANS-298
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:
* FoxTelem 1.01 Released
* ARISS-US Proposal Deadline Approaching
* 2016 CubeSat Launch Initiative Opportunity
* SAREX Reflector to be Closed 1 November 2015
* Upcoming ARISS Contact Schedule
* Astro Pi Launch Changed
SB SAT @ AMSAT $ANS-298.01
ANS-298 AMSAT News Service Weekly Bulletins
AMSAT News Service Bulletin 298.01
From AMSAT HQ Kensington, MD.
October 25, 2015
To All RADIO AMATEURS
BID: $ANS-298.01
FoxTelem 1.01 Released
Version 1.01 of FoxTelem is being released. You can download it from:
http://amsat.us/FoxTelem/windows
http://amsat.us/FoxTelem/mac
http://amsat.us/FoxTelem/linux
This is a patch release. If you already have 1.00 installed then download
the file FoxTelem_1.01_patch.zip
Only two files have changed (plus the manual). Copy these files into your
install directory
- FoxTelem.jar
- spacecraft/FOX1A_radtelemetry2.csv
You can also download the whole install file and install it in a new
directory.
You can use the settings menu to continue using your existing log
files. Ask if you need
assistance.
Lots has changed in this release and many bugs have been fixed. Please
report
any issues that you see.
Release notes:
* Send the frames to both primary and secondary server, if required
* Set the default fcd frequency to 145930 so that Fox-1A, Fox-1Cliff
and Fox-1D
will be in the passband
* Allow user to select UDP or TCP for upload to the server (but use
UDP for now
please)
* Shorten the period between passes so that graphs look continuous
* Ignore duplicate high speed radiation frames - needed for processing
data
from the server
* Do not change the FCD LNA or Mixer Gain. Leave unchanged.
* Do not open the FCD unless the start button is pressed
* Allow graphs to be hidden so that average or deriv is easier to see
* Fixed a bug where the last 2 bytes of the radiation telemetry were not
decoded correctly
* Allow Vanderbilt radiation experiment to be graphed
* Allow the gain to be set on the FCD (rather than hard coded)
* Notify the user when a new release is available
* Astro Pi Launch Changed
[ANS thanks Chris, G0KLA, for the above information]
---------------------------------------------------------------------
ARISS-US Proposal Deadline Approaching
The Amateur Radio on the International Space Station (ARISS) Program
is seeking formal and informal education institutions and
organizations, individually or working together, to host an Amateur
Radio contact with a crew member on board the ISS. ARISS anticipates
that the contact would be held between July 1 and December 31, 2016.
Crew scheduling and ISS orbits will determine the exact contact
dates. To maximize these radio contact opportunities, ARISS is
looking for organizations that will draw large numbers of
participants and integrate the contact into a well-developed
education plan.
The deadline to submit a proposal is November 1, 2015.
The last of the information sessions will be offered Wednesday,
September 30,
at 2300 UTC. Advance registration is necessary. E-mail ARISS
(ariss(a)arrl.org) to
sign up.
More Information
Interested parties can find more information about the program at
www.ariss.org and www.arrl.org/ARISS.
For proposal information and more details such as expectations,
proposal guidelines and proposal form, and dates and times of
Information Sessions go to http://www.arrl.org/hosting-an-ariss-
contact. Please direct any questions to ariss(a)arrl.org
[ANS thanks ARISS for the above information]
---------------------------------------------------------------------
2016 CubeSat Launch Initiative Opportunity
NASA has opened the next round of its CubeSat Launch Initiative to
engage the
growing community of space enthusiasts that can contribute to NASA's space
exploration goals.
The CubeSat Launch Initiative gives students, teachers and faculty a
chance to
get hands-on flight hardware development experience in the process of
designing,
building and operating small research satellites. The initiative also
provides a
low-cost pathway to space for research in the areas of science, exploration,
technology development, education or operations consistent with NASA's
Strategic
Plan.
Applicants must submit their proposals electronically by 4:30 p.m. EST,
Nov. 24,
2015. NASA plans to select the payloads by Feb. 19, 2016, but selection
does not
guarantee a launch opportunity. Selected experiments will fly as auxiliary
payloads on agency rocket launches or be deployed from the International
Space
Station beginning in 2016 and running through 2019. NASA does not provide
funding for the development of the small satellites, and this opportunity is
open only to U.S. nonpro?t organizations and accredited educational
organizations.
For additional information about this opportunity and NASA's CubeSat Launch
Initiative, visit
http://www.nasa.gov/press-release/nasa-opens-new-cubesat-opportunities-for-…
cost-space-exploration and
http://www.nasa.gov/directorates/heo/home/CubeSats_initiative.html.
Questions about this opportunity should be directed to Jason Crusan at
Jason.Crusan(a)nasa.gov.
[ANS thanks NASA Education Express Message -- Oct. 22, 2015 for the above
information]
---------------------------------------------------------------------
SAREX Reflector to be Closed 1 November 2015
At the request of the ARISS US Team, AMSAT-NA Vice President for Human
Spaceflight Frank Bauer, KA3HDO has announced that the SAREX reflector
will be
closed 1 November 2015, and its functions folded into the AMSAT-BB list.
Frank
explained that at one time operations from the Space Shuttle and the ISS
were
considered as sufficiently different from other satellite operations as
to need
separate forums for their respective interest communities. More recently,
changes in the human spaceflight operations, the new generation of
satellites,
and the interests of the general AMSAT community have removed the
reasons for
this distinction.
What does this mean to the current subscribers? If you are subscribed to
both
SAREX and AMSAT-BB, there is no need to take any action. You will cease to
receive new postings on the SAREX list 1 November 2015, which will now
be made
on AMSAT-BB. The SAREX archives will continue to be available for historical
purposes. If you are not subscribed to AMSAT-BB and wish to continue to
receive
human spaceflight announcements, please go to
http://www.amsat.org/mailman/listinfo and subscribe to AMSAT-BB. Your
existing
SAREX subscription will not be automatically carried over since not everyone
will wish to do so.
[ANS thanks Alan WA4SCA for the above information]
---------------------------------------------------------------------
Upcoming ARISS Contact Schedule
Dearborn Public Schools, Dearborn, Michigan, USA, direct via K8UTT
The ISS callsign is presently scheduled to be NA1SS
The scheduled astronaut is Kjell Lindgren KO5MOS
Contact is a go for Option #3: Tue 2015-10-27 16:01:59 UTC 57 deg
Daggett Montessori School K-8, Fort Worth, Texas, USA, direct via K5COW
The ISS callsign is presently scheduled to be NA1SS
The scheduled astronaut is Kjell Lindgren KO5MOS
Contact is a go for Option #4: Thu 2015-10-29 14:12:56 UTC 31 deg
A listing of all scheduled school contacts, and questions, other ISS related
websites, IRLP and Echolink websites, and instructions for any contact
that may
be streamed live is available at the following link.
http://www.amsat.org/amsat/ariss/news/arissnews.rtf
[ANS thanks Charlie, AJ9N, for the above information]
---------------------------------------------------------------------
Astro Pi Launch Changed
Two specially augmented Raspberry Pi’s called Astro Pi‘s were planned to fly
with UK astronaut Tim Peake KG5BVI to the International Space Station
(ISS) on
December 15.
On the ISS the Astro Pi’s are planned to run experimental Python programs
written by school-age students; the results will be downloaded back to
Earth and
made available online for all to see. It is hoped that subsequently one
of them
will be used to provide a video source for the amateur radio HamTV
transmitter
in the ISS Columbus module.
It appears the amount of cargo on Tim’s Soyuz flight was overbooked so
the Astro
Pi’s will instead fly to the ISS on an Orbital Sciences’ Cygnus cargo
freighter.
The launch is currently planned for December 3 at 22:48 UT on an Atlas V
rocket
from Cape Canaveral AFS in Florida.
Read the full story on the Raspberry Pi site
https://www.raspberrypi.org/blog/astro-pi-mission-update-7-launch-vehicle-
changed/
HamTV http://amsat-uk.org/satellites/hamtv-on-the-iss/
[ANS thanks AMSAT-UK 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
1
0
ANS-292 AMSAT News Service Special Bulletin - 4U1UN as 4U70UN on satellite this weekend!
by Joseph Spier 19 Oct '15
by Joseph Spier 19 Oct '15
19 Oct '15
AMSAT NEWS SERVICE SPECIAL BULLETIN
ANS-292
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:
* 4U1UN as 4U70UN on satellite this weekend!
SB SAT @ AMSAT $ANS-292.01
ANS-292 AMSAT News Service Special Bulletin
AMSAT News Service Bulletin 292.01
>From AMSAT HQ KENSINGTON, MD.
DATE October 19, 2015
To All RADIO AMATEURS
BID: $ANS-292.01
---------------------------------------------------------------------
AO-85 OSCAR Number Assigned for Fo4U1UN as 4U70UN on satellite this weekend!
Word has been received, that, in celebration of the UN's 70th anniversary,
4U1UN will be activated as 4U70UN on Saturday 24 and Sunday 25 October. The
operation by the UN ARC will be from the ground-level garden area within the
UNHQ complex in New York City and will be limited to daylight hours.
Satellite
operation is included in the plans, but time and equipment limitations will
exist. Blockage from high rise buildings toward the West is expected. Best
passes will be to the East of FN30as and North/South overhead. Possible
satellites in view may be AO-73, FO-29, AO-85, AO-7, SO-50, XW-2E and XW-2F.
Note that 4U1UN is a separate DXCC entity.
See QRZ.COM for QSL info.”
For more information please see
http://www.amsat.org/?p=4650
[ANS thanks Mike, N1JEZ, and AMSAT-NA 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
1
0
AMSAT NEWS SERVICE
ANS-291
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:
* URGENT - AO-85 Operational Update
* Joe Kornowski K9JMK Named AMSAT Journal Editor
* Help AMSAT Launch FOX-1Cliff and FOX-1D Satellite in 2015
* AMSAT Elects Senior Officer
* SAREX Reflector to be Closed 1 November 2015
* Amateur Radio – a hobby for the 21st century
* Special Membership Offer for Fox-1A Launch
* ARISS-US Contact Proposals Accepted Through November 1
* NASA awards launch services contracts for CubeSat satellites
* ARISS News
* Satellite Shorts From All Over
SB SAT @ AMSAT $ANS-291
ANS-291 AMSAT News Service Weekly Bulletins
AMSAT News Service Bulletin 291
>From AMSAT HQ KENSINGTON, MD.
October 18, 2015
To All RADIO AMATEURS
BID: $ANS-291
URGENT - AO-85 Operational Update
After our successful launch on October 8, AO-85 has been chiefly in
transponder mode and available to users. While this operational plan
resulted in increased data for AMSAT engineering evaluation, we have
some necessary tests to complete that require limiting access for a
short period. We will be characterizing the uplink and downlink
signals, and developing an updated set of recommendations for minimal
equipment and best operating practices.
For the week of October 19 to 23, AO-85 will be unavailable while
this testing and evaluation is complete. Please avoid transmitting to
the satellite even if you hear the transponder on. Users are
encouraged to collect and forward telemetry via the FoxTelem program.
Please share this information to other operators as needed.
Cooperation will expedite this testing and the return to normal
operations.
[ANS thanks Drew KO4MA for the above informatioin]
---------------------------------------------------------------------
Joe Kornowski K9JMK Named AMSAT Journal Editor
During the 2015 AMSAT Annual Meeting held in Dayton, Ohio, AMSAT
President Barry Baines, WD4ASW, announced the appointment of Joe
Kornowski, KB6IGK as the Editor of The AMSAT Journal beginning with
the November/December 2015 issue, filling the position previously
held by JoAnne Maenpaa, K9JKM, who had to resign for personal
reasons. Joe has served as an Assistant Editor since 2014 and has
several years of professional experience in writing, editing, and
content creation in various fields, including law and legal
publishing, technology, health and wellness, and creative/media.
[ANS thanks AMSAT for the above information]
---------------------------------------------------------------------
Help AMSAT Launch FOX-1Cliff and FOX-1D Satellite in 2015
For a $1,000.00 donation, AMSAT will provide you, after launch, with
a clear solar panel protective cover actually used on Fox-1 Cliff or
FOX-1D. The cover will be mounted on a plaque, and engraved with your
name, callsign and date of launch. Quantities are limited.
The plaque will make an excellent display in your office or shack
for you to show off your pride in helping AMSAT launch Fox-1 Cliff!
To donate and claim your panel visit
https://fundrazr.com/campaigns/6pz92/ab/561Zd
Similar plaques from FOX-1A were recently presented to their donors
during the AMSAT Space Symposium in Dayton.
[ANS thanks Barry WD4ASW for the above information]
---------------------------------------------------------------------
AMSAT Elects Senior Officer
Election of AMSAT's Senior Officers was one of the first orders of
business to be settled once the AMSAT Board of Directors meeting
opened on October 15, prior to the start of the 2015 AMSAT Space
Symposium held in Dayton, Ohio.
The following positions were voted upon and filled:
Barry Baines, WD4ASW President
Drew Glasbrenner, KO4MA Vice-President Operations
Jerry Buxton, N0JY Vice-President Engineering
Frank Bauer, KA3HDO Vice-President Human Spaceflight
Paul Stoetzer, N8HM Secretary
Keith Baker, KB1SF/VA3KSF Treasurer
Martha Saragovitz Manager
The following Senior Officer positions remained open at this time
awaiting appointments:
Executive Vice President
Vice-President User Services
Vice-President Marketing
The AMSAT Board of Directors for 2016 consists of:
Barry Baines, WD4ASW
Tom Clark, K3IO
JoAnne Maenpaa, K9JKM
Lou McFadin, W5DID
Jerry Buxton, N0JY
Drew Glasbrenner, KO4MA
Bob McGwier, N4HY
Mark Hammond, N8MH (First Alternate)
Bruce Paige, KK5DO (Second Alternate)
[ANS thanks Paul N8HM for the above information]
---------------------------------------------------------------------
SAREX Reflector to be Closed 1 November 2015
At the request of the ARISS US Team, AMSAT-NA Vice President for
Human Spaceflight Frank Bauer, KA3HDO has announced that the SAREX
reflector will be closed 1 November 2015, and its functions folded
into the AMSAT-BB list. Frank explained that at one time operations
from the Space Shuttle and the ISS were considered as sufficiently
different from other satellite operations as to need separate forums
for their respective interest communities. More recently, changes in
the human spaceflight operations, the new generation of satellites,
and the interests of the general AMSAT community have removed the
reasons for this distinction.
What does this mean to the current subscribers? If you are
subscribed to both SAREX and AMSAT-BB, there is no need to take any
action. You will cease to receive new postings on the SAREX list 1
November 2015, which will now be made on AMSAT-BB. The SAREX archives
will continue to be available for historical purposes. If you are not
subscribed to AMSAT-BB and wish to continue to receive human
spaceflight announcements, please go to
http://www.amsat.org/mailman/listinfo and subscribe to AMSAT-BB. Your
existing SAREX subscription will not be automatically carried over
since not everyone will wish to do so.
[ANS thanks Alan WA4SCA for the above information]
---------------------------------------------------------------------
Amateur Radio – a hobby for the 21st century
The RSGB has launched a new amateur radio promotional video on their
YouTube channel.
The video was produced in conjunction with TX Factor and has
generated lots of positive comment since it was first shown publicly
at the RSGB Convention on October 10.
One person commented “the video is really good, hardly an oldie to
be seen !!”
The amateur satellite service features prominently in the video,
Peter Goodhall 2E0SQL is shown working the amateur satellites and
astronaut Doug Wheelock KF5BOC puts in an appearance from on-board
the International Space Station.
Among those spotted in the video were amateurs from the Silcoates
School, Camb Hams and Essex Ham.
Watch the video at
https://youtu.be/8x6x_6mDVlQ
[ANS thanks AMSAT-UK for the above information]
---------------------------------------------------------------------
Special Membership Offer for Fox-1A Launch
AMSAT’s Fox-1A , AO-85 was launched as part of the GRACE (Government
Rideshare Advanced Concepts Experiment) auxillary payload on the NROL-
55 mission October 8, 2015 from Vandenburg AFB on an Atlas V vehicle.
NRO has released this factsheet about the mission:
http://tinyurl.com/ANS291-FactSheet
General information on Fox-1A is available in the downloadable AMSAT
Fox Operating Guide.
http://tinyurl.com/ANS291-OperatingGuide
FoxTelem software for decoding and submitting telemetry has been
made available for download at
http://www.amsat.org/?page_id=4532 .
As part of the celebration for the launch and activation of this
new satellite, AMSAT is making our “Getting Started With The Amateur
Satellites” book available for a limited time as a download with any
paid new or renewal membership purchased via the AMSAT Store. This
offer is only available with purchases completed online, and for only
a limited time. A perennial favorite, Getting Started is updated
every year with the latest amateur satellite information, and is the
premier primer of satellite operation. The 132 page book is presented
in PDF format, in full color, and covers all aspects of making your
first contacts on a ham radio satellite.
Please take advantage of this offer today by visiting the AMSAT store
http://store.amsat.org/catalog/
and selecting any membership option. While there, check out our
other items, including the M2 LEOpack antenna system, AMSAT shirts,
hats, and other swag. Thank you, and see you soon on Fox-1A!
[ANS thanks Drew Glasbrenner, KO4MA, Vice-President Operations for
the above information]
---------------------------------------------------------------------
ARISS-US Contact Proposals Accepted Through November 1
Message to US Educators
Amateur Radio on the International Space Station
Contact Opportunity
Call for Proposals
Proposal Window September 1 – November 1, 2015
The Amateur Radio on the International Space Station (ARISS) Program
is seeking formal and informal education institutions and
organizations, individually or working together, to host an Amateur
Radio contact with a crew member on board the ISS. ARISS anticipates
that the contact would be held between July 1 and December 31, 2016.
Crew scheduling and ISS orbits will determine the exact contact
dates. To maximize these radio contact opportunities, ARISS is
looking for organizations that will draw large numbers of
participants and integrate the contact into a well-developed
education plan.
The deadline to submit a proposal is November 1, 2015. Proposal
information and documents can be found at www.arrl.org/hosting-an-
ariss-contact.
The next and last of these will be offered Wednesday, September 30,
at 2300 UTC.
Advance registration is necessary. E-mail ARISS (ariss(a)arrl.org) to
sign up for an information session.
The Opportunity
Crew members aboard the International Space Station will participate
in scheduled Amateur Radio contacts. These radio contacts are
approximately 10 minutes in length and allow students and educators
to interact with the astronauts through a question-and-answer session.
An ARISS contact is a voice-only communication opportunity via
Amateur Radio between astronauts and cosmonauts aboard the space
station and classrooms and communities. ARISS contacts afford
education audiences the opportunity to learn firsthand from
astronauts what it is like to live and work in space and to learn
about space research conducted on the ISS. Students also will have an
opportunity to learn about satellite communication, wireless
technology, and radio science. Because of the nature of human
spaceflight and the complexity of scheduling activities aboard the
ISS, organizations must demonstrate flexibility to accommodate
changes in contact dates and times.
Amateur Radio organizations around the world, NASA, and space
agencies in Russia, Canada, Japan and Europe sponsor this educational
opportunity by providing the equipment and operational support to
enable direct communication between crew on the ISS and students
around the world via Amateur Radio. In the US, the program is managed
by AMSAT (Radio Amateur Satellite Corporation) and ARRL (American
Radio Relay League) in partnership with NASA.
More Information
Interested parties can find more information about the program at
www.ariss.org and www.arrl.org/ARISS.
For proposal information and more details such as expectations,
proposal guidelines and proposal form, and dates and times of
Information Sessions go to http://www.arrl.org/hosting-an-ariss-
contact. Please direct any questions to ariss(a)arrl.org
[ANS thanks ARISS for the above information]
---------------------------------------------------------------------
NASA awards launch services contracts for CubeSat satellites
NASA's Launch Services Program (LSP) has awarded multiple Venture
Class Launch Services (VCLS) contracts to provide small satellites
(SmallSats) - also called CubeSats, microsats or nanosatellites -
access to low-Earth orbit.
The three companies selected to provide these new commercial launch
capabilities, and the value of their firm fixed-price contracts, are:
Firefly Space Systems Inc. of Cedar Park, Texas, $5.5 million; Rocket
Lab USA Inc. of Los Angeles, $6.9 million; Virgin Galactic LLC of
Long Beach, California, $4.7 million.
At present, launch opportunities for small satellites and science
missions mostly are limited to rideshare-type arrangements, flying
only when space is available on NASA and other launches. The services
acquired through these new contract awards will constitute the
smallest class of launch services used by NASA.
"LSP is attempting to foster commercial launch services dedicated to
transporting smaller payloads into orbit as an alternative to the
rideshare approach and to promote the continued development of the
U.S. commercial space transportation industry," said Jim Norman,
director of Launch Services at NASA Headquarters in Washington. "VCLS
is intended to help open the door for future dedicated opportunities
to launch CubeSats and other small satellites and science missions."
Small satellites, including CubeSats, are playing an increasingly
larger role in exploration, technology demonstration, scientific
research and educational investigations at NASA. These miniature
satellites provide a low-cost platform for NASA missions, including
planetary space exploration; Earth observations; fundamental Earth
and space science; and developing precursor science instruments like
cutting-edge laser communications, satellite-to-satellite
communications and autonomous movement capabilities.
LSP supports the agency's CubeSat Launch Initiative (CSLI) by
providing launch opportunities for more than 50 CubeSats that are
awaiting launch during the next three years. The VCLS contracts will
demonstrate a dedicated launch capability for smaller payloads that
NASA anticipates it will require on a recurring basis for future
science SmallSat and CubeSat missions.
Small satellites already are used to provide imagery collection for
monitoring, analysis and disaster response. In the future, CubeSat
capabilities could include ship and aircraft tracking, improved
weather prediction, and the provision of broader Internet coverage.
The Earth Science Division of NASA's Science Mission Directorate in
Washington has partnered with LSP to fund the VCLS contracts. These
VCLS launches of small satellites are able to tolerate a higher level
of risk than larger missions and will demonstrate, and help mitigate
risks associated with, the use of small launch vehicles providing
dedicated access to space for future small spacecraft and missions.
"Emerging small launch vehicles have great potential to expand the
use of small satellites as integral components of NASA's Earth
science orbital portfolio," said Michael Freilich, director of NASA's
Earth Science Division.
"Today's CubeSat technology fosters hands-on engineering and flight
research training; with the addition of reliable, affordable, and
dedicated access to space on small launchers, constellations of
SmallSats and CubeSats could revolutionize our science-based
spaceborne Earth-observing systems and capabilities. We're eager to
work with the VCLS providers as they develop new launch capabilities
for the Earth science community."
[ANS thanks Space Daily for the above information]
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ARISS News
A Successful contact was made between Bay View Elementary School,
Burlington, WA, USA and Astronaut Kjell Lindgren KO5MOS using
Callsign OR4ISS. The contact began 2015-10-14 19:41 UTC and lasted
about nine and a half minutes. Contact was telebridge via IK1SLD.
ARISS Mentor was K4SQC.
Upcoming ARISS Contact Schedule as of 2015-10-15 07:30 UTC
Quick list of scheduled contacts and events:
Saku Children’s Science Dome for the Future, Saku City, Japan,
direct via 8NØSDF The ISS callsign is presently scheduled to be
NA1SS The scheduled astronaut is Kimiya Yui KG5BPH
Contact is a go for: Thu 2015-10-22 09:47:21 UTC 62 deg
West Michigan Aviation Academy, Grand Rapids, MI, direct via W8ISS
The ISS callsign is presently scheduled to be NA1SS
The scheduled astronaut is Kjell Lindgren KO5MOS
Contact is a go for: Thu 2015-10-22 17:10:02 UTC 36 deg
[ANS thanks ARISS, Charlie AJ9N and David AA4KN for the above
information]
[ANS thanks ARISS, Charlie AJ9N information]
---------------------------------------------------------------------
Satellite Shorts From All Over
+ 2016 Colloqium Dates Set
The dates for the next Colloquium have now been confirmed as Fri
29 Jul to Sun 31 July 2016. It will be held in the same location as
in 2015, ie the Holiday Inn, Guildford, UK
[ANS thanks Jim G3WGM for the above information]
+ Eimac Moonbounce Notes collection
Way back in 1980 when I first got interested in amateur satellites
and AMSAT, I wrote off to Eimac Corporation for their "Moonbounce
Notes" collection.
While on a household paper eradication campaign I came across them
and scanned them. I thought others might enjoy a look back at some
bleeding-edge ham activities from the mid-late 1970s. It's
particularly amusing to see how much effort was spent just tracking
the moon with the technology then available.
http://www.ka9q.net/moonbounce-notes
This is a raw collection of pdf files, but the file names are pretty
descriptive. Collect the entire set!
If anybody has any notes missing from my collection, please let me
know.
[ANS thanks Phil KA9Q for the above information
+ Space Diary: Fire up your imagination!
Fire up your imagination and get ready for launch
Lucy Hawking and Curved House Kids launch a STEM literacy project
to get 500 primary schools involved in Tim’s mission to the ISS. As
Tim lifts off in December, school students will follow his mission
by creating a personalised log book, the Principia Mission Space
Book.
Each month a video will be released from amazing space crew
including Dallas Campbell, Stephen Hawking, Richard Garriott and
Lucy Hawking.
To learn more visit https://principia.org.uk/news/spacediary/
[ANS thanks AMSAT-UK 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
1
0
AMSAT NEWS SERVICE
ANS-284
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-1A Launched at 0549 PDT on October 8, 2015
* AMSAT-NA VP-Engineering on NASA TV
* AMSAT's Fox-1A Receives AO-85 Designation
* Fox-1A Launch Commemorative Issue of the AMSAT Journal - Free
Download
* Lapan ORARI (LAPAN-A2) Receives OSCAR Number IO-86
* ISS CubeSats Deployed Monday, October 5
* LQSat Launched on Monday, October 5
* AMSAT at Pacificon 2015
* AO-85 (Fox-1A) FM Voice Transponder Activated
* AO-85 Update
* New OSCAR Status Page
* AMSAT Events
* ARISS News
* Satellite Shorts From All Over
SB SAT @ AMSAT $ANS-284.01
ANS-284 AMSAT News Service Weekly Bulletins
AMSAT News Service Bulletin 284.01
>From AMSAT HQ KENSINGTON, MD.
DATE October 11, 2015
To All RADIO AMATEURS
BID: $ANS-284.01
---------------------------------------------------------------------
Fox-1A Launched at 0549 PDT on October 8, 2015
Launch and Deployment was Successful!
PE0SAT, ON4HF, and R2ANF heard signals on the first pass!
Video of liftoff
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=drTsIV7nR3w&feature=youtu.be
Keplerian elements:
GRACE2
1 99992U 15281.53437500 .00015007 00000-0 15580-2 0 00009
2 99992 064.7657 291.6734 0216442 282.3705 182.7702 14.73904028000019
AMSAT’s Fox-1A launched as part of the GRACE (Government Rideshare
Advanced Concepts Experiment) auxillary payload on the NROL-55
mission October 8, 2015 from Vandenburg AFB on an Atlas V vehicle. The
launch
occurred at 5:49 AM PDT, with the NASA TV webcast starting at 5:29 AM
PDT. NRO
has released this factsheet about the mission:
http://www.amsat.org/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2015/10/GRACE_CubeSat_
FactSheet.pdf
General information on Fox-1A is available in the downloadable
http://www.amsat.org/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2015/05/FoxOperatingGuide_
May2015_Hi.pdf
FoxTelem software for decoding and submitting telemetry has been made
available for download at
http://www.amsat.org/?page_id=4532
Keplerian Elements: We will provide the Keplerian elements (aka Keps or
TLEs)
to enable you to track Fox-1a as soon after launch as we get them (and are
cleared to release them). The information will be placed on
http://www.amsat.org/amsat/ftp/keps/current/nasabare.txt .
INITIAL COMMISSIONING PERIOD: Initially the transponder will not be
on and will not respond to uplinks. Please do not attempt to uplink while
we check out the satellite and commission it. We will publicize when we have
opened the transponder to general use. You should expect the checkout
phase to
last for a minimum of several days and possibly for several weeks.
What To Listen For: During the initial checkout period and when the
satellite is in range, every two minutes you will generally hear about 5
seconds of data followed by a few seconds of a voice ID (and possibly a
second
data packet). You may occasionally hear ‘data’ mode which Chris, G0KLA, has
famously described as sounding like an old-fashioned telephone modem. If you
should happen to hear what appear to be QSOs, please resist the temptation
to join in before the commissioning period is over.
Please Send Telemetry Reports and Data: We would love to have you
collect and upload as much data as you can, and to give any other kind of
report on the amsat-bb mailing list (which some of the Fox team will
monitor).
You can also report hearing or not hearing it on
http://www.amsat.org/status/
You can upload data using the FoxTelem telemetry program that we recently
released. (Check the “upload to server” box in the properties/preference
page).
More data will help us do the checkout faster! Remember if you hear the
“telephone modem” sound, you must switch FoxTelem to high-speed mode
manually.
Similarly FoxTelem must be in low-speed mode at other times.
We are planning a special award to the person who submits the first
data from the satellite (by which we mean the earliest downlinked mission
elapsed time), so get your rigs ready!
As part of the preparations for the launch and activation of
this new satellite, AMSAT is making our “Getting Started With The
Amateur Satellites” book available for a limited time as a download with any
paid new or renewal membership purchased via the AMSAT Store. This offer is
only available with purchases completed online, and for only a limited
time. A perennial favorite, Getting Started is updated every year with the
latest amateur satellite information, and is the premier primer of satellite
operation. The 132 page book is presented in PDF format, in full color, and
covers all aspects of making your first contacts on a ham radio satellite.
Please take advantage of this offer today by visiting the AMSAT store and
selecting any membership option. While there, check out our other items,
including the M2 LEOpack antenna system, AMSAT shirts, hats, and other
swag.
Thank you, and see you soon on Fox-1A!
[ANS thanks AMSAT-NA for the above information]
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AMSAT-NA VP-Engineering on NASA TV
Radio amateurs Jerry Buxton, N0JY and Courtney Duncan, N5BF were on
the panel at a NASA prelaunch briefing on Wednesday, October 7.
Participants in the news briefing discussed several of the specific
CubeSats aboard the National Reconnaissance Office’s NRO-L55 mission.
Four of
the CubeSats are NASA-sponsored and nine are NRO-sponsored, one of which
was developed with NASA funding. The mission is scheduled to launch Oct.
8 from
California’s Vandenburg Air Force Base.
The panel comprised:
• Richard Welle, director, Microsatellite Systems department at The
Aerospace
Corporation
• Tim Olson, principal investigator for BisonSat, Salish Kootenai College,
Pablo, Montana
• Morgan Johnson, team lead for the ARC CubeSat, University of Alaska,
Fairbanks
• Jerry Buxton, N0JY Vice President, Engineering, for AMSAT Fox-1
• Courtney Duncan, N5BF, principal investigator for LMRST-Sat, NASA’s Jet
Propulsion Laboratory, Pasadena, California
Video
https://www.youtube.com/watch?t=1&v=b6duPV3BwcY
Jerry described the Fox-1A mission and science, and answered questions.
[ANS thanks AMSAT-UK for the above information]
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AO-85 OSCAR Number Assigned for Fox-1A
William (Bill) Tynan, W3XO, AMSAT-NA OSCAR Number Administrator has
issued the
following release:
I have been informed of the successful launch today, October 8, 2015
of the AMSAT-NA-built Fox-1A CubeSat. I am also informed that the satellite
has been heard by several amateurs in various countries.
This successful launch comes after years of diligent and dedicated
work on the part of AMSAT-NA volunteers including Tony Monteiro, AA2TX, who
became a silent key in March, 2014. It was Tony who spearheaded and
guided the
work on all AMSAT-NA CubeSats until his untimely passing. Thus, it is only
fitting that this spacecraft be dedicated to his memory.
Following Tony’s death, the work of completing and preparing for launch
fell to Jerry Buxton, N0JY, who took over Tony’s post of AMSAT-NA’s Vice
President for Engineering and saw to Fox-1A’s successful completion and its
preparation for launch.
All of those who had a part in designing, constructing and testing Fox-1A
and its various subsystems are to be congratulated for jobs well done.
Since Fox-1A was properly coordinated through IARU as an Amateur Radio
satellite, has been successfully launched and its signals have been
received; I, under the authority vested in me by the AMSAT-NA President, do
hereby issue to Fox-1A the designation AMSAT-OSCAR-85, or AO-85.
May AO-85 serve the radio amateurs of world for many years to come.
[ANS thanks Bill, W3XO, and AMSAT-NA for the above information]
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Fox-1A Launch Commemorative Issue of the AMSAT Journal - Free Download
Congratulations to AMSAT's Fox-1A team on their successful launch, orbital
deployment, and activation of the Fox-1A satellite. (Now to be known as
AO-85.)
AMSAT has produced a free, commemorative issue of the AMSAT Journal
highlighting the Fox-1A launch success. This full color PDF issue can be
downloaded from our current top news story, "Fox-1A launch 5:49 AM PDT on
October 8, 2015" at http://www.amsat.org. A direct link to this news item is
http://www.amsat.org/?p=4591
If you aren't already a member of AMSAT this issue of our magazine will give
you an inside look at the best ham radio club in the world. You'll read
and see
the dedicated efforts of the Fox-1A team that got us to October 8. Please
consider joining AMSAT to support our series of launches coming in 2016 and
beyond.
[ANS thanks AMSAT-NA for the above information]
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Lapan ORARI (LAPAN-A2) Receives OSCAR Number IO-86
William (Bill) Tynan, W3XO, AMSAT-NA OSCAR Number Administrator has
issued the following release:
AMSAT-NA has received information from YE0EEE of the successful launch,
September 28, 2015 of an Indonesian Amateur Radio satellite, Lapan ORARI
(LAPAN-A2).
According to the information I have, this satellite meets all of the
requirements to receive an OSCAR number, including IARU coordination.
Accordingly, by the authority vested in me by the AMSAT-NA President, I
hereby
confer on this spacecraft the designation Indonesia OSCAR- 86. or IO-86.
Dirgan, YE0EEE, and all who had a part in the design, construction, test
and
launch of IO-86 are to be congratulated. May this Amateur Radio spacecraft
have a long and useful life serving the amateurs of the world.
The following response was received from Dirgantara, YE0EEE from AMSAT-ID:
Many thanks for good news. I, the AMSAT-ID Team, and LAPAN are all very
happy
about the new Oscar number. By today, I will have informed all the ORARI
members.
Link to AMSAT-UK article on LAPAN-A2 launch
http://amsat-uk.org/2015/09/28/lapan-a2-fm-and-aprs-satellite-launched/
[ANS thanks Bill, W3XO, and AMSAT-NA for the above information]
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ISS CubeSats Deployed Monday, October 5
Two Danish CubeSats carrying amateur radio payloads were successfully
deployed
from the International Space Station (ISS) on Monday, October 5 at 1405 UT.
Originally launched to the ISS on August 19, 2015, the two CubeSats,
AAUSat-5
and GomX-3, were deployed from the ISS Japanese Kibo module airlock
using the
Kibo robotic arm.
After deployment the CubeSats stated transmitting signals to Earth that
can be
picked up by anyone with common amateur radio equipment. The frequencies to
listen on are:
• AAUSat-5 – 437.425 MHz with 30 WPM CW beacon every 3 minutes and 9600 bps
GMSK packet every 30 seconds
• GomX-3 – 437.250 MHz with 1200-9600 bps GMSK data using CSP protocol
AAUsat-5 is a 1-Unit CubeSat built by students at Aalborg University. The
primary mission is to test an improved receiver for detecting Automatic
Identification System (AIS) signals emitted by ships. Down on the
ground, these
signals are short-range, operating mainly on a ship-to-shore and
ship-to-ship
basis, leaving large spans of the world’s oceans uncovered. But signals also
travel up to orbital altitude, opening up the prospect of worldwide
monitoring.
GomX-3 is a 3-Unit CubeSat which aims to demonstrate new radio technology. A
reconfigurable software-defined radio receiver will intercept L-band
spot beams
from telecom satellites in geostationary orbit, to provide independent
measurements of their signal strength and quality. This receiver can also be
re-purposed to receive any other L-band signal, such as navigation satellite
signals or radar beams.
A receiver will pick up Automatic Dependent Surveillance – Broadcast (ADS-B)
signals automatically broadcast by civilian aircraft, to build up an
overview
of regional air traffic. Additionally there is a high data rate X-band
transmitter developed by Syrlinks. The CNES X-band ground station in
Kourou,
South America, will be used to demonstrate the link.
The GomX-3 amateur radio payload uses a NanoCom AX100 UHF transceiver and
ANT430 antenna.
Mineo Wakita JE9PEL in Japan reported receiving the GomX-3 beacon in Japan
from 1505-1510 UT on October 5 and Luciano Fabricio PY5LF reported hearing
GomX-3 in Brazil at 1605 UT. Jan van Gills PE0SAT in the Netherlands
received
AAUSat-5 at 1800 UT.
The two spacecraft may have a lifetime of around 7 months before they
burn up
in the Earth’s atmosphere.
GomX-3 telemetry beacon
https://www.dropbox.com/s/x4mipoz9gmqhlib/GOMX3_Beacon.pdf
AAUSat-5 telemetry beacon
http://www.space.aau.dk/aausat5/index.php?n=Main.HamInfo
ESA article CubeSats set for Monday Release (with video)
http://www.esa.int/Our_Activities/Space_Engineering_Technology/ESA_CubeSats…
_for_Monday_release
ESA invites radio amateurs to listen for AAUSat-5 CubeSat
http://amsat-uk.org/2015/09/24/esa-listen-for-aausat-5/
[ANS thanks ESA and AMSAT-UK for the above information]
---------------------------------------------------------------------
LQSat Launched Monday, October 5
LQSat was launched into a 656 km sun synchronous orbit at 0413 UT on
Wednesday,
October 7 from the Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center (JSLC) in Inner
Mongolia on
a Chang Zheng 2D (CZ-2D) rocket.
The satellite was developed by researchers and students at the Changchun
Institute of Optics, Fine Mechanics and Physics (CIOMP) and carries an
amateur
radio payload.
LQSat is technology demonstrator measuring 40x40x60 cm with a mass of 50 kg
and carries a 2 m resolution camera as the main payload.
The IARU coordinated downlink frequencies are
• 437.650 MHz at 0.5 watts (27 dBm) with either 25 WPM CW or 4800 bps
MSK CSP
packet data
• 2404 MHz at 1 watt (30 dBm) using 1 Mbps QPSK
Launch report
http://www.nasaspaceflight.com/2015/10/china-launches-jilin-1-mission-long-
march-2d/
[ANS thanks AMSAT-UK for the above information]
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AMSAT at Pacificon 2015
AMSAT will participate at Pacificon on October 17, 2015 in San Ramon,
California. The ARRL Pacific Division's Conference, Pacificon 2015 will
be held
in the Marriott, 2600 Bishop Drive in San Ramon. The host for Pacificon is
the Mount Diablo Amateur Radio Club (MDARC).
Alan, WA6DNR will be representing AMSAT with a table and Michael, WA6ARA
will
be giving a forum presentation titled, “Satellites - Amateur Radio's
Future.”
Micheal's forum presentation will be at 1100 PDT, October 17 in the San
Ramon
Marriott's Pleasanton Room. Say Hi Hi to both!
If you're on the west coast and cannot make it to Dayton for the AMSAT
Space
Symposium, Pacificon is always a fun alternative with swap meet, forums,
dinner, events, and Gordo West.
Further details on Pacificon are at:
https://sites.google.com/a/mdarc.org/pacificon2015/home
[ANS thanks Alan Bowker, WA6DNR for the above information]
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AO-85 (Fox-1A) FM Voice Transponder Activated
The 435 to 145 MHz FM voice transponder on AO-85 was activated during
Friday,
October 9 allowing many contacts to be made. Among those active on the
satellite was 9-year-old Hope KM4IPF. Hope is the daughter of Michelle
N8ZQZ
and James WX4TV, other radio amateurs in the family are Hope’s elder sister
Faith WA4BBC and brother Zechariah, WX4TVJ. Her younger sister is
studying for
her license.
In this video Hope KM4IPF describes her first AO-85 (Fox-1A) contact
https://vimeo.com/141916942
Fox-1A Real-time track and Orbital Predictions (click on Draw Footprint to
show coverage area)
http://www.n2yo.com/?s=40967
Read the Fox Operating Guide to find out how to set up your handheld
radio to
work the satellite
http://www.amsat.org/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2015/05/FoxOperatingGuide_
May2015_Hi.pdf
Note: If your rig has selectable FM filters use the wider filter for 5 kHz
deviation 25 kHz channel spacing.
See
http://amsat-uk.org/2015/10/09/fox-1a-fm-transponder-activated/
[ANS thanks AMSAT-UK for the above information]
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AO-85 Update
AO-85 is still being tested. Please note that while AO-85 is in Transponder
Mode right now, we have not officially commissioned her and testing is
still
underway. Part of the testing involves observations in Transponder and Data
Modes. We may switch out of Transponder Mode at any time without notice,
until we are done testing.
If AO-85 is in Safe Mode or Data Mode when it passes and you were expecting
Transponder Mode, don't be surprised or angry!
[ANS thanks AMSAT Vice-President for Engineering Jerry, N0JY for the above
information]
---------------------------------------------------------------------
New OSCAR Status Page
Thanks to the efforts of Joe KM1P and Pete 2E0SQL, and with the permission
of David, KD5QGR, we have set up a copy of the OSCAR satellite status
page at
http://www.amsat.org/status
This page will be maintained by multiple volunteers, including myself, and
we will be able to add and delete satellites as required, as well as keep
information links current. It will take a few days to populate the database,
but please begin using this page as soon as possible. In the near future the
old page will point to this one for a while, until people get used to the
new address.
There are still some satellites to add and delete, so this will be a work in
progress for a bit. First and foremost we will delete the reentered sats,
and add Fox-1A for next Thursday!
[ANS thanks Drew, KO4MA for the above information]
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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, Saturday, and Sunday, October 16-18 2015, AMSAT Symposium in
Dayton OH (Dayton Crown Plaza)
*Friday, Saturday, and Sunday, October 16-18 2015, ARRL Pacific Division
Convention (Pacificon), San Ramon, California
*Saturday, 7 November 2015 – Oro Valley Amateur Radio Club Hamfest in
Marana AZ
*Saturday and Sunday, 7-8 November 2015 – Stone Mountain Hamfest and ARRL
Georgia Section Convention in Lawrenceville GA
*Monday, 16 November 2015 – Tri-City Amateur Radio Association meeting in
Goodyear AZ
*Saturday, 5 December 2015 – Superstition Superfest 2015 in Mesa AZ
[ANS thanks AMSAT-NA for the above information]
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ARISS News
Successful Contacts
October 6, 2015
* A telebridge contact via LU1CGB with students at Corpus Christi Catholic
School, Chambersburg, PA, USA was successful Tue 2015-10-06 16:29:32 UTC 33
deg. Students received answers to 18 questions from astronaut Kjell
Lindgren,
KO5MOS.
Listen to a recording of the contact:
http://www.ariss.org/news.html
School Information
Corpus Christi Catholic School is a K - 8 Roman Catholic Elementary School,
located in Chambersburg, Pennsylvania. With an enrollment of 215
students and
17 full-time and 3 part-time faculty members, Corpus Christi School is
committed to the pursuit of excellence in Catholic education. The school
strives to be on the cutting edge of technology with Smartboards in every
classroom, two computer labs, iPads, and Chromebooks. Students in the
primary
grades participate in weekly swim lessons at the local YMCA. Intermediate
grades place a strong emphasis on STEM related concepts and careers. Grades
four through eight have background knowledge of NASA starting with
Gemini and
continuing onto Mars. In 2013, three teachers were selected to be on the
Reduced Gravity Flight through NASA Explorer Schools. This experience
increased the entire students’ awareness of space flight and experiments
being
conducted in microgravity on the International Space Station. Middle school
students are able to expand their curriculum by traveling to major
cities such
as Pittsburgh, Washington DC, and Williamsburg, VA. Scores on standardized
tests are above the national average. School pride runs deep with the
students, faculty, staff and parents.
* A direct contact via 9M2RPN with students at Sekolah Kebangsaan
Taman Tun
Dr Ismail (1), Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, was successful Fri 2015-10-09
08:00:04
UTC 47 deg. The scheduled astronaut was Kjell Lindgren KO5MOS.
Video Link of Contact
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VCMo_BkXOaI
School Information
Our first ARISS contact was made in 2007 when, Malaysia's first Astronaut
Shiekh Muzapher went on board the ISS. We made 5 direct contacts when,
some 80
school children talked to him and asked questions. Since then it has
become a
highly sought after yearly event which is tied up with the Prime Minister's
Space Challenge Trophy. This year we will be making our 8th yearly
contact.
Since the schools do not have ground stations, they make use of Satellite
Ground Station at the National Planetarium established in 1995 under the
call
sign of 9M2RPN. The schools are the nurseries to produce future
astronauts and
space scientists. The forthcoming contact in October 2015 provides the
hands
on experience and the seeding operation for tomorrow's space scientists.
Upcoming Contacts
* A telebridge contact via IK1SLD with students at Bay View Elementary
School in Burlington, Washington, USA is scheduled for Wed 2015-10-14
19:41:44
UTC 59 deg.
School Information
Bay View School in Burlington, Washington has been serving kindergarten
through eighth grade students in the Burlington-Edison School District
for 22
years. Named after the small community of Bayview, which was later
incorporated
by the town of Burlington, it serves mainly in-district neighborhood
students.
This year 562 students are enrolled. The town of Burlington is 66 miles
north
of Seattle, Washington. Located at the intersection of two major highways,
Burlington serves as a retail and commercial hub for the region. Industry is
mainly agricultural, retail, and commercial.
Over the past three years, Bay View has committed to becoming a school of
inquiry. Through inquiry and collaboration, Bay View’s purpose is to nurture
compassionate, creative, knowledgeable growth-minded world citizens, who
pursue
dreams and positively impact the future. Bay View continually inquires to
understand one essential question. What do we need to understand, commit
to and
implement to prepare students to be career, college, and/or world ready
for the
21st century? This journey has led them to begin creating concept-based
units
of inquiry at each grade level. Multi-disciplinary and
intra-disciplinary units
support school-wide connections through inquiry. The opportunity to ask
questions of astronauts on the ISS was pursued as an experience that could
spark students’ interest in space, engineering, technology, mathematics, and
support a school-wide inquiry.
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]
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Satellite Shorts From All Over
AMSAT Highlighted in This Week at NASA
Fox, amateur radio, and AMSAT are briefing featured this week in the short
weekly news update “This Week at NASA.”
See:
https://youtu.be/tWOiU2oJMSA
[ANS thanks Frank, KA3HDO for the above information]
Magazine Archive
Free (hams like free!) access to electronics and radio magazines from the
past. Something to read while waiting for that next AO-85 pass ...
See
http://americanradiohistory.com/
Hover mouse over Broadcast & Consumer for a menu
Hover mouse over Consumer Electronics then Popular Electronics & Similar
The old issues download as PDF files. Gotta try it on my tablet to see if it
works in the little room down the hall ...
[ANS thanks JoAnne, K9JKM for the above information]
AMSAT Symposium / VUCC/WAS QSL Card Checking
Bruce Paige, KK5DO, AMSAT Director Contests and Awards reports that if you
have any cards you would like checked for VUCC/WAS, I will be at the
Symposium.
I will give preference to satellite contacts first before I check other
bands/modes. If you are going to have cards checked, I prefer the list
be in
Grid Square order using an Excel spreadsheet or Word doc with the second
column being the call sign worked. Place all your cards in the same grid
square order as the list with any cards that contain multiple grids at
the end
of the stack. If you have lists (from Yuri, etc), I can go through them as
well.
[ANS thanks Bruce, KK5DO for the above information]
NASA to Announce Selections for Small Satellite Launch Contract
October 07, 2015
MEDIA ADVISORY M15-150
NASA to Announce Selections for Small Satellite Launch ContractNASA will
host
a news conference at 1 p.m. EDT on Wednesday, Oct. 14, at the agency’s
Kennedy
Space Center in Florida to announce the outcome of the Venture Class Launch
Service (VCLS) competition. The news conference will air live on NASA
Television and the agency’s website.
The participants are:
• Garrett Skrobot, Educational Launch of Nanosatellites (ELaNa) mission
lead for the Launch Services Program (LSP) at Kennedy
• Eric Ianson, associate director of NASA’s Earth Sciences Division in
the Science Mission Directorate at the agency’s headquarters in Washington
• Mark Wiese, flight projects office chief, NASA Launch Services
Program, Kennedy Space Center
• Representatives from the selected launch service providers
[ANS thanks NASA for the above information]
See you in Dayton! - Joe, K6WAO
---------------------------------------------------------------------
/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
1
0
ANS-281 AMSAT News Service Special Bulletin - AO-85 OSCAR Number Assigned for Fox-1A
by Joseph Spier 09 Oct '15
by Joseph Spier 09 Oct '15
09 Oct '15
AMSAT NEWS SERVICE SPECIAL BULLETIN
ANS-281
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:
* AO-85 OSCAR Number Assigned for Fox-1A
SB SAT @ AMSAT $ANS-281.01
ANS-281 AMSAT News Service Special Bulletin
AMSAT News Service Bulletin 281.01
>From AMSAT HQ KENSINGTON, MD.
DATE October 8, 2015
To All RADIO AMATEURS
BID: $ANS-281.01
---------------------------------------------------------------------
AO-85 OSCAR Number Assigned for Fox-1A
Willian (Bill) Tynan, W3XO, AMSAT-NA OSCAR Number Administrator has
issued the
following release:
I have been informed of the successful launch today, October 8, 2015 of the
AMSAT-NA-built Fox-1A CubeSat. I am also informed that the satellite has
been
heard by several amateurs in various countries.
This successful launch comes after years of diligent and dedicated work
on the
part of AMSAT-NA volunteers including Tony Momteiro, AA2TX, who became a
silent
key in March, 2014. It was Tony who spearheaded and guided the work on all
AMSAT-NA CubeSats until his untimely passing. Thus, it is only fitting that
this spacecraft be dedicated to his memory.
Following Tony’s death, the work of completing and preparing for launch fell
to Jerry Buxton, W0JY, who took over Tony’s post of AMSAT-NA’s Vice
President
for Engineering and saw to Fox-1A’s successful completion and its
preparation
for launch.
All of those who had a part in designing, constructing and testing
Fox-1A and
its various subsystems are to be congratulated for jobs well done.
Since Fox-1A was properly coordinated through IARU as an Amateur Radio
satellite, has been successfully launched and its signals have been
received;
I, under the authority vested in me by the AMSAT-NA President, do hereby
issue
to Fox-1A the designation AMSAT-OSCAR-85, or AO-85.
May AO-85 serve the radio amateurs of world for many years to come.
[ANS thanks Bill, W3XO, and AMSAT-NA 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
1
0
AMSAT NEWS SERVICE
ANS-277
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:
* Special Membership Offer for Fox-1A launch on October 8, 2015
* NASA Sets Coverage Schedule for CubeSat Launch Events
* AMSAT-NA VP-Engineering on NASA TV Wednesday
* Volunteer Opportunity: Editor-in-Chief of the AMSAT Journal
* ISS CubeSats set to deploy Monday, Oct 5
* LQSat Launch Monday, October 5
* Beijing Launches Three More Amateur Radio Satellites
* LAPAN-A2 FM and APRS Satellite Launched
* September/October 2015 AMSAT Journal is at the Print Shop
* Online Registration for the AMSAT Symposium Closes October 8th
* White House Office of Science and Technology Policy's Spring 2016 Policy
Internship Program
* AMSAT Events
* ARISS News
* Satellite Shorts From All Over
SB SAT @ AMSAT $ANS-277.01
ANS-277 AMSAT News Service Weekly Bulletins
AMSAT News Service Bulletin 277.01
>From AMSAT HQ KENSINGTON, MD.
DATE October 4, 2015
To All RADIO AMATEURS
BID: $ANS-277.01
---------------------------------------------------------------------
Special Membership Offer for Fox-1A launch on October 8, 2015
AMSAT’s Fox-1A is set to launch as part of the GRACE (Government Rideshare
Advanced Concepts Experiment) auxillary payload on the NROL-55 mission
October
8, 2015 from Vandenburg AFB on an Atlas V vehicle. More details will be
released when made available from our launch provider. NRO has released this
factsheet about the mission:
http://www.amsat.org/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2015/10/GRACE_CubeSat_
FactSheet.pdf
General information on Fox-1A is available in the downloadable AMSAT Fox
Operating Guide.
http://www.amsat.org/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2015/05/FoxOperatingGuide_
May2015_Hi.pdf
FoxTelem software for decoding and submitting telemetry has been made
available for download at
http://www.amsat.org/?page_id=4532 .
As part of the preparations for the launch and activation of
this new satellite, AMSAT is making our “Getting Started With The Amateur
Satellites” book available for a limited time as a download with any
paid new
or renewal membership purchased via the AMSAT Store. This offer is only
available with purchases completed online, and for only a limited time. A
perennial favorite, Getting Started is updated every year with the latest
amateur satellite information, and is the premier primer of satellite
operation. The 132 page book is presented in PDF format, in full color, and
covers all aspects of making your first contacts on a ham radio satellite.
Please take advantage of this offer today by visiting the AMSAT store
http://store.amsat.org/catalog/
and selecting any membership option. While there, check out our other
items, including the M2 LEOpack antenna system, AMSAT shirts, hats, and
other
swag. Thank you, and see you soon on Fox-1A!
[ANS thanks Drew Glasbrenner, KO4MA, Vice-President Operations for the above
information]
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NASA Sets Coverage Schedule for CubeSat Launch Events
NASA Press Release:
http://www.nasa.gov/press-release/nasa-sets-coverage-schedule-for-cubesat-
launch-events
Thirteen NASA and National Reconnaissance Office (NRO)-sponsored
CubeSats are
scheduled to launch aboard a United Launch Alliance Atlas V rocket Thursday,
Oct. 8, from Vandenberg Air Force Base in California. Prelaunch media
briefings
and launch commentary coverage will be carried live on NASA Television
and the
agency's website.
Four of the CubeSats are NASA-sponsored and nine are NRO-sponsored, one of
which was developed with NASA funding. All will be flown on the NRO's
Government Rideshare Advanced Concepts Experiment (GRACE), which is an
auxiliary payload aboard the NROL-55 mission.
The CubeSat developed with NASA funding will evaluate the ability to point a
small satellite accurately as it demonstrates data transfer by laser at
rates
of up to 200 Mb/s -- a factor of 100 increase over current high-end CubeSat
communications systems. The NASA-sponsored CubeSats will test new small
satellite control and communications systems, Earth observations,
amateur radio
communications and an X-Band radio science transponder.
These CubeSats also include the first to be designed, built and operated by
students in Alaska and the first from Native American tribal college
students.
Small satellites, including CubeSats, are playing an increasingly larger
role
in exploration, technology demonstration, scientific research and
educational
investigations at NASA. These miniature satellites provide a low-cost
platform
for NASA missions, including planetary space exploration; Earth
observations;
fundamental Earth and space science; and developing precursor science
instruments like cutting-edge laser communications, satellite-to-satellite
communications and autonomous movement capabilities. They also allow an
inexpensive means to engage students in all phases of satellite development,
operation and exploitation through real-world, hands-on research and
development experience on NASA-funded rideshare launch opportunities.
NASA will host two prelaunch briefings at Vandenberg on Wednesday, Oct.
7. The
first briefing will highlight the growing importance of CubeSats in
exploration
and technology development and will begin at 1 p.m. EDT (10 a.m. PDT). The
participants will be:
* Steve Jurczyk, associate administrator for Space Technology at NASA
Headquarters
* Meagan Hubbell, deputy chief, CubeSat Program Office, National
Reconnaissance Office
* Sherrie Zacharius, vice president, Technology and Laboratory
Operations at
The Aerospace Corporation
* John Serafini, vice president, Allied Minds and CEO, BridgeSat and
HawkEye
360
* Andrew Petro, Small Spacecraft Technology Program executive at NASA
Headquarters
* Scott Higginbotham, Launch Services Program ELaNa-12 Mission manager at
NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida
The second briefing will discuss the five NASA-sponsored CubeSats. This
briefing will begin at 2 p.m. EDT (11 a.m. PDT). The participants will be:
* Richard Welle, director, Microsatellite Systems department at The
Aerospace Corporation
* Tim Olson, principal investigator for BisonSat, Salish Kootenai
College,
Pablo, Montana
* Morgan Johnson, team lead for the ARC CubeSat, University of Alaska,
Fairbanks
* Jerry Buxton, vice president, Engineering, for AMSAT Fox-1
* Courtney Duncan, principal investigator for LMRST-Sat, NASA's Jet
Propulsion Laboratory, Pasadena, California
Panelists also will be available from noon to 1 p.m. PDT for one-on-one
interviews. Slots are limited.
Media interested in participating in the briefings by telephone or to
schedule
an interview must contact Joshua Buck at 202-358-1130 or jbuck(a)nasa.gov by 5
p.m. PDT, Tuesday, Oct. 6. Questions also can be submitted via Twitter
during
the briefings using the hashtag
#askNASA.
Media may obtain access badges by contacting Capt. Selena Rodts, Vandenberg
Air Force Base Public Affairs at 805-606-3595 or
selena.rodts.1(a)us.af.mil and
submitting the necessary information by noon PDT on Tuesday.
For information about NASA TV launch coverage, visit:
http://www.nasa.gov/nasatv
For more information about NASA CubeSats, visit:
http://www.nasa.gov/cubesats
[ANS thanks Joshua Buck, NASA Headquarters, Washington for the above
information]
---------------------------------------------------------------------
AMSAT-NA VP-Engineering on NASA TV Wednesday
AMSAT-NA VP-Engineering Jerry Buxton, N0JY will be on the panel at a NASA
prelaunch briefing on Wednesday, October 7 at 1800 UT. The briefing will be
shown live on NASA TV.
The amateur radio FM transponder CubeSat, AMSAT Fox-1A, will be among 13
CubeSats flying as secondary payloads on the NROL-55 mission which should
launch on a United Launch Alliance Atlas V rocket on Thursday, October
8, from
Vandenberg Air Force Base in California.
NASA will be holding two briefings about the launch. The first on Wednesday,
Oct. 7 at 1700 UT (1pm EDT) will highlight the growing importance of
CubeSats
in exploration and technology development. The second at 1800 UT (2pm
EDT) will
discuss five of the CubeSats.
Jerry Buxton, N0JY will on the panel in the 1800 UT briefing to talk
about the
Fox mission and science, and answer questions.
Fox-1A is a 1-Unit CubeSat carrying an FM repeater that will allow simple
ground stations using an HT and an “Arrow” or “Elk” type antenna to make
contacts using the satellite.
Data Under Voice (DUV) is used to send 200 bps FSK telemetry data at the
same
time as FM audio. This is achieved by making use of sub-audible frequencies
below 200 Hz.
Information on the free Fox telemetry decoder software is at
http://amsat-uk.org/2015/09/23/fox-telemetry-decoder-software/
Read the Fox Operating Guide at
http://www.amsat.org/wordpress/wp-
content/uploads/2015/05/FoxOperatingGuide_May2015_Hi.pdf
The launch is still listed as TBD, Thursday, October 8 - CubeSat Launch
Coverage from Vandenberg Air Force Base, Calif. Watch the following website
for updated coverage:
http://www.nasa.gov/multimedia/nasatv/schedule.html
Watch NASA TV at
http://www.nasa.gov/nasatv
[ANS thanks AMSAT and AMSAT-UK for the above information]
---------------------------------------------------------------------
Volunteer Opportunity: Editor-in-Chief of the AMSAT Journal
AMSAT is searching for a volunteer to assume the position of editor-in-chief
of the AMSAT Journal. You'll help develop article sources and using AMSAT
provided software and templates compile the 32-page magazine for six
issues per
year. Our publishing system is the Adobe InDesign CS6 package. This can be
learned quickly by any computer literate ham. InDesign is MS-Word on
steroids.
The editor-in-chief leads a team of assistant editors who locate
articles and
establish contact with potential authors. All you need is an eye for
articles
of interest to amateur radio in space. You'll compile input from AMSAT HQ,
volunteer authors, and amateur radio news sources into articles for
publication
in our semi-monthly magazine.
Contact Barry Baines, WD4ASW (wd4asw(a)amsat.org) for additional information.
[ANS thanks the AMSAT Office the above information]
---------------------------------------------------------------------
ISS CubeSats set to deploy Monday, Oct 5
The European Space Agency (ESA) has announced that two Danish CubeSats
carrying amateur radio payloads should be deployed from the
International Space
Station (ISS) on Monday, October 5.
Originally launched to the ISS on August 19, 2015 the two CubeSats, AAUSat-5
and GomX-3, will be deployed from the ISS Japanese Kibo module airlock. An
astronaut will manipulate the Kibo robotic arm to lift AAUSAT-5 from the
airlock and place it in orbit.
Once deployed from the ISS the CubeSat will begin transmitting signals to
Earth that can be picked up by anyone with common amateur radio
equipment. The
frequencies to listen on are:
AAUSat-5 – 437.425 MHz with 30 WPM CW beacon every 3 minutes and 9600
bps GMSK
packet every 30 seconds
GomX-3 – 437.250 MHz with 1200-9600 bps GMSK data from a NanoCom AX100 using
CSP protocol
In addition to the amateur radio payloads new radio technology being
demonstrated by GomX-3 will support the tracking of civil aircraft and
measuring telecom satellite signal quality. AAUSat-5 will demonstrate the
tracking of ships on the open sea.
ESA article CubeSats set for Monday Release (with video)
http://www.esa.int/Our_Activities/Space_Engineering_Technology/ESA_CubeSats…
_for_Monday_release
ESA invites radio amateurs to listen for AAUSat-5 CubeSat
http://amsat-uk.org/2015/09/24/esa-listen-for-aausat-5/
[ANS thanks ESA and AMSAT-UK for the above information]
---------------------------------------------------------------------
LQSat Launch Monday, October 5
onday, October 5 should see the launch of LQSat which was developed by
researchers and students at the Changchun Institute of Optics, Fine
Mechanics
and Physics (CIOMP) and carries an amateur radio payload.
The launch will take place from the Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center
(JSLC) in
Inner Mongolia on a Chang Zheng 2D (CZ-2D) rocket.
LQSat is technology demonstrator 40x40x60 cm with a mass of 50 kg and
carries
a 2 m resolution camera as the main payload.
The IARU coordinated downlink frequencies are
• 437.650 MHz at 0.5 watts (27 dBm) with either 25 WPM CW or 4800 bps
MSK CSP
packet data
• 2404 MHz at 1 watt (30 dBm) using 1 Mbps QPSK
See
http://amsat-uk.org/2015/10/02/lqsat-launch/
[ANS thanks AMSAT-UK for the above information]
---------------------------------------------------------------------
Beijing Launches Three More Amateur Radio Satellites
On September 25, 2015 at 01:41 UT Beijing launched three satellites with
amateur radio payloads from the Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center (JSLC)
in the
Gobi desert, Inner Mongolia. They were carried on a new launcher, Beijing’s
first solid-fuel rocket Chang Zheng 11 (CZ-11), and deployed in a 470 x
485 km,
97.3 degree inclination Sun Synchronous Orbit (SSO).
This launch occurred just over 5 days after nine satellites carrying amateur
radio payloads were launched by Beijing from the Taiyuan Satellite Launch
Center (TSLC) in Shanxi on September 19 at 23:01 UT.
The satellites were developed by students at the Nanjing University of
Aeronautics and Astronautics in collaboration with the Shanghai Engineering
Center for Microsatellites (SECM).
The main goal of the mission is to experiment with Software Defined Radio
(SDR) in space. The amateur radio payloads will be used for exchanging
Telemetry, Tracking and Command (TT&C) information with the amateur radio
ground control station. Information about the telemetry will be made
publicly
available so that radio amateurs around the world may track and monitor the
health of the satellites.
Other payloads include a video camera along with receivers for dual-band
GPS/Beidou, Maritime Automatic Identification System (AIS) and Aeronautical
Automatic Dependent Surveillance Broadcast (ADS-B).
Using MEMS based cold-gas micropropulsion it is planned to demonstrate
formation flying by two of the CubeSats along with inter satellite
communication using GAMALINK 2.4 GHz spread spectrum at 1 Mbps and the
CubeSat
Space Protocol (CSP).
The TW-1A and TW-1B CubeSats are 2U (20x10x10cm) in size while TW-1C is 3U
(30x10x10cm).
Michael Chen BD5RV reports the satellites have these downlinks in the
435-438
MHz ITU Amateur Satellite Service allocation:
• Tianwang-1A (TW-1A / SECM): Camera, 435.645 MHz GMSK 4800/9600 CSP TX
interval 10s
• Tianwang-1B (TW-1B / NJUST-2): AIS, 437.645 MHz GMSK 4800/9600 CSP TX
interval 20s
• Tianwang-1C (TC-1C / NJFA-1): ADS-B, 435.645 MHz GMSK 4800/9600 CSP TX
interval 10s
Note: TW-1A and 1C use the same frequency.
On the same launch was the technology demonstration satellite Pujian-1 which
has WiFi for intra-satellite communications.
Object identification from information supplied by Nico Janssen PA0DLO and
Zhang Xuan BH4DBE:
TW-1A object 40928, 2015-051B
TW-1B object 40927, 2015-051C, (other IDs: TianWang 1B, NJUST-2)
TW-1C object 40926, 2015-051D
Pujian 1 object 40925, 2015-051A
Chang Zheng 11 (CZ-11) fourth stage object 40929, 2015-051E
Keplerian Two Line Elements (TLEs) ‘Keps’ for new satellites launched in
past
30 days
http://celestrak.com/NORAD/elements/tle-new.txt
Shanghai Engineering Centre for Microsatellites
http://www.microsate.com/en/
GAMALINK in Space
http://tekevernews.blogspot.co.uk/2015/07/gamalink-in-space.html
IARU Satellite Frequency Coordination pages
http://amsat.org.uk/iaru/
Satellite tracking information
http://amsat-uk.org/beginners/satellite-tracking/
Adding new satellites to SatPC32, Gpredict and Nova
http://amsat-uk.org/2013/11/23/adding-new-satellites-to-satpc32/
[ANS thanks AMSAT-UK for the above information]
---------------------------------------------------------------------
LAPAN-A2 FM and APRS Satellite Launched
The Indonesian amateur radio society ORARI report that on Monday, September
28, 2015 04:30 hours UT, the LAPAN-A2/ORARI satellite was launched from the
Sriharikota Range (SHAR) of the Satish Dhawan Space Centre in India.
Deployment
took place 23 minutes later.
LAPAN-A2 is in a 650 km orbit with an inclination of 6 degrees. It takes
about
110 minutes to orbit the Earth and should pass over Indonesia and other near
equatorial locations 14 times a day.
The low inclination equatorial orbit means it will be receivable from
about 30
degrees North to 30 degrees South. About a third of the world’s population,
over 2.4 billion people, live within the coverage area of the satellite.
The ground station at the LAPAN Satellite Technology Centre in Rancabungur,
Bogor has made contact with LAPAN-A2. There will now be a period of
activation
and testing of all the satellite systems and it is expected to be about
a month
before the amateur radio payload becomes available for general use.
The primary aims of the mission are Earth observation using an RGB
camera and
maritime traffic monitoring using AIS, both using frequencies outside the
Amateur Satellite Service.
The IARU has coordinated these frequencies for LAPA-A2/ORARI:
• 437.425 MHz telemetry beacon
• 435.880 MHz FM uplink
• 145.880 MHz FM downlink (5 watts)
• 145.825 APRS digipeater (5 watts)
Please send reports to
yd1eee(a)gmail.com
Listen to a recording of the 437.425 MHz telemetry signal at
https://chirb.it/MrgLGy
Pre-launch Keps courtesy of Dirgantara Rahadian YE0EEE
YBSAT
1 99999U 00000 15270.20393519 .00010000 00000-0 10000-3 0 00011
2 99999 006.0383 028.8188 0001450 317.4897 243.6033 14.00000000000018
Keplerian Two Line Elements (TLEs) ‘Keps’ for new satellites launched in
past
30 days
http://celestrak.com/NORAD/elements/tle-new.txt
Adding new satellites to SatPC32, Gpredict and Nova
http://amsat-uk.org/2013/11/23/adding-new-satellites-to-satpc32/
Satellite tracking information
http://amsat-uk.org/beginners/satellite-tracking/
AMSAT-ID Facebook Group
https://www.facebook.com/groups/831872960241607/
Organisasi Amatir Radio Indonesia (ORARI) in Google English
http://tinyurl.com/IndonesiaORARI
LAPAN-A2 paper
http://www.researchgate.net/publication/259844289_Development_of_
Micro-satellite_Technology_at_the_Indonesian_National_Institute_of_Aeronautics_
and_Space_%28LAPAN%29
The IARU Region 3 Conference takes place in Bali, Indonesia, October
12-16, 2015
http://amsat-uk.org/2015/08/21/iaru-region-3-act-on-band-plan-satellite/
[ANS thanks AMSAT-UK for the above information]
---------------------------------------------------------------------
September/October 2015 AMSAT Journal is at the Print Shop
The September/October 2015 AMSAT Journal is complete and has been sent to
the print shop. Watch for your issue arrive in a few weeks (sent 2nd class
mail).
In this issue you will find:
+ AMSAT Announcements
+ Apogee View by Barry Baines, WD4ASW
+ Amateur Radio, AMSAT and STEM events: a great partnership
by Tom Schuessler, N5HYP
+ AMSAT Fox Presentation to Dallas Area Ham Clubs
by Jonathan Brandenburg, KF5IDY
+ AMSAT Fox-1A: Concept to Launch, Contributions by the Fox-1A team:
o The Fox-1A Story - Ready for Launch October
o Some History: Introducing the Fox-1 Cubesat
o Fox-1A Design + Build + Software = Engineering Prototype
o Fox-1A Shake and Bake
o Fox-1A Delivery and Integration
o Congratulations to AMSAT's Fox-1 Team!
o Fox-1A at Vandenberg AFB and Ready for Launch
o Operating Tips When You Operate on Fox-1A
+ DopplerPSK: Doppler-Correction Software for NO-84's
(PSAT) PSK31 Transponder by Andy Flowers, K0SM/2
+ ARISS-International Meeting Held in Tokyo, Japan
by David Jordan, AA4KN
+ Implementation of the International Arms Export Control Act
of 1976 by Elizabeth Garbee, KC0OTR
Thanks to all who contributed to this issue of the AMSAT Journal. As always
please send your photos, articles, news about club activities, awards to
k9jkm(a)amsat.org. The Journal's editorial team will be glad to help you get
it published. We have an author's guide, "How to Write for the AMSAT
Journal", posted at
http://www.amsat.org/?page_id=1709
[ANS thanks the AMSAT Journal Editorial Team for the above information]
---------------------------------------------------------------------
Online Registration for tne AMSAT Symposium Closes October 8th
Online reservations for the upcoming AMSAT Space Symposium close October
8th. After that, you will have to register at the October 16-18 meeting in
Dayton, Ohio.
See
http://www.amsat.org/?page_id=3667
[ANS thanks Martha at the AMSAT Office for the above information]
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White House Office of Science and Technology Policy's Spring 2016 Policy
Internship Program
The White House Office of Science and Technology Policy is seeking students
for spring 2016 internships. The OSTP advises the President on the effects
of science and technology on domestic and international affairs. The office
serves as a source of scientific and technological analyses and judgment for
the president with respect to major policies, plans and programs of the
federal government.
Policy internships are open to interested students from all majors and
programs, including law school programs. Applicants must be U.S. citizens
who are enrolled, at least half-time, in an accredited college or university
during the period of volunteer service. Students in undergraduate, graduate
and professional programs in all fields are encouraged to apply.
While these positions are without compensation, the assignments provide
educational enrichment, practical work experience and networking
opportunities with other individuals in the science and technology policy
arena.
Applications for spring 2016 internships are due Oct. 30, 2015.
For more information, visit
http://www.whitehouse.gov/administration/eop/ostp/about/student.
If you have questions about this opportunity, please contact Rebecca Grimm
at Rebecca_L_Grimm(a)ostp.eop.gov.
[ANS thanks the NASA Education Express Message -- Oct. 1, 2015 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, Saturday, and Sunday, October 16-18 2015, AMSAT Symposium in
Dayton OH (Dayton Crown Plaza)
*Saturday, 7 November 2015 – Oro Valley Amateur Radio Club Hamfest in
Marana AZ
*Saturday and Sunday, 7-8 November 2015 – Stone Mountain Hamfest and ARRL
Georgia Section Convention in Lawrenceville GA
*Monday, 16 November 2015 – Tri-City Amateur Radio Association meeting in
Goodyear AZ
*Saturday, 5 December 2015 – Superstition Superfest 2015 in Mesa AZ
[ANS thanks AMSAT-NA for the above information]
---------------------------------------------------------------------
ARISS News
Successful Contacts
* A direct contact via 8N2F with students at Fukara Junior High School,
Susono,
Japan, was successful Thu 2015-10-01 10:26:55 UTC 85 deg. Thirteen students
were able to ask 17 questions of astronaut Kimiya Yui before the signal was
lost.
Fukara Junior High School is located in the eastern part of Susono City in
Shizuoka Prefecture. Susono faces magnificent Mt. Fuji to the northwest, and
extends to the crater of Mt. Hakone in the east. We have an unbroken
view from
the foot of Mt. Fuji to Suruga Bay.This school is a smaller school with only
147 students – 2 classes for each grade. The students are friendly and
obedient
and the school is always full of activity. All of the students belong to a
sports team – we have baseball, basketball, volleyball, tennis, and table
tennis teams, so all of the students are involved in sports. Integrated
activities are the focus of our educational philosophy. For example, we
perform
a play each year called “The Canal of Life”, in which the students study
about
local history and perform a play about the work left behind by our
forbearers –
an irrigation canal that was built in the area. Through this kind of
study, the
students develop many strong ties to their community as well as pride in
their
hometown. Also, all the students in the school analyze newspaper
articles each
morning to build awareness of current events around the world. They form
their
own thoughts and opinions about each article, and discuss their opinions
with
friends to further develop their thought process. This is how we are
promoting
the NIE program (Newspapers in Education). The opportunity to talk with
Mr. Yui
via wireless transmission is a valuable experience to the students. We
believe
that this activity will elevate the quality of our students.
A video file has been uploaded:
http://www.ariss.jp/fukara/8n2f.wmv
* A telebridge contact via LU1CGB with students at Nowogard Union Schools,
Junior High School No. 2, Nowogard, Poland was successful Tue 2015-09-29
12:56:27 UTC 36 deg. Astronaut Kjell Lindgren, KO5MOS answered 14
questions for
students.
Nowogard Union Schools consists of two schools: Junior High School No 2
and II
High School. The school is situated in Nowogard in West Pomernia
Province. Our
students are 13-19 years old. II High School provides students mainly with
humanities, science and mathematics curriculum.
In December 2013 the schools joined the ARISS School Contacts project.
In 2004
the Nicolaus Copernicus School Amateur Radio called SP1KMK was established.
Since then our students have been keenly developing their radio ham
interests.
Students have taken part in astronomy and astronautics projects such as:
MiniSat (they sent their own experiments in near space via balloons
thanks to
Copernicus Project Foundation), EarthKam (pupils ordered images of Earth
taken
from the ISS). There was also an educational project called
“SUPERCOMPUTER” in
which our students gained some knowledge of the latest wireless networking
technologies.
Apart from the above projects, they have made numerous astronomical
observations and got involved in astrophotography. Moreover, we hosted some
members of Polish Amateur Astronomers Society who showed at the school the
largest amateur telescope called “SOWA”. Within the project, Nowogard Union
Schools started to cooperate with some institutes of higher education
such as
West Pomeranian University of Technology in Szczecin and University of
Szczecin. We also has established cooperation with NASA staff and
conducted a
video conference with a NASA astronauts’ trainer and a NASA flight engineer.
There have been some school trips to Air Force Base in Ewidwin and Dolna
Odra Power Station in Gryfino organized to expand students’
technological and
technical knowledge.
Upcoming Contacts
* A telebridge contact with students at Corpus Christi Catholic School,
Chambersburg, PA, USA via LU1CGB is scheduled for Tue 2015-10-06
16:29:32 UTC
33 deg. The scheduled astronaut is Kjell Lindgren KO5MOS.
Audio from this contact will be fed into:
- EchoLink *AMSAT* (101377)
- IRLP Node 9010 Discovery Reflector
- Streaming Audio at:
https://sites.google.com/site/arissaudio/
Audio on Echolink and web stream is generally transmitted around 20 minutes
prior to the contact taking place so that you can hear some of the
preparation
that occurs. IRLP will begin just prior to the ground station call to
the ISS.
Please note that due to control issues with Echolink and IRLP there are
manual
breaks approximately every 2 minutes to prevent timeout of connected
repeaters
and links. You may still time out depending on your local configuration.
Corpus Christi Catholic School is a K - 8 Roman Catholic Elementary School,
located in Chambersburg, Pennsylvania. With an enrollment of 215
students and
17 full-time and 3 part-time faculty members, Corpus Christi School is
committed to the pursuit of excellence in Catholic education. The school
strives to be on the cutting edge of technology with Smartboards in every
classroom, two computer labs, iPads, and Chromebooks. Students in the
primary
grades participate in weekly swim lessons at the local YMCA. Intermediate
grades place a strong emphasis on STEM related concepts and careers. Grades
four through eight have background knowledge of NASA starting with
Gemini and
continuing onto Mars. In 2013, three teachers were selected to be on the
Reduced Gravity Flight through NASA Explorer Schools. This experience
increased the entire students’ awareness of space flight and experiments
being
conducted in microgravity on the International Space Station. Middle school
students are able to expand their curriculum by traveling to major
cities such
as Pittsburgh, Washington DC, and Williamsburg, VA. Scores on standardized
tests are above the national average. School pride runs deep with the
students, faculty, staff and parents.
* A direct contact via 9M2RPN with students at Sekolah Kebangsaan Taman
Tun Dr Ismail (1), Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, is scheduled for Fri 2015-10-09
08:00:04 UTC 47 deg. The scheduled astronaut is Kjell Lindgren KO5MOS.
Our first ARISS contact was made in 2007 when, Malaysia's first Astronaut
Shiekh Muzapher went on board the ISS. We made 5 direct contacts when,
some 80
school children talked to him and asked questions. Since then it has
become a
highly sought after yearly event which is tied up with the Prime Minister's
Space Challenge Trophy. This year we will be making our 8th yearly contact.
Since the schools do not have ground stations, they make use of Satellite
Ground Station at the National Planetarium established in 1995 under the
call
sign of 9M2RPN. The schools are the nurseries to produce future
astronauts and
space scientists. The forthcoming contact in October 2015 provides the
hands
on experience and the seeding operation for tomorrow's space scientists.
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
Two Tenure-Track Faculty Positions Open at Cal Poly, Looking for Experience
with SmallSats
The Aerospace and Electrical Engineering Departments at California State
Polytechnic University at San Luis Obispo have 2 tenure-track faculty
positions
open. Each position is looking for experience with or that can directly be
applied to small satellites. A description of each position is listed
below. If
interested in either position, please visit www.calpolyjobs.org and use the
applicable requisition number for the position.
Micro-Satellite and Space Propulsion (Requisition # 103821): Review
Begin Date
December 1, 2015
The Aerospace Engineering Department at Cal Poly, San Luis Obispo, invites
applications for a full-time, academic year, tenure-track faculty
position at
the Assistant or Associate Professor rank beginning no later than Fall 2016.
Duties include teaching undergraduate and master's level courses,
developing an
externally funded research program in the area of micro-satellite space
propulsion, expanding the space propulsion curricula; collaborating with the
department’s ongoing CubeSat initiatives; and providing service to the
department, university, and community. Rank and salary is commensurate with
qualifications and experience.
The position requires individuals who have demonstrated ability to provide
undergraduate and graduate students with hands-on engineering education in a
multidisciplinary, systems-based environment. A Ph.D. in engineering, or
closely related field, is required. It is expected that the successful
candidate will work with faculty from the department and the college of
engineering to grow and sustain the department’s CubeSat initiative in
the area
of propulsion systems and related technologies including nonchemical
propulsion, advanced propulsion technologies, and supporting technologies.
Industry experience, especially in the area of CubeSat or other
micro-satellite
propulsion systems, and a commitment to working in a multidisciplinary and
collaborative setting are preferred.
Electrical Engineering and Aerospace Engineering Joint Position
(Requisition #
103796): Review Begin Date January 4, 2016
The Electrical Engineering Department and Aerospace Engineering
Department at
Cal Poly, San Luis Obispo, invite applications for a full-time, academic
year
tenure-track faculty position at the Assistant or Associate Professor
rank. The
projected start date is September 15, 2016. Duties include teaching
coursework
in Electrical Engineering and Aerospace Engineering, building a
collaborative
research program in the area of Satellite Communication and Mobile
Terrestrial
Communications, and service to the department, university, and community.
Desired areas of expertise include satellite electronics systems
including the
Cube Sat form factor, mobile terrestrial communication systems with a strong
hands-on orientation in working with students. Rank and salary are
commensurate with qualifications and experience. Candidates with research or
private industry experience are encouraged to apply.
[ANS thanks Ryan Nugent, CubeSat Program Cal Poly 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,
Joe Spier, K6WAO
k6wao at amsat dot org
1
0
AMSAT NEWS SERVICE
ANS-277
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:
* Special Membership Offer for Fox-1A launch on October 8, 2015
* NASA Sets Coverage Schedule for CubeSat Launch Events
* AMSAT-NA VP-Engineering on NASA TV Wednesday
* Volunteer Opportunity: Editor-in-Chief of the AMSAT Journal
* ISS CubeSats set to deploy Monday, Oct 5
* LQSat Launch Monday, October 5
* Beijing Launches Three More Amateur Radio Satellites
* LAPAN-A2 FM and APRS Satellite Launched
* September/October 2015 AMSAT Journal is at the Print Shop
* Online Registration for the AMSAT Symposium Closes October 8th
* White House Office of Science and Technology Policy's Spring 2016 Policy
Internship Program
* AMSAT Events
* ARISS News
* Satellite Shorts From All Over
SB SAT @ AMSAT $ANS-277.01
ANS-277 AMSAT News Service Weekly Bulletins
AMSAT News Service Bulletin 277.01
>From AMSAT HQ KENSINGTON, MD.
DATE October 4, 2015
To All RADIO AMATEURS
BID: $ANS-277.01
---------------------------------------------------------------------
Special Membership Offer for Fox-1A launch on October 8, 2015
AMSAT’s Fox-1A is set to launch as part of the GRACE (Government Rideshare
Advanced Concepts Experiment) auxillary payload on the NROL-55 mission
October
8, 2015 from Vandenburg AFB on an Atlas V vehicle. More details will be
released when made available from our launch provider. NRO has released this
factsheet about the mission:
http://www.amsat.org/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2015/10/GRACE_CubeSat_
FactSheet.pdf
General information on Fox-1A is available in the downloadable AMSAT Fox
Operating Guide.
http://www.amsat.org/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2015/05/FoxOperatingGuide_
May2015_Hi.pdf
FoxTelem software for decoding and submitting telemetry has been made
available for download at
http://www.amsat.org/?page_id=4532 .
As part of the preparations for the launch and activation of
this new satellite, AMSAT is making our “Getting Started With The Amateur
Satellites” book available for a limited time as a download with any
paid new
or renewal membership purchased via the AMSAT Store. This offer is only
available with purchases completed online, and for only a limited time. A
perennial favorite, Getting Started is updated every year with the latest
amateur satellite information, and is the premier primer of satellite
operation. The 132 page book is presented in PDF format, in full color, and
covers all aspects of making your first contacts on a ham radio satellite.
Please take advantage of this offer today by visiting the AMSAT store
http://store.amsat.org/catalog/
and selecting any membership option. While there, check out our other
items, including the M2 LEOpack antenna system, AMSAT shirts, hats, and
other
swag. Thank you, and see you soon on Fox-1A!
[ANS thanks Drew Glasbrenner, KO4MA, Vice-President Operations for the above
information]
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NASA Sets Coverage Schedule for CubeSat Launch Events
NASA Press Release:
http://www.nasa.gov/press-release/nasa-sets-coverage-schedule-for-cubesat-
launch-events
Thirteen NASA and National Reconnaissance Office (NRO)-sponsored
CubeSats are
scheduled to launch aboard a United Launch Alliance Atlas V rocket Thursday,
Oct. 8, from Vandenberg Air Force Base in California. Prelaunch media
briefings
and launch commentary coverage will be carried live on NASA Television
and the
agency's website.
Four of the CubeSats are NASA-sponsored and nine are NRO-sponsored, one of
which was developed with NASA funding. All will be flown on the NRO's
Government Rideshare Advanced Concepts Experiment (GRACE), which is an
auxiliary payload aboard the NROL-55 mission.
The CubeSat developed with NASA funding will evaluate the ability to point a
small satellite accurately as it demonstrates data transfer by laser at
rates
of up to 200 Mb/s -- a factor of 100 increase over current high-end CubeSat
communications systems. The NASA-sponsored CubeSats will test new small
satellite control and communications systems, Earth observations,
amateur radio
communications and an X-Band radio science transponder.
These CubeSats also include the first to be designed, built and operated by
students in Alaska and the first from Native American tribal college
students.
Small satellites, including CubeSats, are playing an increasingly larger
role
in exploration, technology demonstration, scientific research and
educational
investigations at NASA. These miniature satellites provide a low-cost
platform
for NASA missions, including planetary space exploration; Earth
observations;
fundamental Earth and space science; and developing precursor science
instruments like cutting-edge laser communications, satellite-to-satellite
communications and autonomous movement capabilities. They also allow an
inexpensive means to engage students in all phases of satellite development,
operation and exploitation through real-world, hands-on research and
development experience on NASA-funded rideshare launch opportunities.
NASA will host two prelaunch briefings at Vandenberg on Wednesday, Oct.
7. The
first briefing will highlight the growing importance of CubeSats in
exploration
and technology development and will begin at 1 p.m. EDT (10 a.m. PDT). The
participants will be:
* Steve Jurczyk, associate administrator for Space Technology at NASA
Headquarters
* Meagan Hubbell, deputy chief, CubeSat Program Office, National
Reconnaissance Office
* Sherrie Zacharius, vice president, Technology and Laboratory
Operations at
The Aerospace Corporation
* John Serafini, vice president, Allied Minds and CEO, BridgeSat and
HawkEye
360
* Andrew Petro, Small Spacecraft Technology Program executive at NASA
Headquarters
* Scott Higginbotham, Launch Services Program ELaNa-12 Mission manager at
NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida
The second briefing will discuss the five NASA-sponsored CubeSats. This
briefing will begin at 2 p.m. EDT (11 a.m. PDT). The participants will be:
* Richard Welle, director, Microsatellite Systems department at The
Aerospace Corporation
* Tim Olson, principal investigator for BisonSat, Salish Kootenai
College,
Pablo, Montana
* Morgan Johnson, team lead for the ARC CubeSat, University of Alaska,
Fairbanks
* Jerry Buxton, vice president, Engineering, for AMSAT Fox-1
* Courtney Duncan, principal investigator for LMRST-Sat, NASA's Jet
Propulsion Laboratory, Pasadena, California
Panelists also will be available from noon to 1 p.m. PDT for one-on-one
interviews. Slots are limited.
Media interested in participating in the briefings by telephone or to
schedule
an interview must contact Joshua Buck at 202-358-1130 or jbuck(a)nasa.gov by 5
p.m. PDT, Tuesday, Oct. 6. Questions also can be submitted via Twitter
during
the briefings using the hashtag
#askNASA.
Media may obtain access badges by contacting Capt. Selena Rodts, Vandenberg
Air Force Base Public Affairs at 805-606-3595 or
selena.rodts.1(a)us.af.mil and
submitting the necessary information by noon PDT on Tuesday.
For information about NASA TV launch coverage, visit:
http://www.nasa.gov/nasatv
For more information about NASA CubeSats, visit:
http://www.nasa.gov/cubesats
[ANS thanks Joshua Buck, NASA Headquarters, Washington for the above
information]
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AMSAT-NA VP-Engineering on NASA TV Wednesday
AMSAT-NA VP-Engineering Jerry Buxton, N0JY will be on the panel at a NASA
prelaunch briefing on Wednesday, October 7 at 1800 UT. The briefing will be
shown live on NASA TV.
The amateur radio FM transponder CubeSat, AMSAT Fox-1A, will be among 13
CubeSats flying as secondary payloads on the NROL-55 mission which should
launch on a United Launch Alliance Atlas V rocket on Thursday, October
8, from
Vandenberg Air Force Base in California.
NASA will be holding two briefings about the launch. The first on Wednesday,
Oct. 7 at 1700 UT (1pm EDT) will highlight the growing importance of
CubeSats
in exploration and technology development. The second at 1800 UT (2pm
EDT) will
discuss five of the CubeSats.
Jerry Buxton, N0JY will on the panel in the 1800 UT briefing to talk
about the
Fox mission and science, and answer questions.
Fox-1A is a 1-Unit CubeSat carrying an FM repeater that will allow simple
ground stations using an HT and an “Arrow” or “Elk” type antenna to make
contacts using the satellite.
Data Under Voice (DUV) is used to send 200 bps FSK telemetry data at the
same
time as FM audio. This is achieved by making use of sub-audible frequencies
below 200 Hz.
Information on the free Fox telemetry decoder software is at
http://amsat-uk.org/2015/09/23/fox-telemetry-decoder-software/
Read the Fox Operating Guide at
http://www.amsat.org/wordpress/wp-
content/uploads/2015/05/FoxOperatingGuide_May2015_Hi.pdf
The launch is still listed as TBD, Thursday, October 8 - CubeSat Launch
Coverage from Vandenberg Air Force Base, Calif. Watch the following website
for updated coverage:
http://www.nasa.gov/multimedia/nasatv/schedule.html
Watch NASA TV at
http://www.nasa.gov/nasatv
[ANS thanks AMSAT and AMSAT-UK for the above information]
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Volunteer Opportunity: Editor-in-Chief of the AMSAT Journal
AMSAT is searching for a volunteer to assume the position of editor-in-chief
of the AMSAT Journal. You'll help develop article sources and using AMSAT
provided software and templates compile the 32-page magazine for six
issues per
year. Our publishing system is the Adobe InDesign CS6 package. This can be
learned quickly by any computer literate ham. InDesign is MS-Word on
steroids.
The editor-in-chief leads a team of assistant editors who locate
articles and
establish contact with potential authors. All you need is an eye for
articles
of interest to amateur radio in space. You'll compile input from AMSAT HQ,
volunteer authors, and amateur radio news sources into articles for
publication
in our semi-monthly magazine.
Contact Barry Baines, WD4ASW (wd4asw(a)amsat.org) for additional information.
[ANS thanks the AMSAT Office the above information]
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ISS CubeSats set to deploy Monday, Oct 5
The European Space Agency (ESA) has announced that two Danish CubeSats
carrying amateur radio payloads should be deployed from the
International Space
Station (ISS) on Monday, October 5.
Originally launched to the ISS on August 19, 2015 the two CubeSats, AAUSat-5
and GomX-3, will be deployed from the ISS Japanese Kibo module airlock. An
astronaut will manipulate the Kibo robotic arm to lift AAUSAT-5 from the
airlock and place it in orbit.
Once deployed from the ISS the CubeSat will begin transmitting signals to
Earth that can be picked up by anyone with common amateur radio
equipment. The
frequencies to listen on are:
AAUSat-5 – 437.425 MHz with 30 WPM CW beacon every 3 minutes and 9600
bps GMSK
packet every 30 seconds
GomX-3 – 437.250 MHz with 1200-9600 bps GMSK data from a NanoCom AX100 using
CSP protocol
In addition to the amateur radio payloads new radio technology being
demonstrated by GomX-3 will support the tracking of civil aircraft and
measuring telecom satellite signal quality. AAUSat-5 will demonstrate the
tracking of ships on the open sea.
ESA article CubeSats set for Monday Release (with video)
http://www.esa.int/Our_Activities/Space_Engineering_Technology/ESA_CubeSats…
_for_Monday_release
ESA invites radio amateurs to listen for AAUSat-5 CubeSat
http://amsat-uk.org/2015/09/24/esa-listen-for-aausat-5/
[ANS thanks ESA and AMSAT-UK for the above information]
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LQSat Launch Monday, October 5
onday, October 5 should see the launch of LQSat which was developed by
researchers and students at the Changchun Institute of Optics, Fine
Mechanics
and Physics (CIOMP) and carries an amateur radio payload.
The launch will take place from the Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center
(JSLC) in
Inner Mongolia on a Chang Zheng 2D (CZ-2D) rocket.
LQSat is technology demonstrator 40x40x60 cm with a mass of 50 kg and
carries
a 2 m resolution camera as the main payload.
The IARU coordinated downlink frequencies are
• 437.650 MHz at 0.5 watts (27 dBm) with either 25 WPM CW or 4800 bps
MSK CSP
packet data
• 2404 MHz at 1 watt (30 dBm) using 1 Mbps QPSK
See
http://amsat-uk.org/2015/10/02/lqsat-launch/
[ANS thanks AMSAT-UK for the above information]
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Beijing Launches Three More Amateur Radio Satellites
On September 25, 2015 at 01:41 UT Beijing launched three satellites with
amateur radio payloads from the Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center (JSLC)
in the
Gobi desert, Inner Mongolia. They were carried on a new launcher, Beijing’s
first solid-fuel rocket Chang Zheng 11 (CZ-11), and deployed in a 470 x
485 km,
97.3 degree inclination Sun Synchronous Orbit (SSO).
This launch occurred just over 5 days after nine satellites carrying amateur
radio payloads were launched by Beijing from the Taiyuan Satellite Launch
Center (TSLC) in Shanxi on September 19 at 23:01 UT.
The satellites were developed by students at the Nanjing University of
Aeronautics and Astronautics in collaboration with the Shanghai Engineering
Center for Microsatellites (SECM).
The main goal of the mission is to experiment with Software Defined Radio
(SDR) in space. The amateur radio payloads will be used for exchanging
Telemetry, Tracking and Command (TT&C) information with the amateur radio
ground control station. Information about the telemetry will be made
publicly
available so that radio amateurs around the world may track and monitor the
health of the satellites.
Other payloads include a video camera along with receivers for dual-band
GPS/Beidou, Maritime Automatic Identification System (AIS) and Aeronautical
Automatic Dependent Surveillance Broadcast (ADS-B).
Using MEMS based cold-gas micropropulsion it is planned to demonstrate
formation flying by two of the CubeSats along with inter satellite
communication using GAMALINK 2.4 GHz spread spectrum at 1 Mbps and the
CubeSat
Space Protocol (CSP).
The TW-1A and TW-1B CubeSats are 2U (20x10x10cm) in size while TW-1C is 3U
(30x10x10cm).
Michael Chen BD5RV reports the satellites have these downlinks in the
435-438
MHz ITU Amateur Satellite Service allocation:
• Tianwang-1A (TW-1A / SECM): Camera, 435.645 MHz GMSK 4800/9600 CSP TX
interval 10s
• Tianwang-1B (TW-1B / NJUST-2): AIS, 437.645 MHz GMSK 4800/9600 CSP TX
interval 20s
• Tianwang-1C (TC-1C / NJFA-1): ADS-B, 435.645 MHz GMSK 4800/9600 CSP TX
interval 10s
Note: TW-1A and 1C use the same frequency.
On the same launch was the technology demonstration satellite Pujian-1 which
has WiFi for intra-satellite communications.
Object identification from information supplied by Nico Janssen PA0DLO and
Zhang Xuan BH4DBE:
TW-1A object 40928, 2015-051B
TW-1B object 40927, 2015-051C, (other IDs: TianWang 1B, NJUST-2)
TW-1C object 40926, 2015-051D
Pujian 1 object 40925, 2015-051A
Chang Zheng 11 (CZ-11) fourth stage object 40929, 2015-051E
Keplerian Two Line Elements (TLEs) ‘Keps’ for new satellites launched in
past
30 days
http://celestrak.com/NORAD/elements/tle-new.txt
Shanghai Engineering Centre for Microsatellites
http://www.microsate.com/en/
GAMALINK in Space
http://tekevernews.blogspot.co.uk/2015/07/gamalink-in-space.html
IARU Satellite Frequency Coordination pages
http://amsat.org.uk/iaru/
Satellite tracking information
http://amsat-uk.org/beginners/satellite-tracking/
Adding new satellites to SatPC32, Gpredict and Nova
http://amsat-uk.org/2013/11/23/adding-new-satellites-to-satpc32/
[ANS thanks AMSAT-UK for the above information]
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LAPAN-A2 FM and APRS Satellite Launched
The Indonesian amateur radio society ORARI report that on Monday, September
28, 2015 04:30 hours UT, the LAPAN-A2/ORARI satellite was launched from the
Sriharikota Range (SHAR) of the Satish Dhawan Space Centre in India.
Deployment
took place 23 minutes later.
LAPAN-A2 is in a 650 km orbit with an inclination of 6 degrees. It takes
about
110 minutes to orbit the Earth and should pass over Indonesia and other near
equatorial locations 14 times a day.
The low inclination equatorial orbit means it will be receivable from
about 30
degrees North to 30 degrees South. About a third of the world’s population,
over 2.4 billion people, live within the coverage area of the satellite.
The ground station at the LAPAN Satellite Technology Centre in Rancabungur,
Bogor has made contact with LAPAN-A2. There will now be a period of
activation
and testing of all the satellite systems and it is expected to be about
a month
before the amateur radio payload becomes available for general use.
The primary aims of the mission are Earth observation using an RGB
camera and
maritime traffic monitoring using AIS, both using frequencies outside the
Amateur Satellite Service.
The IARU has coordinated these frequencies for LAPA-A2/ORARI:
• 437.425 MHz telemetry beacon
• 435.880 MHz FM uplink
• 145.880 MHz FM downlink (5 watts)
• 145.825 APRS digipeater (5 watts)
Please send reports to
yd1eee(a)gmail.com
Listen to a recording of the 437.425 MHz telemetry signal at
https://chirb.it/MrgLGy
Pre-launch Keps courtesy of Dirgantara Rahadian YE0EEE
YBSAT
1 99999U 00000 15270.20393519 .00010000 00000-0 10000-3 0 00011
2 99999 006.0383 028.8188 0001450 317.4897 243.6033 14.00000000000018
Keplerian Two Line Elements (TLEs) ‘Keps’ for new satellites launched in
past
30 days
http://celestrak.com/NORAD/elements/tle-new.txt
Adding new satellites to SatPC32, Gpredict and Nova
http://amsat-uk.org/2013/11/23/adding-new-satellites-to-satpc32/
Satellite tracking information
http://amsat-uk.org/beginners/satellite-tracking/
AMSAT-ID Facebook Group
https://www.facebook.com/groups/831872960241607/
Organisasi Amatir Radio Indonesia (ORARI) in Google English
http://tinyurl.com/IndonesiaORARI
LAPAN-A2 paper
http://www.researchgate.net/publication/259844289_Development_of_
Micro-satellite_Technology_at_the_Indonesian_National_Institute_of_Aeronautics_
and_Space_%28LAPAN%29
The IARU Region 3 Conference takes place in Bali, Indonesia, October
12-16, 2015
http://amsat-uk.org/2015/08/21/iaru-region-3-act-on-band-plan-satellite/
[ANS thanks AMSAT-UK for the above information]
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September/October 2015 AMSAT Journal is at the Print Shop
The September/October 2015 AMSAT Journal is complete and has been sent to
the print shop. Watch for your issue arrive in a few weeks (sent 2nd class
mail).
In this issue you will find:
+ AMSAT Announcements
+ Apogee View by Barry Baines, WD4ASW
+ Amateur Radio, AMSAT and STEM events: a great partnership
by Tom Schuessler, N5HYP
+ AMSAT Fox Presentation to Dallas Area Ham Clubs
by Jonathan Brandenburg, KF5IDY
+ AMSAT Fox-1A: Concept to Launch, Contributions by the Fox-1A team:
o The Fox-1A Story - Ready for Launch October
o Some History: Introducing the Fox-1 Cubesat
o Fox-1A Design + Build + Software = Engineering Prototype
o Fox-1A Shake and Bake
o Fox-1A Delivery and Integration
o Congratulations to AMSAT's Fox-1 Team!
o Fox-1A at Vandenberg AFB and Ready for Launch
o Operating Tips When You Operate on Fox-1A
+ DopplerPSK: Doppler-Correction Software for NO-84's
(PSAT) PSK31 Transponder by Andy Flowers, K0SM/2
+ ARISS-International Meeting Held in Tokyo, Japan
by David Jordan, AA4KN
+ Implementation of the International Arms Export Control Act
of 1976 by Elizabeth Garbee, KC0OTR
Thanks to all who contributed to this issue of the AMSAT Journal. As always
please send your photos, articles, news about club activities, awards to
k9jkm(a)amsat.org. The Journal's editorial team will be glad to help you get
it published. We have an author's guide, "How to Write for the AMSAT
Journal", posted at
http://www.amsat.org/?page_id=1709
[ANS thanks the AMSAT Journal Editorial Team for the above information]
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Online Registration for tne AMSAT Symposium Closes October 8th
Online reservations for the upcoming AMSAT Space Symposium close October
8th. After that, you will have to register at the October 16-18 meeting in
Dayton, Ohio.
See
http://www.amsat.org/?page_id=3667
[ANS thanks Martha at the AMSAT Office for the above information]
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White House Office of Science and Technology Policy's Spring 2016 Policy
Internship Program
The White House Office of Science and Technology Policy is seeking students
for spring 2016 internships. The OSTP advises the President on the effects
of science and technology on domestic and international affairs. The office
serves as a source of scientific and technological analyses and judgment for
the president with respect to major policies, plans and programs of the
federal government.
Policy internships are open to interested students from all majors and
programs, including law school programs. Applicants must be U.S. citizens
who are enrolled, at least half-time, in an accredited college or university
during the period of volunteer service. Students in undergraduate, graduate
and professional programs in all fields are encouraged to apply.
While these positions are without compensation, the assignments provide
educational enrichment, practical work experience and networking
opportunities with other individuals in the science and technology policy
arena.
Applications for spring 2016 internships are due Oct. 30, 2015.
For more information, visit
http://www.whitehouse.gov/administration/eop/ostp/about/student.
If you have questions about this opportunity, please contact Rebecca Grimm
at Rebecca_L_Grimm(a)ostp.eop.gov.
[ANS thanks the NASA Education Express Message -- Oct. 1, 2015 for the above
information]
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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, Saturday, and Sunday, October 16-18 2015, AMSAT Symposium in
Dayton OH (Dayton Crown Plaza)
*Saturday, 7 November 2015 – Oro Valley Amateur Radio Club Hamfest in
Marana AZ
*Saturday and Sunday, 7-8 November 2015 – Stone Mountain Hamfest and ARRL
Georgia Section Convention in Lawrenceville GA
*Monday, 16 November 2015 – Tri-City Amateur Radio Association meeting in
Goodyear AZ
*Saturday, 5 December 2015 – Superstition Superfest 2015 in Mesa AZ
[ANS thanks AMSAT-NA for the above information]
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ARISS News
Successful Contacts
* A direct contact via 8N2F with students at Fukara Junior High School,
Susono,
Japan, was successful Thu 2015-10-01 10:26:55 UTC 85 deg. Thirteen students
were able to ask 17 questions of astronaut Kimiya Yui before the signal was
lost.
Fukara Junior High School is located in the eastern part of Susono City in
Shizuoka Prefecture. Susono faces magnificent Mt. Fuji to the northwest, and
extends to the crater of Mt. Hakone in the east. We have an unbroken
view from
the foot of Mt. Fuji to Suruga Bay.This school is a smaller school with only
147 students – 2 classes for each grade. The students are friendly and
obedient
and the school is always full of activity. All of the students belong to a
sports team – we have baseball, basketball, volleyball, tennis, and table
tennis teams, so all of the students are involved in sports. Integrated
activities are the focus of our educational philosophy. For example, we
perform
a play each year called “The Canal of Life”, in which the students study
about
local history and perform a play about the work left behind by our
forbearers –
an irrigation canal that was built in the area. Through this kind of
study, the
students develop many strong ties to their community as well as pride in
their
hometown. Also, all the students in the school analyze newspaper
articles each
morning to build awareness of current events around the world. They form
their
own thoughts and opinions about each article, and discuss their opinions
with
friends to further develop their thought process. This is how we are
promoting
the NIE program (Newspapers in Education). The opportunity to talk with
Mr. Yui
via wireless transmission is a valuable experience to the students. We
believe
that this activity will elevate the quality of our students.
A video file has been uploaded:
http://www.ariss.jp/fukara/8n2f.wmv
* A telebridge contact via LU1CGB with students at Nowogard Union Schools,
Junior High School No. 2, Nowogard, Poland was successful Tue 2015-09-29
12:56:27 UTC 36 deg. Astronaut Kjell Lindgren, KO5MOS answered 14
questions for
students.
Nowogard Union Schools consists of two schools: Junior High School No 2
and II
High School. The school is situated in Nowogard in West Pomernia
Province. Our
students are 13-19 years old. II High School provides students mainly with
humanities, science and mathematics curriculum.
In December 2013 the schools joined the ARISS School Contacts project.
In 2004
the Nicolaus Copernicus School Amateur Radio called SP1KMK was established.
Since then our students have been keenly developing their radio ham
interests.
Students have taken part in astronomy and astronautics projects such as:
MiniSat (they sent their own experiments in near space via balloons
thanks to
Copernicus Project Foundation), EarthKam (pupils ordered images of Earth
taken
from the ISS). There was also an educational project called
“SUPERCOMPUTER” in
which our students gained some knowledge of the latest wireless networking
technologies.
Apart from the above projects, they have made numerous astronomical
observations and got involved in astrophotography. Moreover, we hosted some
members of Polish Amateur Astronomers Society who showed at the school the
largest amateur telescope called “SOWA”. Within the project, Nowogard Union
Schools started to cooperate with some institutes of higher education
such as
West Pomeranian University of Technology in Szczecin and University of
Szczecin. We also has established cooperation with NASA staff and
conducted a
video conference with a NASA astronauts’ trainer and a NASA flight engineer.
There have been some school trips to Air Force Base in Ewidwin and Dolna
Odra Power Station in Gryfino organized to expand students’
technological and
technical knowledge.
Upcoming Contacts
* A telebridge contact with students at Corpus Christi Catholic School,
Chambersburg, PA, USA via LU1CGB is scheduled for Tue 2015-10-06
16:29:32 UTC
33 deg. The scheduled astronaut is Kjell Lindgren KO5MOS.
Audio from this contact will be fed into:
- EchoLink *AMSAT* (101377)
- IRLP Node 9010 Discovery Reflector
- Streaming Audio at:
https://sites.google.com/site/arissaudio/
Audio on Echolink and web stream is generally transmitted around 20 minutes
prior to the contact taking place so that you can hear some of the
preparation
that occurs. IRLP will begin just prior to the ground station call to
the ISS.
Please note that due to control issues with Echolink and IRLP there are
manual
breaks approximately every 2 minutes to prevent timeout of connected
repeaters
and links. You may still time out depending on your local configuration.
Corpus Christi Catholic School is a K - 8 Roman Catholic Elementary School,
located in Chambersburg, Pennsylvania. With an enrollment of 215
students and
17 full-time and 3 part-time faculty members, Corpus Christi School is
committed to the pursuit of excellence in Catholic education. The school
strives to be on the cutting edge of technology with Smartboards in every
classroom, two computer labs, iPads, and Chromebooks. Students in the
primary
grades participate in weekly swim lessons at the local YMCA. Intermediate
grades place a strong emphasis on STEM related concepts and careers. Grades
four through eight have background knowledge of NASA starting with
Gemini and
continuing onto Mars. In 2013, three teachers were selected to be on the
Reduced Gravity Flight through NASA Explorer Schools. This experience
increased the entire students’ awareness of space flight and experiments
being
conducted in microgravity on the International Space Station. Middle school
students are able to expand their curriculum by traveling to major
cities such
as Pittsburgh, Washington DC, and Williamsburg, VA. Scores on standardized
tests are above the national average. School pride runs deep with the
students, faculty, staff and parents.
* A direct contact via 9M2RPN with students at Sekolah Kebangsaan Taman
Tun Dr Ismail (1), Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, is scheduled for Fri 2015-10-09
08:00:04 UTC 47 deg. The scheduled astronaut is Kjell Lindgren KO5MOS.
Our first ARISS contact was made in 2007 when, Malaysia's first Astronaut
Shiekh Muzapher went on board the ISS. We made 5 direct contacts when,
some 80
school children talked to him and asked questions. Since then it has
become a
highly sought after yearly event which is tied up with the Prime Minister's
Space Challenge Trophy. This year we will be making our 8th yearly contact.
Since the schools do not have ground stations, they make use of Satellite
Ground Station at the National Planetarium established in 1995 under the
call
sign of 9M2RPN. The schools are the nurseries to produce future
astronauts and
space scientists. The forthcoming contact in October 2015 provides the
hands
on experience and the seeding operation for tomorrow's space scientists.
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]
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Satellite Shorts From All Over
Two Tenure-Track Faculty Positions Open at Cal Poly, Looking for Experience
with SmallSats
The Aerospace and Electrical Engineering Departments at California State
Polytechnic University at San Luis Obispo have 2 tenure-track faculty
positions
open. Each position is looking for experience with or that can directly be
applied to small satellites. A description of each position is listed
below. If
interested in either position, please visit www.calpolyjobs.org and use the
applicable requisition number for the position.
Micro-Satellite and Space Propulsion (Requisition # 103821): Review
Begin Date
December 1, 2015
The Aerospace Engineering Department at Cal Poly, San Luis Obispo, invites
applications for a full-time, academic year, tenure-track faculty
position at
the Assistant or Associate Professor rank beginning no later than Fall 2016.
Duties include teaching undergraduate and master's level courses,
developing an
externally funded research program in the area of micro-satellite space
propulsion, expanding the space propulsion curricula; collaborating with the
department’s ongoing CubeSat initiatives; and providing service to the
department, university, and community. Rank and salary is commensurate with
qualifications and experience.
The position requires individuals who have demonstrated ability to provide
undergraduate and graduate students with hands-on engineering education in a
multidisciplinary, systems-based environment. A Ph.D. in engineering, or
closely related field, is required. It is expected that the successful
candidate will work with faculty from the department and the college of
engineering to grow and sustain the department’s CubeSat initiative in
the area
of propulsion systems and related technologies including nonchemical
propulsion, advanced propulsion technologies, and supporting technologies.
Industry experience, especially in the area of CubeSat or other
micro-satellite
propulsion systems, and a commitment to working in a multidisciplinary and
collaborative setting are preferred.
Electrical Engineering and Aerospace Engineering Joint Position
(Requisition #
103796): Review Begin Date January 4, 2016
The Electrical Engineering Department and Aerospace Engineering
Department at
Cal Poly, San Luis Obispo, invite applications for a full-time, academic
year
tenure-track faculty position at the Assistant or Associate Professor
rank. The
projected start date is September 15, 2016. Duties include teaching
coursework
in Electrical Engineering and Aerospace Engineering, building a
collaborative
research program in the area of Satellite Communication and Mobile
Terrestrial
Communications, and service to the department, university, and community.
Desired areas of expertise include satellite electronics systems
including the
Cube Sat form factor, mobile terrestrial communication systems with a strong
hands-on orientation in working with students. Rank and salary are
commensurate with qualifications and experience. Candidates with research or
private industry experience are encouraged to apply.
[ANS thanks Ryan Nugent, CubeSat Program Cal Poly 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,
Joe Spier, K6WAO
k6wao at amsat dot org
1
0
AMSAT NEWS SERVICE
ANS-270
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-1A to Launch on NROL-55 October 8
* Recording of LilacSat-2's FM Transponder
* Be the first to catch the signals from AAUSAT-5 contest
* LAPAN-A2 To Be Launched September 28
* ARISS-Europe Chairman Retires, Successor Elected
* Space Auction to be held again at this year’s AMSAT Symposium
* AMSAT Space Symposium Paper Publication Deadline Looms
* Fox Telemetry Decoder Software Version 1.0 Available for Download
* ARISS-US Contact Proposals for Schools, Educational Organizations
Still Being Accepted
* ARISS News
* Satellite Shorts From All Over
SB SAT @ AMSAT $ANS-270
ANS-270 AMSAT News Service Weekly Bulletins
AMSAT News Service Bulletin 270
>From AMSAT HQ KENSINGTON, MD.
September 27, 2015
To All RADIO AMATEURS
BID: $ANS-270
Fox-1A to Launch on NROL-55 October 8
NROL-55 is scheduled to launch on October 8, 2015 from Vandenberg
Air Force Base, California.
NROL-55 will carry an auxiliary payload called Government Rideshare
Advanced Concepts Experiment (GRACE).
GRACE, sponsored by the NRO, will carry 13 CubeSats to space, nine
sponsored by the NRO and four sponsored by NASA. GRACE is the fourth
NRO-sponsored CubeSat mission. Fox-1A is one of the NASA sponsored
CubeSats.
[ANS thanks NRO/OCPA/OPA]
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Recording of LilacSat-2's FM Transponder
Several stations were heard making contacts on LilacSat-2's FM
transponder at 2300 UTC today, 26 September on orbit #104 over North
America.
Clayton W5PFG uploaded a recording to Soundcloud:
https://soundcloud.com/w5pfg/lilacsat-2-26092015-2300-ko4ma-ka4h-
ki4ro-aa5pk-kc4le-w5pfg
(Editor's note the URL above is truncated to meet ANS' editorial
requirements. You may need to copy and paste as one line to
guarantee it works)
[ANS thanks Clayton W5PFG for the above information]
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Be the first to catch the signals from AAUSAT-5 contest
Be the first to send in your recorded signal from AAUSAT5 and you
will receive a prize from ESA's Education Office.
Launched on 19 August to the ISS, the Danish student CubeSat is now
waiting for its deployment from the Japanese Kibo module’s airlock.
Sometime in the week of 5 October, an astronaut will manipulate a
robotic arm to lift AAUSAT5 from the airlock and place it in orbit.
Once launched from the International Space Station the CubeSat will
begin transmitting signals to Earth that can be picked up by anyone
with common amateur radio equipment. ESA challenges anyone to record
the signal and send it to us (cubesats(a)esa.int) and Aalborg
University (studentspace(a)space.aau.dk).
The first correct email received will win the following prices:
ESA/AAUSAT5 poster with signatures of the team members
ESA Education goodie bag
Scale 1:1 3D printed model of the AAUSAT 5 satellite
AAUSAT5 is the 5th CubeSat designed and built by the University of
Aalborg, Denmark. It is the 2nd AAUSAT satellite tested under ESA’s
supervision as part of the ESA Education Office’s Fly Your Satellite
programme.
The technical objective of AAUSAT5 is to test an improved version
of an Automatic Identification System (AIS), which aims to track and
identify ships transiting away from coastal areas and those in remote
areas.
If successful, a satellite-based AIS system could enable the
establishment and use of safe new shipping lanes.
For more information please see the ESA AAUSAT5 website
http://www.esa.int/Education/CubeSats_-
_Fly_Your_Satellite/AAUSAT5_CubeSat
and the team site from the University of Aalborg.
http://www.space.aau.dk/aausat5/
[ANS thanks ESA for the above information]
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LAPAN-A2 To Be Launched September 28
LAPAN-A2 satellite will be launched together on a mission astrosat
India's PSLV-C30 / astrosat on 28 Sep 2015. It will operate in the
near equatorial orbit between 6 to 8 degree, 650km and able to cross
the territory of Indonesia 14 times a day.
LAPAN A2, also known as LAPAN-ORARI, is an indonesian microsatellite
based on the LAPAN-Tubsat. It carries an AIS (Automatic
Identification System) to identify the ships in the waters of
Indonesia and a video camera with a range three times wider than the
Lapan-Tubsat. It also carries a payload for disaster management by
amateur radio communication.
The satellite structure and many subsystems are the same as in its
sister satellite LAPAN A3.
The Earth observation payload of LAPAN A2 consists of a Video camera
(Kappa PAL) for 80 km width ground coverage and a Video camera (Kappa
HDTV for high resolution satellite color video observation with a
ground resolution of 6 m and a ground coverage of 11 × 6 km per video
frame.
LAPAN-A2 carries a payload of voice repeaters and an APRS Repeater
for communications of the Organisation for Amateur Radio Indonesia
(ORARI) during a disaster.
[ANS thanks Wisnu YBØAZ and Gunter's Space Page for the above
information]
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ARISS-Europe Chairman Retires, Successor Elected
Amateur Radio on the International Space Station-Europe (ARISS-EU
http://www.ariss-eu.org/) Chairman Gaston Bertels, ON4WF, will retire
from that post this fall after serving since 2000, when the ARISS
Working Group was formed. Among other initiatives, Bertels was
involved in the project to have Amateur Radio equipment and antennas
installed on the ISS Columbus module and with the installation and
commissioning of the Ham TV DATV system on the ISS. He has also
personally assisted in many ARISS contacts involving schools and
groups on the Continent.
"[I'm] now 88 and slowing down a bit," Bertels told ARRL in
announcing the election of his successor as ARISS-EU Chairman,
Emanuele D'Andria, I0ELE.
In 2014, International Amateur Radio Union Region 1 (IARU-R1
http://www.iaru-r1.org) awarded the Roy Stevens, G2BVN, Memorial
Trophy to Bertels, in recognition of his service to Amateur Radio in
space, first as chairman of the Eurocom Working Group and then of the
Amateur Radio Space Exploration Working Group.
As Bertels explained, a slate of four ARISS-EU Board candidates was
presented to the ARISS-EU member societies. All ran unopposed for 2-
year terms. In addition to D'Andria, other Board members include
Oliver Amend, DG6BCE, technical director; Bertus Hüsken, PE1KEH,
counselor, and Jean Pierre Courjaud, F6DZP, counselor. The new ARISS-
EU Board takes office on October 1.
The ARISS membership includes the AMSAT organizations in Belgium,
France, Italy, Sweden, and the UK, and the IARU member societies in
Italy, Germany, Poland, France, Portugal, Belgium, Switzerland, the
Netherlands, and the UK. IARU member societies in Malta and Lebanon
are associate members.
"Congratulations to the elected Board, and best wishes for a very
successful term of office," Bertels said in announcing the new board.
[ANS thanks The ARRL Letter for the above information]
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Space Auction to be held again at this year’s AMSAT Symposium
In light of the very successful—and fun—auction at last year’s AMSAT
Symposium, AMSAT-NA is pleased to announce that you can look forward
to another auction at this year’s Symposium. The auction will be
held at the Friday night reception. Drew Glasbrenner, KO4MA, has
again volunteered to be the Auctioneer.
To date, we have several space-related items for the auction.
However, to make this auction, interesting, fun, and “profitable”**
we could use many more items. Some of the items auctioned last year
included several astronaut autographed items, including a DVD from
Richard Garriott, Russian memorabilia, spacecraft and rocket models,
space related books, the sign from the AMSAT Lab and items from
previous AMSAT satellites.
If you have any space or AMSAT related items you would like to
donate for the auction, please contact Frank Bauer, KA3HDO, at
ka3hdo(a)amsat.org. Think about this and use your creativity as this
is for a good cause. We thank you for your donations in advance!
**And don’t forget that AMSAT is a 501 (c) (3) non-profit
organization. So your auction donations are tax deductible!!
[ANS thanks Frank KA3HDO for the above information]
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AMSAT Space Symposium Paper Publication Deadline Looms
AMSAT Space Symposium Proceedings Chairman, Dan Shultz, N8FGV,
reminds all that the final deadline for receiving Papers for
publication in the AMSAT Symposium Proceedings is
MONDAY SEPTEMBER 28.
Final drafts should be submitted to Dan, n8fgv (at) usa (dot) net.
Dan advises that authors who are pushing hard to meet this deadline
should contact him immediately. n8fgv (at) usa (dot) net.
These papers will be presented at the AMSAT Space Symposium to be
held on the weekend of October 16-18, 2015, at the Crown Plaza Hotel,
Dayton, Ohio.
[ANS thanks Dan N8FGV for the above information]
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Fox Telemetry Decoder Software Version 1.0 Available for Download
Version 1.0 of the FoxTelem software, the Fox Telemetry Decoder is
being released to enable setup, testing, and debugging of your Fox-1A
ground station prior to the launch of the satellite. FoxTelem is used
to demodulate, store and analyze telemetry data from AMSAT's Fox
series of Cube Sats.
Fox-1 satellites include two telemetry formats:
+ Slow Speed, also called Data Under Voice (DUV) is 200 bps FSK data
sent at the same time as the transponder audio. Whenever the trans-
mitter is on, data is being sent. This happens during beacons and
during live QSOs.
+ High Speed is 9600 bps FSK sent instead of the transponder. This is
used for data intensive experiments such as the Virginia Tech
Camera.
This is only active when commanded from the ground. You can
recognize High Speed because it sounds like an old school computer
modem.
FoxTelem will receive and store both formats assuming you can feed
it audio that does not have the frequencies below 200 Hz filtered.
For High Speed, the audio must also extend to include the full
9600bps bandwidth of the FM signal. For both modes this is best
achieved from a Software Defined Radio or from the 9600 bps packet
port of some radios. The FoxTelem User Guide provides more details.
FoxTelem is supplied as an archive file (.zip on windows, .dmg file on
MacOs, .gzip on Linux). Links for downloading can be found at:
http://www.amsat.org/?page_id=4532
You can unzip the contents and put it in the directory of your
choice. Also,
detailed in the User Guide, are instructions to select the sound
source and
set received audio levels on your computer.
Until Fox-1A is launched you can confirm everything is working by
testing with test wav file which will be available from:
http://amsat.us/FoxTelem/recordings . Access to the test file is
accomplished by selecting "Load Wav File" from the FoxTelem File
menu, then navigate to the directory where you saved the test wav
file. Once you press the start button the file will play through the
decoder.
The FoxTelem page can also be accessed from the main AMSAT web page:
http://www.amsat.org --> Fox Project --> FoxTelem Software for
Windows, Mac, & Linux.
The direct link to the page is: http://www.amsat.org/?page_id=4532
[ANS thanks the FoxTelem software team for the above information]
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ARISS-US Contact Proposals for Schools, Educational Organizations
Still Being Accepted
Message to US Educators
Amateur Radio on the International Space Station
Contact Opportunity
Call for Proposals
Proposal Window September 1 – November 1, 2015
The Amateur Radio on the International Space Station (ARISS) Program
is seeking formal and informal education institutions and
organizations, individually or working together, to host an Amateur
Radio contact with a crew member on board the ISS. ARISS anticipates
that the contact would be held between July 1 and December 31, 2016.
Crew scheduling and ISS orbits will determine the exact contact
dates. To maximize these radio contact opportunities, ARISS is
looking for organizations that will draw large numbers of
participants and integrate the contact into a well-developed
education plan.
The deadline to submit a proposal is November 1, 2015. Proposal
information and documents can be found at www.arrl.org/hosting-an-
ariss-contact.
Informational Sessions
To help organizations in preparing their proposals, the ARISS
Program Coordinator will offer hour-long online information sessions.
These are designed to provide more information regarding US ARISS
contacts and the proposal process and offer an opportunity to ask
questions. While attending an online information session is not
required, it is strongly encouraged.
The next and last of these will be offered Wednesday, September 30,
at 2300 UTC.
Advance registration is necessary. E-mail ARISS (ariss(a)arrl.org) to
sign up for an information session.
The Opportunity
Crew members aboard the International Space Station will participate
in scheduled Amateur Radio contacts. These radio contacts are
approximately 10 minutes in length and allow students and educators
to interact with the astronauts through a question-and-answer session.
An ARISS contact is a voice-only communication opportunity via
Amateur Radio between astronauts and cosmonauts aboard the space
station and classrooms and communities. ARISS contacts afford
education audiences the opportunity to learn firsthand from
astronauts what it is like to live and work in space and to learn
about space research conducted on the ISS. Students also will have an
opportunity to learn about satellite communication, wireless
technology, and radio science. Because of the nature of human
spaceflight and the complexity of scheduling activities aboard the
ISS, organizations must demonstrate flexibility to accommodate
changes in contact dates and times.
Amateur Radio organizations around the world, NASA, and space
agencies in Russia, Canada, Japan and Europe sponsor this educational
opportunity by providing the equipment and operational support to
enable direct communication between crew on the ISS and students
around the world via Amateur Radio. In the US, the program is managed
by AMSAT (Radio Amateur Satellite Corporation) and ARRL (American
Radio Relay League) in partnership with NASA.
More Information
Interested parties can find more information about the program at
www.ariss.org and www.arrl.org/ARISS.
For proposal information and more details such as expectations,
proposal guidelines and proposal form, and dates and times of
Information Sessions go to http://www.arrl.org/hosting-an-ariss-
contact. Please direct any questions to ariss(a)arrl.org
[ANS thanks ARISS for the above information]
---------------------------------------------------------------------
ARISS News
Upcoming ARISS Contact Schedule as of 2015-09-24 05:00 UTC
Quick list of scheduled contacts and events:
Nowogard Union Schools: Junior High School No. 2, Nowogard, Poland,
telebridge via LU1CGB
The ISS callsign is presently scheduled to be NA1SS
The scheduled astronaut is Kjell Lindgren KO5MOS
Contact is a go for: Tue 2015-09-29 12:56:27 UTC 36 deg
Watch for possible live stream http://ariss.pzk.org.pl/live/
Fukara Junior High School, Susono, Japan, direct via 8N2F
The ISS callsign is presently scheduled to be NA1SS
The scheduled astronaut is Kimiya Yui KG5BPH
Contact is a go for: Thu 2015-10-01 10:26:55 UTC 85 deg
*********************************************************************
Interested in hosting an ARISS contact?
The window is now open from 2015-09-01 to 2015-11-01. These
proposals will be for school contacts during the second half of
2016.
Go to http://www.arrl.org/hosting-an-ariss-contact or
http://www.ariss.org/apply-to-host-an-ariss-contact.html for full
details.
To help organizations in preparing their proposals, the ARISS
Program Coordinator will offer hour-long online information sessions.
These are designed to provide more information regarding US ARISS
contacts and the proposal process and offer an opportunity to ask
questions. While attending an online information session is not
required, it is strongly encouraged.
One last session will be offered Wednesday, September 30, at 2300
UTC. Advance registration is necessary. Email ARISS (ariss(a)arrl.org)
to sign up for an information session.
*********************************************************************
>From 2015-12-20 to 2016-01-04, there will be no US Operational
Segment (USOS) hams on board ISS. So any schools contacts during this
period will be conducted by the ARISS Russia team.
*********************************************************************
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.
*********************************************************************
Check out the Zoho reports of the ARISS contacts
https://reports.zoho.com/ZDBDataSheetView.cc?DBID=412218000000020415
*********************************************************************
Exp. 43/44 on orbit
Scott Kelly
Mikhail Kornienko RN3BF
Exp. 44 on orbit
Oleg Kononenko RN3DX
Kimiya Yui KG5BPH
Kjell Lindgren KO5MOS
Exp. 45 on orbit
Sergey Volkov RU3DIS
[ANS thanks ARISS, Charlie AJ9N and David AA4KN for the above
information]
---------------------------------------------------------------------
Satellite Shorts From All Over
+ Satellite Activation on Argentina's Martin Garcia Island
Members of the Radio Club Argentino will activate the special
callsign LU4AA/D from the Argentine exclave Martin Garcia Island
(ILLW AR 022, WW Loc. GF05VT) in Uruguayan waters (part of the La
Plata in Buenos Aires Province) between/around 2000z, October 1st
and 1400z, October 4th. Operators mentioned are Francisco/ LU1AET,
Martin/LU1AMH, Fernando/LU1ARG, Carlos LU1BCE, Fernando LU2BPM,
Nico/LW3DN and Juan/LU8ARI. Activity will be on 80-1 meters, as
well as 6m/2m/70cm, and using CW, SSB, Satellites, SSTV and the
Digital modes. QSL by the Bureau or via LU4AA direct.
PLEASE NOTE: The trip, originally planned for middle August had to
be rescheduled as a strong storm caused a heavy flooding and closed
the departure port.
[ANS thanks the Ohio/Penn DX Bulletin No. 1233 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
1
0
ANS-266 Special Bulletin - Fox Telemetry Decoder Software Version 1.0 Available for Download
by JoAnne Maenpaa 23 Sep '15
by JoAnne Maenpaa 23 Sep '15
23 Sep '15
AMSAT NEWS SERVICE SPECIAL BULLETIN
ANS-266
In this edition:
* Fox Telemetry Decoder Software Version 1.0 Available for Download
SB SAT @ AMSAT $ANS-266.01
ANS-266 AMSAT News Service Special Bulletin
AMSAT News Service Bulletin 266.01
>From AMSAT HQ KENSINGTON, MD.
September 23, 2015
To All RADIO AMATEURS
BID: $ANS-266.01
Fox Telemetry Decoder Software Version 1.0 Available for Download
Version 1.0 of the FoxTelem software, the Fox Telemetry Decoder is being
released to enable setup, testing, and debugging of your Fox-1A ground
station prior to the launch of the satellite. FoxTelem is used to
demodulate, store and analyze telemetry data from AMSAT's Fox series of Cube
Sats.
Fox-1 satellites include two telemetry formats:
+ Slow Speed, also called Data Under Voice (DUV) is 200 bps FSK data
sent at the same time as the transponder audio. Whenever the trans-
mitter is on, data is being sent. This happens during beacons and
during live QSOs.
+ High Speed is 9600 bps FSK sent instead of the transponder. This is
used for data intensive experiments such as the Virginia Tech Camera.
This is only active when commanded from the ground. You can recognize
High Speed because it sounds like an old school computer modem.
FoxTelem will receive and store both formats assuming you can feed it audio
that does not have the frequencies below 200 Hz filtered. For High Speed,
the audio must also extend to include the full 9600bps bandwidth of the FM
signal. For both modes this is best achieved from a Software Defined Radio
or from the 9600 bps packet port of some radios. The FoxTelem User Guide
provides more details.
FoxTelem is supplied as an archive file (.zip on windows, .dmg file on
MacOs, .gzip on Linux). Links for downloading can be found at:
http://www.amsat.org/?page_id=4532
You can unzip the contents and put it in the directory of your choice. Also,
detailed in the User Guide, are instructions to select the sound source and
set received audio levels on your computer.
Until Fox-1A is launched you can confirm everything is working by testing
with test wav file which will be available from:
http://amsat.us/FoxTelem/recordings . Access to the test file is
accomplished by selecting "Load Wav File" from the FoxTelem File menu, then
navigate to the directory where you saved the test wav file. Once you press
the start button the file will play through the decoder.
The FoxTelem page can also be accessed from the main AMSAT web page:
http://www.amsat.org --> Fox Project --> FoxTelem Software for Windows, Mac,
& Linux
The direct link to the page is: http://www.amsat.org/?page_id=4532
[ANS thanks the FoxTelem software team for the above information]
/EX
1
0
AMSAT NEWS SERVICE
ANS-263
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:
* 2015 AMSAT Board of Directors Election Results
* List of Papers & Presentations for the 2015 AMSAT Space Symposium
* September 19 Multiple Amateur Radio Satellite Launch From China
* LilacSat-2 Website and Telemetry Decoder Available
* SERPENS CubeSat Deployed from ISS
* ARISS-Europe Board Elections
* AMSAT Events
* ARISS News
* Satellite Shorts From All Over
SB SAT @ AMSAT $ANS-263.01
ANS-263 AMSAT News Service Weekly Bulletins
AMSAT News Service Bulletin 263.01
>From AMSAT HQ KENSINGTON, MD.
DATE September 20, 2015
To All RADIO AMATEURS
BID: $ANS-263.01
---------------------------------------------------------------------
2015 AMSAT Board of Directors Election Results
As a result of the 2015 Board of Directors election, Barry Baines, WD4ASW;
Jerry Buxton, N0JY; Drew Glasbrenner, KO4MA; and Bob McGwier, N4HY; will
serve on the board for two years.
The First Alternate is Mark Hammond, N8MH and the Second Alternate is Bruce
Paige, KK5DO. Both will serve for a term of one year.
The results of the voting with 625 ballots cast are as follows:
Barry Baines, WD4ASW............475
Jerry Buxton, N0JY..............417
Drew Glasbrenner, KO4MA.........366
Bob McGwier, N4HY...............316
Mark Hammond, N8MH..............289
Bruce Paige, KK5DO..............198
Steve Coy, K8UD.................194
E. Mike McCardel, KC8YLD........152
Submitted by:
Martha Saragovitz Alan Biddle, WA4SCA
Manager Corporate Secretary
[ANS thanks Alan Biddle, WA4SCA, Corporate Secretary for the above
information]
---------------------------------------------------------------------
List of Papers & Presentations for the 2015 AMSAT Space Symposium
The 2015 AMSAT-NA Annual Meeting and Space Symposium will be held on the
weekend of October 16-18, 2015 at the Crowne Plaza Hotel in downtown Dayton,
Ohio.
Currently the following Papers have been proposed.
ALL TITLES ARE TENTATIVE, SUBJECT TO CHANGE, AND SOME MAY ONLY APPEAR IN THE
SYMPOSIUM PROCEEDINGS. More current information will be made available as
soon as possible.
"APRS Satellites, PSK31 and DTMF/Voice"
Bob Bruninga, WB4APR
"A Modern Approach to Secure Commanding of an Amateur Satellite"
Burns Fisher, W2BFJ (possibly another author will be added)
"Nano-satellite and Amateur Satellite Ground Station Development at the
University of the Philippines"
Leo Almazan, AMSAT-Philippines
"SatNOGS - An open satellite ground station network"
I.Charitopoulos, I.Giannelos, E.Kosmas, D.Papadeas, P.Papadeas,
M.Papamatthaiou, N.Roussos, V.Tsiligiannis, and A.Zisimatos
Libre Space Foundation, Athens, Greece
"Fox-1C Environmental Testing"
Robert Davis
"DSP on-board Rideshare to Geosynchronous Orbit"
Mike Parker, KT7D, Rincon Research Corp.
Fox Maximum Power Point Tracker
Bryce Salmi
"Preliminary Design of Fox-1E."
Mike KB2GHZ
"HEO/GEO Mission"
Bob McGwier, N4HY
"Virginia Tech Ground Station Update" (Potentially Live Demonstrations)
Zach Leffke
"VT, AMSAT, and ITAR"
Sonya Rowe
"Fox-1 Camera Update"
Seth Hitefield
"VT Ground Station Control Framework"
Paul David
"Software/Cognitive Radio Experiment onboard NASA SCaN JPL SDR"
Deirdre Beggs
"Phase3E Proposed Orbit and Attitude Control Changes."
Andrew Rogers
[ANS thanks Dan Schultz, N8FGV, Symposium Proceedings Editor, for the above
information]
---------------------------------------------------------------------
September 19 Multiple Amateur Radio Satellite Launch From China
Alan Kung, BA1DU, provided China AMSAT's (CAMSAT) frequency and mode
information for the September 19 launch of mulitple satellites on Beijing’s
new Chang Zheng 6 (CZ-6) rocket from the Taiyuan Satellite Launch Center.
Estimated early Keplerian elements for a September 19 launch are:
XW-2(CAS-3)
1 99999U 15262.96885748 .00004985 00000-0 28395-3 0 00005
2 99999 097.4712 270.8252 0010383 266.0522 270.6644 15.12847565000015
Launch time was planned for 23:00:00 UTC on 2015-09-18 with deployment
of the
satellites at 23:15:14 UTC. Technical difficulties postponed the launch
until
23:00:00 UTC on 2015-09-19.
The ARRL posted a Word Doc with frequency information from BA1DU at:
http://www.arrl.org/files/media/News/XW-2CAS-3%20Sats.doc
AMSAT-UK has a link to this document at:
http://amsat-uk.org/2015/09/16/camsat-xw-2-satellites-launch-info/
The XW-2A through XW-2F satellites are using the same type of antenna.
These
are quarter wavelength deployable monopole whip antennas and made of steel
tape, including a UHF uplink antenna and a VHF downlink antenna for each
satellite.
TX
Satellite Frequencies (MHz) Power Modulation
----------------------------- ------- -------------------
XW-2A (CAS-3A)
Digital Telemetry: 145.640 20 dBm 9.6/19.2kbps, GMSK
CW Beacon: 145.660 17 dBm 22wpm, CW
Inverting Linear Transponder
Uplink: 435.030 - 435.050
Downlink: 145.665 - 145.685 20 dBm
XW-2B (CAS-3B)
Digital Telemetry: 145.705 20 dBm 9.6/19.2kbps, GMSK
CW Beacon: 145.725 17 dBm 22wpm, CW
Inverting Linear Transponder
Uplink: 435.090 - 435.110
Downlink: 145.730 - 145.750 20 dBm
XW-2C (CAS-3C)
Digital Telemetry: 145.770 20 dBm 9.6/19.2kbps, GMSK
CW Beacon: 145.790 17 dBm 22wpm, CW
Inverting Linear Transponder
Uplink: 435.150 - 435.170
Downlink: 145.795 - 145.815 20 dBm
XW-2D (CAS-3D)
Digital Telemetry: 145.835 20 dBm 9.6/19.2kbps, GMSK
CW Beacon: 145.855 17 dBm 22wpm, CW
Inverting Linear Transponder
Uplink: 435.210 - 435.230
Downlink: 145.860 - 145.880 20 dBm
XW-2E (CAS-3E)
Digital Telemetry: 145.890 20 dBm 9.6kbps, GMSK
CW Beacon: 145.910 17 dBm 22wpm, CW
Inverting Linear Transponder
Uplink: 435.270 - 435.290
Downlink: 145.915 - 145.935 20 dBm
XW-2F (CAS-3F)
Digital Telemetry: 145.955 20 dBm 9.6kbps, GMSK
CW Beacon: 145.975 17 dBm 22wpm, CW
Inverting Linear Transponder
Uplink: 435.330 - 435.350
Downlink: 145.980 - 146.000 20 dBm
DCBB (CAS-3G)
Downlink: 145.475 Digital Telemetry 9.6kbps, GMSK
437.950 Digital Telemetry 9.6kbps, GMSK
LilacSat-2 (CAS-3H)
CW Beacon 437.200
APRS
Uplink: 144.390 AFSK
Downlink: 144.390 AFSK
FM Transponder
Uplink: 144.350 FM
Downlink: 437.225 FM
NUDT-Phone-Sat (CAS-3I)
Downlink: 437.300 Digital Telemetry 9.6kbps, FSK
The AMSAT-BB reports CW beacon activity from the satellites after launch
although the actual orbit is reported to be running approximately two
minutes
later than the estimated Keps.
[ANS thanks Alan Kung, BA1DU, and CAMSAT for the above information]
---------------------------------------------------------------------
LilacSat-2 Website and Telemetry Decoder Available
LilacSat-2 website
http://lilacsat.hit.edu.cn/
and telemetry decoder based on GNU Radio
https://github.com/bg2bhc/gr-lilacsat
are now available.
[ANS thanks WEI Mingchuan, BG2BHC for the above information]
---------------------------------------------------------------------
SERPENS CubeSat Deployed from ISS
On September 17, 2015 the Brazilian SERPENS CubeSat carrying an amateur
radio
payload, call sign PY0ESA, was deployed from the International Space Station
(ISS).
SERPENS LogoSERPENS is a 3U CubeSat which was developed by students at the
University of Brasilia and focuses on meteorological data collection.
The SERPENS Amateur Radio Page shows these downlink frequencies:
• 145.980 MHz using GFSK modulation at 9600 bps and AX.25 protocol
transmiting two different beacons. The first occurs every 10 seconds
with the
message “SERPENS A”. This is implemented for easy identification of the
satellite when searching for it. The second beacon is transmitted every 30
seconds and contains the main housekeeping data of the satellite. In
addition
to the beacons, a simple Store and Forward experiment has been implemented.
• 437.365 MHz using CW/MSK modulation at 1200 bps and CSP protocol.
There is a Store and Forward messaging system compatible with HUMSAT sensors
on the frequency of 437.525 MHz, using GMSK modulation at 1200 bps. The
HUMSAT
transponder will collect data (e.g. wind, humidity, water levels, etc) from
Earth based sensors operating on 437.525 MHz, store the data on-board
and then
transmit it to university ground stations. For more information visit
http://www.humsat.org/
SERPENS carries a Pulsed Plasma Thruster for CUbesat Propulsion (PPTCUP)
unit
developed by UK companies Mars Space Ltd and Clyde Space Ltd in
collaboration
with the University of Southampton.
The PPTCUP consists of a thruster board and discharge chamber. Overall, the
thruster assembly weighs 180 grams including 7g of Teflon fuel and
delivers a
thrust of 40 micronewtons at a power consumption of 2 Watts. The entire
thruster assembly fits into a 90 by 90 by 27-millimeter envelope.The
thruster
operates at a specific impulse of 608 seconds and in its original version is
certified for 1.5 million shots. For durability, the system uses copper-
tungsten electrodes. All thruster functions are controlled by a PIC16
microcontroller.
Also deployed with SERPENS from the ISS was the CubeSat S-CUBE designed to
observe the Ultraviolet (UV) spectrum during the Orionid meteor shower in
October. It does not operate in the Amateur Satellite Service.
SERPENS Amateur Radio Page
http://www.aerospace.unb.br/serpens_radioamateurs
SERPENS information in HTV-5 Cargo Overview
http://www.spaceflight101.com/htv-5-cargo-overview.html
[ANS thanks AMSAT-UK for the above information]
---------------------------------------------------------------------
ARISS-Europe Board Elections
According the ARISS-Europe Terms of Reference, Board elections took
place in
2015:
- A call for candidatures was circulated to the Member Societies March
2015.
- Candidatures were accepted till the end of May 2015.
- June 4, 2015 four candidates were presented to the Member Societies.
- Till September 1st, 2015, the votes of the Member Societies were
collected.
- All four candidates are elected unopposed for a two years term.
Elected Board:
- Emanuele D'Andria, I0ELE, chairman
- Oliver Amend, DG6BCE, technical director
- Bertus Hüsken, PE1KEH, counsellor
- Jean Pierre Courjaud, F6DZP, counsellor.
According the Terms of Reference, the Board elected takes office October
1st,
2015.
Member Societies:
• AMSAT-Belgium (Belgium)
• AMSAT-Francophone (France)
• AMSAT-Italy (Italy)
• AMSAT-SM (Sweden)
• AMSAT-UK (UK)
• ARI (Italy)
• DARC (Germany)
• MARL (Malta) (associate member)
• PZK (Poland)
• RAL (Lebanon) (associate member)
• REF (France)
• REP (Portugal)
• RSGB (UK)
• UBA (Belgium)
• USKA (Switzerland)
• VERON (The Netherlands)
Congratulations to the elected Board and best wishes for a very successful
term of office.
http://www.arrl.org/news/ariss-europe-chairman-retires-successor-elected
(Editors note: Emanuele D'Andria, I0ELE, will assume the duties as
ARISS-Europe
chairman. Gaston Bertels, ON4WF is retiring. ANS would like to thank Gaston
for his dedicated and enthusiastic support of ARISS and amateur radio.)
[ANS thanks Gaston Bertels, ON4WF 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, Saturday, and Sunday, October 16-18 2015, AMSAT Symposium in
Dayton OH (Dayton Crown Plaza)
*Saturday, 7 November 2015 – Oro Valley Amateur Radio Club Hamfest in
Marana AZ
*Saturday and Sunday, 7-8 November 2015 – Stone Mountain Hamfest and ARRL
Georgia Section Convention in Lawrenceville GA
*Saturday, 5 December 2015 – Superstition Superfest 2015 in Mesa AZ
[ANS thanks AMSAT-NA for the above information]
---------------------------------------------------------------------
ARISS News
Successful Contacts
New Mexico Military Institute, Roswell, NM, direct via N5MMI
The ISS callsign was scheduled to be NA1SS
The scheduled astronaut was Kjell Lindgren KO5MOS
Contact was successful: Wed 2015-09-16 15:48:50 UTC 43 deg.
About The NEW Mexico Military Institute
Located in Roswell, New Mexico, the New Mexico Military Institute offers a
rich history and tradition of educating tomorrow’s leaders through a
program of
strong, challenging academics, leadership preparation, and character
development. Known as “The West Point of the West,” NMMI remains the
only state-
supported co-educational college preparatory high school and junior
college in
the United States. Serving the educational needs of an international student
population, the Institute has an enrollment of approximately 1,000
students who
come from 43 states, the District of Columbia, and 13 foreign nations.
About Roswell
Roswell is located in the southeast New Mexico and is the home of more than
48,000 people. The major industries here are farming, dairying, ranching,
manufacturing, petroleum production, and, of course, tourism! Roswell is
well
known for the “Roswell Incident”, the alleged crash landing of a UFO
Northeast
of town in 1947. Between 1930 and 1941 Roswell was the home of Robert
Goddard,
considered the father of the liquid-fueled rocket. Goddard’s research and
rocket flight testing in Roswell paved the way for our current space
program.
successful.
Listen to partial audio of contact from John Brier, KG4AKV recorded from
Raleigh, NC
https://soundcloud.com/johnbrier/iss-new-mexico-military-institute-contact-
reception-in-raleigh-nc
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
Three ISS Crew Members, Including Two Hams, Return Safely to Earth
Two radio amateurs -- European Space Agency (ESA) astronaut Andreas
Mogensen,
KG5GCZ, Soyuz commander and Russian cosmonaut Gennady Padalka, RN3DT -- plus
Kazakh cosmonaut Aidyn Aimbetov, arrived back on Earth on September 12
from the
International Space Station (ISS). Mogensen, Aimbetov, and cosmonaut Sergey
Volkov, RU3DIS, had launched in a Soyuz transporter to the ISS on
September 2
from Baikonur cosmodrome. Aimbetov -- who had replaced "space tourist" and
British singer Sarah Brightman on the Soyuz flight -- and Mogensen took
part in
the 10-day ESA mission to test new technologies and conduct a series of
scientific experiments. Mogensen is Denmark's first astronaut, while
Aimbetov
is the first Kazakh cosmonaut.
The trio undocked from the orbiting complex on September 11 in the Soyuz
spacecraft that had been attached to the ISS, leaving the vessel they
arrived
in for the station crew. The new Soyuz spacecraft will return NASA astronaut
Scott Kelly and cosmonaut Mikhail Kornienko, RN3BF, at the end of their one-
year mission next March, along with Volkov.
The return wrapped up 168 days in space for Padalka, who had been on the ISS
since March and has logged a record 879 days in space on five flights --
more
than 2 months longer than cosmonaut Sergei Krikalev, U5MIR, the previous
record
holder.
The undocking of the returning Soyuz marked the formal start of ISS
Expedition
45 under Kelly's command. In addition to Kelly, Kornienko, and Volkov, those
onboard the ISS include astronaut Kjell Lindgren, KO5MOS; cosmonaut Oleg
Kononenko, RN3DX, and JAXA astronaut Kimiya Yui, KG5BPH.
Three more radio amateurs are scheduled to head to the ISS in December. They
are cosmonaut Yuri Malenchenko, RK3DUP; UK astronaut Timothy Peake,
KG5BVI, and
Timothy Kopra, KE5UDN.
November 2 will mark the 15th anniversary of a permanent human presence
on the
ISS.
[ANS thanks the ARRL Letter, NASA, & 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,
Joe Spier, K6WAO
1
0