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ANS-108 AMSAT News Service Weekly Bulletins
by Joseph Spier 16 Apr '16

16 Apr '16

AMSAT NEWS SERVICE ANS-108 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: * New AO-85 Distance Record Claimed * First-Ever D-STAR Satellite to Launch * TAPR Digital Forum Schedule at Dayton Hamvention, Friday, 5/20 * Hans Blondeel Timmerman, PB2T, Named as IARU Satellite Adviser * Contest - Catch the signal of e-st@r-II CubeSat * Satellite DX Operation * ARRL/TAPR Digital Communications Conference * ULA University CubeSat Competition * AMSAT Events * ARISS News * Satellite Shorts From All Over SB SAT @ AMSAT $ANS-108.01 ANS-108 AMSAT News Service Weekly Bulletins AMSAT News Service Bulletin 108.01 >From AMSAT HQ KENSINGTON, MD. DATE April 17, 2016 To All RADIO AMATEURS BID: $ANS-108.01 --------------------------------------------------------------------- New AO-85 Distance Record Claimed 5,751 km is the new claimed distance record for a QSO on AO-85. Betrand Demarcq, FG8OJ, in Saint-Francois, Guadeloupe (FK96ig) worked Jose Elias Diaz Rodriguez, EB1FVQ, in Vigo, Spain (IN52pe) at 19:15 UTC on April 14, 2016. A recording of the QSO is available here: https://www.dropbox.com/s/s0o1b1as1xlcrjs/eb1fvq.mp3 The AMSAT Satellite Distance Records page is located at http://www.amsat.org/?page_id=4751 New record claims may be sent to n8hm(a)amsat.org. [ANS thanks AMSAT-NA and Paul, N8HM for the above information] --------------------------------------------------------------------- First-Ever D-STAR Satellite to Launch The first-ever satellite to carry a D-STAR (Digital Smart Technologies for Amateur Radio) Amateur Radio payload into space is expected to launch on April 22 from Guiana. The OUFTI-1 (Orbital Utility For Telecommunication Innovations) CubeSat is one of three CubeSats developed by student teams under the European Space Agency (ESA) Education Office "Fly Your Satellite!" program, which is aimed at training the next generation of aerospace professionals. The satellites arrived in South America on March 25, followed by the student teams a few days later. On March 30 the students pulled the "Remove Before Flight" pins and successfully verified that their CubeSats were ready for launch before replacing the access ports on the P-POD, which will secure the CubeSats prior to and during launch and then will release them into orbit. The next time the students will have contact with their respective CubeSats will be through their spacecraft's communication link, after the CubeSats have been deployed into orbit. Once thermal-optical tape has been applied to the P-POD to shield the CubeSats from extreme thermal radiation during the launch phase, the P-POD will be integrated with the Soyuz launch vehicle. Constructed by students at the University of Liege in Belgium (ULg), OUFTI-1 will be the first satellite to carry an Amateur Radio D-STAR transponder. Developed by the Japan Amateur Radio League, D-STAR enables the simultaneous transmission of voice and digital data as well as call sign-based roaming via the Internet. "The OUFTI-1 D-STAR repeater will be available either as a direct communication repeater between two users, and as an extension of the ULg D-STAR repeater," explains the article "D-STAR digital amateur communications in space with OUFTI-1 CubeSat" by Jonathan Pisane, ON7JPD; Amandine Denis, ON4EYA, and Jacques Verly, ON9CWD, all of ULg. The CubeSat's frequencies are 145.950 MHz (FSK AX.25), and D-STAR down, with an uplink at 435.045 MHz. OUFTI-1 will carry a CW beacon transmitting on 145.980 MHz. The other two CubeSats are from Italy and Denmark. The CubeSat e-st@r-II from the Polytechnic University of Turin, Italy, will demonstrate an attitude control system using measurements of Earth's magnetic field. It will transmit CW and 1.2 k AFSK on 437.485 MHz. AAUSAT4 from the University of Aalborg, Denmark, will operate an automated ocean vessel identification system. It will transmit on 437.425 MHz. See https://ukamsat.files.wordpress.com/2016/04/202_jun_2013.pdf [ANS thanks the ARRL Letter for the above information] --------------------------------------------------------------------- TAPR Digital Forum Schedule at Dayton Hamvention, Friday, 5/20 TAPR Digital Forum Schedule Moderator: Scotty Cowling, WA2DFI 9:15 to 9:25 am Introduction by Steve Bible, N7HPR, TAPR President 9:25 to 9:35 am "Write for QST/QEX" by Kai Siwiak KE4PT, QEX Editor 9:35 to 10:00 am "SatNOGS - A network of open source satellite ground stations". by Corey Shields KB9JHU Abstract: CubeSat operators tend to have few ground stations of their own and rely on amateur operators to help collect telemetry. With CubeSat deployments on the rise, more and more data is lost as there are not enough ground stations listening. The SatNOGS Project is a Network of Open Source Satellite Ground Stations, focusing on Low Earth Orbit (LEO) satellites. In this presentation, we introduce SatNOGS as a way to increase the amount of data collected from these satellites and returned to their operators. Learn what the SatNOGS project is, how it works, and what we have planned for the future of amateur radio satellite reception. 10:00 to 10:25 am "HamWAN High Speed IP Radio Network" by Bryan Fields, W9CR Abstract: Presented will be an amateur radio high-speed IP backbone concept (HamWAN) with an emphases on building regional highly available networks. Utilizing the same techniques which enable the Internet, Amateur Radio networks may be built connecting projects to the Internet or other sites. Included will be an update on the regional HamWAN network deployments. 10:25 to 10:50 am "SDR Disrupt" by Chris Testa, KD2BMH Abstract: Tools and techniques for software defined radio continue to evolve at a rapid pace, and we'll go over the landscape and advancements in SDR technologies this past year. Numerous technologies are driving the power-price- performance curve to a new level of efficiency. We'll take a look at John Stephensen, KD6OZH's mesh project (part of TAPR), which helps pave the way for next-generation wireless links. Latest developments in digital voice will also be discussed. 10:50 to 11:15 am "Spectrum Monitoring with Software Defined Radio" by Mike Ossmann, AD0NR Abstract: Having developed HackRF One, the world's lowest cost wideband Software Defined Radio transceiver, the HackRF project continues to produce open source hardware designs for SDR. Find out about our designs in development now and our ideas for future boards that will enable the next generation of SDR enthusiasts. More information about TAPR activities at the Dayton Hamvention at: http://www.tapr.org/dayton.html [ANS thanks TAPR for the above information] --------------------------------------------------------------------- Hans Blondeel Timmerman, PB2T, Named as IARU Satellite Advisor The International Amateur Radio Union is pleased to announce that Hans Blondeel Timmerman, PB2T, is appointed to serve as IARU Satellite Advisor. The appointment is effective immediately. Blondeel Timmerman was first licensed in 1980 and has served as VERON HF Manager from 2000-2001 and as VERON Vice President from 2001-2008. He was a member of the IARU Region 1 Executive Committee from 2002-2008 and served as IARU Region 1 President from 2008-2014. Blondeel Timmerman has served as EUDXF President since 2004 and currently serves as a YASME Foundation Director. He is retired from the Netherlands Army Signal Corps after a 38 year career working on satellite projects and spectrum management. He lives in the Netherlands with his wife Margareet, K2XYL and has 2 adult sons. The IARU Satellite Advisor represents the IARU to the satellite community and the various amateur satellite organizations and performs satellite frequency coordination according to the guidelines established by the IARU. In addition, the position calls for maintaining a database of coordination requests and letters, report to the IARU Administrative Council on issues related to satellites and satellite frequency coordination and, if requested, to provide technical and operation advice to assist the representation of the amateur satellite service to the International Telecommunication Union. The Satellite Advisor is assisted by a panel of volunteer satellite advisory members. Blondeel Timmerman replaces Hans van de Groenendaal, ZS6AKV, who has served as IARU Satellite Adviser since 1994. Van de Groenendaal has established many of the procedures used for amateur satellite frequency coordination and has been a critical contributor to the process of satellite frequency coordination for IARU. The IARU is grateful for Hans van de Groenendaal’s excellent work and thanks him for his years of service in this important position. He will remain as special adviser to the satellite committee. Any additional information can be obtained from the International Amateur Radio Union, PO Box 310905, Newington, CT 06131-0905 USA Phone +1 860 594 0200 Fax +1 860 594 0259. IARU Satellite Page http://www.iaru.org/satellite.html http://www.arrl.org/news/hans-blondeel-timmerman-pb2t-named-as-iaru-satelli… advisor [ANS thanks the IARU and the ARRL for the above information] --------------------------------------------------------------------- Contest - Catch the signal of e-st@r-II CubeSat We are the CubeSat Team of Politecnico di Torino, and we are writing to inform you about the contest we have announced today. The CubeSat Team is a student team of Politecnico di Torino involved in the design and development of small platforms for scientific missions and for testing new technologies. We are guys enthralled by space activities. Undergraduate and graduate students work together with researchers and professors to create a real hands-on experience. “SPACE IN A CUBE: MISSIONS OF THE FUTURE” is our motto! We believe that small satellites can contribute to a broad set of science goals and space based services. Our CubeSat missions aim at conceiving new scenarios and technologies to serve the scientific community while educating students in the challenging field of aerospace engineering. Our first CubeSat, e-st@r-I, was launched into orbit on February 2012, and the second satellite, e-st@r-II, will be launched next week: the Soyuz launch ST-A VS14 is scheduled on April 22, 2016, at exactly 09:02:13 p.m UTC, from the European spaceport in French Guiana http://www.arianespace.com/mission/ariane-flight-vs14/ It is just one week to launch… it’s time for us to prepare for operations. To celebrate this date, we invite the radio-ham community to support the e-st@r-II mission by participating in the contest to listen for our CubeSat from orbit! We have prizes for the first to receive the e-st@r-II signal and for the one who provides us with the higher number of packets received in the first month in orbit! All details of the competition can be found at our official webpage: http://www.cubesatteam-polito.com/operations/radio-amateurs/ Follow the daily updates on our Facebook page https://www.facebook.com/CubeSatTeam . Thank you in advance for your help in collecting TLM packets….. and break a leg! CubeSat Team Website: http://areeweb.polito.it/cubesat-team/ Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/CubeSatTeam Twitter: https://twitter.com/CubeSatTeam [ANS thanks JoAnne, K9JKM and the CubeSat Team of Politecnico di Torino for the above information] --------------------------------------------------------------------- Satellite DX Operation Bahamas (FL15) - Bryan Green, KL7CN, plans to be active during daytime passes of FO-29 and SO-50 from Nassau, Bahamas as C6ACN on Tuesday, April 19, 2016 and from Coco Cay, Bahamas midday on Wednesday, April 20, 2016 (times TBD). The plan is subject to change. See @kl7cn on Twitter for updates. Posted on the AMSAT Upcoming Satellite Operations page http://www.amsat.org/?page_id=3921 [ANS thanks Paul, N8HM for the above information] --------------------------------------------------------------------- ARRL/TAPR Digital Communications Conference Technical papers are solicited for presentation at the 35th Annual ARRL/TAPR Digital Communications Conference, to be held September 16-18 in St. Petersburg, Florida. Papers will also be published in the Conference Proceedings. Authors do not need to attend the conference to have their papers included in the Proceedings. The submission deadline is July 31, 2016. The ARRL/TAPR Digital Communications Conference is an international forum for technically minded radio amateurs to meet and present new ideas and techniques. Paper/presentation topic areas include -- but are not limited to -- software defined radio (SDR), digital voice, digital satellite communication, digital signal processing (DSP), HF digital modes, adapting IEEE 802.11 systems for Amateur Radio, Global Positioning System (GPS), Automatic Position Reporting System (APRS), Linux in Amateur Radio, AX.25 updates and Internet interoperability with Amateur Radio networks. Submit papers to via e-mail to maty(a)arrl.org<mailto:[email protected]> or via postal mail to: Maty Weinberg, KB1EIB, ARRL, 225 Main St, Newington, CT 06111. Papers will be published exactly as submitted, and authors will retain all rights. Please do not email zip files as these will be rejected by our servers. [ANS thanks Steve Ford, WB8IMY ARRL QST Editor for the above information] --------------------------------------------------------------------- ULA University CubeSat Competition To U.S. colleges and universities: United Launch Alliance has posted the application for its University CubeSat Competition and entries are due June 1, 2016! The application and more information is located at http://www.ulalaunch.com/cubesats.aspx. [ANS thanks ULA and CubeSat.org mailing list for theabove 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). *Monday, 25 April 2016, AMSAT President Barry Baines, WD4ASW will give “An Overview of AMSAT” presentation to the Greensboro (NC) Amateur Radio Assocaition. The meeting will be held at Captain Bill’s Seafood restaurant located at 6108 W Market St, Greensboro, NC. Attendees meet for dinner around 1815 with the club meeting starting at 1915. The club’s website is w4gso.org. *Friday through Sunday, 29 April-1 May 2016, ARRL Nevada State Convention in Las Vegas NV *Saturday, 7 May 2016 – Cochise Amateur Radio Association Hamfest in Sierra Vista AZ *Saturday, 14 May 2016 – Matanuska Amateur Radio Association Hamfest in Wasilla AK *Saturday, 4 June 2016 – White Mountain Hamfest in Show Low AZ *Saturday, 13 August 2016 – KL7KC Hamfest in Fairbanks AK [ANS thanks AMSAT-NA for the above information] --------------------------------------------------------------------- ARISS News Sucessful Contacts Colegio Santa Rosa, Yerba Buena, Argentina, direct via LU1KCQ The ISS callsign was scheduled to be NA1SS The scheduled astronaut was Jeff Williams KD5TVQ Contact was successful! Congrats to Argentina on this ARISS event and contact with Jeff Williams! All 16 questions answered by Jeff Williams 170 students present with Teachers and others. 3 TV and 3 Radio Stations on site ! Gagarin from Space. This session was amateur radio communications, Orla, Russia, direct via RK3EWW The ISS callsign was scheduled to be RSØISS The scheduled astronaut was Yuri Malenchenko RK3DUP Contact was successful for 2016-04-16 15:14 UTC From Claudio, IK1SLD in Italy: Today the contact with RK3EWW Gagarin from Space was succesful. Communications opened at 15:14:45 UTC and from my home I was able to copy near 3 minutes. This is the link to the file (of course I copied only the cosmonaut answer): https://drive.google.com/file/d/0Byp8JadKjPOmekRIQlpzdWJfZ0U/view?usp=shari… USA Science and Engineering Festival, Washington, D.C., telebridge via IK1SLD The ISS callsign was scheduled to be OR4ISS The scheduled astronaut was Timothy Peake KG5BVI Contact was successful: Sat 2016-04-16 18:19:28 UTC 78 deg Upcoming Contacts St Richards Catholic College, Bexhill on Sea, UK, direct via GB4SRC The ISS callsign is presently scheduled to be GB1SS The scheduled astronaut is Timothy Peake KG5BVI Contact is a go for: Mon 2016-04-18 14:56:06 UTC 85 deg An International Space Station school contact has been planned with participants at St Richards Catholic College, Bexhill on Sea, UK on 18 Apr. The event is scheduled to begin at approximately 14:56 UTC. The duration of the contact is approximately 9 minutes and 30 seconds. The contact will be direct between GB1SS and GB4SRC. The contact should be audible over the UK and adjacent areas. Interested parties are invited to listen in on the 145.80 MHz downlink. The contact is expected to be conducted in English. St Richard's Catholic College is a Science Specialist school tucked between the South Downs and the English Channel. We have 1000 pupils on roll between Years 7-11. We provide an inclusive education for Catholic and Christian pupils covering an extended catchment area covering approximately a 30 mile radius. St Richard's was awarded Teaching School status late in 2014 and we are the lead school in the Thrive Alliance, an association of primary schools, secondary schools and a sixth form college as well as lead in the Sussex Science Subject Hub. We are also a strategic partner in the Sussex Maths Hub. St Richards' Science department enjoys a very strong relationship with the University of Sussex (particularly Astronomy & Physics); University of Greenwich (Outreach)and we sit on the STEM Focus Group hosted by the University of Brighton's STEMSussex. We are a keen supporter of STEM events in our region, with particular success at the Annual STEMFest event where we have won prizes at the National Science and Engineering Competition for the last four years, twice through to national competition. STEMSussex have used St Richard's STEM Clubs' provision as an exemplar due to its success in engaging pupils of all abilities across all year groups. The department has also enjoyed high quality Continuous Professional Development engagement in the STEM agenda with involvement in 'Space as a context for teaching science' courses and a future STEM project with the University of Reykjavik in Iceland. We enjoy Space Camp UK, a residential trip with all things "spacy" at the National Space Centre and Duxford. The coordinating teacher, Dr Joolz Durkin, is the curriculum enhancement for science and is also an enthusiastic "Space Ambasador" and has worked with the Tim Peake Primary Project at Parklands Infants Eastbourne, Dallington School in Dallington, Pebsham Primary in Bexhill on Sea and Vinehall School in Heathfield as part of this link up. Participants will ask as many of the following questions as time allows: 1. You have mentioned in an earlier call that you have been sleeping very well on the Space Station. Is that still the case or have you found any cumulative effects after four months in space ? 2. As the ISS hosts astronauts from many different nationalities, what public holidays do the crew observe, if any, and how are they chosen? 3. St Richards and two of our Primary Project Partner school, Dallington and Vinehall are taking part in the RHS 'Rocket Science' Experiment from the Principia Mission. How will the results from this experiment influence future planning for growing similar samples in another planet's gravity? 4. We have seen the preparation with Heston Blumental of an exciting astronaut menu for the mission - does the food taste the same in space as it did on Earth? 5. In a sealed spacecraft like the International Space Station, how is the air quality monitored and controlled? 6. We see the wonderful time lapse images of the ISS orbiting the Earth, but what I like looking at are the stars and making out the constellations. Do you do any astronomical research on the ISS? 7. During the mission you yourself are part of experiments using the British designed MMS Cerebral and Cochlear Fluid Pressure Analyser to collect data for the NASA Fluid Shifts investigation. Which aspect of the self-experimentation has been the most interesting or challenging? 8. Are there any experiments that rely on naked flames on the ISS? If so, how are they carried out and what low gravity precautions are employed? 9. If I oversleep my parents will wake me up - have you overslept on the ISS and had to be woken up by someone?" 10. The distance between Bexhill and Brighton is 31 miles with a journey time by car of nearly 50 minutes. How much time would it take for the ISS to do this trip? 11. What are the greatest challenges of living in space and in retaining a permanent crew on board the ISS? 12. You have tweeted some amazing and beautiful images of the aurora. Have you been able to monitor solar flare or CME activity and correlate to the brightness of the aurora? 13. How does it feel to be able to see all humanity? 14. Is the ISS affected by the Earth's magnetic field? 15. On Sunday you will be joining thousands of others in taking part in the London Marathon. What special routines have you trained for this in space? 16. In the London marathon, runners will have natural cooling as the run - how do you regulate your body temperature in a sealed environment such as the ISS?. 17. We understand you are taking part in the Skin B research on the ISS? Can you share any interesting findings? 18. You have tweeted that having a bacon sandwich and cup of tea on arrival at the ISS was the best welcome possible. What food are you looking forward to on landing? 19. What is special about space suits that help you breathe in space when on an EVA? 20. How smooth was the launch in December? STEM Trajectory Initiative with Albuquerque Public Schools, Albuquerque New Mexico, direct via NM5HD The ISS callsign is presently scheduled to be NA1SS The scheduled astronaut is Jeff Williams KD5TVQ Contact is a go for: Fri 2016-04-22 17:32:37 UTC 83 deg Wellesley House School, Broadstairs, Kent, UK, direct via GB1WHS The ISS callsign is presently scheduled to be GB1SS The scheduled astronaut is Timothy Peake KG5BVI Contact is a go for: Sat 2016-04-23 12:10:50 UTC 62 deg Watch http://www.ariss.org/upcoming-contacts.html for information about upcoming contacts as they are scheduled. [ANS thanks ARISS, Dave, AA4KN, and Charlie, AJ9N for the above information] --------------------------------------------------------------------- Satellite Shorts From All Over FemtoSat Under Development Now we're getting even smaller than a 1U ... try 3cm x 3cm x 3cm. Meet femtosat ... http://www.spacedaily.com/reports/The_next_big_thing_in_space_is_really_rea… _small_999.html [ANS thanks JoAnne, K9JKM for the above information] Satellite Show in Moreno Valley, CA 05/05/16 Clint Bradford, K6LCS, will be presenting his "How to Work the FM Amateur Satellites With Your HT" session at the Moreno Valley Amateur Radio Association on Thursday, May 5, 2016. ALL are welcome to attend. “The MVARC has been a LONG-time supporter of the ARRL, quite active in their communities, and I am honored that they are asking me back for another presentation,” Clint writes. Attendees will be shown everything needed to work the FM voice ham satellites - with a re-occurring theme of, "Most hams already have most of the necessary equipment ... " Attendees can download a four-page tutorial beforehand at ... http://www.work-sat.com ... and Clint welcomes pre-presentation questions. Call him at 909-999-SATS (909-999-7287), or send email to clint(a)clintbradford.com . May 5, 2016 Lake Perris State Recreation Area 17801 Lake Perris Drive Perris, CA 9257 Meeting Room at Parking Lot Number 9 Call-in frequency 146.500 simplex once you are in the park. (Just tell the Ranger at the gate you are going to the MVARA ham radio meeting - you won’t need to pay admission at the gate.) [ANS thanks Clint, K6LCS for the above information] --------------------------------------------------------------------- /EX In addition to regular membership, AMSAT offers membership in the President's Club. Members of the President's Club, as sustaining donors to AMSAT Project Funds, will be eligible to receive addi- tional benefits. Application forms are available from the AMSAT Office. Primary and secondary school students are eligible for membership at one-half the standard yearly rate. Post-secondary school students enrolled in at least half time status shall be eligible for the stu- dent rate for a maximum of 6 post-secondary years in this status. Contact Martha at the AMSAT Office for additional student membership information. 73, This week's ANS Editor, Joe Spier, K6WAO k6wao at amsat dot org

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ANS-101 AMSAT News Service Weekly Bulletins
by Lee McLamb 09 Apr '16

09 Apr '16

AMSAT NEWS SERVICE ANS-101 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: * ARISS commemorative event (April 11-14) * AMSAT KEPs Redistribution Approved for 2016-2017 * IN81 and IN82 Grid Activation via FM Sats 22 and 24 April * Upcoming Satellite DX * ARISS Contacts and Events * Geostationary / Geosynchronous Amateur Satellite Transponders * AIAA/USU Conference on Small Satellites SB SAT @ AMSAT $ANS-101.01 ANS-101 AMSAT News Service Weekly Bulletins AMSAT News Service Bulletin 080.01 From AMSAT HQ Kensington, MD. April 10, 2016 To All RADIO AMATEURS BID: $ANS-101.01 ARISS commemorative event (April 11-14) Looks like all the pieces are starting to fall into place for the long awaited SSTV event. The schedule is shaping up to look like this: * Setup and activation on April 11 about 18:25 UTC. * Paused April 12 from 12:15 until 14:15 UTC to allow for a school contact with Romania. * Paused April 13 from 12:45 until 14:30 UTC to allow for a school contact with Argentina. * Deactivation on April 14 at 11:35 UTC. This opportunity should cover most of the world during the operational period.The image transmissions should be on 145.800 MHz and the mode is planned to be PD180. In addition, MAI-75 will be conducting two sessions afterwards. The first one is April 14 from 14:45 until 18:00 UTC. The second session is on April 15 from 14:10 until 19:00 UTC. These times do not cross N. America but will provide opportunities for Europe, Southeast Asia, Australia and S. America. As always, all operations aboard the ISS are subject to change and everyone interested in this activity should be vigilant and patient." John KG4AKV has an "ISS SSTV Reception Hints" webpage which may help: https://spacecomms.wordpress.com/iss-sstv-reception-hints/ [ANS thanks ARISS for the above information] --------------------------------------------------------------------- AMSAT KEPs Redistribution Approved for 2016-2017 AMSAT's request to re-distribute US Air Force Space Command Keplerian elements from SpaceTrack has been approved for the period April 1, 2016 to April 1, 2017. Our USSTRATCOM ODR (Orbital Data Request) to distribute the KEPs was approved on March 17, 2016. Thanks to AFSPC, Perry Klein, W3PK and Joe Fitzgerald, KM1P for their help in this process. We are "good to go" for another year. [ANSS thanks Ray, WA5QGD, for the above information] --------------------------------------------------------------------- IN81 and IN82 Grid Activation via FM Sats 22 and 24 April Felix, EA4GQS reports that he plans to activate grids IN81 and IN82 as EA4GQS/P via the FM satellites. He will be be traveling to these grids during April 22-24. He said he will post his available passes on the Satellite and Space Communications forum at QRZ.com. He will confirm via LoTW. [ANS thanks Felix, EA4GQS for the above information] --------------------------------------------------------------------- Upcoming Satellite DX 4A. MEXICO (Bird Op, Special Event). Operators Ismael/XE1AY and David/XE3DX will be active using the special event callsign 4A1DX between now and June 14th. Activity is to celebrate 11th anniversary of the Grupo DXXE, Mexico's top contest and DX radio club. Operations will be on the satellite, FM only (**SO-50, AO-85 y Lilacsat-2). The QSL Manager is Dick, N7RO, direct or by the Bureau (Make sure your Bureau QSL card is clearly marked via N7RO). Don't send your QSL cards to the Mexican Bureau; they will not be answered because they have no QSLs. They will be uploading the log to LoTW and ClubLog at the end of their operation (June 2016). QSOs with this station are also good for the DXXE Award. ADDED NOTE: The special event callsign 4A1DX is also active on all HF bands using CW, SSB, RTTY, PSK31, JT65 and EME. QSL Manager is also N7RO. See QRZ.com under 4A1DX for more details VP5, TURKS AND CAICOS ISLANDS. John, NW4JG, informs OPDX that he is a resident of the Turks and Caicos Island of Providenciales (NA-002) and has just received the callsign VP5VJG (about a week ago). He mentions, "It is very difficult to get a VP5 callsign. About 5 years working with a tourist temporary permit on island." His also states [edited], "I operate with an Icom 7200 with PW-1 amp. Antennas are Force 12 (40-10m), M2 (6 meters), and a Alpha Delta dipole (160-10 meters). We live on a hill and the antennas are about 150' above the Southern Atlantic Ocean. I also work all Digital modes. Have finally received on the island all the gear for satellite and EME with Yaesu FT736R, 5500 antenna control... etc." IMPORTANT QSL INFO: John, informs OPDX to QSL via John, Graves, 3075 Ohio Street, Miami, FL 33133, when on island. There is no mail from the island. Also, during the summer he will be in a condo in Montreal: QSL via John Graves, 1605 Rue Docteur-Penfield #601, Montreal,QC, Canada H3H 1B2. [ANS thanks Ohio/Penn DX Bulletin No. 1258 for the above information] -------------------------------------------------------------------- ARISS Contacts and Events Quick list of scheduled contacts and events: Kiilinik High School, Cambridge Bay, Nunavut, Canada, telebridge via VK4KHZ The ISS callsign is presently scheduled to be NA1SS The scheduled astronaut is Jeff Williams KD5TVQ Contact was successful: Wed 2016-04-06 18:02:20 UTC 55 deg H.A.L. School, Lucknow, India, telebridge via W6SRJ The ISS callsign is presently scheduled to be NA1SS The scheduled astronaut is Jeff Williams KD5TVQ TBD UTC (***) Valahia University of Targoviste, Targoviste, Romania, direct via The ISS callsign is presently scheduled to be OR4ISS The scheduled astronaut is Jeff Williams KD5TVQ Contact is a go for: Tue 2016-04-12 13:48:06 UTC 79 deg Colegio Santa Rosa, Yerba Buena, Argentina, direct via LU1KCQ The ISS callsign is presently scheduled to be NA1SS The scheduled astronaut is Jeff Williams KD5TVQ Contact is a go for: Wed 2016-04-13 14:02:54 UTC 34 deg USA Science and Engineering Festival, Washington, D.C., telebridge via IK1SLD The ISS callsign is presently scheduled to be OR4ISS The scheduled astronaut is Timothy Peake KG5BVI Contact is a go for: Sat 2016-04-16 18:19:28 UTC 78 deg ******************************************************* The next window to submit a proposal for an upcoming contact is now open. The window is open from 2016-02-15 to 2016-04-15 and would be for contacts between 2017-01-01 and 2017-06-30. Check out the ARISS website http://www.ariss.org/ or the ARRL website http://www.arrl.org/hosting-an-ariss-contact for full details. [ANS thanks Charlie, AJ9N, for the above information] -------------------------------------------------------------------- Geostationary / Geosynchronous Amateur Satellite Transponders EngineerIT magazine reports on the quest by radio amateurs to get transponders on geostationary satellites. The article quotes President of AMSAT DL, Peter Gülzow DB2OS, and describes the transponders planned for the geostationary Es’Hail-2 satellite, expected to be operational in 2017 at 26 degrees East. Also mentioned is a project to build a transponder for a US satellite which could be in a geosynchronous orbit around 74 degrees West. Read the EngineerIT article at http://www.ee.co.za/article/radio-amateurs-quest-geostationary-satellites.h… Es’Hail-2 http://amsat-uk.org/satellites/geosynchronous/eshail-2/ AMSAT Phase 4 Update for Palomar Amateur Radio Club November 4, 2015 http://www.ntms.org/files/Feb2016/PARC_4on4.pdf [ANS thanks AMSAT-UK for the above information] -------------------------------------------------------------------- AIAA/USU Conference on Small Satellites The AIAA/USU Conference on Small Satellites has become internationally recognized as the premier conference on small satellites. The annual gathering provides a forum for the best minds in the small satellite community to review recent successes, explore new directions, and introduce emerging technologies in small spacecraft development. In addition to creating an excellent environment for networking and talking with experts in military, science, and academic fields, the Conference offers a program of international relevance, focusing on the key challenges and opportunities facing the small satellite community today. Proceedings from 1987 to 2015 are available online and can be accessed at: http://digitalcommons.usu.edu/smallsat/ [ANS thanks AIAA/USU Conference on Small Satellites amd Utah State University 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, In memory of my Mom. Her tireless efforts to help my independent study of math and electronics in high school set me on the path to broadcast engineering, Amateur Satellites, and eventually working as the Eastern Range's Superintendent of Range Operations. Thank's Mom. Lee McLamb, KU4OS ku4os at amsat dot org

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ANS-094 AMSAT News Service Weekly Bulletins
by E.Mike McCardel 02 Apr '16

02 Apr '16

AMSAT NEWS SERVICE ANS-094 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: * Replay Available Ham Talk Live! ARISS with Rosalie White, K1STO * AMSAT Dayton Booth Volunteers Needed * AMSAT SA SPACE SYMPOSIUM 2016 * The 13th Annual CubeSat Developers’ Workshop * 2016 VHF SUPER CONFERENCE * STMSat-1 and MinXSS CubeSats Featured on Public Radio * Irvine Students Are On a Mission to Launch a Satellite * Free Tours of Facilities at NASA's Glenn Research Center * ARISS News * Satellite Shorts From All Over SB SAT @ AMSAT $ANS-094.01 ANS-094 AMSAT News Service Weekly Bulletins AMSAT News Service Bulletin 094.01 >From AMSAT HQ KENSINGTON, MD. April 3, 2016 To All RADIO AMATEURS BID: $ANS-094.01 Replay Available Ham Talk Live! ARISS with Rosalie White, K1STO If you missed this past Thursday evening's Ham Talk Live! show featuring, Rosalie White, K1STO talking about the Amateur Radio on the International Space Station (ARISS) program sponsored by ARRL, AMSAT, and NASA, a replay of the recorded show is available on http://www.hamtalklive.com. The discussion took a look back at the start of the ARISS program, the 1000th QSO that was just completed, and the future of the program. Also featured were some messages from the ISS. Rosalie also told of a way you can help. Ham Talk Live! airs on the web on Thursday nights at 9PM eastern time. In addition to their hamtalklive.com web site the show can be found on-line via Spreaker, iTunes, Stitcher, Google Play, YouTube, SoundCloud, or TuneIn. [ANS thanks Ham Talk Live! For the above information] --------------------------------------------------------------------- AMSAT Dayton Booth Volunteers Needed Call for Volunteers for the AMSAT Booth at Dayton 2016 The 2016 Dayton Hamvention®, sponsored by the Dayton Amateur Radio Association will be held this year on May 20-22. “Dayton” is the largest hamfest in the United States, and AMSAT will be there again this year. You can assist AMSAT by volunteering to help staff the booth. While there, you will meet other AMSAT members, interact with the satellite designers, builders, and operators, and enjoy all that Dayton has to offer. People are needed to assist with the setup of the booth on Thursday, May 19 (A few people to move the equipment from the storage area leaving the hotel at 9 am, most at the Arena from 11am to 4 pm), to staff the booth Friday (9 am to 6 pm), Saturday (9 am to 5 pm), and Sunday (9 am to 1 pm), and pack up on Sunday (1 pm to 3 pm). If you are leaving late Sunday, or Monday morning, please consider helping transport the display to the storage area on the south side of Dayton. This is normally completed by 5 pm. Most people volunteer for one or more 2 hour shifts in the booth. Please send an e-mail to Steve Belter, N9IP, n9ip (at) amsat.org, if you are willing to help AMSAT at the Hamvention. Please let Steve know as soon as possible if you're available to assist. If you missed the Hamvention the last few years, there were some changes in the Ball Arena, and the AMSAT exhibit was part of that change. We now have a 3 X 3 booth arrangement, with the engineering,education, ARISS, and software display on one side of the aisle, and the membership and Beginner¹s Corner on the opposite side. The booth numbers are now 444-446 and 433-435. We will be very near the old exhibit area, within sight of the ARRL exhibit. [ANS thanks AMSAT.org for the above information] --------------------------------------------------------------------- AMSAT SA SPACE SYMPOSIUM 2016 The annual AMSAT SA Space Symposium will be held at the Innovation Hub in Pretoria on 28 May 2016. The theme is “Make Space Sciences part of your development and free time activity” The conference programme will include a real time review on the SA AMSAT Kletskous CubeSat and papers on other projects, technology and space science subjects. This is a call for papers to be included in the proceedings and for presentation at the conference. The closing date for synopsis has been extended to 6 April. The final paper will be required in word format by 30 April 2016. Synopsis must be in word format and should be sent to saamsat(a)intekom.co.za . [ANS thanks AMSAT SA for the above information] --------------------------------------------------------------------- The 13th Annual CubeSat Developers’ Workshop The 13th Annual CubeSat Developers’ Workshop (April 20-22, 2016) at California Polytechnic State University in San Luis Obispo, CA is just three short weeks away !! Don’t delay: register now before our Early Bird prices expire! You can register by following the link, here, or following the link on our website, cubesat.org. Please note: The prices for professional attendees will INCREASE in just 6 days, on April 5, 2016!! [ANS thanks The CubeSat Workshop Team for the above information] --------------------------------------------------------------------- 2016 VHF SUPER CONFERENCE The upcoming Amateur Radio Technical Conference sponsored by the Southeastern VHF Society, Northeast Weak Signal Group, and Mt. Airy Radio Club will be held at the Holiday Inn Washington Dulles Airport on April 15 to 17. - This year, one large conference is being held in Lieu of three Eastern conferences. The aim of the educational conference is to share with our fellow VHF, UHF, and Microwave enthusiasts, technical achievements and developments. The technical conference is followed by a dinner, recognition of door prize contributors, and a drawing for door prizes. Conference Web-site: http://vhfsuperconference.com The Conference is affiliated with the ARRL. Contacts Mickie Clement, W1MKY Telephone: 603-428-3840 Email: dpclement at tds.net Gary Hitchner, WA2OMY Email: gary.hitchner at momentumdynamics.com [ANS thanks Gary WA2OMY and Mickie W1MKY for the above information] --------------------------------------------------------------------- STMSat-1 and MinXSS CubeSats Featured on Public Radio Elementary school, St. Thomas More's, satellite STMSat-1 and University of Colorado's Miniature X-ray Solar Spectrometer (MinXSS)CubeSat were featured in an interview on Colorado Public Radio. The interview of Doug Duncan, director of the Fiske Planetarium in Boulder by Colorado Matters' host Ryan Warner. The interview can be heard at http://tinyurl.com/ANS094-CPR The interview is a good overview of cubsats and their capability. Both satellites are expected to be launched from the ISS in early April [ANS thanks Colorado Public Radio for the above information] --------------------------------------------------------------------- Irvine Students Are On a Mission to Launch a Satellite The los Angeles Times reports that over a hundred students from five Irvine high schools and another dozen from a local middle school have begun a year long collaboration to engineer, launch and place an operational nanosatellite in orbit. Teachers from Beckman, Irvine, Northwood and Woodbridge high schools developed curriculum for teams of 20 to 25 students from each school to handle the CubeSat mission. Students from Irvine's new Portola High School will be brought into the program when the campus opens in the fall. Students from Rancho San Joaquin Middle School are involved in the project as a STEM feeder program. Organizers of the Irving project are in discussions with a Russian company and have targeted a March 2017 launch date. Irving Public Schools Foundation have granted $150,000 in seed money to launch the project. The schools are planning for three years of missions with a goal of rolling over in perpetuity depending on funding and future support. The project is the brain child of Brent Freeze and Kain Sosa, neighbors in Irvine's Quail Hill subdivision, who have children in the school district. Their goal is to support education that requires specialized science backgrounds and recognize that developing talent could start with STEM programs in local high schools. Read the full article at http://preview.tinyurl.com/ANS094-Irvine [ANS thanks the LA Times for the above information] --------------------------------------------------------------------- Free Tours of Facilities at NASA's Glenn Research Center NASA's Glenn Research Center in Cleveland, Ohio, is offering tours that take visitors behind the scenes and inside certain research facilities. Glenn scientists and engineers serve as guides. Tours and open house events will be held each month through October 2016. Tours are free for groups and individuals, but to guarantee admission, reservations are required. Visitor parking is also free. On the days of the tours, a bus departs from Glenn's main gate every hour, beginning at 10 a.m. The last tour departs at 1 p.m. Each tour lasts about 45 minutes and is followed by a stop at Glenn's Gift Shop. Glenn's 2016 Tour Schedule April 2, 2016 -- Piloted Control Evaluation Facility and Distributed Engine Control Laboratory: Visit two laboratories that showcase how researchers evaluate propulsion control and aircraft engine control. Tour the Piloted Control Evaluation (Flight Simulator) Facility to see where researchers evaluate the effect of propulsion control on aircraft performance. Visit the Distributed Engine Control Laboratory to learn how NASA evaluates new hardware architectures for aircraft engine control. May 21-22, 2016 -- Open House at NASA's Glenn Research Center: NASA Glenn is opening its doors to the public for a weekend open house. Visitors will be able to tour many of the center's world-class facilities and see how the center improves aviation and fosters exploration to benefit everyone on Earth. Visitors also will be able to meet an astronaut and talk with engineers, scientists and technicians who work on space programs. Registration for this event is not required. June 11-12, 2016 -- Open House at NASA's Plum Brook Station: NASA Glenn is opening the doors of Plum Brook Station in Sandusky, Ohio, to the public for a weekend open house. Visitors will be able to tour the station's world-class facilities and step inside the world's largest vacuum chamber, which has tested parts of rockets, Mars landers and Orion hardware. Visitors also will be able to meet an astronaut and talk with engineers, scientists and technicians. Registration for this event is not required. July 9, 2016: Radioisotope Power System, Systems Integration Laboratory: See how NASA emulates the electrical characteristics of a spacecraft system in the Radioisotope Power System, Systems Integration Laboratory. RPS is a source of electricity for NASA space missions from the surface of Mars to the realm of the outer planets. Aug. 6, 2016 -- See Things a Different Way: Check out Glenn's Graphics and Visualization, or GVIS, and the Reconfigurable User- interface and Virtual Reality Exploration, or GRUVE, Laboratories. The GVIS lab uses advanced computer input and output devices paired with a variety of natural user interface devices and 3-D displays. The GRUVE lab is used to analyze data obtained either by computer simulation or from research test facilities. Sept. 10, 2016 -- Vibration Testing: Join us on a tour of Glenn's Structural Dynamics Laboratory, where things get shaken to verify their survivability. Several experiments that currently are operating on the International Space Station were tested in this lab. Oct. 1, 2016 -- Prepare for Impact: Come explore Glenn's Ballistic Impact Facility. See the laboratory that helped to identify the cause of the space shuttle Columbia accident and return NASA's shuttle fleet to flight. Tours are open to U.S. citizens and lawful permanent residents. To guarantee admission, reservations are required. For more information on tours and how to make reservations, visit http://www.nasa.gov/centers/glenn/events/tours.html. Please direct questions about the tours to Sheila Reese at sheila.d.reese(a)nasa.gov. [ANS thanks NASA Education Express Message -- March 31, 2016 for the above information] --------------------------------------------------------------------- ARISS News + A Successful contact was made between Hirano Junior High School, Kobe, Japan and Astronaut Tim Kopra KE5UDN using Callsign NA1SS. The contact began 2016-03-28 11:07 UTC and lasted about nine and a half minutes. Contact was direct via 8N370H. ARISS Mentor was Satoshi 7M3TJZ. + A Successful contact was made between National Soaring Museum, Elmira, New York, USA and Astronaut Timothy Peake KG5BVI using Callsign OR4ISS. The contact began Fri 2016-04-01 18:34:03 UTC and lasted about nine and a half minutes. Contact was telebridge via IK1SLD. ARISS Mentor was Dave AA4KN. Upcoming ARISS Contact Schedule Kiilinik High School, Cambridge Bay, Nunavut, Canada, telebridge via VK4KHZ The ISS callsign is presently scheduled to be NA1SS The scheduled astronaut is Jeff Williams KD5TVQ Contact is go for: Wed 2016-04-06 18:02:20 UTC H.A.L. School, Lucknow, India, telebridge via W6SRJ The ISS callsign is presently scheduled to be NA1SS The scheduled astronaut is Tim Kopra KE5UDN Contact is a go for: Fri 2016-04-08 08:17:46 UTC The next window to submit a proposal for an upcoming contact in the United States is now open. The window is open from 2016-02-15 to 2016-04-15 and would be for contacts between 2017-01-01 and 2017-06-30. Check out the ARISS website http://www.ariss.org/ or the ARRL website http://www.arrl.org/hosting-an-ariss-contact for full details. 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. Here you will find 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. http://www.amsat.org/amsat/ariss/news/arissnews.rtf Total number of ARISS ISS to earth school events is 1038. Each school counts as 1 event. Total number of ARISS ISS to earth school contacts is 1003. Each contact may have multiple schools sharing the same time slot. Total number of ARISS supported terrestrial contacts is 47. A complete year by year breakdown of the contacts may be found in the file. http://www.amsat.org/amsat/ariss/news/arissnews.rtf The following US states and entities have never had an ARISS contact: Arkansas, Delaware, Rhode Island, South Dakota, Wyoming, American Samoa, Guam, Northern Marianas Islands, and the Virgin Islands. Schools in these entities are encouraged to apply for a contact. [ANS thanks ARISS, Charlie AJ9N and David AA4KN for the above information] --------------------------------------------------------------------- Satellite Shorts From All Over + JSatTrak Satellite App Released Developed by Shawn Gano KB3OJE, JSatTrack is written in Java and allows you to predict the position of any satellite in real time or in the past or future. It uses advanced SGP4/SDP4 algorithms developed by NASA/NORAD or customizable high precision solvers to propagate satellite orbits. The program also allows for easy updating of current satellite tracking data via CelesTrak.com. Because this application was written in Java, it should run on almost any operating system or directly off the web using java web start! Questions and comments are welcome at the JSatTrack Forum http://www.gano.name/shawn/JSatTrak/forum The JSatTrack App can be downloaded from http://www.gano.name/shawn/JSatTrak/ [ANS thanks Shawn KB3OJE for the abiove information] + Proposal windows for ARISS school contacts are still open in the United States and Europe. For more information about scheduled US contacts visit http://www.arrl.org/hosting-an-ariss-contact For more information about scheduled European Region contact visit http://www.ariss-eu.org/school-contacts [ANS thanks ARISS for the above information] + Current profiles of the crew currently aboard the ISS, Expedition 47, can be found at: http://www.ariss.org/current-iss-crew.html --------------------------------------------------------------------- /EX In addition to regular membership, AMSAT offers membership in the President's Club. Members of the President's Club, as sustaining donors to AMSAT Project Funds, will be eligible to receive addi- tional benefits. Application forms are available from the AMSAT Office. Primary and secondary school students are eligible for membership at one-half the standard yearly rate. Post-secondary school students enrolled in at least half time status shall be eligible for the stu- dent rate for a maximum of 6 post-secondary years in this status. Contact Martha at the AMSAT Office for additional student membership information. 73, This week's ANS Editor, EMike McCardel, AA8EM (former KC8YLD) kc8yld at amsat dot org

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ANS-087 AMSAT News Service Weekly Bulletins
by E.Mike McCardel 27 Mar '16

27 Mar '16

AMSAT NEWS SERVICE ANS-087 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: * EO-79 transponder ACTIVE * Digital Communications Conference Call for Papers * Call for Papers - CSVHFS 50th Anniversary Conference * AMSAT at Scottsdale AZ and Radio Society of Tucson Hamfests * Upcoming AMSAT Events * Proposal Window for Scheduled US Contacts is Still Open * SA AMSAT Gets New Name * 40 Students Learn About Amateur Radio and Satellites * ARISS News * Satellite Shorts From All Over SB SAT @ AMSAT $ANS-087.01 ANS-087 AMSAT News Service Weekly Bulletins AMSAT News Service Bulletin 087.01 >From AMSAT HQ KENSINGTON, MD. March 27, 2016 To All RADIO AMATEURS BID: $ANS-087.01 EO-79 transponder ACTIVE On the 25th of March 2016, the EO-79 transponder was activated for a prolonged period. The FUNcube transponder subsystem on QB50p1 (EO-79) had been provided by AMSAT-UK and AMSAT-NL and is a similar subsystem as on FUNcube-1, but without the telemetry downlink circuitry. The current software running on EO-79 does experience occasional reboots. When these reboots happen, the transponder is automatically turned off and will have to be turned back on by a command station. The FUNcube team has selected a few command stations to do so, but be advised the transponder may be off. TLEs: AMSAT keps name: EO-79 Celestrak keps Name: QB50P1 Celestrak file: cubesat.txt NORAD # 40025 COSPAR designator 2014-033-R Frequencies: Uplink: 435.035-435.065 MHz LSB Downlink: 145.935-145.965 MHz USB EO-79 has been set to only beacon the normal AX.25 beacon every 30 seconds instead of 10 seconds. The beacon frequency is 145.815MHz and consists of AX.25 frames on BPSK. more details about the downlink can be found on the ISIS HAM page at http://isispace.nl/HAM/qb50p.html Just like FUNcube-1, the crystal oscillator circuits exhibit drift with temperature. This means manual tuning will probably work best. Lastly, the commanding team availability will be limited over Easter, so please report the transponder being on or off on the status page of AMSAT: http://www.amsat.org/status/ It does not appear in the table, but it does in the reporting drop- down. [ANS thanks Wouter PA3WEG AMSAT-NL and AMSAT-UK for the above information] --------------------------------------------------------------------- Digital Communications Conference Call for Papers Technical papers are solicited for presentation at the 35th Annual ARRL/TAPR<http://www.tapr.org/> Digital Communications Conference (DCC) http://www.tapr.org/dcc.html, to be held September 16-18 in St Petersburg, Florida. Papers will also be published in the Conference Proceedings. Authors do not need to attend the conference to have their papers included in the Proceedings. The submission deadline is July 31, 2016. The ARRL/TAPR Digital Communications Conference is an international forum for technically minded radio amateurs to meet and present new ideas and techniques. Paper/presentation topic areas include -- but are not limited to -- software defined radio (SDR), digital voice, digital satellite communication, digital signal processing (DSP), HF digital modes, adapting IEEE 802.11 systems for Amateur Radio, Global Positioning System (GPS), Automatic Position Reporting System (APRS), Linux in Amateur Radio, AX.25 updates and Internet operability with Amateur Radio networks. Submit papers to via e-mail<mailto:[email protected]> or via post to Maty Weinberg, KB1EIB, ARRL, 225 Main St, Newington, CT 06111. Papers will be published exactly as submitted, and authors will retain all rights. [ANS thanks Steve WBIMY for the above information] --------------------------------------------------------------------- Call for Papers - CSVHFS 50th Anniversary Conference The Central States VHF Society is soliciting papers, presentations, and Poster displays for the 50th Annual CSVHFS Conference to be held in Rochester, Minnesota on 28 - 31 July, 2016. Papers, presentations, and Posters on all aspects of weak-signal VHF and above amateur radio are requested. You do not need to attend the conference, nor present your paper, to have it published in the Proceedings. Posters will be displayed during the two days of the Conference. Topics of interest include (but are not limited to): * Antennas, including Modeling/Design, Arrays, and Control * Construction of equipment, such as Transmitters, Receivers, and Transverters * RF amplifiers (power amps), including Single-band and Multiband Vacuum Tube and solidstate * Pre-amplifiers (low noise) * Propagation, including Ducting, Sporadic E, and Meteor Scatter, etc. * Test Equipment, including Homebrew, Using, and making measurements * Regulatory topics * Operating, including Contesting, Roving, and DXpeditions * EME * Digital Signal Processing (DSP) * Software-defined Radio (SDR) * Digitial Modes, such as WSJT, JT65, etc. Generally, topics not related to weak signal VHF, such as FM Repeaters and packet radio, are not accepted for presentation or publication. However, there are always exceptions. Please contact either the Technical Program Chairman, or the Proceedings Chairman, at the the e-mail addresses below. DEADLINES FOR SUBMISSIONS: For the Proceedings: SUNDAY, 22 MAY 2016 For Presentations to be delivered at the conference: TUESDAY, 5 JULY 2016 For Posters to be displayed at the conference: THURSDAY, 29 JULY 2016. Further information is available at the CSVHFS web site (www.csvhfs.org), "The 2016 Conference," "Guidance for Proceedings Authors," "Guidance for Presenters," "Guidance for Table-top/Poster Displays." CONTACTS: (Note: (replace '(at)' with the @-sign to use the e-mail addresses) Technical Program Chairman: Barry Malowanchuk, ve4ma (at) shaw.ca Proceedings Chairman: Glen Overby, kc0iyt (at) arrl.net [ANS thanks Donn Baker, WA2VOI for the above information] --------------------------------------------------------------------- AMSAT at Scottsdale AZ and Radio Society of Tucson Hamfests Patrick STODDARD (WD9EWK/VA7EWK) staffed a table at the Scottsdale Amateur Radio Club's "Springfest" hamfest, held in a church parking lot Saturday, 19 March). This hamfest is one of the 3 major hamfests for the Phoenix area in the non-summer season, and the good weather helped to bring the crowds out. Lots of buyers and sellers, and lots of interest in AMSAT and amateur satellites. With the launches of AO-85 and the 9 Chinese amateur satellites in the past 6 months, many hams are taking a closer look at this part of the hobby. For some, the recent launches and projects currently in the pipeline are bringing some back to the satellites. Along with talking about satellites, many copies of AMSAT's "Getting Started with Amateur Satellites" flew off my AMSAT table. Demonstrations 6am (1300 UTC) and 11am (1800 UTC), had nice crowds. Patrick reports "It was nice to have AO-85 available during the morning, as SO-50 was not passing by during the morning. I also had 4 other satellites that were used for demonstrations - AO-73, XW-2A, XW- 2C, and XW-2F. The three XW-2 satellites were passing by in the first couple of hours, and AO-73 and AO-85 came by later in the morning. For all of these passes, I used my SDRplay SDR receiver for the downlinks, connected to an 8-inch Windows10 tablet and HDSDR software running on the tablet. As I have seen at other recent events, using an SDR receiver makes for more conversations - and not just in the context of working satellites. With all of these satellites employing a 70cm uplink and 2m downlink, I didn't have to worry so much about the sunlight making the tablet's LCD panel unreadable. Once I set my downlink frequency on the tablet, and for AO-85 activate AFC in HDSDR to track the downlink, I only had to worry about using the wheel on a Bluetooth mouse for fine-tuning. Despite some QRM in the area of the hamfest site, northeast of a nearby airport, the SDRplay did a decent job hearing all of these downlinks. For AO-73 and AO-85, I was able to play back the RF recordings I made with HDSDR later at home, so I could upload telemetry to each satellite's telemetry server from those passes. By the way, HDSDR's recordings do a much better job picking up AO-73 telemetry than I ever saw when I used the FUNcube Dashboard to directly receive the telemetry and then upload the data to the FUNcube data warehouse server. Same thing for copying AO-85 telemetry - HDSDR's RF recordings do better for capturing the data than I saw when using the FoxTelem software to directly control my FUNcube Dongle Pro+." For those who worked WD9EWK during those demonstrations, Patrick thanks you! The demonstrations make a positive impression on this part of the hobby for the crowds. His mockup of the AO-85 satellite - a 4-inch cube of wood, with two whips representing the antennas coming out of two sides, also helped to reinforce that small satellites can do more than "beep" in orbit. AO-73 and AO-85, in particular, are great examples of what we can do with small satellites. Patrick's contacts from these demonstartions were uploaded to his log to Logbook of the World. He will be happy to send QSL cards to anyone who would like one for QSOs during the hamfest (just e-mail Patrick with the QSO details - no need to send him a card or self-addressed stamped envelope). Patrick will have an AMSAT table at the Radio Society of Tucson's annual hamfest on Saturday morning, 26 March 2016. The hamfest will be at the Target store on Old Spanish Trail, near the intersection of 22nd Street and Harrison, in Tucson AZ. The hamfest is scheduled to run from 6am to 11am (1300 to 1800 UTC). More information about the hamfest is available at the club's web site at: http://www.k7rst.org/ Afterwards he plans on making a long drive east to a point along I- 10 on the DM52xf/DM62af grid boundary, west of Deming in New Mexico. He hopes to work a few passes from there in the mid- to late- afternoon, and possibly into the evening. If he is not at the grid boundary in time for FO-29 and/or AO-7 passes, he may stop to work those passes wherever he might be - likely somewhere in grid DM52, in either Arizona or New Mexico. He definitely plans on being at this grid boundary in time for SO-50 passes starting just after 2200 UTC Saturday afternoon. Weather and law enforcement permitting (this area is near the USA/Mexico border), He may try to stick around into the early evening before making the 300-mile/500km drive home from that area. While on the road, his location should be visible via APRS. There is good APRS coverage in southeastern Arizona and southwestern New Mexico. He will use WD9EWK-9 as his call sign for APRS, which should show up online at (among other sites): http://aprs.fi/WD9EWK-9 He will use my @WD9EWK Twitter feed to post updates during the afternoon and early. For those who don't use Twitter he can be followed using a web browser: http://twitter.com/WD9EWK Contacts will be uploaded to his log to Logbook of the World, and will ensure QSOs from the grid boundary carry both grids. If you would like a QSL card for a QSO with WD9EWK, please e-mail Patrick directly with the QSO details. If you're in the log, he will be happy to mail you a card without you having to send him a QSL card or SASE. [ANS thanks Patrick WD9EWK/VA7EWK for the above information] --------------------------------------------------------------------- Upcoming AMSAT Events AMSAT Events Information about AMSAT activities at other important events around the country. Examples of these events are radio club meetings where AMSAT Area Coordinators give presentations, demonstrations of working amateur satellites, and hamfests with an AMSAT presence (a table with AMSAT literature and merchandise, sometimes also with presentations, forums, and/or demonstrations). + Saturday, 26 March 2016 – Tucson Spring Hamfest in Tucson AZ + Friday through Sunday, 29 April-1 May 2016, ARRL Nevada State Convention in Las Vegas NV + Saturday, 7 May 2016 – Cochise Amateur Radio Association Hamfest in Sierra Vista AZ + Saturday, 14 May 2016 – Matanuska Amateur Radio Association Hamfest in Wasilla AK + Friday through Sunday, 20, 21, 22 May 2016 - AMSAT at Dayton Hamvention. There will be the usual activities including a booth in the Ball Arena, demonstrations from an area outside the Ball Arena, and a forum on Saturday (21 May). We will also have a number of both formal and informal social activities including the popular get-together at Tickets Thursday evening, and the TAPR/AMSAT banquet Friday night at the Kohler Presidential Banquet Center. + Saturday, 4 June 2016 – White Mountain Hamfest in Show Low AZ [ANS thanks AMSAT-NA for the above information] --------------------------------------------------------------------- Proposal Window for Scheduled US Contacts is Still Open Message to US Educators Amateur Radio on the International Space Station Contact Opportunity Call for Proposals Proposal Window February 15 – April 15, 2016 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 January 1, 2017 and June 30, 2017. 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 April 15, 2016. Proposal information and documents can be found at www.arrl.org/hosting-an-ariss-contact. 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] --------------------------------------------------------------------- SA AMSAT Gets New Name SA AMSAT has changed the SA in its name around and will now be known as AMSAT SA. The amateur radio satellite group made the decision to line up its name with the organisation's web address. It was confusing having the name and web address different. It now also follows the international trend of other AMSAT organisations. AMSAT SA has also been registered as a non-profit company and is in the process of applying for tax exemption status with SARS. Membership conditions of the organisation remain the same. To get more information visit the www.amsatsa.org.za or down load a free copy of the March 2016 Ezine available from Monday 28 March 2016 [ANS thanks the South African Radio League (SARL) News for Sunday 27 March 2016 for the above information] --------------------------------------------------------------------- 40 Students Learn About Amateur Radio and Satellites On Wednesday last week 40 leaners from schools around Pretoria attended a morning workshop about amateur radio and satellites. The workshop was part of the Innovation Hub holiday programme during which grade 10 and 11 leaners are exposed to various work and science situations. AMSAT SA was invited to talk about space related activities. The workshop was presented by Nico van Rensburg ZS6QL and Hans van de Groenendaal ZS6AKV. The workshop started with a talk about amateur radio illustrated by short video clips. During practical demonstrations the learners were shown how a transponder works, how satellites orbit around the world and how antennas are used to track satellites including using smartphone applications. [ANS thanks the South African Radio League (SARL) News for Sunday 27 March 2016 for the above information] --------------------------------------------------------------------- ARISS News + A Successful contact was made between Booker T. Washington Senior High, Miami, Florida, USA and Astronaut Timothy Peake KG5BVI using Callsign NA1SS. The contact began 2016-03-14 15:48 UTC and lasted about nine and a half minutes. Contact was direct via W4SVI. ARISS Mentors were Steve W1HQL and Ryan W4NTR. + A Successful contact was made between Walter Jackson Elementary, Decatur, Alabama, USA and Astronaut Timothy Peake KG5BVI using Callsign NA1SS. The contact began 2016-03-18 13:53 UTC and lasted about nine and a half minutes. Contact was direct via N8DEU. ARISS Mentor was John K4SQC Upcoming ARISS Contact Schedule Hirano Junior High School, Kobe, Japan, direct via 8N370H The ISS callsign is presently scheduled to be NA1SS The scheduled astronaut is Tim Kopra KE5UDN Contact is a go for: Mon 2016-03-28 11:07:49 UTC 56 deg National Soaring Museum, Elmira, New York, telebridge via IK1SLD The ISS callsign is presently scheduled to be OR4ISS The scheduled astronaut is Timothy Peake KG5BVI Contact is a go for: Fri 2016-04-01 18:34:03 UTC [ANS thanks ARISS, Charlie AJ9N and David AA4KN for the above information] [ANS thanks ARISS, Charlie AJ9N information] --------------------------------------------------------------------- Satellite Shorts From All Over International Space Station Panoramic Tour This 360° panorama allows you to explore the International Space Station’s third module, Zvezda. Launched on 12 July 2000, the Russian module supplies life support for the Station and crewquarters. All five of Europe’s Automated Transfer Vehicles docked with the module. The images to create this view were taken by ESA astronaut Samantha Cristoforetti during her Futura mission in 2015; the cosmonaut in the picture is Gennady Padalka. http://tinyurl.com/ANS087-Zvezda [ANS thanks the European Space Agency for the above information] --------------------------------------------------------------------- /EX In addition to regular membership, AMSAT offers membership in the President's Club. Members of the President's Club, as sustaining donors to AMSAT Project Funds, will be eligible to receive addi- tional benefits. Application forms are available from the AMSAT Office. Primary and secondary school students are eligible for membership at one-half the standard yearly rate. Post-secondary school students enrolled in at least half time status shall be eligible for the stu- dent rate for a maximum of 6 post-secondary years in this status. Contact Martha at the AMSAT Office for additional student membership information. 73, This week's ANS Editor, EMike McCardel, KC8YLD kc8yld at amsat dot org

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ANS-080 AMSAT News Service Weekly Bulletins
by Lee McLamb 19 Mar '16

19 Mar '16

AMSAT NEWS SERVICE ANS-080 The AMSAT News Service bulletins are a free, weekly news and infor- mation service of AMSAT North America, The Radio Amateur Satellite Corporation. ANS publishes news related to Amateur Radio in Space including reports on the activities of a worldwide group of Amateur Radio operators who share an active interest in designing, building, launching and communicating through analog and digital Amateur Radio satellites. The news feed on http://www.amsat.org publishes news of Amateur Radio in Space as soon as our volunteers can post it. Please send any amateur satellite news or reports to: ans-editor at amsat.org. In this edition: * AMSAT Forum Speakers at Dayton * Just-Launched ISS Expedition 47/48 Crew Increment Includes Two Radio Amateurs * UK Student Balloon Crosses Pacific SB SAT @ AMSAT $ANS-080.01 ANS-080 AMSAT News Service Weekly Bulletins AMSAT News Service Bulletin 080.01 From AMSAT HQ Kensington, MD. March 20, 2016 To All RADIO AMATEURS BID: $ANS-080.01 AMSAT Forum Speakers at Dayton The AMSAT forum will be Saturday morning from 11:15 a.m. through 1:30 p.m. in Forum Room 5. See the commercial vendor layout map in the Hamvention program or the Hamvention website for the location of Forum Room 5 (same as the last few years). The following speakers will be presenting at the AMSAT Forum: Moderator: Mark Hammond, N8MH "AMSAT Status Report" Barry Baines, WD4ASW, AMSAT-NA President, will highlight recent activities within AMSAT and discuss some of our challenges, accomplishments, projects, and any late breaking news. "AMSAT-NA Satellite Program" Jerry Buxton, N0JY, AMSAT-NA Engineering Vice President, will review the upcoming launches of four Fox spacecraft and exciting new engineering developments. "AMSAT's HEO and GSO Plans" Bob McGwier, N4HY, AMSAT-NA Director, will discuss AMSAT-NA opportunities for High Earth Orbit and Geo-Synchronous Orbit satellites. "AMSAT Satellite Operations" Drew Glasbrenner, KO4MA, AMSAT-NA Operations Vice President, will survey the current operational amateur satellites, as well as those planned for launch in the next year. "ARISS Report 2016" Frank Bauer, KA3HDO, AMSAT-NA Vice President for Human Spaceflight, will discuss ARISS developments & operation on the International Space Station. "Teaching STEM Using the Fox Satellites” Joe Spier, K6WAO, AMSAT-NA Educational Relations Vice President, will explain how the Fox MEMS gyroscopes, radiation experiments, and cameras will be used to teach Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math (STEM). [ANS thanks Steve, N9IP, for the above information] --------------------------------------------------------------------- Just-Launched ISS Expedition 47/48 Crew Increment Includes Two Radio Amateurs The Expedition 47/48 crew increment of Astronaut Jeff Williams, KD5TVQ, and Cosmonauts Oleg Skripochka, RN3FU, and Alexey Ovchinin, is on its way to the International Space Station (ISS). Their Soyuz TMA-20M launched from the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan on March 18 at 2126 UTC. The trio now is safely in orbit. “During their 6-month mission, the expedition crew members will facilitate approximately 250 research investigations and technology demonstrations not possible on Earth,” NASA said. “Science conducted also will enable future long- duration human and robotic exploration into deep space and on the agency’s journey to Mars.” Williams, Skripochka, and Ovchinin will join Expedition 47 Commander Tim Kopra, KE5UDN, European Space Agency astronaut Tim Peake, KG5BVI/GB1SS, and cosmonaut Yuri Malenchenko, RK3DUP. Williams will take command of the station on June 4 for Expedition 48. The three will return to Earth in early September. This mission marks Williams’ fourth spaceflight and will be his third long- duration stay on the orbiting laboratory — a first for an American. It’s also his first time back to the ISS since its completion in 2011. By the time his duty tour ends in September, Williams will become the new American record holder for cumulative days in space — 534 — surpassing Expedition 46 Commander Scott Kelly, who wrapped up his 1-year mission on March 1. [ANS thanks ARRL for the above information] --------------------------------------------------------------------- UK Student Balloon Crosses Pacific On Thursday, March 17 the UBSEDS14 balloon, launched by University of Bristol students, had successfully crossed the Pacific and was above Arizona, having traveled over 24,500 km since launch. By March 19 the balloon had crossed the United States and was headed out across the Atlantic Ocean. The University of Bristol Students for the Exploration and Development of Space (UBSEDS) launched their balloon on Monday, March 8. Powered by a single AA Lithium Energiser Battery (LR91) the balloon has been transmitting about 5dBm of Contestia 16/1000 on 434.600 MHz USB at 4 minute intervals as well as APRS during its flight at an altitude of about 11,000m. The balloon uses the error-correcting Contestia 16/1000 mode on 434.6MHz USB. The transmission power on this band was measured to be +5dBm on a similar board, which is well below the +10dBm limit for ISM band operation. Each packet was preceded by 10 seconds of 1Hz pips for manual alignment and a RSID tone for automatic alignment with suitable software (dl-fldigi for example). For many countries the balloon transmits APRS packets on local frequencies. In particular this is 144.8MHz in Europe, 144.66MHz in Japan and 144.39MHz in North America. The balloon has a diameter of 1.5m and the payload weighs just 21.3 grams. Despite the weight constraints the team have managed to employ sophisticated Geofencing technology to prevent the balloon transmitting when over certain countries and also to select different APRS frequencies depending on the territory being overflown. UBSEDS14 information is available at http://www.bristol-seds.co.uk/hab/flight/2016/03/07/ubseds14.html UBSEDS14 balloon launch http://www.southgatearc.org/news/2016/march/ubseds14_balloon_launches_today… One of the students involved in the project is Richard Meadows M0SBU. He took the amateur radio courses run by the Chelmsford Amateur Radio Society (CARS) at Danbury in Essex. Further information on the courses is available from the CARS Training Manager Email: training2016 at g0mwt.org.uk Web: http://g0mwt.org.uk/training [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

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ANS-073 AMSAT News Service Weekly Bulletins
by E.Mike McCardel 12 Mar '16

12 Mar '16

AMSAT NEWS SERVICE ANS-073 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: * ARISS Celebrates School Contact #1000! * AMSAT/TAPR Banquet at the Dayton Hamvention * Fox-1Cliff and Fox-1D Waiting for delivery to Spaceflight Industries * The CBS "This Morning" show reportsa on STMSat-1 * Supporting Disaster Communications from Space * Proposal Window for Scheduled US Contacts is Open * Application Window Open for ARISS Europe Region * ARISS News * Satellite Shorts From All Over SB SAT @ AMSAT $ANS-073.01 ANS-073 AMSAT News Service Weekly Bulletins AMSAT News Service Bulletin 073.01 >From AMSAT HQ KENSINGTON, MD. March 13, 2016 To All RADIO AMATEURS BID: $ANS-073.01 ARISS Celebrates School Contact #1000! March 10, 2016: Today the Amateur Radio on the International Space Station team (ARISS team) proudly celebrated its 1000th school radio contact! The very first ARISS contact took place in 2000, and Astronaut Tim Kopra, amateur call sign KE5UDN, on the International Space Station (ISS) did the honors for today’s 1000th link-up to the University of North Dakota. Kopra spoke in real time to excited scholars in Grand Forks at the event organized by the North Dakota Space Grant Consortium (NDSGC). An additional program milestone—this was the first amateur radio contact with the ISS that has been hosted in North Dakota. During the 10-minute ARISS contact Astronaut Kopra answered questions formulated by 20 different pupils in kindergarten all the way up to graduate school. A member of the winning 10th grade team from the Space Grant’s high altitude balloon competition last fall was awarded one of the slots to interview Kopra. An ARISS event is more than the amateur radio contact, and in this case the NDSGC team that included college student volunteers made multiple visits to pupils in the second through fifth grades at Emerado Elementary (Emerado, ND); Highland Elementary (Crookston, MN); Century Elementary (Grafton, ND); Century Elementary (Grand Forks, ND); and Discover Elementary (Grand Forks, ND). The university teams led the young students in hands-on activities and learning about aerospace, priming the youth for the interview with Kopra. The students, many from smaller rural communities, built and launched rockets, crafted and tested parachutes similar to those on NASA’s Orion capsule, and designed and tested neutral buoyant objects. Students in today’s audience for the 1000th contact numbered 500. TV and newspaper reporters captured the action; the university media team filmed it, and live-streaming was handled by John Spasojevich, amateur radio call sign AG9D. One student asked Tim, “What advice would you give to students, such as myself, who wish to work for NASA one day?” Tim advised: “Study very hard and work hard in school because if you do well in school you'll learn a lot and it's like money in the bank for you and your future career.” A UND staff member said, “Experiential learning has proven to be the most effective method of knowledge retention, so this [ARISS] experience would grant them [students] the skills necessary to be successful individuals in their future careers. The problem-solving, creativity, and perseverance required by radio communications are cross-disciplinary skills that students can utilize as they enter STEM fields and careers, enhancing the NASA- relevant workforce of North Dakota.” Frank Bauer, International Chairman for ARISS congratulated the ARISS team on this noteworthy accomplishment: “With the outstanding support of NASA and the International Space Agencies participating in ISS, the ISS on-orbit crew members encompassing all 48 expeditions and the hundreds of ARISS volunteers world-wide, the ARISS team has reached a tremendous milestone: 1000 ARISS contacts between schools on the ground and the ISS crews on- orbit. Since our first contact in December 2000 to today’s contact in North Dakota, hundreds of thousands of students have participated in hands-on STEM learning that ARISS affords and many millions from the general public have witnessed Human Spaceflight in action through an ARISS contact. My congratulations to the ARISS international team and our ARISS stakeholders and sponsors on this phenomenal accomplishment!” The NASA ISS Program Office produced several videos to celebrate the achievement of ARISS contact #1000, and the first three are online at: Amateur Radio on the International Space Station (ARISS) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bTOiiBd2dCo&feature=em-uploademail ARISS: 1,000 Calls and Counting https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DwtLkTpgNMM&feature=em-uploademail ARISS: Talking to Astronauts https://youtu.be/Z-yHD9lVbH8 ARISS telebridge station W6SRJ operators Tim Bosma, W6MU, and Don Dalby, KE6UAY, in Santa Rosa, California, skillfully supported the North Dakota ham radio linkup as the ISS passed overhead, relaying astronaut Tim Kopra’s radio signal to the students. Charlie Sufana, AJ9N, the ARISS Mentor from the Radio Amateur Satellite Corporation (AMSAT) and the lead operator for ARISS Contact #1, guided the UND Dakota Student Amateur Radio Association and the FORX Amateur Radio Club in all aspects of the ARISS contact. Congratulations go to the entire ARISS team on its #1000 successful amateur radio contact with ISS astronauts and cosmonauts! About ARISS: Amateur Radio on the International Space Station (ARISS) is a cooperative venture of international amateur radio societies and the space agencies that support the International Space Station (ISS). In the United States, sponsors are the Radio Amateur Satellite Corporation (AMSAT), the American Radio Relay League (ARRL), the Center for the Advancement of Science in Space (CASIS) and the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA). The primary goal of ARISS is to promote exploration of science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) topics by organizing scheduled contacts via amateur radio between crew members aboard the ISS and students in classrooms or informal education venues. With the help of experienced amateur radio volunteers, ISS crews speak directly with large audiences in a variety of public forums. Before and during these radio contacts, students, teachers, parents, and communities learn about space, space technologies, and amateur radio. For more information, see www.ariss.org, www.amsat.org, and www.arrl.org. Join us on Facebook: Amateur Radio on the ISS (ARISS) Follow us on Twitter: ARISS_status [ANS thanks ARISS for the above information] --------------------------------------------------------------------- AMSAT/TAPR Banquet at the Dayton Hamvention The tenth annual joint AMSAT/TAPR Banquet will be held on Friday evening, May 20th. This dinner is one of the main AMSAT activities during the Hamvention. Tickets ($35 each) may be purchased from the AMSAT store at www.amsat.org. The banquet ticket purchase deadline is Tuesday, May 17th. The Banquet will take place at the Kohler Presidential Banquet Center, 4572 Presidential Way, Kettering, OH 45429 (just south of Dayton). Doors open at 6:30 p.m. for a cash bar with the buffet dinner served at 7:00 p.m. AMSAT and TAPR alternate the task of providing a speaker for the banquet. It is AMSAT¹s responsibility this year. Michelle Thompson, W5NYV, will present "It¹s just software, right?" She will survey the AMSAT Ground Terminal: Who, what, when, where, why, and how we¹re designing open source radio solutions for the next generation of AMSAT payloads. Michelle is AMSAT¹s Team Leader for the design and execution of the AMSAT Ground Terminal. The goal is to create a ³5 and Dime² (5 and 10 GHz) digital SDR transceiver that will support both voice and data modes, for both general QSOs and emergency communication, for the Phase 4B satellite and for future AMSAT projects. This is an effort to design an inexpensive ground terminal for amateurs that would cost tens of thousands of dollars commercially, for as much under $1,000 as we can get it. A true renaissance woman, in addition to being an engineer and a licensed amateur radio operator, Michelle has worked for Qualcomm, attends Burning Man, and is a longtime DEFCON participant. She is also the lead for Organ Donor (an AI pipe organ). Her Phase 4B Weekly Ground Engineering Reports are fascinating reading. Seating is limited to the number of meals we reserve with the Kohler caterers based on the number of tickets sold by the deadline. Tickets purchased online may be collected at the Books, Shirts & Memberships corner of the AMSAT booth (445-446). [ANS thanks Steve N9IP and the AMSAT Office for the above information] --------------------------------------------------------------------- Fox-1Cliff and Fox-1D Waiting for delivery to Spaceflight Industries Fox-1Cliff and Fox-1D successfully finished environmental testing on February 8 and are now ready and waiting for delivery to Spaceflight Industries for integration into their Sherpa payload dispenser which will be making its maiden flight. Launch is on target to occur in in the first half of 2016 on a SpaceX Falcon 9. The CubeSats will be kept in a clean condition sealed in anti-static bags, opened occasionally to charge the batteries so that they are fully topped off for delivery. Launched into a sun synchronous orbit, Fox-1Cliff and Fox-1D will both carry an FM repeater as Fox-1A (AO-85) has, as well as a camera experiment built by students at Virginia Tech which will take images of Earth for downlink in the high speed Data Mode. Fox-1Cliff will also contain a radiation experiment from Vanderbilt University ISDE like that in AO-85, and Fox-1D will host the University of Iowa HERCI (High Energy Radiation CubeSat Instrument) experiment to map the Van Allen radiation belts. With Fox-1Cliff and Fox-1D completed, the Fox Engineering Team is focusing on RadFxSat/Fox-1B which is currently set to launch in January, 2017. [ANS thanks Jerry N0JY for the above information] --------------------------------------------------------------------- The CBS "This Morning" show reports on STMSat-1 The CBS This Morning show reports on an amateur radio SSTV satellite built by elementary students which is to be deployed in space in the coming days Astronauts on the International Space Station have conducted hundreds of experiments and launched many satellites, but now they are set to deploy a satellite that elementary age students at a school in Virginia built. Their satellite hitched a ride on a NASA rocket late last year, and it will be released into space in the next few days. Mark Albert reports. Watch the CBS report at http://tinyurl.com/ANS073-STMSat-on-CBS For the latest deployment date check the STMSat-1 Twitter account https://twitter.com/STMSAT11 Deployment Update In a tweet from STMSAT-1 on Saturday: "Looks like I will be a houseguest just a bit longer. With 4 launches in the next 20 days. astronauts are quite busy! Try again. 3 weeks." [ANS thanks CBS and Southgate ARN for the above information] --------------------------------------------------------------------- Supporting Disaster Communications from Space Conventional lines of communication can be impacted after a disaster. This we know. Phone lines can go down, cell service can be overrun with calls, texts, and emails and it can be difficult for survivors as well as first responders to get in touch. This isn’t a far-fetched scenario or intellectual exercise. It’s a reality we’ve seen happen over and over during disasters small and large. Enter Amateur Radio—or what those involved in the hobby refer to as "ham radio." Amateur radio enthusiasts—or “hams” as they’re often called—often step in during emergencies to help bridge communication gaps between first responders to keep people safe when smartphones, cell towers, and internet technologies we rely on every day go down. Volunteer hams also serve as a valuable source of information during the initial states of an emergency. Often, hams provide this public service in association with volunteer groups like Community Emergency Response Teams, who are always ready to spring into action quickly and effectively.1 We owe it to these volunteers to do everything we can to support their work to help communities bounce back when disaster strikes. That’s why we’ve partnered with the American Radio Relay League and researchers from Virginia Tech’s Ted and Karyn Hume Center for National Security and Technology in Blacksburg, Virginia—one of the leaders in amateur radio technology—to develop a new communications satellite that will help amateur radio operators transmit radio signals across the United States 24 hours a day, 365 days a year. After all, disasters can happen any place and any time. With this new satellite, scheduled to launch in 2017, Hams involved in supporting disaster communications will have a more reliable connection and a new level of capability in their communications.2 Right now, radio signals used by amateurs must often be bounced off the ionosphere to accommodate communication over long distances. Unfortunately, this type of radio propagation isn’t reliable because signal reach and quality can be impacted or even halted by space weather events like solar flares and geomagnetic storms.2 This satellite is unique because it will provide another layer of support for emergency services by providing a dedicated communications hub for hams orbiting above the U.S. in geosynchronous orbit every day. It will help emergency managers deployed to disasters support long- term communications for first responders on the ground—and become another invaluable tool at their disposal.2 Amateur radio operators have come to the rescue on more than one occasion—like during Hurricane Sandy—when landlines and cell phones were left out of commission throughout New York and New Jersey. Hams also made a difference in 2013, when Colorado was hit with historic flooding. As floodwaters ravaged areas across the state, they threatened a wastewater plant that served over 80,000 people. Volunteers from the Amateur Radio Emergency Service—the American Radio Relay League’s disaster communications arm—leapt into action, creating a network to monitor the situation and collect data. As a result, they were able to take remote control of the facility and helped prevent any wastewater from spilling out with the floods.3 This new partnership with hams will help make our communities more resilient, and we look forward to a successful launch. FEMA Editor’s Note: Jessica Stapf contributed research to this post. Sources: Amateur Radio Relay League Page: Amateur Radio Emergency Communication http://www.arrl.org/amateur-radio-emergency-communication Virginia Tech Press Release: "First amateur radio in geosynchronous orbit will aid disaster communications." http://tinyurl.com/ANS073-VTGeo Case Study: Amateur Radio Volunteers Protect Community Water Supply http://tinyurl.com/ANS073-CaseStudy [ANS thanks Rafael Lemaitre and FEMA for the above information] --------------------------------------------------------------------- Proposal Window for Scheduled US Contacts is Open Message to US Educators Amateur Radio on the International Space Station Contact Opportunity Call for Proposals Proposal Window February 15 – April 15, 2016 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 January 1, 2017 and June 30, 2017. 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 April 15, 2016. Proposal information and documents can be found at www.arrl.org/hosting-an-ariss-contact. 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] --------------------------------------------------------------------- Application Window Open for ARISS Europe Region Schools and Youth organizations in the ARISS-Europe Region (Europe, Africa and Middle East) interested in setting up an ARISS radio contact with an astronaut onboard the International Space Station are invited to submit an application and an educational project. The application submission window will be open February 1 to April 30, 2016, for space conversations that will tentatively be scheduled in the period extending from February to June 2017. Please see http://www.ariss-eu.org/school-contacts for details and an application. [ANS thanks ARISS for the above information] --------------------------------------------------------------------- ARISS News + A Successful contact was made between Slovanské Gymnázium Olomouc, Olomouc, Moravia, Czech Republic and Astronaut Timothy Peake KG5BVI using Callsign OR4ISS. The contact began 2016-03-08 08:22 UTC and lasted about nine and a half minutes. Contact was direct via OK2KYJ. ARISS Mentor was Armand SP3QFE. This was the 998th ARISS contact. + A Successful contact was made between Atlanta Science Festival, Atlanta, Georgia and Astronaut Tim Kopra KE5UDN using Callsign NA1SS. The contact began 2016-03-08 16:11 UTC and lasted about nine and a half minutes. Contact was telebridge] via K6DUE. ARISS Mentor was John K4SQC. This was the 999th ARISS contact. + A Successful contact was made between North Dakota Space Grant Consortium (NDSGC), Grand Forks, North Dakota, USA and Astronaut Tim Kopra KE5UDN using Callsign NA1SS. The contact began 2016-03-10 19:07:08 UTC and lasted about nine and a half minutes. Contact was telebridge via W6SRJ. ARISS Mentor was Charlie AJ9N. This was the 1000th ARISS contact. Editor's Note: Last week the Mentors for the successful ARISS contacts were misreported. AA8EM assumes full responsibility for the error. Below are the correct mentors for contacts #995, #996 and #997. The mentor for contact #995 on 2/29/2016 between Tim Kopra KE5UDN and Gesamtschule Leverkusen Schlebusch, Leverkusen, Germany, was Peter IN3GHZ. The Mentor for contact #996 on 3/1/2016 between Tim Kopra KE5UDN and National Urban Alliance for Effective Education (NUA), Syosset, New York, was Dave AA4KN. The mentor for contact #997 on 3/5/2016 between Timothy Peake KG5BVI and Powys Secondary Schools, Mid Wales, UK was Ciaran MØXTD. Upcoming ARISS Contact Schedule Booker T. Washington Senior High, Miami, Florida, direct via W4SVI The ISS callsign is presently scheduled to be NA1SS The scheduled astronaut is Timothy Peake KG5BVI Contact is a go for: Mon 2016-03-14 15:48:48 UTC Walter Jackson Elementary, Decatur, Alabama, direct via N8DEU The ISS callsign is presently scheduled to be NA1SS The scheduled astronaut is Tim Kopra KE5UDN Contact is a go for: Thu 2016-03-17 14:46:07 UTC [ANS thanks ARISS, Charlie AJ9N and David AA4KN for the above information] --------------------------------------------------------------------- Satellite Shorts From All Over + Patrick Stoodard WD9EWK will be part of the booth for the University of Arizona's radio club (K7UAZ) for this weekend's ScienceCity science fair, on the University of Arizona campus in Tucson AZ. This is a two-day event, on Saturday and Sunday (12 and 13 March 2016). The event will be open from 9.30am to 5.30pm (1630 to 0030 UTC) each day. More information about the ScienceCity event is available at: http://sciencecity.arizona.edu/ [ANS thanks Patrick WD6EWK for the above information] + Space Station 360: Zarya Explore the Space Station’s first module with your mobile phone or virtual-reality headset. http://tinyurl.com/ANS073-SpaceStationTour [ANS thanks the European Space Agency for the above information] --------------------------------------------------------------------- /EX In addition to regular membership, AMSAT offers membership in the President's Club. Members of the President's Club, as sustaining donors to AMSAT Project Funds, will be eligible to receive addi- tional benefits. Application forms are available from the AMSAT Office. Primary and secondary school students are eligible for membership at one-half the standard yearly rate. Post-secondary school students enrolled in at least half time status shall be eligible for the stu- dent rate for a maximum of 6 post-secondary years in this status. Contact Martha at the AMSAT Office for additional student membership information. 73, This week's ANS Editor, EMike McCardel, AA8EM (Former KC8YLD) kc8yld at amsat dot org

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ANS-066 AMSAT News Service Weekly Bulletins
by E.Mike McCardel 06 Mar '16

06 Mar '16

AMSAT NEWS SERVICE ANS-066 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: * One Million Telemetry Packets Received by AO-85 Ground Network * ARISS Countdown to 1000th Contact * School SSTV CubeSat to deploy from ISS * First satellite QSO to Antartica * AMSAT's Fox-1E Likely to Get a Lift from NASA * AMSAT Events * ARISS News * Satellite Shorts From All Over SB SAT @ AMSAT $ANS-066.01 ANS-066 AMSAT News Service Weekly Bulletins AMSAT News Service Bulletin 066.01 >From AMSAT HQ KENSINGTON, MD. DATE March 06, 2016 To All RADIO AMATEURS BID: $ANS-066.01 --------------------------------------------------------------------- One Million Telemetry Packets Received by AO-85 Ground Network At 10:31:06 UTC on March 3rd 2016, the millionth telemetry packet from AO-85 was submitted by PB0AHX to AMSAT's Fox Internet Telemetry System (FITS). Led by Chris Thompson, G0KLA, AMSAT has built a worldwide network of ground stations that can effectively monitor spacecraft health as well as collect experiment data for our university partners. The FITS development team is international in nature, with contributors from the US, Canada and the UK. There is plenty of work to go around, if you are interested in helping please contact volunteer(a)amsat.org [ANS thanks AMSAT/NA for the above information] --------------------------------------------------------------------- ARISS Countdown to 1000th Contact The ARISS contact between Powys Secondary Schools, Mid Wales, UK, with Astronaut Timothy Peake KG5BVI was on Saturday represented the 997th successful ARISS contact in ARISS history. ARISS is posed to celebrate its 1000th contact as early as this week. Below is the list of currently scheduled events for ARISS. Each one will have to be successful for the numbering to be correct. As of right now, the March 10 contact with North Dakota (the first for that state) is in the prime slot to be the 1000th contact. School: Slovanské Gymnázium Olomouc, Olomouc, Moravia, Czech Republic (Kopra) #998 Tue 2016-03-08 08:22:43 UTC 82 deg School: Atlanta Science Festival, Atlanta, Georgia (Peake) #999 Tue 2016-03-08 16:11:05 UTC 53 deg via K6DUE School: North Dakota Space Grant Consortium (NDSGC), Grand Forks, North Dakota (Kopra) #1000 Thu 2016-03-10 19:08:55 UTC 56 deg via W6SRJ As stated above, if all of the above contacts are successful it looks as if the contact between Tim Kopra KE5UDN and North Dakota Space Grant Consortium (NDSGC) in Grand Forks, North Dakota Thursday 2016- 03-10 19:08:55 UTC will be contact 1000. The contact will be telebridged via W6SRJ. Kopra will use the callsign NA1SS. In celebration of the 1000th contact NASA is producing videos touting the importance of amateur radio on the ISS. The first of these to be released can be viewed at https://youtu.be/bTOiiBd2dCo [ANS thanks ARISS for the above information] --------------------------------------------------------------------- School SSTV CubeSat to deploy from ISS A Slow Scan TV (SSTV) CubeSat developed by students at Saint Thomas More Cathedral School (STM) in Arlington, VA, is set to be deployed from the International Space Station on March 7 between 8-11am EST. STM is thought to be the first Elementary school to build their own satellite, even Pre-Kindergarten, Kindergarten, and First Grade students were involved in the project. The satellite, a 1U CubeSat called STMSat-1, will transmit a SSTV signal on 437.800 MHz. Middle School Students took the initiative to begin exploring how to receive data from the CubeSat and formed a Ham Radio Club. There, they learned the basics of operating a ham radio station and explored Slow Scan Television as an option for receiving images once the satellite is deployed. How Did 400 Grade School Students Built A Nano-Satellite? http://jewelbots.tumblr.com/post/134465599599/how-did-400-grade- school-students-built-a STMSat-1 https://twitter.com/STMSAT11 https://www.facebook.com/stmsat1/ http://www.stmsat-1.org/ Be advised that the deployment could be delayed or postponed depending on demands on the crew's time [ANS thanks AMSAT-UK* for the above information] --------------------------------------------------------------------- First satellite QSO to Antartica On Feb-28 2016, first satellite QSO from Antartica to mainland Argentina thru SO-50. Photos & details (spanish) on https://www.lu4aa.org/wp/historico-primer-qso-desde-la-antartida/ [ANS thanks Pedro C0nverso for the above information] --------------------------------------------------------------------- AMSAT's Fox-1E Likely to Get a Lift from NASA NASA has accepted the Fox-1E cubesat - a joint effort between AMSAT and Vanderbilt University - to be part of its CubeSat Launch Initiative (CSLI) program. The satellite, also known as RadFxSat-2, will carry a radiation effects experiment developed by Vanderbilt as well as a 30-kHz wide amateur radio linear transponder with an uplink on 2 meters and a downlink on 70 centimeters. This will be in place of the FM repeater carried by most amateur cubesats. The project received a #1 priority out of 20 accepted proposals and has been offered a launch date by NASA. This is the second collaboration between AMSAT and Vanderbilt. The first - RadFxSat/Fox-1B - is also part of NASA's CSLI program and is scheduled for launch next January. http://cqnewsroom.blogspot.com/2016/02/amsats-fox-1e-likely-to-get- lift-from.html [ANS thanks the CQ Newsroom for theabove information] --------------------------------------------------------------------- AMSAT Events Information about AMSAT activities at other important events around the country. Examples of these events are radio club meetings where AMSAT Area Coordinators give presentations, demonstrations of working amateur satellites, and hamfests with an AMSAT presence (a table with AMSAT literature and merchandise, sometimes also with presentations, forums, and/or demonstrations). *Saturday and Sunday, 12-13 March 2016 - ScienceCity science fair, on the University of Arizona campus in Tucson AZ *Friday/Saturday, 18-19 March 2016 - presentation for the BVARC Houston Hamfest Fort Bend County Fairground demo on Saturday *Saturday, 19 March 2016 - Scottsdale Amateur Radio Club Spring Hamfest 2016 in Scottsdale AZ *Saturday, 26 March 2016 - Tucson Spring Hamfest in Tucson AZ *Friday through Sunday, 29 April-1 May 2016, ARRL Nevada State Convention in Las Vegas NV *Saturday, 7 May 2016 - Cochise Amateur Radio Association Hamfest in Sierra Vista AZ *Saturday, 14 May 2016 - Matanuska Amateur Radio Association Hamfest in Wasilla AK *Saturday, 4 June 2016 - White Mountain Hamfest in Show Low AZ [ANS thanks AMSAT-NA for the above information] --------------------------------------------------------------------- ARISS News + A Successful contact was made between Gesamtschule Leverkusen Schlebusch, Leverkusen, Germany and Astronaut Timothy Peake KG5BV using Callsign OR4ISS. The contact began 03-01 16:45 UTC and lasted about nine and a half minutes. Contact was telebridged via VK5ZAI. ARISS Mentor was AA4KN. This was the 995th ARISS contact. + A Successful contact was made between National Urban Alliance for Effective Education (NUA), Syosset, New York and Astronaut Tim Kopra KE5UDN using Callsign NA1SS. The contact began [YEAR, Month, Date Time] UTC and lasted about nine and a half minutes. Contact was[direct/telebridge] via K6DUE. ARISS Mentor was KA3HDO. This was the 996th ARISS contact. + A Successful contact was made between Powys Secondary Schools, Mid Wales, UK, and Astronaut Timothy Peake KG5BVI using Callsign GB1SS. The contact began [YEAR, Month, Date Time] UTC and lasted about nine and a half minutes. Contact was direct via GB4PCS. ARISS Mentor was KA3HDO. This was the 997th ARISS contact. Upcoming ARISS Contact Schedule Slovanské Gymnázium Olomouc, Olomouc, Moravia, Czech Republic, direct via OK2KYJ The ISS callsign is presently scheduled to be OR4ISS The scheduled astronaut is Timothy Peake KG5BVI Contact is a go for: Tue 2016-03-08 08:22:43 UTC Atlanta Science Festival, Atlanta, Georgia, telebridge via K6DUE The ISS callsign is presently scheduled to be NA1SS The scheduled astronaut is Tim Kopra KE5UDN Contact is a go for: Tue 2016-03-08 16:11:05 UTC Watch for live stream at http://atlantasciencefestival.org/ariss North Dakota Space Grant Consortium (NDSGC), Grand Forks, North Dakota, telebridge via W6SRJ The ISS callsign is presently scheduled to be NA1SS The scheduled astronaut is Tim Kopra KE5UDN Contact is a go for: Thu 2016-03-10 19:08:55 UTC ARISS is always glad to receive listener reports for the above contacts. ARISS thanks everyone in advance for their assistance. Feel free to send your reports to aj9n(a)amsat.org or aj9n(a)aol.com. All ARISS contacts are made via the Ericsson radio unless otherwise noted. [ANS thanks ARISS, Charlie AJ9N and David AA4KN for the above information] 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 Russian Mayak Satellite Says Bright Enough to Rival Solar System Visible Objects Just something interesting that came across the wires this morning. Russian crowd funded project, apparently testing a solar sail/aerodynamic braking satellite: Once Mayak begins its sun-synchronous orbit above the Earth, the spacecraft will unfold a 16 square meter pyramid of reflectors that will reflect the Sun's rays, creating a man-made star visible from Earth and bright enough to rival any other solar system. http://www.spacedaily.com/reports/Russian_Crowdfunded_Satellite_Set_t o_Become_the_Night_Skys_Brightest_Star_999.html [ANS thanks JoAnne, K9JKM for the above information] --------------------------------------------------------------------- /EX In addition to regular membership, AMSAT offers membership in the President's Club. Members of the President's Club, as sustaining donors to AMSAT Project Funds, will be eligible to receive addi- tional benefits. Application forms are available from the AMSAT Office. Primary and secondary school students are eligible for membership at one-half the standard yearly rate. Post-secondary school students enrolled in at least half time status shall be eligible for the stu- dent rate for a maximum of 6 post-secondary years in this status. Contact Martha at the AMSAT Office for additional student membership information. 73, This week's ANS Editor, Joe Spier, K6WAO k6wao at amsat dot org

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ANS-059 AMSAT News Service Weekly Bulletins
by Lee McLamb 27 Feb '16

27 Feb '16

AMSAT NEWS SERVICE ANS-059 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: * eBay Donations for AMSAT * Upcoming ARISS Contact Schedule * Satellite DXCC Nearly 20 Years in the Making * 2016 AMSAT Field Day * Tyvak Nanosatellite Systems to Support Atlas V CubeSat Rideshare Initiative * UK and Malta University Satellite Collaboration SB SAT @ AMSAT $ANS-059.01 ANS-059 AMSAT News Service Weekly Bulletins AMSAT News Service Bulletin 059.01 From AMSAT HQ Kensington, MD. February 28, 2016 To All RADIO AMATEURS BID: $ANS-059.01 eBay Donations for AMSAT Are you an eBay seller? One item, ten items, or a full-time business you can donate a percentage of your winning bid to AMSAT. To do so, do not list your item with the basic listing tool, select advanced tools. eBay will give you a warning message that it is for large volume sellers, however this is where the eBay for Charity tool is found. You can 'select another nonprofit you love' and search for either AMSAT or Radio Amateur Satellite Corporation. Choose the percentage amount of the sale you would like to donate to AMSAT and boom. When your item sells and the winning bidder pays, eBay will deduct the percentage from your take and forward it to AMSAT. Sometimes we are getting rid of our old equipment, sometimes selling something new. In any case, won't you consider giving a piece of the pie to a new satellite and choose AMSAT for your eBay for Charity. [ANS thanks Bruce, KK5DO, for the above information] --------------------------------------------------------------------- Upcoming ARISS Contact Schedule Gesamtschule Leverkusen Schlebusch, Leverkusen, Germany, direct via DLØIL The ISS callsign is presently scheduled to be OR4ISS The scheduled astronaut is Timothy Peake KG5BVI Contact is a go for: Mon 2016-02-29 12:05:58 UTC 78 deg National Urban Alliance for Effective Education (NUA), Syosset, New York, telebridge VK5ZAI The ISS callsign is presently scheduled to be NA1SS The scheduled astronaut is Tim Kopra KE5UDN Contact is a go for: Tue 2016-03-01 16:45:18 UTC 53 deg Powys Secondary Schools, Mid Wales, UK, direct via GB4PCS The ISS callsign is presently scheduled to be GB1SS The scheduled astronaut is Timothy Peake KG5BVI Contact is a go for: Sat 2016-03-05 10:55:19 UTC 59 deg ************************************************************************ The next window to submit a proposal for an upcoming contact is now open. The window is open from 2016-02-15 to 2016-04-15 and would be for contacts between 2017-01-01 and 2017-06-30. Check out the ARISS website http://www.ariss.org/ or the ARRL website http://www.arrl.org/hosting-an-ariss-contact for full details. [ANS thanks Charlie, AJ9N, for the above information] --------------------------------------------------------------------- Satellite DXCC Nearly 20 Years in the Making It took nearly 20 years, but AMSAT Vice President of Operations Drew Glasbrenner, KO4MA, finally qualified for Satellite DXCC. Glasbrenner submitted the requisite number of QSLs for checking at the Orlando HamCation February 12-14, and ARRL Media and Public Relations Manager Sean Kutzko, KX9X, verified KO4MA’s achievement. “It's been a long process getting to satellite DXCC,” said Glasbrenner, who got into satellite operating around 1993, and was only on RS-12 (Mode K) for a long time. “This was the Russian satellite payload that used 15 meters up, and 10 meters down,” he explained. His activity stagnated for a long time during and after his college years, but in 1999 he got involved in working the LEO satellites, such as UO-14 and AO-27, “then FO-20 and FO-29 for a little more distance, and then on the perigee passes of AO-10, when it was still semi-usable,” he added. “When AO-40 was launched into a high-Earth orbit, I dove into Mode U/S with gusto,” Glasbrenner recounted. During the 3 years that AO-40 was active, he spent many late nights and early mornings looking for the next new one. “Eventually I was using a 3 foot solid dish with preamp and downconverter for the Mode S downlink, and this is when some of my most exciting contacts came.” Highlights included working VU2MKP at a few degrees of elevation to the east, right after the satellite came up, and working KH2GR in the other direction, “while the satellite was off-pointing and the spin fades were horrendous, and timing each call during peaks.” When AO-40 went silent, Glasbrenner said he was about a dozen short of DXCC, and he realized that he’d have to be proactive to finish up with just LEO satellites. Many of his new ones came from operators who went the extra mile to operate from places like the Caribbean and Greenland. “The absence of operational HEO satellites makes satellite DXCC nearly impossible for newer operators,” he said, “but I'm confident that continued membership and support of AMSAT by any operator interested in satellites will result in the successful return to high orbit by one of the several opportunities currently being pursued by the organization. Strike while the iron is hot!” Bernhard Dobler, DJ5MN, has been at the top of the DXCC-Satellite standings since 2000, and has 274 entities confirmed. {ANS thanks ARRL and Drew, KO4MA, for the above information] --------------------------------------------------------------------- 2016 AMSAT Field Day It's that time of year again; summer and Field Day! Each year the American Radio Relay League (ARRL) sponsors Field Day as a “picnic, a campout, practice for emergencies, an informal contest and, most of all, FUN!” The event takes place during a 24-hour period on the fourth weekend of June. For 2016 the event takes place during a 27-hour period from 1800 UTC on Saturday June 25, 2016 through 2100 UTC on Sunday June 26, 2016. Those who set up prior to 1800 UTC on June 25 can operate only 24 hours. The Radio Amateur Satellite Corporation (AMSAT) promotes its own version of Field Day for operation via the amateur satellites, held concurrently with the ARRL event. With the loss of AO-51, VO-52 and SO-67 this year it is going to be as challenging as last year. A few new satellites are up there to take some of the load. If you are considering ONLY the FM voice satellites like SO-50 for your AMSAT Field Day focus. Don't, unless you are simply hoping to make one contact for the ARRL rules bonus points. The congestion on FM LEO satellites is always so intense that we must continue to limit their use to one-QSO-per-FM-satellite. This includes the International Space Station. You will be allowed one QSO if the ISS is operating Voice. You will also be allowed one digital QSO with the ISS or any other digital, non-store-and-forward, packet satellite (if operational). It was suggested during past field days that a control station be allowed to coordinate contacts on the FM satellites. There is nothing in the rules that would prohibit this. This is nothing more than a single station working multiple QSO’s. If a station were to act as a control station and give QSO’s to every other field day station, the control station would still only be allowed to turn in one QSO per FM satellite while the other station would be able to submit one QSO. The format for the message exchange on the ISS or other digital packet satellite is an unproto packet to the other station (3-way exchange required) with all the same information as normally exchanged for ARRL Field Day, e.g.: W6NWG de KK5DO 2A STX KK5DO de W6NWG QSL 5A SDG W6NWG de KK5DO QSL If you have worked the satellites on Field Day in recent years, you may have noticed a lot of good contacts can be made on some of the less-populated, low- earth-orbit satellites like FO-29, AO-7, or AO-73. During Field Day the transponders come alive like 20 meters on a weekend. The good news is that the transponders on these satellites will support multiple simultaneous contacts. The bad news is that you can't use FM, just low duty-cycle modes like SSB and CW. THE 2016 AMSAT FIELD DAY RULES The AMSAT Field Day 2016 event is open to all Amateur Radio operators. Amateurs are to use the exchange as specified in ARRL rules for Field Day. The AMSAT competition is to encourage the use of all amateur satellites, both analog and digital. Note that no points will be credited for any contacts beyond the ONE allowed via each single-channel FM satellite. Operators are encouraged not to make any extra contacts via theses satellites (Ex: SO-50). CW contacts and digital contacts are worth three points as outlined below. 1. Analog Transponders ARRL rules apply, except: - Each phone, CW, and digital segment ON EACH SATELLITE TRANSPONDER is considered to be a separate band. - CW and digital (RTTY, PSK-31, etc.) contacts count THREE points each. - Stations are limited to one (1) completed QSO on any single channel FM satellite. If a satellite has multiple modes such as V/u and L/s modes both turned on, one contact each is allowed. If the PBBS is on - see Pacsats below, ISS (1 phone and 1 digital), Contacts with the ISS crew will count for one contact if they are active. PCSat (I, II, etc.) (1 digital), - The use of more than one transmitter at the same time on a single satellite transponder is prohibited. 2. Digital Transponders For the Pacsats (GO-32, etc.) or ‘Store and Forward’ hamsats, each satellite is considered a separate band. Do not post "CQ" messages. Simply upload ONE greeting message to each satellite and download as many greeting messages as possible from each satellite. The subject of the uploaded file should be posted as Field Day Greetings, addressed to ALL. The purpose of this portion of the competition is to demonstrate digital satellite communications to other Field Day participants and observers. Do not reply to the Field Day Greetings addressed to ALL. The following uploads and downloads count as three-point digital contacts. (a) Upload of a satellite Field Day Greetings file (one per satellite). (b) Download of Satellite Field Day Greetings files posted by other stations. Downloads of non-Field Day files or messages not addressed to ALL are not to be counted for the event. Save DIR listings and message files for later "proof of contact." Please note AMSAT uploaded messages do not count for QSO points under the ARRL rules. Satellite digipeat QSO's and APRS short-message contacts are worth three points each, but must be complete verified two-way exchanges. Remember, only one digipeat contact is allowed for the ISS and other satellites in this mode. The use of terrestrial gateway stations or internet gateways (i.e. EchoLink, IRLP, etc.) to uplink/downlink is not allowed. Sample Satellite Field Day Greetings File: Greetings from W5MSQ Field Day Satellite station near Katy, Texas, EL-29, with 20 participants, operating class 2A, in the AMSAT-Houston group with the Houston Amateur Television Society and the Houston QRP club. All the best and 73! Note that the message stated the call, name of the group, operating class, where they were located (the grid square would be helpful) and how many operators were in attendance. 3. Operating Class Stations operating portable and using emergency power (as per ARRL Field Day rules) are in a separate operating class from those at home connected to commercial power. On the report form simply check off Emergency or Commercial for the Power Source and be sure to specify your ARRL operating class (2A, 1C, etc.). AND FINALLY... The Satellite Summary Sheet should be used for submission of the AMSAT Field Day competition and be received by KK5DO (email or postal mail) by 11:59 P.M. CDT, Monday, July 11, 2016. The preferred method for submitting your log is via e- mail to kk5do(a)amsat.org or kk5do(a)arrl.net. You may also use the postal service but give plenty of time for your results to arrive by the submission date. Add photographs or other interesting information that can be used in an article for the Journal. You will receive an email back (within one or two days) from me when I receive your email submission. If you do not receive a confirmation message, then I have not received your submission. Try sending it again or send it to my other email address. If mailing your submission, the address is: Bruce Paige, KK5DO Director of Awards and Contests PO Box 310 Alief, TX 77411-0310. Certificates will be awarded to the first-place emergency power/portable station at the AMSAT General Meeting and Space Symposium in the fall of 2016. Certificates will also be awarded to the second and third place portable/emergency operation in addition to the first-place home station running on emergency power. A station submitting high, award-winning scores will be requested to send in dupe sheets for analog contacts and message listings for digital downloads. You may have multiple rig difficulties, antenna failures, computer glitches, generator disasters, tropical storms, and there may even be satellite problems, but the goal is to test your ability to operate in an emergency situation. Try different gear. Demonstrate satellite operations to hams that don't even know the HAMSATS exist. Test your equipment. Avoid making more than ONE contact via the FM-only voice HAMSATS or the ISS, and enjoy the event! Complete copies of the rules and recommended submission form can be found on the AMSAT web site. 2016 PDF Field Day Rules http://www.amsat.org/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2016/02/2016fd.pdf 2016 MS-Word Field Day Rules http://www.amsat.org/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2016/02/2016fd.docx [ANS thanks Bruce, KK5DO, for the above information] --------------------------------------------------------------------- Tyvak Nanosatellite Systems to support Atlas V CubeSat Rideshare initiative Tyvak is responsible for identifying, obtaining, and integrating CubeSat customers on the ULA Atlas V launch vehicle system. Tyvak Nanosatellite Systems has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with United Launch Alliance (ULA) to serve as the primary Auxiliary Payload Customer on CubeSat Rideshare Initiative efforts through Dec. 31, 2019. ULA's CubeSat Rideshare Initiative enables rideshare opportunities on its Atlas V launch vehicle and aims to tap into a growing market of small satellites with applications in education, scientific research, U.S. Government and commercial business. CubeSats are miniaturized satellites originally designed for use in conjunction with university educational projects and quickly becoming a dependable tool for advance missions. CubeSats are made of one or more units, called U's, measuring 10cm x 10cm x 10cm with a mass of 1.33 kilograms. Under this MOU, Tyvak will provide low-cost access to space for both commercial and U.S. Government CubeSat customers, as well as no-cost access to space for Science, Technology, Engineering and Math (STEM) CubeSat customers for rideshares on ULA's Atlas V launch vehicles. Tyvak is responsible for identifying, obtaining, and integrating CubeSat customers on the ULA Atlas V launch vehicle system. In addition, as part of the agreement with ULA, Tyvak will provide for no cost up to three STEM CubeSat slots for each Atlas V 24U capacity launch opportunity for educational customers. "Tyvak is thrilled to have been selected for this opportunity with a world-class launch Provider like ULA," said Tyvak President and Chief Executive Officer Anthony Previte. "This MOU brings key opportunities to Tyvak and to the entire nanosatellite community." "As America's ride to space, ULA is transforming rideshares so that customers will now have predictable manifest slots for their payloads," said Tory Bruno, ULA president and CEO. "We are driving innovations like this program which will make space more affordable and accessible for all manner and size of payload customers." [ANS thanks SpaceDaily for the above information] --------------------------------------------------------------------- UK and Malta University Satellite Collaboration The UK’s University of Birmingham, the University of Malta, the Malta Amateur Radio League (MARL) and the Italian Astrodynamics company, GAUSS Srl are collaborating on a project to send a PocketQube satellite with an amateur radio payload into space. The Times of Malta newspaper reports: The 5x5x5 cm device, referred to as a PocketQube pico-satellite, will be launched in 2018 into a sun-synchronous low earth orbit (LEO) and will be used to validate on-board equipment that will study the properties the Earth’s ionosphere. This project will pave the way for a swarm of eight such satellites that will spread over a large geographical area and hence gain better coverage of changeable ionospheric conditions which affect radio communications. The collaboration has brought together two Maltese post graduate engineering students – Darren Cachia in Malta and Jonathan Osairiis Camilleri (Ozzy), a Ph.D. student at the University of Birmingham – who have joined efforts and are developing the satellite platform and the scientific payload respectively. The mission is expected to last about 18 months and will relay information back to Earth that will be accessible to anyone owning a simple ham radio set. Information will be made available in due course to allow schools and interested individuals to participate using inexpensive equipment. [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

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ANS-052.02 AMSAT News Service Special Bulletin - RadFxSat-2 (Fox-1E) Selected for Participation in NASA's CSLI
by JoAnne Maenpaa 21 Feb '16

21 Feb '16

AMSAT NEWS SERVICE SPECIAL BULLETIN ANS-052.02 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: * RadFxSat-2 (Fox-1E) Selected for Participation in NASA's CSLI SB SAT @ AMSAT $ANS-052.02 ANS-052 AMSAT News Service Weekly Bulletins AMSAT News Service Bulletin 052.02 >From AMSAT HQ KENSINGTON, MD. DATE February 21, 2016 To All RADIO AMATEURS BID: $ANS-052.02 RadFxSat-2 (Fox-1E) Selected for Participation in NASA's CSLI On February 18, 2016 NASA announced the selection of RadFxSat-2, the Space Radiation Effects CubeSat, for participation in NASA's CubeSat Launch Initiative. RadFxSat-2 (Fox-1E) is another partnership opportunity between Vanderbilt University ISDE and AMSAT, similar to RadFxSat (Fox-1B) which is scheduled to launch in January 2017. Vanderbilt University, with cooperation from AMSAT, submitted the RadFxSat-2 CSLI proposal in November 2015. Out of 21 proposals, NASA is recommending 20 for participation in the CSLI opportunity. RadFxSat-2 is prioritized #1 out of the 20 selected and has been offered an opportunity for a launch date. The opportunity is being evaluated by Vanderbilt University and AMSAT to determine if it meets our mission and orbital parameters. RadFxSat-2 (Fox-1E) will carry a radiation effects experiment similar to RadFxSat (Fox-1B) but will study new FinFET technology. The Fox-1E spacecraft bus will be built on the Fox-1 series but will feature a linear V/U (Mode J) transponder "upgrade" to replace the standard FM repeater which Fox-1A through D have carried. The downlink will feature a 1200 bps BPSK telemetry channel to carry the Vanderbilt science in addition to a 30 kHz wide transponder for amateur radio use. Further details of the mission and timeline will be published as they become available and are cleared for public release. [ANS thanks AMSAT's Fox Engineering Team for the above information] /EX

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ANS-045 AMSAT News Service Weekly Bulletins
by Joseph Spier 14 Feb '16

14 Feb '16

AMSAT NEWS SERVICE ANS-045 The AMSAT News Service bulletins are a free, weekly news and infor- mation service of AMSAT North America, The Radio Amateur Satellite Corporation. ANS publishes news related to Amateur Radio in Space including reports on the activities of a worldwide group of Amateur Radio operators who share an active interest in designing, building, launching and communicating through analog and digital Amateur Radio satellites. The news feed on http://www.amsat.org publishes news of Amateur Radio in Space as soon as our volunteers can post it. Please send any amateur satellite news or reports to: ans-editor at amsat.org. In this edition: * AMSAT-NA Office Closed on Monday February 15th for President's Day Holiday * W1AW/4 Orlando Hamcation Demo * Japanese Ham Radio Satellite Launch Postponed * Old Dominion University OPEN HOUSE for local Middle and High Schools * Orlando Hamcation Satellite Demos Scheduled * ARISS UK release full video of Tim Peake and RMS contact * AMSAT Events * ARISS News * Satellite Shorts From All Over SB SAT @ AMSAT $ANS-045.01 ANS-045 AMSAT News Service Weekly Bulletins AMSAT News Service Bulletin 045.01 >From AMSAT HQ KENSINGTON, MD. DATE February 14, 2016 To All RADIO AMATEURS BID: $ANS-045.01 --------------------------------------------------------------------- AMSAT-NA Office Closed on Monday February 15th for President's Day Holiday The AMSAT Office will be closed on Monday, February 15th in observance of Presidents' Day. [ANS thanks Martha for the above information] --------------------------------------------------------------------- W1AW/4 Orlando Hamcation Demo Thanks to everyone who called in to work K8YSE portable at the Orlando Hamcation. We had a great time working everyone on SO-50 and FO-29. The crowds were big and the weather outside was sunny and warm Although there was a lot of interest in seeing our station, 9 year old Hope, KM4IPF operating W1AW/4 on SO-50 definitely stole the show. Before the pass I watched her pull the compass out of a bag and tell her father where to point the antenna at AOS and where it would finish up at LOS. She used two HT's for the operation. Dad held the antenna for her as she made contact after contact. She had a crowd around her and we had the IC910 set up about 40' away and our crowd was listening to her on our setup. Steve, N9IP, was the antenna man at our station. Near the end of the pass I called her on the 910H and got a confirmation from W1AW/4! We had a signal path hundreds of miles long but were only 40' apart! Rick WA4NVM provided a recording of the pass and it is up on my website: http://www.papays.com/sat/general.html Frank K9CIS also sent in some recordings of our FO-29 passes which I'll put on the website later. Anyone needing confirmation of a Hamcation contact with K8YSE on LOTW, just send me the QSO details and I'll upload it. I can also do a QSL card on request. There is nothing like a good demo to generate interest in satellites. Just set up a station and the crows starts gathering. Thanks to everyone who helped with the effort. [ANS thanks John, K8YSE for the above information] --------------------------------------------------------------------- Japanese Ham Radio Satellite Launch Postponed ChubuSat-2, ChubuSat-3 and Horyu-4 were expected to launch on Friday, February 12 into a 575 km, 31 degree inclination orbit. This launch has been postponed due to bad weather at the launch site. A rescheduled launch date and time has not yet been announced. http://spaceflightnow.com/2016/02/11/launch-of-japanese-x-ray-observatory- postponed/ https://twitter.com/JAXA_en?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw Yasutaka Narusawa JR2XEA provides the following information on ChubuSat-2/3: Nagoya University(NU) and Mitsubishi Heavy Industries(MHI) developed 50kg microsatellite ChubuSat-2(NU) and ChubuSat-3(MHI). These satellites have amateur VHF receiver and amateur UHF transmitter, and will be launched on Feb. 12 2016 from Tanegashima, Japan. Komaki Amateur SATCOM Club operates these satellites from Komaki, Japan. After the satellite separation, each satellite will transmit UHF CW beacon message including battery voltage etc. which is very important information for our initial and critical operation. So we are very happy if you receive the CW beacon message and report to us email: chubusat2(a)frontier.phys.nagoya-u.ac.jp In following web site, we show the information(frequency, format, TLE, etc.) about ChubuSat-2 and ChubuSat-3. If we have your report, we will show your report in this page. https://www.frontier.phys.nagoya-u.ac.jp/en/chubusat/chubusat_satellite2.ht… Both satellite will provide the message exchange service. After the on-orbit checkout of the satellite(maybe one month after launch), you can use this service, sending your message with VHF uplink, then your message is written to the on-board memory. By sending inquiry message, anyone can read your message with UHF downlink. ChubuSat-2 Satellite Uplink: 145.815 MHz FSK 1200bps Downlink: 437.100 MHz GMSK 9600bps and CW ChubuSat-3 Satellite Uplink: 145.840 MHz FSK 1200bps Downlink: 437.425 MHz GMSK 9600bps and CW The uplink/downlink format will be uploaded in above web site. Horyu-4 downlink 437.375 MHz & 2400.300 MHz 1k2 AFSK,9k6 GMSK, S_BPSK, CW http://kitsat.ele.kyutech.ac.jp/horyu4WEB/horyu4.html http://www.amsatuk.me.uk/iaru/finished_detail.php?serialnum=434 https://www.facebook.com/Horyu-4-Arc-Event-Generator-and-Investigation- Satellite-780188535364868/ [ANS thanks Yasutaka Narusawa JR2XEA, and AMSAT-UK for the above information] --------------------------------------------------------------------- Old Dominion University OPEN HOUSE for local Middle and High Schools The Open House is a recruiting event for the ODU School of Engineering. It is scheduled for February 19 & 20, 2016. Students from 40 Middle and High Schools (400 – 600 students) throughout the Hampton Roads VA region will be visiting the school to tour the labs and campus, meet the (current ODU) students and faculty, and learn more about education and career opportunities in engineering. K4AMG will be supporting the event by conducting a mini field day event will be on Friday, Feb 19 and by hosting lab stations on Saturday Feb 20th featuring a 15 minute presentation of ham radio topics. The lab topics include: An overview of amateur radio as a learning tool. A (light) technical discussion about the science and engineering that support radio communications. A youth forum presented by several young radio amateurs KJ4NFL – Emergency and Public Service Communications WX4TVJ and AE4FH – Antennas KJ4EYZ – Cultures and Environmental Considerations for DX-peditions Satellite communications featuring the CUBESAT simulator provided by AMSAT-NA –KW4CR. Society of Broadcast Engineers – Richard Dyer speaking on Careers in Broadcast Engineering and Electronics and Wireless Communications At the student luncheon 9 year old Hope Lea, KM4IPF, will be the key note speaker - subject OSCAR Satellite Communications [ANS thanks Rich, WA8BUE for the above information] --------------------------------------------------------------------- Orlando Hamcation Satellite Demos Scheduled A demo station at Orlando Hamcation has been scheduled on Friday, Saturday and possibly on Sunday, February 12, 13, and 14. Operations will likely be on SO-50 and FO-29 on the following passes: 2-12 1813-1832utc FO-29 2-12 1826-1838utc SO-50 2-13 1719-1737utc FO-29 2-13 1851-1904utc SO-50 2-13 1903-1922itc FO-29 2-14 1737-1749utc SO-50 2-14 1808-1827utc FO-29 Sunday is iffy. We may be on other satellites as well. Please give us a call if you hear us and respond with your grid square, city/state and name. This will help the onlookers to have a better idea of where you are. [ANS thanks John, K8YSE for the above information] --------------------------------------------------------------------- ARISS UK release full video of Tim Peake and RMS contact This is the 77 minute video of the ARISS contact between Tim Peake GB1SS and the Royal Masonic School for Girls Rickmansworth GB1RMS. The video starts with the students of Cadogan House, the prep school for girls aged 4 to 11 at the Royal Masonic School for Girls singing a number of songs that have been part of their study into space. The video continues with the senior school presenting an overview of the activities that they have been involved in as part of their study and understanding of space. This section concludes with a panel of experts from the UK space industry fielding questions from the assembled audience. At approximately 33 minutes, Ciaran Morgan M0XTD from ARISS, starts the ARISS program with an introduction of the team, their roles and all the equipment that has been brought to the school to help facilitate the contact. The actual ARISS contact starts at approximately 53 minutes into the video. After the contact has finished, the school’s Head Girl concludes the evening with a short thank you speech and introduces the trainers who prepared some of the girls for the Foundation Amateur Radio License. http://amsat-uk.org/2016/02/12/ariss-uk-release-full-video-of-tim-peake-and- rms-contact/ More history made at second amateur radio call http://amsat-uk.org/2016/02/12/more-history-made-at-second-amateur-radio-ca… HamTV on the ISS http://amsat-uk.org/satellites/hamtv-on-the-iss/ What is Amateur Radio? http://www.essexham.co.uk/what-is-amateur-radio Find an UK amateur radio training course near you https://thersgb.org/services/coursefinder/ A free booklet is available aimed at introducing newcomers to the hobby that can also be used as a handy reference while getting started, see http://rsgb.org/main/get-started-in-amateur-radio/alex-discovers-amateur-ra… -2/ [ANS thanks ARISS-UK and AMSAT-UK for the above information] --------------------------------------------------------------------- AMSAT Events Information about AMSAT activities at other important events around the country. Examples of these events are radio club meetings where AMSAT Area Coordinators give presentations, demonstrations of working amateur satellites, and hamfests with an AMSAT presence (a table with AMSAT literature and merchandise, sometimes also with presentations, forums, and/or demonstrations). *Friday and Saturday, 19-20 February 2016 – Yuma Hamfest and 2016 ARRL Southwest Division Convention in Yuma AZ *Friday, 4 March 2016 – presentation for the Associated Radio Amateurs of Long Beach meeting in Signal Hill CA *Saturday and Sunday, 12-13 March 2016 – ScienceCity science fair, on the University of Arizona campus in Tucson AZ *Saturday, 19 March 2016 – Scottsdale Amateur Radio Club Spring Hamfest 2016 in Scottsdale AZ *Saturday, 26 March 2016 – Tucson Spring Hamfest in Tucson AZ *Friday through Sunday, 29 April-1 May 2016 - ARRL Nevada State Convention in Las Vegas NV *Saturday, 7 May 2016 – Cochise Amateur Radio Association Hamfest in Sierra Vista AZ *Saturday, 4 June 2016 – White Mountain Hamfest in Show Low AZ [ANS thanks AMSAT-NA for the above information] --------------------------------------------------------------------- ARISS News Proposal Window for Scheduled Contacts in the US Opens February 15 The US partners of the Amateur Radio on the International Space Station (ARISS) Program are seeking formal and informal educational institutions and organizations in the US, 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 January 1, 2017 and June 30, 2017. http://www.arrl.org/files/file/ARISS/Proposal%20Window%20Announcement- 2_15_16.pdf Application Window Open for ARISS Europe Region Schools and Youth organizations in the ARISS-Europe Region (Europe, Africa and Middle East) interested in setting up an ARISS radio contact with an astronaut onboard the International Space Station are invited to submit an application and an educational project. The application submission window will be open February 1 to April 30, 2016, for space conversations that will tentatively be scheduled in the period extending from February to June 2017. http://www.ariss-eu.org/school-contacts Successful Contacts Royal Masonic School for Girls, Rickmansworth, UK, direct via GB1RMS The ISS callsign was scheduled to be GB1SS The scheduled astronaut was Timothy Peake KG5BVI Contact was successful: Thu 2016-02-11 18:09:02 UTC 89 deg Congratulations to the HamTV crew that showed the contact! This was a successful use of HamTV with an ARISS contact. Videos at: https://youtu.be/x3KpilFGQX4 https://youtu.be/ChKNtzYE_HQ The Royal Masonic School for Girls is an independent girl’s day and boarding school in Rickmansworth, Hertfordshire, with an exceptional, unusual and distinguished history. Founded in 1788 with the purpose of educating the daughters of Freemasons who were unable to support their families, it is one of the oldest girls' schools in the country. We attract girls aged 4-18 from across Hertfordshire, Buckinghamshire and North London and boarders from all over the world. We also have a Pre School for boys and girls aged 2 to 4. Our ethos is both aspirational and nurturing and our girls strive to be the very best they can be, academically, morally and creatively. Our public examination results are consistently impressive and each year around 90% of girls leave RMS to take up places at University. Life at RMS is centered on much more than "just" academic success and the School is well known for its exceptional pastoral care, and the wealth of extra-curricular opportunities it offers - including Astronomy as we are one of very few schools in the UK to have our own planetarium and observatory! Upcoming Contacts Oasis Academy Brightstowe, Bristol, UK, direct via GB1OAB The ISS callsign is presently scheduled to be GB1SS The scheduled astronaut is Timothy Peake KG5BVI Contact is a go for: Fri 2016-02-19 14:23:23 UTC 78 deg UAH Space Hardware Club, Huntsville, Alabama, direct via K4UAH The ISS callsign is presently scheduled to be NA1SS The scheduled astronaut is Tim Kopra KE5UDN Contact is a go for: Fri 2016-02-19 17:20:14 UTC 72 deg The Space Hardware Club at the University of Alabama in Huntsville is an engineering club of students that builds balloon payloads, satellites and rockets outside of their regular classes. The club has been working on this contact for over a year. After deciding to focus on 8th grade students, we reached out to Discovery Middle School, Westlawn Middle School, and the Tennessee Valley Homeschool 4-H group – all from the northern Alabama area. The students from Westlawn have been part of Project Lead The Way for 2 years now and have been exposed to robotics, modeling, and 3d printing. The students from the homeschool group all have a passion for STEM, a love of learning and being challenged, and are bubbling with excitement for this opportunity of a lifetime. There are two STEM II classes from Discovery Middle School that routinely rise to the expectations of their accelerated STEM focused curriculum. By the time of the contact, the students will have learned about the ISS, the astronauts and some of the experiments aboard, and amateur radio. All of the students and club members involved are passionate about this opportunity, and thank you for your time. 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 Austin, Texas Students to Speak to Space Station Astronaut Students from the Knowledge is Power Program (KIPP) charter schools in Austin, Texas will have the opportunity to speak with a NASA astronaut currently living and working on the International Space Station at 11:55 a.m. EST on Tuesday, Feb. 16. The 20-minute, Earth-to-space call will air live on NASA Television and the agency’s website. The contact is schedule via Skype. [ANS thanks NASA News Service for the above information] Help XE1AO get his satellite WAS award via LOTW! Omar XE1AO, a long-time satellite operator in central Mexico, tweeted yesterday that he is interested in making contact with stations in 7 states to finally have all 50 states confirmed via Logbook of the World. The last 7 states he needs are: Kansas Maine New Jersey New York Rhode Island Washington West Virginia Omar is in grid DK89df, if that helps in making calculations on possible passes that he can work. His e-mail address on QRZ is good, so you can contact him directly if you are able to help him get his satellite WAS award. He is also on Twitter as @XE1AO, but his Twitter feed is not open to the public. He's received a few suggestions to get a couple of these states taken care of, so hopefully he can finally reach that goal. [ANS thanks Patrick Stoddard, WD9EWK/VA7EWK, AMSAT Director for Field Operations for the above information] 6D0F Special Call David Maciel XE3DX will work the special prefix 6D0F, for the apostolic journey of his holiness pope Francis to Mexico. Times include: Thursday 11 February 2016 18:00 UTC Thursday, 18 February 2016 18:59 UTC David will work from grid EK36, Chiapas, on only FM satellites SO-50 and AO-85. The QSL Manager is XE1LM. Visit https://www.qrz.com/lookup/6d0f/ http://www.qsl.net/xe3dx/ [ANS thanks David Maciel, XE3DX for the above information] --------------------------------------------------------------------- /EX In addition to regular membership, AMSAT offers membership in the President's Club. Members of the President's Club, as sustaining donors to AMSAT Project Funds, will be eligible to receive addi- tional benefits. Application forms are available from the AMSAT Office. Primary and secondary school students are eligible for membership at one-half the standard yearly rate. Post-secondary school students enrolled in at least half time status shall be eligible for the stu- dent rate for a maximum of 6 post-secondary years in this status. Contact Martha at the AMSAT Office for additional student membership information. 73, This week's ANS Editor, Joe Spier, K6WAO k6wao at amsat dot org

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