AMSAT NEWS SERVICE ANS-171
ANS is a free, weekly, news and information service of AMSAT North America, The Radio Amateur Satellite Corporation. ANS reports on the activities of a worldwide group of Amateur Radio operators who share an active interest in designing, building, launching and communicating through analog and digital Amateur Radio satellites. This is your chance to join in the ranks of AMSAT. There is still an opening or two for someone to step in and assist with the ANS editing process. If you are interested, please drop a line to Gould Smith, [email protected]. There are many other volunteer slots and you can find them in the advertisement in the AMSAT Journal. It takes many helpful hands to keep our group well oiled. (ed.)
Please send any amateur satellite news or reports to: [email protected]
In this edition:
* Last Call For Speakers * BOD Nominations Announced * AO-51 Field Day Schedule * Lunar Lander Cubesat Poposed * 1675-1710 MHz Weather Satellite Band Under Study for Re-Allocation * Name That Satellite * Hudson Valley, NY SatCom Net on Thursday * ARISS Status
SB SAT @ AMSAT $ANS-171.01 Last Call For Speakers
AMSAT News Service Bulletin 171.01
From AMSAT HQ SILVER SPRING, MD.
June 20, 2010 To All RADIO AMATEURS BID: $ANS-171.01
Hi All,
This is the final call for speakers for the AMSAT-UK Colloquium 2010 which will be held at the Holiday Inn, Guildford, UK (same venue as in 2009) on *Sat 31st Jul and Sun 1st Aug 2010*, with a beginners session on the afternoon of Friday 30th.
AMSAT-UK invite speakers, about amateur radio, space and associated activities to this event, details of which, can be found at:
http://www.uk.amsat.org/content/view/32/42/
As this is a late call, the submission of a paper is not required but any PowerPoint or similar material can be made available online, afterterwards.
Submissions should be sent *ONLY* to G4DPZ, via the following routes:
e-mail: david.johnson AT blackpepper.co.uk
SnailMail: QTHR from www.QRZ.com
Likewise if anyone knows of a good speaker, please send contact and other information to G4DPZ.
73
Dave G4DPZ
[ANS thanks Dave, G4DPZ, for the above information]
/EX
SB SAT @ AMSAT $ANS-171.02 BOD Nominations Announced
AMSAT News Service Bulletin 171.02
From AMSAT HQ SILVER SPRING, MD.
June 20, 2010 To All RADIO AMATEURS BID: $ANS-171.02
It is my pleasure to announce that the following have been nominated to serve on the AMSAT Board of Directors for two year terms:
Tom Clark, K3IO Lou McFadin, W5DID Tony Monteiro, AA2TX Gould Smith, WA4SXM
Candidates will be afforded the opportunity to have statements of their qualifications and positions circulated to the membership. In accordance with the bylaws of the Radio Amateur Satellite Corporation, the ballots will be mailed no later than July 15th, and must be returned no later than September 15h to be counted.
Since there are four candidates for three seats, the three candidates having the greatest number of votes will be elected to full terms. The forth candidate will serve as an alternate until the next annual election.
Alan Biddle WA4SCA AMSAT Corporate Secretary
[ANS thanks Alan, WA4SCA for the above information]
/EX
SB SAT @ AMSAT $ANS-171.03 AO-51 Field Day Schedule
AMSAT News Service Bulletin 171.03
From AMSAT HQ SILVER SPRING, MD.
June 20, 2010 To All RADIO AMATEURS BID: $ANS-171.03
AO-51 Operations Team Announces Field Day Schedule
It's that time of year again; summer and Field Day! Each year the American Radio Relay League (ARRL) sponsors Field Day as an emergency preparedness exercise. The event takes place during a 24-hour period on the fourth weekend of June.
For 2010 the event takes place during a 27-hour period from 1800 UTC on Saturday June 26, 2010 through 2100 UTC on Sunday June 27, 2010. Those who set up prior to 1800 UTC on June 26 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.
AMSAT-NA VP Operations, Drew KO4MA says the AO-51 Command Team and Operations Group has announced the AO-51 configuration for Field Day:
June 21 10:40Z - June 24 09:35Z FM Repeater, V/S to allow testing of V/S station equipment prior to Field Day: Uplink: 145.880 Mhz FM Downlink: 2401.200 Mhz FM
June 24 09:35Z - June 27 06:40Z FM Repeater, V/U Please observe the 1 QSO per repeater Field Day rule Uplink: 145.920 Mhz FM, PL 67Hz Downlink: 435.300 Mhz FM
June 27 06:40 - June 27 22:00Z FM Repeater, V/S Please observe the 1 QSO per repeater Field Day rule Uplink: 145.880 Mhz FM Downlink: 2401.200 Mhz FM
AMSAT Field Day rules and scoring instructions are available on-line at: http://www.amsat.org/amsat-new/awards/amsatfd.php Read the latest AO-51 Command Team and Operations Group News on-line at: http://www.amsat.org/amsat-new/echo/CTNews.php
[ANS thanks the AO-51 Operations Team for the above information]
/EX
SB SAT @ AMSAT $ANS-171.04 Lunar Lander Cubesat Proposed
AMSAT News Service Bulletin 171.04
From AMSAT HQ SILVER SPRING, MD.
June 20, 2010 To All RADIO AMATEURS BID: $ANS-171.04
Lunar Lander CubeSat Proposed
In a story first reported in the European EE Times, Vermont Technical College, Norwich University, St. Michael's College, and the University of Vermont are working together to land a CubeSat on the moon. (EE Times http://tinyurl.com/22vuz7q)
The team is currently working on initial designs for the spacecraft, with the aim of achieving further NASA funding in June 2011. Primary funding for this effort is being provided by the Vermont Space Grant Consortium under NASA grant.
In the current phase of the program The Vermont CubeSat project, led by Professor Carl Brandon of Vermont Technical College aims to launch by 2015. It is developing the first CubeSat that can be launched from a geostationary orbit to successfully land on the moon. The CubeSat electronics are based on a Texas Instruments (TI) MSP430 processor and the software will control navigation, communications, scientific ins- truments, camera and the CubeSat's propulsion system.
SPARK, a new high level programming language and toolset designed to support the development of mission critical software will be used for the moonbound cubesat. SPARK was adopted for the CubeSat project be- cause of Vermont Technical College's experience in using SPARK and the related Ada programming language in developing mission critical control systems for a project to create Arctic sea ice monitoring buoys. Both the CubeSat and buoy systems face similar challenges in terms of coping with inhospitable conditions and the impossibility of fixing any soft- ware bugs when deployed.
The proposed lunar lander will be a single unit CubeSat (10*10*10 cm) with four mini-thrusters on the bottom to maximize control and manoeu- vrability. Two potential options for propulsion are being examined - a bi-propellant booster or a Xenon powered ion drive booster. The Xenon thruster can also be used for a triple CubeSat that would go to and orbit the moon.
[ANS thanks EE Times and the SouthGate ARC News for the above information]
/EX
SB SAT @ AMSAT $ANS-171.05 1675-1710 MHz Weather Satellite Band Under Study for Re-Allocation
AMSAT News Service Bulletin 171.05
From AMSAT HQ SILVER SPRING, MD.
June 20, 2010 To All RADIO AMATEURS BID: $ANS-171.05
1675-1710 MHz Weather Satellite Band Under Study for Re-Allocation
The ARRL has picked up on a news item in regards to the National Broadband Plan (NBP) recommending that the FCC should make 500 MHz of spectrum available for broadband use within the next 10 years, including 300 MHz between 225 MHz-3.7 GHz for mobile use in the next five years. One of the first slices of spectrum being eyeballed includes the 1675-1710 MHz band utilized by weather satellites.
The FCC's Office of Engineering and Technology (OET) has engaged in discussions with the National Telecommunications and Information Ad- ministration's (NTIA) Office of Spectrum Management to begin examining various frequency bands that may be suitable for mobile broadband use.
NTIA has preliminarily identified the 1675-1710 MHz band for such use and is examining the impact on its incumbent federal users of the weather satellite products. The FCC issued a Public Notice (ET Docket No 10-123) on June 4, 2010, seeking information to help better compre- hend the current use of the 1675-1710 MHz band by non-federal entities and better understand its potential utility for broadband.
The full story can be found on the ARRL web site: http://tinyurl.com/29zv8a6
[ANS thanks the ARRL Letter for June 17, 2010, Editor: S. Khrystyne Keane, K1SFA for the above information]
/EX
-----
SB SAT @ AMSAT $ANS-171.06 Name That Satellite
AMSAT News Service Bulletin 171.06
From AMSAT HQ SILVER SPRING, MD.
June 20, 2010 To All RADIO AMATEURS BID: $ANS-171.06
Name that satellite
SA-AMSAT is inviting radio amateurs to propose a name for its CubeSat project which was announced at the recently held Space Symposium. The project name should be a single word in any of South Africa's official languages and reflect the spirit of the project.
A good example is the name given to the around-the-world-balloon project which is called "lalela", the Zulu word for "listen".
The winning entry will receive a satellite handbook. Entries should be sent by e-mail to [email protected]. SA-AMSAT's web page is at: http://www.amsatsa.org.za/
The closing date is 15 July.
[ANS thanks SA-AMSAT, SARL, and SouthGate for the above information]
/EX
SB SAT @ AMSAT $ANS-171.07 Hudson Valley, NY SatCom Net on Thursday
AMSAT News Service Bulletin 171.07
From AMSAT HQ SILVER SPRING, MD.
June 20, 2010 To All RADIO AMATEURS BID: $ANS-171.07
Hudson Valley SatCom, NY Net on Thursday
The next "HV Satcom" group net is Thursday June 24 8PM (EDT) (Or 2400 UTC), with an echolink Node of N2EYH-L, & the repeater used is "146.970 (Pl 100; 600 down), & for more info: www.hvsatcom.org 73,.Stu (WA2BSS) (Director;Mt. Beacon ARC)
[ANS thanks Stu, WA2BSS, for the above information]
/EX
SB SAT @ AMSAT $ANS-171.08 ARISS Report
AMSAT News Service Bulletin 171.08
From AMSAT HQ SILVER SPRING, MD.
June 14, 2010 To All RADIO AMATEURS BID: $ANS-171.08
Amateur Radio on the International Space Station (ARISS) Status Report June 14, 2010
1. Upcoming School Contact
Asahi Manabiya, located in Owariasahi, Aichi, Japan, has been scheduled for an Amateur Radio on the International Space Station (ARISS) contact on Wednesday, June 23 at 12:48 UTC. Asahi Manabiya is a volunteer club with approximately 50 members. It hopes to pique children's interest in natural science including electrical and electronic phenomena through this ARISS activity.
2. Astronaut Caldwell-Dyson Speaks with ISIS Andrea Ponti via ARISS
On Monday, June 7, students from ISIS Andrea Ponti in Gallarate, Varese, Italy, linked up with on-orbit astronaut Tracy Caldwell-Dyson, KF5DBF via an Amateur Radio on the International Space Station (ARISS) contact. An audience of more than 250 students, teachers and visitors, located in several classrooms and connected by multimedia screens, were present for the contact. ARISS mentor Francesco De Paolis, IK0WGF introduced the event and ARISS activities with a presentation via phone line. The event was distributed via webcast and was covered by the local media and newspapers. This contact was the final event of several cross-curricular activities involving different school subjects including Science, History, Geography, Math, Information Technology and English.
3. ARISS News on Amateur Radio Newsline
On June 11, the Amateur Radio Newsline Report 1713 included a short story titled, "Radio from Space: Astroham Congratulates WIA on its 100th Anniversary." The article is about Tracy Caldwell-Dyson's ARISS contact during the WIA's anniversary dinner in which she sent greetings and talked about the advancements in communications over the years. A link to the audio is provided. To view the article, see: ftp://ftp.arnewsline.org/quincy/News/news.txt
4. Astronaut Training Status
Astronaut Tom Marshburn, KE5HOC is scheduled to receive ARISS basic operations training on July 12.
[ANS thanks Carol, KB3LKI, 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 additional benefits. Application forms are available from the AMSAT Office.
73, This week's ANS Editor, Dee Interdonato, NB2F nb2f at amsat dot org