AMSAT NEWS SERVICE ANS-231
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.
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******************* AMSAT 2007 Space Symposium *************************
The Wireless Association of South Hills Amateur Radio Club announces the 2007 AMSAT Space Symposium will be held at the Pittsburgh Airport Marriott Hotel on Friday, October 26 through Sunday, October 28, 2007. The AMSAT web team has posted informational pages on the AMSAT web site. You can find the announcement with many links at: http://www.amsat.org/amsat-new/symposium/2007/index.php
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In this edition: * 2007 AMSAT Space Symposium and Annual Meeting * FO-29 Returns to Semi-Operational Status * Symposium Station * ARISS Status Report for the Week of August 13, 2007
SB SAT @ AMSAT $ANS-231.01 2007 AMSAT Space Symposium and Annual Meeting
AMSAT News Service Bulletin 231.01 From AMSAT HQ SILVER SPRING, MD. August 19, 2007 To All RADIO AMATEURS BID: $ANS-231.01
The Annual AMSAT Symposium of October 26, 27 & 28 can now be accessed via the AMSAT Website. Make your reservations early and save. See all that is offered and make your plans now to attend. The 2007 AMSAT Space Symposium registration form is online. Go to the AMSAT website and click on 2007 AMSAT Symposium (left hand side of page ). That will link you to the Symposium site and registration.
73- Martha - Manager
[ANS thanks AMSAT for the above information]
/EX
SB SAT @ AMSAT $ANS-231.02 FO-29 Returns to Semi-Operational Status
AMSAT News Service Bulletin 231.02 From AMSAT HQ SILVER SPRING, MD. August 19, 2007 To All RADIO AMATEURS BID: $ANS-231.02
FO-29 Returns to Semi-Operational Status
After experiencing problems with its battery and charging system FO-29 was turned off on May 4, 2007. The control station at JARL worked on failure analysis and battery reconditioning. The team has been successful in partially recovering the satellite and this past week reported, "FO-29 is semi-operational!"
Masa, JN1GKZ in Tokyo provided additional details, "The FO-29 battery is almost dead and the automatic recovery function does not work. This means transmitter will stop after eclipse and a wake up command by the JARL Command Staion is needed to start the satellite.
FO-29 users are requested to please keep their downlink signal weaker than the beacon. JARL posts daily FO-29 operating schedules via the amsat-bb mailing list. Telemetry reception reports are welcomed. Please send reports to [email protected].
Mika, OH8MBN reports from Finland, "Great signal levels, the bird works just fine!! Thanks to guys at JARL command station for bringing this great satellite back alive!"
Bruce, VE9QRP said, "I can report that from my location on the east coast of Canada, it was audible well past the point when SatPC32 be- lieved the bird was in eclipse. I believe I could hear the beacon down to LOS. Thank you for all the hard work you put into making FO-29 work again."
[ANS thanks Mineo, JE9PEL and Masa, JN1GKZ for the above information]
/EX
SB SAT @ AMSAT $ANS-231.03 Symposium Station
AMSAT News Service Bulletin 231.03 From AMSAT HQ SILVER SPRING, MD. August 19, 2007 To All RADIO AMATEURS BID: $ANS-231.03
One of the events that will take place at the 2007 AMSAT Space Symposium is an operating satellite ground station will be available for use and demonstration. This station will have the capability to automatically track satellites using 2-meter and 70-cm circular polarized antennas and a Yaesu FT-847 that is appropriately computer controlled. We would like to demonstrate communication with digital satellites like GO-32 and AO-51 using WISP but we need assistance. We would also like to have telemetry capture and analysis demonstrated. If any Pittsburgh area amateurs have the expertise to help us demonstrate satellite digital communication and telemetry capture please contact Kevin Smith, N3HKQ at [email protected] or call 412-953-4957. Any assistance is greatly appreciated.
73, Kevin Smith, N3HKQ 2007 AMSAT Space Symposium Co-Chair
[ANS thanks Kevin, N3HKQ, for the above information]
/EX
SB SAT @ AMSAT $ANS-231.04 ARISS Status Report for the Week of August 13, 2007
AMSAT News Service Bulletin 231.04 From AMSAT HQ SILVER SPRING, MD. August 19, 2007 To All RADIO AMATEURS BID: $ANS-231.04
ARISS Status Report for the Week of August 13, 2007
1. ARISS Contact with New York Community Center
On Tuesday, August 7, an ARISS contact took place between the One Stop Richmond Hill Community Center in Queens, New York and Clay Anderson, KD5PLA, via the telebridge station WH6PN in Hawaii. Twelve students had 23 questions answered by the astronaut as a gathering of 50 people looked on. There was some press interest in the event and the center expects to receive local media coverage. Eleven stations connected to EchoLink from the USA and England, including 3 repeater nodes.
2. Upcoming School Contact
Nanjing No. 3 High School in Nanjing, Jiangsu, P.R. China has been scheduled for an ARISS contact on Sunday, August 26 at 10:44 UTC. To prepare for the contact, elective courses will be offered on amateur radio and contests will be held to determine the best essays and cartoons concerning ARISS. Other schools in the area will be invited to the event. The school has an active amateur radio club which was established in 1992 and has been a five time winner of the national youth amateur radio contest. Local hams and businesses will support the students with the contact. Extensive media coverage is expected from newspapers, television and radio stations and the internet.
An article by The People's Daily about the upcoming contact can be viewed on-line at: http://www.southgatearc.org/news/august2007/iss_peoples_daily.htm
3. ARRL Article on Educator Astronaut
The American Radio Relay League (ARRL) ran a web story on Barbara Morgan, KD5VNP, and the STS-118 mission. Morgan plans to talk with school children in Idaho during her flight. See: http://www.arrl.org/news/stories/2007/08/08/100/?nc=1
[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