AMSAT NEWS SERVICE ANS-336
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.
You can sign up for free e-mail delivery of the AMSAT News Service Bulletins via the ANS List; to join this list see: http://www.amsat.org/mailman/listinfo/ans
In this edition:
* Fox-1Cliff Launch Targeted for December 2nd * AMSAT Web Adds Donation Portal * Amateur Radio Contest for Receiving PW-Sat2 Telemetry * Additional Amateur Radio Communication Cubesats Launch on SSO-A * AMSAT-DL Provides Update for Es'hail-2/P4A Geosynchronous Orbit * Nihon University NEXUS VU-mode Linear Transponder Launch Announcement * AMSAT Rover Award Updates * VUCC Awards-Endorsements for November 2018 * Upcoming Satellite Operations Reported by KE4AL * ESA and RaspberryPi.org Collaborate on Astro Pi Mission Zero * MarCo Cubesats Relay NASA's InSight Mars Lander Touchdown * Happy 20th Anniversary to the International Space Station * Satellite Shorts From All Over
SB SAT @ AMSAT $ANS-336.01 ANS-336 AMSAT News Service Weekly Bulletins
AMSAT News Service Bulletin 336.01 From AMSAT HQ KENSINGTON, MD. DATE December 2, 2018 To All RADIO AMATEURS BID: $ANS-336.01
Fox-1Cliff Launch Targeted for December 2nd
SpaceX has announced that the SSO-A: SmallSat Express mission carrying Fox-1Cliff is now targeted for launch on Sunday, December 2, 2018 at 18:33 UTC.
In addition to Fox-1Cliff, the SSO-A mission will carry several other amateur radio satellites, includingF UNcube on ESEO, JY1-SAT, K2SAT, and ExseedSat.
The launch window opens at 18:31:47 UTC and extends for approximately 30 minutes.
At press time less than 24 hours remain until the scheduled launch of Fox-1Cliff! The SpaceX video feed of the launch and a live blog of the launch events can be found on the AMSAT website: https://www.amsat.org/fox-1cliff-launch-live-blog/
Some amateur operators choose to participate in an unofficial on-line chat (Internet Relay Chat) at: https://webchat.freenode.net/ then enter your callsign as your Nickname; enter #cubesat as the Channel. You do not need to 'Auth to services' so leave that unchecked. Verify you are not a robot and then Connect.
+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+ Do not attempt to access this satellite until the activation announcement from AMSAT Engineering and AMSAT Operations Teams +=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+
Here is what to expect after launch: + Capturing Initial Telemetry is the Most Important Task + Safe Mode/Beacon Mode Operation on Start Up + On-Orbit Checklist Activities + Activation for Amateur Radio Access + Fox-1Cliff Technical Details
Capturing Initial Telemetry is the Most Important Task ------------------------------------------------------- Following the successful launch and deployment of Fox-1Cliff, all amateur radio satellite enthusiasts can play an important part in the commissioning of the new satellite. Telemetry helps us tremendously, starting ASAP after startup (~59 minutes after deployment*) and for the next 72-96 hours at least (for the life of the satellite is preferred!) as we look for successful startup, watch the general health and function as the satellite begins to acclimate to space, and start to perform the on orbit checkout. The first station to successfully receive and submit telemetry to the AMSAT server will receive a special 3D printed QSL card acknowledging their contribution.
If you are capturing telemetry with FoxTelem, please be sure that "Upload to Server" is checked in your settings and your Ground Station Params are filled in as well. You can help AMSAT and everyone waiting to get on the air with Fox-1Cliff tremendously, by capturing Fox-1Cliff telemetry.
Safe Mode/Beacon Mode Operation on Start Up ------------------------------------------- In the initial Safe Mode after startup, which we actually call Beacon Mode, the transmitter is limited to 10 seconds on time then does the two minutes off cycle. For those of you capturing telemetry, that means that you will only see Current frames and no High or Low frames because the High and Low are truncated as it takes just over 10 seconds to send two frames. You will hear Veronica announcing "Fox-1Cliff Safe Mode" while in Beacon Mode.
We will likely leave the satellite in Beacon Mode for 24 hours to observe power telemetry. If we are seeing good readings from what you gather, when it comes over the U.S. for the first good pass after that holding period we will command it from Beacon Mode to normal Safe Mode. That puts Fox-1Cliff in full (still Safe Mode though) operation and transmits a full two frames of telemetry which is one Current frame followed by, and alternating each ID cycle, a High or a Low frame.
On-Orbit Checklist Activities ----------------------------- We will begin the rest of the in orbit checklist activities at that time, and it is expected to take 7 to 10 days.
Help your friends and all of our satellite ham friends get on the air and have fun sooner by being polite and patient!
The in orbit checkout procedure is similar to Fox-1D and could be completed in as little as 7 days if we have the cooperation of the users. It is very important, not to mention just plain good Amateur Operating Practice, to refrain from using the transponder uplink so we can do the on orbit tests, including when we turn on transponder mode for testing. I cannot stress enough, the importance of this cooperation not just for us but also for all users, simply having a little patience so we can conduct the tests as quickly and accurately as possible.
Activation for Amateur Radio Access ----------------------------------- AMSAT will make it broadly known when the tests are complete and the transponder is available for all to use. If you hear someone on the transponder, please do not assume that it is open for general use - check our website, Facebook, Twitter, to be sure you are not accidentally jumping in with and unwittingly causing interference as well.
Many hams put thousands of volunteer hours of their time into making Fox-1Cliff happen. Just like any ham radio project you might undertake, we build satellites. We do it because we like to, and when we are done, we freely share our project with hams everywhere as is the spirit of amateur radio. I have to say though, that the incidents we have experienced in the past with stations intentionally disregarding the command stations requests to keep the frequency clear during testing not only delays the commissioning, but also negatively impacts the enthusiasm that our volunteers feel toward handing over a new bird to the members and users as soon as possible.
I am asking all satellite hams to contribute just a little bit of your time to the fun now, by being patient and just gathering telemetry, not using the transponder uplink, and helping us complete the last few days of getting Fox-1Cliff in orbit and operating for all of you.
Fox-1Cliff Technical Details ---------------------------- Uplink: 435.300 MHz / 1267.300 MHz** with 67 Hz CTCSS Tone Downlink: 145.920 MHz ** Uplinks switched by command station, not operational simultaneously Nominal operating frequencies may vary slightly after launch.
Ground stations need to adjust your transmit frequency for Doppler Shift. One suggested approach includes programming 5 uplink fre- quencies into memory channels and stepping through the channels depending on Fox-1Cliff's relative position to you. (Fc in the table below is the nominal uplink center frequency = 435.300 MHz).
Full duplex operation is recommended to allow you to hear if you are tuned on-frequency and also avoids interfering if another station is transmitting.
ADJUSTING YOUR UPLINK FREQUENCY to TRACK DOPPLER SHIFT ------------------------------------------------------ AOS (Memory Channel 1) Fc - 10 KHz 435.290 MHz Approaching (Memory Channel 2) Fc - 5 KHz 435.295 MHz Nearest (Memory Channel 3) Fc 435.300 MHz Departing (Memory Channel 4) Fc + 5 KHz 435.305 MHz LOS (Memory Channel 5) Fc + 10 KHz 435.310 MHz
Access the Fox-1 Operating Guide on-line at: https://www.amsat.org/station-and-operating-hints/ Find all of AMSAT Fox-1 frequencies on-line at: https://www.amsat.org/fm-satellite-frequency-summary/ SatPC32 users can find updated *.SQF files at: http://tinyurl.com/ANS-336-SatPC32files
[ANS thanks Jerry Buxton, N0JY, AMSAT Vice President-Engineering for the above information]
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AMSAT Web Adds Donation Portal
AMSAT relies on your donations to Keep Amateur Radio in Space. Please consider a donation to the AMSAT General Fund, the GOLF Program, or ARISS today!
Access the Donation Portal on the AMSAT front page http://www.amsat.org --> Select Donate from the main menu bar -or- visit https://www.amsat.org/donations/ for direct access to the page.
+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+ For a limited time, new and rewewing AMSAT members will receive a free digital copy of "Getting Started with Amateur Satellites" Join or renew your AMSAT membership today at https://www.amsat.org/product-category/amsat-membership/ +=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+
[ANS thanks AMSAT for the above information]
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Amateur Radio Contest for Receiving PW-Sat2 Telemetry
PW-Sat2, the second Polish student satellite, also launched on the SpaceX Falcon 9 SSO-A flight with AMSAT Fox-1Cliff, is a student pro- ject with the goal to test a new deorbit sail. A team formed of over 30 students from many different faculties of Warsaw University of Technology started working on a new satellite in 2013. For more information visit:
https://github.com/PW-Sat2/HAMRadio/wiki
Amateur radio operators are invited to take part in a multi-faceted contest. How to take part in the contests? It's easy! Register on the website: https://radio.pw-sat.pl/ - then - use the application for HAM radio, to receive, decode and upload PW-Sat2 frames to our cloud based service. Just after completing of the PW-Sat2 satellite mission, the team will announce the winners and send prizes!
On the ham radio contest web page https://pw-sat.pl/en/ham-contest/ you'll find several categories to participate:
+ QSL cards - for a correctly received and decoded frame + The first received and uploaded frame - First come, first served! + The last received and uploaded frame - During the deorbit sail deployment sequence! + The largest number of uploaded frames
PW-Sat2 will transmit on 435.275 MHz using 1k2-9k6 BPSK AX25.
[ANS thanks the PW-Sat2 team for the above information]
+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+ Purchase AMSAT Gear on our Zazzle storefront. 25% of the purchase price of each product goes towards Keeping Amateur Radio in Space https://www.zazzle.com/amsat_gear +=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+
Additional Amateur Radio Communication Cubesats Launch on SSO-A
JY1SAT is a one unit CubeSat, dedicated to the memory of His Majesty the late King Hussein, the first founder of the HAM Radio in Jordan and holder of call sign JY1. This will be Jordan's first satellite.
JY1SAT contains the AMSAT-UK FUNcube-6 communications transponder with expanded capabilities to be able to transmit stored images reflecting the Jordanian culture and its historical heritage, along with a voice message recorded by the Crown Prince to be transmitted in space to receivers around the world.
Frequencies for the JY1SAT FUNcube-6 transponder include: Uplink: 435.100 - 435.120 MHz CW, LSB Downlink: 145.855 - 145.875 MHz CW, USB Telemetry: 145.840 MHz (FUNcube BPSK format, new Dashboard software will be made available)
JYISAT will transmit pre-stored images of the Kingdom which have been selected by a national competition. These images will be downlinked using a SSDV digital format.
The SpaceX Falcon-9 v1.2 launch from Vandenberg also includes 40+ cubesat passengers, notably ExseedSat 1 from India, the European Student Earth Orbiter - ESEO (FUNcube 4) and AMSAT-NA Fox 1Cliff.
Exseedsat-1 ----------- Uplink: 435.340 MHz FM voice with 67 Hz CTCSS tone and APRS digipeater Downlink: 145.900 MHZ FM voice, APRS digipeater, telemetry
ESEO (FUNcube 4) ---------------- Uplink: 1263.500 MHz FM voice with 67Hz CTCSS tone Downlink: 145.895 MHz FM voice and telemetry
See also the AMSAT-UK summary of mission descriptions and frequencies at: https://amsat-uk.org/2018/11/14/ssoa-amateur-radio-satellites/
[ANS thanks the satellite teams for the above information]
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AMSAT-DL Provides Update for Es'hail-2/P4A Geosynchronous Orbit
Es'hail-2 with the P4A transponder is currently in a temporary GEO slot at ~24°E. After testing the satellite will be moved to the location planned to be at 26°E.
Peter Guelzow, DB2OS, explained the current testing and commis- sioning procedures, "During the next 1-2 month Es'hail-2 will undergo fine tuning and extensive In-Orbit-Testing (IOT). The current orbital position is selected to not interfere with other GEO satellites nearby. Once testing is finished, the satellite will slowly be drifting to and stationed at the final position."
The checkout and inauguration of the both AMSAT transponders will be performed after the IOT phase is finished as explained at: https://amsat-dl.org/p4a-positionining-and-iot
Peter reported several "hunters" have already spotted the Engineer- ing beacon from Es'hail-2, so obviously everything looks good and is going according to plan.
Stay tuned for latest news on https://amsat-dl.org and the official Es'hail-2 / P4-A discussion forum on: https://forum.amsat-dl.org/index.php?board/3-es-hail-2-amsat-phase-4-a/
The AMSAT Phase 4-A transponder on Es’hail-2 is a joint project by the Qatar Satellite Company (Es’hailSat), the Qatar Amateur Radio Society (QARS) and AMSAT Deutschland (AMSAT-DL).
Recent Keplerian Elements for Es'hail-2 are: ES'HAIL 2 1 43700U 18090A 18331.74832885 .00000138 00000-0 00000+0 0 9994 2 43700 0.0937 247.5840 0001194 359.8609 112.5666 1.00272646 252
Pedro, LU7ABF says that the tracking site on the AMSAT-Argentina web provides visualization of the current satellite location and footprint: http://amsat.org.ar/pass?satx=ESHAIL
[ANS thanks Peter Guelzow, DB2OS, AMSAT-DL for the above information]
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Nihon University NEXUS VU-mode Linear Transponder Launch Announcement
Mikio Mouri, JA3GEP, JAMSAT, announced the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) plans to launch RAPIS-1(RAPid Innovative Payload Demon- stration Satellite) and three small satellites (Micro-Dragon, RISESAT, ALE-1) and three CubeSats (OrigamiSat-1, Aoba VELOX-IV, NEXUS) on January 16, 2019 at 00:50 UTC (January 17, 2019 at 09:50 JST) from the JAXA Uchinoura Space Center.
NEXUS(NExt generation X Unique Satellite) is designed and manufact- ured by Nihon University, and it includes a VU-mode(mode-J) Linear Transponder: + Uplink: 145.930 MHz - 145.900 MHz + Downlink: 435.880 MHz - 435.910 MHz + Telemetry: 437.075 MHz 0.1W CW
Nihon University has published more information about NEXUS: http://sat.aero.cst.nihon-u.ac.jp/nexus/1_Nexus.html (using google translate may help)
OrigamiSat-1 will have downlinks on 5840.000 MHz (115kbps data rate) and 437.505 MHz (1k2 AFSK and CW)
Aoba VELOX-IV will have a downlink on 437.225 MHz (9k6 GMSK AX25)
Access the JAXA launch announcement press release at: http://global.jaxa.jp/press/2018/11/20181130_epsilon4.html
[ANS thanks Mikio Mouri, JA3GEP, JAMSAT for the above information]
+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+ AMSAT and ARISS are currently supporting a FundRazr campaign to raise $150,000 for critical radio infrastructure upgrades on ISS. The upgrades are necessary to enable students to continue to talk to astronauts in space via Amateur Radio. We have reached a great milestone with $15,645 raised or about 10% towards our goal. This would not have been possible without your outstanding generosity!!
For more information and to DONATE TODAY visit:
https://fundrazr.com/arissnextgen?ref=ab_e7Htwa_ab_47IcJ9 +=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+
AMSAT Rover Award Updates
AMSAT Director of Contests and Awards, Bruce Paige, KK5DO, says that congratulations are in order for the newest Rover Award operators:
Since the last Rover Award announcement in ANS-266 the following stations have qualified for the award:
Number Callsign Award Date ------ -------- ---------- 035 AD7DB 26 Sep 2018 036 AB5SS 24 Nov 2018 037 W9TWJ 26 Nov 2018
The AMSAT Rover award is granted to stations who achieve a combined 25 points using any combination of the defined criteria posted at: https://www.amsat.org/amsat-rover-award.
Points can be earned for each grid square activated outside of your home grid square using the FM, linear, and digital satellites. While FM contacts count for 1 point each multiplier points are available for contacts via the linear and digital satellites.
Additional points are available for photographs, publicity, social media promotion, and AMSAT Journal articles. The options are numerous so please refer to the Rover Award Website for all of the details.
[ANS thanks AMSAT Director of Contests and Awards, Bruce Paige, KK5DO for the above information]
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VUCC Awards-Endorsements for November 2018
Here are the endorsements and new VUCC Satellite Awards issued by the ARRL for the period November 1, 2018 through December 1, 2018. Congratulations to all those who made the list this month!
CALL 01Nov 01Dec
KD8CAO 1253 1262 N0JE 562 569 WD9EWK 500 513 KE4AL 480 502 NM3B 416 481 AA8CH 351 406 AE5B 295 300 N3GS 277 300 KE8FZT 254 275 W7JSD 239 257 N4YHC 175 250 PT2AP 200 221 PS8ET 201 211 K3RRR New 200 AD0HJ 100 175 WW8W 128 152 K9UO New 150 WA7HQD 138 148 PU8RFL 125 134 PS8MT New 130 K7ULS New 119 CU2ZG New 101 PU8RJI New 101
If you find errors or omissions. please contact me off-list at <mycall>@<mycall>.com and I'll revise the announcement.
This list was developed by comparing the ARRL .pdf listings for November 1, 2018 and December 1, 2018. It's a visual comparison so omissions are possible. Apologies if your call was not mentioned.
Thanks to all those who are roving to grids that are rarely on the birds. They are doing most of the work!
[ANS thanks Ronald Parsons, W5RKN for the above information]
--------------------------------------------------------------------- Upcoming Satellite Operations Reported by KE4AL
+ Yuri UT1FG/MM will be going into port at Santos Brazil during the week of November 26-30 to unload. It should take 3-4 days. His next port will be in Argentina where he will load cargo and then proceed to the Baltic Sea. Lots of new grids are anticipated along the way. He has been active on all of the SSB and FM birds and reports contacts with V51 and ZS on AO-7. (via K8YSE on amsat-bb)
+ James WX4TV wrote, "Watch the DX Clusters for N4P." This will be for the Dry Tortugas National Park DXpedition that we are doing from December 14-17. They will be on 80m, 40m, 20m, 17m, and the FM satellites. (WX4TV via Facebook)
+ Switzerland (FN30, JN36, JN47) – November 28 – December 7, 2018 Brennan, N4QX, fall ASMAT roving plans: * JN36 as HB9/N4QX & from 4U1ITU November 28 – December 7 as work permits * JN47 as HB9/N4QX & HB0/N4QX December 1-2 For now, FM only. Watch Twitter for pass announcements. https://twitter.com/BrennanTPrice.%C2%A0 QSLs *exclusively* via Logbook of the World.
+ Brazil (GH62,GH63,GH72,GH73) – November 30, 2018 PP2CC, PT2AZ amd PT2AP will activate 4 grids in Brazil on 30 November. Specific passes should be announced on Twitter https://twitter.com/PT2AP
+ Oahu and Maui (BL01, BL10, BL11) – December 3-14, 2018 John, N7AME, will be in Hawaii December 3-14. John hopes to rove BL01, BL10 and BL11, but the Hawaiian Islands appear to have ten (10) different grids, and he hopes he can work all of them. John can only work FM satellites AO-91 and AO-92.
+ Greenburg, PA (FN00) – December 10-12, 2018 Tanner, W9TWJ, will be travelling for business the week of December 10-12, to Greensburg, PA (FN00). He will attempt to be active on FM evening passes and hopefully not freeze! Specific pass announcements will be posted to Twitter: https://twitter.com/twjones85
+ RMS Queen Mary (DM03) – December 15, 2018 Patrick , WD9EWK, will be part of a day of satellite operating from a deck on the RMS Queen Mary, docked at Long Beach in southern California, on Saturday 15 December 2018. Operations will be port- able, almost like a Field Day, and should include FM, SSB, and possibly packet. All operations from the Queen Mary will be as W6RO, the call sign for the wireless room on the ship operated by the Associated Radio Amateurs of Long Beach. Depending on staffing in the W6RO wireless room, there may also be HF activity during the satellite operation. QSLing for the W6RO satellite activation will be handled per the procedure on W6RO’s QRZ page: http://www.qrz.com/db/W6RO
Please submit any additions or corrections to ke4al (at) amsat.org
[ANS thanks Robert, KE4AL for the above information]
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ESA and RaspberryPi.org Collaborate on Astro Pi Mission Zero
The European Space Agency announced the official launch the of Astro Pi Mission Zero, part of the 2018-2019 European Astro Pi Challenge. This is an ESA Education programme run in collabora- tion with RaspberryPi.org. In this challenge, students and young people get the chance to have their computer programs run in space on the International Space Station!
Read the full entry details and get the latest program resources on-line at: https://www.raspberrypi.org/blog/mission-zero-2018-19/
Students and young people will have until 20 March 2019 to form teams and write a simple program to display their personal mes- sage to the astronauts onboard. The Mission Zero activity can be completed in a couple of hours with just a computer and an internet connection. You don't need any special equipment or prior coding skills, and all participants that follow the guidelines are guaranteed to have their programs run in space.
[ANS thanks ESA and RaspberryPi.org for the above information]
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MarCo Cubesats Relay NASA's InSight Mars Lander Touchdown
Riding along with NASA's InSight Mars Lander were two CubeSats, the first of this kind of spacecraft to fly to deep space. The twin communications-relay CubeSats, built by NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Pasadena, California, constitute a technology demon- stration called Mars Cube One (MarCO).
Visit the MarCo web pages and watch a mission video at: https://www.jpl.nasa.gov/cubesat/missions/marco.php -and- https://www.jpl.nasa.gov/news/news.php?feature=7295
During InSight's entry, descent and landing (EDL) operations, the lander transmitted information in the UHF radio band to NASA's Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter (MRO) flying overhead. MRO would then forward EDL information to Earth using a radio frequency in the X band, but cannot simultaneously receive information over one band while trans- mitting on another. Confirmation of a successful landing could be received by the orbiter more than an hour before it's relayed to Earth.
The two CubeSats separated from the Atlas V booster after InSight's launch, then travelled along their own trajectories to Mars. After release from the launch vehicle, MarCO's deployed two radio antennas and two solar panels. The high-gain, X-band antenna is a flat panel engineered to direct radio waves the way a parabolic dish antenna does. MarCO navigated to Mars independently of the InSight space- craft, with its own course adjustments on the way.
The successful MarCO cubesat demonstration mission it could allow for additional communications relay option for use by future Mars missions in the critical few minutes between Martian atmospheric entry and touchdown.
[ANS thanks NASA for the above information]
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Happy 20th Anniversary to the International Space Station
The largest and most complex international construction project in space began on the steppes of Kazakhstan 20 years ago this month. Atop its Proton rocket, on Nov. 20, 1998, the Zarya Functional Cargo Block (FGB) thundered off its launch pad at the Baikonur Cosmodrome into cold wintry skies. Zarya was built by the Khrunichev in Moscow and served as a temporary control module for the nascent ISS.
On Dec. 4, Space Shuttle Endeavour on the STS-88 mission roared off Launch Complex 39A at Kennedy Space Center in Florida, carrying the Unity Node 1 module in its cargo bay. Built by The Boeing Corporation at a facility at the NASA Marshall Space Flight Center in Huntsville, Alabama, Unity was the first American component of the ISS.
A collection of interesting ISS historical articles begins at: https://www.nasa.gov/feature/20-years-ago-iss-construction-begins
[ANS thanks NASA for the above information.]
+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+ 2019 is AMSAT's 50th Anniversary! Watch this space for announcements of special events coming in 2019 Get ready to help celebrate with us at the Hamvention Symposium 2019 promises to be a special event Stand by for 50th anniversary operating events and awards +=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+
Satellite Shorts From All Over
+ The 20th annual Ham Radio University event will be held on Saturday January 5, 2019 at LIU/Post Hillwood Commons Student Center in Brookville, NY. Frank Garofalo, WA2NDV will host the "Satellite Operations for Beginners" forum scheduled for 9:00 AM. Find the full details at: http://hamradiouniversity.org/
+ The European Space Agency published a timelapse video of the Russian Progress MS-10 cargo spacecraft launched on 16 November 2018 at 18:14 GMT from Baikonur cosmodrome, Kazakhstan, taken by ESA astronaut Alexander Gerst from the International Space Station: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ouBfzCgXHgk&feature=youtu.be The Progress spacecraft delivered food, fuel and supplies, including about 750 kg of propellant, 75 kg of oxygen and air and 440 liters of water. Also on-board was the replacement #ARISS packet module. Some notable moments in this video are: 00:07 Soyuz-FG rocket booster separation. 00:19 Core stage separation. 00:34:05 Core stage starts burning in the atmosphere as it returns to Earth after having spent all its fuel. 00:34:19 Progress spacecraft separates from rocket and enters orbit to catch up with the International Space Station. (most of the action occurs on the top-right portion of the screen)
+ Listen for amateur radio clubs at NASA facilities as they partici- pate in the NASA On The Air activity to commemorate the 50th anni- versary of the Apollo 8 mission that spanned launch December 21, 1968, to splashdown on December 27, 1968. The 50th anniversary event will start on 0000 UTC December 21, 2018 through 2359 UTC December 27, 2018. 14.271 MHz and other bands depending on condi- tions with spotting announcements on DX clusters, facebook, and twitter. QSL and a certificate with information available on QRZ.com under the callsign of the stations contacted. This will mark the concluding event of the year-long NASA On the Air celebration of 60th anniversary of NASA. See https://nasaontheair.wordpress.com/
+ Congratulations to Jharwin, DW2JHA on apparently the first IGATED ISS packet from the Philippines. He built his own TNC to digipeat packets using his FT-60 radio. His IGATE is based on a Raspberry Pi Zero, DireWolf packet software, and an RTL-SDR dongle. (via DW2JHA on AMSAT-NA facebook)
+ F1NNI maintains the AAR29 Satellite Status Page at: http://aar29.free.fr/sat/indexlogin.html
+ AMSAT-UK explains their software series of FUNcube Payload Telemetry Dashboards - Each satellite with a FUNcube payload has a dedicated dashboard and we have created a one page PDF summary of those dashboards, their current version number and a dedicated download link, see: https://amsat-uk.org/2018/12/01/funcube-payload-telemetry-dashboards/
+ A number of free technical items have crossed the editorial desk this past week: - Rhode & Schwartz has a free Wireless Communications Standards Poster for download: http://tinyurl.com/ANS-336-RhodeSchwartz - AMSAT-DL found a source for rocket paper models: http://tinyurl.com/ANS-336-RocketModels - A book Wi-Fi paradigm shift with 802.11ax is available at: https://content.aerohive.com/802.11ax_dummies_book - A book Visualize the Relationships in Your Connected Data. Download the O'Reilly Graph Databases Ebook for Free: https://neo4j.com/lp/book-graph-databases-fb
+ Registration for the 2019 CubeSat Developers Workshop Sponsor & Exhibitor is now open. This year the cubesat workshop will be held April 23-25, 2019 at the Cal Poly Performing Arts Center, San Luis Obispo, CA. Register at: https://calpoly.irisregistration.com/Register?code=cubesat-sponsors-2019 Their e-mail is [email protected]. Join the mailing list at: http://www.cubesat.org/mailinglist/ or follow on Twitter @CalPolyCubeSat for the latest Workshop updates! #CubeSatDW
+ India launched a PSLV flight on Thursday, November 29 that included four CubeSats which are using 70cm downlink frequencies that have been coordinated by the IARU: - FacSat-1 - 9k6 GMSK downlink - 3CAT1 - 9k6 FSK downlink - InnoSat-2 - 50kHz wide telemetry using AX25 proprietary packet format - Hello World - 9k6 packet 2GFSK for telemetry & 1Mbps MSK downlink on S Band For more details of these cubesats see the IARU pages at: see http://www.amsatuk.me.uk/iaru/finished.php See also the AMSAT-UK summary at: https://amsat-uk.org/2018/11/27/ham-radio-satellites-launch-from-india/ (Graham Shirville, G3VZV)
[ANS thanks everyone for the above information]
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/EX
In addition to regular membership, AMSAT offers membership in the President's Club. Members of the President's Club, as sustaining donors to AMSAT Project Funds, will be eligible to receive addi- tional benefits. Application forms are available from the AMSAT Office.
Primary and secondary school students are eligible for membership at one-half the standard yearly rate. Post-secondary school students enrolled in at least half time status shall be eligible for the stu- dent rate for a maximum of 6 post-secondary years in this status. Contact Martha at the AMSAT Office for additional student membership information.
73 and remember to behave, and do your part to help Keep Amateur Radio In Space,
This week's ANS Editor,
JoAnne Maenpaa, K9JKM [email protected]