AMSAT NEWS SERVICE ANS-178
The AMSAT News Service bulletins are a free, weekly news and information service of AMSAT, 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: [email protected]
You can sign up for free e-mail delivery of the AMSAT News Service Bulletins via the ANS List; to join this list see: https://mailman.amsat.org/postorius/lists/ans.amsat.org/
In this edition:
* AMSAT Announces Candidates for 2021 Board of Directors Election * 39th Annual AMSAT Space Symposium and Annual General Meeting Announced * MIR-SAT1 released into orbit from the ISS on June 22, 2021 * MIR-SAT1 Platinum Award Winners * ARRL Field Day: Active satellites listing * FO-29 operation schedule for July 2021 (UTC) * Changes to AMSAT-NA TLE Distribution for June 24, 2021 * ARISS News * Upcoming Satellite Operations * Hamfests, Conventions, Maker Faires, and Other Events * Satellite Shorts From All Over
ANS-178 AMSAT News Service Weekly Bulletins
AMSAT News Service Bulletin 178.01 To: All RADIO AMATEURS From: Radio Amateur Satellite Corporation 712 H Street NE Suite 1653 Washington, DC 20002
DATE 2021 June 27
AMSAT Announces Candidates for 2021 Board of Directors Election
The nomination period for the 2021 Board of Directors Election ended on June 15, 2021. The following candidates have been duly nominated:
Joseph Armbruster, KJ4JIO Robert Bankston, KE4AL Jerry Buxton, N0JY Zach Metzinger, N0ZGO
To comply with AMSAT's Bylaws, an election will be held via AMSAT's Wild Apricot membership system. Instructions for voting will be emailed by July 15, 2021 to all members who are in good standing as of July 1, 2021.
As four seats on the Board of Directors are up for election this year, all four candidates will be seated on the Board when the voting period concludes on September 15, 2021.
To ensure that they receive their voting instructions, members should make sure their current email address is up to date in AMSAT's records. Members should log into the AMSAT Membership Portal at https://launch.amsat.org/ and check their account for their current email address. If a member has moved or changed their email address, they are encouraged to update their contact information at this time.
(Note: If they have not already done so, members can instantly create their membership account at that same page so they can inspect their record. A membership account is not the same as an AMSAT Store account.)
[ANS thanks Jeff Davis, KE9V, AMSAT Secretary for the above information]
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39th Annual AMSAT Space Symposium and Annual General Meeting Announced
AMSAT is pleased to announce that the 39th Annual AMSAT Space Symposium and Annual General Meeting will be held in late October at the Crowne Plaza Suites: MSP Airport - Mall of America in Bloomington, Minnesota.
The Crowne Plaza Suites is conveniently located adjacent to the American Blvd station on the Metro Blue Line, providing easy access to the Minneapolis-Saint Paul International Airport, downtown Minneapolis, and the Mall of America.
The AMSAT Board of Directors will meet prior to the Symposium. Further details, including final dates, hotel reservation details, tours, and other events will be shared in the coming months.
[ANS thanks the 2021 Symposium Committee for the above information]
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MIR-SAT1 released into orbit from the ISS on June 22, 2021
From Jean Marc Momple, 3B8DU: "Deployment of MIR-SAT1 into orbit from the ISS on June 22, 2021 at 10:55 UTC was broadcast live on JAXA Youtube channel starting at 10:35 UTC (14:35hrs local time). URL:
A video clip is available at: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XqXMy3NDZn0
Awards are offered by the Mauritius Amateur Society (MARS) see URL: https://mars3b8.wordpress.com/news/ good luck and good hunt.
Daniel Estévez, EA4GPZ, adds: For those interested in decoding this satellite, I have put up a short video in collaboration with UNOOSA showing how to use gr-satellites and GQRX to decode MIR-SAT1: https://www.unoosa.org/oosa/en/ourwork/access2space4all/index.html https://spacemauritius.com/
Chris Thompson G0KLA/AC2CZ adds: "I have released an updated version of the Pacsat Ground station which now does a better job displaying the decoded beacons from Mir-Sat-1. It also fixes several small bugs in the conversions and in decodes. This also fixes a bug that impacts FalconSat-3 file downloads in some cases.
Download it from here: https://www.g0kla.com/pacsat/index.php" Let me know any issues or problems you see. Please continue to download telemetry for Mir-Sat-1 during their commissioning period. All telemetry is sent to SatNogs assuming you check "Send Server Telemetry" on the File.
You can see that your Mir-Sat-1 telemetry was uploaded here: https://dashboard.satnogs.org/d/TaZh29gnz/mir-sat1?orgId=1&refresh=30s"
A post launch comment by Jean Marc: "We got a superb media coverage in 3B8 and FR on TV about MIR-SAT1 promoting amateur radio role and contribution to the project. I confirm that MIR-SAT1 is alive and TLM has been received by many stations, the firsts being by US stations, I also decoded well the TLM with Chris PsatGroundstation V0.41b which was successfully uploaded to Satnogs.
I wish to thanks all who sent me personal messages or through Twitter that they received the first MIR-SAT1 signals, it was a great joy to have confirmation that the birds was alive.
I also wish to thanks many HAMs to have supported the project from its initial stage, just to name a few which have been instrumental to make it happen, namely Chris Thompson, AC2CZ, Daniel Estevez, EA4GPZ, Graham Shirville, G3VZV, Hans Blondel-Timmerman, PB2T, Pierros Papadeas, SV1QVE, and Patrick Dohmen, DL4PD, of Satnogs, but also many others worldwide and 3B8 peers who contributed in one way or another to make it happen.
I confirm that for the moment MIR-SAT1 is on TLM mode only and will keep all posted about progress. As a personal note, today is a great day for me, just a childhood dream becoming true inspired by Neil Armstrong little step and well before obtaining my HAM licence at the age of 16 and making my firsts satellite QSO on AO-07/AO—08 in 1980, thus enjoying the champagne right now writing. He adds: "1) Thanks to all to who captured the signals of MIR-SAT1 and uploaded data to Satnogs DB, this is really useful to the MIR-SAT1 team. 2) 10 successful participants for the Platinum Award have been selected for having successfully uploaded at least a valid frame to Satnogs DB and applied for same, certificates will be issued and announcement of the winners will be published soon. 3) However, many have uploaded data to Satnogs but have not applied for the Award, they can still do so for the Gold certificate and their past upload data still valid, it a first come first serve game. 4) The telemetry frequency which was 4 minutes actually made it harder to decode particularly on low elevation, it is just a coincidence that it was set to 50 seconds for testing purposes when the Gold Award opens today (Platinum closed today). 5) The satellite is in good health and commissioning tests are being performed presently by the MIR-SAT1 team. 6) Digipeater and image broadcast activation date not yet decided as 5) above must be completed successfully and also having some more data about power available for same. Will keep you informed"
ANS thanks Jean Marc Momple, 3B8DU, Daniel Estévez, EA4GPZ, and Chris Thompson G0KLA/AC2CZ for the above information]
+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+ Join the 2021 President's Club! Score your 2" 4-Color Accent Commemorative Coin. This gold finished coin comes with Full Color Certificate and Embroidered "Remove Before Flight" Key Tag Donate today at https://www.amsat.org/join-the-amsat-presidents-club/ You won't want to miss it! +=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+
MIR-SAT1 Platinum Award Winners
Winners of MIR-SAT1 Awards are:
S59ZM PY4ZBZ K4OZS N6RFM G8AFC DK3WN N8MH JA0CAW PU7ORD 3B8GL
Congratulations to them.
Their certificate has been sent by MARS a few minutes ago.
To note that the award criteria is based on following: First that one received telemetry of MIR-SAT1 and second the participation form on the MARS WEB has been submitted.
There are a few who successfully received MIR-SAT1 telemetry (even before the winners above) and uploaded same to Satnogs but have not submitted the participation form. They are still eligible for the Gold Award if they request same by filing their application on URL: https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSdCAAKTMtTmARDwrjIE_Coai1WR9b2zUFjB...
Good luck for the Gold Award.
ANS thanks Jean Marc Momple, 3B8DU, for the above information]
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AMSAT's GOLF Program is about getting back to higher orbits, and it all begins with GOLF-TEE – a technology demonstrator for deployable solar panels, propulsion, and attitude control. Come along for the ride. The journey will be worth it!
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ARRL Field Day: Active satellites listing
Paul Stoetzer, N8HM, has posted a list of the satellites likely to be active on Field Day at: https://www.amsat.org/satellites-likely-to-be-active-on-field-day-2021/
ARRL Field Day stations are reminded that only one satellite contact is admissable for the satellite "bonus" of 100 points. To assist as many stations as possible in their effort to make a contact, please make just a single contact and go to other modes. Please remember that satellites AO-7 and AO-91 HAVE POWER LIMITATIONS and should be accessed with care. Please note the limitations in the posted page and use those as operation guidelines.
Bob Bruninga, WB4APR, adds: "APRS operators, please note any errors on the operational status of APRS satellites as shown on this page: http://aprs.org/sats.html I just updated it, so it will be a good resource for APRS satellites for Field Day"
[ANS thanks Paul Stoetzer, AMSAT Executive Vice President, N8HM, and Bob Bruninga, WB4APR, for the above information]
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FO-29 operation schedule for July 2021 (UTC)
Hideo Kambayashi, JH3XCU has posted the July operational schedule for FO-29 on the JARL website:
July 3rd 00:06- 10:20- 4th 00:55- 13:00- 10th 00:41- 10:57- 23:46- 11th 11:48- 13:32- 17th 01:15- 13:17- 18th 00:20- 12:23- 24th 00:05- 10:20- 23:12- 25th 12:58- 31st 00:39- 10:50- 23:44- Aug. 1st 11:48- Source: https://www.jarl.org/Japanese/3_Fuji/fuji3-202106.htm
[ANS thanks Hideo Kambayashi, JH3XCU, for the above information]
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Need new satellite antennas? Purchase Arrows, Alaskan Arrows, and M2 LEO-Packs from the AMSAT Store. When you purchase through AMSAT, a portion of the proceeds goes towards Keeping Amateur Radio in Space. https://amsat.org/product-category/hardware/
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Changes to AMSAT-NA TLE Distribution for June 24, 2021
The following satellite was deployed from ISS on 6-14-2021 and has been added to this week's AMSAT-NA TLE Distribution:
MIR-SAT1 (Mauritian Infra-Red Satellite 1) was launched from the Japanese ISS Kibo module at 10:55 UTC on 6-22-2021. The NORAD Cat ID has not yet been determined. However, SatNOGS generated keps can be found on the Libre Space Community web site at: https://bit.ly/3vWRqF6
TLE (KEPS) have been updated and are available on the AMSAT website at: https://www.amsat.org/keplerian-elements-resources/
[ANS thanks Ray Hoad, WA5QGD, AMSAT Orbital Elements Manager, for the above information]
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Want to fly the colors on your own grid expedition? Get your AMSAT car flag and other neat stuff from our Zazzle store! 25% of the purchase price of each product goes towards Keeping Amateur Radio in Space https://www.zazzle.com/amsat_gear
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ARISS NEWS: Upcoming ARISS Contact Schedule as of June 27, 2021
No new sessions have been announced for the coming week. However the session for Ecole publique de Bellême in Bellême, Pôle scolaire Igé/Le Gué de la Chaine in Belforêt en Perche, and Ecole de Nocé in Perche en Nocé, was rescheduled for June 26, 2021 at 11:25 am CEST (Bellême, France) (9:25 am UTC, 5:25 am EDT, 4:25 am CDT, 3:25 am MDT, 2:25 am PDT).
Three schools in France will participate in this ARISS contact: Ecole de Nocé, Pôle scolaire Igé/Le Gué de la Chaine and Ecole publique de Bellême. These are rural schools about 90 miles west of Paris and will involve about 360 students, age 6 – 15 years old. The schools have partnered with the amateur radio club (callsign F4KLQ) in preparation for this contact. Student-members of the ham club receive training from the adult members who have knowledge in the fields of radio, aeronautical, and the space sciences. Ham radio workshops include the topics: Orne Sky Sat, the Yaourtocom 2000, SSTV, Morse code, radio communication, and radio directional finding.
[ANS thanks Dave Jordan, AA4KN, ARISS PR for the above information]
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AMSAT, along with our ARISS partners, is developing an amateur radio package, including two-way communication capability, to be carried on-board Gateway in lunar orbit.
Support AMSAT's projects today at https://www.amsat.org/donate/
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Upcoming Satellite Operations
Quick Hits:
WY7AA: I will be in FN02 starting 6/6 for a few weeks. Operating Sats. holiday style. If you need FN01, FN02, FN03, FN12 please let me know and we can try to set something up. FN01,03, and 12 will likely each be one day roves. FM and SSB
EA4M: : Hi guys later in June I’ll be in IN73 on holidays, probably for a week or so, I will try some birds stay tuned on tweeter for schedules.
ND0C and KE0WPA: In June @kylee_ke0wpa and I, along with our resident photojournalist (Mom/Amy), will be taking a family excursion to the southwest and working some sats as time permits. Here are the less commonly worked grids from which we plan to operate. We will hit other grids too. DN63 7/2, DN64 7/2 & 7/3
WA5RR: I’m looking at doing a rove in DL98 with an overnight stay in Eagle Pass, TX around the last week in June. Details to follow.
VP2V/K3TRM: I will be operating from Tortola, BVI as VP2V/K3TRM on July 4-17, 2021. Activity will be on 40-6M SSB & digital, and satellite.
N5LEX: CN98 last week of June.
DM62: K5TA, I’m tentatively planning for DM62 ~9-July, when there are are several good passes mid-day, making it a doable day-trip for me….
EN57/67: @SeanKutzko KX9X and @Nancy_N9NCY will celebrate Sean’s birthday in the Michigan’s Keweenaw Peninsula July 15-19. Look for them on FM and SSB satellites, with the possibility of some Parks On The Air activity as well.
[ANS thanks Paul Overn, KE0PBR, AMSAT rover page manager for the above information]
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Hamfests, Conventions, Maker Faires, and Other Events
Satellites on Field Day: Seth Kutzko, KX9X, made an outstanding presentation to the RATPAC group on Satellites and Field Day. The session was held on Thursday May 27 during a weekly RATPAC meeting. Seth presented more than just a "how to", his tips and tricks were very valuable for new entrants and his cautions were particularly well taken. This presentation is a must for any Field Day group that is contemplating chasing the 100-point bonus. Dan Marler, K7REX has made the presentation, documents, and the video available:
To View Video: https://vimeo.com/556034517 To Download Video: https://vimeo.com/user107547861/download/556034517/954b837d38 To Retrieve Documents: https://www.dropbox.com/sh/cktvhfz1lhvv8hr/AADzoAi0HiGccLLG6IdnY24Aa?dl=0Rad...
AMSAT Ambassador Clint Bradford K6CLS is planning the following presentations: Conejo Valley (CA) - October 21 Think a 90-minute lively, informative, and fun “How to Work the Easy Satellites” Zoom presentation would be appropriate for your convention or club? Always includes are overviews of the ARRL, AMSAT, and ARISS … and pre-presentation questions are solicited and welcome. Send Clint an email or call! Clint Bradford K6LCS, http://www.work-sat.com. Tel:909-999-SATS (7287)
[ANS thanks Paul Overn, KE0PBR, AMSAT Events page manager, AMSAT Italia, Dan Marler, K7REX RATPAC Leader and ARRL Idaho Section Manager, and Clint Bradford, K6CLS AMSAT Ambassador for the above information]
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Satellite Shorts From All Over
+ A number of questions have been asked about the operation status of Falconsat-3. Mark Hammond N8MH reports: "I suspect that FS-3 has just "crashed" and needs some attention. Usually that involves getting it back to a primitive level of operation and testing, and then reloading all of the spacecraft's software. So, it'll take some time. But I really do think we can recover it. Last reload was over 3.5 years ago! It takes a lot of preparation and sometimes multiple attempts to get all software loaded and running. Keep the hope :). Probably a couple weeks. [ANS thanks Mark Hammond, N8MH, AMSAT Director and Command Station for the above information]
+ Tiangong has a crew, and China has a vision. Shenzhou-12 launched three Chinese astronauts on a Long March-2F from the Gobi Desert and ferried them to Tiangong (here’s a video of the docking). This means there are now two long-duration crewed habitats in Earth orbit for the first time since the 1970s when Skylab and Salyut stations both hosted humans on-orbit (Mir’s last crew departed just a few months before Expedition-1 arrived at the ISS). The three astronauts are slated to stay in the new station’s Tianhe core module for up to three months, breaking China’s 30-day record set during their last crewed spaceflight five years ago. [ANS thanks the Orbital Index for the above information]
+ A history of US research, development, and production of solar photovoltaic cells, which was driven by space applications early on. “In 1958, the U.S. Navy bolted solar panels to Vanguard 1, the second American satellite in space.” A commentary: https://www.theatlantic.com/science/archive/2021/06/why-the-us-doesnt-really... [ANS thanks the Orbital Index for the above information]
+ CubeSat developments: Some interesting work in the CubeSat arena is documented at several links. Here are some discussions of: Deployable mirrors: https://bit.ly/2TZNrdT Wooden satellite construction: http://n.pr/2T3UqCd Flexible tapemeasure antennas: https://bit.ly/3wSSmvH [ANS thanks the Orbital Index for the above information]
+ A reminder for ARRL/AMSAT Field Day: JAMSAT has posted the FO-99 operating schedule for June at https://www.jamsat.or.jp/?p=1438 (ANS thanks JAMSAT for the above information)
+ Congratulations to Christy Hunter, KB6LTY, on working and confirming her 488th grid square in the continental United States. Christy worked John Brier, KG4AKV, operating portable in FM25 for the last grid she needed on June 11th. Christy is the 31st recipient of AMSAT's GridMaster Award. More details about the GridMaster Award can be found at https://www.amsat.org/gridmaster/ [Thanks to Bruce Paige, KK5DO, AMSAT Director of Contests and Awards]
+ Congratulations to Jim Clary, ND9M. Jim is the 57th recipient of the AMSAT Rover Award. Jim applied for and received this award after working from numerous wet grids during his recent journey on the USNS Sgt. William R. Button through the Panama Canal to Saipan. More details about the AMSAT Rover Award can be found at https://www.amsat.org/amsat-rover-award/ [Thanks to Bruce Paige, KK5DO, AMSAT Director of Contests and Awards]
+ A new distance record has been claimed on TO-108. F4DXV completed a QSO with A65GC on 18-Jun-2021 at 08:55 UTC, covering a distance of 5,298.6 km. Also, a new distance record has also been claimed on the ISS crossband repeater. G0ABI worked VE1PK on 29-May-2020. This transatlantic QSO covered a distance of 4,403 km. All claimed satellite distance records can be found at https://amsat.org/satellite-distance-records/ [Thanks to Paul Stoetzer, N8HM, AMSAT Executive Vice President]
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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 Store.
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 student rate for a maximum of 6 post-secondary years in this status. Contact info [at] amsat.org for additional student membership information.
73 and Remember to help keep amateur radio in space, This week's ANS Editor, Jack Spitznagel, KD4IZ kd4iz at frawg dot org