AMSAT UK MONTHLY SATELLITE REPORT:March 2006
As compiled by PAUL 2E1EUB. Inclusions to be included in this monthly report to reach me by the 25th of each month please, at: 2E1EUB@AMSAT.ORG. This report can also be found at www.amsatuk.org and on packet Radio or may be heard live on 3.780mhz +/- QRM on the last Sunday of each month around 10.00 local time. The net next takes place every Sunday.
VO52/HAMSAT
AMSAT India has applied for and has been granted an OSCAR number for HAMSAT. In the future HAMSAT will be referred to as VUSat-OSCAR 52 or VO-52 for short.
For additional information about HamSat please see:
<http://www.amsat.org/amsat-new/satellites/sat_summary/hamsat.php>
This bird has heavy traffic and plenty of new comers, lets hope it stands the pace, Ive already noticed weaker signals than first noted. The foot print is not massive and it moves quick ,but its possible to work the USA just about.
HAMSAT frequencies: ------------------- Indian transponder: Uplink : 435.225MHz to 435.275MHz LSB/CW Downlink: 145.875MHz to 145.925MHz USB/CW Beacon : 145.940MHz continue carrier signal Dutch transponder: Uplink : 435.225MHz to 435.275MHz LSB/CW Downlink: 145.875MHz to 145.925MHz USB/CW Beacon : 145.860MHz 12WPM with CW message
AO-51 ECHO
Status: operational//
modes l/s and v/s working well, but takes some tracking still problems with the qrm level on mode v uplink. Reports welcome from stations using the digital side of ao51. Some improvements have been made after studying the latest data! PLEASE NOTE: The bbs call sign has now been changed to: PECHO-12 and the broadcast call is :PECHO-11
Echo Operating Schedule for:
March 2006 AO-51 (AMSAT Echo) Schedule
Mar 5
FM Repeater, V/U, High Power Mode
Uplink: 145.920 mhz FM, 67 hz PL Tone
Downlink 435.300 mhz Fm
Mar 13
FM Repeater, V/S
Uplink: 145.920 mhz FM, No PL Tone
Downlink 2401.200 mhz FM
Mar 20
FM Repeater, L/U
Uplink: 1268.700 mhz FM
Downlink 435.300 mhz FM
Mar 23
FM Repeater, V/U
Uplink: 145.920 mhz FM, 67 hz PL Tone
Downlink 435.300 mhz FM
9k6 Digital, V/U, PBP BBS (Pacsat Broadcast Protocol BBS)
Uplink: 145.860 mhz FM, 9k6 PBP Digital
Downlink: 435.150 mhz FM, 9k6 PBP Digital
INTERNATIONAL SPACE STATION (ISS) - ARISS
Status: Operational
Current Mode: Packet
Digipeater: Active
Russian callsigns RS0ISS, RZ3DZR
USA callsign NA1SS
Packet station mailbox callsign RS0ISS-11
Packet station keyboard callsign RS0ISS-3
Australia Contact Successful
On February 17, students at the Cosmos Centre Charleville in Charleville, Australia experienced a successful ARISS contact with Bill McArthur, KC5ACR, via the telebridge station WH6PN in Hawaii. Eight children asked 17 questions of the astronaut as an audience of 50 looked on. The event was covered by Southern Cross TV, the Australian Broadcasting Commission (ABC) which was broadcast nationwide, and the local media. The audio was webcast, courtesy of Verizon Conferencing, and was fed through the EchoLink AMSAT (node 101 377) and JK1ZRW (node 277 208) conference rooms. Twenty-one connections were made to Echolink from the following countries: Australia, Japan, Russia, USA, UK, Netherlands, Slovak Republic, Czech Republic, and Thailand. Five stations from Canada, Australia and Japan made connections to IRLP Discovery Reflector 9010 and the audio was also streamed on <http://www.discoveryreflector.ca/>
Engineering Day Contact Successful
On Saturday, February 18, sixteen children attending the Discover Engineering Family Day made contact with the Space Station via the telebridge station, WH6PN, in Hawaii. Bill McArthur, KC5ACR, answered 16 questions. Prior to the event, the ARISS contact was publicized in the Weekend edition of the Washington Post newspaper and was described on
many of the local TV broadcast channels. Approximately 7000 people attended the event held in the National Building Museum. The contact audio was webcast and was fed through the Echolink AMSAT (node 101 377) and JK1ZEW (node 277 208) conference rooms and the IRLP Discovery Reflector 9010. Eighteen connections were made to Echolink from the USA, Canada, the UK, Columbia, Japan, and the Czech Republic.
In addition to the contact, a team of volunteers from AMSAT supported the ARISS booth the entire day of the Engineering Family Day function. The team provided a hands-on view of the ham radio equipment used on ISS, provided updates on the SuitSat project, and handed out information on ham radio and the ARISS program to children and their parents and guardians.
News Article on Pine Ridge Contact
Naples News covered the ARISS contact between Bill McArthur and the NASA Explorer Schools - Pine Ridge and Immokalee Middle Schools. The article, “Live from Space,” may be found at:
<http://www.naplesnews.com/news/2006/feb/13/middle_school_students_chat_astronaut_he_orbits_ov/?local_news>
ARRL Article on Dale High and DeGolyer Contacts
ARRL wrote a web story covering the Dale High School and DeGolyer Elementary School contacts. To view, “Back-to-Back ARISS School Group QSOs Attest to Ambitious Contact Schedule,”
See: <http://www.arrl.org/news/stories/2006/02/16/1/?nc=1>
ARRL Article on New Astronauts
On February 15, ARRL ran a story entitled, “Several new astronauts are Amateur Radio licensees.”
See: <http://www.arrl.org/>
Astronaut Training Session
A second Amateur Radio training session has been tentatively scheduled for the remaining 2004 astronaut class. The class is planned for Friday, February 24. Astronauts Randy Bresnik, Jim Dutton, Shane Kimbrough, Tom Marshburn, and Bobby Satcher will attend. Astronaut Chris Cassidy will be scheduled for his second session at a later date.
AO-7 AMSAT OSCAR 7
Status: Semi-operational in sunlight.
Return to active status: June 21,2002
Emily, W0EEC has created a website to allow the users of AO-7 to record
contacts, observations and use of the satellite more effectively at:
http://www.emilyshouse.com/experthams/ao7/main.php
This includes the ability to log contacts.
Mostly in mode B, ! with dx stations heard regularly, with some qrm on the 2m down link. But still plenty of traffic, showing that the old mode b transponder is much liked and rated. Stations worked this month inc:
Late News! AO-7 is in a period of non-eclipse and is in full sun 24/7 until approximately 14 March 2006. During this period users should still observe QRP (10W EIRP or less) power as a courtesy to other users.
The AO-7 schedule is that it is in Mode B for 24 hours, and shifts to Mode A for the following 24 hours, and back to Mode B. This shift occurs approximately between 0830 and 0930z each day
AO-7 became non-operational in mid 1981 due to battery failure . In 2002 one of the shorted batteries became an open and now the spacecraft is able to run off solar panels. For this reason it is not useable in eclipse and may not be able to supply enough power to the transmitter to keep from frequency modulating the signal.
Mode A is equivalent to Mode V/A
Mode B (8 Watts PEP) is equivalent to Mode U/V
Mode C is the same as Mode B however the power is 2 Watts PEP
There is also Mode D - this is a battery saving mode and may default if the QRP recommendations are not followed. This mode only uses the 70cm beacon on 435.100 but at 20mw.
There is also a 13 cm beacon at 2304.1 MHz, however this is not turned on as it is outside the Amateur allocation for 13 cm in all regions.
AO-27 AMRAD *******
Status: semi Operational( On!)
Evening time UK/Europe,FM repeater on first part off each pass. Then a data down load can be heard and the bird closes down.
The latest information on AO-27 can be found at:
http://www.ao27.org
An AO-27 question-and-answer page is available on the AMSAT-NA web
site,
Ive used ao27 in the last few days and worked dx on the bird and it sounds great, with a good down link signal, lets hope its ok ,a big thank you to the control team for bringing ao27 back to life!
FO-29 JAS-2
Status: Operational
working well, with strong downlink signals at times. Signals this month have been weaker than normal, but still plenty of traffic.
Voice/CW Mode JA (dig talker off) beacon on
Please send the reception reports to lab2@jarl.or.jp . Please use the
subject line: 'FO-29reception report'.
SO-50 SAUDISAT-1C
Status: Operational.
Uplink: 145.850 MHz
There have been unconfirmed reports on the amsat-bb emailer that So-50 has
shifted downlink frequency as much as 5khz up.
To switch the transmitter on, you need to send a CTCSS tone of 74.4 Hz.and then ctcss of 67hz to keep the bird open:
UO-11 OSCAR-11…semi operational
OSCAR-11 REPORT 15 February 2006 During the period 23 January to 14 February 2006 the VHF beacon on 145.826 MHz. has been heard from 01 to 11 February. Signals during February have tended to be stronger than in previous months, and good copy was obtained on most passes. If the current mode of operation continues, the beacon should switch ON around 22 February. The on-board clock continues to show a very large error. On 11 February it was 22.14 days slow. However, the rate of change of error has considerably reduced since the last the last report. During the OFF period from 21 January to 01 February, no change in the clock error was detected. During the ON period from 01 to 11 February the error increased by 362 seconds. However, all the change occurred during the first half of the ten day period. The observations of clock errors suggest that the clock may slow or stop when the battery voltage is low. All the analogue telemetry channels, 0 to 59 are zero, ie they have failed. The status channels 60 to 67 are still working. The satellite is now in continuous sunlight until around 06 May, when eclipses will start again. This should help the satellite to continue transmitting, although continuous sunlight can cause problems due to excessive temperatures. Power supply problems can be caused by poor pointing attitude, ie the sunlight illuminating the ends of the satellite, instead of the solar arrays. The watchdog timer now appears to have resumed operation on the 20 day cycle, ie. approximately ten days ON followed by 10 days OFF. However, at any time, poor solar attitude, and battery problems, may result in a low 14 volt line supply, which may cause the beacon to switch OFF prematurely, and reset the watchdog timer cycle. The Beacon frequencies are - VHF 145.826 MHz. AFSK FM ASCII Telemetry UHF 435.025 MHz. OFF S-band 2401.5 MHz. OFF Listeners to OSCAR-11 may be interested in visiting my website which contains an archive of news & telemetry data. It also contains details about using a soundcard or hardware demodulators for data capture. There is software for capturing data, and decoding ASCII telemetry. The URL is www.users.zetnet.co.uk/clivew/
AO-16 PACSat
Status: Semi-operational, the digipeater command is on and open for
APRS user
Broadcast Callsign: PACSAT-11
BBS: PACSAT-12
GO-32 TECHSAT-1B
Status: Operational
Roni, 4Z7DFC, reports:
Techsat1b BBS's is back ..but still having problems...
Uplink freq. ; 145.859, 145.890, 1269.800
More information of GO-32 can be found at:
http://www.iarc.org/techsat/techsat.html
NO-44 PCSAT 1
Status: Operational-in sunlight
PCSat is a 1200-baud APRS digipeater
http://pcsat.aprs.org
The APRS-equipped PCSat was built by midshipmen from the U.S. Naval Academ
PCSAT2
UI Digipeater 145.825 MHz FM 1200 Baud AFSK TLM and PSK Downlink 435.275 MHz FM 1200 AFSK or PSK-31 PSK-31 Uplink 29.4 MHz PSK-31 Aux Downlink 437.975 MHz FM 1200 and 9600 Baud AFSK Voice Repeater Downlink 437.975MHz FM Deployed 3 August 2005 (off, safe mode)
CUTE SAT 1.7
Cute sat 1.7 has been launched from Japan and has been heard on the air by various stations throughout the world. Information is available at: <http://lss.mes.titech.ac.jp/ssp/cute1.7.> Telemetry decoding software is available at: <http://lss.mes.titech.ac.jp/ssp/cute1.7/software_e.html>
This satellite will have uplink packet capability on 1.2ghz and 144mhz with downlink data on 437mhz. More info is available on the website. The downlink for CW Beacon is 437.385.
Eagle Project Report
March 1, 2006
Gould Smith, WA4SXM has been appointed to lead a team to drive getting the Eagle satellite information to the membership. Gould plans to provide progress reports on the state of the Eagle design to AMSAT's members. This is the first instalment of Gould's Eagle Satellite Status Report. Updated status reports will be published here on the web and in the AMSAT Journal when they become available.
This week, Gould wrote, "It has taken a little longer for me to 'get up to speed' with the EAGLE team than I expected, so these reports have been delayed. I feel comfortable now and ready to spread the word."
He continues, "The EAGLE team has monthly teleconferences lasting at least two hours, and many months there are more than one teleconference. Additionally there are smaller sub-group meetings taking place during the month. The main activities of the Engineering group over the last three months has been to discuss the satellite systems and whether they will be able to provide the capabilities defined in the EAGLE Functional Requirements Document. All currently available EAGLE information on this web site can be found by clicking on the EAGLE link <http://www.amsat.org/amsat-new/eagle/> at the top of this page.
Bob McGwier, N4HY and his team are preparing multiple documents quantifiying the various parameters of the satellite. This includes information such as:
· In this orbit how much power can be generated?
· Which parameters determine how much total power can be transmitted for how long?
· What strength signal will earth stations have with this power level and over what area? On which bands?
Details about these findings will be made available as they are finalized. Many other team members are working on their respective sub-systems and report to the design team during these teleconferences. All of these elements will be addressed in a complete Design Review, to make sure we can build the satellites to do what we want them to do.
I will report on these sub-systems as the project progresses. Look for bi-monthly reports from Jim Sanford, WB4GCS, the EAGLE Project Manager and Bob McGwier's Engineering Reports in each issue of the AMSAT Journal."
73, Gould Smith, WA4SXM
AMSAT Eagle Information Team Leader
SuitSat Mission Summary
Last Signals Heard From SuitSat
SuitSat-1/Radioskaf/AO-54, the mission that has captured the imagination of people and students around the world, is now a confirmed silent key. The outreach, press requests and visibility of SuitSat was absolutely amazing and appears to be unprecedented for a ham radio event. Based on the reports the SuitSat team has received, the last confirmed reception of the SuitSat voice audio was on Saturday February 18 Bob King's station, VE6BLD in Canada. The last confirmed telemetry was received by Richard Crow's station, N2SPI in the USA. Richard copied the SuitSat-1 voltage dropping precipitously to a low of 18.3 volts before vehicle stopped transmitting. SuitSat-1 operated for over two weeks - much longer than the 4-9 day initial predictions
Despite its much lower than expected signal strength, SuitSat-1 was heard by ham radio operators and school students around the world. SuitSat's low signal strength required antennas with some gain. One positive that came from the signal strength issues is that it challenged the ham radio community, worldwide, to improve their station receive capabilities so that they could pull every bit of signal from SuitSat.
Some of the key websites that were instrumental in this mission included the <http://www.suitsat.org/> website sponsored by Steve Dimse, K4HG, <http://www.aj3u.com/blog/> sponsored by A.J. Farmer, AJ3U, and <http://pd0rkc.ontwikkel.nl/> sponsored by Cor. Detailed reception reports and audio recordings of SuitSat signals can be found at these sites.
SuitSat QSL Information
If you hear SuitSat send your signal reports with a large (9x12 inch) self-addressed stamped envelope to one of the addresses listed below:
· USA: ARRL Headquarters, SuitSat QSL, 225 Main Street, Newington, CT 06111-1494 USA
· Canada: Radio Amateurs of Canada, SuitSat QSL, 720 Belfast Road, Suite 217, Ottawa Ontario K1G 0Z5
· Europe: F1MOJ - Mr CANDEBAT Christophe, SuitSat Europe QSL Manager, 7 Rue Roger Bernard, 30470 AIMARGUES FRANCE
· Japan: SuitSat Japan QSL, JARL International Section, Tokyo 170-8073 JAPAN
· Russia: Alexander Davydov, RN3DK Novo - Mytishchinsky prospekt 52 - 111 Mytishchi 18, Moskovskaya obl. 141018, RUSSIA
· Other countries: please use the US or Canadian address above.
Students will get a certificate commemorating their reception. Those that receive the picture or copy the special words will get a special endorsement on their certificate.
THIS MONTHS PRACTICAL WIRELESS
Page 9 of the April issue of Practical Wireless, in the shops , has an item with picture about AMSAT-UK's new Transponder venture. The same page also has an announcement about the date of this years Colloquium and the URL of the AMSAT-UK website.
PAUL . 2E1EUB. (AMSAT UK 6236)