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CX2SA > SATDIG 26.11.17 04:21l 1151 Lines 45287 Bytes #999 (0) @ WW
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To : SATDIG@WW
Today's Topics:
1. Upcoming ARISS Contact Schedule as of 2017-11-24 21:30 UTC
(AJ9N@xxx.xxxx
2. HRD inverted satellite problem (Ted)
3. Re: HRD inverted satellite problem (mvivona@xxxxx.xxxx
4. Re: NO-84 via APRS (Tony)
5. N2YO tracking of AO-91 (Kevin M)
6. ANS-330 AMSAT News Service Weekly Bulletins (E.Mike McCardel)
7. Observations on AO-91 AFC (Matthew Stevens)
----------------------------------------------------------------------
Message: 1
Date: Fri, 24 Nov 2017 16:27:39 -0500
From: AJ9N@xxx.xxx
To: amsat-bb@xxxxx.xxx
Subject: [amsat-bb] Upcoming ARISS Contact Schedule as of 2017-11-24
21:30 UTC
Message-ID: <4d2bbc.10b4d72e.4749e8ca@xxx.xxx>
Content-Type: text/plain; charset="ISO-8859-1"
Upcoming ARISS Contact Schedule as of 2017-11-24 21:30 UTC
Quick list of scheduled contacts and events:
Ashbury College, Ottawa, Ontario, Canada, telebridge via VK4KHZ
The ISS callsign is presently scheduled to be NA1SS
The scheduled astronaut is Joe Acaba KE5DAR
Contact is a go for: Mon 2017-11-27 18:39:58 UTC 47 deg
Huntley Centennial Public School, Carp, ON, Canada, telebridge via IK1SLD
The ISS callsign is presently scheduled to be IR?ISS
The scheduled astronaut is Paolo Nespoli
Contact is a go for: Tue 2017-11-28 18:46:37 UTC 50 deg
S.G.B. De La Salle, Rome, Italy and Istituto Comprensivo Luigi Nono, Mira,
Italy, telebridge via W6SRJ
The ISS callsign is presently scheduled to be IR?ISS
The scheduled astronaut is Paolo Nespoli IZ?JPA
Contact is a go for: Thu 2017-11-30 08:04:20 UTC 73 deg
Bishop Hendricken High School and its sister school, St. Mary Academy -
Bay View, Warwick, RI, telebridge via IK1SLD
The ISS callsign is presently scheduled to be IR?ISS
The scheduled astronaut is Paolo Nespoli
Contact is a go for: Thu 2017-11-30 17:02:09 UTC 61 deg
****************************************************************************
**
ARISS is always glad to receive listener reports for the above contacts.
ARISS thanks everyone in advance for their assistance. Feel free to send
your reports to aj9n@xxxxx.xxx or aj9n@xxx.xxx.
Listen for the ISS on the downlink of 145.8? MHz.
****************************************************************************
***
All ARISS contacts are made via the Kenwood radio unless otherwise noted.
****************************************************************************
***
Several of you have sent me emails asking about the RAC ARISS website and
not being able to get in. That has now been changed to
http://www.ariss.org/
Note that there are links to other ARISS websites from this site.
****************************************************************************
Looking for something new to do? How about receiving DATV from the ISS?
If interested, then please go to the ARISS-EU website for complete
details. Look for the buttons indicating Ham Video.
http://www.ariss-eu.org/
If you need some assistance, ARISS mentor Kerry N6IZW, might be able to
provide some insight. Contact Kerry at kbanke@xxxxxxxxx.xxx
****************************************************************************
ARISS congratulations the following mentors who have now mentored over 100
schools:
Francesco IK?WGF with 131
Satoshi 7M3TJZ with 124
Gaston ON4WF with 123
Sergey RV3DR with 100
****************************************************************************
The webpages listed below were all reviewed for accuracy. Out of date
webpages were removed and new ones have been added. If there are
additional
ARISS websites I need to know about, please let me know.
Note, all times are approximate. It is recommended that you do your own
orbital prediction or start listening about 10 minutes before the listed
time.
All dates and times listed follow International Standard ISO 8601 date and
time format YYYY-MM-DD HH:MM:SS
The complete schedule page has been updated as of 2017-11-23 05:30 UTC.
(***)
Here you will find a listing of all scheduled school contacts, and
questions, other ISS related websites, IRLP and Echolink websites, and
instructions for any contact that may be streamed live.
http://www.amsat.org/amsat/ariss/news/arissnews.rtf
http://www.amsat.org/amsat/ariss/news/arissnews.txt
Total number of ARISS ISS to earth school events is 1190. (***)
Each school counts as 1 event.
Total number of ARISS ISS to earth school contacts is 1140. (***)
Each contact may have multiple schools sharing the same time slot.
Total number of ARISS supported terrestrial contacts is 47.
A complete year by year breakdown of the contacts may be found in the
file.
http://www.amsat.org/amsat/ariss/news/arissnews.rtf
Please feel free to contact me if more detailed statistics are needed.
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
The following US states and entities have never had an ARISS contact:
Arkansas, Delaware, South Dakota, Wyoming, American Samoa, Guam, Northern
Marianas Islands, and the Virgin Islands.
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
QSL information may be found at:
http://www.ariss.org/qsl-cards.html
ISS callsigns: DP?ISS, IR?ISS, NA1SS, OR4ISS, RS?ISS
****************************************************************************
The successful school list has been updated as of 2017-11-23 05:30 UTC.
(***)
http://www.amsat.org/amsat/ariss/news/Successful_ARISS_schools.rtf
Frequency chart for packet, voice, and crossband repeater modes showing
Doppler correction as of 2005-07-29 04:00 UTC
http://www.amsat.org/amsat/ariss/news/ISS_frequencies_and_Doppler_correction
.rtf
Listing of ARISS related magazine articles as of 2006-07-10 03:30 UTC.
http://www.amsat.org/amsat/ariss/news/ARISS_magazine_articles.rtf
Check out the Zoho reports of the ARISS contacts
https://reports.zoho.com/ZDBDataSheetView.cc?DBID=412218000000020415
****************************************************************************
Exp. 52 on orbit
Randy Bresnik
Paolo Nespoli IZ?JPA
Sergey Ryazanskiy
Exp. 53 on orbit
Mark Vande Hei KG5GNP
Alexander Misurkin
Joe Acaba KE5DAR
****************************************************************************
73,
Charlie Sufana AJ9N
One of the ARISS operation team mentors
------------------------------
Message: 2
Date: Fri, 24 Nov 2017 15:03:15 -0800
From: "Ted" <k7trkradio@xxxxxxx.xxx>
To: <mvivona@xxxxx.xxx>, "'AMSAT BB'" <amsat-bb@xxxxx.xxx>
Subject: [amsat-bb] HRD inverted satellite problem
Message-ID: <006001d36578$69876c40$3c9644c0$@xxxxxxx.xxx>
Content-Type: text/plain; charset="utf-8"
Hi Michael,
I discussed this topic several months ago, on email, with Mike Carper, the
owner of the HRD program. Mike told me he was committed to 'fixing' that
portion of the program. I just forwarded your post to him and asked him to
weigh in on this bbs.
In the meantime, tell the person you talked to that the HRD Sat portion
simply DOES NOT WORK, especially on linear birds. It will get by on most FM
birds, at least in the past. (it got me my VUCC mostly on AO-51) If you
intend to get back to the person at HRD, tell them the best illustration of
the problem in THEIR software can be shown by picking any satellite pass:
start up HRD's sat program side by side with SatPC32 (you really don't even
need a radio connection). Then look at the numbers for alt, elv distance,
etc. They will not even be close. Since we know SatPC32 is the current 'gold
standard', we can conclude that something in HRD is not right or not
calculating properly. Simple as that. HRD cannot keep blaming someone else.
The sat portion simply does not work.
I hope Mike joins this bbs and stands by his commitment, as expressed to me,
to fix his great software, which clearly has the best graphics of any sat
program in the marketplace.
73, Ted
K7TRK
-----Original Message-----
From: AMSAT-BB [mailto:amsat-bb-bounces@xxxxx.xxxx On Behalf Of mvivona---
via AMSAT-BB
Sent: Friday, November 24, 2017 11:43 AM
To: amsat-bb@xxxxx.xxx
Subject: Re: [amsat-bb] HRD inverted satellite problem
Hi All,
HRD (Ham Radio Deluxe) has just sent me an email wanting me to buy the
latest license for ver-6. I replied to them that I would love to if they
have fixed the know long standing issue with Doppler control of inverting
satellites. I received a prompt reply with the typical "never heard if this"
attitude without actually saying it. He wants to know what my station setup
is. Radio, Windows version, connection, etc. I wonder if one of you fine
gentlemen can give a knowledgeable description of the exact circumstance and
issues.It has been several years since I tried and failed with HRD and I
don't actually remember the particular circumstances, and, so I don't have
to go all through loading everything back on my computer and working through
all the scenarios to find the problem.
thanks in advance.
Michael VivonaKC4ZVA EL98
_______________________________________________
Sent via AMSAT-BB@xxxxx.xxx. AMSAT-NA makes this open forum available to all
interested persons worldwide without requiring membership. Opinions
expressed are solely those of the author, and do not reflect the official
views of AMSAT-NA.
Not an AMSAT-NA member? Join now to support the amateur satellite program!
Subscription settings: http://www.amsat.org/mailman/listinfo/amsat-bb
------------------------------
Message: 3
Date: Sat, 25 Nov 2017 00:42:54 +0000 (UTC)
From: "mvivona@xxxxx.xxxx <mvivona@xxxxx.xxx>
To: Ted <k7trkradio@xxxxxxx.xxx>, 'AMSAT BB' <amsat-bb@xxxxx.xxx>
Subject: Re: [amsat-bb] HRD inverted satellite problem
Message-ID: <516330328.1946041.1511570574045@xxxx.xxxxx.xxx>
Content-Type: text/plain; charset=UTF-8
Thank?you for your input Ted. That is exactly what I was looking
for.?Michael Vivona
From: Ted <k7trkradio@xxxxxxx.xxx>
To: mvivona@xxxxx.xxxx 'AMSAT BB' <amsat-bb@xxxxx.xxx>
Sent: Friday, November 24, 2017 6:02 PM
Subject: [amsat-bb] HRD inverted satellite problem
Hi Michael,
I discussed this topic several months ago, on email,? with Mike Carper, the
owner of the HRD program. Mike told me he was committed to 'fixing' that
portion of the program. I just forwarded your post to him and asked him to
weigh in on this bbs.
In the meantime, tell the person you talked to that the HRD Sat portion
simply DOES NOT WORK, especially on linear birds. It will get by on most FM
birds, at least in the past. (it got me my VUCC mostly on AO-51) If you
intend to get back to the person at HRD, tell them the best illustration of
the problem in THEIR software can be shown by picking any satellite pass:
start up HRD's sat program side by side with SatPC32 (you really don't even
need a radio connection). Then look at the numbers for alt, elv distance,
etc. They will not even be close. Since we know SatPC32 is the current 'gold
standard', we can conclude that something in HRD is not right or not
calculating properly. Simple as that. HRD cannot keep blaming someone else.
The sat portion simply does not work.
I hope Mike joins this bbs and stands by his commitment, as expressed to me,
to fix his great software, which clearly has the best graphics of any sat
program in the marketplace.
73, Ted
K7TRK
-----Original Message-----
From: AMSAT-BB [mailto:amsat-bb-bounces@xxxxx.xxxx On Behalf Of mvivona---
via AMSAT-BB
Sent: Friday, November 24, 2017 11:43 AM
To: amsat-bb@xxxxx.xxx
Subject: Re: [amsat-bb] HRD inverted satellite problem
Hi All,
HRD (Ham Radio Deluxe) has just sent me an email wanting me to buy the
latest license for ver-6. I replied to them that I would love to if they
have fixed the know long standing issue with Doppler control of inverting
satellites. I received a prompt reply with the typical "never heard if this"
attitude without actually saying it. He wants to know what my station setup
is. Radio, Windows version, connection, etc. I wonder if one of you fine
gentlemen can give a knowledgeable description of the exact circumstance and
issues.It has been several years since I tried and failed with HRD and I
don't actually remember the particular circumstances, and, so I don't have
to go all through loading everything back on my computer and working through
all the scenarios to find the problem.
thanks in advance.
Michael VivonaKC4ZVA EL98
_______________________________________________
Sent via AMSAT-BB@xxxxx.xxx. AMSAT-NA makes this open forum available to all
interested persons worldwide without requiring membership. Opinions
expressed are solely those of the author, and do not reflect the official
views of AMSAT-NA.
Not an AMSAT-NA member? Join now to support the amateur satellite program!
Subscription settings: http://www.amsat.org/mailman/listinfo/amsat-bb
------------------------------
Message: 4
Date: Sat, 25 Nov 2017 01:25:24 -0500
From: Tony <dxdx@xxxxxxxxx.xxx>
To: amsat-bb@xxxxx.xxx
Subject: Re: [amsat-bb] NO-84 via APRS
Message-ID: <40b709dc-375d-3174-259c-c8a13fe4f3f0@xxxxxxxxx.xxx>
Content-Type: text/plain; charset=utf-8; format=flowed
On 11/24/2017 3:56 PM, Roy Dean wrote:
> Both: http://aprs.org/psat.html
Thanks Dean.
>
>> All: Does NO-84 accept APRS digi-peating via APRSAT or is it strictly
>> ARISS? Tony -K2MO
> _
------------------------------
Message: 5
Date: Sat, 25 Nov 2017 07:28:35 +0000 (UTC)
From: Kevin M <n4ufo@xxxxx.xxx>
To: "amsat-bb@xxxxx.xxxx <amsat-bb@xxxxx.xxx>
Subject: [amsat-bb] N2YO tracking of AO-91
Message-ID: <2113608077.2847223.1511594915900@xxxx.xxxxx.xxx>
Content-Type: text/plain; charset=UTF-8
After observing discrepancies between tracking on the N2YO website and
actual observation, I asked some questions and figured out that there may be
some initial confusion lingering over which object is which. I'm told that
catalog ID 43016 is most accurate and after checking, it does agree with my
observations.
So for anyone that has N2YO bookmarked to track AO-91, here is the link to
what I believe is the correct tracking:? http://www.n2yo.com/?s=43016
I know N2YO has things labelled differently, but I have sent him a message
to check on it. Just wanted to let folks know in case they are also having
similar problems. N2YO is a great resource, in my opinion, and I've been
using it for tracking the birds going on 5 years now. My thanks to N2YO!
73, Kevin N4UFO
------------------------------
Message: 6
Date: Sat, 25 Nov 2017 20:16:14 -0500
From: "E.Mike McCardel" <mccardelm@xxxxx.xxx>
To: Amsat - BBs <amsat-bb@xxxxx.xxx>
Subject: [amsat-bb] ANS-330 AMSAT News Service Weekly Bulletins
Message-ID:
<CAM5+sovLK8+sP3Y6DtagzO0aki=N3EdNamFD6gFHV6DKT_B+zA@xxxx.xxxxx.xxx>
Content-Type: text/plain; charset="UTF-8"
AMSAT NEWS SERVICE
ANS-330
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.
In this edition:
* AO-91 Commissioned - Declared Open for Amateur Use!
* Fox-1B/AO-91 Facts
* Special AMSAT Membership Offer Celebrating RadFxSat/AO-91
Launch/Commissioning
* FUNcube-1 Celebrates 4th Anniversary
* Video of Launches of the Currently Orbiting FUNcube Satellites
* EcAMSat Deployed From ISS - 1200 baud Telemetry & QSL Card for
Reports
* MAI-75 SSTV Over Moscow from ISS Planned for December 6-8
* UT1FG/MM Now Active
* Support AMSAT on Cyber Monday
* Changes to AMSAT-NA TLE Distribution for 11-21-2017, Object Comment
* ARISS News
* Satellite Shorts From All Over
SB SAT @ AMSAT $ANS-330.01
ANS-330 AMSAT News Service Weekly Bulletins
AMSAT News Service Bulletin 330.01
>From AMSAT HQ KENSINGTON, MD.
November 26, 2017
To All RADIO AMATEURS
BID: $ANS-330.01
AO-91 Commissioned - Declared Open for Amateur Use!
At 06:50 UTC November 23, 2017 @xxxxx Engineering officially
commissioned AO-91 (RadFxSat/Fox-1B) Satellite. AMSAT VP of
Engineering, Jery Buxton N0JY turned over operation to Mark Hammond
N8MH and AMSAT Operations in a QSO on the AO-91 repeater during the
pass over the Eastern U.S.
N8MH responded and declared AO-91 open for amateur use!
[ANS thanks AO-91 Ops Team for the above information]
---------------------------------------------------------------------
Fox-1B/AO-91 Facts
Name(s): AO-91 Fox-1B (RadFxSat)
NASA catalog number: TBD
Launch: Not Earlier Than 21 Sept 2017
NASA ElaNa XIV Mission
JPSS-1 Delta II, Vandenberg AFB, CA
Orbit: LEO (Low Earth Orbit)
Inclination: 97.6908 (Assuming it is Object 43016)
Eccentricity: 0259769 (Assuming it is Object 43016)
Period: Approx. 95 minutes
Estimated orbital lifetime: 5+ years
Size: 10 x 10 x 10 cm (4 inch cube)
Weight: 1.3 kg (~3 pounds)
Transmit power: 400 mW (Minimum)
Downlink: 145.960 MHz FM voice
AFSK digital data up to 9600 bps
Uplink: 435.250 MHz FM voice (67.0 Hz CTCSS tone)
>From a communications standpoint Fox-1B has two major changes from
AO-85. First, it will fly with a more sophisticated power control
system which utilizes a Maximum Power Point Tracker to insure optimum
charging of the batteries under all illuminations. This will be
largely transparent to the typical user but will significantly
increase the available battery life. Second, the detection of the
67.0 Hz tone has been enhanced, which will also help accommodate
ground stations whose CTCSS tones may be slightly off frequency. The
combination will make accessing the satellite easier and also
decrease the likelihood of dropouts.
Doppler Shift Correction for Fox-1B
Correcting for Doppler shift will involve the same techniques as for
AO-85, with slightly
different frequencies to prevent mutual spacecraft interference:
Receive Frequency Transmit Frequency
(67.0 Hz Tone)
Satellite Position
145.960 MHz 435.240 MHz (Mem #1) AOS
145.960 MHz 435.245 MHz (Mem #2) Approaching
145.960 MHz 435.250 MHz (Mem #3) Passing
145.960 MHz 435.255 MHz (Mem #4) Departing
145.960 MHz 435.260 MHz (Mem #5) LOS
Note that the AFC on the receiver may be working hinting that making
the above adjustments may not be necessary. AMSAT VP of Engineering
Jerry Buxton N0JY states "... in ground testing with Fox-1A. We
could be +/- 10 kHz and not even know it (that's how it was tested,
one guy programmed the wrong frequency in his HT)." He adds the
caveat,
"One station on the uplink is not the same situation as real life
though."
Fox-1B Telemetry
Subaudible Telemetry
Except for a different downlink frequency, the low speed subaudible
telemetry will be the same as for AO-85. It will be supported by the
same FoxTelem software released for AO-85.
High Speed AFSK telemetry
There are no experiments on Fox-1B which will require the use of
high speed telemetry.
[ANS thanks "Getting Started With Amateur Satellites 2107" By G.
Gould Smith WA4SXM and Friends and other sources for the above
information.]
---------------------------------------------------------------------
Special AMSAT Membership Offer Celebrating RadFxSat/AO-91
Launch/Commissioning
As part of the preparations for the launch of RadFxSat on November
10th and the successful commissioning of AO-91 (RadFx/Fox-1B)opening
it for Amateur use on November 23, AMSAT is making our ?Getting
Started With Amateur Satellites? book available for a limited time
as a download with any paid new or renewal membership purchased via
the AMSAT Store. This offer is only available with purchases
completed online, and for only a limited time. A perennial favorite,
Getting Started is updated every year with the latest amateur
satellite information, and is the premier primer of satellite
operation. The 182 page book is presented in PDF format, in full
color, and covers all aspects of making your first contacts on a ham
radio satellite.
Please take advantage of this offer today by visiting the AMSAT store
at https://www.amsat.org/shop/ and selecting any membership option.
While there, check out our other items, including the M2 LEOpack
antenna system, Arrow antennas, AMSAT shirts, and other swag.
Thank you, and hear you soon on RadFxSat!
---------------------------------------------------------------------
FUNcube-1 Celebrates 4th Anniversary
November 21st 2017, marked the fourth aniversary for FUNcube-1 in
orbit.
FUNcube-1 was launched at 07:10 UTC on November 21st 2013 and its
first signals were received immediately after deployment over the
Indian Ocean by amateurs in South Africa. Since then it has been
operating continuously in either its education mode or, with the
transponder active, in amateur mode when in eclipse and at weekends.
The spacecraft has spent the four years in space orbiting the earth
at between 640 and 580 km and has now travelled around the earth more
than 20,000 times. That represents a distance travelled of
approaching 500 million miles.
Up to now, each of the orbits has been spilt approximately 65% in
sunlight and 35% in eclipse. This has resulted in the temperatures
inside the small spacecraft varying by about 25o C during each orbit.
During the recent AMSAT Colloquium, Wouter, PA3WEG, during his
presentation about the FUNcube project mentioned that the power
available from the solar panels has been slowly increasing since
launch. This observation led the team to do some further
investigations as to the cause.
Although the launch was into a nominally Sun Synchronous orbit, over
time this has drifted and the spacecraft is now entering a period
when it will be in the sun for longer periods during each orbit.
The exact details are still being determined, but it seems likely
that, starting from January 2018, there will be periods when the
spacecraft will be in the sun for all, or almost all, of its orbits.
Of course, this means that the on-board temperatures will be much
higher than we have previously experienced in flight, although we
have some test records from pre-flight thermal air testing that were
undertaken after integration.
The key will be to discover what the equilibrium temperature will be
internally. For comparison, AO85 has already "enjoyed" periods of
full sun and its internal temperatures have reached up to around 55o
C.
So the next few months will be quite an exciting time for the team!
We remain extremely grateful to everyone is using the spacecraft for
both its educational and amateur missions. Of course we are also very
very grateful to those who are downloading the telemetry and
uploading the data to the Data Warehouse. It continues to provide a
unique record of "life on board" a 1U CubeSat in space.
FUNcube-1 / AO-73 details
TLM down link freq 145.935 MHz BPSK
Transponder:
Nominal Uplink 435.150 - 435.130 MHz LSB (Inverting) The passband
may be up to 15kHz higher depending on on-board temps. Low
temperature gives higher freqs!
Downlink 145.950 - 145.970 MHz USB
Please use a maximium uplink power of 5 watts to a 7 dBi gain
antenna. More power is not needed to use the transponder!
Currently operating full power TLM beacon (300 mW) when in sunlight,
and Transponder, plus low power (30mW) TLM beacon when in eclipse.
Normally switches to Transponder over weekends and holidays
[ANS thanks Funcube.org for the above information]
---------------------------------------------------------------------
Video of Launches of the Currently Orbiting FUNcube Satellites
Wouter Weggelar, PA3WEG, released a composite video showing all
currently orbiting FUNcube family satellites being launched:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hLevT3C5v6c&feature=youtu.be
[ANS thanks Wouter PA3WEG and AMSAT-UK for the above information]
---------------------------------------------------------------------
EcAMSat Deployed From ISS - 1200 baud Telemetry & QSL Card for Reports
The E. coli AntiMicrobial Satellite (EcAMSat) mission will investigate
space microgravity effects on the antibiotic resistance of E. coli, a
bacterial pathogen responsible for urinary tract infection in humans
and animals. EcAMSat is being developed through a partnership between
NASA?s Ames Research Center and the Stanford University School of
Medicine. Dr. A.C. Matin is the Stanford University Principal
Investigator.
EcAMSAT was deployed from the ISS on November 20, 2017.
EcAMSat will investigate spaceflight effects on bacterial antibiotic
resistance and its genetic basis. Bacterial antibiotic resistance may
pose a danger to astronauts in microgravity, where the immune response
is weakened. Scientists believe that the results of this experiment
could help design effective countermeasures to protect astronauts?
health during long-duration human space missions.
Operating at 437.100 MHz FM, the EcAMSat beacon sends an AX.25 packet
every 5 seconds, similar to the format of the GeneSat-1, PharmaSat,
O/OREOS, and SporeSat beacons; the packet contains data about the
spacecraft systems operation.
A tracking screen, mission information, and mission status are dis-
played on the EcAMSat Mission Dashboard: http://ecamsat.engr.scu.edu/
Links to beacon decoding and packet uploading instructions are also
included on the Dashboard.
An example of the EcAMSat QSL card is displayed at:
https://yc3bvg.blogspot.com/2017/11/ecamsat-qsl-cards.html
[ANS thanks the EcAMSat Team and NASA for the above information]
---------------------------------------------------------------------
MAI-75 SSTV Over Moscow from ISS Planned for December 6-8
The MAI-75 folks have scheduled some SSTV activity during specific
periods
each day from Dec 6-8. The times correlate to a small number of
passes each
day in range of Moscow.
Dec 6, 2017
Setup and power on - 13:40-14:20 UTC
Power off - 17:05-17:15 UTC
Dec 7, 2017
Power on - 13:45-13:55 UTC
Power off - 17:30-17:40 UTC
Dec 8, 2017
Power on - 14:05-14:15 UTC
Power off and stow - 17:00-17:10 UTC
See: https://ariss-sstv.blogspot.com/
[ANS thanks ARISS for the above information]
---------------------------------------------------------------------
UT1FG/MM Now Active
Yuri, UT1FG/MM, is back to sea on the Vessel Seahorse. It is
currently sailing from Algiers to Morocco where it will load cargo.
The plan is to sail to a USA port in the Gulf to be determined.
There are quite a few ships named Seahorse. The MMSI number is
538007572.
Yuri is using the Elk antenna but only has RG58 coax feeding it.
Even so he reports working K3SZH on AO-7 today. If he doesn't find
coax in Morocco, perhaps we can get some coax to him when he arrives
in a USA port. So he is likely to do better on a Mode B satellite
rather than one with a UHF downlink. He has keps for AO-91, AO-85
and CAS-4B.
Please wait for a while before sending your logsheets. He will
likely be able to mail qsl's when he docks in the USA.
[ANS thanks John K8YSE for the above information]
---------------------------------------------------------------------
Support AMSAT on Cyber Monday
With Cyber Monday approaching, please keep AMSAT in mind while making
purchases on Amazon.com through AmazonSmile. AmazonSmile is a simple
way to support your favorite non-profit organizations, including
AMSAT. To get started, go to https://smile.amazon.com and designate
AMSAT as the recipient of a percentage of your purchases by selecting
?Radio Amateur Satellite Corporation.? After selecting AMSAT, and when
making purchases at Amazon, be sure to navigate to
https://smile.amazon.com.
[ANS thanks AMSAT Office for the above information]
---------------------------------------------------------------------
Changes to AMSAT-NA TLE Distribution for 11-21-2017, Object Comment
Due to Thanksgiving being on Thursday, the AMSAT-NA TLE Distribution
for this week will be today, November 21, 2017. Next week we will
continue with the normal TLE distribution on each Thursday of the
week. Note that, per comments below, AO-91 is most likely object
43016.
It appears that AO-91 is in the group of cubesats launched on 11-18-
17 that include objects 43016, 43017, and 43018. The object 43015
that we were using for AO-91 has separated enough to be confirmed as
Buccaneer RRM by 18th Space Control Squadron at Vandenburg AFB, CA.
One of 18 SPCS many missions is launch analysis.
Therefore, based analysis (by Nico Janssen, (PA0DLO) and discussion
by Alan Biddle (WA4SCA), Jerry Buxton (N0JY), Nico Janssen (PA0DLO),
Paul Stoetzer (N8HM) and myself AO-91 is most likely object 43016.
Note that these objects are still very close together and one more
change could be needed. The process of identification is one of
waiting for a group of objects to separate enough to isolate the one
you are interested in and positively identify it's signal as matching
a certain TLE set. Simple, right!
For comparison, Buccaneer (object 43015, not AO-91) is now at least
26 seconds from objects 43016, 43017, and 43018. Objects 43016,
43017, and 43018 are still about 2 seconds apart. (Analysis by
Nico,PA0DLO)
[ANS thanks Ray Hoad for the above information]
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ARISS News
+ A Successful contact was made between I.C. Villasanta, Villasanta
Italy and College Pierre de Fermat, Toulouse, France
and Astronaut Paolo Nespoli IZ?JPA using Callsign NA1SS. The
contact began Wed 2017-11-22 08:43:37 UTC and lasted about
nine and a half minutes. Contact was telebridge via K6DUE.
ARISS Mentor was Gianpietro IZ2GOJ backed up by Joseph F6ICS.
Quantity of questions answered: 18
Quantity of people in attendance: approximatelt 200
Quantity of media present: local newspapers
+ A Successful contact was made between I.C. ?Pascoli Forgione?, San
Giovanni Rotondo, Italy and Astronaut Paolo Nespoli IZ?JPA using
Callsign NA1SS. The contact began 2017-11-15 11:36 UTC and lasted
about nine and a half minutes. Contact was telebridge via K6DUE.
ARISS Mentor was Francesco IK?WGF.
+ A Successful contact was made between Carmelita Manara, Milano,
Italy and Astronaut Paolo Nespoli IZ?JPA using Callsign NA1SS. The
contact began 2017-11-15 11:36 UTC and lasted about nine and a half
minutes. Contact was telebridge via K6DUE.
ARISS Mentor was Gianpietro IZ2GOJ.
Quantity of questions answered: 23
Quantity of people in attendance: 270
Quantity of media present: Newspaper and TV
Additional information: Raoul Nespoli (Paolo's brother) was a
guest at Milano.
+ A Successful contact was made between TX-801st Air Force JROTC at
Burleson High, Burleson, Texas, USA and Astronaut Paolo Nespoli
IZ?JPA using Callsign NA1SS. The contact began 2017-11-13 14:50 UTC
and lasted about nine and a half minutes. Contact was telebridge
via W6SRJ. ARISS Mentor was Keith W5IU.
Quantity of questions answered: All 19
Quantity of people in attendance: 225
Quantity of media present: local newspaper
+ A Successful contact was made between Liceo Scientifico ?Valdemaro
Vecchi?, Trani, Italy and Astronaut Paolo Nespoli IZ?JPA using
Callsign NA1SS. The contact began 2017-11-11 11:16 UTC and lasted
about nine and a half minutes. Contact was telebridge via VK4KHZ.
ARISS Mentor was Francesco IK?WGF.
Quantity of questions answered: 14
Quantity of people in attendance: about 200
Quantity of media present: none reported
+ A Successful contact was made between I.I.S.S. ?T.Fiore-C.Sylos?,
Terlizzi, Italy and Astronaut Paolo Nespoli IZ?JPA using Callsign
NA1SS. The contact began 2017-11-11 11:16 UTC and lasted about
nine and a half minutes. Contact was telebridge via VK4KHZ.
ARISS Mentor was Francesco IK?WGF.
Quantity of questions answered: 14
Quantity of people in attendance: about 200
Quantity of media present: none reported
+ A Successful contact was made between Liceo Statale ?Ilaria Alpi?,
Rutigliano, Italy from the University of Bari and Astronaut Paolo
Nespoli IZ?JPA using Callsign NA1SS. The contact began 2017-11-11
11:16 UTC and lasted about nine and a half minutes. Contact was
telebridge via VK4KHZ. ARISS Mentor was Francesco IK?WGF].
Quantity of questions answered: 14
Quantity of people in attendance: about 200
Quantity of media present: none reported
+ A Successful contact was made between South Florida Science Center
and Aquarium, West Palm Beach, FL, USA and Astronaut Paolo Nespoli
IZ?JPA using Callsign NA1SS. The contact began 2017-11-06 16:17 UTC
and lasted about nine and a half minutes. Contact was Direct via
WS4FSC. ARISS Mentors were Steve W1HQL and Ryan W4NTR.
Quantity of questions answered: All 12.
Quantity of people in attendance: 100
Quantity of media present: TV and newspaper
+ A Successful contact was made between Istituto di Istruzione
Superiore ?Leonardo Da Vinci?, Lanusei, Italy and Astronaut Paolo
Nespoli IZ?JPA using Callsign OR4ISS. The contact began 2017-11-04
10:12 UTC and lasted about nine and a half minutes. Contact was
direct via IS?BWM and incorporated Ham TV.
ARISS Mentor was Francesco IK?WGF.
+ A Successful contact was made between Liceo Artistico Melotti,
Lomazzo, Italy and Astronaut Paolo Nespoli IZ?JPA using Callsign
IR0ISS. The contact began 2017-11-03 09:27 UTC and lasted about
nine and a half minutes. Contact was telebridge via IQ5LI.
ARISS Mentor was [NAME, Gianpietro IZ2GOJ.
Quantity of questions answered: 15
Quantity of people in attendance: 300
Quantity of media present: Local TV and newspapers
+ A Successful contact was made between Liceo Scientifico
?Francesco Cecioni?, Livorno, Italy and Astronaut Paolo Nespoli
IZ?JPA using Callsign IR0ISS. The contact began 2017-11-03 09:27
UTC and lasted about nine and a half minutes. Contact was direct
via IQ5LI and incorporated Ham TV.
ARISS Mentor was Francesco IK?WGF.
Quantity of questions answered: 15
Quantity of people in attendance: 300
Quantity of media present: Local TV and newspapers.
+ A Successful contact was made between Asociaci?n Civil Instituto
Maria Montessori, San Crist?bel, Venezuela and Joe Acaba KE5DAR
using Callsign IR0ISS. The contact began 2017-10-31 18:23 UTC and
lasted about nine and a half minutes. Contact was direct via
YY2CMR. ARISS Mentor was Brian VE6JBJ.
Quantity of questions answered: 15
Quantity of people in attendance: 650
Quantity of media present: 44 press media representatives,
regional, national, and international
Additional information: It was wonderful. The signal was 9+40dB.
+ A Successful contact was made between Primaria e Secondaria di
primo grado Istituto comprensivo Via XVI settembre, Civitavecchia,
Italy and Astronaut Joe Acaba KE5DAR using Callsign NA1SS. The
contact began 2017-10-30 11:20 UTC and lasted about nine and a half
minutes. Contact was direct via IK0WGF and incorporated Ham TV.
ARISS Mentor was Francesco IK?WGF.
Quantity of questions answered: 16
Quantity of people in attendance: About 200
Quantity of media present: Video streaming was on BATC.TV
Additional information: https://youtu.be/nhWL4xLroKU
Upcoming ARISS Contact Schedule as of 2017-11-22 07:00 UTC
I.C. Villasanta, Villasanta Italy and College Pierre de Fermat,
Toulouse, France, telebridge via K6DUE
The ISS callsign is presently scheduled to be NA1SS
The scheduled astronaut is Paolo Nespoli IZ?JPA
Contact is a go for: Wed 2017-11-22 08:43:37 UTC 45 deg K6DUE
Ashbury College, Ottawa, Ontario, Canada, telebridge via VK4KHZ
The ISS callsign is presently scheduled to be NA1SS
The scheduled astronaut is Joe Acaba KE5DAR
Contact is a go for: Mon 2017-11-27 18:39:58 UTC
Huntley Centennial Public School, Carp, ON, Canada, telebridge via
IK1SLD
The ISS callsign is presently scheduled to be IR?ISS
The scheduled astronaut is Paolo Nespoli
Contact is a go for: Tue 2017-11-28 18:46:37 UTC
S.G.B. De La Salle, Rome, Italy and Istituto Comprensivo Luigi
Nono, Mira, Italy, telebridge via W6SRJ
The ISS callsign is presently scheduled to be IR?ISS
The scheduled astronaut is Paolo Nespoli IZ?JPA
Contact is a go for: Thu 2017-11-30 08:04:20 UTC
Bishop Hendricken High School and its sister school, St. Mary
Academy -
Bay View, Warwick, RI, telebridge via IK1SLD
The ISS callsign is presently scheduled to be IR?ISS
The scheduled astronaut is Paolo Nespoli
Contact is a go for: Thu 2017-11-30 17:02:09 UTC
The ISS callsign is presently scheduled to be IR?ISS
The scheduled astronaut is Paolo Nespoli
Contact is a go for: Thu 2017-11-30 17:02:09 UTC
[ANS thanks ARISS, Charlie AJ9N and David AA4KN for the above
information]
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Satellite Shorts From All Over
+ EagleSat-1 Requests Help Listening for Beacon
RadFxSat-1/Fox-1B AO-91's P-POD mate on the ELaNa XIV, EagleSat-1:
their team is having trouble hearing their beacon on 437.645MHz. The
beacon transmission timing is 1 minute. Please send reception
reports to Deborah Jackson (jacksd40 at my.erau.edu) and Steven Buck
(bucks2 at my.erau.edu) ... via
[ANS thanks Jerry N0JY for the above information]
+ RSGB Space Posters
Several of @xxxxxxx posters promoting Amateur Radio feature Space
Communications. PDF Posters are available for free download from
http://tinyurl.com/ANS330-RSGB-Posters
[ANS thanks AMSAT-UK for the above information]
+ New URL for Farnham WebSDR
The SUWS LF/VHF/UHF/uW WebSDR based at Farnham near London has a
new URL: http://farnham-sdr.com/ The antennas on 2m and 70cm are
optimized for Satellite and High Altitude Balloon reception.
[ANS thanks AMSAT-UK for the above information]
---------------------------------------------------------------------
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Contact Martha at the AMSAT Office for additional student membership
information.
73,
This week's ANS Editor,
EMike McCardel, AA8EM
aa8em at amsat dot org
------------------------------
Message: 7
Date: Sat, 25 Nov 2017 21:09:52 -0500
From: Matthew Stevens <matthew@xxxxxxxxx.xxx>
To: amsat-bb <amsat-bb@xxxxx.xxx>
Subject: [amsat-bb] Observations on AO-91 AFC
Message-ID:
<CAN8zKtSgaa42kYdThngDwqdgL+ASrNeT8Kq=ndc_bWcTEJyGcg@xxxx.xxxxx.xxx>
Content-Type: text/plain; charset="UTF-8"
I?ve done a bit of study on the Fox series AFC. I never really knew
much about it up until this point, but with all the discussion on the
amsat-bb about AO-91?s AFC function, and the alleged lack of uplink
Doppler tuning needed ? I figured I should educate myself a bit more.
I also wanted to test it out some. My observations (which I?ve
outlined in another BB post
http://www.amsat.org/pipermail/amsat-bb/2017-November/065569.html),
making hundreds of QSOs on AO-85 using various antennas, radios, and
power settings have been that there is definite need to tune the
uplink frequency for Doppler shift. My initial experiences working
passes on AO-91 from a few minutes after commissioning, using an HT
and whip, then an HT and Elk, then and HT and arrow, did nothing to
change my mind about tuning for the AO-91 uplink.
However, even though I already made a bunch of QSOs on AO91, I didn?t
really have enough data to make any kind of real conclusion about the
AFC on AO-91. So, I figured I?d try some experiments and post them
here!
>>
Today was the first pass I had worked on AO-91 with anything other
than a 0.05-5w Kenwood D72 HT for a radio. I broke out my Icom 821H
for a 90 degree lunchtime pass, turned up the power to the full ~35w,
and used my handheld arrow II antenna. Having already heard the
absolute zoo that has been daytime AO-91 passes, I was curious first
to hear how it went using more power (as far as being able to get in
over the dead carriers and multiple hetrodyning uplinks), and second,
how the AFC functioned with a lot of high-power users.
What I found: The AFC *does* seem to work! However, there are some
usage caveats that I have to note. When there is a single signal
coming into the bird, it seems to compensate fine for being off
frequency (within reason). I didn?t try too wide of a tuning range,
since compared to some stations I heard today I didn?t have enough
power to be way off (more on that in a minute). But I did try +/-
about 5khz, and it seemed to compensate just fine if I was the only
signal coming in.
That?s the rub however. There was virtually no time today where I was
the only signal coming into the bird! And when there was a bunch of
different signals, basically, the strongest uplink was the one that
determined the AFC tuning. You can hear that happening in the
recording which I?ll link to below. There was more than one instance
where I began to transmit over a carrier or other signal that I was
hearing (being careful not to transmit over any actual audible callers
or QSOs in progress). You can hear my audio go from poor to crystal
clear as the AFC (apparently) adjusted to my carrier ? and I did not
adjust my transmit frequency at the time. I assume that my signal was
stronger than the others, and the AFC ?picked? mine.
You can also hear a signal from XE3ARV, who had by far the strongest
signal I heard during the pass. Because his uplink signal was so much
stronger than anyone or anything else, it sounded like the AFC
adjusted to whatever his uplink frequency was. If I, or anyone else
was transmitting at the time, you can hear it IMMEDIATELY go from the
other clear (or scratchy) signal (depending on what state the AFC
tuning was in at the time), to a crystal clear downlink from XE3ARV.
Another observation of note was the downlink signal from 5K0T. At the
beginning of the pass you can hear a very clear signal from their
obviously strong uplink. As the pass progressed, the audio quality on
their downlink deteriorated a lot. The only reason I can see for this
is that they may have not been adjusting for Doppler during the pass,
and were possibly 10khz or more from the correct uplink frequency
(perhaps transmitting at 435.240 the entire pass?). I can?t confirm
this as I wasn?t there to see what was happening on their end, but
that is one possible explanation to why their signal sounded like it
did at the end of the pass. This hypothesis also is supported by
having heard another station on a much quieter, early morning pass the
other day who I know was transmitting 30khz off frequency. His audio
sounded very similar to 5K0T at the time.
Yet another observation is that when there are a lot of users on the
pass, it seems to be beneficial to adjust for Doppler. There were
several times during today?s pass where I did tune my radio to the
correct, Doppler adjusted uplink frequency. If there was a high level
of QRM, tuning for Doppler seemed to help my signal be received by the
satellite, as opposed to tuning +/- 5khz from the Doppler adjusted
value.
Here is my recording:
https://drive.google.com/open?id=1c8XYCoxFCKCyR4dtfwJCyM9tjfo1mLKd
TL;DR observations:
1. AFC does work within some limitations.
2. With multiple strong signals into the bird, the strongest ?wins? as
far as determining the AFC adjustment. This makes other signals tuned
to other frequencies sound ?staticky?
3. Transmitting very far off frequency makes your downlink audio sound bad.
4. Adjusting for Doppler seems to help your signal capture the sats
receiver better than other users who are operating at a similar power
level to you.
Conclusion so far: In practice, AFC is good for correcting minor
Doppler tuning errors. However, unless there is only one user
transmitting into the sat at a point in time, it does not eliminate
the need to tune your uplink for Doppler.
I would be curious to hear other observations and interpretations from
AO-91 passes. I think it?s helpful to support observations with
recordings, so others can listen and draw their own conclusions about
your interpretation of what has occurred.
Also, these are just my initial impressions from operating passes?and
these are subject to change over time :-)
73,
Matthew nj4y
------------------------------
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End of AMSAT-BB Digest, Vol 12, Issue 310
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