Monthly Archives: September 2011

Sep 19 2011

Indian NOAA APT images with the 'AMSAT-UKFUNcube Dongle SDR'

Indian NOAA APT images

Mahesh Vhatkay VU2IIA has used his AMSAT-UK FUNcube Dongle SDR to receive weather satellite images of the Indian sub-continent.

As well as the FUNcube Dongle software defined radio his station comprised a QFH antenna with 137 MHz preamp (homebrew), WXtoIm (free version) and SpectraVue.

You can see the images at
https://www.dropbox.com/s/c1m9p35m44o57av#gallery:0

Join the FUNcube Yahoo Group at
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/FUNcube/

WXtoImg software
http://www.wxtoimg.com/

SpectraVue
http://www.moetronix.com/spectravue.htm

SDR-RADIO Beta FUNcube software
http://www.sdr-radio.com/Download/tabid/178/language/
en-GB/Default.aspx#LiveTabsContent15701

 

 

 

Sep 15 2011

AMSAT-UK@RSGB Convention 2011

AMSAT and satellite communications

For those who enjoy AMSAT and satellite communications, Graham Shirville, G3VZV will be looking at space communications in general and then will concentrate on the FUNcube spacecraft being developed by AMSAT-UK. The FUNcube will be a small cubesat weighing less than 1.5kg. It will have both a transponder for amateur use and telemetry intended for educational outreach to primary and secondary schools. This will be followed by a talk on the FUNcube Dongle by Howard Long, G6LVB. He recently received the RSGB Fraser Shepperd Award for his research into microwave applications in radio and his work on the FUNcube satellite and Dongle.

More details of the RSGB Convention 2011 can be found here

Sep 14 2011

BD4SY 2m EME received with FUNcube Dongle

Berend Edema PA3ARK has received a 144 MHz EME transmission from Zhu ShaoHua BD4SY in Changshu City using an AMSAT-UKFUNcube Dongle SDR.

Click photo for full size.

He has also received the GB3VHF beacon on 144.430 MHz over a distance of 500 km http://twitpic.com/6kfq20

PA3ARK website in Google English: http://tinyurl.com/PA3ARK
PA3ARK YouTube: http://www.youtube.com/user/PA3ARK
PA3ARK Twitter: http://twitter.com/PA3ARK

Join the FUNcube Yahoo Group at
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/FUNcube

Sep 13 2011

ARISSat-1 on Ham Nation Show

TAPR President, Steve Bible N7HPR, discusses the new amateur radio satellite ARISSat-1 on this weeks edition of the popular video show Ham Nation. He appears after the item on the Elecraft KX3 portable SDR transceiver.

Watch Ham Nation episode 16 at
http://twit.cachefly.net/video/hn/hn0016/hn0016_h264b_864x480_500.mp4

Other Ham Nation episodes can be seen at http://twit.tv/show/ham-nation/

Ham Nation airs live each Tuesday at 6:00 PT/ 9:00ET at http://live.twit.tv/

Sep 13 2011

FUNcube Group Membership Exceeds 2000

In under a year the AMSAT-UK FUNcube Yahoo Group has achieved over 2000 members.

The group was created by Rob Styles M0TFO at the end of October 2010 to provide support for the AMSAT-UK FUNcube satellite and the FUNcube Dongle (FCD) Software Defined Radio (SDR).

The FUNcube satellite project is an educational CubeSat project with the goal of enthusing and educating young people about radio, space, physics and electronics. It will support the educational Science, Technology, Engineering and Maths (STEM) initiatives and provide an additional resource for the RSGB GB4FUN Radio Communications Demonstration Module.

The target audience are school pupils in the 8-18 age range. As well as providing a strong 145 MHz telemetry beacon for the pupils to receive FUNcube will also have a 435/145 MHz linear transponder for Amateur Radio SSB/CW use.

The FCD SDR was originally developed for educational outreach as part of the ground segment for the FUNcube satellite. However, it was realised it can be used for many other applications as well, so AMSAT-UK developed a Pro version which has a frequency range of 64-1700 MHz.

Similar to a USB TV Dongle, the FCD simply fits into a computer USB port and can be used with freely available Software Defined Radio software. The FCD is all-mode which this means that as well as data, it will also receive many other signals including AM, FM, SSB and CW and weather satellite images.

Join the FUNcube Yahoo Group at http://groups.yahoo.com/group/FUNcube/

SDR-RADIO software http://www.sdr-radio.com/

The FUNcube Dongle SDR can be ordered via http://www.FUNcubeDongle.com/?page_id=286

Information on the FUNcube satellite project is at http://FUNcube.org.uk/overview/

A sample edition of the AMSAT-UK newsletter OSCAR News can be seen at http://www.uk.amsat.org/on_193_final.pdf

Sep 12 2011

Don’t worry, it’s only a falling five-tonne space satellite

Nasa says chances of its dead 20-year-old satellite, due to fall to Earth later this month, hitting anyone are 3,200-1

Nasa says one of its dead satellites will soon fall to Earth but there is very little chance that it will hit anyone.

 

The space agency does not know when or where its 20-year-old satellite will drop. It will probably be in late September but could fall in October. And it could land anywhere south of Juneau, Alaska, and north of the tip of South America. Nasa says there is only a one in 3,200 chance of satellite parts hitting someone.

 

Experts say not to worry. In the more than 50 years of the space age, no one has ever been hurt by falling space debris. The 5.4-tonne satellite was used to monitor the atmosphere. Most of it will burn up during re-entry. Only about 550kg of metal should survive.