Yearly Archives: 2011

Nov 20 2011

ARISSat-1 may de-orbit in April 2012

According to predictions from Mineo Wakita, JE9PEL, the ARISSat-1satellite is due to re-enter Earth’s atmosphere in early April 2012.

Launched from the International Space Station on August 8, the satellite is traveling in a low orbit and is steadily losing altitude. The rate of orbital decay may be accelerated by increasing atmospheric density caused by increased solar activity. With that factor in mind, some ARISSat-1 decay predictions suggest re-entry as early as February 1.

ARISSat-1 remains quite active, sending voice messages, digital telemetry and Slow Scan TV images.

Amateurs have also been able to enjoy contacts through ARISSat-1’s linear transponder despite the fact that the UHF antenna was apparently damaged prior to (or during) deployment.

Last month, AMSAT-NA announced a competition to see who can record the last bits of telemetry as ARISSat-1 makes its final plunge.

To decode the CW or BPSK telemetry you must use the ARISSATTLM software for Windows or Mac OS. The CW signal is transmitted at 145,919 MHz and the BPSK signal appears at 145,920 MHz, plus or minus Doppler.

Nov 18 2011

We had a radio contact with the ISS – an unforgettable experience!

The International Space Station

We had a radio contact with the ISS – an unforgettable experience!

On Wednesday November 9 2011, from the early morning, tension was palpable throughout the Hospital.
Finally the great day had arrived. We had been preparing since days and weeks.
At 15.18 we would contact the Astronauts on the ISS and put to them our questions.

Sascha, David, Julia, Lona, Stefano, Jose, Yll, Tobias and Laura. 9 children and youngsters prepared for this moment with ultimate care. Together with many patients of our Rehabilitation Center, they had been working hard on the universe, the planets and space travel, building models of planets and rockets, painting drawings and studying texts. They prepared questions and translated them into English. And then they trained and trained to be sure the questions would be put without stumbling when the moment was there. Continue reading →
Nov 17 2011

UHF Station on ISS Columbus module

The amateur radio station located in the Columbus module is currently operational with the UHF Ericsson FM transceiver and AX.25 packet system using the frequency of 437.550 MHz.

To utilize the the packet system, operators need to set the UNPROTO path to ARISS (the id is RS0ISS) for digi relay or they may connect to the BBS using the callsign RS0ISS-1.  The packet beacon is set for 2 minute intervals so it may not appear to be active over many parts of the world but keep listening and mind the Doppler shift (+ or – 10 kHz).

To check when the ISS is in range see the real time tracking at  http://www.issfanclub.com/ (top left).

AMSAT-UK publishes a colour A4 newsletter, OSCAR News, which is full of Amateur Satellite information. A sample edition of the newsletter can be seen at http://www.uk.amsat.org/on_193_final.pdf
Join AMSAT-UK online here http://alturl.com/avuca

Nov 16 2011

FUNcube-1 Satellite Forums

AMSAT-UK are pleased to announce a set of forums for the FUNcube-1 satellite, including operations and modes. Please do not post questions regarding the FUNube Dongle as the Yahoo! group will continue to cover this area of support for the time being.

http://forum.funcube.org.uk/

FUNcube EM in air oven at RAL July 2011

FUNcube EM in air oven at RAL July 2011

FUNcube-1 is a complete educational single 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 GB4FUN Mobile Communications Centre.

The target audience consists of primary and secondary school pupils and the FUNcubes will feature a 145 MHz telemetry beacon that will provide a strong signal for the pupils to receive. Continue reading →

Nov 16 2011

Two new videos from the Hams in Space team

 

Two new videos from the Hams in Space team

The Hams in Space team, who tour the U.S. mid-west demonstrating satellite operation to amateur radio clubs, have produced two new videos – one which introduces what Hams in Space is all about, and another on Hand Held Antennas for working the FM Amateur Radio Satellites.

Hams In Space – Introduction to What We Do. Teaching Amateur Radio Satellite

 

Hams in Space Antenna Options for HT Satellite Use

 

Thank You and 73!
Randy – KD0HKD

You can find full HD versions on
http://HamsInSpace.com

Working the FM satellites Power Point
http://purplesage.biz/resource/Sat_Radio.ppsx

Getting started on Amateur Radio Satellites PDF
http://www.uk.amsat.org/2011/05/09/
getting-started-on-amateur-radio-satellites/

Nov 15 2011

Prospero X-3 Satellite Blog

An exciting spectrogram trace is revealed in the blog about the United Kingdom’s Prospero X-3 satellite that celebrated 40 years in orbit last month.

Prospero X-3 was the UK’s first satellite to be put into orbit by a UK-built rocket, Black Arrow. The launch took place from Launch Area 5B, Woomera on October 28, 1971 and the satellite operated successfully until 1973 after which it was contacted annually until being de-activated in 1996. In September 2011 a team from the  Mullard Space Science Laboratory announced their intention to try and re-activate the satellite.

In his blog Roger J A Duthie M0RJA notes the assistance the team has received from those in the Amateur Radio community including the AMSAT-BB mailing list, Roger reports that Tony Abbey G3OVH supplied a spectrogram, with a special Doppler shift correction added, of the radio transmission he received on 137.560 MHz . The team found that in this spectrogram, there was a signal from a source with a Doppler signature exactly matching the predicted signature of Prospero!

Read the Prospero X-3 blog at http://blogs.ucl.ac.uk/prospero-satellite/

Prospero 40th Anniversary http://www.uk.amsat.org/2011/10/28/prospero-to-be-reactivated-on-137-560-mhz/

PE0SAT – Prospero http://www.pe0sat.vgnet.nl/satellite/sat-history/prospero/

AMSAT-UK publishes a colour A4 newsletter, OSCAR News, full of Amateur Satellite information. A sample edition of the newsletter can be seen at http://www.uk.amsat.org/on_193_final.pdf
Join online at http://tinyurl.com/JoinAMSAT-UK