Tag Archives: Amateur Radio

Dec 19 2013

Announcing: The UK CubeSat Forum

uk-space-agency-logo-rgb-121v2.ashxAs a result of recommendations from the January 2013 UK CubeSat Workshop, members of the UK CubeSat community have established a forum to provide an independent, community led discussion and networking platform for UK nanosatellite or CubeSat stakeholders.

The organising committee, which the UK Space Agency also sits on, invites all individuals with an interest in nanosatellite or CubeSat activities to read the forum’s Charter and, if interested in becoming an active member, register at http://www.cubesatforum.org.uk/ to participate in the forum.

As well as building stronger links throughout the CubeSat community, the independent forum aims to be the primary interface for the UK Space Agency to seek the community’s views on matters such as Outer Space Act (OSA) reform, and what its future CubeSat initiatives should look like.

UKube-1 on display at UK Space Conference in Glasgow

UKube-1 model on display at UK Space Conference in Glasgow – Credit G3VZV

Best regards
Ryan King
Space Science Assistant Programme Manager

UK SPACE AGENCY
Polaris House, North Star Avenue, Swindon SN2 1SZ
Tel 01793 41 8090
Mob 07826921986
Web http://www.bis.gov.uk/ukspaceagency
Twitter http://twitter.com/spacegovuk
Youtube http://www.youtube.com/user/spacegovuk
An executive agency for the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills (BIS).

Artists impression of UKube-1 in orbit

Artists impression of UKube-1 in orbit – Credit Clyde Space

Aspirations following UKube-1

The UK CubeSat Forum are seeking thoughts on the future format of the UK Space Agency CubeSat programme (aka UKube). Specifically, we are interested in thoughts regarding the mission applications, budget, timelines, and competitiveness in the market.

For example, should CubeSats stay within the education and training sphere or should the UK compete with NASA-style missions: e.g. EDSN (a network of CubeSats)?

Can we progress science further for example into MEO or GEO to investigate radiation belts or focus on industrial problems – e.g. cheaper platforms towards real navigation and Earth observation applications like PlanetLabs‘ Flock?

Should the UK implement a similar programme to the NASA CubeSat Initiative where government funds the launch of prebuilt CubeSats? Or should we focus on funding full missions?

Dec 19 2013

11th birthday of ham radio satellite SO-50

Saudisat SO-50

Saudisat SO-50

December 20, 2013 will be the 11th birthday of the amateur radio satellite SO-50.

Now known as SO-50, Saudisat 1C is a Saudi Arabian satellite about 25 cm cubed that was launched by a Dnepr rocket from Baikonur in Kazakhstan at 17:00 UT on December 20, 2002. SO-50 features a “Mode J” FM amateur repeater operating on a 145.850 MHz uplink and a 436.795 MHz (+/- 9 kHz Doppler shift) downlink.

“Most hams already own the necessary equipment to work SO-50,” reports Clint Bradford, K6LCS, who maintains a Web site work-sat.com devoted to working amateur satellites with minimal equipment.

“It is preferable to work SO-50 in true, full-duplex mode – so you can hear the downlink as you transmit. This means – for most – using a second radio or the Kenwood TH-D72A and its true full-duplex capability. The new Puxing PX-UV973 is currently being tested in this mode, too, to see how it works on the satellites.”

SO-50’s repeater is available to amateurs worldwide, and it uses a 67.0 Hz CTCSS (PL) tone on the uplink. SO-50 also has a 10 minute timer that must be armed before use. If you know the satellite is there – but there is nothing heard – you may need to shoot it a CTCSS (PL) tone of 74.4 Hz to turn it ON!

The repeater consists of a miniature VHF receiver with sensitivity of -124 dBm, with an IF bandwidth of 15 kHz. The receive antenna is a 1/4 wave vertical mounted in the top corner of the spacecraft. Its UHF transmitter is a mere 250 mW, and downlink antenna is a 1/4 wave mounted in the bottom corner of the spacecraft and canted at 45 degrees inward.

“Hams just with Technician licenses [or UK Foundation] can work the satellite,” Clint continues. “We are talking about weak signals from 500 miles away – so improving both your TX and RX antennas is critical for success on this satellite.” Plans for making tape measure beams and other inexpensive, high-gain antennas is also on his Web site.

“Do not forget to accommodate for the Doppler shift (+/-9 kHz) on the 436 MHz receive side.”

Complete details – including frequency chart and sources for knowing when the satellite will be over your area, are also on Clint’s Web site.

Work-Sat http://www.work-sat.com/

Watch a video of Simon 2E0HTS working via SO-50 at
https://amsat-uk.org/beginners/how-to-work-a-fm-satellite/

Satellite Tracking https://amsat-uk.org/beginners/satellite-tracking/

Dec 18 2013

How high-altitude balloon missions stay on track

Mark and Cassie with their STRATODEAN High Altitude Balloon

Mark and Cassie with their STRATODEAN High Altitude Balloon

In The Register Lester Haines interviews radio amateur Daniel Richman M0ZDR (ex-M6DRX) about the impressive Cambridge University Space Flight (CUSF) Landing Predictor.

Rob Anderson wrote the original landing predictor for High Altitude Balloons in 2008. Since then it’s been continually updated to improve performance, and now offers anyone wanting to send a balloon aloft the chance of seeing very quickly indeed just where it’ll burst and where they should head to recover their precious load.

Others who’ve worked on the predictor in the past five years are Fergus Noble M0NBL, Ed Moore M0TEK, Jon Sowman M0JSN and Adam Greig M0RND.

Read Fair winds and following servers: The art of flight prediction
http://www.theregister.co.uk/2013/12/18/lohan_flight_prediction/

CUSF Landing Predictor http://predict.habhub.org/

Daniel then M6DRX was one of three pupils at the Reading School who in 2010 built the Alien-1 high altitude balloon http://www.southgatearc.org/news/may2010/alien_1_launch.htm

To get up-to-date information on balloon flights subscribe to the UKHAS Mailing List by sending a blank email to this address: ukhas+subscribe@googlegroups.com

Dec 17 2013

Yasny Dnepr Satellite ID’s

Dnepr Launch November 21, 2013 - Credit ISC Kosmotras

Dnepr Launch November 21, 2013 – Credit ISC Kosmotras

On the AMSAT Bulletin Board (AMSAT-BB) Nico Janssen PA0DLO has posted a summary of the presently known IDs for the satellites that were launched on the Yasny Dnepr on November 21.

Further Doppler measurements show that TshepisoSat (aka ZACube-1) is object 39417 (2013-066B) and AMSAT-OSCAR-73 (aka FUNCube 1) is object 39444 (2013-066AE). Therefore HiNCube must be object 39445 (2013-066AF).

It is not easy to get a good Doppler curve with many CubeSats because of the limited transmissions and because of the frequency drift of their beacon transmitters.

These object IDs from the Dnepr launch seem to be correct, although some still need to be confirmed (tbc):

39416 2013-066A  Aprizesat 7
39417 2013-066B  TshepisoSat
39418 2013-066C  Skysat 1
39419 2013-066D  Dubaisat 2
39421 2013-066F  Unisat 5
39422 2013-066G  STSat 3
39423 2013-066H  WNISat 1
39425 2013-066K  Aprizesat 8
39427 2013-066M  Triton 1
39428 2013-066N  Delfi-n3Xt
39429 2013-066P  Dove 3
39430 2013-066Q  GomX 1
39431 2013-066R  BRITE-PL
39433 2013-066T  HumSat D
39436 2013-066W  Eagle 2 ($50Sat) (tbc)
39438 2013-066Y  Velox PII (tbc)
39439 2013-066Z  First-MOVE (tbc)
39440 2013-066AA CubeBug 2 (tbc)
39444 2013-066AE AMSAT-OSCAR 73
39445 2013-066AF HiNCube
39446 2013-066AG UWE 3 (tbc)

73,
Nico PA0DLO

The FUNcube-1 team are currently using object 2013-066AE as the best fit for FUNcube-1 (AO-73) and the latest TLEs have just been updated at: http://funcubetest2.wordpress.com/working-documents/latest-two-line-elements/

Satellite TLE Challenge Begins https://amsat-uk.org/2013/11/23/tle-challenge-begins/

AMSAT Bulletin Board (AMSAT-BB) http://www.amsat.org/amsat-new/tools/maillist/

Dec 16 2013

CAPE-2 spoke with the voice of Darth Vader!

CAPE-2 CubeSat - University of Louisiana

CAPE-2 CubeSat – University of Louisiana

Roland PY4ZBZ reports that the CAPE-2 amateur radio CubeSat responded to a “Send Text to Speech” command with “Hello P Y 4 Z B Z” in the voice of Darth Vader.

Listen to the recording at
http://tinyurl.com/PY4ZBZ-Cape-2-Darth-Vader

AMSAT Bulletin Board (AMSAT-BB)
http://www.amsat.org/amsat-new/tools/maillist/

Dec 16 2013

Young radio hams at Fontana school anticipate ISS link

International Space Station ISS with shuttle Endeavour 2011-05-23

Ten year-old radio amateurs Maribel Laguna KK6IGY and Laisha Vergara KK6HZH hope to link up with the International Space Station next year.

The San Bernardino Sun newspaper reports both are students at the Dorothy Grant Elementary School in Fontana. The school has a popular amateur radio club with nearly 50 members which was founded by teacher Beverly Matheson KJ6RSX.

Beverly said originally she looked at the club as a platform to get students interested in cultures in other lands.

Using the club’s high frequency radio and portable antenna, students set up outside the classroom and take down after their weekly meetings — students have made contact with amateur radio operators such diverse places as Hungary, Maldovia, Japan and the Falkland Islands.

But now Beverly said she wants to personally, and with her students, delve more into science with ham radio as a platform for a STEM program at the school.

Along those lines, next year — before the end of school — the Grant Elementary School Amateur Radio Club will be talking with astronauts aboard the International Space Station.

Read the full San Bernardino Sun story at
http://www.sbsun.com/media/20131213/young-radio-amateurs-at-fontana-school-anticipate-space-station-link

48 students sat their amateur license exam on November 7, 2013
http://www.k3lp.com/dges_field_day_3.htm