Tag Archives: FUNcube

Oct 17 2013

FUNcube-1 has arrived in Russia

The vital FUNcube-1 Add Before Flight (ABF) plug

The vital FUNcube-1 Add Before Flight (ABF) plug

The amateur radio FUNcube-1 CubeSat has arrived in Russia and is now en-route to the Dombarovsky launch site near Yasny.

A few small CubeSats in a large case being loaded into a special cargo hold

A few small CubeSats in a large case being loaded into a special cargo hold

It was flown on a special flight from Rotterdam on Wednesday, October 16 and cleared Russian customs on Thursday,, October 17. Another flight took it to Orsk from where it had a road trip of several hours before arriving at the launch integration facility at Yasny.

The only work that still needs to be completed before launch is a final battery charge up to 7.68 volts,  this is the best storage voltage this type of battery, and the final ABF “Add Before Flight” plug needs to be installed and glued in place.

This work will be done on site by Gerard Aalbers who has been a member of the FUNcube team from the beginning of the project.

FUNcube-1 communication subsystem:
• 300 mW Inverting linear transponder for SSB and CW
– Uplink      435.150 – 435.130 MHz
– Downlink  145.950 – 145.970 MHz
• 300 mW BPSK Telemetry  145.935 MHz (30 mW output when transponder active)

AMSAT-UK FUNcube Mission Patch Rev4 20100609

AMSAT-UK FUNcube Mission Patch

The Yasny Dnepr launch will carry more than ten spacecraft using the amateur satellite service and one of them, UniSat-5, will, itself, later deploy up to nine CubeSats and PocketQubes so there should be plenty of new signals to listen for after this launch.

Italian Microsat to Deploy Amateur Radio Satellites
https://amsat-uk.org/2012/05/25/italian-microsat-to-deploy-six-amateur-radio-satellites/

Battery Charger for FUNcube-1 https://amsat-uk.org/2012/05/25/italian-microsat-to-deploy-amateur-radio-satellites/

FUNcube Yahoo Group https://amsat-uk.org/funcube/yahoo-group/

Oct 16 2013

FUNcube-1 has left the cleanroom

FUNcube-1 flight model - Image credit Wouter Weggelaar PA3WEG

FUNcube-1 flight model – Image credit Wouter Weggelaar PA3WEG

The exciting news is that FUNcube-1 CubeSat is now en-route to the Yasny launch site.

It was flown on a special flight from Rotterdam yesterday and it cleared through Russian customs this morning.

Well before the launch date, Dashboard software, to decode and display the telemetry, will be made available for download, this will function on any windows pc or laptop using either a Dongle or a 2 metre SSB capable receiver. Additionally a set of pre-launch keps will also be distributed.

This launch is expected to carry more than ten spacecraft using the amateur satellite service and one of them will, itself, later deploy up to nine CubeSats and PocketQubes so there should be plenty of new signals to listen for after this launch.

More info about FUNcube and some pictures can be seen here www.funcube.org.uk

Oct 10 2013

AMSAT-UK FUNcube-1 Presentation on Saturday

FUNcube-1 flight model - Image credit Wouter Weggelaar PA3WEG

FUNcube-1 flight model – Image credit Wouter Weggelaar PA3WEG

Dave Johnson G4DPZ will be giving a presentation on the amateur radio AMSAT-UK FUNcube-1 and UK Space Agency (UKSA) UKube-1 satellites to the RSGB Convention on Saturday.

The presentation will take place from 16:45-17:30 in the Cook 2 room at Horwood House, MK17 0PH on Saturday, October 12.

FUNcube-1 carries a 435/145 linear transponder for SSB and CW communications and an educational telemetry beacon using 1k2 BPSK for school outreach purposes.

Ukube-1 carries a set of AMSAT-UK FUNcube boards that will provide an additional 435/145 MHz linear transponder and educational telemetry beacon.

UKube-1 on display at UK Space Conference in Glasgow

UKube-1 on display at UK Space Conference in Glasgow

The current launch information has lift off for FUNcube-1 scheduled for late November and UKube-1 on February 20.

FUNcube-1 communication subsystem:
• 300 mW Inverting linear transponder for SSB and CW
– Uplink      435.150 – 435.130 MHz
– Downlink  145.950 – 145.970 MHz
• 300 mW BPSK Telemetry  145.935 MHz (30 mW when transponder active)

UKube-1 communications subsystem:
• Telemetry downlink 145.840 MHz,
• FUNcube subsystem beacon 145.915 MHz
• 400 mW Inverting linear transponder for SSB and CW
– Uplink     435.080 -435.060 MHz
– Downlink 145.930 -145.950 MHz
• S Band downlink 2401.0 MHz
• myPocketQub 437.425-437.525 MHz

The RSGB’s Centenary Convention, sponsored by Martin Lynch & Sons, takes place this weekend (Fri eve-Sun) October 11-13 at Horwood House, MK17 0PH just a few miles outside Milton Keynes. Tickets are available on the door.

RSGB Convention Schedule
http://rsgb.org/main/blog/news/rsgb-notices/2013/09/10/centenary-convention-2013-programme/

RSGB Centenary Convention
http://rsgb.org/main/blog/news/rsgb-notices/2013/07/10/rsgb-centenary-convention/

FUNcube Yahoo Group
https://amsat-uk.org/funcube/yahoo-group/

Oct 1 2013

February Launch for UKube-1 ?

UKube-1 on display at UK Space Conference in Glasgow

UKube-1 on display at UK Space Conference in Glasgow

Dmitry Pashkov UB4UAD reports that the launch of Soyuz-2-1B/Fregat-M from Baikonur in Kazakhstan has been postponed until February 20, 2014.

The Soyuz should carry Meteor-M number 2, MCA-PN2 (Relek), M3MSat, UKube-1, SkySat-2, TechDemoSat-1, AISSat-2, DX-1.

UKube-1, built by Clyde Space, is the UK Space Agency’s first CubeSat and carries a set of AMSAT-UK FUNcube boards to provide a 435/145 MHz linear transponder for SSB/CW communications and 1200 bps BPSK telemetry beacon.

TechDemoSat-1 was developed by the UK company SSTL.

Read the report by Dmitry Pashkov UB4UAD at http://ub4uad.ru/?p=1445 or in Google English at http://tinyurl.com/nzc5tdk

UKube-1 CubeSat Payload Animation https://amsat-uk.org/2013/02/01/ukube-1-cubesat-payload-animation/

FUNcube Yahoo Group https://amsat-uk.org/funcube/yahoo-group/

Sep 7 2013

Video: Loading the ISILaunch03 ISIPOD with ham radio CubeSats

ZACUBE-1, FUNcube-1 and HinCube in the pod

ZACUBE-1, FUNcube-1 and HinCube in the pod

Wouter Weggelaar PA3WEG has released a HD video showing the loading of three CubeSats, ZACUBE-1, FUNcube-1 and HiNcube, into their ISIPOD deployer in the ISIS clean room in Delft, The Netherlands.

This 3U ISIPOD is shared between three teams. First in is ZACUBE-1, second is FUNcube-1, and last in is HiNcube. The material was shot by Leon Steenkamp of the ZAcube-1 team, and kindly provided to me.

The stills are shot by Gerard Aalbers of the FUNcube-1 team, and Charl Jooste of the ZACUBE-1 team.

Watch Loading the ISILaunch03 ISIPOD with ZACUBE-1, FUNcube-1 and HiNcube

FUNcube-1 is in its Pod https://amsat-uk.org/2013/09/04/funcube-1-is-in-its-pod/

Sep 4 2013

FUNcube-1 is in its Pod

ZACUBE-1, FUNcube-1 and HiNCube in the pod - Image credit Wouter Weggelaar PA3WEG

ZACUBE-1, FUNcube-1 and HiNCube in the pod – Image credit Wouter Weggelaar PA3WEG

The AMSAT FUNcube team are delighted to be able to announce that the FUNcube-1 CubeSat has now completed all its final testing and been placed into its launch POD.

This work was completed during a three day programme at the premises of ISIS BV in Delft in the Netherlands and was finished, on time, late Wednesday afternoon on September 4, 2013.

FUNcube-1 is actually the middle 1U CubeSat of three sharing a 3U ISIPOD.  It is sharing the ISIPOD with ZACUBE-1 from South Africa  and HiNCube from Norway.

ZACUBE-1 prior to being shipped to the Netherlands

ZACUBE-1 prior to being shipped to the Netherlands

ZACube-1, in addition to carrying VHF and UHF communications equipment also has a 20 metre beacon which will operate on 14.099 MHz  This ISIPOD, with the spacecraft inside, will be transported to Russia, early next month, for launch and will eventually be attached directly to the launch vehicle.

FUNcube-1 carries a U/V linear transponder and the educational telemetry beacon using 1k2 BPSK for school outreach purposes.

The current launch information has lift off scheduled for late November.

Full initial orbit details and TLE’s, together with decoding software will be made available over the next few weeks.

ZACUBE-1 HF beacon antenna deployment unit - Image credit CPUT

ZACUBE-1 HF beacon antenna deployment unit – Image credit CPUT

FUNcube-1 communication subsystem:
• 300 mW Inverting linear transponder for SSB and CW
– Uplink      435.150 – 435.130 MHz
– Downlink  145.950 – 145.970 MHz
• 300 mW BPSK Telemetry  145.935 MHz

ZACUBE-1 https://amsat-uk.org/2012/08/25/14099-khz-cput-cubesat-to-launch-end-of-november/

HiNCube http://www.hincube.com/

A recent presentation about the FUNcube project by Graham Shirville G3VZV and Wouter Weggelaar PA3WEG can be viewed online at http://www.batc.tv/streams/amsat1311 or downloaded from http://www.batc.tv/vod/Funcube1.flv

AMSAT-UK FUNcube Mission Patch Rev4 20100609

AMSAT-UK FUNcube Mission Patch

A PDF of the slides from that presentation is here FUNcube_Colloquium2013a

FUNcube information sheets:
•  FUNcube_Project Information_aug2013
•  FUNcube_Educational_Outreach aug2013

FUNcube-1 https://amsat-uk.org/funcube/funcube-cubesat/

FUNcube Yahoo Group https://amsat-uk.org/funcube/yahoo-group/

FUNcube website http://www.funcube.org.uk/

Some of the other satellites that may be on the same Dnepr launch vehicle are listed at https://amsat-uk.org/2013/08/22/dnepr-cubesat-launch/

AMSAT-UK on Facebook https://www.facebook.com/pages/AMSAT-UK/208113275898396
AMSAT-UK on Twitter https://twitter.com/AmsatUK

Join AMSAT-UK http://shop.amsat.org.uk/shop/category_9/Join-Amsat-UK.html

Final gluing of FUNcube-1 bolt by Wouter Weggelaar PA3WEG – Image credit Gerard Aalbers

Final gluing of FUNcube-1 bolt by Wouter Weggelaar PA3WEG – Image credit Gerard Aalbers