Tag Archives: ISRO

Nov 27 2018

Amateur radio satellites launched from India November 29

Reaktor Team's Quasars and CubeSats Scientist Sissi Enestam

Reaktor Team’s Quasars and CubeSats Scientist Sissi Enestam

Satellites with Amateur Radio payloads launched from India on the ISRO PSLV-C43 mission at 0427 GMT on Thursday, November 29, 2018.

Among the satellites is the Reaktor Hello World CubeSat, callsign OH2RHW, carrying a Packet Radio Digipeater. The 437.775 MHz beacon transmitter was expected to be activated and start sending Morse code at around 1100 GMT on Thursday. The team had said the first person to record and report the beacon gets an RHW mission T-shirt.

Reaktor Hello World RF specification and TLE are available at https://reaktorspace.com/reaktor-hello-world/

The Morse code (CW) transmission from Reaktor Hello World was received and tweeted by Tetsurou Satou JA0CAW in Japan at 1150 GMT.

In response to JA0CAW’s tweet the Reaktor team responded with WOOOHOOOO!!!!

Reception of Reaktor Hello World by Tetsurou Satou JA0CAW

Reception of Reaktor Hello World by Tetsurou Satou JA0CAW

Talking to the Times of India, ISRO chair Kailasavadivoo Sivan said, “We are going to to launch HySIS at 9.59 am [IST] on November 29 from Sriharikota. Over 30 foreign satellites, including nano and mini satellites, will also be launched along with the main payload. Out of the 30 commercial satellites, 23 are from the US.”
https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/india/isro-to-launch-hyperspectral-imaging-sat-with-30-foreign-satellites-on-nov-29/articleshow/66801810.cms

The satellites with amateur radio payloads, all CubeSats, are:

3CAT1 http://www.amsatuk.me.uk/iaru/finished_detail.php?serialnum=370

FacSat-1 http://www.amsatuk.me.uk/iaru/finished_detail.php?serialnum=635

InnoSat-2 http://www.amsatuk.me.uk/iaru/finished_detail.php?serialnum=548

Reaktor Hello World https://twitter.com/RHW_Satellite/
https://reaktorspace.com/reaktor-hello-world/
http://www.amsatuk.me.uk/iaru/finished_detail.php?serialnum=503

IARU Satellite Frequency Coordination http://amsat.org.uk/iaru

Jan 13 2018

Ham radio CubeSat launch success

CNUSail-1 Credit KARI-Blog

CNUSail-1 Credit KARI-Blog

CubeSats carrying amateur radio payloads were among the 31 satellites successfully launched on January 12 at 0359 UT on the ISRO PSLV-C40 mission from Satish Dhawan Space Centre in Sriharikota, India.

Two of the CubeSats, Fox-1D and PicSat, carry amateur radio FM transponders, but neither is yet available for general amateur use. The PicSat FM transponder is unusual in that instead of a CTCSS tone it requires a 1750 Hz tone burst to activate. The 1750 Hz tone burst used to be popular on IARU Region 1 FM repeaters in the 1980s and 90s before the widespread use of CTCSS.

CNUSail-1, built by students at the Chungnam National University in Korea, carries a deployable sail. The students have requested the help of radio amateurs in receiving the 437.100 MHz 9600 bps BPSK beacon, further information is available at https://sites.google.com/view/cnuusg

JE9PEL lists these frequencies for the satellites carrying amateur radio payloads:

Fox-1D (AO-92) 145.880 down 435.350/1267.350 up FM CTCSS 67.0Hz/200bps DUV
PicSat         435.525 1200bps BPSK
CNUSail-1      437.100 9600bps BPSK
SIGMA          435.780 MHz BPSK 9600 bps
Canyval-X 1/2  437.200 9600bps MSK
KAUSAT-5       437.465/2413.000 9600bps FSK,115k2 MSK
STEP-1         437.485 9600bps FSK CW

Shankar A65CR/VU2SWG reported coping the Fox-1D satellite voice beacon on the morning pass at 30 deg elevation in Dubai using a TH-F7 with standard rubber duck. YL voice with satellite identifier. Very short burst with fluctuating carrier.

Madhu A65DE also copied Fox-1D from Fujairah, North of Dubai.

Picture taken by Fox-1D AO-92 on January 13, 2018

Picture taken by Fox-1D AO-92 on January 13, 2018

AMSAT North America has issued a statement formally designating Fox-1D as AO-92:

Fox-1D, a 1U CubeSat, is the third of AMSAT’s five Fox-1 CubeSats to reach orbit, being preceded by AO-85 (Fox-1A) and AO-91 (RadFxSat / Fox-1B). Fox-1D carries the Fox-1 U/v FM transponder, with an uplink of 435.350 MHz (67.0 Hz CTCSS) and a downlink of 145.880 MHz. In addition, Fox-1D carries several university experiments, including a MEMS gyro from Pennsylvania State University – Erie, a camera from Virginia Tech, and the University of Iowa’s HERCI (High Energy Radiation CubeSat Instrument) radiation mapping experiment. Fox-1D also carries the AMSAT L-Band Downshifter experiment which enables the FM transponder to be switched to utilize an uplink of 1267.350 MHz (67.0 Hz CTCSS).

Fox-1D was sent aloft as a secondary payload on the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO)’s PSLV-XL rocket as part of the PSLV-C40 mission. Fox-1D was one of thirty-one satellites successfully deployed on this launch.

Since Fox-1D has met all of the qualifications necessary to receive an OSCAR number, I, by the authority vested in me by the AMSAT President, do hereby confer on this satellite the designation AMSAT-OSCAR 92 or AO-92. I join amateur radio operators in the U.S. and around the world in wishing AO-92 a long and successful life in both its amateur and scientific missions.

I, along with the rest of the amateur community, congratulate all of the volunteers who worked so diligently to construct, test and prepare for launch the newest amateur radio satellite.

William A. (Bill) Tynan, W3XO
AMSAT-NA OSCAR Number Administrator

Further information on the Fox-1D launch, deployment and designation at
https://www.amsat.org/fox-1d-launched-designated-amsat-oscar-92/

Pictures taken by Fox-1D (AO-92) http://www.amsat.org/tlm/fox1d/images/

Information on PicSat is available via
https://amsat-uk.org/2018/01/10/picsat/

Report on the five Korean satellites that were launched
http://koreabizwire.com/cube-satellites-built-by-university-students-launched-into-outer-space/107445

N2YO online real-time satellite tracking http://www.n2yo.com/

AMSAT-NA online orbital predictions http://www.amsat.org/track/

Keplerian Two Line Elements (TLEs) ‘Keps’ for new satellites launched in past 30 days
http://celestrak.com/NORAD/elements/tle-new.txt

Jun 22 2016

India launches ham radio satellites

Swayam-1 CubeSat Flight Model - Credit COEP

Swayam-1 CubeSat Flight Model – Credit COEP

On June 22, 2016 the Indian Space Agency ISRO successfully launched several satellites carrying amateur radio payloads.

The CSAT Swayam satellite was one of those launched. The 1U CubeSat carries a digital store and forward messaging system for use by the amateur radio community.

Rupesh Lad VU2LRD / VU2COE from the College of Engineering Pune CSAT Team says:

“We are eagerly waiting for your reception report of CW Morse Beacon at 437.025 MHz. You can also get the decoded Beacon Data by entering beacon in Swayam Beacon Decoder available on our website.”

The post launch TLEs for tracking the satellite are at http://www.coep.org.in/csat

Download the COEP Swayam Leaflet PDF

Frequencies of other satellites on the launch
https://amsat-uk.org/2016/05/25/amateur-satellite-launch-from-india/

Spaceflight Now story https://www.nasaspaceflight.com/2016/06/pslv-xl-launch-20-satellites/

May 25 2016

Amateur satellite launch from India

Swayam-1 CubeSat Flight Model - Credit COEP

Swayam-1 CubeSat Flight Model – Credit COEP

Mineo Wakita JE9PEL reports on the Indian ISRO PSLV-C34 amateur radio satellite launch planned for June 22, 2016 at 0355 UT into a 500 km 98 degree inclination orbit.

Main Payload, Cartosat-2C, Earth Observing
PSLV-XL(C-34), Satish Dharwan Space Centre, Sriharikota, India

Satellite      Uplink    Downlink  Beacon    Mode
------------  -------  --------  -------  ---------------
BEESAT-4         .      435.950  435.950  4800bps GMSK,CW
BIROS            .      437.525     .     4800bps GMSK
LAPAN-A3      435.880   145.880  145.825  FM,APRS
Max Valier       .      145.860  145.960  CW
Sathyabamasat    .      145.980     .     2400bps BPSK
Swayam COEP      .      437.025  437.025  1200bps BPSK,CW
Venta-1          .         .     437.325  CW
------------  -------  --------  -------  ---------------

http://www.ne.jp/asahi/hamradio/je9pel/be4lapan.htm

Among the satellites being launched is Swayam-1 developed by students at the College of Engineering Pune (COEP). It will provide a text messaging facility using the COEPSAT protocol.
http://amsatindia.org/coep-satellite-swayam-project/
http://www.coep.org.in/csat/track-swayam/

UPDATE: Yono YD0NXX reports the Indonesian built LAPAN-A3 does not have an amateur radio payload.

Feb 22 2013

STRaND-1 smartphone CubeSat mounted on PSLV rocket

Panoramic view of SARAL and smaller satellites including STRaND-1 attached to the PSLV C20 - Image credit ISRO

Panoramic view of SARAL and smaller satellites including STRaND-1 attached to the PSLV C20 – Image credit ISRO

The STRaND-1 build and test phase took just 3 months

The STRaND-1 build and test phase took just 3 months

The launch rehearsal of PSLV-C20 with the primary satellite SARAL and six other satellites has been completed satisfactorily at SDSC SHAR, Sriharikota. Mission Readiness Review and meeting of Launch Authorisation Board are scheduled on Feb 22, 2013.

STRaND-1 is a joint mission between Surrey Space Centre at University of Surrey and Surrey Satellite Technology Ltd (SSTL). There will be an amateur radio AX.25 packet radio 9k6 bps downlink on 437.568 MHz and the launch is expected to take place on Feb 25.

STRaND-1 information and videos http://www.amsat-uk.org/?page_id=12196

STRaND-1 telemetry format http://www.amsat-uk.org/?page_id=12875

Other satellites on the same launch http://www.amsat-uk.org/?p=12180

ISRO PSLV-C20 status http://www.isro.org/pslv-c20/c20-status.aspx

Feb 7 2013

ISRO plans SARAL and Amateur Radio satellites launch for February 25

AAUSAT3 Flight Model and Engineering Model - Image credit Aalborg University

AAUSAT3 Flight Model and Engineering Model – Image credit Aalborg University

The Hindu newspaper reports that the first launch of the year by the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) will be the PSLV-CA (PSLV-C20). It will carry the ocean study spacecraft SARAL as well as satellites carrying amateur radio payloads. The launch into a 785 km orbit is currently planned to take place on February 25.

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