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[jamsat-news:1236] ANS 065
AMSAT NEWS SERVICE
ANS 065
ANS is a free, weekly, news and information service of AMSAT North
America, the Radio Amateur Satellite Corporation. ANS reports on the
activities of a worldwide group of Amateur Radio operators who share an
active interest in designing, building, launching and communicating
through analog and digital Amateur Radio satellites.
AMSAT-NA is pleased to announce that recent and future development
in Amateur Radio satellites will be presented in Portland, Maine
- October 27-29, 2000 - at the 18th Space Symposium and
AMSAT-NA Annual Meeting. More information is available at:
http://www.amsat.org/amsat/sympos00.html
Information on AMSAT-NA is available at the following URL:
http://www.amsat.org
(or)
AMSAT-NA
850 Sligo Avenue, Suite 600
Silver Spring, Maryland
20910-4703
Voice: 301-589-6062
FAX: 301-608-3410
Currently, AMSAT-NA supports the following (free) mailing lists:
* AMSAT News Service (ANS)
* General satellite discussion (AMSAT-BB)
* Orbit data (KEPS)
* Manned space missions (SAREX)
* District of Columbia area (AMSAT-DC)
* New England area (AMSAT-NE)
* AMSAT Educational Liaison mailing list (AMSAT-EDU)
To subscribe, or for more list information, visit the following URL:
http://www.amsat.org/amsat/listserv/menu.html
This edition of ANS is dedicated to the memory of Harry Mead,
VK4DHM, of Queensland, Australia, who died recently after a period
of declining health. A member and supporter of the Oceania DX Group,
VK4DHM made several DXpeditions throughout the Pacific. ODXG
President Bill Horner, VK4FW, says Mead's ashes were scattered into
the Pacific Ocean on New Year's Day.
SB SAT @ AMSAT $ANS-065.01
PHASE 3D TENTATIVE LAUNCH
AMSAT NEWS SERVICE BULLETIN 065.01 FROM AMSAT HQ
SILVER SPRING, MD, MARCH 05, 2000
TO ALL RADIO AMATEURS
BID: $ANS-065.01
AMSAT-DL's Peter Guelzow, DB2OS, broke the exciting Phase 3D news
on February 29th, telling the Amateur Radio satellite community (via the
AMSAT BB) that "it's official" -- the Phase 3D next-generation Amateur
Radio satellite has been tentatively scheduled for launch in late July!
The launch information is included in the Provisional Ariane Launch
Manifest for February through July of this year. The manifest appears
in the February edition of the Arianespace newsletter. The ARRL reports
that if the schedule holds, the Phase 3D satellite would be sent aloft on
Ariane 507, flight V132.
AMSAT-NA President Keith Baker, KB1SF, was delighted with the news,
"slowly but surely, Phase 3-D is moving ever closer to a launch. To
finally see it listed on a launch manifest is a major milestone. Needless
to say, we're most grateful for all the outstanding support we've been
getting from the fine people at Arianespace!" Former AMSAT-NA
President Bill Tynan, W3XO, echoed the statements, adding, "the
recent news that Phase 3D has been designated for launch on
AR-507 was indeed gratifying to all who have waited so long to hear
such tidings. As the President of AMSAT-NA during much of the time the
spacecraft was being constructed at our Orlando facility, I am especially
pleased that the hard work of so many, for so long, is now coming to
fruition. I look forward to meeting many of my friends on Phase 3D once
it becomes operational."
The Arianespace manifest identifies the other possible payloads aboard
flight 507 as the PAS-1R (Europe Star) package and the STRV-1C/1D
package.
A launch contract accepting Phase 3D as a payload for the first suitable
Ariane 5 launch vehicle was signed last October. The satellite is now at
the European Spaceport in Kourou, French Guiana.
More information about the launch can be found at:
http://www.arianespace.com/news_espace.html
[ANS thanks AMSAT-NA President Keith Baker, Bill Tynan, W3XO,
and the ARRL for this information]
/EX
SB SAT @ AMSAT $ANS-065.02
CLIPPERTON ISLAND DXPEDITION
AMSAT NEWS SERVICE BULLETIN 065.02 FROM AMSAT HQ
SILVER SPRING, MD, MARCH 05, 2000
TO ALL RADIO AMATEURS
BID: $ANS-065.02
The FO0AAA DXpedition to Clipperton Island is on the air and although
high frequency operation will be the mainstay -- satellite operation will
also be featured. Clipperton Island, a French possession, is located
some 1600 miles south-southeast of San Diego, California and about
the same distance west of Nicaragua. Clipperton is number 36 on the
1999 DXCC Most Wanted List.
Operating from the southwest side of the island, the Clipperton team is
running multiple stations on HF through 6 meters and are equipped to
have three CW, three SSB and one full-time RTTY position on the air
at all times. The team is also planning to use the following satellites -
AO-10, RS-13, UO-14, AO-27 and SO-35.
Operation is scheduled to continue through March 9th.
QSL's for FO0AAA should be sent to N7CQQ.
For more information, visit the Clipperton 2000 DXpedition Web Site at:
http://www.qsl.net/clipperton2000
[ANS thanks the ARRL for this information]
/EX
SB SAT @ AMSAT $ANS-065.03
AMRAD CALL FOR PAPERS
HR AMSAT NEWS SERVICE BULLETIN 065.03 FROM AMSAT HQ
SILVER SPRING, MD, MARCH 05, 2000
TO ALL RADIO AMATEURS
BID: $ANS-065.03
The Amateur Radio Research and Development Corporation (AMRAD)
has issued a call for papers for its upcoming gathering in mid-June.
Papers for the June 17th AMRAD Technical Symposium are welcome
on current, future, and retrospective Amateur Radio and related
telecommunications technology.
The Symposium will be held Falls Church, Virginia.
Subjects of interest include:
* low frequency transmitting and receiving
* digital signal processing and software-defined radios
* multimedia convergence of digital voice, image and data
* packet radio, Internet interconnection and spread spectrum
* small Amateur Radio satellites (AMRAD-OSCAR-27 and beyond)
* the Amateur Packet Reporting System (APRS)
* telecommunications for the disabled
* microwaves and millimeter waves
The deadline to submit papers is May 27th. Papers should be in
Microsoft Word or WordPerfect and should be sent to George
Lemaster, WB5OYP, at the following e-mail address:
lemaster@pressroom.com
Proceedings will be published. For more information on the AMRAD
gathering, contact Paul Rinaldo, W4RI, at:
w4ri@amrad.org
[ANS thanks AMRAD and the ARRL for this information]
/EX
SB SAT @ AMSAT $ANS-065.04
ANS IN BRIEF
HR AMSAT NEWS SERVICE BULLETIN 065.04 FROM AMSAT HQ
SILVER SPRING, MD, MARCH 05, 2000
TO ALL RADIO AMATEURS
BID: $ANS-065.04
ANS news in brief this week includes the following:
** Cruising toward its arrival at Jupiter next December, the Cassini
spacecraft passed in the vicinity of minor planet 2685 Masursky recently
and took a series of snapshots. According to Cassini's imaging team, the
little asteroid has a diameter of about 15 to 20 km. The asteroid was
named for renowned planetary geologist Harold Masursky (1923-90).
-S&T
** AMSAT-NA Journal Editor Russ Tillman, K5NRK, tells ANS the
following articles are planned for the March/April issue - 'Phase 3D
Travels to South America' by Peter Guelzow, DB2OS; 'Bare Bones
L-Band Uplinks' by Mike Honer, W1BFN; the 'Launch of JAWSAT' by
Cliff Buttschardt, K7RR, and 'Working Digital Satellites from Antarctica'
by Ron Ross, KE6JAB. AMSAT-NA membership includes the Journal!
-ANS
** A large naked-eye sunspot group appeared on the Sun recently and
will gradually rotate out of the view during the next few days. It and other
spots have been spewing gas and charged particle out into space
recently, instigating modest alerts for possible geomagnetic activity.
According to Cary Oler of the Solar Terrestrial Dispatch "there is
considerable uncertainty concerning potential impact that the mass
ejections observed might have on the Earth. Space weather forecasters
are suggesting mostly active conditions may be observed, but with a
possibility of minor to major geomagnetic storming." -S&T
** Florida Today is reporting that the currently unmanned Russian space
station Mir is in the news again, with at least two rich Americans who
want to turn Mir into a commercial platform that could do space
business, accommodate millionaire tourists on vacation flings, or even
serve as a moviemaking studio. -Florida Today
** The Cowley County Kansas Amateur Radio Club has a VHF/AMSAT
Satellite net on Sunday evenings (8:00pm local) on the 145.190 MHz
WA0JBW repeater. Rebroadcasting of the net takes place on the
Internet along with a live chat room. More information is available at
http://www.maincom.com/roundtable/index2.htm. Bill, W0OQC, does the
Internet feed and takes checkins, NCS is Ron, N5SMJ. -Greg, N0ZHE
** It has been 13 years since the brightest supernova in centuries
appeared in the Large Magellanic Cloud. The expanding debris of
Supernova 1987A has been fading ever since, but astronomers have
been anticipating a resurgence, as the outflowing gas collides with a ring
of material believed to have been ejected 20,000 years before the
original star exploded. In 1997, a bright knot appeared on the ring,
indicating that the shock wave had arrived. Images taken by the Hubble
telescope recently have revealed more hot spots. Peter Garnavich from
the University of Notre Dame believes "the real fireworks show is finally
starting, and over the next 10 years things will get spectacular."
Astronomers expect the supernova remnant to become strong source of
radio and X-ray emission. -S&T
--ANS BULLETIN END---
/EX
SB SAT @ AMSAT $ANS-065.05
WEEKLY SATELLITE REPORT PART 1
AMSAT NEWS SERVICE BULLETIN 065.05 FROM AMSAT HQ
SILVER SPRING, MD, MARCH 05, 2000
TO ALL RADIO AMATEURS BT
BID: $ANS-065.05
RADIO SPORT RS-13
Uplink 21.260 to 21.300 MHz CW/SSB
Uplink 145.960 to 146.000 MHz CW/SSB
Downlink 29.460 to 29.500 MHz CW/SSB
Downlink 145.960 to 146.000 MHz CW/SSB
Beacon 29.458 MHz
Robot Uplink 145.840 MHz
Robot Downlink 29.504 MHz
Operational, in mode-KA with a 10-meter downlink
and a 15-meter and 2-meter uplink.
Kevin, AC5DK, reported "the shock of his satellite career" when
after a stateside QSO during a pass of RS-13, he heard OK1DIG
calling with a 559 signal. Both Dan and Kevin reported some flutter,
but signals were strong through the bird. This was AC5DK's first
over the horizon QSO!
AC5DK's RS-12/13 Satellite Operators Page:
http://www.qsl.net/ac5dk/rs1213/rs1213.html
RADIO SPORT RS-15
Uplink 145.858 to 145.898 MHz CW/SSB
Downlink 29.354 to 29.394 MHz CW/SSB
Beacon 29.352 MHz (intermittent)
SSB meeting frequency 29.380 MHz (unofficial)
Semi-operational, mode-A, using a 2-meter uplink and a
10-meter downlink.
Mike, N1JEZ, reports RS-15 is in a "real funky" mode. Mike says the
beacon is active, but it's an unmodulated carrier on for 5 seconds, then
off for 2 seconds, continually repeating the cycle. The transponder is
only active when the beacon is on! Despite this Mike reports downlink
signals were S-3 to S-5.
Dave, WB6LLO, has operating information for both RS-15 and RS-13
on his web site. In addition to satellite data, antenna information for
mode-A operation is also featured. The WB6LLO web site URL is:
http://home.san.rr.com/doguimont/uploads
OSCAR 10 AO-10
Uplink 435.030 to 435.180 MHz CW/LSB
Downlink 145.975 to 145.825 MHz CW/USB
Beacon 145.810 MHz (unmodulated carrier)
Semi-operational, mode-B. AO-10 has been locked into a 70-cm uplink
and a 2-meter downlink for several years.
DX continues to be worked (and heard) on AO-10. Eddie, DU1EV, has
been active. Jeff, K7XQ, worked AO-10 using his mobile station,
reporting contacts with W6VPH and KB8VAO. The antennas were both
single band loops mounted on his vehicle. He also worked XE2YVW,
VE6EGN, N6KMR, K5OE, K6YK on AO-27 using the same setup.
W4SM has more information about the satellite at the following URL:
http://www.cstone.net/~w4sm/AO-10.html
[ANS thanks Stacey Mills, W4SM, for his AO-10 status information and
web site]
AMRAD AO-27
Uplink 145.850 MHz FM
Downlink 436.795 MHz FM
Operational, mode J.
Tony, W7EWC, tells ANS he plans to be active on AO-27 from the
Bahamas as W7EWC/C6A during the entire month of March. John,
KD7DEZ, will be portable (March 11-12th) from (CN78) Cape Alava,
Washington (the most western point of the contiguous United States).
He will be hiking and camping with a Boy Scout Troop and will attempt
contacts on AO-27, SO-35 and UO-14. Al, XE2YVW, recently operated
from DL70 and DL90.
An AO-27 question-and-answer page is available on the AMSAT-NA
web site. The URL is:
http://www.amsat.org/amsat/intro/ao27faq.html
AO-27 uses a method called Timed Eclipse Power Regulation (TEPR)
to regulate the on-board batteries. In simple terms, TEPR times how
long the satellite has been in an eclipse (or in the sun) and decides
what subsystems to turn on or off. The AO-27 pages on the AMSAT-NA
web site include an explanation of AO-27 operations (at):
http://www.amsat.org/amsat/sats/n7hpr/ao27.html
Chuck, KM4NZ, recently reset the TEPR states on AO-27 (on 02/12/2000).
TEPR 4 is 22 TEPR 5 is 58
[ANS thanks Chuck Wyrick, KM4NZ, and Michael Wyrick, N4USI, for
AO-27 information]
UO-14
Uplink 145.975 MHz FM
Downlink 435.070 MHz FM
Operational, mode J.
Chris Jackson, G7UPN / ZL2TPO reported on the AMSAT bulletin board
that UO-14 --launched in January 1990-- spent its first 18 months in
orbit operating as an Amateur Radio store-and-forward satellite. It was
then switched for use by Volunteers in Technical Assistance, who used it
for medical messaging into Africa. "Since the computer which is used for
store-and-forward communications is no longer able to perform that task,
UO-14 is no longer usable in this mode," reported G7UPN. "It is, however,
possible to use the satellite as a single-channel FM voice repeater, and I
have configured the satellite to do this."
Mike, N1JEZ, reports a nice roundtable with CT1EAT, G1OCN and
VE2VB. Osmar, LU7FQU, worked CX6DD. Malc, G7NFO, worked
VE2VB. Dirk, ON1DLL, reports good luck using UO-14 with his
portable station.
Tim, KG8OC, has updated the Michigan AMSAT Information Site
with UO-14 information, point your web browser to the following URL:
http://www.qsl.net/kg8oc
[ANS thanks Chris Jackson, G7UPN / ZL2TPO, for UO-14 information]
SUNSAT SO-35
Operational. SunSat has been in mode-B (FM) using an uplink
of 436.291 MHz (+/- doppler) and a 145.825 MHz downlink.
SunSat was launched February 23, 1999 aboard a Delta II rocket from
Vandenberg Air Force Base in California, recently celebrating its first
year in orbit.
The SunSat package includes 1200 and 9600 baud digital
store-and-forward capability and a voice 'parrot' repeater system
that will be used primarily for educational demonstrations.
The satellite has two VHF and two UHF transmit-receive systems.
Mike, N1JEZ, reports that SO-35 has been active in Parrot mode. This
is simplex operation and Mike suggests to monitor 145.825 MHz and
listen for a single beep tone followed by 10 seconds of silence. This is
when SO-35 is in 'record' mode and digitally stores what it hears.
Immediately after this SO-35 plays back what it captured in the previous
10 seconds. The cycle then repeats. Mike says "it takes a little getting
used to" -- but he did make 2 contacts this way.
Peter, G4AJG/4S7PE, will be in Sri Lanka until mid-March
and the SunSat team is making the satellite available for Peter's
operations from that area.
For more information on SunSat, visit the following URL:
http://sunsat.ee.sun.ac.za
A summary of the active modes and frequency allocations
for SunSat is available at the following URL:
http://esl.ee.sun.ac.za/~lochner/sunsat/modes.html
[ANS thanks Garth Milne ZR1AFH, for this information]
JAS-1b FO-20
Uplink 145.900 to 146.000 MHz CW/LSB
Downlink 435.800 to 435.900 MHz CW/USB
Operational. FO-20 is in mode JA continuously.
JAS-1b (FO-20) was launched in February 1990 and continues
to function quite well.
[ANS thanks Kazu Sakamoto, JJ1WTK, for the FO-20 status reports]
JAS-2 FO-29
Voice/CW Mode JA
Uplink 145.900 to 146.000 MHz CW/LSB
Downlink 435.800 to 435.900 MHz CW/USB
Operational, rotated with digital mode and digi-talker.
JAS-2 was successfully launched on August 17, 1996, by an H-II
launch vehicle from the Tanegashima Space Center.
Digital Mode JD
Uplink 145.850 145.870 145.910 MHz FM
Downlink 435.910 MHz FM 9600 baud BPSK
Digitalker 435.910 MHz
Operational, rotated with analog mode and digi-talker.
Mike, KF4FDJ, has put together a very informative document on FO-29,
addressing analog, digital and digi-talker modes. To obtain a copy
e-mail Mike at: kf4fdj@amsat.org
Kazu, JJ1WTK, reports the FO-29 operational schedule
(announced by the JARL) is as follows:
through March 10th - JD1200
March 11-20th - JA
March 21-24th - JD1200
March 25-April 2nd - JA
Mineo, JE9PEL, has updated his FO-29 satellite telemetry analysis
program. The software will automatically analyze all digital
telemetry from the satellite such as current, voltage and temperature.
The JE9PEL FO-29/software update is available at:
http://www.ne.jp/asahi/hamradio/je9pel/
[ANS thanks Kazu Sakamoto, JJ1WTK, for the FO-29 status reports]
/EX
SB SAT @ AMSAT $ANS-065.06
WEEKLY SATELLITE REPORT PART 2
AMSAT NEWS SERVICE BULLETIN 065.06 FROM AMSAT HQ
SILVER SPRING, MD, MARCH 05, 2000
TO ALL RADIO AMATEURS BT
BID: $ANS-065.06
KITSAT KO-25
Uplink 145.980 MHz FM 9600 baud FSK
Downlink 436.500 MHz FM
Operational.
Jim, AA7KC, reports KO-25 is operational with good data throughput.
[ANS thanks Jim Weisenberger, AA7KC, for KO-25 status information]
UOSAT UO-22
Uplink 145.900 or 145.975 MHz FM 9600 baud FSK
Downlink 435.120 MHz FM
Operational.
Chris Jackson, G7UPN, reports to ANS that UO-22 has now entered full
sunlight and the temperatures have increased considerably. Controllers
have turned the satellite upside down to point the critical systems to cold
space. This has reduced the temperature on various systems (such as
the batteries) by between 5 and 10 degrees. The unfortunate by-product
of this is that the downlink is now quite weak.
The satellite will remain in full sunlight until late March, when
controllers
will turn it back 'over' again. According to G7UPN "over the next few
years this situation will become worse as the no-eclipse periods
become longer."
Only the 145.900 MHz receiver is usable for communications at the
moment.
More information on the satellite is available at the following URL:
http://www.sstl.co.uk/
[ANS thanks Chris Jackson, G7UPN/ZL2TPO, for UO-22
status information]
OSCAR-11
Downlink 145.825 MHz FM, 1200 baud AFSK
Mode-S Beacon 2401.500 MHz
Operational.
Clive Wallis, G3CWV, reports that during the period of 15-January to
15-February good signals have been received from the 145 MHz
beacon. The battery voltage during daylight passes has dropped
slightly. The average value observed was 13.8 volts, with a range of
13.6 to 14.1 volts. The internal temperatures have decreased slightly.
They are now 5.0C and 3.2C for battery and telemetry electronics
respectively. A WOD survey dated (January 6th) has been transmitted.
The mode-S beacon is on and transmitting an unmodulated carrier.
The beacon is a useful test source for testing mode-S converters prior
to the launch of P3-D.
The operating schedule is as follows:
ASCII status (210 seconds)
ASCII bulletin (60 seconds)
BINARY SEU (30 seconds)
ASCII TLM (90 seconds)
ASCII WOD (120 seconds)
ASCII bulletin (60 seconds)
BINARY ENG (30 seconds)
The ASCII bulletin is currently a static message, detailing modes and
frequencies of all active amateur radio satellites.
More information on OSCAR-11 is available at the following URL:
http://www.users.zetnet.co.uk/clivew/
[ANS thanks Clive Wallis, G3CWV, for OSCAR-11 status information]
LUSAT LO-19
Uplink 145.84 145.86 145.88 145.90 MHz FM
using 1200 baud Manchester FSK
CW downlink 437.125 MHz
Digital downlink 437.150 MHz SSB RC-BPSK 1200 baud PSK
Currently semi-operational. The CW beacon is sending eight telemetry
channels and one status channel. Currently, no BBS service is available.
The digipeater is active.
Mineo, JE9PEL, has recorded LO-19 CW and PSK telemetry and
placed the information on his Internet homepage site at:
http://www.ne.jp/asahi/hamradio/je9pel/
General information and telemetry samples can be found at:
http://www.ctv.es/USERS/ea1bcu/lo19.htm
[ANS thanks Miguel Menendez, EA1BCU, for LO-19 status information]
PACSAT AO-16
Uplink 145.90 145.92 145.94 145.86 MHz FM
using 1200 baud Manchester FSK
Downlink 437.025 MHz SSB RC-BPSK 1200 baud PSK
Mode-S Beacon 2401.1428 MHz
Semi-operational.
Russ, WJ9F, reports ground stations are currently running memory test
software on the satellite. After loading the file server software the
satellite reverted back to MBL mode after about 3 minutes. Russ and his
team are evaluating if a write to memory glitch may have caused the
problem. In addition to the memory testing, the spacecraft spin rate
around the vertical (Z) axis has created a less than ideal condition for
battery charging.
The S-band transmitter is currently off.
Kazu, JJ1WTK, reports the AO-16 signal is weaker than before but
perfectly decodable. The JJ1WTK spin rate measurement is also
on going. The current spin rate is about 18 revolutions per minute.
General information and telemetry WOD files can be found at:
http://www.ctv.es/USERS/ea1bcu
A complete collection of WOD graphics corresponding to the
year of 1998 can be found at:
http://www.ctv.es/USERS/ea1bcu/wod1998.zip
[ANS thanks Miguel Menendez, EA1BCU, for AO-16 status information]
TMSAT-1 TO-31
Uplink 145.925 MHz 9600 baud FSK
Downlink 436.925 MHz 9600 baud FSK
Operational.
ProcMail V2.00G has been released by G7UPN. This software permits
the processing of image files from TO-31. It has been posted to the
AMSAT-NA FTP site at the following URL:
http://www.amsat.org/amsat/software/win32/wisp
Many of the high-resolution color images transmitted by TMSAT are
compressed using a UoSAT compression format. This format is
supported by the VK5HI CCD display program.
[ANS thanks Chris Jackson, G7UPN/ZL2TPO, for TO-31 status
information]
UoSAT-12 UO-36
Uplink 145.960 MHz 9600 baud FSK
Downlink 437.025 MHz 437.400 MHz
UoSAT-12 was successfully launched on April 21, 1999 from the
Russian Baikonur Cosmodrome. UO-36 carries a number of imaging
payloads, digital store-and-forward communications and mode L/S
transponders.
The BBS is open, although uploading may be disabled at times.
UO-36 ground control finished Merlion operations recently with limited
coverage over the U.S., Europe, Australia and New Zealand. The
operations generated a carrier at about 1-watt of power on 2401 MHz.
The VK5HI viewer shareware is available on the AMSAT-NA
web site at the following URL:
ftp://ftp.amsat.org/amsat/software/win32/display/ccddsp97-119.zip
Further information on UO-36 is available from: http://www.sstl.co.uk/
[ANS thanks Chris G7UPN/ZL2TPO, and the University of Surrey for
this information]
ITAMSAT IO-26
Uplink 145.875 145.900 145.925 145.950 MHz FM 1200 baud
Downlink 435.822 MHz SSB
Semi-operational, the digipeater function is on.
IO-26 was launched on the September 26, 1993.
Alberto, I2KBD, reports IO-26 has been opened to APRS use.
[ANS thanks ITAMSAT Project Manager Alberto E. Zagni, I2KBD, for this
information]
/EX
SB SAT @ AMSAT $ANS-065.07
WEEKLY SATELLITE REPORT PART 3
AMSAT NEWS SERVICE BULLETIN 065.07 FROM AMSAT HQ
SILVER SPRING, MD, MARCH 05, 2000
TO ALL RADIO AMATEURS BT
BID: $ANS-065.07
THE FOLLOWING ARE IN ORBIT BUT ARE
NON-OPERATIONAL AT THIS TIME:
KITSAT KO-23
Uplink 145.900 MHz FM 9600 baud FSK
Downlink 435.175 MHz FM
Non-operational.
AA7KC reports KO-23 is (again) non-operational. The last data was
received on March 2nd. The observed pass of KO-23 on March 4th had
the same results. KyungHee Kim, HL0ENJ, reports (from the KO-23
control team) that part of the problem with non-operation has been the
power budget aboard the satellite.
Stay tuned to ANS for further information.
[ANS thanks Jim Weisenberger, AA7KC, and KyungHee Kim, HL0ENJ,
for KO-23 status information]
RADIO SPORT RS-12
Uplink 21.210 to 21.250 MHz CW/SSB
Uplink 145.910 to 145.950 MHz CW/SSB
Downlink 29.410 to 29.450 MHz CW/SSB
Downlink 145.910 to 145.950 MHz CW/SSB
Beacon 29.408 MHz
Robot Uplink 21.129 MHz
Robot Downlink 29.454 MHz
Non-operational. No operation in 2000 has been observed.
TECHSAT-1B GO-32
Downlink 435.225 MHz using HDLC telemetry
Efforts were reported to be underway to bring GO-32 on line,
however no additional information has been received by ANS
since November 1999.
The TechSat-1B micro-satellite was successfully launched from the
Russian Baikonur Cosmodrome on July 10, 1998.
Last reported, the satellite does not have a continuos beacon, but does
transmit a 9600-baud burst every 30 seconds (for a continuous 3
seconds in length), on 435.225 MHz.
The TechSat team has constructed a home page about TechSat.
To view the site, point your web browser to:
http://techsat.internet-zahav.net/
PANSAT PO-34
Uplink/downlink frequencies have not been established.
The satellite is not currently available for general uplink transmissions.
PanSat, developed by the Naval Postgraduate School, was launched
from the shuttle Discovery during STS-95. PanSat spread-spectrum
digital transponders will be available to amateur radio operators in the
near future along with software to utilize this technology.
For more information, visit the official PanSat web site at:
http://www.sp.nps.navy.mil/pansat/
PanSat was the featured cover article on the July/August 1999 issue of the
AMSAT-NA Journal (written by KD6DRA and N7HPR).
[ANS thanks Dan Sakoda, KD6DRA, for this information]
MIR SPACE STATION
Ham radio activity aboard the Mir space station came to a close on
August 28, 1999 as the crew returned to Earth, leaving the station
unmanned. Mir is in a stable orbit with only essential systems running.
All Amateur Radio activities have ceased.
Current Amateur Radio equipment aboard Mir includes:
MIR SAFEX II 70-cm Repeater
Uplink 435.750 MHz FM w/subaudible tone 141.3 Hz
Downlink 437.950 MHz FM
Not operational. No operation in 1999 or 2000 has been observed.
MIR SAFEX II 70-cm QSO Mode
Uplink 435.725 MHz FM w/subaudible tone 151.4 Hz
Downlink 437.925 MHz FM
Not operational. No operation in 1999 or 2000 has been observed.
MIR PERSONAL MESSAGE SYSTEM (PMS)
Uplink/Downlink 145.985 MHz FM 1200 baud AFSK
Not operational.
DOVE DO-17
Downlink 145.825 MHz FM 1200 baud AFSK
2401.220 MHz
Non-operational.
DOVE stopped transmitting in March 1998. The 145.825 MHz and
2401.220 MHz downlinks are off the air and the satellite has not
responded to ground station control. No additional information is
available at this time.
WEBERSAT WO-18
Downlink 437.104 MHz SSB 1200 baud PSK AX.25
Non-operational.
WO-18 is reported to be in MBL mode after a software crash.
No additional information is available at this time.
SEDSAT-1 SO-33
Downlink 437.910 MHz FM 9600 baud FSK
The satellite is not currently available for uplink transmissions and
image and transponder recovery efforts have been unsuccessful.
SedSat-1, signifying Students for the Exploration and Development of
Space Satellite number one, was successfully launched and placed in
orbit on Saturday, October 24, 1998.
SedSat-1 has downlinked months worth of telemetry data on the
performance of its electrical power system parameters. The Nickel
Metal Hydride batteries on the spacecraft were experimental and
experienced some abuse due to a power negative situation. This
information has provided NASA with useful information. With the
exception of the imaging system and the use of the transponders,
SedSat-1 has been judged a success.
For more information on SedSat-1 visit the satellite web site at the
following URL:
http://www.seds.org/sedsat
No additional information is available at this time.
/EX
--ANS END---
ANS would like to thank Mike Seguin, N1JEZ, ANS principal satellite
investigator, for helping provide current satellite information.
Please send any amateur satellite news or reports to
ans-editor@amsat.org
Daniel (Dan) James
AMSAT News Service Bulletin Editor
AMSAT-NA Vice President/Public Affairs
Amateur callsign: NN0DJ
Grid Square EN28iv
Warroad, Minnesota U.S.A.
E-mail: nn0dj@amsat.org
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