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[jamsat-news:1630] ANS 341


AMSAT NEWS SERVICE
ANS 341

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.

This edition of ANS is dedicated to the memory of Jim Ricks, W9TO, of
Lake Forest, Washington who died recently at age 86. Ricks designed
the popular Morse electronic keyer that Hallicrafters marketed as the
HA-1 T.O. Keyer. [ANS thanks the ARRL for this information]

ANS salutes Wayne Green, W2NSD, founding editor/publisher of 73
magazine; former CQ editor/columnist; published Byte, the first
consumer computer magazine. W2NSD is among the inaugural group
of 50 inductees into the CQ Amateur Radio Hall of Fame. [ANS thanks
CQ Amateur Radio magazine, published by CQ Communications, Inc.
for this information]

SB SAT @ AMSAT $ANS-341.01
ARRL AO-40 UPDATE

AMSAT NEWS SERVICE BULLETIN 341.01 FROM AMSAT HQ
SILVER SPRING, MD, DECEMBER 09, 2001
TO ALL RADIO AMATEURS
BID: $ANS-341.01

Last week, ANS reported on upcoming adjustments to AO-40's attitude
to compensate for unfavorable sun angles over the next several months.
The scheduled attitude shift to compensate for an unfavorable Sun angle
will leave AO-40's antennas pointing away from Earth until next spring
and will lead to a transponder shutdown period.

AO-40 command station team member Stacey Mills, W4SM, provided
ANS with additional details about this announcement:

More and more messages are appearing on the AMSAT-BB indicating
that the transponders on AO-40, or even the entire spacecraft, will be
shut down completely for 3-4 months. This has led to concerns not
only about a complete loss of use for several months, but whether
AO-40 would even wake back up!

On reading recently published information, I can see how this could
be confusing. The fact is that once we leave ALON/ALAT 0/0, we won't
be able to get back to this orientation until early April 2002, and the
optimal conditions that we have now will not be available until then.

During this time there will be periods when it makes absolutely no sense
to have the transponders active, so they will be turned off. However, the
middle beacon will remain on during these times.

Early in this period command stations will drop AO-40's ALAT by
between -30 to -50 degrees. In this configuration, squint angles are not
very good during any part of the orbit - thus no transponder operation.
Our main intent is to slide under the Sun in short order to approximately
ALON/270. We will then raise ALAT to 0. In that configuration it should
be possible to activate the transponders for a short period right after
perigee. Given the short range, signals could be extremely good during
this approximately 1-hour window. As the Sun moves out of the way, we
can progressively move toward ALON/ALAT 0/0, modifying (actually
lengthening) the transponder schedule as we go.

In summary, there will be periods of no transponder activity, hopefully
just a few weeks, and there will be a much longer period of limited (but
progressively increasing) transponder activity. As we approach 0/0 the
squint angle will dramatically improve, and so will the transponder times.

AO-40 command stations will make every effort to activate AO-40's
transponders, even if for only a short time each orbit, when conditions
are appropriate.

During any transponder shutdown period, telemetry data also will also
be harder to come by. Command stations are asking telemetry
gatherers to be as active as possible during any transponder
downtime.

73,

Stacey Mills, W4SM

[ANS thanks AMSAT-NA for this information]

/EX

SB SAT @ AMSAT $ANS-341.02
STS-108 MISSION UNDERWAY

AMSAT NEWS SERVICE BULLETIN 341.02 FROM AMSAT HQ
SILVER SPRING, MD, DECEMBER 09, 2001
TO ALL RADIO AMATEURS
BID: $ANS-341.02

Space Shuttle Endeavour lifted off this past week on the final space
shuttle mission of 2001, and, after a flawless climb to orbit, its crew
is now well into their mission to deliver a fresh crew to ISS.

Endeavour is commanded by Dom Gorie with Mark Kelly serving as
pilot. Mission Specialists are Linda Godwin and Dan Tani. Also aboard
Endeavour are station Expedition-4 crewmembers Commander Yury
Onufrienko and Flight Engineers Carl Walz and Dan Bursch. Endeavour
will bring home the Expedition-3 station crew, Commander Frank
Culbertson, Pilot Vladimir Dezhurov and Flight Engineer Mikhail
Tyurin, who have been aboard the station since mid-August.

Shuttle Commander Dom Gorie brought Endeavour to a gentle linkup
with the ISS as the two craft sailed over England. Within minutes, Pilot
Mark Kelly and Mission Specialists Linda Godwin and Dan Tani began
to conduct post-docking checks of the mechanical interface between
Endeavour and ISS. The hatches were then opened, enabling the ten
crewmembers to greet one another.

The crews now begin a busy week of handing over station
responsibilities and unloading tons of supplies brought to the complex
by Endeavour, including several thousand U.S. flags (to honor those
killed in the September 11th terror attacks) and Starshine-2, the third in a
programmed series of student built mirror-covered satellites.

[ANS thanks NASA for this information]

/EX

SB SAT @ AMSAT $ANS-341.03
AMSAT-NA VOLUNTEER SURVEY

AMSAT NEWS SERVICE BULLETIN 341.03 FROM AMSAT HQ
SILVER SPRING, MD, DECEMBER 09, 2001
TO ALL RADIO AMATEURS
BID: $ANS-341.03

AMSAT-NA has developed a new on-line volunteer survey, designed
to identify the interests and skills of those who may be available to
directly help in efforts to develop the amateur satellite program.

The survey was developed by a committee led by AMSAT-NA
Vice-President and Government Liaison Perry Klein, W3PK.

The new survey is designed to be completed and returned
on-line, and takes only a few minutes to fill out. To request
the survey, simply send a e-mail request to:

volunteer@amsat.org

[ANS thanks AMSAT-NA for this information]

/EX

SB SAT @ AMSAT $ANS-341.04
ANS IN BRIEF

AMSAT NEWS SERVICE BULLETIN 341.04 FROM AMSAT HQ
SILVER SPRING, MD, DECEMBER 09, 2001
TO ALL RADIO AMATEURS
BID: $ANS-341.04

ANS news in brief this week includes the following:

** A new microwave column is set to debut in January QST called
Microwavelengths. The column editor is Tom Williams, WA1MBA.
-ARRL Letter

** A University of Colorado at Boulder experiment will ride into orbit
on a future NASA space shuttle to explore gentle collisions between
particles of space dust -- a fundamental process in the formation of
planets and the evolution of planetary ring systems. -SpaceDaily

** The 2001 AMSAT Symposium awards included a presentation to
Les Scofield, W4SCO, in grateful appreciation for his work as Special
Event Station Manager for the 2001 AMSAT Annual Meeting and
Space Symposium. W4SCO's dedicated service and hard work in
handling this aspect of our annual gathering was noted with
thanks. -ANS

** The Earth's land-based ecosystems absorbed all of the carbon
released by deforestation plus another 1.4 billion tons emitted by
fossil fuel burning during the 1990s, according to a new study
published this week in the journal Nature. Carbon dioxide is the
primary greenhouse gas entering the atmosphere from human
activities. -SpaceDaily

** Maxim Memorial Station W1AW will be on the air to celebrate the
40th anniversary of the first Amateur Radio satellite (OSCAR I)
launched into orbit on December 12, 1961. W1AW will be on the air
as W1AW/40 from December 10-14, 2001. Operators plan to be active
on as many of the current satellites as possible. A special QSL will be
available for those making contact with W1AW/40. -ARRL Letter

** The National Space Center Amateur Radio Society of Leicester,
England will be hosting a Marconi Anniversary Special Event station
on December 15-16, 2001 using the callsign GB100MC. The group
plans to be active on F0-20, FO-29 and possibly AO-10 between
09:00-18:00 UTC. In the spirit of the occasion all transmissions will
be in Morse code. For more information about the National Space
Center, visit < www.spacecentre.co.uk >. -John, G7HIA

** Astronomers using NASA's Hubble Space Telescope have made the
first direct detection and chemical analysis of the atmosphere of a planet
outside our solar system. Their unique observations demonstrate it is
possible with Hubble and other telescopes to measure the chemical
makeup of an atmosphere and potentially to search for chemical
markers of life beyond Earth. -SpaceDaily

** ANS reported about the recent AMSAT International Workshop in
Germany attended by more than 50 people from several countries.
To read more about (and see pictures from this event), visit
< www.dj1km.de/amsat-dl >. -Reinhard, DJ1KM

** In 2002 a new Amateur Radio satellite will be launched during
a cargo mission to ISS. The new satellite (called Kolibir-2000) will be
taken into space by a Russian Progress cargo rocket. Kolibri-2000 will
then stay in space attached to a remote launching port before being
launched. Kolibri-2000 is a Russian/Australian School joint scientific
and research microsatellite. -Miles, WF1F

-AMSAT-NA

--ANS BULLETIN END---

/EX

SB SAT @ AMSAT $ANS-341.05
WEEKLY SATELLITE REPORT PART 1

AMSAT NEWS SERVICE BULLETIN 341.05 FROM AMSAT HQ
SILVER SPRING, MD, DECEMBER 09, 2001
TO ALL RADIO AMATEURS
BID: $ANS-341.05

Phase 3D / AMSAT OSCAR 40 / AO-40
Launched: November 16, 2000 aboard an Ariane 5 launcher
from Kourou, French Guiana. 
Status: Currently, the U/L-1 to S-2 passband is active.
Uplink    	U-band    435.550 - 435.800 MHz CW/SSB
                  	L1-band  1269.250 - 1269.500 MHz CW/SSB
                  	L2-band  1268.325 - 1268.575 MHz CW/SSB
Downlink  	2401.225 - 2401.475 MHz CW/SSB

AO-40 experimental transponder operation started on May 05, 2001 at
approximately 08:00 UTC when the U-band and L1-band uplinks were
connected to the S-2 transmitter passband downlink via the Matrix
switch. For the current transponder-operating schedule visit:

http://www.amsat-dl.org/journal/adlj-p3d.htm

[ANS thanks AMSAT-NA, AMSAT-DL and the ARRL for this information]

INTERNATIONAL SPACE STATION/ARISS
Worldwide packet uplink:  145.990 MHz
Region 1 voice uplink:       145.200 MHz
Region 2/3 voice uplink:    144.490 MHz
Worldwide downlink:         145.800 MHz
TNC callsign                       NOCALL

ARISS initial station launched September 2000 aboard shuttle Atlantis.
ARISS is made up of delegates from major national Amateur Radio
organizations, including AMSAT.

Status: Operational.

The ISS packet station (normally) available for UI packets. The mailbox
and keyboard are currently disabled. Please see the packet section of
the ARISS web page before attempting to first work ISS on packet.

The ISS daily crew schedule (which gives an idea when crew members
have free time and may be available for Amateur Radio operations) can
be found at:

http://spaceflight.nasa.gov/station/timelines/2001/may/index.html

Miles, WF1F, has posted pictures of the new antenna system for ISS.
View < http://www.marex-na.org/fileshtml/galleryantenna.html > for
details.

U.S. callsign:                  NA1SS
Russian callsigns:           RS0ISS, RZ3DZR

The QSL routes for W/VE stations working NA1SS aboard the
International Space Station:

U.S. stations (a SASE is required to get a QSL in return):
Margie Bourgoin, KC1DCO
Attn: ARISS Expedition-1 (or 2, 3) QSL
ARRL, 225 Main Street
Newington, Connecticut 06111

Canadian stations:
Radio Amateurs of Canada
Attn: ARISS Expedition-1 (or 2, 3) QSL
720 Belfast Road, Suite 217
Ottawa, Ontario KEG 0Z5

European stations (a SASE and 2 IRC's are required to get
                            a QSL in return).
AMSAT-France
14 bis, rue des Gourlis
92500 Rueil Malmaison
France

[ANS thanks Will Marchant, KC6ROL, and Jean-Louis Rault, F6AGR,
for this information]

RADIO SPORT RS-12
Uplink                           145.910 to 145.950 MHz CW/SSB
Downlink                       29.410 to 29.450 MHz CW/SSB
Beacon                         29.408 MHz
Robot		            29.454 MHz (145.831 MHz uplink)
	
Launched: February 5, 1991 aboard a Russian Cosmos C launcher
Status: RS-12 was re-activated in mode-A on January 1, 2001

The latest information on RS-12 and RS-13 can be found on the AC5DK
RS-12/13 Satellite Operators page at:

http://www.qsl.net/ac5dk/rs1213/rs1213.html

[ANS thanks Kevin Manzer, AC5DK, for RS-12 information]

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)
Launched: December 26, 1994 from the Baikonur Cosmodrome
Status: Semi-operational, mode-A, using a 2-meter uplink and a
10-meter downlink

Dave, WB6LLO, has operating information for both RS-15 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

[ANS thanks Dave Guimont, WB6LLO, for this information]

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)
Launched: June 16, 1983 by an Ariane launcher from Kourou,
French Guiana. Status: 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 heard and worked on AO-10. IT9GSV
reports working PY2TR, W0EOZ and 5B4AZ. DJ1KM reports
contacts with DJ7FE, KF4DFW, ON6HN, SV1OH, DJ8NY, IN3AXG,
OE8TPK, UT4QU, G3WFM, MW0CXH, I2JZ, DJ6JJ and DC8KG.
 
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
Launched: September 26, 1993 by an Ariane launcher from Kourou,
French Guiana. Status: Operational, mode J.

Periodically, AO-27's analog repeater will be turned off for a few days at
a time to enable ground controllers to gather Whole Orbital Data (WOD),
to verify the health of the satellite.

An AO-27 question-and-answer page is available on the AMSAT-NA web
site, with recent updates by Ray, W2RS. 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 TEPR AO-27 operations (at):

http://www.amsat.org/amsat/sats/n7hpr/ao27.html

On December 9, 2001 Chuck, KM4NZ, reset the TEPR states on AO-27
as follows:  	TEPR 4 - 19
              	TEPR 5 - 59

[ANS thanks AMRAD for AO-27 information]

UO-14
Uplink               145.975 MHz FM
Downlink           435.070 MHz FM
Launched: January 22, 1990 by an Ariane launcher from Kourou,
French Guiana. Status: Operational, mode J

Tim, KG8OC, features UO-14 information on the Michigan AMSAT
web site - point your web browser to the following URL:

http://www.qsl.net/kg8oc

Ray, W2RS, has revised the AO-27 FAQ on < www.amsat.org > to
include information on UO-14.

[ANS thanks Chris Jackson, G7UPN/ZL2TPO, for UO-14 information]

JAS-1b FO-20
Uplink               145.90 to 146.00 MHz CW/LSB
Downlink           435.80 to 435.90 MHz CW/USB
Launched: February 07, 1990 by an H1 launcher from the Tanegashima
Space Center in Japan. Status: Operational. FO-20 is in mode JA
continuously

Tak, JA2PKI, reported FO-20 control station operators believe that the
UVC (Under Voltage Controller) now is regulating the transponder. The
controller monitors battery voltage and tries to protect the batteries from
over discharge.

[ANS thanks Kazu Sakamoto, JJ1WTK, for the FO-20 status reports]

JAS-2 FO-29
Launched: August 17, 1996, by an H-2 launcher from the Tanegashima
Space Center in Japan. Status: Operational

Voice/CW Mode JA
Uplink  		145.90 to 146.00 MHz CW/LSB
Downlink           435.80 to 435.90 MHz CW/USB

Digital Mode JD
Uplink               145.850 145.870 145.910 MHz FM
Downlink           435.910 MHz 1200-baud BPSK or 9600-baud FSK
Callsign             8J1JCS
Digitalker           435.910 MHz

Last reported, the JARL FO-29 command station announced the
operation schedule of FO-29 as mode JA through March 2002.

Mineo, JE9PEL, has a FO-29 satellite telemetry analysis program that
will automatically analyze all digital telemetry from the satellite (such as
current, voltage and temperature). The JE9PEL FO-29/shareware is
available at the following URL:

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

[ANS thanks Kazu Sakamoto, JJ1WTK, for the FO-29 status reports]

/EX

SB SAT @ AMSAT $ANS-341.06
WEEKLY SATELLITE REPORT PART 2

AMSAT NEWS SERVICE BULLETIN 341.06 FROM AMSAT HQ
SILVER SPRING, MD, DECEMBER 09, 2001
TO ALL RADIO AMATEURS
BID: $ANS-341.06

PCSat
Uplink/downlink     145.830 MHz 1200 baud AX-25 AFSK via PCSAT-1
Uplink                   435.250 MHz 9600 baud via PCSAT-2
APRS Downlink     144.390 MHz (Region 2)
Launched: September 30, 2001 aboard an Athena-1 rocket from the
Kodiak Alaska Launch Complex.
Status: Operational

PCSat is in a low power mode. Bob, WB4APR, reports PCSat is in a
higher than average eclipse period and the UHF 9600-baud receivers are
off. "Limited operations can continue as long as the telemetry is showing
00111111," said WB4APR. Bob also noted that no ground stations should
be using PCSat via the "safe mode" callsign of W3ADO-1.

The APRS-equipped PCSat was built by midshipmen from the U.S.
Naval Academy under the guidance of Bob Bruninga, WB4APR.
PCSat is a 1200-baud APRS digipeater designed for use by stations
using hand-held or mobile transceivers. Downlinks feed a central web
site < http://pcsat.aprs.org >.

For more information, visit the PCSat web site at:

http://web.usna.navy.mil/~bruninga/pcsat.html

[ANS thanks Bob Bruninga, WB4APR, for PCSat information]

TIUNGSAT-1
Uplink               145.850 or 145.925 MHz 9600-baud FSK
Downlink           437.325 MHz
Broadcast callsign  	MYSAT3-11
BBS                        	MYSAT3-12

Launched: September 26, 2000 aboard a converted Soviet ballistic
missile from the Baikonur Cosmodrome. Status: Operational at
38k4-baud FSK

Chris, G7UPN, tells ANS that TiungSat-1 has been operating at a data
rate of 38k4. Data recovery at 38k4 is reported to be extremely good with
efficiencies near 100%. The output power is at 8-watts "which should
provide a very good downlink," said Chris, adding "the downside is that
with the high power transmitter operating, the power budget is negative
so we can't support continuous operation."

According to G7UPN, TiungSat-1 now requires the Amateur Radio
station to switch the downlink 'on' when the satellite comes into range.
The way this works is for the ground station software to send a request
to the spacecraft to switch the downlink on. The spacecraft receives this
request and checks the battery voltage to see if it can support the
operation, and if it can it will activate the downlink.

TiungSat-1 is Malaysia's first micro-satellite and in addition to
commercial land and weather imaging payloads offers FM and FSK
Amateur Radio communication.

TiungSat-1, named after the mynah bird of Malaysia, was developed as
a collaborative effort between the Malaysian government and Surrey
Satellite Technology Ltd.

[ANS thanks Chris Jackson, G7UPN/ZL2TPO, for this information]

UOSAT UO-22
Uplink               145.900 or 145.975 MHz FM 9600-baud FSK
Downlink           435.120 MHz FM
Broadcast Callsign	UOSAT5-11
BBS                             	UOSAT5-12
Launched: July 17, 1991 by an Ariane launcher from Kourou,
French Guiana. Status: Operational

Jim, AA7KC, last reported that UO-22 is operational with heavy
Sat-gate traffic. Downlink efficiency is greater than 50%.

UoSAT command station G7UPN reports to ANS that UO-22 had
been closed for amateur activity for a short duration while command
stations assess the state of the RAM disk. Over the past few weeks
there have been increasing difficulties downloading larger files from
the spacecraft. The store and forward communications system has
been reloaded.

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 information
and Jim Weisenberger, AA7KC, for status information]

OSCAR-11
Downlink              145.825 MHz FM (1200-baud AFSK)
Mode-S Beacon    2401.500 MHz
Launched: March 1, 1984 by a Delta-Thor rocket from Vandenberg Air
Force Base in California. Status: Operational

During the period 16-October to 17-November 2001 reliable signals
have been received from the 145 MHz beacon. The internal
temperatures have continued to increase as the solar eclipse times
decrease. These temperatures are now 7.0C and 5.0C for battery and
telemetry electronics respectively. Temperatures have been fairly static,
indicating that the current eclipse cycle has reached a minimum value.

The battery voltage observed during daylight passes is unchanged.
The average value observed was 14.0 with a range of 13.8 to 14.1
volts.

The rate at which the SEU counter increments has continued to
increase from 417 to 479 counts per day. Decoding the SEU binary
telemetry shows permanent memory failures at locations 3EC0 and
37B1. Frequent faults appear to be causing the increase in count rate.

The WOD survey of channels 1, 2, 3, 61 (X, Z, Y magnetometers and
status) dated 16-August-2001 has been transmitted. This survey shows
the spin period to be 368 seconds. The spin period has varied between
203 and 232 seconds. 

The operating schedule is unchanged.

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]

PACSAT AO-16
Uplink                           145.90 145.92 145.94 145.96 MHz FM
                                     (using 1200-baud Manchester FSK)
Downlink                       437.025 MHz SSB (RC-BPSK 1200-baud PSK)
Mode-S Beacon             2401.1428 MHz
Broadcast Callsign:         PACSAT-11
BBS                               PACSAT-12

Launched: January 22, 1990 by an Ariane launcher from Kourou,
French Guiana. Status: Semi-operational, the digipeater command is on.

Telemetry is as follows:

uptime is 656/18:20:42.  Time is Fri Nov 30 21:57:46 2001
+X (RX) Temp    -1.817 D  	RX Temp         12.705 D
Bat 1 V          1.225 V  	Bat 2 V          1.210 V
Bat 3 V          1.220 V  	Bat 4 V          1.247 V
Bat 5 V          1.225 V  	Bat 6 V          1.210 V
Bat 7 V          1.240 V  	Bat 8 V          1.252 V
Bat 1 Temp        9.075 D  	Bat 2 Temp       8.470 D
Baseplt Temp     8.470 D  	PSK TX RF Out    1.559 W
+Y Array Temp  -18.760 D  	PSK TX HPA Tmp   4.234 D
+10V Bus        10.400 V  	+Z Array Temp   -7.868 D

Total Array C= 0.000 Bat Ch Cur=-0.399 Ifb= 0.161 I+10V= 0.259
TX:1009 BCR:1E PWRC:36D BT:1E WC:25 EDAC:CC

A new WOD collection of current graphics along with general
Information and telemetry samples can be found at:

www.telecable.es/personales/ea1bcu

[ANS thanks Miguel Menendez, EA1BCU, for AO-16 status information]

ITAMSAT IO-26
Uplink               145.875 145.900 145.925 145.950 MHz FM (1200-baud)
Downlink           435.822 MHz SSB
Broadcast Callsign           ITMSAT-11
BBS                                ITMSAT-12

Launched: September 26, 1993 by an Ariane launcher from Kourou,
French Guiana. Status: Semi-operational, the digipeater function is on
and open for APRS users.

[ANS thanks ITAMSAT Project Manager Alberto E. Zagni, I2KBD, for
IO-26 information]

/EX

SB SAT @ AMSAT $ANS-341.07
WEEKLY SATELLITE REPORT PART 3

AMSAT NEWS SERVICE BULLETIN 341.07 FROM AMSAT HQ
SILVER SPRING, MD, DECEMBER 09, 2001
TO ALL RADIO AMATEURS
BID: $ANS-341.07

THE FOLLOWING ARE IN ORBIT BUT ARE NON-OPERATIONAL
OR SEMI-OPERATIONAL AT THIS TIME:

KITSAT KO-23
Uplink               145.900 MHz FM (9600-baud FSK)
Downlink           435.170 MHz FM
Broadcast Callsign           HLO1-11
BBS                                HLO1-12
Launched: August 10, 1992 by an Ariane launcher from Kourou,
French Guiana. Status: Intermittent operation with the downlink
transmitter operating at unpredictable intervals.

Jim, AA7KC, reported that KO-23's downlink transmitter continues in a
non-operational status. Jim says that KO-23 shows some signs of trying
to recover, but no useful data has been downlinked. The duration of this
status is unpredictable.

[ANS thanks Jim Weisenberger, AA7KC, and KyungHee Kim, HL0ENJ,
for KO-23 status information]

KITSAT KO-25
Uplink               145.980 MHz FM (9600-baud FSK)
Downlink           436.500 MHz FM
Broadcast Callsign  	HL02-11
BBS                         	HL02-12

Launched: September 26, 1993 by an Ariane launcher from Kourou,
French Guiana. Status: Semi-operational

Jim, AA7KC, last reported that KO-25 is marginally operational with very
low downlink efficiency - under 3%. The lack of traffic and low downlink
efficiency indicates a problem. In addition, KO-25's downlink
transmitter power output seems low or intermittent.

[ANS thanks Jim Weisenberger, AA7KC, for this information]

UoSAT-12 UO-36
Uplink               145.960 MHz (9600-baud FSK)
Downlink           437.025 MHz 437.400 MHz
Broadcast Callsign           UO121-11
BBS                                UO121-12

Launched: April 21, 1999 by a Russian launcher from the Baikonur
Cosmodrome. Status: Unknown

UO-36 carries a number of imaging payloads, digital store-and-forward
communications and mode L/S transponders.

Paul, KB2SHU, tells ANS that UO-36 has not been operational (over
North America) since late July. In addition, Sangat, 9M2SS, reports he
has not copied UO-36 since July 30th.

The VK5HI viewer shareware for UO-36 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
UO-36 information]

TMSAT-1 TO-31
Uplink               145.925 MHz (9600-baud FSK)
Downlink           436.925 MHz (9600-baud FSK)
Broadcast Callsign:          TMSAT1-11
BBS                                TMSAT1-12 

Launched: July 10, 1998 by a Zenit rocket from the Baikonur
Cosmodrome. Status: Non-operational, no data downlinked
since December 18, 2000.

Chris G7UPN, (UoSAT operations manager) reports the
following to ANS:

The TO-31 downlink will be off over most areas, with the exception of
Europe and Thailand. This is required to allow control stations to
recondition the battery with minimum power drain.

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]

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)
Broadcast Callsign            LUSAT-11
BBS                                LUSAT-12
Launched: January 22, 1990 by an Ariane launcher from Kourou, French
Guiana. Status: Beacon only. The CW beacon is sending eight telemetry
channels and one status channel on 437.126 MHz. No BBS service is
available. The digipeater is not active.

Telemetry is as follows:

Time is Fri Nov 30 21:03:00 2001 Orb-61900
CW-Code: ava abv aab ad6 atd abv ttu aee
5V-reg.:   	4.85 V      	8.5V-reg:   8.68 V
10V-Bat:	11.07 V      	10V-Curr:  121.1 mA
TX-Pwr :  	0.967 W      	TX-Temp.:   6.27 ?C
+Z-Sol.:   	0.30 V      	Box-Temp:   9.97 ?C

CW-Code: avt abv aan ad6 aat abu ttu aee
5V-reg.:   	4.89 V      	8.5V-reg:   	8.68 V
10V-Bat:  	11.07 V      	10V-Curr:  	120.4 mA
TX-Pwr :  	0.967 W      	TX-Temp.:   	5.56 ?C
+Z-Sol.:   	0.30 V      	Box-Temp:   	9.26 ?C

CW-Code: avt abu aua ade aaa abu ttu aee
5V-reg.:   	4.89 V      	8.5V-reg:   	8.68 V
10V-Bat:  	11.01 V      	10V-Curr:  	120.4 mA
TX-Pwr :  	0.957 W      	TX-Temp.:   	4.85 ?C
+Z-Sol.:   	0.30 V      	Box-Temp:   	8.90 ?C

General information and telemetry samples can be found at:

www.telecable.es/personales/ea1bcu

[ANS thanks Miguel Menendez, EA1BCU, for LO-19 status information]

SO-41  SAUDISAT-1A
Uplink               to be released
Downlink           437.075 MHz 
Broadcast Callsign           SASAT1-11
BBS                                SASAT1-12

Launched: September 26, 2000 aboard a converted Soviet ballistic
missile from the Baikonur Cosmodrome. Status: Unknown, this satellite
has been in orbit for almost 8 months. ANS has received no additional
information.

When/if operational, SaudiSat-1A will operate as 9600-baud digital
store-and-forward systems as well analog FM repeater mode capability.
One of two new ham satellites from the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia built by
the Space Research Institute at the King Abdulaziz City for Science and
Technology.

SO-42  SAUDISAT-1B
Uplink               to be released
Downlink           436.775 MHz
Broadcast Callsign            SASAT2-11
BBS                                 SASAT2-12
Launched: September 26, 2000 aboard a converted Soviet ballistic
missile from the Baikonur Cosmodrome. Status: Unknown, this satellite
has been in orbit for almost 8 months. ANS has received no additional
information.

When/if operational, SaudiSat-1B will operate as 9600-baud digital
store-and-forward systems as well analog FM repeater mode capability.
One of two new ham satellites from the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia built by
the Space Research Institute at the King Abdulaziz City for Science and
Technology.

SUNSAT SO-35
Mode J Uplink:               145.825 MHz FM
Mode J Downlink:           436.250 MHz FM

Mode B Uplink:               436.291 MHz FM
Mode B Downlink:          145.825 MHz FM

Launched: February 23, 1999 by a Delta II rocket from Vandenberg Air
Force Base in California. Status: Non-operational

The SunSat team released the following statement, dated
February 1, 2001:

We regret to announce that the last communication with SunSat from our
ground station at the Electronic Systems Laboratory at Stellenbosch
University took place recently. We are certain, after having performed
several tests since the last contact, that an irreversible, physical failure
has occurred on the satellite. It is therefore unlikely that we will have
any further contact with SunSat, apart from the occasional visual sighting
by telescope!

When it was operational the SunSat package included 1200 and 9600
baud digital store-and-forward capability and a voice 'parrot' repeater
system in addition to Mode B/J operation with two VHF and two UHF
transmit-receive systems.

For more information on SunSat visit the following URL:

http://sunsat.ee.sun.ac.za 

[ANS thanks Garth Milne, ZR1AFH, for this information]

RADIO SPORT RS-13
Uplink                           21.260 to 21.300 MHz CW/SSB
Downlink                       145.860 to 145.900 MHz CW/SSB
Beacon                         145.860 MHz

Launched: February 5, 1991 aboard a Russian Cosmos C launcher
Status: non-operational (last operational in mode-T)

RS-12 was re-activated in January 2001. Prior to this switch RS-13 was
operational (mode T), but was apparently turned off following the recent
RS-12 switch.

The latest information on RS-12 and RS-13 can be found on the AC5DK
RS-12/13 Satellite Operators page at:

http://www.qsl.net/ac5dk/rs1213/rs1213.html

[ANS thanks Kevin Manzer, AC5DK, for this information]

TECHSAT-1B GO-32
Downlink           435.225 MHz using HDLC telemetry
Launched: July 10, 1998 by a Russian Zenit rocket from the Baikonur
Cosmodrome. Status: Semi-operational.

Efforts were reported to be underway to bring GO-32 on line, however,
no information has been received by ANS (the last report was dated
November 1999).

Last reported, the satellite does transmit a 9600-baud burst every 30
seconds (the GO-32 beacon sends one short telemetry status
transmission of 44 bytes) and upon request the complete telemetry
buffer.

Max White reported to ANS that two passes of GO-32 were
received recently; it still issues the burst transmission as stated
above with "quite a strong signal" according to White.

[ANS has no further information]

PANSAT PO-34
Uplink/downlink frequency (listed on the PanSat web site) 436.500 MHz
Launched: October 30, 1998 by the Shuttle Discovery. Status: Unknown

The satellite is not available for general uplink transmissions.

The Naval Postgraduate School developed PanSat. At the time of
launch, PanSat spread-spectrum digital transponders were to
be available to Amateur Radio operators 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 (the story written by KD6DRA and N7HPR).

[ANS has no further information]

DOVE DO-17
Downlink             145.825 MHz FM (1200-baud AFSK)
                          2401.220 MHz
Launched: January 22, 1990 by an Ariane launcher from Kourou,
French Guiana. Status: 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.

[ANS has no further information]

WEBERSAT WO-18
Downlink           437.104 MHz SSB (1200 baud PSK AX.25)
Launched: January 22, 1990 by an Ariane launcher from Kourou,
French Guiana. Status: Non-operational.

WO-18 was last reported to be in MBL mode after a software crash.

[ANS has no further information]

SEDSAT-1 SO-33
Downlink           437.910 MHz FM (9600-baud FSK)
Launched: October 24, 1998 by a Delta 2 rocket from Cape Canaveral,
Florida. Status: Semi-operational.

The satellite is not currently available for uplink transmissions and the
image and transponder recovery efforts have been unsuccessful.

SedSat-1 signifies Students for the Exploration and Development of
Space (satellite number one).

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://seds.uah.edu/projects/sedsat/sedsat.htm

[ANS has no further information]

/EX

ANS is released worldwide via the AMSAT ANS e-mail reflector and a
live radiocast on the AMSAT-NA 20-meter net held each Sunday on
14.282 MHz. Pre-net operations start at 18:00 UTC, with current ANS
bulletins transmitted to the eastern U.S. at 19:00 UTC and to the western
U.S. at 19:30 UTC.

Information on AMSAT-NA is available at the following URL:

http://www.amsat.org <http://www.amsat.org/>  (or from)

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)
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* District of Columbia area (AMSAT-DC)
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A daily digest version is available for each list.

To subscribe, or for more list information, visit the following URL:

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In addition to regular membership, AMSAT-NA offers membership in the
President's Club. Members of the President's Club, as sustaining donors
to AMSAT Project Funds, will be eligible to receive additional benefits.
Initially, there will two levels for donations - Gold and Silver.
Application forms are available from the AMSAT-NA Office.

ANS is always dedicated to the memory of past ANS editor 'BJ'
Arts, WT0N, and to the memory of long-time AMSAT supporters
Werner Haas, DJ5KQ, and Dennis Kitchen, G0FCL.

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

/EX

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