[jamsat-news:2262] ANS-260 AMSAT News Service Weekly Bulletins

AMSAT NEWS SERVICE
ANS-260

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.

Please send any amateur satellite news or reports to:
ans-editor@amsat.org

******************** AMSAT 2006 Space Symposium **************************

Online registration and hotel reservation for the 2006 AMSAT Space
Symposium has been posted to the AMSAT website, and information about
the Symposium has been expanded.  The 2006 AMSAT Space Symposium will
be held October 6, 7 and 8 at the Crowne Plaza in Foster City,
California in the beautiful San Francisco Bay Area.

Please visit http://www.amsat.org/amsat-new/symposium for additional
information and an index to the expanded Symposium web pages.

**************************************************************************

In this edition:

* Results of AMSAT 2006 BoD Election
* Space Traveler to Try QSOs From ISS
* AMSAT Symposium Pre-Registration Extended to September 24
* Call For AMSAT Journal Articles
* PCSAT-2 10 Meter Receiver Debugging
* AMSAT Member Wins QST Cover Plaque Award
* AMSAT-UK Welcomes Foundation Satellite Access
* ARISS Status for the Week of September 11, 2006
* French Amateurs Bounce Laser Signals Off a Rain Cloud


SB SAT @ AMSAT $ANS-260.01
Results of AMSAT 2006 BoD Election

AMSAT News Service Bulletin 260.01
>From AMSAT HQ SILVER SPRING, MD.
September 17, 2006
To All RADIO AMATEURS
BID: $ANS-260.01

The results of the 2006 AMSAT Election:

Tom Clark, K3IO - 800 votes- Director
Lou McFadin, W5DID - 652 votes- Director
Bob McGwier, N4HY - 647 votes- Director
Lee McLamb, KU4OS- 321 votes - First Alternate
Paul Shuch, N6TX - 312 votes- Second Alternate

Please note Directors serve a two year term. The total number of
votes cast was 937.

Martha Saragovitz
AMSAT Manager

[ANS thanks Martha at AMSAT Headquarters for the above information]

/EX


SB SAT @ AMSAT $ANS-260.02
Space Traveler to Try QSOs From ISS

AMSAT News Service Bulletin 260.02
>From AMSAT HQ SILVER SPRING, MD.
September 17, 2006
To All RADIO AMATEURS
BID: $ANS-260.02

US businesswoman Anousheh Ansari, will travel to the ISS on
September 18 as part of the Russian Soyuz "taxi mission," and
hopes to try ham QSOs from space.  Ansari had decided originally
not to do ham contacts after realizing her heavy schedule didn't
allow her to study for her ham exam.

She was scheduled to fly in 2007, but when Daisuke Enomoto was
grounded due to medical issues, her ETA was moved up.  Ansari
was trained on the ISS radios by the Russian ARISS Team quite
a few months ago.

Now, she has decided to go for a potential QSO with students at
George Washington University, her alma mater, on September 22.
"The ARISS AMSAT Washington DC Team was asked just recently to
support this QSO, and have done an outstanding job pulling
everything together quickly," says ARRL ARISS Program Manager
Rosalie White, K1STO.

"Mark Steiner, K3MS, is leading the effort.  In addition,
Anoushe hopes to talk with US-licensed school children, and take
advantage of the astronauts as her Control Operator. She will be
listening at various times on Thursday, September 21, through
Tuesday, September 26, using RS0ISS." Because of third-party
issues, Ansari may only speak to youths who have ham licenses.
She is the fourth private citizen and the first female civilian,
to fly to the ISS.

[ANS thanks Rosalie White, K1STO for the above information]

/EX


SB SAT @ AMSAT $ANS-260.03
AMSAT Symposium Pre-Registration Extended to September 24

AMSAT News Service Bulletin 260.03
>From AMSAT HQ SILVER SPRING, MD.
September 17, 2006
To All RADIO AMATEURS
BID: $ANS-260.03

Since most (about 90%) of Symposium Registrations have been through
the website the Symposium Committee has made a decision to extend
pre-registration at the $45 rate through the 24th of September.
We were able to do this because the production cycle for badges, etc.
is now automated and requires very little human intervention except
some minor paper handling!

So if you haven't signed up now is your chance to get in at the last
minute without having to pay the additional fee! Registrations received
after September 24 will cost $55.

Hotel registrations have filled the initial block of rooms at the
Crowne Plaza Hotel that were set aside for Symposium attendees.  The
Symposium Committee worked with the hotel management and they are
now happy to report that additional rooms have been added to the
AMSAT block.

A glitch in the hotel's reservation system causes an occasional error
when trying to book rooms at the special AMSAT rate.  If you try to
book your room through the central  Crowne Plaza reservation system
(toll free number) they may tell you the dates are unavailable.  If
this happens call the hotel directly (information on AMSAT web) and
be sure to mention the AMS group code.

If you still have problems please send Emily Clarke (n1did@amsat.org)
an email with your arrival and departure dates and she will arrange
to speak with the hotel manager directly.

One thing that isn't available through the website is that we can
upgrade to the Executive rooms.  The rate for executive rooms
increases from $109 per night to  $129 per night.  Call the hotel
directly to take advantage of this offer.

Information about the Spouse Tours and Activities can be found online.
See: http://www.amsat.org/amsat-new/symposium/2006GroupTours.php

The 2006 AMSAT Space Symposium will be held October 6, 7 and 8 at
the Crowne Plaza in Foster City, California in the beautiful San
Francisco Bay Area.

Please visit http://www.amsat.org/amsat-new/symposium for additional
information and an index to the expanded Symposium web pages.

[ANS thanks the 2006 Symposium Committee for the above information]

/EX


SB SAT @ AMSAT $ANS-260.04
Call For AMSAT Journal Articles

AMSAT News Service Bulletin 260.04
>From AMSAT HQ SILVER SPRING, MD.
September 17, 2006
To All RADIO AMATEURS
BID: $ANS-260.04

Ed, WA4SWJ, the Editor of the AMSAT Journal issued a call for articles
this week.  Ed wrote, "Attention all you authors out there. I am calling
for more articles for the Journal. I would like to have anything you
would like to publish by September 22nd. Articles on many subjects about
amateur satellites are interesting and are good subjects for the Journal.

Get your computers warmed up and fly those fingers over the keyboard
and send me something!  The e-mail address is journal@amsat.org.

[ANS thanks Ed, WA4SWJ, AMSAT Journal Editor for the above information]

/EX


SB SAT @ AMSAT $ANS-260.05
PCSAT-2 10 Meter Receiver Debugging

AMSAT News Service Bulletin 260.05
>From AMSAT HQ SILVER SPRING, MD.
September 17, 2006
To All RADIO AMATEURS
BID: $ANS-260.05

Bob, WB4APR reported some progress toward solving the mysterious lack
of sensitivity on the PCSAT2 10 meter PSK-31 uplink. Two stations testing
on the 10 meter uplink noticed as one of them drifted lower in frequency
they could see PCSAT-2's PSK signal appear on the MIXW waterfall display.
PCSAT-2's 10 meter receiver may have shifted around 3.6 KHz lower than
originally configured.

PCSAT-2 was retrieved from its position outside of the ISS during a space
walk this week.  It will be returned to Earth for further analysis.

[ANS thanks Bob, WB4APR, and the US Naval Academy Satellite Station
 for the above information]

/EX


SB SAT @ AMSAT $ANS-260.06
AMSAT Member Wins QST Cover Plaque Award

AMSAT News Service Bulletin 260.06
>From AMSAT HQ SILVER SPRING, MD.
September 17, 2006
To All RADIO AMATEURS
BID: $ANS-260.06

Congratulations are in order for AMSAT member Al Bloom, N1AL, winner
of the August, 2006 QST Cover Plaque Award for his article "VHF/UHF
Mobile Propagation."  The QST Cover Plaque award is given to the author
or authors of the best article in each issue which is determined by a
vote of ARRL members.  Al is also a member of the Eagle Sensor Team
for AMSAT.

See: http://www.arrl.org/?artid=6767

[ANS thanks the ARRL for the above information]

/EX


SB SAT @ AMSAT $ANS-260.07
AMSAT-UK Welcomes Foundation Satellite Access

AMSAT News Service Bulletin 260.07
>From AMSAT HQ SILVER SPRING, MD.
September 17, 2006
To All RADIO AMATEURS
BID: $ANS-260.07

The changes to the UK Amateur License mean Foundation holders now have
access to the Amateur Satellite Service. They will be able to work through
the many Amateur Satellites as well use the Voice and Packet repeaters on
the International Space Station (ISS).

AMSAT-UK is delighted that the new license will allow full satellite access
to Foundation holders. This will enable these enthusiastic operators to
experience the thrills and challenges of space communications.

Every year AMSAT-UK runs a Satellite Beginners Workshop to teach newcomers
how to operate through the satellites. Now that Foundation holders have
this valuable new privilege AMSAT-UK can look forward to record numbers
attending the next workshop.

[ANS thanks AMSAT-UK for the above information]

/EX


SB SAT @ AMSAT $ANS-260.08
ARISS Status for the Week of September 11, 2006

AMSAT News Service Bulletin 260.08
>From AMSAT HQ SILVER SPRING, MD.
September 17, 2006
To All RADIO AMATEURS
BID: $ANS-260.08

1. Upcoming School Contacts

Scheduling of ARISS contacts continues for the Expedition 13 and
14 crews. Due to shuttle activities, no specific information is
available at this time.

2. SuitSat-1 Re-enters Atmosphere

SuitSat-1, a surplus Russian Orlan spacesuit equipped with amateur
radio, was deployed from the ISS on February 3 of this year.  On
September 7, 2006 at 16:00 GMT, SuitSat-1 re-entered the EarthÃÔ
atmosphere approximately 1400 km south-southwest of Western Australia.
For more details, including the winners of the Chicken Little Contest,
please go to: http://www.amsat.org/amsat-new/ariss/suitsatContest.php

3. ARRL Article on Tennessee School Contact

ARRL covered the Northeast Middle School contact in the article,
Å¢stronaut's Kin among Middle Schoolers for Space Contact via Ham Radio.See: http://www.arrl.org/news/stories/2006/09/08/100/?nc=1

4. ARISS International Meeting, October 9-10

The ARISS International face to face meeting will take place next month
in conjunction with the AMSAT-NA Annual Board Meeting and Space Symposium
in San Francisco.  The AMSAT meetings begin on October 5 and the ARISS
International meeting will be held on Oct 9-10.

5. Astronaut Training Status

Educator Astronaut Barbara Morgan has been scheduled for a training
session with Kenneth Ransom at JSC on Wednesday, September 13. Topics
covered will include school contacts and radio operations.

[ANS thanks Carol, KB3LKI for the above information]

/EX


SB SAT @ AMSAT $ANS-260.09
French Amateurs Bounce Laser Signals Off a Rain Cloud

AMSAT News Service Bulletin 260.09
>From AMSAT HQ SILVER SPRING, MD.
September 17, 2006
To All RADIO AMATEURS
BID: $ANS-260.09

Two French radio amateurs have made a successful one way contact
over a distance of 40 km scattering laser signals from rain clouds.

The flash pulses were at times 12 dB above the noise at 40 km which
seem to indicate that under the right conditions a distance of 150 km
could be covered.

Laser communication systems are wireless connections through the
atmosphere.

They work similarly to fibre optic links, except that the beam is
transmitted through free space.  While generally speaking the
transmitter and receiver must require line-of-sight conditions, they
have the benefit of eliminating the need for broadcast rights and
buried cables.  Laser communication systems can be easily deployed
since they are inexpensive, small, low power and do not require any
radio interference studies. The carrier used for the transmission
signal is typically generated by a laser diode.  Two parallel beams
are needed, one for transmission and one for reception.

Laser communication have been a hot topic lately, as solutions for
how to satisfy ever increasing bandwidth needs are in high demand.
Some have suggested that bandwidth could be distributed in neighbour-
hoods by putting laser communication systems on top of homes and
pointing them towards a common transceiver with a fast link to the
Internet.  With possible transmit speeds of up to a gigabit per second,
this is an exciting area.

The French team proved that laser signals can be scattered from clouds
thus proving that the notion that laser communication can only be line
of sight is wrong.

[ANS thanks Amateur Radio Newsline Report #1518 for the above information]

/EX

In addition to regular membership, AMSAT 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.
Application forms are available from the AMSAT Office.


73,
This week's ANS Editor,
JoAnne Maenpaa, K9JKM
K9JKM at amsat dot org


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