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[jamsat-news:1013] ANS 024
AMSAT NEWS SERVICE
ANS 024
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.
Currently, AMSAT-NA provides 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 (AMSAT-NE)
To subscribe, or for more list information, visit the following URL:
http://www.amsat.org/amsat/listserv/menu.html
Information on AMSAT-NA is available at the following URL:
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AMSAT-NA
850 Sligo Avenue, Suite 600
Silver Spring, Maryland
20910-4703
Voice: 301-589-6062
FAX: 301-608-3410
Please Note: ANS editor Dan James, NN0DJ, is in Montana attending
the funeral of his mother-in-law. Dan would like to take this
opportunity to
express a sincere thank you to all who sent well wishes, thoughts
and prayers during this difficult time for his family. In addition, a
very big
thank you to AMSAT-NA VP Robin Haighton, VE3FRH, who is filling is
as ANS editor this week.
SB SAT @ AMSAT $ANS-024.01
HR AMSAT NEWS SERVICE BULLETIN 024.01 FROM AMSAT HQ
SILVER SPRING, MD, JANUARY 24, 1999
TO ALL RADIO AMATEURS
BID: $ANS-024.01
Vandenburgh AFB, California
Once again for the eighth time upper air winds have postponed the launch
of SUNSAT.
It was within nine minutes this time!. The surface conditions were again
superb
with good visibility of both the pad and the stars, but with a rather
brisk north wind.
Four of the South Africans have left but two remain for just one more
trial. If this is
not successful, then SUNSAT will have to be turned on from South Africa,
resulting in a
much later availability than the first few orbits.
The latest information is that the next attempt is postponed until
Monday night/Tuesday
Morning the 25th of January. Of course this may change, but apparently
the Delta will
have to be defuelled at this time.
[ANS thanks Cliff Buttschardt K7RR for this information]
/EX
SB SAT @ AMSAT $ANS-024.02
HR AMSAT NEWS SERVICE BULLETIN 017.02 FROM AMSAT HQ
SILVER SPRING, MD, JANUARY 17, 1999
TO ALL RADIO AMATEURS
BID: $ANS-024.02
AO-10
According to Frank de Wilde PE1KNL, AO-10 "the old bird" is still
working fine,
although there is QSB. On Wednesday January 20 1999 Frank worked Scott
VE6ITV
at 0744 UTC and Mike AL7OB at 0751 UTC. Also John K6YK logged 16
stations on January 21st.
(Note by ANS AO-10 was launched on 16 June 1983)
[ANS thanks Frank de Wilde PE1KNL and John K6YK for this information]
/EX
SB SAT @ AMSAT $ANS-024.03
HR AMSAT NEWS SERVICE BULLETIN 024.03 FROM AMSAT HQ
SILVER SPRING, MD, JANUARY 24, 1999
TO ALL RADIO AMATEURS
BID: $ANS-024.03
Y2K... Could this happen?.... another viewpoint!
January 4, 2000
Dear Valued Employee:
Re Your Vacation Pay:
Our records indicate that you have not used any vacation time over the
past 100 Year(s). As I'm sure you are aware, employees are granted 3
weeks
leave per year or pay in Lieu of time off. One additional week is
granted
for every five years of service.
Please take 9,400 days off work or notify our office and your next pay
check
will reflect payment of $8,277,432.22 which will include all pay and
interest
for the past 1,200 months.
Sincerely
Automated Payroll processing
[ANS thanks Bryce Lee for this viewpoint ]
/EX
SB SAT @ AMSAT $ANS-024.04
ANS IN BRIEF
HR AMSAT NEWS SERVICE BULLETIN 024.04 FROM AMSAT HQ
SILVER SPRING, MD, JANUARY 17, 1999
TO ALL RADIO AMATEURS
BID: $ANS-024.04
ANS news in brief this week includes the following:
** January 22 - The latest information concerning MIR, is that the
Russian
Prime Minister has signed (today) a decree to keep MIR in orbit for
another 3 years.
This raises many questions, concerning the life of MIR after the
previous
problems in 1977 and how the Russians will want to use MIR while the
International
Space Station is being built on Earth and assembled in space.
** After launch SUNSAT basic amateur radio payload will be centered
around a 2-meter
parrot repeater operating 145.825 MHz using NBFM voice with 3 KHz peak
deviation.
Also, 1200 baud AFSK and 9600 baud AFSK transponders will allow
digital capacity.
** RS-13 seems in good shape according to John K6YK, who made 5 QSOs all
on CW, on
January 20th 1999. This in spite of reports from Australia and South
America that
nothing could be heard south of the equator.
** Mike KF4FDJ reports working pass 2048 of FO-29 and talking to VA3DGR,
N1ZKB, VE2JML,
W0SAT and W0OQC in a roundtable, he and many others appreciate FO-29
being in the analog
mode replacing some of the RS birds.
/EX
SB SAT @ AMSAT $ANS-024.05
WEEKLY SATELLITE REPORT PT 1
HR AMSAT NEWS SERVICE BULLETIN 024.05 FROM AMSAT HQ
SILVER SPRING, MD, JANUARY 17, 1999
TO ALL RADIO AMATEURS BT
BID: $ANS-024.05
MIR/SAFEX
SAFEX II 70 cm Repeater
Uplink 435.750 MHz FM w/subaudible tone 141.3 Hz
Downlink 437.950 MHz FM
Semi-operational.
SAFEX II 70 cm QSO Mode
Uplink 435.725 MHz FM w/subaudible tone 151.4 Hz
Downlink 437.925 MHz FM
Semi-operational.
PMS
Uplink/Downlink 145.985 MHz FM 1200 Baud AFSK
Semi-operational due to SSTV transmissions.
The PBBS is running a Kantronics KPC-9612 + V.8.1 TNC. The
commands are similar to most PBBS and BBS systems.
MIREX has announced an on-going APRS School Days Test. MIREX is
allowing schools to use APRS for position and status reports via R0MIR.
Non-school stations are asked to refrain from using APRS type
transmissions or beacons via R0MIR.
Scott, WA6LIE, has a set of instructions on how to work the Mir space
station. Copies of the instructions are available from Scott by e-mail
at
wa6lie@juno.com, or by packet at wa6lie@wa6lie.#wcca.ca.usa.noam.
[ANS thanks Scott Avery, WA6LIE, and the MIREX team for Mir status
information]
Radio Sport RS-12
Uplink 145.910 to 145.950 MHz CW/SSB
Uplink 21.210 to 21.250 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 Downlink 29.454 MHz
Last reported to be semi-operational, beacon only.
Radio Sport RS-13
Uplink 21.260 MHz to 21.300 MHz CW/SSB
Uplink 145.960 MHz to 146.000 MHz CW/SSB
Downlink 29.460 MHz to 29.500 MHz CW/SSB
Downlink 145.960 to 146.000 MHz CW/SSB
Beacon 29.504 MHz
Robot Uplink 21.140 MHz Downlink 29.458 MHz
Last reported in mode KA with a 10-meter downlink and a 15-meter
and 2-meter uplink.
The RS-12/13 satellite has seen many recent changes in operational
status. Modes K, T, KT and now mode KA operation have all been
reported by a number of stations.
No official word from the Russian satellite controllers has been
received.
ANS recommends monitoring each satellite carefully to determine the
transponder in operation and which mode it is operating in.
RS-12/13 command is now in the hands of Alex Papkov, in
Kaluga City, Russia.
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)
Semi-operational, mode A, using a 2-meter uplink and a 10-meter
downlink.
Dave, WB6LLO, reports he has prepared a "quick and dirty" set of
operating instructions for RS-15 at the following URL:
http://users.aol.com/dguimont
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)
Operational, mode B. AO-10 is locked into a 70-cm uplink and a 2-meter
downlink.
AO-10 continues to function well with the exception of the periodic deep
QSB, which can be partially eliminated by switching antenna
polarization.
Strong signals have been heard even at apogee. Also note that AO-10's
apogee has passed its most northern point. This gives the satellite
track
(on a rectangular Mercator map projection) a distinctly symmetrical
pattern. The apogee has now begun a slow migration southward.
W4SM tells ANS that he has, using ranging software (and hardware)
developed by James Miller, G3RUH, recently made ranging
measurements on AO-10 and have fed these measurements into an
algorithm, which generates modified Keplerian elements from a "seed"
set of elements. The Keplerian elements generated appear to be
accurate within 16-25 km.
Satellite: AO-10
Catalog number: 14129
Epoch time: 99020.76950000
Element set: 005
Inclination: 26.927 deg
RA of node: 46.982 deg
Eccentricity: 0.60084
Arg of perigee: 284.293 deg
Mean anomaly: 119.137 deg
Mean motion: 2.05867845 rev/day
Decay rate: 0.0 rev/day^2
Epoch rev: 11735
Checksum: 256
NASA 2-line format:
1 14129U 00 0 0 99020.76950000 .00000000 00000-0 00000-0 0 0052
2 14129 026.9270 046.9820 6008400 284.2930 119.1370 02.05867845117354
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]
AO-27
Uplink 145.850 MHz FM
Downlink 436.792 MHz FM
Operational, mode J.
[ANS thanks Michael Wyrick, N4USI, for AO-27 information]
JAS-1b FO-20
Uplink 145.900 to 146.00 MHz CW/LSB
Downlink 435.80 to 435.90 MHz CW/USB
Operational. FO-20 is in mode JA continuously.
[ANS thanks Kazu Sakamoto, JJ1WTK, for the FO-20 status reports]
JAS-2 FO-29
Voice/CW Mode JA
Uplink 145.900 to 146.00 MHz CW/LSB
Downlink 435.80 to 435.90 MHz CW/USB
Operational.
Digital Mode JD
Uplink 145.850 145.870 145.910 MHz FM
Downlink 435.910 MHz FM 9600 baud BPSK
Not operational, the satellite is in JA (voice) mode.
The present JA mode of operation will continue to investigate the
frequency of bit errors in the on-board-computer. Reports from Amateurs
on the value of channel 2A are appreciated. The position of 2A is the
fifth item after 'HI HI' in CW telemetry. The normal value is '00'.
Reports
should be sent to lab@jarl.or.jp.
The FO-29 Command Team says digital (JD) mode operation may be
available soon. Digi-talker operation is also being planned.
[ANS thanks Kazu Sakamoto, JJ1WTK, for this report]
/EX
SB SAT @ AMSAT $ANS-024.06
WEEKLY SATELLITE REPORT PT 2
HR AMSAT NEWS SERVICE BULLETIN 024.06 FROM AMSAT HQ
SILVER SPRING, MD, JANUARY 17, 1999
TO ALL RADIO AMATEURS BT
BID: $ANS-024.06
KITSAT KO-23
Uplink 145.900 MHz FM 9600 Baud FSK
Downlink 435.175 MHz FM
Operational.
Ko-23 has suffered a further OBC crash this last week, at the time of
writing the satellite status is operational
[ANS thanks Jim Weisenberger, AA7KC, for KO-23 status information]
KITSAT KO-25
Uplink 145.980 MHz FM 9600 Baud FSK
Downlink 436.50 MHz FM
Operational.
[ANS thanks Jim Weisenberger, AA7KC, for KO-25 status information]
UO-22
Uplink 145.900 or 145.975 MHz FM 9600 Baud FSK
Downlink 435.120 MHz FM
Semi-operational.
Chris, G7UPN, tells ANS the OBC186 flight software on UO-22 crashed
recently after operating for well over 500 days. The software reload
should be completed at his time.
More information on the satellite is available at the following URL:
http://www.ee.surrey.ac.uk/EE/CSER/UOSAT/
[Chris Jackson, G7UPN /ZL2TPO, is the Operations Manager of
UO-22]
OSCAR-11
Downlink 145.825 MHz FM, 1200 Baud AFSK
Beacon 2401.500 MHz
Operational.
Telemetry has been nominal.
The mode-S beacon is ON, transmitting an unmodulated carrier, but
telemetry indicates that it has partially failed, and delivering half
power. This beacon is a useful source for those testing mode-S
converters, prior to the launch of P3-D. The 435.025 MHz beacon is
normally off.
More information about OSCAR 11 can be found at the following URL:
http://www.users.zetnet.co.uk/clivew/
Beacon reception reports should be sent to g3cwv@amsat.org.
[ANS thanks Clive Wallis, G3CWV, for this information]
PACSAT AO-16
Uplink 145.90 145.92 145.94 145.86 MHz FM 1200 bps Manchester FSK
Downlink 437.0513 MHz SSB, 1200 bps RC-BPSK 1200 Baud PSK
Beacon 2401.1428 MHz
Operating normally.
The AO-16 command team has authorized an APRS experiment on
AO-16 to explore the use of the 1200-baud PACSAT for APRS
position/status reporting. Test periods will run each Tuesday from
0000 to 2359 UTC.
Telemetry is nominal.
General information and telemetry WOD files can be found at:
http://www.ctv.es/USERS/ea1bcu
Telemetry WOD graphics corresponding to Dec-30 can be found at:
http://www.ctv.es/USERS/ea1bcu/wod.htm
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 this report]
LUSAT LO-19
Uplink 145.84 145.86 145.88 145.90 MHz FM 1200 bps Manchester FSK
Downlink 437.125 MHz SSB 1200 bps RC-BPSK
Currently semi-operational.
No BBS service. OBC (on board computer) reload in progress. The
Digipeater is active.
General information and telemetry samples can be found at:
http://www.ctv.es/USERS/ea1bcu/lo19.htm
[ANS thanks Miguel Menendez, EA1BCU, for this report]
ITAMSAT IO-26
Uplink 145.875 145.900 145.925 145.950 MHz FM 1200 Baud
Downlink 435.822 MHz SSB
Semi-operational.
Telemetry is reported as being received on 435.822 MHz at 1200 baud
PSK.
ANS has not received any recent updates concerning the status
of IO-26. No additional information is available at this time.
TMSAT-1 TO-31
Uplink 145.925 MHz 9600 baud FSK
Downlink 436.925 MHz 9600 baud FSK
TMSAT-1 is now open for general access by Amateur Radio operators
worldwide. Normal access will allow operators to use the store and
forward communications on the spacecraft and also download the
high-resolution multispectral images.
Chris Jackson advises, that The TMSAT OBC186 flight software crashed
on the afternoon of January 21, and that a memory dump of the OBC 186
would
take place that evening. The software would be re-loaded on friday
January 22
and the satellite should be operational by the time this bulletin is
issued.
[ANS thanks Chris Jackson, G7UPN /ZL2TPO, for this report]
TechSat-1B GO-32
Downlink 435.325 435.225 MHz
HDLC telemetry framed so a TNC in KISS mode will decode it
The TechSat-1B micro-satellite was successfully launched from the
Russian Baikonur Cosmodrome on July 10, 1998.
ANS has not received any recent updates concerning the current status
of GO-32 and no additional information is available at this time.
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), currently on 435.225 MHz.
The TechSat team has also constructed a home page about TechSat.
To view the site, point your web browser to:
http://techsat.internet-zahav.net/
[ANS thanks Shlomo Menuhin, 4X1AS, for this information]
SedSat SO-33
Downlink 437.910 MHz FM 9600 Baud FSK
The satellite is not currently available for uplink transmissions.
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 is continuing to perform as it has since launch, transmitting
telemetry until the batteries are depleted and then going into safe mode
(for about ten hours) and then repeating the process. "The orbital
geometry is such that we have had as much as 120 hours of continuous
operation from the bird before the batteries die," said Dennis, KD4ETA.
Recovery efforts continue.
For more information on SedSat-1, including Version 1.2 of the SedSat
ground station software -- visit the satellite web site at the following
URL:
http://www.seds.org/sedsat
[ANS thanks Dr. Mark Maier, KF4YGR, for this information]
PanSat PO-34
Downlink frequency not established.
The satellite is not currently available for uplink transmissions.
PanSat, developed by the Naval Postgraduate School, was launched
from the shuttle Discovery. PanSat spread-spectrum digital transponders
will be available to amateur radio operators in the near future along
with
software to utilize this technology. The PO-34 command station is
located in Monterey, California.
Dan Sakoda, KD6DRA, PANSAT Project Manager recommends
'The ARRL Spread Spectrum Sourcebook' as a good place to start in
understanding the spread-spectrum scheme.
The PANSAT Team does not expect the satellite to be available to the
Amateur Radio community for another few months.
For more information, visit the official PANSAT web site at:
http://www.sp.nps.navy.mil/pansat/
[ANS thanks Dan Sakoda, KD6DRA, for this information]
/EX
SB SAT @ AMSAT $ANS-024.07
WEEKLY SATELLITE REPORT PT 3
HR AMSAT NEWS SERVICE BULLETIN 024.07 FROM AMSAT HQ
SILVER SPRING, MD, JANUARY 17, 1999
TO ALL RADIO AMATEURS BT
BID: $ANS-024.07
THE FOLLOWING SATELLITES ARE NON-OPERATIONAL AT THIS
TIME:
RS-16
Attempts to command the mode A transponder 'on' have been
unsuccessful to date. At this time the RS-16 transponder is
non-operational. The 435 MHz beacon (only) is operational.
No additional information is available at this time.
RS-18/Sputnik 41
Russian cosmonauts successfully launched RS-18/Sputnik 41 on
November 10, 1998, during a spacewalk from the Mir space station.
The satellite stopped transmitting early on December 11, 1998, meeting
the 30-day projected lifetime. If the Goddard Space Flight Center
forecast is correct, RS-18/Sputnik 41 should have re-entered and burned
up in the atmosphere on January 7, 1999.
A computer .wav file of the actual received signal can also be found at:
http://www.ik1sld.org/sputnik41.htm
F6FAO suggests the following address for RS-18 QSL
requests:
AMSAT-France
RS-18 QSL Manager
14 bis rue des Gourlis
92 500 Rueil-Malmaison
France
The list of received QSL's by the French QSL manager is available at the
following link (note: the list changes daily as cards are received):
http://ourworld.compuserve.com/homepages/ascerland/sp41QSL.htm
DOVE DO-17
Downlink 145.825 MHz FM 1200 Baud AFSK
Beacon 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. Command stations will again
attempt contact in the near future.
QSL cards for receiving DOVE (when the satellite is operating) may
be obtained from:
Dianne White, N0IZO
45777 Rampart Road
Parker, Colorado 80138-4316
USA
Dianne has received a few cards recently for what apparently is UO-11.
Dianne handles cards for DOVE (DO-17) only.
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.
--ANS END---
Please send any amateur satellite news or reports to
ans-editor@amsat.org
/EX
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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