 AMSAT-OSCAR 6
(OSCAR 6 )
Spacecraft Summary
| OSCAR Designation: |
AMSAT-OSCAR 6 |
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Oscar Number: |
AO-6 |
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| International Designator: |
1972-082B |
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Norad Number: |
6236 |
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| Common Name: |
OSCAR 6 |
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Satellite Type: |
Microsatellite |
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| Launch Date: |
15 October, 1972 |
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Launch Location: |
Vandenberg, AFB |
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| Launch Vehicle: |
Delta 300 |
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Apogee: |
1455.00 |
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| Perigee: |
1449.00 |
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Inclination: |
101.52 |
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| Period: |
114.92 |
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Dimensions: |
43 x 30 x 15 cm |
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| Weight: |
16.000 Kg |
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| | | | Organization: | AMSAT-NA |
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Frequency Information
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| Mode V/A (A) Linear Transponder (Non-Inverting): Non-Operational |
| Uplink: |
145.9000 - 146.0000 MHz SSB/CW |
| Downlink |
29.4500 - 29.5500 MHz SSB/CW |
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Current Keplerian Elements
AO-6
1 06236U 72082B 10246.89577041 -.00000027 00000-0 10000-3 0 3561
2 06236 101.3949 247.2861 0004080 95.5135 264.6394 12.53082386732987
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Detailed Description
AMSAT-OSCAR 6 was launched October 15, 1972 by a Delta 300 launcher from Vandenberg Air Force Base, Lompoc, California. AO-6 was launched piggyback with ITOS-D (NOAA 2). AO-6 was the first phase 2 satellite (Phase II-A). Weight 16 kg. Orbit 1450 x 1459 km. Inclination 101.7 degrees. Box shaped 430 x 300 x 150 mm. Quarter-wave monopole antennas (144 and 435 MHz) and half-wave dipole antenna (29 MHz).
Equipped with solar panels powering NiCd batteries, AO-6 provided 24 V at 3.5 W power to three transponders. It carried a Mode A transponder (100 kHz wide at 1 W) and provided store-and-forward morse and teletype messages (named Codestore) for later transmission. AO-6 lasted 4.5 years until a battery failure ceased operation on June 21, 1977. Subsystems were built in the United States, Australia, and Germany.
AO-6 had a 1.3 watt transmiiter into a half-wave dipole antenna. AO-6's receiver input sensitivity was approximately -100dbm (2 uv per meter) and had an AGC that provided up to 26dB of gain reduction optimized for SSB modulation. The transceiver team consisted of Karl Meinzer DJ4ZC, Wallace Mercer W4RUD, Dick Daniels WA4DGU and Jan King W3GEY.
Firsts: complex control system using discrete logic; satellite-to-satellite relay communication via AO-7; demonstrated doppler-location of ground station for search and rescue; demonstrated low-cost medical data relay from remote locations.
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Reference Documents:
- Jan King, "The Sixth Amateur Satellite - A Technical Report: Part I," QST, Jul 1973, p. 66-71, 101.
- Jan King, "The Sixth Amateur Satellite - A Technical Report: Part II," QST, Aug 1973, p. 69-74, 106.
- John Fox and Ron Dunbar, "Preliminary Report on Inverted Doppler Anomaly," ARRL Technical Symposium on Space Communications, Reston, VA, Sep 1973, pp 1-30.
- Perry Klein and Jan King, "Results of the AMSAT-OSCAR 6 Communications Satellite Experiment," IEEE National Convention Record, NYC, Mar 1974.
- Perry Klein and Ray Soifer, "Intersatellite Communication Using the AMSAT-OSCAR 6 and AMSAT-OSCAR 7 Radio Amateur Satellites," Proceedings of the IEEE Letters, Oct 1975, pp 1526-1527.
- D. Brandel, P. Schmidt, and B. Trudell, "Improvements in Search and Rescue Distress Alerting and Location Using Satellites," IEEE WESCON, Sep 1976.
- J. Kleinman, "OSCAR Medical Data," QST, Oct 1976, pp 42-43.
- D. Nelson, "Medical Relay by Satellite," Ham Radio, Apr 1977, pp 67-73.
- W0LER, "OSCAR 6 - Gone but not forgotten," QST, Nov 1977, p. 31.
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