[amsat-bb] RE: Experiment with AMSAT

[Eric Archer <earcher@xxxxxxxxxxxx>]

Hello fellow pacsat operators:

Just a little more information regarding Layla's Mars Rover tests.

NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL)  is planning to perform 
propagation tests on model Mars rovers. These tests would like to 
validate some propagations models, expecially in the area of 
multipath effects due to the use of low gain antennas on platforms 
close to the ground and other RF obstacles. As you may know, Mars 
rovers are planning to use UHF, specifically 401/437 MHz, for 
communications with Mars orbiters.  This makes amateur pacsats ideal 
for use as satellites of opportunity to test some candidate rover 
antennas in an operational  environment similar to what would be 
expected at Mars. Satellites with constant envelope modulation or 
residual carrier  and minimum or slow tumbling with nearly  isotropic 
radiation patterns are ideal.

Specifically, Layla is looking for two things:

1) Looking for hams that are currently or have recently used the 
pacsats. She is looking to find out  the operational status of the 
satellites listed below and also their characteristics from the 
operational side. I personally have not operated the pacsats in a 
number of years, so my operational knowledge is lacking.  I think 
mainly she wants to find out which are the more active satellites.

2) Information regarding EIRP, antenna patterns, tumbling rates, 
modulating waveform, etc so that she may correlate the tests with 
some known satellite performance characteristics. This would most 
likely come directly from the satellite operators/designers 
themselves. This information may or may not have been published in 
back issues of QST and QEX and other symposia digests. If at all 
possible,  satellite designers may let Layla know where this type of 
information may exist.

Any help in this exciting area would be appreciated. I'm sure that 
any  professional papers published  will reference material from 
amateur sources.  Also, special thanks to Pesa (IK0HIT) for 
forwarding this message to me. See you all on AO-40 when it becomes 
operational (maybe even another mini DX-pedition from T7 land!)

Best regards and 73's

Eric Archer
N6CV
Trustee-W6JPL
earcher@jpl.nasa.gov
n6cv@pacbell.net


>>
>>----- Original Message -----
>>From: "Layla Tadjpour" <layla.tadjpour@jpl.nasa.gov>
>>To: <amsat-bb@AMSAT.Org>
>>Cc: <Nasser.Golshan@jpl.nasa.gov>
>>Sent: Monday, December 11, 2000 8:18 PM
>>Subject: [amsat-bb] Experiment with AMSAT
>>
>>
>>>  Dear Colleagues:
>>>  We are looking into using one of AMSAT satellites to test the UHF
>>>  communications capabilities being planned for a MARS Rover that will be
>>>  built for landing on Mars for exploration of the planet. We have gotten
>>>  some information about the AMSAT available from the AMSAT related web pages
>>>  but usually they don't give detailed description of  the transmitter
>>>  modulation schemes and transmitter EIRP. I would like to get in touch with
>>>  AMSAT operators who might be interested to talk with us on the use of the
>>>  following AMSAT satellites:
>>>  AMSAT-OSCAR 16
>>>  AMSAT-OSCAR 10
>>>  LUSAT-OSCAR 19
>>>  UOSAT-OSCAR 11
>>>  UOSAT-OSCAR 22
>>>  KITSAT-OSCAR 23
>>>  KITSAT-OSCAR 25
>>>  THAI-MICROSAT-OSCAR 31
>>>  ITALY-OSCAR 26
>>>  AMRAD-OSCAR 27
>>>  FUJI-OSCAR 20
>>>  FUJI-OSCAR 29
>>>
>>>  Regards,
>>>  Layla Tadjpour
>>>  Member of Technical Staff
>>>  Jet Propulsion Laboratory
>>>  Phone: (818) 354-7898
>>>
>>>
>>>
>>>  ----
>>>  Via the amsat-bb mailing list at AMSAT.ORG courtesy of AMSAT-NA.
>>>  To unsubscribe, send "unsubscribe amsat-bb" to Majordomo@amsat.org

----
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