[amsat-bb] Looking for AO-40

["Dave Bourne" <dave@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>]

	I received my 3733 downconverter from K5GNA (with all mods) on Saturday and
have not been successful in hearing AO-40. I tried using my Conifer dish on
Saturday Evening using the Conifer feed and nothing. On Sunday Evening I
tried again using a 36" offset feed DBS type dish along the 3733 "dipole"
feed and again nothing. I have a Spectrum Analyzer (HP 8558) and I see
nothing when tuned to 144 Mhz looking at the output of the downconverter
through the power divider. When I pan my antenna towards LA (I live in
Southern CA) and tune up in frequency on the Analyzer I can see some
"Wireless Cable" digital carriers coming through the downconverter. If I
disconnect the downconverter from the analyzer the noise floor drops about 8
to 10 db so I believe that the downconverter is working. I use Nova tracking
software and it seems to work OK so I believe that I'm pointed in the right
direction at the right time with my antenna.

1. What type of modulation is used on the Beacon.? Should I see anything on
the Analyzer ?

2. On what frequency should I see the Beacon on (after downconversion) ? Is
it something like 144.350 ?


Thanks

Dave Bourne WB8TMP
Corona, CA

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