[amsat-bb] Re: AO-40 FD

["Stacey E. Mills" <w4sm@xxxxxxxxxx>]

A few recent posts address Field Day 2003 .....

>Does anyone know if the Command Team is going to keep the transponder on for
>a longer period, due to the special circumstances?
>
>73 de N8AU, Jim in Raymore, MO


>Anyone want to chime in with estimated ALAT/ALON and what the proposed
>MA window will be for AO-40 FD weekend?
>
>Bill
>W1PA


>The bird has two beautiful passes during FD, but as Tim pointed out the
>transponder will be shut off during most of these passes.
>
>Any chance the transponder schedule can/will be "tweaked" a bit (or a lot)
>for this special weekend???
>
>David, ky7dr


Comments on the above:

The passband schedule is dictated by solar angle and available power, 
reasonableness of squint angle, and the need for testing functions.  There 
are no other "special circumstances".  The command team strives for maximum 
availability of the passbands every day.

The above messages suggest that the ALON/ALAT will remain where they 
currently are, with the current schedule in play for field day.  Those of 
you who have been through the cycle before, know that this is not the 
case.  I have covered the expectations for field day 2003 before on the 
bulletin board:

 From AO-40 Update,  2003-03-02:

http://www.amsat.org/amsat/archive/amsat-bb/200303/msg00067.html

>  We should return to ALON/ALAT =
>0/0 about June 20th.  We can stay at ALON/ALAT = 0/0 until early October,
>when the cycle starts over.  Thus, expect the passbands to be off from
>about mid-April to mid-May, but active at varying phases of the orbit, the
>rest of the time.  We should be in good position for field day, just
>getting back to 0/0.

A typical passband schedule for ALON/ALAT = 0/0 ( again from the bulletin 
archives) is MA 40 to 210.  This has the passbands active when the squint 
is approx. 30 degs. or less.  Barring an unforeseen problem, plan on a 
similar schedule for field day.  AO-40 will be visible by all of North 
America at the start of field day, Saturday June 21st and the passbands 
will be active until approximately 19:13 UTC on that day.  AO-40 will start 
to appear on the eastern edge of North America at about 0900 UTC on Sunday 
and will be active until about 14:15 UTC that day.   This is all based on 
making it back to 0/0 by June 20th.  We should at least be close to that 
value by then, though the perigee eclipses are making it slow going to 
advance ALON.

---- W4SM for the AO-40 Command Team



-- 
  ________________________________________________________________________
  Stacey E. Mills, W4SM    WWW:    http://www.cstone.net/~w4sm/ham1.html
    Charlottesville, VA     PGP key: http://www.cstone.net/~w4sm/key
  ________________________________________________________________________ 

----
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