CAS-5A Designated Fengtai-OSCAR 118 (FO-118)

On December 9, 2022, the CAS-5A satellite was launched on a Smart Dragon-3 Y1 launch vehicle from the Chinese sea launch platform in the Yellow Sea. The Chinese Amateur Satellite Group (CAMSAT), working closely with local education authorities, designed, built, tested, and manages the CAS-5A satellite. Thirty-one students from ten high schools learned satellite design, manufacturing, and applications through educational courses initiated by CAMSAT and the Fengtai educational institution. The satellite carries V/u and H/u linear transponders, a V/u FM repeater, and CW and GMSK telemetry beacons for amateur radio use.

At the request of CAMSAT and the CAS-5A team, AMSAT hereby designates the satellite as Fengtai-OSCAR 118 (FO-118). We congratulate all the involved teams, thank them for their contribution to the amateur satellite community, and wish them continued success on this and future projects.

[ANS thanks Drew Glasbrenner, KO4MA, OSCAR Number Administrator, for the above information]

The FO-118 User Manual is also now available.

CAS-5A Amateur Radio Satellite User’s Manual V1.0
FO-118

ANS-345 AMSAT News Service Weekly Bulletins for Dec. 11

AMSAT NEWS SERVICE
ANS-345

The AMSAT News Service bulletins are a free, weekly news and information service of AMSAT, The Radio Amateur Satellite Corporation. ANS publishes news related to Amateur Radio in Space including 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.

The news feed on http://www.amsat.org publishes news of Amateur Radio in Space as soon as our volunteers can post it.

Please send any amateur satellite news or reports to: ans-editor [at] amsat.org

You can sign up for free e-mail delivery of the AMSAT News Service Bulletins via the ANS List; to join this list see: https://mailman.amsat.org/postorius/lists/ans.amsat.org/

In this edition:

  • CAMSAT’s CAS-5A Satellite Launched, Transponders Active
  • AMSAT-DL Erminaz Mission Announced
  • VUCC Satellite Standings December 2022
  • Changes to the AMSAT TLE Distribution for December 8, 2022
  • ARISS News
  • Upcoming Satellite Operations
  • Hamfests, Conventions, Maker Faires, and Other Events
  • Satellite Shorts From All Over

ANS-345 AMSAT News Service Weekly Bulletins

To: All RADIO AMATEURS
From: Radio Amateur Satellite Corporation
712 H Street NE, Suite 1653
Washington, DC 20002

DATE 2022 Dec 11

CAMSAT’s CAS-5A Satellite Launched, Transponders Active

CAMSAT’s CAS-5A satellite was launched at 06:35 UTC on December 9, 2022 into a 554 km x 543 km orbit with an inclination of 97.5 degrees. The satellite was launched on the inaugural flight of the Smart Dragon-3 Y1 launch vehicle. This vehicle launches from a sea launch platform in the Yellow Sea.

CAS-5A carries two linear transponders and an FM transponder, which are all continuously active assuming the power budget permits. The frequencies are:

V/u Linear Transponder: Uplink 145.805 MHz – 145.835 MHz, Downlink 435.525 MHz – 435.555 MHz (Inverting)
V/u FM Transponder: Uplink 145.925 MHz, Downlink 435.600 MHz
H/u Linear Transponder: Uplink 21.4275 MHz – 21.4425 MHz, Downlink 435.4975 MHz – 435.5125 MHz (Non-Inverting)
CW Beacon: 435.570 MHz (22 wpm)
Telemetry: 435.650 MHz (4800 bps GMSK)

QSOs have been reported via all three of the transponders as of this writing. Reports indicate that the downlink is strong and the transponders are sensitive.

Nico Janssen, PA0DLO, reports that Doppler measurements show CAS-5A to be object 54682 (2022-167A). However, he cautions that not all objects from the launch have been cataloged yet, so this identification is subject to change.

Doppler.sqf entries for SatPC32 courtesy of Drew Glasbrenner, KO4MA:

CAS-5A,435540.0,145820.0,USB,LSB,REV,0,0,VUTransponder
CAS-5A,435600.0,145925.0,FM,FM,REV,0,0,VURepeater
CAS-5A,435505.0,21435.0,USB,USB,NOR,0,0,HUTransponder
CAS-5A,435570.0,145790.0,USB,LSB,REV,0,0,CW Beacon
CAS-5A,435650.0,145820.0,FM,LSB,REV,0,0,4k8 GMSK

TLEs from Space-Track:

CAS-5A
1 54682U 22167A 22343.39869083 -.00000063 00000-0 00000+0 0 9992
2 54682 97.5461 118.4205 0013131 254.7121 186.9755 15.08519392 16

[ANS thanks Alan Kung, BA1DU, and Michael Chen, BD5RV, CAMSAT, Nico Janssen, PA0DLO, Drew Glasbrenner, KO4MA, Peter Goodhall, 2M0SQL, and various amateur satellite operators in Europe for the above information]

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The 2022 AMSAT President’s Club coins have arrived!
To commemorate the 50th anniversary of its launch on
October 15, 1972, this year’s coin features
an image of AMSAT-OSCAR 6.
Join the AMSAT President’s Club today and help
Keep Amateur Radio in Space!
https://www.amsat.org/join-the-amsat-presidents-club/

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AMSAT-DL Erminaz Mission Announced

Rocket Factory Augsburg (RFA) and the German Aerospace Center (DLR) announced the winners of their microlauncher payload competition at an event in Berlin on December 6th. Among the missions selected was a multi-satellite mission from AMSAT-DL and international partners.

The mission proposed is a syndicated, multi-PocketQube mission (1x 2P + 2x 1.5P + 3x 1P, total of 6 PQs), involving several EU countries, the amateur radio community, AMSAT-DL, AMSAT-EA (Spain), ESERO-Deutschland (Bochum Observatory), Libre Space Foundation (Greece) and other EU non-profit organizations or institutions. They work to create open-source space technologies for educational purposes and to promote, advance and develop knowledge for space. Using PocketQube technology will allow them to maximize the mission impact, involving several institutions, universities, and teams.

[ANS thanks Rocket Factory Augsburg for the above information]

VUCC Satellite Standings December 2022

VUCC Satellite Award/Endorsement Change Summary
November 01, 2022 to December 01, 2022.

CALLNOVDEC
K8YSE21642200
WI7P859882
AA8CH835855
WD9EWK(DM43)710715
W8LR623643
EA2AA611626
ND0C561605
K5TA575600
KQ4DO555579
NM3B553566
N6UTC503525
XE1MYO451525
HB9AOFNew500
KJ7DZNew500
VE4MM459476
KB1HY395427
N8URE(FM19)375389
KE0WPA355383
K3HPA250258
PA7RA160224
EA3TANew200
WD9EWK(DM23)185192
WD9EWK(DM31)177187
PU5DDC100151
F5VMJNew110
DL1BMNew100
EA1GGXNew100
IK3ITBNew100

Congratulations to the new VUCC holders.

EA1GGX is first VUCC Satellite holder from IN52
EA3TA is first VUCC Satellite holder from JN11
F5VMJ is first VUCC Satellite holder from JN18
IK3ITB is first VUCC Satellite holder from JN55

[ANS thanks Jon Goering, N7AZ, for the above information]

Changes to the AMSAT TLE Distribution for December 8, 2022

Two Line Elements or TLEs, often referred to as Keplerian elements or keps in the amateur community, are the inputs to the SGP4 standard mathematical model of spacecraft orbits used by most amateur tracking programs. Weekly updates are completely adequate for most amateur satellites. TLE bulletin files are updated Thursday evenings around 2300 UTC, or more frequently if new high interest satellites are launched. More information may be found at https://www.amsat.org/keplerian-elements-resources/

The following satellites have been added to this week’s AMSAT TLE distribution:

Tevel-1 NORAD Cat ID 51013.
Tevel-2 NORAD Cat ID 51069.
Tevel-3 NORAD Cat ID 50988.
Tevel-4 NORAD Cat ID 51063.
Tevel-5 NORAD Cat ID 50998.
Tevel-6 NORAD Cat ID 50999.
Tevel-7 NORAD Cat ID 51062.
Tevel-8 NORAD Cat ID 50989.
(Thanks to N2YO for providing the NORAD Cat Id for the Tevel series of satellites.)

The Israeli team operating these satellites is going to keep at least one of these eight satellites active all the time, so we will need TLE available for all eight of them. Tevel-3 was activated briefly last weekend.

Thanks to Paul Stoetzer, N8HM, for the “heads up” on the status of the Tevel series of satellites.

Note: The object named Tevel (NORAD Cat ID 50999) in past TLE data was simply a place marker for the Tevel series until the identity of this series of satellites was sorted out. Tevel-6 is the new name for the object NORAD Cat ID 50999.

[ANS thanks Ray Hoad, WA5QGD, AMSAT Orbital Elements Manager for the above information]

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Need new satellite antennas? Purchase Arrows, Alaskan Arrows,
and M2 LEO-Packs from the AMSAT Store. When you purchase through
AMSAT, a portion of the proceeds goes towards
Keeping Amateur Radio in Space.
https://amsat.org/product-category/hardware/

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ARISS News

Scheduled ARISS Contacts

Stella Maris College, Gzira, Malta, direct via 9H1MRL

The ISS callsign is presently scheduled to be OR4ISS
The downlink frequency is presently scheduled to be 145.800 MHz
The scheduled crewmember is Koichi Wakata KI5TMN
Contact has been postponed by the ISS planners due to unforeseen circumstances and will need to be rescheduled. (***)
Watch for Livestream at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fk-Onkbr6PY

School TBD, Republic of Mordovia, Russia, direct via TBD

The ISS callsign is presently scheduled to be RSØISS
The downlink frequency is presently scheduled to be 145.800 MHz
The scheduled crewmember is Sergey Prokopyev
Contact is go for Sat 2022-12-10 11:10 UTC

Maitland Air Cadet Association, Goderich, ON, Canada, direct via VA3SQN

The ISS callsign is presently scheduled to be NA1SS
The downlink frequency is presently scheduled to be 145.800 MHz
The scheduled crewmember is Josh Cassada KI5CRH
Contact is go for: Fri 2022-12-16 17:25:07 UTC 32 deg

ARISS Radio Status

Columbus Module radios:
IORS (Kenwood D710GA) – STATUS – Configured. Default mode set for cross band repeater (145.990 MHz up {PL 67} & 437.800 MHz down).

* Powered OFF for RS EVA on December 15. OFF Dec 14 about 19:00 UTC. ON Dec 15 about 13:15 UTC.
* Powered OFF for US EVA on December 19. OFF Dec 18 about 19:20 UTC. ON Dec 20 about 10:15 UTC.
* Powered OFF for RS EVA on December 21. OFF Dec 21 about 09:05 UTC. ON Dec 22 about 08:00 UTC.
* Capable of supporting USOS scheduled voice contacts, packet and voice repeater ops.

Service Module radios:
IORS (Kenwood D710GA) – STATUS – Configured. Default mode is for packet operations (145.825 MHz up & down).

* Powered OFF for RS EVA on December 15. OFF Dec 13 about 19:00 UTC. ON Dec 16 about 08:15 UTC
* Powered OFF for US EVA on December 19. OFF Dec 18 about 19:20 UTC.
Powered OFF for RS EVA on December 21. ON Dec 22 about 08:00 UTC.
* Capable of supporting ROS scheduled voice contacts, packet, SSTV and voice repeater ops.

The latest information on the operation mode can be found at https://www.ariss.org/current-status-of-iss-stations.html

The latest list of frequencies in use can be found at https://www.ariss.org/contact-the-iss.html

[ANS thanks Charlie Sufana, AJ9N, one of the ARISS operation team mentors, for the above information]

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AMSAT, along with our ARISS partners, is developing an Amateur
Radio package, including two-way communication capability, to
be carried on-board Gateway in lunar orbit.

Support AMSAT’s projects today at https://www.amsat.org/donate/

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Upcoming Satellite Operations

N5UC is heading to Hawaii!
BL11 potential schedule:
RS-44 Dec 10 2155z Dec 11 2215z Dec 12 0201z, 2237z Dec 13 0227z
IO-117 Dec 10 ~1030z, 1425z Dec 11 1232z Dec 12 1030z, 1503z

KG4AKV: I’ll be activating grid FM15 on Dec 17th or 18th. Carlos W7QL needs it for his last 2-3 grids for GM. Specific passes will be posted later.

[ANS thanks Paul Overn, KE0PBR, AMSAT rover page manager, for the above information]

Hamfests, Conventions, Maker Faires, and Other Events

AMSAT Ambassadors provide presentations, demonstrate communicating through amateur satellites, and host information tables at club meetings, hamfests, conventions, maker faires, and other events.

AMSAT Ambassador Clint Bradford K6LCS has a few satellite presentations scheduled …

-The PAPA System in Southern California
-Greenville, North Carolina
-Ontario, Canada
-Thames Valley, England

Think a 90-minute lively, informative, and fun “How to Work the Easy Satellites” Zoom presentation would be appropriate for your convention or club? Always ncluded are overviews of the ARRL, AMSAT, and ARISS. And pre-presentation questions are welcome. Contact K6LCS for more information.

[ANS thanks Paul Overn, KE0PBR, AMSAT Events page manager, for the above information]

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Want to fly the colors on your own grid expedition?
Get your AMSAT car flag and other neat stuff
from our Zazzle store!
25% of the purchase price of each product goes
towards Keeping Amateur Radio in Space
https://www.zazzle.com/amsat_gear

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Satellite Shorts From All Over

+ FO-99’s operation schedule for December is available at https://www.jamsat.or.jp/?p=2052

+ Tevel-3’s FM transponder was activated for 24 hours on December 4th. The Tevel Mission consists of 8 identical CubeSats, all containing an FM transponder with an uplink of 145.970 MHz and a downlink 436.400 MHz. Stay tuned for further updates.

+ AMSAT has been in contact with the ARRL regarding the addition of IO-117 and TEVEL1-TEVEL8 to LoTW. These satellites should be added soon. AMSAT will also request the addition of CAS-5A after the expected request and issuance of an OSCAR number to the satellite.

+ IO-117 has entered a period of full sunlight through February. (ANS thanks Doug Papay, K8DP, for the information)

+ As of December 8th, the IO-117 Digipeater Club now stands at 348 ham radio operators who have been successful in digipeating a message. These stations represent 222 unique grid squares and at least 56 DXCCs. (ANS thanks Doug Papay, K8DP, for the information)

Join AMSAT today at https://launch.amsat.org/

In addition to regular membership, AMSAT offers membership to:

* Societies (a recognized group, clubs or organization).
* Primary and secondary school students are eligible for membership at one-half the standard yearly rate.
* Post-secondary school students enrolled in at least half time status shall be eligible for the student rate for a maximum of 6 post-secondary years in this status.
* Memberships are available for annual and lifetime terms.

Contact info [at] amsat.org for additional membership information.

73 and remember to help Keep Amateur Radio in Space!

This week’s ANS Editor,

Paul Stoetzer, N8HM
n8hm at amsat dot org

ANS-338 AMSAT News Service Weekly Bulletins for Dec. 4

The AMSAT News Service bulletins are a free, weekly news and information service of AMSAT, The Radio Amateur Satellite Corporation. ANS publishes news related to Amateur Radio in Space including 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.

The news feed on http://www.amsat.org publishes news of Amateur Radio in Space as soon as our volunteers can post it.

Please send any amateur satellite news or reports to: ans-editor [at] amsat.org

You can sign up for free e-mail delivery of the AMSAT News Service Bulletins via the ANS List; to join this list see: https://mailman.amsat.org/postorius/lists/ans.amsat.org/

In this edition:

* GreenCube is now designated Italy-OSCAR 117 (IO-117)
* The IO-117 (GreenCube) Club continues to grow
* Release Candidate WSJT-X 2.6.0-rc5 now available
* Dhruva Space- Thybolt Mission (Amateur Radio Payload)
* ARISS News
* Upcoming Satellite Operations
* Changes to AMSAT-NA TLE Distribution for December 2, 2022
* Hamfests, Conventions, Maker Faires, and Other Events
* Satellite Shorts From All Over

ANS-338 AMSAT News Service Weekly Bulletins

To: All RADIO AMATEURS
From: Radio Amateur Satellite Corporation
712 H Street NE, Suite 1653
Washington, DC 20002

DATE 2022 December 4

GreenCube is Now Designated Italy-OSCAR 117 (IO-117)

On July 13, 2022, the GreenCube satellite was launched on a Vega-C launch vehicle from the Centre Spatial Guyanais in Kourou, French Guiana. The satellite project is managed by the S5Lab research team at Sapienza University of Rome, and involves ENEA (the Italian National Agency for New Technologies, Energy and Sustainable Economic Development) and University of Naples. The satellite carries environmental and thruster payloads and as well as a 70cm digipeater for amateur radio use.

At the request of the GreenCube teams, AMSAT hereby designates the satellite as Italy-OSCAR 117 (IO-117). We congratulate all the involved teams, thank them for their contribution to the amateur satellite community, and wish them continued success on this and future projects.

[ANS thanks Drew Glasbrenner, KO4MA, OSCAR Number Administrator, for the above information]


The IO-117 (GreenCube) Club Continues to Grow

Because of the increasing interest and the quick appearance of instructional material on making digipeated contacts through IO-117, the “GreenCube User Club” has rapidly grown to more than 300 as reported by Doug Papay, K8DP. Several individuals have blogs describing their operational set up that enables them to take advantage of the great DXCC and VUCC opportunity:

Burt DeMarcq, FG8OJ, offers some nicely detailed instructions and good advice on his blog at: https://bit.ly/3FjqM1f.

Fabio Roccatagliata, F5VKV, writes on the AMSAT-BB mailing group that the UZ7HO Soundmodem is very useful for IO-117 but one must download http://uz7.ho.ua/greentnc.zip for success as the tone spacing is shifted from those normal for APRS. He continues: “Use the ssb modem, 1600 main frequency in the spectrum. (Put the) Radio in USB, AGC off if possible (or fast), no noise blanker/reduction. You should receive the packet when the signal is within the bandwidth bar you see in the sound modem spectrum. Adapt the DCD threshold accordingly, usually by the half. In the green cube GUI window you should see the decoded packets, in the sound modem the data.” Editor Note: The link to the zipped file is listed directly because it does not yet appear on Andrey Kopanchuk’s website).

Joe Pereira, VK5EI, suggested on the AMSAT-BB mailing group that the summary by Tom Van den Bon, ZR6TG, is particularly helpful for newcomers. It may be found in a blog post on Tom’s website: https://bit.ly/3Uqpm9B.

Doug Papay sent a Friday update (which is growing rapidly) on the number and DXCC distribution of contacts made on the bird:

As of 1400Z 2/Dec/2022 there have been 303 stations active on IO-117 since 31/Oct/2022. Congratulations to ZL3TKZ for contact #300!

There have been 154 stations heard in the last 24 hours. There have been 194 unique grid squares and 51 DXCC entities activated. Here is the DXCC list including number of stations heard from each country:

United States of America 87
Italy 45
Japan 29
Spain 25
Federal Republic of Germany 12
Australia 10
England 7
Argentina 6
Canada 6
Brazil 5
France 5
China 4
Mexico 4
Netherlands 3
New Zealand 3
South Africa 3
Switzerland 3
United Arab Emirates 3
Azores 2
Bulgaria 2
Finland 2
Indonisia 2
Northern Ireland 2
Poland 2
Puerto Rico 2
Scotland 2
Sweden 2
Venezuela 2
Alaska 1
Belgium 1
Curacao 1
Czech Republic 1
Denmark 1
Ecuador 1
Estonia 1
Georgia 1
Guadeloupe 1
India 1
Ireland 1
Isle of Man 1
Israel 1
Luxemburg 1
Mauritius 1
Philippines 1
Portugal 1
Romania 1
Russia 1
Slovenia 1
Sudan 1
Uruguay 1
Wales 1

[ANS thanks Doug Papay, K8DP and the listed blog and email authors for the above information.]

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Only a Small Handful of 2022 Coins are left! Don’t Miss Out!
To commemorate the 50th anniversary of its launch on
October 15, 1972, this year’s coin features
an image of AMSAT-OSCAR 6.
Join the AMSAT President’s Club today and help
Keep Amateur Radio in Space!
https://www.amsat.org/join-the-amsat-presidents-club/
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Release Candidate WSJT-X 2.6.0-rc5 Now Available

From: Joe Taylor <jo…@pr…> – 2022-11-29 16:16:47

Dear WSJT-X Users,

We are pleased to announce that Release Candidate WSJT-X 2.6.0-rc5 is ready for download by beta testers. The list of changes since Release Candidate 4 is extensive. Be sure to read the Release Notes: https://physics.princeton.edu//pulsar/k1jt/Release_Notes.txt

Links for downloading WSJT-X 2.6.0-rc5 can be found on the WSJT-X Home Page, https://physics.princeton.edu/pulsar/k1jt/wsjtx.html Scroll down to find “Candidate release: WSJT-X 2.6.0-rc5”.

Installation files for Raspberry Pi are not yet available, but will be posted as soon as possible.

We hope you will enjoy using this beta release of WSJT-X 2.6.0. As a beta tester you should report on your experiences using one of the relevant WSJT forums. Bugs should be reported by following instructions found here in the User Guide: https://www.physics.princeton.edu//pulsar/K1JT/wsjtx-doc/wsjtx-main-2.6.0-rc5.html#_bug_reports

WSJT-X and MAP65 are licensed under the terms of Version 3 of the GNU General Public License (GPLv3). Development of this software is a cooperative project to which many amateur radio operators have contributed. If you use our code, please have the courtesy to let us know about it. If you find bugs or make improvements to the code, please report them to us in a timely fashion. Additional licensing details can be found here: https://physics.princeton.edu//pulsar/k1jt/devel.html

73 from the WSJT Core Development Team
Joe, K1JT; Steve, K9AN; Nico, IV3NWV; Uwe, DG2YCB;

[ANS thanks Joe Taylor K1JT, and the WSJT-X Development Team for the above information.]

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Need new satellite antennas? Purchase Arrows, Alaskan Arrows,
and M2 LEO-Packs from the AMSAT Store. When you purchase through
AMSAT, a portion of the proceeds goes towards
Keeping Amateur Radio in Space.
https://amsat.org/product-category/hardware/

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Dhruva Space- Thybolt Mission, Amateur Radio Payload Information

Dhruva Space launched the Thybolt Mission On 26 November, 2022, at 11:56 am, onboard ISRO PSLV-C54. The Thybolt Mission consists of two 0.5U nano satellites. These nanosatellites are built on the 0.5U P-DoT satellite platform which is designed, built and tested by Dhruva Space for use in the amateur communications, disaster management, and low bit-rate applications of STEM and strategic importance. The qualification of this 0.5U platform with its sub-systems will enable many more amateurs across India to learn, build, launch and operate experiments on amateur satellite missions.

Information regarding the system and the the data modes they use may be found at the Dhruva Space website: https://bit.ly/3FgYNz8 While it is not clear whether the satellites will be active throughout their entire orbital pathThe website states: “Please note that S&F Messaging will be available after conclusion of launch & early phase and commissioning operations tentatively on 20 December, 2022.”

Nico Janssen, PA0DLO writes on the AMSAT-BB list:
“Doppler measurements show that Thybolt 1 and 2 are the objects 54363 and 54364. Current separation: 1 s, so it is not yet possible to determine which is which.
CW beacon frequencies: Thybolt 1: 435.35447 MHz and Thybolt 2: 435.3522 MHz.
Nothing received on the telemetry frequency 436.175 MHz, but that downlink is probably only active when in range of India.”

[ANS thanks Dhruva Space and Nico Janssen, PA0DLO for the above information.]

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Want to fly the colors on your own grid expedition?
Get your AMSAT car flag and other neat stuff
from our Zazzle store!
25% of the purchase price of each product goes
towards Keeping Amateur Radio in Space
https://www.zazzle.com/amsat_gear

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ARISS NEWS

Amateurs and others around the world may listen in on contacts between amateurs operating in schools and allowing students to interact with astronauts and cosmonauts aboard the International Space Station. The downlink frequency on which to listen is 145.800 MHz worldwide.

[School TBD], Aznakayevo, Republic of Tatarstan, Russia, direct via TBD. The ISS callsign is presently scheduled to be RSØISS. The downlink frequency is presently scheduled to be 145.800 MHz. The scheduled crewmember is Dimitri Petelin. Contact is go for Sun 2022-12-04 11:20 UTC.

British School in the Netherlands (Junior School Leidschenveen), The Hague, The Netherlands, direct via PE1RXJ. The ISS callsign is presently scheduled to be TBD. The downlink frequency is presently scheduled to be 145.800 MHz. The scheduled crewmember is Josh Cassada KI5CRH. Contact is go for: Thu 2022-12-08 11:09:54 UTC 36 deg.

Stella Maris College, Gzira, Malta, direct via 9H1MRL. The ISS callsign is presently scheduled to be OR4ISS. The downlink frequency is presently scheduled to be 145.800 MHz. The scheduled crewmember is Koichi Wakata KI5TMN. Contact is go for: Sat 2022-12-10 07:55:55 UTC 55 deg.

[School TBD], Republic of Mordovia, Russia, direct via TBD. The ISS callsign is presently scheduled to be RSØISS. The downlink frequency is presently scheduled to be 145.800 MHz. The scheduled crewmember is Sergey Prokopye. Contact is go for Sat 2022-12-10 11:10 UTC.

The crossband repeater continues to be active. If any crewmember is so inclined, all they have to do is pick up the microphone, raise the volume up, and talk on the crossband repeater. So give a listen, you just never know.

The latest information on the operation mode can be found at https://www.ariss.org/current-status-of-iss-stations.html

The latest list of frequencies in use can be found at https://www.ariss.org/contact-the-iss.html

[ANS thanks Charlie Sufana, AJ9N, one of the ARISS operation team mentors and NASA News for the above information]

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AMSAT, along with our ARISS partners, is developing an Amateur
Radio package, including two-way communication capability, to
be carried on-board Gateway in lunar orbit.

Support AMSAT’s projects today at https://www.amsat.org/donate/

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Upcoming Satellite Operations

Quick Hits:
N5UC is heading to Hawaii!: BL11 potential schedule:

RS-44: Dec 10 2155z / Dec 11 2215z / Dec 12 0201z, 2237z / Dec 13 0227z,

GreenCube: Dec 10 ~1030z, 1425z / Dec 11 1232z / Dec 12 1030z, 1503z

Major Roves: None listed currently.

[ANS thanks Paul Overn, KE0PBR, AMSAT rover page manager and AMSAT for the above information]


Changes to AMSAT-NA TLE Distribution for December 4, 2022

On November 28, 2022, at the request of the GreenCube satellite teams, AMSAT has designated the GreenCube satellite as Italy-OSCAR 117 (IO-117). See AMSAT News Service Bulletin 332.01 dated November 28, 2022 for details. The GreenCube satellite designation in the AMSAT TLE distribution is now as follows:

IO-117 NORAD Cat ID 53106

[ANS thanks Drew Glasbrenner, KO4MA, OSCAR Number Administrator and Ray Hoad, WA5QGD, AMSAT Orbital Elements Manager, for the above information]


Hamfests, Conventions, Maker Faires, and Other Events

AMSAT Ambassadors provide presentations, demonstrate communicating through amateur satellites, and host information tables at club meetings, hamfests, conventions, maker faires, and other events.

Don’t forget to check in to the AMSAT-Twitter Meetup Net on DMR BrandMeister Talkgroup #98006 | D-STAR Reflector REFSAT | YSF Reflector #11689 | Wednesday Nights @ 21:00 CST.

AMSAT Ambassador Clint Bradford K6LCS has a few satellite presentations scheduled:
-The PAPA System in Southern California
-Greenville, North Carolina
-Ontario, Canada
-Thames Valley, England

Think a 90-minute lively, informative, and fun “How to Work the Easy Satellites” Zoom presentation would be appropriate for your convention or club? Always included are overviews of the ARRL, AMSAT, and ARISS. And pre-presentation questions are welcome.
Send an email or call!
Clint Bradford K6LCS
AMSAT Ambassador; ARRL instructor, Affiliated Club Coordinator
http://www.work-sat.com
909-999-SATS (7287)

[ANS thanks Clint Bradford, K6LCS, for the above information]


Satellite Shorts From All Over

+ A new AMSAT distance record has been claimed on FO-29. KE9AJ in DM79IQ48UR worked EB1AO in IN52PE28F at a distance of 7,642 km on 23-Nov-2022 at 20:46 UTC, edging out the previous record held by KG5CCI and F4DXV by 8 km. See https://www.amsat.org/satellite-distance-records/ for all records. [ANS thanks Paul Stoetzer, N8HM, AMSAT Executive Vice President & Ambassador for the above information.]

+ Artemis I’s launch tower and deluge systems performed as designed. The tower sustained some minor damage, particularly to the elevator (blew the doors off), which will be repaired before the next launch.[ANS thanks The Orbital Index for the above information.]

+ OMOTENASHI indeed was unable to be commanded to perform a landing burn. Its operators hope that it has a stable spin axis and that enough sunlight will reach it in the spring to establish comms and undertake secondary mission objectives. [ANS thanks The Orbital Index for the above information.]

+ Eutelsat Communications (Euronext Paris: ETL) (Paris:ETL) has selected Thales Alenia Space (Thales 67 % and Leonardo 33 %) to build a next-generation highly flexible, software-defined satellite (SDS). The Flexsat (for flexible satellite) will be based on Thales Alenia Space’s cutting-edge ‘Space Inspire’ (INstant SPace In-orbit REconfiguration) product line, enabling seamless reconfiguration and instant in-orbit adjustment to offer an optimum level of customer service, maximising the effective use of the satellite resources. [ANS thanks SpaceDaily.com for the above information.]


Join AMSAT today at https://launch.amsat.org/

In addition to regular membership, AMSAT offers membership to:

* Societies (a recognized group, clubs or organization).
* Primary and secondary school students are eligible for membership at one-half the standard yearly rate.
* Post-secondary school students enrolled in at least half time status shall be eligible for the student rate for a maximum of 6 post-secondary years in this status.
* Memberships are available for annual and lifetime terms.

Contact info [at] amsat.org for additional membership information.

73 and remember to help Keep Amateur Radio in Space!

This week’s ANS Editor, Jack Spitznagel, KD4IZ
kd4iz at arrl dot org

Categories ANS