Satgen31 1 Nov 89   AO13 On - BSB pics - Mir and Salyut problems

The Oscar 13 computer seems to be OK with modes B, J and L available.
Amsat are still working to get mode S back. Check with Amsat for latest 
AO13 user situation.

BSB's MarcoPolo satellite is on station sending pictures on 11861 MHz
The DMAC format can be resolved by carefully tuning a B+W PAL Rx fed by
a standard TVRO 950/1700 to PAL Rx. Most of the time I only get video on
half the screen , and sometimes the horizontal hold is impossible and I
get 3 pics super imposed. Even so it is possible to see the BSB logo 
clearly and pick out the insignia for the S sport, G galaxy and M movie
channels which are being trailered on 11861 MHz.

Mir is still suffering from habitability and power problems, but contrary
to newspaper reports, the Cosmonauts are still scheduled to do their 6
months tour which ends in mid February 90. With the delayed arrival of the
new D module, it is difficult to see how they can complete all their
tasks. They have 5 EVAs planned to recover experiments , put star trackers
on Kvant and test out their Space Bikes, the new YMK Cosmonaut Manoeuvring
Units. In addition they have to shift their Soyuz to the forward port, and
they have two other "Space suit tasks" when they dock the D module, and
when they later rotate it through 90 degrees round to the side of the
forward docking port. In each case they get in space suits and retreat
into Soyuz during these dangerous operations. A danger which was
highlighted two years ago when a 20 ton out of control Kvant module
drifted past Mir at only 20 metres separation.

Salyut 7 , the old space station was parked in a high 450 km safe orbit 
several years ago, and it has stayed there up to now using the attached 
space tug Cosmos 1686, in place of Salyut's defective engines. Original 
Russian plans called for the recovery to ground of Salyut, by the Soviet 
Shuttle in 1990 or 1991. But this now has a big question mark on it
because of the increasing need for economy in the Soviet space programme.
So perhaps Salyut will be left to re enter naturally, noting that Cosmos
1686 has stopped transmitting and appears to have separated from Salyut,
though they still remain close together, within 400 kms or so according to
my computer. If they stay this way till about Nov 13th, they may make a
very good pair of visual targets in the evening sky on clear nights as
they go west to east across the UK southern sky.

Comet Okazaki-Levy-Rudenko was just visible in the evening sky on 26 Oct,
near the star Arcturus. It is  now becoming a morning object in the pre
dawn eastern sky passing above Arcturus. It passes very near the crescent
moon on Nov 24th and may well be a good naked eye object.

Sorry to hear Satgen29 got corrupted after leaving here. Have sent out a
new copy. 73 de John GM4IHJ@GB7SNE