SB SAT @ AMSAT $ANS-327.01 AMSAT SPECIAL BULLETIN AMSAT NEWS SERVICE BULLETIN 327.01 FROM AMSAT HQ SILVER SPRING, MD, NOVEMBER 22, 2000 TO ALL RADIO AMATEURS BID: $ANS-327.01 AO-40 command stations have been quite busy lately as general housekeeping tasks have been underway to verify the health of the many complex systems onboard AMSAT OSCAR-40 - all with very good results. P3D Project leader Dr. Karl Meinzer, DJ4ZC, informed ANS that following the successful launch and injection into nominal orbit, initial telemetry from the satellite was expected on 70-cm at about the 3-hour mission mark. This did not happen and consequently the spacecraft was switched to use the 144 MHz middle beacon as the main telemetry downlink. This required a new program to be uploaded into P3D's IHU-2 system. After new software, communication was established and the health of AO-40 was analyzed and tested. DJ4ZC happily reported "except for the UHF transmitter, everything was found to be nominal and working fine." The attitude control system was then calibrated and torque reorientation operations started, which are still underway. Both 2400 MHz transmitters were successfully operated and pictures from the separation sequence are now being downloaded and will soon be available. The first planned orbit change will soon take place and that should result in a 50,000 km apogee. This will allow a thorough study of the 70-cm transmitter problem using P3D's hi-gain antennas (which) would then be available. After the first orbit change is completed a test the electric propulsion Arcjet system will take place (and) if successful, it will be used to further increase the apogee of AO-40. AMSAT-NA President Robin Haighton, VE3FRH, told ANS that "plans are in place to make AO-40 available for a limited period of general Amateur Radio use possibly within a week or two." This provisional operation would involve "one or two bands at a time," said VE3FRH. Details of the limited test period will be announced by an official AMSAT bulletin and via the AO-40 telemetry beacon. Stay tuned to ANS for additional bulletins from AMSAT, the official source for information on AMSAT OSCAR-40. [ANS thanks AMSAT-NA and AMSAT-DL for this information] /EX