SB SAT @ AMSAT $ANS-112.01 PHASE 3D / AMSAT OSCAR 40 UPDATE AMSAT NEWS SERVICE BULLETIN 112.01 FROM AMSAT HQ SILVER SPRING, MD, APRIL 22, 2001 TO ALL RADIO AMATEURS BID: $ANS-112.01 April continues with recovery efforts concerning AO-40. The satellite appears to be healthy and reports indicate that very good telemetry has been received recently. AO-40 was commanded to take pictures using the YACE camera recently, starting with orbit 216. Eleven images, spaced at 2 minute intervals were taken. As soon as the pictures were stored, the spacecraft started sending telemetry D-blocks with the images. The blocks were sent for an extended period of time with multiple repeats of the whole sequence. This allowed ground stations to collect as many D-blocks as possible. The download of the images started immediately after the picture run with 177 blocks in the complete set. Many stations copied this data set and sent information to the AO-40 team, allowing the entire D-block information set to be extracted and analyzed. The images can be found in a compressed file (216.zip) at the following URL: http://www.amsat.org/amsat/ftp/telemetry/ao40/2001/04/ Many stations around the world also reported to the AMSAT BB about strong signals from AO-40 recently. Doug, W3HH, is an excellent example - he reported receiving AO-40 signals using a modified downconverter and a small 2-foot dish. Doug's report noted AO-40's signals were peaking 4 to 5 S-units above the noise. Mark, NU6X, also reported good copy on AO-40 on his first try. "This is my first activity on satellite in many years and I look forward to more to come," said NU6X. [ANS thanks Paul, VP9MU, (and his efforts with AO-40 telemetry) for this information] /EX SB SAT @ AMSAT $ANS-112.02 ASTRONAUT HELMS ACTIVE FROM ISS AMSAT NEWS SERVICE BULLETIN 112.02 FROM AMSAT HQ SILVER SPRING, MD, APRIL 22, 2001 TO ALL RADIO AMATEURS BID: $ANS-112.02 Astronaut Susan Helms made many hams across the United States very happy recently with an extended Amateur Radio operating period from the International Space Station! Mike Seguin, N1JEZ, ANS principal satellite investigator, was just one of the stations who made contact. Mike reported to ANS that Susan was active from ISS during the 20:50 UTC pass on Friday, April 20th, using the callsign NA1SS. Mike reported Susan "had a great signal from ISS Alpha." Tom, N7HXP and Stan, W4SV, also reported contacts. Susan was again active on April 23rd. Alpha has a visitor currently, as the 11-day STS-100 mission is underway. Europe sent its first astronaut to ISS as shuttle Endeavour and its crew lifted off from Kennedy Space Center on Thursday. Italian ESA astronaut Umberto Guidoni and his six colleagues left a pleasant spring afternoon in Florida behind them and started of a two-day journey that saw Endeavour dock with the Station on April 21st. STS-100 crewmember Yuri Lonchakov asked for a callsign and was granted RS1ISS. It is unknown if this means he plans to do voice QSO's during the time he is aboard Alpha. As this edition of ANS was broadcast the 10 astronauts and cosmonauts aboard the International Space Station and the docked shuttle began a day that included the first opening of hatches linking the two spacecraft. Endeavour and its crew had finished the first of two, planned space walks to install the orbiting outpost's Canadian built robotic arm - called Canadarm-2. The high-tech robotic arm is the most versatile ever flown in space. The Space station's Expedition-2 crewmembers Jim Voss and Susan Helms will power up the arm from the Robotic Work Station inside the Destiny module, checking connections made by the space walkers. A second space walk is scheduled for Tuesday, and will focus on establishing permanent power connections between the 57.7 foot-long arm and ISS - and then running the arm through a thorough checkout. The highest priority objectives of the flight are the installation, activation and checkout of the robotic arm on the station. The operation of the arm is critical to the continued assembly of the International Space Station. For example, the arm will attach a new airlock to the station on a subsequent shuttle flight (mission STS-104) planned for launch in June. In addition to the station's new Canadarm-2, the berthing to the station of Raffaello, the Italian-built logistics module is planned. After transfer of equipment and supplies, the hatches will be closed again so that the Shuttle cabin pressure can once again be lowered to prepare for Tuesday's second spacewalk. That spacewalk will focus on permanently powering the station arm and doing further checkouts. Both spacecraft are in excellent shape orbiting Earth every 92 minutes at an altitude of 240 statute miles. [ANS thanks NASA for the majority of this information] /EX SB SAT @ AMSAT $ANS-112.03 ANS IN BRIEF AMSAT NEWS SERVICE BULLETIN 112.03 FROM AMSAT HQ SILVER SPRING, MD, APRIL 22, 2001 TO ALL RADIO AMATEURS BID: $ANS-112.03 ANS news in brief this week includes the following: ** Hardy, DC8TS/KC2DMA, reports to ANS that the 3B6RF DXpedition to Agalega Island should be on the air starting May 5th with operation scheduled for AO-10 (activity prepared by DJ5MN). Information about the DXpedition is available on the web at the following location: http://members.tripod.de/kc2dma/3B6RF-SAT.html. Additional news about the DX event is also available from Hardy at dc8ts@amsat.org. -Hardy, DC8TS ** Even though it is understood that changes in climate and weather may factor into some disease outbreaks, it is not yet possible to determine whether global warming will actually cause diseases to spread - according to a new report from the National Academies' Research Council. -SpaceDaily ** Space technologies available for new products and services on Earth - ESA will be proposing this idea to non-space industry representatives from around the world starting April 23rd. The European space industry has built up an impressive portfolio of technologies and know-how. This has provided many innovative solutions for non-space products and services that improve our daily lives, like the Ariane advanced carbon composites, now used to build cars, or the radiation monitoring techniques, now adopted in cancer research. In addition, the International Space Station will soon offer an unprecedented wealth of knowledge for scientists and industry. -ESA ** A highly modernized version of the Soyuz launch vehicle, with an engine from Energomash, will be launched in May 2001 with a Russian payload. -SpaceDaily ** The National Association of Broadcasters Convention in Las Vegas will feature welcomes from Kenwood Communications and C-Q Magazine to the annual N-A-B Ham Radio Reception. The reception is a chance for hams to socialize with other hams that are involved in the broadcasting and related industries. -Newsline ** President George Bush has tapped Kevin Martin, Kathleen Abernathy and Michael Copps for seats on the FCC. All three White House choices are described as experienced Washington players. The nominations are undergoing FBI background checks before being submitted for Senate confirmation. -ARRL ** Amateur Radio in the U.S. is experiencing a bit of a growth spurt in the wake of amateur license restructuring. FCC licensing statistics as of the end of March show a net gain of approximately 6,600 current licensees, or up about 1% from last April, when restructuring went into effect. Prior to this report, the number of amateurs had remained relatively stable since 1998. -ARRL --ANS BULLETIN END--- /EX SB SAT @ AMSAT $ANS-112.04 WEEKLY SATELLITE REPORT PART 1 AMSAT NEWS SERVICE BULLETIN 112.04 FROM AMSAT HQ SILVER SPRING, MD, APRIL 22, 2001 TO ALL RADIO AMATEURS BID: $ANS-112.04 Phase 3D / AMSAT OSCAR 40 / AO-40 Launched: November 16, 2000 aboard an Ariane 5 launcher from Kourou, French Guiana. Status: S-Band transmitter is active, recovery efforts continue. The V-band, U-band and the L-band (L1) receivers are working on the the high-gain antennas. The omni-directional antennas appear to be non-functional. Recovery efforts continue. [ANS thanks AMSAT-NA and AMSAT-DL for this information] INTERNATIONAL SPACE STATION/ARISS Worldwide packet uplink: 145.990 MHz Region 1 voice uplink: 145.200 MHz Region 2/3 voice uplink: 144.490 MHz Worldwide downlink: 145.800 MHz TNC callsign NOCALL ARISS initial station launched September 2000 aboard shuttle Atlantis. ARISS is made up of delegates from major national Amateur Radio organizations, including AMSAT. Status: Operational. Voice contacts with ISS have been made recently. The ISS packet station is available for UI packets (APRS or UI QSL). The mailbox and keyboard are currently disabled. Please see the packet section of the ARISS web page before attempting to first work ISS on packet. The QSL routes for W/VE stations working NA1SS aboard the International Space Station: U.S. stations: Margie Bourgoin KB1DCO Attn: ARISS Expedition-1 (or 2) QSL ARRL, 225 Main Street Newington, Connecticut 06111 Canadian stations: Radio Amateurs of Canada Attn: ARISS Expedition-1 (or 2) QSL 720 Belfast Road, Suite 217 Ottawa, Ontario K1G 0Z5 A self-addressed, stamped envelope is required to get a QSL in return. The ARISS international group has not yet finalized a QSL card design. It will be a few months before cards become available. More information about the project can be found on the ARISS web site at http://ariss.gsfc.nasa.gov. [ANS thanks ARISS team member Will Marchant, KC6ROL, for this information] RADIO SPORT RS-12 Uplink 145.910 to 145.950 MHz CW/SSB Downlink 29.410 to 29.450 MHz CW/SSB Beacon 29.408 MHz Launched: February 5, 1991 aboard a Russian Cosmos C launcher Status: RS-12 was re-activated in mode A on January 1, 2001 Richard, YV5MCD, reports RS-12 telemetry shows the 10-meter transmit power is at 0.9-watts, with the transmitter temperature at 22 degrees Celsius. The latest information on RS-12 and RS-13 can be found on the AC5DK RS-12/13 Satellite Operators page at: http://www.qsl.net/ac5dk/rs1213/rs1213.html [ANS thanks Kevin Manzer, AC5DK, for RS-12 information] RADIO SPORT RS-15 Uplink 145.858 to 145.898 MHz CW/SSB Downlink 29.354 to 29.394 MHz CW/SSB Beacon 29.352 MHz (intermittent) SSB meeting frequency 29.380 MHz (unofficial) Launched: December 26, 1994 from the Baikonur Cosmodrome Status: Semi-operational, mode-A, using a 2-meter uplink and a 10-meter downlink Mike, N1JEZ, reports that although RS-15 can be very frustrating, he recently heard his downlink using his 10-meter turnstile (no external preamp) and 50-watts into his VHF beam. His downlink was S-3 with some QSB. The beacon was S-5. This was a 31-degree pass over N1JEZ's QTH. Dave, WB6LLO, has operating information for both RS-15 on his web site. In addition to satellite data, antenna information for mode-A operation is also featured. The WB6LLO web site URL is: http://home.san.rr.com/doguimont/uploads [ANS thanks Dave Guimont, WB6LLO, for this information] OSCAR 10 AO-10 Uplink 435.030 to 435.180 MHz CW/LSB Downlink 145.975 to 145.825 MHz CW/USB Beacon 145.810 MHz (unmodulated carrier) Launched: June 16, 1983 by an Ariane launcher from Kourou, French Guiana. Status: Semi-operational, mode-B. AO-10 has been locked into a 70-cm uplink and a 2-meter downlink for several years. DX continues to be heard and worked on AO-10. Rolf, DK2ZF, (operating as S79RN) reports working W1ME and VE3NPC. Altogether, Rolf reports 40 contacts via AO-10. W4SM has more information about the satellite at the following URL: http://www.cstone.net/~w4sm/AO-10.html [ANS thanks Stacey Mills, W4SM, for his AO-10 status information and web site] AMRAD AO-27 Uplink 145.850 MHz FM Downlink 436.795 MHz FM Launched: September 26, 1993 by an Ariane launcher from Kourou, French Guiana. Status: Operational, mode J. Periodically, AO-27's analog repeater will be turned off for a few days at a time to enable ground controllers to gather Whole Orbital Data (WOD), to verify the health of the satellite. An AO-27 question-and-answer page is available on the AMSAT-NA web site. The URL is: http://www.amsat.org/amsat/intro/ao27faq.html. AO-27 uses a method called Timed Eclipse Power Regulation (TEPR) to regulate the on-board batteries. In simple terms, TEPR times how long the satellite has been in an eclipse (or in the sun) and decides what subsystems to turn on or off. TEPR states on AO-27 were reset on March 24, 2001 as follows: TEPR 4 is 38 / TEPR 5 is 78 (TEPR 5 is now 20 minutes long) The AO-27 pages on the AMSAT-NA web site include an explanation of TEPR AO-27 operations (at): http://www.amsat.org/amsat/sats/n7hpr/ao27.html [ANS thanks AMRAD for AO-27 information] UO-14 Uplink 145.975 MHz FM Downlink 435.070 MHz FM Launched: January 22, 1990 by an Ariane launcher from Kourou, French Guiana. Status: Operational, mode J Tim, KG8OC, features UO-14 information on the Michigan AMSAT web site -- point your web browser to the following URL: http://www.qsl.net/kg8oc [ANS thanks Chris Jackson, G7UPN/ZL2TPO, for UO-14 information] JAS-1b FO-20 Uplink 145.90 to 146.00 MHz CW/LSB Downlink 435.80 to 435.90 MHz CW/USB Launched: February 07, 1990 by an H1 launcher from the Tanegashima Space Center in Japan. Status: Operational. FO-20 is in mode JA continuously Tak, JA2PKI, reported the FO-20 control station operators believe that the UVC (Under Voltage Controller) now is regulating the transponder. The UVC monitors battery voltage and tries to protect the batteries from over discharge. [ANS thanks Kazu Sakamoto, JJ1WTK, for the FO-20 status reports] JAS-2 FO-29 Launched: August 17, 1996, by an H-2 launcher from the Tanegashima Space Center in Japan. Status: Operational Voice/CW Mode JA Uplink 145.90 to 146.00 MHz CW/LSB Downlink 435.80 to 435.90 MHz CW/USB Digital Mode JD Uplink 145.850 145.870 145.910 MHz FM Downlink 435.910 MHz 1200 baud BPSK or 9600 baud FSK Callsign 8J1JCS Digitalker 435.910 MHz The JARL FO-29 command station has announced the following operation schedule of FO-29: through July 2, 2001 - mode JA Mike, KF4FDJ, has put together a very informative document on FO-29, addressing the analog, digital and digi-talker modes. To obtain a copy e-mail Mike at: kf4fdj@amsat.org. Mineo, JE9PEL, has a FO-29 satellite telemetry analysis program that will automatically analyze all digital telemetry from the satellite (such as current, voltage and temperature). The JE9PEL FO-29/shareware is available at the following URL: http://www.ne.jp/asahi/hamradio/je9pel/ [ANS thanks Kazu Sakamoto, JJ1WTK, for the FO-29 status reports] /EX SB SAT @ AMSAT $ANS-112.05 WEEKLY SATELLITE REPORT PART 2 AMSAT NEWS SERVICE BULLETIN 112.05 FROM AMSAT HQ SILVER SPRING, MD, APRIL 22, 2001 TO ALL RADIO AMATEURS BID: $ANS-112.05 TIUNGSAT-1 Uplink 145.850 or 145.925 MHz 9600 baud FSK Downlink 437.325 MHz Broadcast callsign MYSAT3-11 BBS MYSAT3-12 Launched: September 26, 2000 aboard a converted Soviet ballistic missile from the Baikonur Cosmodrome. Status: Operational at 38k4 baud FSK Chris, G7UPN, tells ANS that TiungSat-1 has been operating at a data rate of 38k4. Data recovery at 38k4 is reported to be extremely good with efficiencies near 100%. The output power is at 8-watts "which should provide a very good downlink," said Chris, adding "the downside is that with the high power transmitter operating, the power budget is negative so we can't support continuous operation." According to G7UPN, TiungSat-1 now requires the Amateur Radio station to switch the downlink 'on' when the satellite comes into range. The way this works is for the ground station software to send a request to the spacecraft to switch the downlink on. The spacecraft receives this request and checks the battery voltage to see if it can support the operation, and if it can it will activate the downlink. TiungSat-1 is Malaysia's first micro-satellite and in addition to commercial land and weather imaging payloads offers FM and FSK Amateur Radio communication. TiungSat-1, named after the mynah bird of Malaysia, was developed as a collaborative effort between the Malaysian government and Surrey Satellite Technology Ltd. For more information on TiungSat-1, visit the following URL: http://www.yellowpages.com.my/tiungsat/tiung_main.htm [ANS thanks Chris Jackson, G7UPN/ZL2TPO, for this information] KITSAT KO-25 Uplink 145.980 MHz FM (9600 baud FSK) Downlink 436.500 MHz FM Broadcast Callsign HL02-11 BBS HL02-12 Launched: September 26, 1993 by an Ariane launcher from Kourou, French Guiana. Status: Operational Jim, AA7KC, reports KO-25 is operational with moderate traffic. Downlink efficiencies are in the low 80% range. [ANS thanks Jim Weisenberger, AA7KC, for KO-25 status information] UOSAT UO-22 Uplink 145.900 or 145.975 MHz FM 9600 baud FSK Downlink 435.120 MHz FM Broadcast Callsign UOSAT5-11 BBS UOSAT5-12 Launched: July 17, 1991 by an Ariane launcher from Kourou, French Guiana. Status: Operational Jim, AA7KC, reports UO-22 is operational with heavy individual and Sat-gate traffic. Downlink efficiencies are in the high 80% range. More information on the satellite is available at the following URL: http://www.sstl.co.uk/ [ANS thanks Chris Jackson, G7UPN/ZL2TPO, for UO-22 information and Jim Weisenberger, AA7KC, for status information] OSCAR-11 Downlink 145.825 MHz FM (1200 baud AFSK) Mode-S Beacon 2401.500 MHz Launched: March 1, 1984 by a Delta-Thor rocket from Vandenberg Air Force Base in California. Status: Operational Clive Wallis, G3CWV, reports that he has updated his processing software for OSCAR-11, correcting a Y2K problem with Keplerian elements. The updated packages can now be downloaded from his web site. Ground control operations have now corrected the dates in ASCII status blocks, reset the magnetorquer counters and started a new WOD survey. However, users should also note that there is still a three day error in the hardware generated ASCII telemetry date. The time in the ASCII telemetry continues to advance and the error is now about 18 minutes. Unfortunately these errors cannot be corrected. During the period 14-March to 17-April, 2001 reliable signals have been received from the 145 MHz beacon. Battery voltage observed during daylight passes has continued to decrease. The average value observed was 13.6 with a range of 13.2 to 13.9 volts. Internal temperatures have continued to decrease by one degree. They are now 2.0C and 0.4C for battery and telemetry electronics respectively. Magnetometer calibrations have steadily changed during many years in orbit. Although the changes are small and are not noticeable on a plot of individual channels, they do have a considerable effect when the total magnetic field is calculated. The spin period has varied between 207 and 339 seconds. Ground control has now reset the magnetorquer counters. The operating schedule is as follows: ASCII status (210 seconds) ASCII bulletin (60 seconds) BINARY SEU (30 seconds) ASCII TLM (90 seconds) ASCII WOD (120 seconds) ASCII bulletin (60 seconds) BINARY ENG (30 seconds) The ASCII bulletin is currently a static message, detailing modes and frequencies of all active amateur radio satellites. More information on OSCAR-11 is available at the following URL: http://www.users.zetnet.co.uk/clivew/ [ANS thanks Clive Wallis, G3CWV, for OSCAR-11 status information] PACSAT AO-16 Uplink 145.90 145.92 145.94 145.96 MHz FM (using 1200 baud Manchester FSK) Downlink 437.025 MHz SSB (RC-BPSK 1200 baud PSK) Mode-S Beacon 2401.1428 MHz Broadcast Callsign: PACSAT-11 BBS PACSAT-12 Launched: January 22, 1990 by an Ariane launcher from Kourou, French Guiana. Status: Semi-operational, the digipeater command is on. Mineo, JE9PEL reports AO-16 is transmitting only the broadcast message. At last report telemetry was as follows: uptime is 432/17:20:00. Time is Fri Apr 20 20:57:04 2001 +X (RX) Temp -13.919 D RX Temp 0.603 D BCR Input Cur 0.314 A BCR Output Cur 0.348 A Bat 1 Temp 3.629 D Bat 2 Temp 4.839 D Baseplt Temp 4.839 D PSK TX RF Out 1.374 W RC PSK BP Temp -2.422 D RC PSK HPA Tmp -3.027 D +Y Array Temp -15.129 D PSK TX HPA Tmp -0.002 D +Z Array Temp -18.155 D Total Array C= 0.299 Bat Ch Cur= 0.005 Ifb= 0.015 I+10V= 0.329 TX:1009 BCR:74 PWRC:36D BT:1E WC:25 EDAC:AA A new WOD collection of current graphics along with general information and telemetry samples can be found at: www.telecable.es/personales/ea1bcu [ANS thanks Miguel Menendez, EA1BCU, for AO-16 status information] UoSAT-12 UO-36 Uplink 145.960 MHz (9600 baud FSK) Downlink 437.025 MHz 437.400 MHz Broadcast Callsign UO121-11 BBS UO121-12 Launched: April 21, 1999 by a Russian launcher from the Baikonur Cosmodrome. Status: Operational Happy birthday UO-36, two years in space this month! UO-36 carries a number of imaging payloads, digital store-and-forward communications and mode L/S transponders. NASA has demonstrated on UO-36 the ability to use standard Internet protocols to communicate with an orbiting spacecraft (just like any node on the Internet). NASA has been developing this project by working with the commercial payload aboard UoSAT-12. The BBS is open, although uploading and downloading may be disabled at times. The VK5HI viewer shareware for UO-36 is available on the AMSAT-NA web site at the following URL: ftp://ftp.amsat.org/amsat/software/win32/display/ccddsp97-119.zip Further information on UO-36 is available from: http://www.sstl.co.uk/ [ANS thanks Chris G7UPN/ZL2TPO, and the University of Surrey for this information] ITAMSAT IO-26 Uplink 145.875 145.900 145.925 145.950 MHz FM (1200 baud) Downlink 435.822 MHz SSB Broadcast Callsign ITMSAT-11 BBS ITMSAT-12 Launched: September 26, 1993 by an Ariane launcher from Kourou, French Guiana. Status: Semi-operational, the digipeater function is on and open for APRS users. [ANS thanks ITAMSAT Project Manager Alberto E. Zagni, I2KBD, for IO-26 information] /EX SB SAT @ AMSAT $ANS-112.06 WEEKLY SATELLITE REPORT PART 3 AMSAT NEWS SERVICE BULLETIN 112.06 FROM AMSAT HQ SILVER SPRING, MD, APRIL 22, 2001 TO ALL RADIO AMATEURS BID: $ANS-112.06 THE FOLLOWING ARE IN ORBIT BUT ARE NON-OPERATIONAL AT THIS TIME: TMSAT-1 TO-31 Uplink 145.925 MHz (9600 baud FSK) Downlink 436.925 MHz (9600 baud FSK) Broadcast Callsign: TMSAT1-11 BBS TMSAT1-12 Launched: July 10, 1998 by a Zenit rocket from the Baikonur Cosmodrome. Status: Non-operational, no data downlinked since December 18, 2000. Jim, AA7KC, reported recently to ANS that TO-31 has been non-operational over North America for the past several months. Chris G7UPN, (UoSAT operations manager) reports the following to ANS: The TO-31 downlink will be off over most areas, with the exception of Europe and Thailand. This is required to allow control stations to recondition the battery with minimum power drain. ProcMail V2.00G has been released by G7UPN. This software permits the processing of image files from TO-31. It has been posted to the AMSAT-NA FTP site at the following URL: http://www.amsat.org/amsat/software/win32/wisp Many of the high-resolution color images transmitted by TMSAT are compressed using a UoSAT compression format. This format is supported by the VK5HI CCD display program. [ANS thanks Chris Jackson, G7UPN/ZL2TPO, for TO-31 status information] LUSAT LO-19 Uplink 145.84 145.86 145.88 145.90 MHz FM (using 1200 baud Manchester FSK) CW downlink 437.125 MHz Digital downlink 437.150 MHz SSB (RC-BPSK 1200 baud PSK) Broadcast Callsign LUSAT-11 BBS LUSAT-12 Launched: January 22, 1990 by an Ariane launcher from Kourou, French Guiana. Status: Beacon only. The CW beacon is sending eight telemetry channels and one status channel on 437.126 MHz. No BBS service is available. The digipeater is not active. Telemetry (limited) is as follows: Sat Time is Fri Apr 20 20:59:04 2001 LUSAT HIHI 60 AUN ADT AVB ADV AUB A66 A6U AE6 Mineo, JE9PEL, has recorded LO-19 CW and PSK telemetry and placed the information on his Internet homepage site at: http://www.ne.jp/asahi/hamradio/je9pel/ General information and telemetry samples can be found at: www.telecable.es/personales/ea1bcu [ANS thanks Miguel Menendez, EA1BCU, for LO-19 status information] SO-41 SAUDISAT-1A Uplink to be released Downlink 437.075 MHz Broadcast Callsign SASAT1-11 BBS SASAT1-12 Launched: September 26, 2000 aboard a converted Soviet ballistic missile from the Baikonur Cosmodrome. Status: Unknown, this satellite has been in orbit over six months. ANS has received no additional information. SaudiSat-1A will operate as 9600 baud digital store-and-forward systems as well analog FM repeater mode capability. One of two new ham satellites from the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia built by the Space Research Institute at the King Abdulaziz City for Science and Technology. SO-42 SAUDISAT-1B Uplink to be released Downlink 436.775 MHz Broadcast Callsign SASAT2-11 BBS SASAT2-12 Launched: September 26, 2000 aboard a converted Soviet ballistic missile from the Baikonur Cosmodrome. Status: Unknown, this satellite has been in orbit over six months. ANS has received no additional information. SaudiSat-1B will operate as 9600 baud digital store-and-forward systems as well analog FM repeater mode capability. One of two new ham satellites from the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia built by the Space Research Institute at the King Abdulaziz City for Science and Technology. SUNSAT SO-35 Mode J Uplink: 145.825 MHz FM Mode J Downlink: 436.250 MHz FM Mode B Uplink: 436.291 MHz FM Mode B Downlink: 145.825 MHz FM Launched: February 23, 1999 by a Delta II rocket from Vandenberg Air Force Base in California. Status: Non-operational The SunSat team released the following statement, dated February 1, 2001: We regret to announce that the last communication with SunSat from our ground station at the Electronic Systems Laboratory at Stellenbosch University took place recently. We are certain, after having performed several tests since the last contact, that an irreversible, physical failure has occurred on the satellite. It is therefore unlikely that we will have any further contact with SunSat, apart from the occasional visual sighting by telescope! When it was operational the SunSat package included 1200 and 9600 baud digital store-and-forward capability and a voice 'parrot' repeater system in addition to Mode B/J operation with two VHF and two UHF transmit-receive systems. For more information on SunSat visit the following URL: http://sunsat.ee.sun.ac.za [ANS thanks Garth Milne, ZR1AFH, for this information] RADIO SPORT RS-13 Uplink 21.260 to 21.300 MHz CW/SSB Downlink 145.860 to 145.900 MHz CW/SSB Beacon 145.860 MHz Launched: February 5, 1991 aboard a Russian Cosmos C launcher Status: non-operational (last operational in mode-T) RS-12 was re-activated in January 2001. Prior to this switch RS-13 was operational (mode T), but was apparently turned off following the recent RS-12 switch. The latest information on RS-12 and RS-13 can be found on the AC5DK RS-12/13 Satellite Operators page at: http://www.qsl.net/ac5dk/rs1213/rs1213.html [ANS thanks Kevin Manzer, AC5DK, for this information] KITSAT KO-23 Uplink 145.900 MHz FM (9600 baud FSK) Downlink 435.170 MHz FM Broadcast Callsign HLO1-11 BBS HLO1-12 Launched: August 10, 1992 by an Ariane launcher from Kourou, French Guiana. Status: Intermittent operation with the downlink transmitter operating at unpredictable intervals. Jim, AA7KC, reported that KO-23's downlink transmitter continues in non-operational status. Jim says that KO-23 shows some signs of trying to recover, but no useful data has been downlinked. The duration of this status is unpredictable. No data has been received since October 28, 2000. KyungHee Kim, HL0ENJ, reports (from the KO-23 control team) that part of the problem with non-operation has been the power budget aboard the satellite. "We are not sure when the bird might turn off again due to insufficient power. The capability of the onboard power system has been less and less," said Kim. HL0ENJ also noted that as of October 30, 2000 the onboard computer was reset and a reboot of operational software is was underway. [ANS thanks Jim Weisenberger, AA7KC, and KyungHee Kim, HL0ENJ, for KO-23 status information] TECHSAT-1B GO-32 Downlink 435.225 MHz using HDLC telemetry Launched: July 10, 1998 by a Russian Zenit rocket from the Baikonur Cosmodrome. Status: Semi-operational. Efforts were reported to be underway to bring GO-32 on line, however, no information has been received by ANS (the last report was dated November 1999). Last reported, the satellite does transmit a 9600-baud burst every 30 seconds (the GO-32 beacon sends one short telemetry status transmission of 44 bytes) and upon request the complete telemetry buffer. [ANS has no further information] PANSAT PO-34 Uplink/downlink frequency (listed on the PanSat web site) 436.500 MHz Launched: October 30, 1998 by the Shuttle Discovery Status: Unknown The satellite is not available for general uplink transmissions. The Naval Postgraduate School developed PanSat. At the time of launch, PanSat spread-spectrum digital transponders were promised to be available to Amateur Radio operators along with software to utilize this technology. To date, this has not happened. For more information, visit the official PanSat web site at: http://www.sp.nps.navy.mil/pansat/ PanSat was the featured cover article on the July/August 1999 issue of the AMSAT-NA Journal (the story written by KD6DRA and N7HPR). [ANS has no further information] DOVE DO-17 Downlink 145.825 MHz FM (1200 baud AFSK) 2401.220 MHz Launched: January 22, 1990 by an Ariane launcher from Kourou, French Guiana. Status: Non-operational. DOVE stopped transmitting in March 1998. The 145.825 MHz and 2401.220 MHz downlinks are off the air and the satellite has not responded to ground station control. [ANS has no further information] WEBERSAT WO-18 Downlink 437.104 MHz SSB (1200 baud PSK AX.25) Launched: January 22, 1990 by an Ariane launcher from Kourou, French Guiana. Status: Non-operational. WO-18 was last reported to be in MBL mode after a software crash. [ANS has no further information] SEDSAT-1 SO-33 Downlink 437.910 MHz FM (9600 baud FSK) Launched: October 24, 1998 by a Delta 2 rocket from Cape Canaveral, Florida. Status: Semi-operational. The satellite is not currently available for uplink transmissions and the image and transponder recovery efforts have been unsuccessful. SedSat-1 signifies Students for the Exploration and Development of Space (satellite number one). SedSat-1 has downlinked months worth of telemetry data on the performance of its electrical power system parameters. The Nickel Metal Hydride batteries on the spacecraft were experimental and experienced some abuse due to a power negative situation. This information has provided NASA with useful information. With the exception of the imaging system and the use of the transponders, SedSat-1 has been judged a success. For more information on SedSat-1 visit the satellite web site at the following URL: http://seds.uah.edu/projects/sedsat/sedsat.htm [ANS has no further information] /EX