SB SAT @ AMSAT $ANS-354.01 Straight Key Night AMSAT News Service Bulletin 354.01 From AMSAT HQ SILVER SPRING, MD. December 19, 2004 To All RADIO AMATEURS BID: $ANS-354.01 STRAIGHT KEY NIGHT ON OSCAR 2005 Once again AMSAT North America is pleased to sponsor Straight Key Night on OSCAR for enjoyment by all radio amateurs. OSCAR SKN 2005 will run for 24 hours, 0000-2400 UTC, on 1 January 2005. It's very simple: no rules, no scoring, and no need to send in a log. Just operate CW through any OSCAR satellite using a straight hand key, working as many other SKN participants as you can. Contacts via the moon (OSCAR Zero) count too. Unfortunately, however, this year there again appears to be a distinct shortage of satellites that will relay CW. As of this writing, only FO-29 and AO-7 are available. So, please make the best possible use of those. As in past years, all participants are requested to nominate one of the operators they worked for "Best Fist" recognition. Your nominee need not have the best fist of those you heard, just of those you worked. Please send all nominations to me at w2rs@amsat.org. A list of those nominated will be published via the AMSAT News Service in early February, and in The AMSAT Journal. [ANS thanks Ray Soifer, W2RS for the above information] /EX SB SAT @ AMSAT $ANS-354.02 ARISS Status AMSAT News Service Bulletin 354.02 From AMSAT HQ SILVER SPRING, MD. December 19, 2004 To All RADIO AMATEURS BID: $ANS-354.02 Submitted by Arthur N1ORC - Amsat A/C #31468 *International Space Station Status Report #04-67* *3 p.m. CST, Friday, Dec. 17, 2004* *Expedition 10 Crew* The Expedition 10 crew made ready for the Christmas arrival of an unpiloted resupply spacecraft this week while continuing research and maintenance activities aboard the International Space Station. Commander Leroy Chiao and Flight Engineer Salizhan Sharipov, a third of the way through their planned six-month mission, put the StationÕs 58-foot robotic arm through its paces. They also installed cables and a switching unit for the docking system that will guide the European Space Agency-provided Automated Transfer Vehicle to docking when it makes its maiden voyage next year. Research activities focused on bone and abdominal scans for the Advanced Diagnostic Ultrasound in Microgravity experiment, which is evaluating the ability of crewmembers with minimal medical training to work with doctors on the ground and diagnose medical problems. Chiao and Sharipov inventoried gear and loaded the ISS Progress 15 cargo vehicle with trash and unneeded equipment for disposal when that craft is jettisoned. At 1:34 p.m. CST Wednesday, a day before the launch of the next cargo ship, Progress 15 will be released from the rear of the Zvezda Service Module to clear that docking port. It will be commanded to deorbit and burn up in Earth's atmosphere. Preparations for the launch of the ISS Progress 16 resupply ship are on schedule at the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan. Progress 16 is scheduled for liftoff at 4:19 p.m. CST Dec. 23, carrying 2.5 tons of food, fuel, clothing and Christmas gifts. The cargo ship is scheduled to dock with the Station at about 6:04 p.m. CST Christmas Day. Due to the length of the crew's day on Dec. 25, the hatch to the Progress will not be opened until the next morning, when they will begin to unload their Christmas cargo. Maintenance activities this week included turning off the Russian oxygen generation system so that remaining oxygen in the Progress 15 tanks could be used, preventive work on the Zvezda Service ModuleÕs ventilation system and charging the batteries of the heart defibrillator that would be used in the event of a medical emergency. To prepare for the Space ShuttleÕs return-to-flight mission, STS-114, Chiao and Sharipov conducted the first full inventory of the Quest airlock module since Expedition 4. The top-to-bottom inspection was designed to account for all spacesuit components, tools and support equipment that will be needed for the three spacewalks planned during STS-114/LF-1. The full review will allow the Shuttle and Station programs to update cargo manifests with additional items if needed. Information on the crew's activities aboard the Space Station, future launch dates, as well as Station sighting opportunities from anywhere on the Earth, is available on the Internet at: http://spaceflight.nasa.gov The next ISS status report will be issued Thursday, Dec. 23 after the launch of the ISS Progress 16 cargo ship, or sooner if events warrant. /EX SB SAT @ AMSAT $ANS-354.03 Another Near Future Hamsat AMSAT News Service Bulletin 354.03 From AMSAT HQ SILVER SPRING, MD. December 19, 2004 To All RADIO AMATEURS BID: $ANS-354.03 Amsat India has indicated that in early 2005, Feb-March, there will be a new Leo Hamsat. It will have an onboard linear UHF/VHF transponder. There are several AMSAT organizations contributing various components. More details from AMSAT India's website (amsatindia.org)according to Nagesh, VU2NUD. Santa "is" listening. [ANS thanks Jim Wellinghoff, K0SBH for the above information] /EX SB SAT @ AMSAT $ANS-354.04 AO-51 Update AMSAT News Service Bulletin 354.04 From AMSAT HQ SILVER SPRING, MD. December 19, 2004 To All RADIO AMATEURS BID: $ANS-354.04 Amsat Kids Day on AO-51 To coincide with the ARRL‰Ûªs Kid‰Ûªs Day on January 2, 2004, AMSAT-NA will sponsor Kid‰Ûªs Day on AO-51. The event will run from approximately 1600 UTC 02 Jan to 0345 UTC 03 Jan. We ask all amateur radio stations to give this short time window to promote satellite operations with kids. If not actually showing a kid how to make contacts via AO-51, then providing a station to contact, or stepping aside to allow others to make contacts with the kids. During the event please limit contacts to stations that are operating with kids at the microphone. This should allow the kids to have a nice QSO and pass some information. Kids can tell their name, age, who is helping them operate on AO-51, where they live, and other information about themselves. AO-51 will be configured in the following mode during the event. Please note the change in the uplink frequency for the event. Uplink: 145.880 mhz FM voice, 67hz tone Downlink: 435.300 mhz FM voice This will be a good opportunity for Amsat to show off our educational side. Who knows, maybe one or more of the kids will be helping Amsat in the future. [ANS thanks Mike, KE4AZN, for the above information] /EX