SB SAT @ AMSAT $ANS-079.01 AMSAT KEPS distribution approved by AFSPC AMSAT News Service Bulletin 079.01 >From AMSAT HQ SILVER SPRING, MD. March 20, 2005 To All RADIO AMATEURS BID: $ANS-079.01 AMSAT's request to redistribute Keplerian data has been APPROVED as of 18 March 2005 in accordance with Air Force Space Command (AFSPC) Commander's authority. We are "good to go" and next weeks AMSAT Keplerian data distribution will originate from AFSPC Space Track web site. Ray Hoad, WA5QGD said, "I want to acknowledge the help and support that LtCol Maloney at AFSPC has given to AMSAT and the Radio Amateur Satellite Community at large." Ray continued, "Thank you LtCol Maloney for your help and consul in preparing our request." Thanks also are extended to all the AMSAT and ARRL leaders who helped in preparing AMSAT's response to AFSPC. Thank you for your timely support. [ANS thanks Ray, WA5QGD for the above information] /EX SB SAT @ AMSAT $ANS-079.02 AFSPC KEPS policy requires email addresses AMSAT News Service Bulletin 079.02 >From AMSAT HQ SILVER SPRING, MD. March 20, 2005 To All RADIO AMATEURS BID: $ANS-079.02 Under the interim policy adopted by Headquarters Air Force Space Command (HQ AFSPC), AMSAT is required to annually supply the email addresses of KEPS mailing list subscribers. On 24 March 2005 AMSAT will be supplying AFSPC with a copy of our Keplerian Data distribution list in compliance with the new law regarding distribution of governmental data. Below is a reminder of the subscribe/unsubcribe process for receiving distribution of the AMSAT format keplerian data. All routine administrative requests about mailing lists should be sent to majordomo@amsat.org and not to the mailing list address. This includes all requests to subscribe or unsubscribe. These requests will be handled automatically, so you must use a precise format. For details on the format, send email containing just the word help in the body of the message and the system will mail the details to you. OR .... Send SUBSCRIBE KEPS or UNSUBSCRIBE KEPS message to majordomo@amsat.org [ANS thanks Ray, WA5QGD for the above information] /EX SB SAT @ AMSAT $ANS-079.03 ANS Editors Wanted AMSAT News Service Bulletin 079.03 >From AMSAT HQ SILVER SPRING, MD. March 20, 2005 To All RADIO AMATEURS BID: $ANS-079.03 The AMSAT News Service (ANS) is currently seeking volunteer editors to assist with the preparation of the Weekly Bulletins. Volunteers will work with the existing ANS editors on a rotating schedule to produce the weekly news bulletin. In a typical rotation each editor is responsible for producing the bulletins once a month. Since the entire ANS staff is volunteer, we always work together to accommodate personal schedules and unforeseen events. If you'd like to be part of the team please contact me using the email address ku4os@amsat.org Lee McLamb-KU4OS, ANS Senior Editor [ANS thanks Lee, KU4OS for the above information] /EX SB SAT @ AMSAT $ANS-079.04 AO-51 operating mode info AMSAT News Service Bulletin 079.04 >From AMSAT HQ SILVER SPRING, MD. March 20, 2005 To All RADIO AMATEURS BID: $ANS-079.04 A table which shows the current AO-51 mode has been added to the front page of the website, www.amsat.org The indicated mode is based on the published schedule or announcements and will usually occur at ~0200 UTC. The complete schedule for the upcoming month in both text as well as a graphic time table can also be found on the web site at http://www.amsat.org/amsat-new/echo/ControlTeam.php [ANS thanks Emily, W0EEC for the above information] /EX SB SAT @ AMSAT $ANS-079.05 ARISS Status - 14 March 2005 AMSAT News Service Bulletin 079.05 >From AMSAT HQ SILVER SPRING, MD. March 20, 2005 To All RADIO AMATEURS BID: $ANS-079.05 1. Texas School Contact Successful Rains High School in Emory, Texas is predominately made up of low income students, and participating in programs such as ARISS is rare for the school. On March 8, students were given an opportunity to speak with Leroy Chiao, KE5BRW, via the telebridge station, WH6PN in Hawaii. Students were able to ask 15 questions. At least one television station covered the event. The audio was streamed over the internet, compliments of MCI. It was also heard over EchoLink, where over 230 stations monitored the contact, from areas including Japan, India, Europe, and North America. 2.ARRL Article on Bentley Contact The fourth graders at Bentley School began studying Space in September. They learned about the International Space Station and Expedition 10, in particular. Following the ISS current events in daily newspapers, they worked in small groups to determine the best questions to ask Leroy Chiao, and practiced for the contact, to determine the number of questions that might be answered. They again worked in small groups so that they could present information to the audience, in the event that all of their questions were not answered. The students wore "Expedition X" T-shirts for the event. Students and teachers both thought that Leroy answered their questions with much enthusiasm, and the children liked having the astronaut call them by their first names, making the contact a very personal event for each of them. The February 28 contact was covered in the ARRL article, entitled, "ISS Crew Commander Addresses Litter, Space Station 'Tilt' in Ham Contact." See: http://www.arrl.org/news/stories/2005/03/08/2/?nc=1 3. St John's School Video St. John's School in Houston, Texas had an ARISS contact with Leroy Chiao on February 23, 2005. The video of the event can be found on the school's website. Go to: http://www.sjs.org/news/news/detail.asp?newsid=151565# and click on "Space Station Hook Up." Select: iss contact_300k.swf. 4. Astronaut Training On March 9, Kenneth Ransom held an amateur radio training session for the backup crew members of Expedition 12. Clay Anderson (KD5PLA), Jeff Williams (KD5TVQ) and Leo Eyharts attended. Covered in the class were school operations, radio capabilities, and radio modes of operation. Astronauts Anderson and Williams are currently slated as the primary crew of Expedition 14. 5. ARISS School Selection Committee Meeting Held The ARISS Educational Outreach/School Selection Committee met via teleconference on Thursday, March 10. The minutes will be posted to the ARISS website in the near future. [ANS thanks Carol, KB3LKI for the above information] /EX