SB SAT @ AMSAT $ANS-268.01 SSETI Express Set to Launch 30 September 2005 AMSAT News Service Bulletin 268.01 From AMSAT HQ SILVER SPRING, MD. September 25, 2005 To All RADIO AMATEURS BID: $ANS-268.01 At long last, official confirmation has been received that the SSETI Express launch is scheduled to take place at 06:52 on September 30th with October 1st as the backup date. SSETI Express will be launching from Plesetsk Cosmodrome on the Cosmos-3M LV The launch of SSETI Express will be streamed to the Internet thanks to the efforts of Howard Long, G6LVB. The new URL for the Webstream will be http://www.streamingwizard.com/clients/space.asx The first transmission will occur approximately 65 minutes after separation from the launch adaptor approximately 100 minutes after launch when Express is over northern Europe. The type of the first transmissions will depend on the state of the battery. In Nominal mode - a sub 1 second burst of AX25 9k6 FSK telemetry every 18 seconds on the downlink frequency of 437.250 MHz. In Recovery or Safe mode - simple on/off telemetry comprising 16 x 100 msec carrier pulses. This telemetry is repeated every 30 seconds in Safe Mode and every 2 minutes when in Recovery Mode. The satellite will transmit at a power of 3 watts. Reception reports will be welcome by email at operations@sseti.net or by placing them on the SSETI Newsgroup at slave.gte.tuwein.ac.at in the folder "sseti.express.report" where you will also be able to see reports from other locations around the world. Full information on receiving SSETI Express signals, decoding the telemetry, submitting it to the project team and entering the competition will be posted at: http://sseti.gte.tuwien.ac.at/WSW4/MOPWS/news.php. This will have links to all the updated pages as they occur. AMSAT-UK produce a newsletter "Oscar News" which is full of satellite information. For membership details contact the secretary Jim Heck G3WGM Tel: +44 (0)1258 453959 E-mail: g3wgm@amsat.org Website: http://www.uk.amsat.org/ [ANS thanks Graham, UA/G3VZV and Trevor, M5AKA for the above information] /EX SB SAT @ AMSAT $ANS-268.02 SSETI Express to Deploy Three Cubesats AMSAT News Service Bulletin 268.02 From AMSAT HQ SILVER SPRING, MD. September 25, 2005 To All RADIO AMATEURS BID: $ANS-268.02 SSETI Express will be launching from Plesetsk Cosmodrome on the Cosmos-3M LV on September 30, 2005 at 06:52:26 UTC. Satellites that will be launched from Cosmos-3M are Topsat, China DMC and SSETI Express. >From SSETI Express three CubeSats will be deployed: NCUBE-2, UWE-1, and XI-V. This is a great opportunity for everyone in the Cubesat community to use and test their earthstations to track and communicate with the satellites once they are deployed from the LV. The information regarding the cubesats and their TLEs is located on the CubeSat Website, www.cubesat.org The CubeSat website will contain links to more detailed information and operations about SSETI Express and the CubeSats as well as general information for tracking purposes. The expected TLEs will be posted when the satellites are launched. A SSETI Express discussion board has been created; you must login-in to post on the discussion board. Fully functionality of the tools will occur as the launch approaches. SSETI Control Center http://littonlab.atl.calpoly.edu/pages/missions/sseti-express-2005/satellite -info.php Test Discussion Board http://littonlab.atl.calpoly.edu/smf/ [ANS thanks Simon Lee for the above information] /EX SB SAT @ AMSAT $ANS-268.03 Cubesat "XI-V" Reception Reports Requested AMSAT News Service Bulletin 268.03 From AMSAT HQ SILVER SPRING, MD. September 25, 2005 To All RADIO AMATEURS BID: $ANS-268.03 The University of Tokyo Intelligent Space Systems Laboratory (ISSL) is preparing for the launch of their second CubeSat called "XI-V" (sai-five). XI-V launched with and then separated from SSETI Express. The XI-V team would appreciate reception reports of signals from XI-V. Reports or received data may be sent via email to xi5report@space.t.u-tokyo.ac.jp or upload any data file through the web http://www.space.t.u-tokyo.ac.jp/cubesat/upload/xi5report-e.aspx The specification of the transmitter is as follows: CW morse-coded signal is on 437.465MHz +/- doppler, output power is 80mW FM packet of AFSK AX.25 is on 437.345MHz +/- doppler, output power is 800mW. The details can be seen at http://www.space.t.u-tokyo.ac.jp/gs/satinfo-e.html#xi5 Although the FM packet will not be transmitted unless commanded by the ground station at Tokyo, CW signal is always ON, so anyone can receive it. The format of the CW signal is available at http://www.space.t.u-tokyo.ac.jp/gs/application-e.html#xi5 Initially the TLE of SSETI Express (provided by Graham) will be adequate for acquisition as the separation velocity is so small that the deviation from the orbit of SSETI Express will be negligible for a few days. Event Timeline: Sep 30 06:52:26 (UTC) Launch Sep 30 08:37:26 (UTC) Separation of XI-V Sep 30 09:08:00 (UTC) Start of CW transmission (which will occur over the pacific ocean) Due to the power limitation, the initial interval of the CW signal is about 30 seconds, and it will be very difficult to catch its signal. The XI-V would greatly appreciate help receiving data. Any format of received data is welcome. If you have anything to ask, please send email to cube_info@space.t.u-tokyo.ac.jp [ANS thanks Ryu Funase for the above information] /EX SB SAT @ AMSAT $ANS-268.04 Special Event from Titan Missle Museum AMSAT News Service Bulletin 268.04 From AMSAT HQ SILVER SPRING, MD. September 25, 2005 To All RADIO AMATEURS BID: $ANS-268.04 On October 1, the Green Valley Amateur Radio Club will be conducting a special event operation from the Titan Missile Museum National Historic Site, in neighboring Sahuarita, AZ (DM41). While most of the operation will be on HF, we plan to be on SO-50, and, if the FM transponder is active at the time, AO-51, using the call N7GV. A special certificate is available free of charge (SASE please) to anyone working the station. Please QSL to W0KAD. Further details appear on p. 101 of October QST. The Titan Missile Museum National Historic Site houses the only remaining Titan II ICBM, intact in its original silo except for the propellants and nuclear warhead. The site was operational from 1963 to 1981. The facility is open to visitors daily, with guided tours available. [ANS thanks Ray, W2RS for the above information] /EX SB SAT @ AMSAT $ANS-268.05 AO-51 Special Event - JOTA Weekend 15-16 Oct AMSAT News Service Bulletin 268.05 From AMSAT HQ SILVER SPRING, MD. September 25, 2005 To All RADIO AMATEURS BID: $ANS-268.05 The annual Boy and Girl Scouts "Jamboree on the Air" Amateur Radio event is scheduled for 15 and 16 October 2005. As this is an International Scouting event, amateur radio stations around the world are invited to participate. The AO-51 command team is scheduling the satellite for exclusive use by the Scouts, and Satellite operators communicating with the Scouts, for this weekend. Please allow the Scouts the opportunity to make as many contacts as possible via AO-51 during this short time period. Base stations, please remember that most of the JOTA stations will be portable, so please use minimum power. The official times for the JOTA event will be from 1200 UTC on October 15 until 1200 UTC on October 17, 2005. For the JOTA weekend, AO-51 will be configured in the Dual FM repeater mode. This will provide two independent FM repeaters (separate uplink and downlink frequencies) for use over the weekend. Both repeaters will be for use by the JOTA activity. This mode will run Monday through Friday before the event to allow amateur satellite stations to familiarize and test this mode. The configuration of the satellite frequencies for this mode is listed below. AO-51 FM repeater #1 Downlink: 435.300 MHz Uplink: 145.920 MHz with 67hz PL Tone AO-51 FM repeater #2 Downlink: 435.150 MHz Uplink: 145.880 MHz with NO PL Tone Here are some web links for information on the JOTA weekend activity. http://www.arrl.org/FandES/ead/jota.html and http://www.arrl.org/FandES/ead/ideas.html http://www.scouting.org/international/jota.html If your local club has a JOTA activity planned for the weekend please consider volunteering your services to provide a satellite communication station for the event. Thanks for your support and participation. 73, KE4AZN Echo Command Team Amsat VP-Operations [ANS thank Mike KE4AZN for the above information] /EX SB SAT @ AMSAT $ANS-268.06 Suitsat Video Newsreel AMSAT News Service Bulletin 268.06 From AMSAT HQ SILVER SPRING, MD. September 25, 2005 To All RADIO AMATEURS BID: $ANS-268.06 Get ready for SuitSat, watch and listen to Frank Bauer, KA3HDO and Mark Steiner, K3MS explain what SuitSat is and what it will do. On the AMSAT website, click on AMSAT VIDEO NEWS then on the Video News page click on SuitSat. You will need Windows Media Player or Mplayer to view the NewsReel. If you haven't seen the other NewsReels, now would be a great time to see them, or watch them again. They are very informative and highlight the activities of AMSAT. [ANS thanks Don WB5EKU for the above information] /EX SB SAT @ AMSAT $ANS-268.07 ARISS Status - 19 September 2005 AMSAT News Service Bulletin 268.07 From AMSAT HQ SILVER SPRING, MD. September 25, 2005 To All RADIO AMATEURS BID: $ANS-268.07 1. NES School Contact Successful On Friday, September 16, children from the Matthew J. Kuss Middle School in Fall River, Massachusetts, experienced a successful contact with John Phillips, KE5DRY. The amateur radio station was set up in the school library where twelve students asked 22 questions of the astronaut. Two of the students came from Central Park Middle School, another NASA Explorer School (NES), and six of the students (all girls) were amateur radio operators. The audio and video were fed, via amateur radio television, to a nearby church where 100 students, parents, teachers, and local dignitaries gathered to watch. The event drew a great deal of media attention with television stations including NBC affiliate, WJAR (Channel 10), Fox affiliate WPRI (Channel 12), ABC affiliate WLNE (Channel 6), Comcast Local Channel 9, and Fall River Educational Television (FRED-TV). Newspapers in attendance included the Fall River Spirit and the Fall River Herald News. In addition, the Museum of Science, Boston, was producing a documentary of the school contact. The Fall River Herald News article, "Long-distance call," may be viewed online. See: http://www.heraldnews.com/site/news.cfm?newsid=15228976&BRD=1710&PAG=461&dept_id=99784&rfi=8 2. Upcoming School Contacts Tregaron High School in Tregaron, Ceredigion, Wales, United Kingdom, has been scheduled for an ARISS contact. It will take place on Thursday, September 29 at 11:28 UTC. 3. Upcoming School Contacts with Space Tourist Space Tourist, Greg Olsen, will fly with the Expedition 12 crew slated to launch on October 1. He plans to make three ARISS contacts during his 8 day visit on board the ISS. The tentative dates and times for these contacts follow. On Wednesday, October 5 at 16:58 UTC, Olsen will speak to students at Princeton High School in Princeton, New Jersey. The contact will be direct via N2RE. Students from Fort Hamilton High School in Brooklyn, New York will speak to the space traveler via the telebridge station, VK5ZAI, in Australia. The contact is scheduled for Thursday, October 6 at 15:07 UTC. Olsen will speak to the students at Ridgefield Park High School in Ridgefield Park, New Jersey via the telebridge station ZS6BTD in South Africa. The contact will take place on Friday, October 7 at 13:32 UTC. 4. ARRL Article on Japan Red Cross Contact On September 8, the Japan Red Cross Radio Volunteer Corps of Fukui-prefecture, Wakasa Branch, in Obama-City, Fukui-ken, Japan experienced a successful amateur radio contact with astronaut John Phillips, KE5DRY. The ARRL article, "Young Japanese Astronaut Hopefuls Discuss ET, Other Topics," covers the event, and provides links to the audio and video. See: http://www.arrl.org/news/stories/2005/09/16/6/?nc=1 5. Astronaut Training Status On Wednesday, September 7, astronaut Sandy Magnus took and passed her amateur radio exam. Her new callsign is KE5FYE. Congratulations, Sandy! Mission Specialist Bob Behnken attended an amateur radio training class at JSC on Monday, September 12. He is scheduled for another session on September 21 to prepare him for his technician's exam. 6. ARRL Article on SSTV and SuitSat Hardware ARRL ran a web story covering the new ARISS hardware which was launched September 8, and is now on-orbit. The article, "'SuitSat', New ARISS SSTV Gear Arrives at International Space Station," may be found at: http://www.arrl.org/news/stories/2005/09/16/2/?nc=1 7. AMSAT and ARISS Joint Meetings, 2006 The 2006 AMSAT-NA Space Symposium will be held in the San Francisco Bay area. ARISS plans to hold its international face to face meeting immediately following the AMSAT-NA conference. The 2006 Symposium planning committee has begun working on next year's meeting and has asked for input. To voice an opinion on hotel and location preferences, go to: http://www.amsat.org/amsat-new/symposium/survey.php 8. Hams Commended on their Aid at Stennis A Stennis Space Center facility is serving as the Emergency Operations Center (EOC) for Hancock County, MS; the original EOC was destroyed by Hurricane Katrina. Amateur Radio operator Randy Pierce, AG4UU, from Tallahassee, Florida, is stationed at Stennis, and reports that Amateur Radio operators are serving as communicators for all the services at the EOC, including the fire department and the emergency medical system. Four radio operators are still needed each day. The Amateur Radio operators' technical capabilities have been employed, and the hams were complimented by the Hancock County Sheriff's Office and County Commissioners. [ANS thanks Carol, KB3LKI for the above information] /EX