SB SAT @ AMSAT $ANS-021.01 PHASE 3D/AO-40 UPDATE AMSAT NEWS SERVICE BULLETIN 021.01 FROM AMSAT HQ SILVER SPRING, MD, JANUARY 21, 2001 TO ALL RADIO AMATEURS BID: $ANS-021.01 The month of January continues with command stations working in their on-going recovery efforts of AMSAT OSCAR 40. The command team has determined the following: * 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. The command team's conclusion is that damage has been sustained to the omni-directional antennas, antenna cables or antenna relays (or possibly all three). * An attempt to command the V-band transmitter on the high-gain antennas has been done several times with no downlink signals detected. Telemetry may be indicating the transmitter is working, but with the current position of the satellite, V-band signals may not be receivable due to the assumption that the high-gain antennas may be pointing into space and not at Earth. Further tests will be conducted. * No recent tests have been conducted on the U-band transmitter, but tests are planned once the current spin rate is reduced and the command team can confirm the heat pipes are working. * The attitude control system is fully functional. Currently, a high spin rate (of about 17rpm) and an extreme sun angle (about 60 degrees) does not allow the sun sensor to provide accurate information. This explains why the indicated spin rate (via telemetry) is inaccurate. Without sun and attitude information the command team has suspended magnetorquing efforts, thus no further attitude or spin change has been attempted recently. Project leader DJ4ZC is developing a software algorithm which does not use sun sensor information. This software program will be tested and then used to try and reduce the spin rate and move the spacecraft to a better attitude. In summary, once the sun angle and antenna pointing is improved, both the V-band and U-band transmitter tests can resume, along with suitable experiments of the ATOS (arc-jet) thruster and the momentum wheels. ALON/ALAT is currently 248/-7, as listed on the AMSAT-DL web page. Several stations, including AO-40 command station G3RUH have measured the frequency of the S-2 transmitter middle beacon as 2401.323 MHz. The beacon can be heard before perigee (between MA 245 and 256). Due to extremely high doppler shift coupled with spin wobbling and fading, error-free telemetry reception will be difficult. Moe Wheatley, AE4JY, has released an updated of his AO40RCV soundcard-demodulator. Data export and AFC have been improved, recorded sound files can be used and triggering up/down keys of (most common) transceivers for automatic doppler correction has been implemented. More information on AO40RCV is available at: www.qsl.net/ae4jy The current AO-40 orbital element set number 28: Satellite: AO-40 Catalog number: 26609 Epoch time: 01018.53756618 Inclination: 5.9258 degrees RA of node: 230.0726 degrees Eccentricity: 0.8133560 Arg of perigee: 208.4998 degrees Mean anomaly: 11.7742 degrees Mean motion: 1.26922670 rev/day Decay rate: -1.63e-06 rev/day^2 Epoch rev: 99 Checksum: 299 [ANS thanks AMSAT-DL and AMSAT-NA for this information] /EX SB SAT @ AMSAT $ANS-021.02 DJ4ZC NAMED MARBURGER OF THE YEAR AMSAT NEWS SERVICE BULLETIN 021.02 FROM AMSAT HQ SILVER SPRING, MD, JANUARY 21, 2001 TO ALL RADIO AMATEURS BID: $ANS-021.02 AMSAT-DL President and AO-40 project leader Dr. Karl Meinzer, DJ4ZC, was recently named 'Marburger of the Year 2000' by readers of the Oberhessische Press, a daily newspaper published in Karl's hometown Marburg, Germany. Nine Marburg residents were nominated. The AMSAT-DL President's chief involvement in the development of AMSAT OSCAR 40 was mentioned in the honor. "This honor isn't only my merit," said Karl, "it also belongs as well to my colleagues all over the world and the many who are involved in the AO-40 project." Speaking on behalf of the AMSAT-NA Board of Directors, Officers and members of AMSAT-North America, AMSAT-NA President Robin Haighton, VE3FRH, told ANS: I congratulate Karl on being voted as the 'Marburger of the Year 2000'. His outstanding technical expertise and hard work in leading the P3D team, I am sure, contributed toward this award. However, I am equally sure that Karl's work in his hometown and with the University of Marburg surely played a significant role in this achievement. Karl, your friends on this side of the Atlantic salute you and your award and wish you and your family continued success in 2001. 73, Robin Haighton, VE3FRH President AMSAT-NA [ Congratulations DJ4ZC - from ANS! ] /EX SB SAT @ AMSAT $ANS-021.03 PRESIDENTS LETTER AMSAT NEWS SERVICE BULLETIN 021.03 FROM AMSAT HQ SILVER SPRING, MD, JANUARY 21, 2001 TO ALL RADIO AMATEURS BID: $ANS-021.03 Several times each year ANS will feature information from AMSAT-NA President Robin Haighton, VE3FRH. This feature is know as the 'President's Letter'. The following is the latest installment: In the days of AO-13, I operated S-band with a good downconverter (with 2-meter IF). I had some outstanding results, the signal quality was Q-5 and the signal strength was usually S-7 from a satellite putting out less than 1-watt into a unity gain antenna (and at great distance). There was no detectable background noise and the copy was usually 100%. Unfortunately, my downconverter suffered the ravages of weather and I purchased another one in early December 2000. Living in Canada, we have certain weather conditions which are not always cooperative with putting up antennas and associated equipment. However, this last week enough snow had melted to enable me to gain access my roof and to install my new equipment. The installation went well (I had prepared the cables and connectors ahead of time) and it only took a short time to put everything in place. Unfortunately, once I had everything working I found I had missed the AO-40 pass for that day. Last Wednesday morning I went to the ham shack and turned on the converter, tuned the rig to the appropriate frequency and with the aid of WISP found the satellite on my first try. Ah yes - the joy of receiving AO-40 (again) and watching the telemetry come through on my computer screen was a real pleasure. This time the signal strength was S-9 and the quality was excellent - in spite of a poor offset angle between my antenna and the satellite. I note that the signal will cut off when antennas can no longer see each other, but reasonable copy can be expected between MA-3 and MA-12 (according VP9MU). My next opportunity to be connected to AO-40 is January 22nd, early in the morning from this QTH. You can be sure that I will be there, collecting data for the archives and sending it to the AO-40 archive data base (vp9mu@amsat.org). If you are not currently listening to the S-band transmissions from AO-40, I invite you to put some equipment together and join me! 73 Robin, VE3FRH [ANS thanks AMSAT-NA President Robin Haighton, VE3FRH, for this information] /EX SB SAT @ AMSAT $ANS-021.04 LATEST ISS SCHOOL CONTACT SUCCESSFUL AMSAT NEWS SERVICE BULLETIN 021.04 FROM AMSAT HQ SILVER SPRING, MD, JANUARY 21, 2001 TO ALL RADIO AMATEURS BID: $ANS-021.04 Students at the Sheldon Elementary School made a long-distance trip into outer-space this past week by Amateur Radio - talking with astronaut William Shepherd aboard the International Space Station. The students asked Shepherd several questions, including whether the stars looked any different from outer space, what Shepherd saw passing by the ISS windows and what he does with his spare time. One pupil who was particularly happy to speak to Shepherd was Eliza Stringham. She is Shepherds niece. During the time the pupils were speaking to Shepherd, the space station traveled over western Canada toward the Atlantic Ocean near South Africa. Amateur Radio equipment on the International Space Station is a project of ARISS, and is made up of delegates from major national Amateur Radio organizations, including AMSAT. More information about the project can be found on the ARISS web site at http://ariss.gsfc.nasa.gov. [ANS thanks ARISS for this information] /EX SB SAT @ AMSAT $ANS-021.05 ANS IN BRIEF AMSAT NEWS SERVICE BULLETIN 021.05 FROM AMSAT HQ SILVER SPRING, MD, JANUARY 21, 2001 TO ALL RADIO AMATEURS BID: $ANS-021.05 ANS news in brief this week includes the following: ** As it completes the first of three 'laps' (of about a billion miles each) around the heart of the Solar system, the Stardust spacecraft is getting ready for a 'pit stop' of sorts, flying by Earth for a gravitational speed boost. The added energy will put Stardust on course to meet comet Wild-2 in January of 2004. In addition, the University of Arkansas is putting together a team of scientists to take asteroid research to the next level. -SpaceDaily ** AMSAT-NA's W2RS reminds ANS readers that 'best fist' nominations from AMSAT-NA's latest SKN on OSCAR are needed! If you haven't nominated someone, please do so in a reply to w2rs@amsat.org. Results will be published in ANS and The AMSAT Journal in early February. -Ray, W2RS ** The launch of space shuttle Atlantis has been delayed to allow for additional booster inspections. NASA made the decision recently, with the launch of the space station laboratory, Destiny, now targeted for early February. NASA wants more time to inspect electrical cables that connect the shuttle with its two solid-fuel rocket boosters. During the last shuttle launch, an explosive device failed to work during the climb to orbit because of a bad electrical connector. A backup charge was needed to separate the left booster two minutes into the flight. -Roy, K6DUE ** To help the international rescue teams that have rushed to El Salvador, the International Charter on Space and Major Disasters was activated. A satellite constellation was re-tasked in emergency mode, including ESA's ERS-2 radar satellite, the Canadian Space Agency's Radarsat-1 satellite and the French space agency's SPOT birds. The combination of these satellite resources is providing emergency rescue groups with imagery captured day and night and in all weather conditions - to help aid recovery efforts. -ESA ** AMSAT-NA currently has two financial challenges: W1BFN will match (up to $1,000) all new and lapsed memberships for the month of January, and W8GSM will match (up to $1,000) all donations made in January and February. Show your support and help AMSAT meet these challenges! -AMSAT-NA's Martha S. ** ESA, the European Space Agency, will sit down in March to consider the possibility of Russian Soyuz rockets being launched from the Kourou launch site in French Guiana. -SpaceDaily ** The mailing lists and mail alias forwarding services on AMSAT.ORG were disrupted recently. The hardware that runs the service was upgraded, and there were a few configuration issues to work out before things started running smoothly again. All email services, web pages and FTP downloads should now be working again. The new system is faster and has a lot more free disk space. This will allow heavy traffic to be handled without difficulty and will allow several enhanced services to be phased in over the next few months. The new hardware was purchased using AMSAT-NA general funds (AMSAT membership helps support these services! -NN0DJ). -Paul, KB5MU ** A new glitch with Mir as a delayed launch of a cargo rocket to guide the station back to Earth is being reported. The launch of the Progress M1-5 rocket had been scheduled this past week, but a computer problem ended the launch. A mission control official said the fault behind the delay was fixed, but no new launch date was set. It's too soon to say if Mir de-orbit date will change. If necessary, a Russian crew is ready to take off to guide the station out of orbit manually. -Roy, K6DUE ** Australian stations have special prefix available as January ends. On January 25 and 26th, Australian stations may use the prefix AX to mark Australia Day. This year marks Australia's 100th anniversary. -ARRL --ANS BULLETIN END--- /EX SB SAT @ AMSAT $ANS-021.06 WEEKLY SATELLITE REPORT PART 1 AMSAT NEWS SERVICE BULLETIN 021.06 FROM AMSAT HQ SILVER SPRING, MD, JANUARY 21, 2001 TO ALL RADIO AMATEURS BID: $ANS-021.06 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. The attitude control system is 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 RZ3DZR ARISS initial station launched September 2000 aboard shuttle Atlantis Status: Operational (although current ISS workload is limiting operation) ARISS is made up of delegates from major national Amateur Radio organizations, including AMSAT. U.S. callsign: NA1SS (NN1SS will be used for ground-based transmissions from the Goddard Space Flight Center) Russian callsign: RZ3DZR German call sign: DL0ISS RZ3DZR-1 is the callsign entered into the TNC currently onboard Alpha, operation is expected shortly. 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 145.913 to 145.953 MHz CW/SSB Downlink 29.413 to 29.453 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 ANS editor NN0DJ recently made several contacts through RS-12 using an indoor VHF J-pole on the uplink and a short (indoor) wire antenna to his downlink receiver. Dan is currently re-building his ham shack wanted to see if a minimal setup would work. "RS-12 has an outstanding downlink signal," said NN0DJ. 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] 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 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 worked (and heard) on AO-10. John, K6YK, reports recent activity with LU6KK, LU8MB, 9Y4AT, CT1DIN, GW1MNC, ON5NY, F2SY, PT9KK, F4AKA, PY3BZM, LW4DIR, 7M4DUI, EA7ERP, PY2FUS, 4F2KWT and others! 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. The current TEPR settings (as of November 25, 2000) are: TEPR 4 18 TEPR 5 36 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 Happy birthday UO-14, now 11 years old! Tim, KG8OC, has updated the Michigan AMSAT Information site to include UO-14 information -- point your web browser to the following URL: http://www.qsl.net/kg8oc [ANS thanks Chris Jackson, G7UPN/ZL2TPO, for UO-14 information] 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 Amateur Radio service (although Amateur operation was reported noted the weekend of January 13th) The SunSat web page currently contains the following: The orientation changes needed in order to resume imaging activities have been hampered by ground station problems. Due to the additional operational effort required, Amateur Radio services have been suspended until further notice. The SunSat package includes 1200 and 9600 baud digital store-and-forward capability and a voice 'parrot' repeater system that will be used primarily for educational demonstrations in addition to Mode B/J operation. The satellite has two VHF and two UHF transmit-receive systems. For more information on SunSat, including the official operating schedule, visit the following URL: http://sunsat.ee.sun.ac.za A summary of the active modes and frequency allocations for SunSat is available at the following URL: http://esl.ee.sun.ac.za/~lochner/sunsat/modes.html [ANS thanks Garth Milne, ZR1AFH, for this 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. Tak notes that FO-20, launched in 1990, is now over 10 years old. [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 January 31st - 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] 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: Commissioning stage, initial housekeeping tasks underway 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: Commissioning stage, initial housekeeping tasks underway 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. /EX SB SAT @ AMSAT $ANS-021.07 WEEKLY SATELLITE REPORT PART 2 AMSAT NEWS SERVICE BULLETIN 021.07 FROM AMSAT HQ SILVER SPRING, MD, JANUARY 21, 2001 TO ALL RADIO AMATEURS BID: $ANS-021.07 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 recently 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 operational with moderate traffic. [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 operational with heavy individual and Satgate traffic. 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 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 OSCAR-11 celebrated its sixteenth birthday in space on March 1, 2000. During the period of 16-December 2000 to 16-January, 2001 good signals have been received from the 145 MHz beacon. OSCAR-11 users should note that the year displayed in the ASCII status blocks is incorrect. There is currently a similar error of one year in the date of the latest WOD survey. Ground control should be able to correct these errors shortly Battery voltage observed during daylight passes is unchanged. The average value observed was 14.0, with a range of 13.7 to 14.1 volts. Internal temperatures have continued to decrease by one degree as the eclipse periods lengthen. They are now 5.02 and 3.2 C for battery and telemetry electronics respectively. The spin period has varied between 256 and 311 seconds. Two positive magnetorquer correction pulses and zero negative pulses have been counted, while there have been 324 Z-axis correction pulses. S-band reception reports have been received recently from K5OE, PE5YES and W9JIU. 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] 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: Semi-operational. The CW beacon is sending eight telemetry channels and one status channel on 437.136 MHz. No BBS service is available. The digipeater is not active. Happy birthday LO-19, now 11 years old! Telemetry (limited) is as follows: Sat Dec 30 at 23:25 2000 UTC LUSAT HIHI 60 AVT ABV AA6 ADB ATB AB4 TTU AEE 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] 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. Happy birthday AO-16, now 11 years old! Russ, WJ9F, reported he has been doing some WOD (Whole Orbit Data) collections recently and has had the S-band transmitter on during some passes. Russ has a software update planned that may allow (hopefully) continuous S-band operation. Telemetry is as follows: uptime is 343/07:01:18. Time is Sun Jan 21 10:36:59 2001 +X (RX) Temp -6.658 D RX Temp 4.839 D BCR Set Point 120.111 C BCR Load Cur 0.428 A BCR Input Cur 0.410 A BCR Output Cur 0.351 A Bat 1 Temp 7.260 D Bat 2 Temp 7.865 D Baseplt Temp 7.865 D PSK TX RF Out 1.805 W RC PSK BP Temp -0.002 D RC PSK HPA Tmp 0.603 D +Y Array Temp 4.839 D PSK TX HPA Tmp 3.024 D +Z Array Temp -7.868 D Total Array C= 0.399 Bat Ch Cur=-0.077 Ifb= 0.011 I+10V= 0.417 TX:1009 BCR:7A PWRC:36D BT:1E WC:25 EDAC:91 Beacon text: AO-16 S-Band Tx testing to begin shortly Pacsat owned and operated by AMSAT-NA AO-16 Command Team 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] 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. 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] 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: Semi-operational Chris, G7UPN, reports to ANS that UO-36 may not be available at times due to the satellite currently in continual sunlight. Chris reports this generates considerable heat and command teams try and keep the transmitter off do avoid generating additional heat. 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-021.08 WEEKLY SATELLITE REPORT PART 3 AMSAT NEWS SERVICE BULLETIN 021.08 FROM AMSAT HQ SILVER SPRING, MD, JANUARY 21, 2001 TO ALL RADIO AMATEURS BID: $ANS-021.08 THE FOLLOWING ARE IN ORBIT BUT ARE NON-OPERATIONAL AT THIS TIME: 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 apparently re-activated recently. 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, reports 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 now 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 frequencies have never been released Launched: October 30, 1998 by the Shuttle Discovery Status: Unknown The satellite is not currently available for general uplink transmissions. PanSat was developed by the Naval Postgraduate School. 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] MIR SPACE STATION 145.985 MHz (FM) voice and SSTV (Robot 36 Mode) Launched: February 18, 1986 Status: Unmanned Currently, there is no human habitation aboard the station and the onboard Amateur Radio equipment has been turned off. Several news agencies have reported that Mir in now on 'autopilot'. Several news agencies are reporting the Mir space station will be ditched in a controlled descent that will send it hurtling into a remote area of the Pacific Ocean on March 6, 2001. MIR SAFEX II 70-cm Repeater Uplink 435.750 MHz FM w/subaudible tone of 141.3 Hz Downlink 437.950 MHz FM Status: Not operational. No operation in 1999 or 2000 has been observed MIR SAFEX II 70-cm QSO Mode Uplink 435.725 MHz FM w/subaudible tone 151.4 Hz Downlink 437.925 MHz FM Status: Not operational. No operation in 1999 or 2000 has been observed [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 has been in orbit for 11 years. 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 has been in orbit for 11 years. 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