ANS – Page 30

AMSAT VP Engineering/Director Tony Monteiro, AA2TX, SK

June 28, 2017March 28, 2014 by amsat admin

Anthony “Tony” J. Monteiro, AA2TX (SK)

Tony, AA2TX with Fox-1 model — Tony, AA2TX and Fox-1 model

AMSAT VP-Engineering and Board Member Anthony J. Monteiro, AA2TX of North Andover, MA died on Wednesday morning, March 26, 2014 while
hospitalized in Boston, MA from cancer. He was 55. He is survived by his wife, Mary Lou and daughter, Veronica, a college freshman.

Tony was first licensed in 1973 as a Novice and subsequently held an Extra Class Amateur Radio License. An avid operator, he described his
first contact in an AMSAT BoD Candidate’s Statement in 2011: “I earned my novice ticket in 1973 and made my first ham radio contact with a
transmitter made from parts out of an old TV set. A Heathkit HR-10B receiver and a 65-foot piece of wire strung out of a window for an antenna made up the rest of my station, which was pretty modest even by 1973 standards! Even so, I will never forget the thrill of my very first contact.”

E. Mike McCardel, KC8YLD Appointed AMSAT VP-Educational Relations

June 28, 2017September 29, 2013 by amsat admin

E. Mike McCardel, KC8YLD, new AMSAT-NA VP-Educational Relations

AMSAT President Barry Baines, WD4ASW has accepted the resignation of Mark Hammond, N8MH as VP-Educational Relations and appointed E. Michael McCardel, KC8YLD as his replacement.

Mark Hammond, N8MH of Coats, NC has served as VP-Educational Relations since December 2011. During his tenure, Mark established a team focused on educational issues and supporting the educational objectives of AMSAT. A highlight for the team was the ARISS contact conducted during the 2012 Pacificon Convention in October 2012 in Santa Clara, CA that provided an opportunity for a group of selected young people from the Santa Clara area to ask questions directly to an astronaut on board the International Space Station with an audience of the participant’s family members and amateur radio operators in attendance. Managing a school contact during an ARRL Convention provided a unique opportunity to highlight ARISS before a much wider audience that appreciated both the technical details of communications technology and the wonder of students speaking to an astronaut. Members of Mark’s Education Team, including Joe Spier, K6WAO, Dale Hunzeker, KJ6VUC and E.Mike were all involved in the management of the ARISS contact at Pacificon.

Fox-1 Z Axis Solar Panels Approved

June 28, 2017August 11, 2013 by amsat admin

The AMSAT Fox engineering team has completed the design of the printed circuit boards for the satellite’s “Z” axis solar panels. Each of these printed circuit boards (PCBs) will accommodate two Boeing/Spectrolab UTJ solar cells.There is a hole in the panel for the lens of the Camera module that is being developed by Virginia Tech. A sample PCB was fabricated and sent to our partner SpaceQuest who approved it for manufacturing into our solar panels.

[ANS thanks Tony Monteiro, AA2TX, VP for Engineering for the above information]

AMSAT Submits Comments to the US Government on ITAR Transition

June 28, 2017July 27, 2013 by amsat admin

On May 24, 2013 the Department of State’s Directorate of Defense Trade Controls (DDTC) released proposed changes to the US Munitions List (USML) Category XV (“Spacecraft Systems and Related Articles”), redefining what constitutes satellites that would remain under the USML. Satellites removed from USML will be transferred to the Department of Commerce’s Commerce Control List (CCL). Consequently, the Department of Commerce’s Bureau of Industry and Security (BIS) also released proposed changes on May 24, 2013 regarding modifications to the Commerce Control List, creating a separate category for satellites that were formerly controlled under ITAR (International Traffic in Arms Regulations).