Free Digital Copy of “Getting Started with Amateur Satellites” Now Available for New or Renewing Members

The University of Washington’s HuskySat-1 CubeSat is scheduled to be deployed from the Cygnus NG-12 spacecraft at 22:30 UTC today. HuskySat-1 carries an AMSAT VHF/UHF linear transponder that will be made available for amateur use following its primary mission to test a pulsed plasma thruster and experimental K band (24 GHz) communications system.

While the satellite completes it’s scientific mission, check out the best resource for learning how to work through linear transponder satellites (and other types of amateur satellites). For a limited time, AMSAT is making the “Getting Started With Amateur Satellites” book available as a download with any paid new or renewal membership purchased via the AMSAT Store. This offer is only available with purchases completed online, and for only a limited time. A perennial favorite, Getting Started is updated every year with the latest amateur satellite information, and is the premier primer of satellite operation. The book is presented in PDF format, in full color, and covers all aspects of making your first contacts on a ham radio satellite.

Please take advantage of this offer today by visiting the AMSAT store at https://www.amsat.org/shop/ and selecting any membership option. While there, check out AMSAT’s other items, including the M2 LEOpack antenna system, Arrow antennas, AMSAT shirts, and other swag. Be sure to view your cart before going to checkout. If you add a membership and then go directly to checkout, you’ll never see an option to add your free gift.

 

Joe Spier, K6WAO, Resigns as AMSAT President

Joe Spier, K6WAO

Joe Spier, K6WAO, has tendered his resignation as AMSAT President, citing personal reasons. Spier had served as AMSAT’s President since October 2017. Prior to his tenure as President, Spier served as AMSAT’s Executive Vice President and Vice President – Educational Relations. He also served as an AMSAT News Service Editor and as a member of the ARISS Education Team.

Under the AMSAT bylaws, Executive Vice President Paul Stoetzer, N8HM, assumes the office of President until the next meeting of the Board of Directors.

Stoetzer said “I want to thank Joe for his many years of service to AMSAT in a variety of roles. I especially want to recognize his efforts to mark AMSAT’s 50th Anniversary with special events at the Dayton Hamvention and AMSAT Symposium. His leadership in bringing together a variety of figures from the history of amateur radio in space in Arlington, VA this past fall helped to make the Symposium a very special event.”

ANS-026 AMSAT News Service Bulletins for January 26

AMSAT NEWS SERVICE
ANS-026

The AMSAT News Service bulletins are a free, weekly news and information service of AMSAT, The Radio Amateur Satellite Corporation. ANS publishes news related to Amateur Radio in space including reports on the activities of a worldwide group of Amateur Radio operators who share an active interest in designing, building, launching and communicating through analog and digital Amateur Radio satellites.

The news feed on https://amsat.org publishes news of Amateur Radio in space as soon as our volunteers can post it. Please send any amateur satellite news or reports to: ans-editor at amsat dot org.  You can sign up for free e-mail delivery of the AMSAT News Service Bulletins via the ANS List; to join this list see:  https://www.amsat.org/mailman/listinfo/ans

In this edition:

  •  HuskySat-1 With AMSAT VHF/UHF Linear Transponder Planned for Deployment Soon
  • Celebration of 50th Anniversary of Australis-OSCAR 5
  • ARRL to Argue for Continued Access to 3-GHz Spectrum as FCC Sets Comment Deadlines
  • FO-99 (NEXUS) 1st Anniversary Report
  • Amateurs in the News: “96-year-old Amateur Radio operator at Ontario Science Centre speaks with astronaut”
  • Upcoming ARISS Contacts
  • Upcoming AMSAT Events
  • Upcoming Satellite Operations
  • Satellite Shorts From All Over

AMSAT’s GOLF-TEE satellite recently reached a major milestone
when prototype boards transmitted telemetry for the first time.
Help support AMSAT’s path back to HEO by donating today!
https://www.amsat.org/donations/amsat-golf-program-donations/

HuskySat-1 With AMSAT VHF/UHF Linear Transponder Planned for Deployment Soon

The University of Washington’s HuskySat-1 3U cubesat was launched on the Northrop Grumman NG-12 Cygnus supply mission to the ISS on November 2. HuskySat-1 has remained stowed aboard Cygnus scheduled for deployment after the cargo ship unberths from the International Space Station. Unberthing is scheduled for 1435 UTC (9:35 am EST) on Jan 31 and will be covered live on NASA TV.

Within 24 hours after departure from the ISS, HuskySat-1 and SwampSat will be deployed into orbit. After deployment, HuskySat-1’s 1,200 bps BPSK beacon on 435.800 MHz should be active and decodable with the latest release of AMSAT’s FoxTelem software. HuskySat-1 is expected to run its primary mission before being turned over to AMSAT for amateur radio operation. HuskySat-1 features a 30 kHz wide 145 to 435 MHz linear transponder for SSB/CW.

HuskySat-1
———-
Uplink: 145.910 – 145.940 MHz LSB/CW
Downlink: 435.840 – 435.810 MHz USB/CW (inverting)
Telemetry: 435.800 MHz 1K2 bps BPSK
24049.00 MHz (U of Washington experimental downlink)

The latest version of FoxTelem software to decode the 1200 bps BPSK beacon is available at: https://www.amsat.org/tlm

The Fox-In-A-Box FoxTelem software has been updated for HuskySat-1 Operation at it’s download website: http://burnsfisher.com/AMSAT/FoxInABox

This release now contains the SD card image, FIAB-distro8-V1.08w.zip. This file, when unzipped and written to a 16Gb SD card will give you the latest software for FoxTelem and will run on a Raspberry Pi 4. This is an image of the same SD card that has been shipping from the AMSAT store for several weeks. (It should work on an 8Gb card as well with less room to spare of course).

Version 1.08w has a few fixes from the previous 1.08r which was the previous download version. Improvements to the decoder will capture data a bit better. Remember that the later 1.08 versions (including r and w) know how to switch bands between listening on VHF and UHF based on which of Fox and Husky satellites are overhead at the time.

(Fox-In-A-Box information thanks to Burns Fisher, WB1FJ)

The linear transponder and telemetry system carried aboard Fox-1E was designed for use in different CubeSats by merely adding an interface adapter for connection to the host bus. Noting the prevalence of CubeSats built and launched by universities and other organizations, AMSAT adopted a goal of “amateur radio in every CubeSat.” Interested CubeSat programs wanting to fly an amateur radio payload may partner with AMSAT to carry one of these modules on their spacecraft. By providing amateur radio capability, the CubeSat program gets a worldwide ground station network to receive their telemetry and experiment data while the amateur radio community gets a transponder to use in orbit.

Additional information is posted on the University of Washington Husky Satellite Lab pages:
https://sites.google.com/uw.edu/huskysatellitelab/huskysat-1
https://sites.google.com/uw.edu/huskysatellitelab/huskysat-1/com1

[ANS thanks the HuskySat-1 Team, AMSAT Engineering, AMSAT Operations, the Fox Telemetry Team, and NASA for the above information]

Need new satellite antennas? Purchase Arrows, Alaskan Arrows, and M2 LEO-Packs
from the AMSAT Store. When you purchase through AMSAT, a portion of the proceeds
goes towards Keeping Amateur Radio in Space.
https://amsat.org/product-category/hardware/

Celebration of 50th Anniversary of Australis-OSCAR 5

January 23, 2020 was the 50th anniversary of the launch of Australis-OSCAR 5. The first satellite built in Australia, arranging its launch was AMSAT’s first project following the creation of the organization in 1969.

AO-5 launched along with TIROS-M (later ITOS-1) on a Delta rocket from the west pad of Space Launch Complex 2 at Vandenberg Air Force Base.

Built by students at The University of Melbourne, Melbourne, Victoria, Australia. Battery powered, Australis-OSCAR 5 transmitted telemetry on both 2 meter (144.050 MHz at 50 mW) and 10 meter (29.450 MHz at 250 mW) bands that operated for 23 and 46 days respectively. Passive magnetic attitude stabilization was performed by carrying two bar magnets to align with the Earth’s magnetic field in order to provide a favorable antenna footprint. The University of Melbourne compiled tracking reports from hundreds of stations in 27 countries.

Australis-OSCAR 5 was the first amateur satellite that was remotely controlled. The control logic is a direct predecessor to the control systems used by AMSAT in AMSAT-OSCAR 6, AMSAT-OSCAR 7, and AMSAT-OSCAR 8.

Two of the builders of AO-5, Dr. Owen Mace and Richard Tonkin, spoke at the 2019 AMSAT Space Symposium this past October and participated in a panel on “The Foundations of AMSAT.” Video of the panel presentations can be viewed at https://tinyurl.com/ANS-026-AO-5

On January 22nd, Tonkin appeared on The Space Show Australia Summer Edition on 88.3 Southern FM in Victoria to discuss AO-5. The episode can be heard at https://tinyurl.com/ANS-026-SpaceShow

Mace and Tonkin have written a book about the story of AO-5. The second edition of the book was released in December. More information about the satellite and the book can be found at https://australis-oscar5.weebly.com/

A 50th anniversary celebration will be held on February 27th at the University of Melbourne.

[ANS thanks AMSAT for the above information]

The digital download version of the 2019 edition of
Getting Started with Amateur Satellites is now available
as a DRM-free PDF from the AMSAT Store. Get yours today!
https://tinyurl.com/ANS-237-Getting-Started

ARRL to Argue for Continued Access to 3-GHz Spectrum as FCC Sets Comment Deadlines

At its January meeting, the ARRL Board of Directors instructed the League’s FCC counsel to prepare a strong response to protect amateur access to spectrum in the 3 GHz range. In its Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM) in WT Docket 19-348, the FCC proposed to relocate all non-federal operations, including amateur uses, to spectrum outside the 3.3 – 3.55 GHz band. The Commission anticipates auctioning this spectrum to expand commercial use of 5G cellular and wireless broadband services, if agreement can be reached on relocation of — or sharing with — the federal incumbents that operate in the same band. Publication of the NPRM in the Federal Register on January 22 established deadlines of February 21 for comments and March 23 for reply comments.

The FCC has requested comment on the uses radio amateurs make of the spectrum and appropriate relocation options. Complicating matters is the fact that radio amateurs must consider the possibility that the immediately adjacent 3.1 – 3.3 GHz band is included in the spectrum that Congress has identified for similar study. FCC Commissioner Michael O’Rielly, in a December statement, referenced the fact that the lower band may also be considered for non-federal reallocation, potentially limiting relocation possibilities.

Amateurs make substantial use of the 3.3 – 3.5 GHz band that would be hard to replicate elsewhere, and they have filed more than 150 comments before the designated comment period even began. Among users looking at options are those who use this spectrum for Earth-Moon-Earth (moonbounce) communication, mesh networks, experiments with communication over long distances, radiosport, and amateur television. A portion of the band also is designated for use by amateur satellites in ITU Regions 2 and 3 (the Americas and Asia/Pacific).

A report is due by March 23 from the National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) evaluating the feasibility of having federal users share all or part of the 3.1 – 3.55 GHz band with commercial wireless services. This report is required by the Making Opportunities for Broadband Investment and Limiting Excessive and Needless Obstacles to Wireless (MOBILE NOW) Act. The results of the NTIA report will impact how much spectrum ultimately may be reallocated for auction to wireless providers.

ARRL urges amateurs who comment to inform the FCC about the uses they make of the 3 GHz spectrum. Short comments and longer statements may be filed electronically. Visit the FCC “How to Comment on FCC Proceedings” page for more information. Commenters should reference WT Docket 19-348.

Editor’s Note: As this rulemaking would delete the 3.4 – 3.41 GHz amateur satellite service band, AMSAT is also preparing comments to be filed on this matter. Continued access to microwave spectrum is crucial for GOLF and future AMSAT missions to HEO, GEO, and beyond.

[ANS thanks the ARRL for the above information]

FO-99 (NEXUS) 1st Anniversary Report

NEXUS, an amateur radio technology demonstration satellite was  developed by Japan Amateur Satellite Association (JAMSAT) and NEXUS project team in Department of Aerospace Engineering, College of Science and Technology, Nihon University, Japan, and launched by Japanese Epsilon#4 rocket from the Uchinoura Space Center at JST 9:50:20, 18 January 2019.

We would like to express our deep appreciation to all concerned and report the results of the operation after the launch, i.e. one year’s operation from 18 January 2019 to 18 January 2020.

The comprehensive report of operations can be found at https://tinyurl.com/ANS-026-FO-99

[ANS thanks the NEXUS Project Team at Nihon University for the above information]

AMSAT, along with our ARISS partners, is developing an amateur radio package,
including two-way communication capability, to be carried on-board Gateway in
lunar orbit. Support AMSAT’s projects today at https://www.amsat.org/donate/ 

Amateurs in the News: “96-year-old Amateur Radio operator at Ontario Science Centre speaks with astronaut”

A successful International Space Station (ISS) contact was held on January 22 with participants at the Ontario Science Centre’s Amateur Radio station VE3OSC in Toronto, Ontario.

As described below this was no ordinary ARISS contact.

“Jean Moffet, VE3WAD, has been a volunteer at the VE3OSC station for more than 30 years. Having recently celebrated her 96th birthday, Jean indicated one of her bucket list items is to speak to an astronaut aboard the International Space Station (ISS). To honour her invaluable contribution, the Science Centre worked in partnership with the Amateur Radio on the International Space Station (ARISS) Canada to help Jean check this item off her list.”

The event was featured on Global News at 5:30 Toronto – in an interview with Anchor/Producer Broadcast Journalist Susan Hay – and on CTV News Toronto by Videojournalist Scott Lightfoot.

Nick Westoll of Global News wrote:

“Jean Moffett crossed an item off her bucket list on Wednesday by speaking with Commander Luca Parmitano, an Italian astronaut from the European Space Agency, aboard the International Space Station.

‘Commander Parmitano, I have two questions to ask you: Do you have an opinion about extraterrestrial life before being on the International Space (ISS) Station and has being on the ISS changed your views?’ she asked.

Moffett was asked how long she has been waiting to do this.

‘Since I was 60… I was an amateur radio operator and my voice was going up to satellites and I could hear the astronauts speaking, but I could never speak to them,’ she recalled. ‘I thought to myself, that’s my bucket wish’.”

Scott Lightfoot of CTV News wrote:

“Moffatt grew up in North Bay and moved to Toronto as a young girl with her family hoping that there would be opportunities for a girl interested in science and technology.

‘When we moved to Toronto I desperately wanted to go to university, but my mom and dad had bought a house, and there was just enough money for my brother to go to university.’

Undeterred, Moffatt said she took a course in Amateur Radio and  shortly after, got her licence. More than 30 years ago, after retiring, and the death of her husband, Moffatt started volunteering
at the Ontario Science Centre, an endeavor she admits wasn’t successful at first.

‘I was working in the greenhouse, killing all the plants because I cannot keep plants alive’. Armed with her radio licence, she helped set up the centre’s first radio shack with the call sign VE3OSC.

The idea to connect the nonagenarian with the ISS came just after Moffatt’s 96th birthday.

‘She mentioned to me that one of the things she’s always wanted to do was talk to an astronaut’ Christine Pigeon, the volunteer coordinator at the Science Centre told CTV News Toronto. It all started with an e-mail, and three months later with the help of ham radio operators and NASA, Moffatt made her connection.”

Congratulations and Thank You!

Radio Amateurs of Canada would like to congratulate Jean Moffet, VE3WAD, on this significant achievement and thank everyone who was involved with this very special event. We hope to bring you additional information about this event in a future issue of The Canadian Amateur magazine.

We would especially like to thank Global News and CTV News for their coverage of this event.

For the full story and links to the quoted stories and videos, see https://tinyurl.com/ANS-026-RAC

[ANS thanks the Radio Amateurs of Canada for the above information]

Purchase AMSAT Gear on our Zazzle storefront.
25% of the purchase price of each product goes
towards Keeping Amateur Radio in Space
 https://www.zazzle.com/amsat_gear

Upcoming ARISS Contacts

Agrupamento de Escolas Serafim Leite, São João da Madeira, Portugal, direct via CS2ASL

The ISS callsign is presently scheduled to be OR4ISS
The scheduled astronaut is Luca Parmitano KF5KDP
Contact is go for: Mon 2020-01-27 16:33:34 UTC 64 deg (***)

Primary School “Jovan Jovanović Zmaj“, Sremska Mitrovica, Serbia, direct via YU7BPQ

The ISS callsign is presently scheduled to be OR4ISS
The scheduled astronaut is Luca Parmitano KF5KDP
Contact is go for: Tue 2020-01-28 15:51:19 UTC 48 deg

Possible Russian supported contact with Ecuador, via TBD (***)

The ISS callsign is presently scheduled to be RSØISS (***)
The scheduled astronaut is Oleg Skripochka (***)
Contact possibly is go for Fri 2020-02-07 14:00 UTC (***)

The ARISS webpage is at https://www.ariss.org/
Note that there are links to other ARISS websites from this site.

The main page for Applying to Host a Scheduled Contact may be found at https://www.ariss.org/apply-to-host-an-ariss-contact.html

Note, all times are approximate. It is recommended that you do your own orbital prediction or start listening about 10 minutes before the listed time.

All dates and times listed follow International Standard ISO 8601 and time format YYYY-MM-DD HH:MM:SS

[ANS thanks Charlie Sulfana, AJ9N, ARISS Operations, for the above information]

Upcoming AMSAT Events

Want to see AMSAT in action or learn more about amateur radio in space?

AMSAT Ambassadors provide presentations, demonstrate communicating through amateur satellites, and host information tables at club meetings, hamfests, conventions, maker faires, and other events.

Current schedule:

  • February 7-9, 2020, Hamcation, Orlando, FL
  • February 14-15, 2020, Yuma Hamfest and ARRL Southwest Division Convention, Yuma, AZ
  • February 15, 2020, Cabin Fever Reliever Hamfest, Saint Cloud, MN
  • March 6, 2020, Irving Hamfest, Irving, TX
  • March 14-15, 2020, Science City on University of Arizona, Tuscon, AZ
  • March 21, 2020, Midwinter Madness Hamfest, Buffalo, MN
  • March 21, 2020, Scottsdale Amateur Radio Club Hamfest, Scottsdale, AZ
  • March 28, 2020, Tucson Spring Hamfest, Tucson, AZ
  • March 29, 2020, Vienna Wireless Winterfest, Annandale, VA
  • May 2, 2020, Cochise Amateur Radio Association Hamfest, Sierra Vista, AZ
  • May 8-9, 2020 Prescott Hamfest, Prescott, AZ
  • May 15-17, Hamvention, Xenia, OH
  • June 12-13, 2020, Ham-Con, Plano, TX

A copy of the AMSAT hamfest brochure is available for download at https://tinyurl.com/ANS-026-Hamfest

This color brochure is designed to be printed double-sided and folded into a tri-fold handout.

To include your upcoming AMSAT presentation and/or demonstration, please send an email to ambassadors (at) amsat (dot) org.

[ANS thanks Robert Bankston, KE4AL, AMSAT VP – User Services, for the above information]

Upcoming Satellite Operations

Satellite Shorts
Feb 15 CN78 AD0DX FM and Linear (Twitter @ad0dx)
Mar 14-15 DN26/36 KC7JPC Linears (and possibly FM)

New Orleans, LA (EL49, EL58, EM59, EM40, EM50, EM60) January 14 – February 1, 2020
Adam, KC3OBS, will be roving EM40, EM50, EL49, EL59, January 14th – Feb 1st. In between, Adam will be in EM60 January 29th. Adam will  announce passes and updates on Twitter: https://twitter.com/sparky_husky

Labrador (GO11 +) January 19-27, 2019
Chris VE3FU, Dave VE9CB, and Frank VO1HP will be active as VO2AC in the 2020 CQ 160 CW contest, January 24-26, from Point Armour Lighthouse, in Labrador. If time permits before the contest, they may be active on FM satellites from GO11 as VO2AC or VO2AAA.

Depending on weather and timing of passes, you might catch them on FM satellites as they make their way from FO93 to GO-11, passing through FO92, GO02, GO13, GO12, and GO22 along the way, but no promises. They will also make the reverse trek on January 27.

Montserrat (FK86) January 26 – February 2, 2020
Mel, W8MV, will be in Montserrat 26 January until 2 February, operating under the call sign VP2MCV on FM Sats. QSL via LOTW.

#SnowBirdRove (EL79) – February 1-29, 2020
Joe, KE9AJ, will cross the border into Florida, seeking climatical asylum in EL79 for the entire month of February. Since he will be there for an extended period, with both FM and linear gear, keep an eye on Joe’s Twitter feed for specific pass announcements: https://twitter.com/KE9AJ

There is a possibility that Joe may have to make a pit stop in EM54 and EM53 on his way down South on February 1st. Monitor Twitter for updates.

Antigua (FK97) February 2 – 9, 2020
Mel, W8MV, will be in Antigua 2-9 February. Mel is waiting for his operating license. Will update as soon as it arrives. FM only. QSL via LOTW

Isla Perez, Mexico (EL52, EL50, EL51) February 11 – 17, 2020
Members of Radio Club Puebla DX will be active as 6F3A from Isla Perez, Mexico, between February 11-17. The operators mentioned are Patricia/XE1SPM (Team Leader), Ismael/XE1AY, Rey/XE1SRD and Ricardo/XE1SY. Activity will be on 80/40/20/17/15/12/10/6 meters, and include the ARRL DX CW Contest (February 15-16). QSL via XE1SY.  Ismael, XE1AY, reports that he is doing CW and the satellites, and will also TX from EL50 and XE1AY/mm from EL51.

Big Bend National Park (DL88) March 16-17, 2020
Ron AD0DX, Doug N6UA, and Josh W3ARD will operate from Big Bend National Park to put grid DL88 on the air. Details will be added here, as they come available, but you are more than welcome to keep an eye on their individual Twitter feeds: https://twitter.com/ad0dx, https://twitter.com/dtabor, and https://twitter.com/W3ARDstroke5

Please submit any additions or corrections to ke4al (at) amsat.org

[ANS thanks Robert Bankston, KE4AL, AMSAT VP – User Services, for the above information]

Satellite Shorts From All Over

  • Want to make a satgate out of your Raspberry Pi? Check out how at https://tinyurl.com/ANS-026-SatGate
  • CQ operators of PO-101! If you have successfully operated PO-101, you can request a QSL card from the PO-101 team! Just fill in the necessary info and they will send it to you as a token of appreciation for using PO-101 https://tinyurl.com/ANS-026-PO-101
  • Peter Goodhall, 2M0SQL, notes that PSK31 transponders on NO-84 and NO-104 are underutilized. If you are looking to try something new this week, why not give it a shot? Uplinks are on 10m and downlinks are on 70cm. More information at http://aprs.org/psat.html and http://aprs.org/psat2.html
  • Justin McAllister, K5EM, reports that he updated his SatMatch tool with a new advanced search user interface. He has also made the tool more mobile responsive. Check it out at https://www.satmatch.com/
  • FO-29 remains operational. However, the batteries on the 23 year old satellite cannot maintain a safe voltage throughout an entire eclipse during this point in its orbit with lengthy eclipse periods. The satellite is commanded on over Japan periodically and will remain active after the command until the battery voltage drops below a set threshold, at which point it is automatically switched off to preserve the batteries.Upcoming command times follow:

2/1 06:00
2/2 06:50
2/8 04:50 15:00
2/9 03:55 15:50
2/11 03:50 05:35
2/23 03:20 05:05
2/24 04:10 05:55 14:20
3/1 04:00 05:40 15:55
3/2 04:45 14:55

  •  Scott Chapman, K4KDR, reports that AISAT-1 is active again on 2m packet. He reports that the best success at digipeating is achieved using NFM and Doppler correction if possible. iGates should be proxied through KE6BLR to correct the satellite’s malformed packets so they are visible to the greater APRS-IS network.
  • Scott further reports that Taurus-1 remains active. Taurus-1 carries a VHF FM to UHF Codec2 transponder. For more information about this unique analog uplink, digital downlink system, see N8HM’s AMSAT Journal article / Symposium paper about LO-90 at https://tinyurl.com/ANS-026-LO-90
  • Operation via Taurus-1 is similar to LO-90, except with an uplink of 145.840 MHz and a downlink of 435.840 MHz. For more information, see https://www.amsat.org/pipermail/amsat-bb/2019-September/074905.html
  • Finally, Scott also reports, that despite the telemetry from Duchifat-3 reporting the FM transponder to be on, nothing is heard when uplinking at 145.970 MHz. We await further information about the status of this satellite’s FM transponder.
  • Hackaday featured an article entitled “Lessons Learned from a CubeSat Postmortem” regarding problems encountered by KRAKsat, a 1U CubeSat deployed from the ISS in June 2019. Read the article at https://tinyurl.com/ANS-026-Hackaday

[ANS thanks everyone for the above information]

In addition to regular membership, AMSAT offers membership in the President’s Club. Members of the President’s Club, as sustaining donors to AMSAT Project Funds, will be eligible to receive additional benefits. Application forms are available from the AMSAT Office.

Primary and secondary school students are eligible for membership at one-half the standard yearly rate. Post-secondary school students enrolled in at least half time status shall be eligible for the student rate for a maximum of 6 post-secondary years in this status. Contact Martha at the AMSAT Office for additional student membership information.

73 and remember to help Keep Amateur Radio In Space,

This week’s ANS Editor,

Paul Stoetzer, N8HM
n8hm at amsat dot org

ANS-019 AMSAT News Service Bulletins for January 19

AMSAT NEWS SERVICE
ANS-019

The AMSAT News Service bulletins are a free, weekly news and information service of AMSAT, The Radio Amateur Satellite Corporation. ANS publishes news related to Amateur Radio in space including reports on the activities of a worldwide group of Amateur Radio operators who share an active interest in designing, building, launching and communicating through analog and digital Amateur Radio satellites.

The news feed on https://amsat.org publishes news of Amateur Radio in space as soon as our volunteers can post it. Please send any amateur satellite news or reports to: ans-editor at amsat dot org.  You can sign up for free e-mail delivery of the AMSAT News Service Bulletins via the ANS List; to join this list see:  https://www.amsat.org/mailman/listinfo/ans

In this edition:

  • GOLF-TEE Reaches Major Milestone
  • ARISS Contact Opportunity Call for Proposals February 1, 2020 to March 31, 2020
  • Satellite Status and Tracking APIs Added to AMSAT Website
  • Qarman Beacon Telemetry Information Released
  • China Telecoms Regulator Proposing to Delete Some Current Amateur Allocations
  • Memorial Service for Brian Kantor, WB6CYT
  • Upcoming Satellite Operations
  • ARISS News
  • Satellite Shorts from All Over

GOLF-TEE Reaches Major Milestone

A group of GOLF-TEE (Greater Orbit Larger Footprint – Technology Evaluation Environment) satellite prototype boards transmitted telemetry for the first time on Tuesday, January 14, 2020. The boards are laid out on a bench as a “flat-sat” with interconnecting wires, bench power supplies, and a dummy load on the transmitter. The interconnected boards include:

  • An early RT-IHU (Radiation Tolerant Internal Housekeeping Unit (i.e. computer) prototype,
  • A CIU (Control Interface Unit) prototype, and
  • A set of spare boards from HuskySat-1 that act as prototypes for the LIHU (Legacy IHU) and legacy VHF/UHF RF components.

Now that we have reached this point, we have RF to use as a basis for developing a GOLF-TEE decoder for FoxTelem, our ground telemetry receiver software.

Thousands of hours of work by many AMSAT volunteers have gone into the hardware and software that got us this far, with much work yet to be done before we reach flight units.

GOLF-TEE is designed as a Low Earth Orbit (LEO) testbed for technologies necessary for a successful CubeSat mission to a wide variety of orbits, including MEO (Medium Earth Orbit) and HEO (High Earth Orbit).

To help support the GOLF program, please consider volunteering or donating today.

Volunteer For AMSAT

$
Select Payment Method
Personal Info

Billing Details

Donation Total: $25.00 One Time

[ANS thanks Burns Fisher, WB1FJ, AMSAT Flight Software, and the entire GOLF team for the above information]

Need new satellite antennas? Purchase Arrows, Alaskan Arrows, and M2 LEO-Packs
from the AMSAT Store. When you purchase through AMSAT, a portion of the proceeds
goes towards Keeping Amateur Radio in Space.
https://amsat.org/product-category/hardware/

ARISS Contact Opportunity Call for Proposals February 1, 2020 to March 31, 2020

The Amateur Radio on the International Space Station (ARISS) Program is seeking formal and informal education institutions and organizations, individually or working together, to host an Amateur Radio contact with a crew member on board the ISS. ARISS is happy to announce a proposal window which will open February 1, 2020 for contacts that would be held between January 2021 and June 2021. Crew scheduling and ISS orbits will determine the exact contact dates. To maximize these radio contact opportunities, ARISS is looking for organizations that will draw large numbers of participants and integrate the contact into a well-developed education plan.

The proposal window for contacts between January 2021. and June 2021 will open on February 1, 2020 and close on March 31. 2020. Proposal information and documents can be found at www.ariss.org. Two ARISS Introductory Webinar sessions will be held on two different date and times. The first is at January 23 at 2100 ET and the second is at January 27 at 1800 ET. The same material will be covered during both sessions, so choose the session that best fits your schedule. The Eventbrite link to sign up is https://ariss-proposal-webinar-spring-2020.eventbrite.com

The Opportunity

Crew members aboard the International Space Station will participate in scheduled Amateur Radio contacts. These radio contacts are approximately 10 minutes in length and allow students to interact with the astronauts through a question-and-answer session.

An ARISS contact is a voice-only communication opportunity via Amateur Radio between astronauts and cosmonauts aboard the space station and classrooms and communities. ARISS contacts afford education audiences the opportunity to learn firsthand from astronauts what it is like to live and work in space and to learn about space research conducted on the ISS. Students also will have an opportunity to learn about satellite communication, wireless technology, and radio science. Because of the nature of human spaceflight and the complexity of scheduling activities aboard the ISS, organizations must demonstrate flexibility to accommodate changes in dates and times of the radio contact.

Amateur Radio organizations around the world with the support of NASA and space agencies in Russia, Canada, Japan and Europe present educational organizations with this opportunity. The ham radio organizations’ volunteer efforts provide the equipment and operational support to enable communication between crew on the ISS and students around the world using Amateur Radio.

For More Information

For proposal information and more details such as expectations, proposal guidelines and proposal form, and dates and times of Information Webinars, go to www.ariss.org.

Please direct any questions to [email protected].

[ANS thanks ARISS for the above information.]

The digital download version of the 2019 edition of
Getting Started with Amateur Satellites is now available
as a DRM-free PDF from the AMSAT Store. Get yours today!
https://tinyurl.com/ANS-237-Getting-Started

Satellite Status and Tracking APIs Added to AMSAT Website

Thanks to an initiative by Heimir, W1ANT, AMSAT added Application Programming Interfaces (APIs) to the AMSAT web site to make it easy for developers to write apps for mobile devices and the Internet of Things (IoT). For example, the satellite status page www.amsat.org/status does not work well on small screens. By accessing the status data directly developers can easily present the
data in a way appropriate for their screens. These APIs also make it easy for IoT homebrewers to do things like build next pass reminder gizmos so they can beep out notices in CW. We have set a goal of February 15, 2020 to finalize the APIs, and consider them operational on March 1, 2020. Developers are encouraged to send suggestions or questions to www.amsat.org/webmaster-contact/

For details of API use visit www.amsat.org/status/api/ and www.amsat.org/track/api/

[ANS thanks Joe Fitzgerald, KM1P for the above information.]

Qarman Beacon Telemetry Information Released

QARMAN, a nano-satellite designed and built at VKI, was launched to the International Space Station on December 5, 2019. Deployment is expected to take place in the week of February 12, 2020.

QARMAN (Qubesat for Aerothermodynamic Research and Measurements on AblatioN) is the world’s first CubeSat designed to survive atmospheric re-entry. Work on it started in 2013 at the von Karman Institute for Fluid Dynamics (VKI).

The aim of the QARMAN mission is to demonstrate the usability of a CubeSat platform as an atmospheric entry vehicle. Spacecraft descending towards a planet with an atmosphere experience very harsh environment including extreme temperatures (several thousand degrees).

Information about Qarman’s 437.350 MHz 9600 bps GMSK AX.25 beacon has now been released by the team.

Download the Qarman Beacon Definition QARMAN_BCNdef_v1.1 at https://ukamsat.files.wordpress.com/2020/01/qarman_bcndef_v1.1.pdf

Download the Beacon Decoder spreadsheet QARMAN_BCNdecoder at https://ukamsat.files.wordpress.com/2020/01/qarman_bcndecoder.xlsx

Reports can be sent to [email protected]

[ANS thanks AMSAT-UK for the above information.]

AMSAT, along with our ARISS partners, is developing an amateur radio package,
including two-way communication capability, to be carried on-board Gateway in
lunar orbit. Support AMSAT’s projects today at https://www.amsat.org/donate/ 

China Telecoms Regulator Proposing to Delete Some Current Amateur Allocations

China’s telecommunications regulator has proposed amending the Measures for the Administration of Amateur Radio Stations, and some amateur bands are in danger of being eliminated. Lide Zhang, BI8CKU, told ARRL that the proposal would prohibit amateur operation on the 2200-meter band as well as on 146 – 148 MHz, 1260 – 1300 MHz, 3400 – 3500 MHz, 5650 – 5725 MHz, and all bands above 10 GHz.

Radio communications engineer and Chinese Amateur Satellite Group (CAMSAT) CEO Alan Kung, BA1DU, told ARRL that government efforts to eliminate some amateur bands are nothing new, but proposals that have been aired for a while now are on the regulatory agency’s schedule. Kung said he does not anticipate that all of the bands proposed will be taken away, but he conceded that the climate will “undoubtedly” become increasingly more dangerous for China’s amateur radio community.

“The attempt to crowd out the amateur radio bands has a long history throughout the world,” he said, “but it may never have become so urgent for the amateur radio community as it is today. We all understand that radio spectrum resources have become a bottleneck for further development.” He said today’s radio communication industry “is working hard to share spectrum resources.” Kung characterized spectrum as “the soil on which amateur radio depends.”

[ANS thanks the ARRL for the above information.]

Memorial Service for Brian Kantor, WB6CYT

Phil Karn, KA9Q shares the following announcement:

“As you know, Brian Kantor, WB6CYT passed away suddenly on November 21, 2019. We will hold a memorial service for Brian on Saturday, Feb 1 2020 at 1:30 PM in La Jolla, CA (part of San Diego). Please see this link for details: https://tinyurl.com/ANS-019-Kantor-Memorial”

“Please bring any photos, mementos and (above all) stories and anecdotes about Brian to share. Brian wasn’t exactly a highly formal person who stood on ceremony, so we’ll keep this informal. If you have a story to tell, it’s up to you whether you stand up and relate it to the whole group or just a few others at a time. There will be plenty of time for both.”

“Everyone who knew Brian is welcome. His friendships spanned at least three distinct social circles, and I know he’d be very happy to see everyone meet and enjoy everyone else’s company. Even if he’d be a little embarrassed that we were doing it in his honor.”

“Free snacks and refreshments will be provided, so please RSVP through the evite link so we can tell the hotel how much to make available. If you have special dietary needs, please say so; the hotel has a menu we can choose from.”

“Please forward this email to anyone you think might be interested. Hope to see you on the 1st.”

[ANS thanks Phil Karn, KA9Q for the above information.]

Purchase AMSAT Gear on our Zazzle storefront.
25% of the purchase price of each product goes
towards Keeping Amateur Radio in Space
 https://www.zazzle.com/amsat_gear

Upcoming Satellite Operations

  • New Orleans, LA (EL49, EL58, EM59, EM40, EM50, EM60) January 14 – February 1, 2020
    Adam, KC3OBS, will be roving EM40, EM50, EL49, EL59, January 14 – Feb 1. In between, Adam will be EL58, January 18 or 19 depending on weather, and in EM60 January 29. Adam will announce passes and updates on Twitter: https://twitter.com/sparky_husky
  • Labrador (GO11 +) January 19-27, 2019
    Chris VE3FU, Dave VE9CB, and Frank VO1HP will be active as VO2AC in the 2020 CQ160 CW contest, January 24-26, from Point Armour Lighthouse, in Labrador. If time permits before the contest, they may be active on FM satellites from GO11 as VO2AC or VO2AAA. Depending on weather and timing of passes, you might catch them on FM satellites as they make their way from FO93 to GO-11, passing through FO92, GO02, GO13, GO12, and GO22 along the way, but no promises. They will also make the reverse trek on January 27.
  • Montserrat (FK86) January 26 – February 2, 2020
    Mel, W8MV, will be in Montserrat 26 January until 2 February, operating under the call sign VP2MCV on FM Sats. QSL via LOTW.
  • Antigua (FK97) February 2 – 9, 2020
    Mel, W8MV, will be in Antigua 2-9 February. Mel is waiting for his operating license. Will update as soon as it arrives. FM only. QSL via LOTW
  • Isla Perez, Mexico (EL52, EL50, EL51) February 11 – 17, 2020
    Members of Radio Club Puebla DX will be active as 6F3A from Isla Perez, Mexico, between February 11-17. The operators mentioned are Patricia/XE1SPM (Team Leader), Ismael/XE1AY, Rey/XE1SRD and Ricardo/XE1SY. Activity will be on 80/40/20/17/15/12/10/6 meters, and include the ARRL DX CW Contest (February 15-16). QSL via XE1SY. Ismael, XE1AY, reports that he doing CW and the satellites, and will also TX from EL50 and XE1AY/mm from EL51.
  • Big Bend National Park (DL88) March 16-17, 2020
    Ron AD0DX, Doug N6UA, and Josh W3ARD will operate from Big Bend National Park to put grid DL88 on the air. Details will be added here, as they come available, but you are more than welcome to keep an eye on their individual Twitter feeds: https://twitter.com/ad0dx, https://twitter.com/dtabor, and https://twitter.com/W3ARDstroke5

Please submit any additions or corrections to [email protected]

[ANS thanks Robert Bankston, KE4AL, AMSAT VP User Services for the above information]

ARISS News

Editor’s Note: See school contact opportunity story above.

Upcoming Contacts

  • Morita Junior High School, Fukui, Japan, direct via 8J9MO
    The ISS callsign is presently scheduled to be NA1SS
    The scheduled astronaut is Luca Parmitano KF5KDP
    Contact is go for: Wed 2020-01-22 08:00:46 UTC 27 deg
  • Ontario Science Centre, Toronto, Canada, telebridge via IK1SLD
    The ISS callsign is presently scheduled to be OR4ISS
    The scheduled astronaut is Luca Parmitano KF5KDP
    Contact is go for: Wed 2020-01-22 17:21:36 UTC 32 deg

[ANS thanks Charlie Sufana, AJ9N for the above information.]

Satellite Shorts from All Over

ARISS-US Educators Review Processes for US Proposal Window

A team of educators who are members of the ARISS-US Education Committee is finalizing the last few processes related to the late 2019 ARISS-US Proposal Window. The team had ranked the education proposals and then sent a list to the ARISS-US leaders of the top schools and education groups recommended for hosting an ARISS contact. A news release is in draft stage. The organizations selected will be in the queue for scheduled ARISS contacts during the second half of 2020. A new ARISS-US Proposal Window will open soon and details on this will be forthcoming.

[ANS thanks ARISS for the above information.]

WIA 2020 Annual Conference Presentations

The Wireless Institute of Australia Annual Conference will be held in Hobart, Tasmania May 8-10 2020 and registrations are open.

On the Saturday afternoon a wide range of presentations are organized to showcase the conference theme which is the “Antarctic Gateway”.

Following lunch there will be two presentation streams which can be categorized as the “Antarctic” stream and the “Radio” stream.

Complete information can be viewed at:
https://www.wia.org.au/newsevents/news/2020/20200111-3/index.php

[ANS thanks the Wireless Institute of Australia for the above information.]

AMSAT Argentina Celebrates LO-19 30th Anniversary

On Feb-22-1990 LUSAT/LO-19 was launched along with AO-16, DO-17, WO-18, UO-14 & UO-15. It was the first Argentina Satellite, and one of first to use PACSAT protocol. LUSAT is still calling home with its carrier at +/-437.125.

Members of AMSAT Argentina (LU7AA) celebrate the 30th anniversary of the LUSAT (LO-19) satellite between Jan. 18 and 26 on HF on SSB, FT8, CW. An award is available as well. QSL via LU7AA (d), eQSL.

Find complete information at:
http://lu4aao.org/lu7aa/cert_30_aniv_lusat_2020.htm and http://amsat.org.ar/certlusat30.htm

[ANS thanks the DARC DX Newsletter and AMSAT-LU for the above information.]

AMSAT-SA Announces A New Date For Their Space Symposium

The annual AMSAT SA Space symposium date has changed to Saturday 11 July 2020. While the call for papers is ongoing till the end of February, AMSAT SA is pleased to announce that Burns Fisher, WB1FJ, of AMSAT NA will delivery two papers at the symposium: Fox-in-a-box: Fox telemetry reception using an inexpensive Raspberry Pi and a J-pole antenna including a discussion on the optimal positioning for a J-pole antenna for satellite reception and an overview of what is in orbit currently and expected in the near future and their features. Prospective authors are invited to propose other papers by submitting a brief synopsis to [email protected] before 28 February 2020.

[ANS thanks AMSAT-SA for the above information.]

Cardiff Microwave Roundtable Saturday, March 7, 2020

The Cardiff University ARS will host a meeting of the UK Microwave Group on Saturday March 7, 2020 at our campus in Cardiff. This one day event is a mix of talks, measurements, and socializing about activities in the GHz frequencies.

GNU Radio Workshop

On the following day, Sunday March 8, there will be a hands on Introduction to GNU Radio and Software Defined Radio. More info coming soon, please send an email to [email protected]
if you are interested.

[ANS thanks the UK Microwave Group for the above information.]

Lockheed Martin Launches First Smart Satellite Enabling Space Mesh Networking

Recently, Lockheed Martin launched the Pony Express 1 mission as a hosted payload on Tyvak-0129, a next-generation Tyvak 6U spacecraft. Pony Express 1, an example of rapid prototyping, was developed, built and integrated in nine months. Some of the key technologies being flight-tested include:

  • Software validates advanced adaptive mesh communications between
    satellites, shared processing capabilities, and can take advantage,
    of sensors aboard other smart satellites,
  • A software-defined radio that allows for high-bandwidth hosting of
    multiple RF applications, store-and-forward RF collection, data
    compression, digital signal processing and waveform transmission,
  • 3D-printed wideband antenna housing.

Read the full story at http://www.spaceref.com/news/viewpr.html?pid=55121

[ANS thanks Spaceref.com for the above information.]

In addition to regular membership, AMSAT offers membership in the President’s Club. Members of the President’s Club, as sustaining donors to AMSAT Project Funds, will be eligible to receive additional benefits. Application forms are available from the AMSAT office.

Primary and secondary school students are eligible for membership at one-half the standard yearly rate. Post-secondary school students enrolled in at least half time status shall be eligible for the student rate for a maximum of six post-secondary years in this status. Contact Martha at the AMSAT office for additional student membership information.

73 and remember to help keep amateur radio in space,

This week’s ANS Editor,

Frank Karnauskas, N1UW
[email protected]