[amsat-bb] Re: All Satellites (Alan P. Biddle)

[Gordon JC Pearce]

On Fri, 2009-09-25 at 22:19 -0400, Robert Bruninga wrote:
> >> At a SmallSat conference... this summer,
> >> I was amused at the casual assumption by 
> >> a researcher that 50, cubesats could be 
> >> launched as part of an upper atmosphere 
> >> project using ham frequencies for the 
> >> downlinks.
> 
> And wouldn’t it be a hoot if everyone of them could put their
> RX/TX into a bent-pipe packet mode, and then we would have
> amateur radio global hand-held text messaging satellite
> system...
> 
> >>  (They would have a lifetime of only 3-4 months.)
> 
> But it would be FUN for a while!
> 
> Using some of the 2-way very small micro APRS packet systems, a
> 2 to 5 Watt transponder will easily fit on a singl circuit card
> in a small cubesat.  See  www.aprs.org/cubesat-comms.html
> 
> Bob, WB4APR

If you could have maybe five or six cubesats with an FM transponder
orbiting in such a way that there was a good 15-minute pass every hour,
then I suspect that would work wonders for getting people interested in
satellites again.  The technical requirements for getting into them
would be low enough for "entry-level" amateurs all over the world to
have a crack at them - dual-band HT and a homebrew Arrow clone, and
you're good to go.  Cheap, simple satellites, and cheap, simple ground
stations.  How many could you fly for the cost of one HEO sat and
launch?

Gordon MM0YEQ