[amsat-bb] ANS-114 AMSAT Weekly Bulletins

[Lee McLamb]

AMSAT NEWS SERVICE
ANS-114

ANS is a free, weekly, news and information service of AMSAT North America, The
Radio Amateur Satellite Corporation. ANS 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.

Please send any amateur satellite news or reports to:

ans-editor at amsat.org

In this edition:
* ARISSat-1 Update
* AO-51 PL Reminder
* AMSAT India April 2011 Newsletter Available
* Ukrainian Hams Lose Allocations Including Some Satellite Bands
* FCC Decision in Favor of ReconRobotics Affects Satellite Frequencies
* Satellite Shorts From All Over
* ARISS Status - 18 April 2011


SB SAT @ AMSAT $ANS-114.01
ARISSat-1 Update

AMSAT News Service Bulletin 114.01
  From AMSAT HQ SILVER SPRING, MD.
April 24, 2011
To All RADIO AMATEURS
BID: $ANS-114.01

Lou McFadin, W5DID, ARISS US Hardware Manager, reports that a telecon was
recently held the ARISSat team in Russia. Here is the situation as described by
them. The Russian suit battery that was intended to be used on ARISSat was used
during testing both on the ground and onboard ISS 
when it first arrived. When it
was tested prior to the planned April 12 operation, it was discovered that the
battery was  low on charge. The suit battery's are specified for only five
cycles of  charge. It was decided to not recharge the battery at this time in
order to  keep the number of cycles as low as possible and thus saving the
battery for the actual mission. That deployment is currently scheduled for July
26. We are still  trying to get more information on the storage status and the
battery health from the Russian team. We will keep you informed as we prepare
for the eventual deployment of ARISSat.

[ANS thanks Lou, W5DID, for the above information]

/EX


SB SAT @ AMSAT $ANS-114.02
AO-51 PL Reminder

AMSAT News Service Bulletin 114.02
  From AMSAT HQ SILVER SPRING, MD.
April 24, 2011
To All RADIO AMATEURS
BID: $ANS-114.02

Mark Hammond, N8MH, provided the following reminder about current AO-51
operations.

As you have noticed, AO-51 has recently experienced a few shutdowns
due to a low battery voltage trip.  This is because of increasing
eclipses (now at 20 minuets per orbit and increasing), poor sun angles
(still getting worse), and a "weak" battery.

AO-51 is now using the 67 Hz PL tone required mode in order to turn the
transmitter(s) OFF when not in use.   The transmitter power is down to
about 550 mW.  The Command Team will continue adjusting various parameters,
including transmitter power, trigger voltages, etc. in order to keep
the battery temperatures reasonable. Keep in mind that the power
management feature keeps the transmitter(s) OFF during eclipses, so
you can't bring it up even with a PL tone while the satellite is in
eclipse.

Here is our current schedule, which will continue until further notice:

AO-51 Schedule

Mode V/U FM Voice Repeater (**67 Hz PL tone required**)
Uplink: 145.880 MHz FM (Temporarily from 145.920)
Downlink 435.300 MHz FM


The AO-51 Command Team can use your help!

1-Please make activity reports to: http://oscar.dcarr.org/  This is
very useful to all users.   Until everyone knows that the 67 Hz tone
is required, we might see some conflicting reports.

2-Please help spread the word about needing the 67 Hz tone!

[ANS thanks Mark, N8MH, for the above information]

/EX


SB SAT @ AMSAT $ANS-114.03
AMSAT India April 2011 Newsletter Available

AMSAT News Service Bulletin 114.03
  From AMSAT HQ SILVER SPRING, MD.
April 24, 2011
To All RADIO AMATEURS
BID: $ANS-114.03

The April 2011 issue of the AMSAT-INDIA newsletter is now available for free
download.

Topics in this month's edition include:

- Update on the Technical talk held on April 17th
- Update on the CubeSat Communication system project by AMSAT INDIA.
- News from AMSAT organizations around the world

Download the newsletter from
http://amsatindia.org/Newsletter/AMSATINDIA-News-April2011.pdf

Previous issues are available at:
http://www.amsatindia.org/Newsletter/

Regards

Nitin [VU3TYG]
Secretary, AMSAT India
vu3tyg at amsatindia.org
www.amsatindia.org

[ANS thanks Nitin, VU3TYG, for the above information]

/EX


SB SAT @ AMSAT $ANS-114.04
Ukrainian Hams Lose Allocations Including Some Satellite Bands

AMSAT News Service Bulletin 114.04
  From AMSAT HQ SILVER SPRING, MD.
April 24, 2011
To All RADIO AMATEURS
BID: $ANS-114.04

Some restructuring news out of the Ukrane that’s bad news for ham radio
operators in that nation.  This, as the Ukrainian government has affirmed new
rules for amateur radio operations  that have 
resulted in spectrum losses on the
High Frequency, UHF and microwave bands.

According to an e-mail from Alexander Doshchich, UY0LL, the spectrum withdrawn
from access by Ukranian hams includes 10.100 to 10.150 and 14.250 to 14.350 MHz
on the HF bands.  On UHF an above the losses include 1240 to 1300 MHz, 2300 to
2450 MHz, 5670 to 5850 MHz and numerous other spectrum slots right on up to 248
to 250 GHz.

[ANS thanks Newsline for the above information]

/EX


SB SAT @ AMSAT $ANS-114.05
FCC Decision in Favor of ReconRobotics Affects Satellite Frequencies

AMSAT News Service Bulletin 114.05
  From AMSAT HQ SILVER SPRING, MD.
April 24, 2011
To All RADIO AMATEURS
BID: $ANS-114.05

A robot used to covertly transmit live video during military
operations in Iraq and Afghanistan was approved by the Federal
Communications Commission (FCC) for use by local and state fire-
fighters and police, ending a legal battle between amateur radio
operators and law enforcement over the device.

Called the Recon Scout Throwbot, the robot transmits over the
430-448 MHz portion of the 420-450 MHz frequency band, which is
primarily used by the federal radiolocation service. The spectrum
is also utilized by amateur radio enthusiasts. The latter group,
spearheaded by the American Radio Relay League (ARRL), opposed a
waiver request filed with the FCC by Recon Scout maker ReconRobotics,
Inc. to use the band.

The ARRL argued that ReconRobotics’ claims that the device would
be useful in public safety and anti-terrorism operations didn't
prove that a waiver to use the frequency bands was in the public
interest. The FCC admitted, in its order approving the waiver,
that while some interference in the frequency bands may occur, it
isn't a reason to prohibit the use of the Recon Scout.

The FCC approval does come with some limitations, however. The robot
can only be used by state and local police and firefighters on the
specific band. Operators must also first use the Recon Scout on
436-442 MHz bands. If those frequencies are inaccessible, then the
430-436 MHz and 442-448 MHz bands — where interference is more likely —
can be accessed.

In a subsequent Order on Reconsideration released April 15, the FCC
granted the ARRL’s request for changes in the labeling and instruction
manual requirements to ensure that users of the Recon Scout are aware
of the interference limitations.

Use of the device is also limited to emergencies involving threats to
the safety of life and training purposes. In addition, the Recon Scout
is restricted from use near various radar installations and Air Force
bases, and the amount of units that can be sold is limited to 2,000 the
first year and 8,000 the second year. After that period of time, future
sales will be re-evaluated, according to the FCC.

Read more on the Government Technology website at:
http://tinyurl.com/3gbdru6

[ANS thanks Govtech.com and Southgate ARC News site for the above
  information]

/EX


SB SAT @ AMSAT $ANS-114.06
Satellite Shorts From All Over

AMSAT News Service Bulletin 114.06
  From AMSAT HQ SILVER SPRING, MD.
April 24, 2011
To All RADIO AMATEURS
BID: $ANS-114.06

+ Members of the Camb-Hams will be activating the Isle of Arran
   between May 1-8th. They will be operating as GS3PYE/P and
   GS6PYE/P. Activity will be on all bands 160-2 meters, and
   70cm via satellites. For VHF, the island lies in IO75. More
   information is available at:
   http://dx.camb-hams.com/dx-peditions/arran-dxpedition-11/
   On Twitter at: http://twitter.com/g3pye
   On Facebook at: http://facebook.com/ArranDX

+ A group of enthusiastic Mexican ham radio operators, IsmaelXE1AY,
   Gustavo XE1KKK, Francisco Javier XE1P, Ricardo XE1RZL, Ricardo
   Raymundo XE1SOV, Fernando XE1VGC, Jose XE1UYU, Martin XE1UZH,
   Modesto XE1UZU, Juan Manuel XE2IA, Jose XE2IVG and Ricardo XE3NMC
   will be active from Isla de Lobos (IOTA NA-221, WW Loc. EL11JK),
   Veracruz State, between 29th April and 1st May 2011. They will also
   activate the Lobos Island lighthouse QRV on all HF bands, plus 6
   metres and AO27, AO51 and SO50 Satellites. Modes: CW, SSB and
   RTTY. QSL via XE1AY. Website: xf2p.puebladx.org/XF2P/Bienvenida.html

+ Transatlantic Balloon Launch now planned for April 27-29 depending
   on weather conditions. Hams in the USA and worldwide are needed to
   listen on 7.1023 and 10.1466 MHz and to send readings of the balloon's
   progress to PBH15.data at gmail.com. More information about the program,
   including the latest projected flight path, can be found at
   http://www.projectbluehorizon.com/ and https://twitter.com/PBH5.
   It also has an APRS GPS tracker on 144.39 with the callsign KC2ZJH
   and will launch from Oswego, NY.

+ Iran plans to launch a monkey into space in mid-September according
   to a press release by the ISNA news agency. The monkey will be sent
   into orbit in a capsule carried by the Kavoshgar-4 rocket. Full story
   available on-line at: http://tinyurl.com/3wlehmt (Space-Travel.com)

+ The next Hudson Valley Satcom net will be Thursday, April 28 at
   8PM EDT (UTC-4). You can join the net via the N2EYH-L EchoLink
   Node or on the 146.970 MHz repeater -600; PL 100 if you are within
   range. More info at http://www.hvsatcom.org or or e-Mail:
   wa2aqh at amsat.org (Stu, WA2BSS)

[ANS thanks everyone for the above information]

/EX


SB SAT @ AMSAT $ANS-114.07
ARISS Status - 18 April 2011

AMSAT News Service Bulletin 114.07
  From AMSAT HQ SILVER SPRING, MD.
April 24, 2011
To All RADIO AMATEURS
BID: $ANS-114.07

1. Upcoming School Contacts

Primary School “Dante Alighieri” De Neuquen, located in Neuquen ­ Patagonia,
Argentina, has been scheduled for an Amateur Radio on the International Space
Station (ARISS) contact on Monday, April 18 at 12:25 UTC. The contact will be
performed with support from CETRA (Science Education and Technology united by
Ham Radio), a delegation of AMSAT-Argentina which promotes space activities and
amateur radio in schools, using station LU8YY. 
This activity has been integrated
into science and technology lessons and plans have been made for students to
visit the local observatory to research the history of space exploration and
space shuttles.

Istituto Comprensivo Dedalo 2000 ­ Scuola secondaria di Cingia de’ Botti in
Solarolo Rainerio, Italy has been scheduled for an Amateur Radio on the
International Space Station (ARISS) contact on Saturday, April 23 at 09:13 UTC
via telebridge station W6SRJ in California. 
Students participating in this ARISS
activity have been learning about astronomy, 
physics of radio waves, the history
of space flights and the history of radio communications.


2. Recent ARISS Contacts

Students from John XXIII College, Perth, Western Australia experienced an ARISS
contact on Monday, April 11. Telebridge station 
W6SRJ in California provided the
radio connection. On-orbit astronaut Cady Coleman, KC5ZTH fielded 13 questions
from the students who were interested in how 
missions on the ISS benefit life on
Earth as well as future missions to Mars.

On Wednesday, April 13, Hopewell Ave Public 
School, Ottawa, Ontario, Canada took
part in an ARISS contact via telebridge station WH6PN in Hawaii.  Six hundred
students gathered in the gym for the event and listened to astronaut Paolo
Nespoli answer 16 questions posed by the youth.  ARISS mentors took large
screens to the school and showed the students videos of space and the ISS
construction along with some special effect videos.  The school and community
were thrilled with the ARISS contact and the opportunity for their young
students to take part in this event.  Talk
Radio CFRA ran a story about the contact: http://www.cfra.com/?cat=1&nid=78953

An ARISS contact was held between middle school students attending Istituto
Sociale, a Catholic school in Turin, Italy and ISS astronaut Paolo Nespoli,
IZØJPA on Thursday, April 14. The radio connection was made possible via
telebridge station K6DUE in Maryland.  Students asked 19 questions concerning
things such as mission training and the daily 
routine and tasks performed on the
ISS. Over 200 students, teachers and guests 
turned out for the event.  The ARISS
contact was highly appreciated, since many 
modules of the ISS have been built in
Turin by Thales Alenia Space.  Regional and local media covered the event.


3. Astronaut Training Status

Astronaut Luca Parmitano, KF5KDP (Expedition 36) 
is scheduled for an ARISS basic
operations session on Monday, April 25.

Dan Burbank, KC5ZSX is scheduled for a preflight session in early May. He is
slated to fly with Expedition 29 in September 2011.


[ANS thanks Carol, KB3LKI, for the above information]

/EX


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.

73,
This week's ANS Editor,
Lee McLamb, KU4OS
ku4os at amsat dot org