[amsat-bb] Re: HEO history question

[i8cvs]

----- Original Message -----
From: "John Geiger" <aa5jg at fidmail.com>
To: "AMSAT-BB" <amsat-bb at amsat.org>
Sent: Friday, December 02, 2011 8:58 PM
Subject: [amsat-bb] HEO history question

> Back in late 1997 or early 1998 I was using a Kenwood TR9130 on 2m SSB.
> One morning I was tuning from the FM to the SSB portion of the band, and
> heard a station just below 146mhz.  I tuned them in, and it was a station
> from Wales!  Obviously going thru a satellite as the 2 meter conditions
> weren't that good that morning.  I am now wondering what satellite it
> probably was.  Hearing it was enough to motivate me to eventually get into
> satellite operations-that took a few years though.
>
> Anyways, what satellite was I probably hearing?  I am guessing AO10 or
> AO13 but were they operational at that time?
>
> 73s John AA5JG

Hi John, AA5JG

OSCAR-10 was launched in 1983 and it started to get problems with the
main computer in 1986

OSCAR-13 was launched in 1988 and reientered because of drag in 1996

Between 1997 or early 1998  OSCAR-10 was operating time to time with
low level signals in Mode-B, 2 meters downlink while OSCAR-13 was died.

If you are sure about the time of your reception back in late 1997 or early
1998 I guess that probably you was hearing or OSCAR-10 or mostly RS-12
a powerful LEO satellite in Mode-KT with uplink in 15 meters and downlink
in two bands at the same time i.e.10 meters in the Mode-K and 2 meters in
Mode-T exactly from 145.907 to 145.953 MHz

BTW at that time 23 april 1996 OSCAR-10 was still well operational in
Mode-B because I have the QSL card from i8KRO for a QSO made through
two satellites OSCAR-10 and RS-12

The uplink on RS-12 for i8KRO was in 21 MHz and the uplink for me
on OSCAR-10 was in 435 MHz while the downlink for both of us was
in 145 MHz

Nice to remember !

73" de

i8CVS Domenico