[amsat-bb] ANS-075 AMSAT News Service Weekly Bulletins
Lee McLamb
ku4os at cfl.rr.com
Sat Mar 15 19:47:51 PDT 2014
AMSAT NEWS SERVICE
ANS-075
The AMSAT News Service bulletins are a free, weekly news and infor-
mation service of AMSAT North America, 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 http://www.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.org.
In this edition:
* Falcon 9 CRS-3 Launch Delay and KickSat Update
* FUNcube-1 Transponder Test March 22
* Canadian AMSAT Delegate to the ARISS Working Group Appointed
* Central States VHF Society Conference Call for Papers
* GOT GRIDS Award #1 Issued
* 40th Eastern VHF-UHF-MW Conference
* UK Spectrum Proposal Will Impact Amateur and Amateur-Satellite Services
* Spread the Word About the ARRL Teachers Institute
SB SAT @ AMSAT $ANS-075.01
ANS-075 AMSAT News Service Weekly Bulletins
AMSAT News Service Bulletin 075.01
From AMSAT HQ SILVER SPRING, MD.
March 16, 2014
To All RADIO AMATEURS
BID: $ANS-075.01
Falcon 9 CRS-3 Launch Delay and KickSat Update
Zac Manchester KD2BHC has released this update on KickSat which will carry 104
tiny Sprite satellites into a 325×315 km 51.5 degree inclination orbit. The
launch of the SpaceX Falcon 9 CRS 3 mission is planned for somewhere between
March 30 and April 2.
The launch will be from Kennedy Space Center in Florida and you can watch it
live on NASA TV, which will also be streaming online on Ustream.
Here’s a rough sequence of events:
Falcon 9 launch (0:00)
Falcon 9 upper stage separation (+0:03)
Dragon capsule separation (+0:10)
KickSat deployment from Falcon 9 upper stage (+0:16)
KickSat powers on and begins transmitting telemetry (+1:06)
Sprite deployment (+16 days and 16 minutes after launch)
The Sprites will be deployed by a timer exactly 16 days after KickSat is
deployed from the launch vehicle. The timing was arranged with NASA to avoid
interference with ISS operations.
Once KickSat turns on its radio, you should be able to pick it up with very
basic Ham radio gear. It will be transmitting telemetry packets in AX.25 format
on 437.505 MHz with 1200 baud AFSK modulation. I’ll post KickSat’s orbital
elements here and on the project wiki, which will also have more information on
setting up a receiving station. As always, don’t hesitate to contact me if you
have any questions.
Thanks for your support!
[ANS thanks Zac, KD2BHC, for the above information]
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FUNcube-1 Transponder Test March 22
When in sunlight FUNcube-1 is normally in “Educational Mode” (transponder off
with high power beacon) but on Saturday, March
22, 2014 at approximately 0930 UT
the FUNcube team are planning to switch to “Amateur Mode” (transponder on with
low power beacon) for at least one whole orbit.
The aim of the switch on March 22 is to check the effect on the satellite of
continuous “Amateur Mode”, especially battery temperature.
FUNcube website http://www.funcube.org.uk/
FUNcube Yahoo Group http://amsat-uk.org/funcube/yahoo-group/
[ANS thanks AMSAT-UK for the above information]
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Canadian AMSAT Delegate to the ARISS Working Group Appointed
Barry Baines, WD4ASW, President-Radio Amateur Satellite Corp. (AMSAT-NA)
announced that Stefan Wagener, VE4NSA/VE4SW, has agreed to serve once again as
the Canadian AMSAT delegate to the ARISS Working Group. Stefan comes highly
recommended by Maurice-André Vignault,VE3VIG/VE2MA, the former Canadian AMSAT
delegate who recently decided to step down.
Stefan has been an active amateur radio operator for over 30 years, both in
Europe (DG1GWS) and North America. He held a call in the US (KC8NSA) while in
the States starting in 1989 and since 2001 has
been living in Winnipeg, Manitoba
using VE4NSA/VE4SW. Stefan became a Canadian citizen in 2009.
Stefan's interests in amateur radio in space and ARISS are reflected in his
extensive participation in these areas. As an
AMSAT-NA member, he has served as
an Area Coordinator, helping local amateurs in Manitoba become involved in
satellite communications. He also organized the direct ARISS school contact
that took place at a Winnipeg school in July 2007. The contact took place at
Maples Collegiate and was the first ARISS school contact to take place in
Manitoba with the school using Stefan's call (VE4NSA). He is currently serving
with a local Winnipeg High School (VE4ISS) on an ARISS ground station and STEM
outreach. He also has interest in amateur television, serving as sysop for a
Yahoo! Group focusing on Ham TV.
Professionally, Stefan holds a PhD in
microbiology and has worked for the Public
Health Agency of Canada and currently for the Canadian Grain Commission. His
has assisted the Canadian Space Agency (CSA) and European Space Agency (ESA) on
planetary protection issues and policies as a "biorisk" and "biocontainment"
specialist.
ARISS is a critical program for amateur radio and AMSAT and finding
enthusiastic, capable volunteers who want to help to make a difference is
important to the future of ARISS. I believe you will find Stefan to be a
valuable addition to the team.
[ANS thanks Barry Baines, WD4ASW, President AMSAT-NA for the above information]
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Central States VHF Society Conference Call for Papers
The Central States VHF Society's 48th Annual CSVHFS Conference will
be held on 25-27 July, 2014 in Austin, Texas. For details see the
conference web pages at:
http://www.csvhfs.org/2014conference/index.html
The CSVHFS is soliciting papers, presentations, and poster displays
for on all aspects of weak-signal VHF and higher amateur radio
applications, designs, and techniques. You do not need to attend the
conference, nor present your paper, to have it published in the Pro-
ceedings. Posters will be displayed during the two days of the Con-
ference.
Suggested topics include:
+ Antennas
+ Test Equipment and measurement techniques
+ Construction of equipment
+ Operating including Contesting, Roving, and DXpeditions
+ RF power amps
+ Propagation
+ Pre-amplifiers
+ Digital Modes (WSJT, JT65, etc.)
+ EME
+ Regulatory topics
+ Software-defined Radio (SDR)
+ Digital Signal Processing (DSP)
More information regarding submission can be found at:
http://www.csvhfs.org/2014conference/2014callforpapers.html
or contact Tom, K5TRA at csvhfs2014 at gmail.com
[ANS thanks the Central States VHF Society for the above information]
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GOT GRIDS Award #1 Issued
Congratulations to Glenn, AA5PK for being the first to complete the
requirements for the GOT GRIDS? Award #1.
Effective January 1, 2014 your CW/SSB amateur satellite contacts can be used
to earn the new Got Grids? award. To qualify you must log one contact in
each of the 10 grid fields of the lower 48 United States: CN, CM, DN, DM,
DL, EN, EM, EL, FN, FM. Only two-way contacts completed via a linear
transponder satellite can be used for this award. This award will be
effective January 1, 2014, all contacts must be made on or after this date.
The web page for this award can be found at:
http://www.starcommgroup.org/gotgrids.html
Send your log to Rick Tillman, WA4NVM or Damon Runion, WA4HFN for checking,
along with your call, name, and current mailing address to either:
wa4nvm at comcast.net or wa4hfn at comcast.net. This award is sponsored by the
Star Comm Satellite Group so do not send your logs to AMSAT.
This award is free. If you would like to make a donations to the AMSAT
satellite program please send it to: AMSAT, 850 Sligo Ave. Suite 600,
Silver Spring. MD. 20910.
[ANS thanks Damon Runion, WA4HFN for the above information]
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40th Eastern VHF-UHF-MW Conference
The 40th Eastern VHF-UHF-MW Conference will be held April 11-12-13,
2014 at the Baymont Inn and Suites, 20 Taylor St., Manchester, CT
06042.
Conference information and online registration is available at:
http://www.newsvhf.com/vhfconf.html
The discounted Room Rate is $69 dbl, $99 suite Contact the Baymont
Inn: 860-643-5645 for your reservations. Tell them "VHF Conference" to
get the discounted rate. There remain a limited amount of rooms
available--many have been sold already
Registration $25 before April 1, $30 after April 1 and at the door.
Banquet $28. Must order banquet before April 1.
Last Call ... We are still looking for your interesting presentation!
Please email Paul Wade, W1GHZ W1GHZ at arrl.net
This conference is sponsored by: North East Weak Signal Group (NEWS)
For further information check the web page or e-mail Mark, K1MAP:
map1 at mapinternet.com
[ANS thanks Mark Casey, K1MAP for the above information]
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UK Spectrum Proposal Will Impact Amateur and Amateur-Satellite Services
The UK communications regulator Ofcom has published a consultation setting out
proposals for addressing technical issues related to the forthcoming award of
190 MHz of spectrum at 2350-2390 MHz, 3410-3480 MHz and 3500-3580 MHz. It is
expected that these frequencies will be used for 4G mobile services using
Long-Term Evolution (LTE). Ofcom say In certain circumstances, LTE has the
potential to cause interference to applications/devices using spectrum in
adjacent frequency bands.
Ofcom has assessed the impact for both licensed and licence-exempt uses of the
release and adjacent spectrum.
The Amateur Service is covered in section 9 page 73 and the Amateur-Satellite
Service in section 12 page 87 (12.25-12.30) of the consultation document.
With regard to the Amateur-Satellite Service Ofcom refer to the ITU-R frequency
filing database as a source of information.
National administrations rather than
individuals are responsible for submitting this information and it is suspected
that not all administrations have been doing so which may lead to usage being
understated.
Regarding the impact on 2400 MHz Ofcom says:
12.29 In our consultation on amateur usage we acknowledged that the 2400-2450
MHz band could experience an increase in background noise as a result of the
release and set out advice for amateurs planning continued use of these bands.
12.30 We consider that there is no need for further detailed analysis of the
impact of the release on the amateur satellite service as there is a 10 MHz
separation between this use and release band and there should be no issue
greater than the in-band ISM interference.
It is presumed that in 12.30 Ofcom are saying they expect the interference to
2400 MHz from the LTE release band will not exceed that of a WiFi router
operating on the desired frequency. The weak
signal segment 2400-2402 MHz is not
used WiFi but will clearly suffer interference from the new LTE band.
Consultation document
http://stakeholders.ofcom.org.uk/binaries/consultations/pssr-2014/summary/pssr.
pdf
The consultation closes on May 15 2014, you can respond online via the
consultation page at
http://stakeholders.ofcom.org.uk/consultations/pssr-2014/
Read the joint response to the Aug 9, 2013 Ofcom: Spectrum Sharing Consultation
http://amsat-uk.org/2014/01/12/ofcom-spectrum-sharing-consultation/
[ANS thanks Trevor, M5AKA, for the above information]
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Spread the Word About the ARRL Teachers Institute
Integrate Science and Math with Engineering and
Technology by Exploring Wireless
Technology
ARRL, the national association for amateur radio, has just announced the
schedule for two sessions of its Introductory Teachers Institute on Wireless
Technology (TI-1) to be offered during the summer
of 2014. Now in its 11th year,
the ARRL Teachers Institute is a four-day,
expenses paid, intensive professional
development opportunity for educators who want to
receive training and resources
to explore wireless technology in the classroom. Topics include basic
electronics, radio science, microcontroller programming and basic robotics.
ARRL will also offer an advanced Teachers
Institute (TI-2) on Remote Sensing and
Data Gathering. The linked article from the March issue of ARRL’s journal, QST,
includes the schedule and description of offerings this summer.
Please visit the ARRL website at:
www.arrl.org/teachers-institute-on-wireless-technology for more details.
Go to www.arrl.org/teachers-institute-application
for information about applying
and to download an application. Application deadline is May 1.
[ANS thanks Debra, K1DMJ, 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 addi-
tional 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 stu-
dent rate for a maximum of 6 post-secondary years in this status.
Contact Martha at the AMSAT Office for additional student membership
information.
73,
This week's ANS Editor,
Lee McLamb, KU4OS
ku4os at amsat dot org
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