[amsat-bb] FM Satellite HT Night Proposal

Sat Jul 25 23:00:12 UTC 2020

Very valid points indeed Bruce. Definitely a little planning would be required.

Lucky for us, communication is something we are very blessed with these days, and for that, I think is the easiest part.

Ie..  We have the Amsat Tuesday night net, The Wednesday night DMR/YSF net, Dstar reflector, Twitter, Facebook, and even the Amsat website, to further augment the Amsat BB.

Very true there would still be a few missed, but after a short time the word would propagate, as we could even talk it up further on the linear satellites to help encourage even more participation.

The word got out pretty fast about the AO-92 L-band mode changes each week. 😊

I suspect the hardest part would be in deciding which satellite we could use for something like this.

No doubt that AO-91 and AO-92 may not be the best choice due to the extreme popularity there, but perhaps AO-27 or SO-50 could be a good option. Or maybe even PO-101.

For our contacts in this period, it could be good practice to give your callsign with "HT Night" or some similar designation as we do for other special events to help let others know of the type of operation being used, and I would expect to get a lot of questions from those not aware of what is happening to join in, make a contact even, and learn what it's all about.

I very much believe it would be a bad thing to tell non-HT users they are not allowed, as we should ever prevent inclusion of others, but just better recommended to use portable or limited operating environments.

And certainly, it may take a few nights for the word to spread throughout the community, but I feel very confident in the great spirit of Amsat and the amateur population to help pull it off.

It's been great to hear from many others about the support of an idea like this, hopefully that's an indication of real interest that might grow into something.

All the best,
Walter/K5WH

-----Original Message-----
From: AMSAT-BB <amsat-bb-bounces at amsat.org> On Behalf Of Bruce via AMSAT-BB
Sent: Saturday, July 25, 2020 4:50 PM
To: amsat-bb at amsat.org
Subject: Re: [amsat-bb] FM Satellite HT Night Proposal

This is a great idea. However, have you thought about how you would let all satellite operators know? The amsat-bb only reaches so many. Twitter and FaceBook reach some of the same but still not all the operators. 
Then you have operators that are not members of AMSAT, the amsat-bb, Twitter and FaceBook. If you heard them on the satellite that one day, would you be telling them this day is for HT's only? They may not be AMSAT members, they use an online tracking program and have no idea of the new rules other than there is a satellite passing over and I am going to work someone. Or, it was their only day off that week. What if someone actually forgot that today is HT day and was operating with 500 watts (just saying, there are 1kw linears for VHF) from home which by the way is a total waste of electricity and against the FCC rules. I still have my 170 watt VHF and 100 watt UHF linears from AO-10/AO-13 days sitting on the shelf.

You can see how this would be nearly impossible to notify everyone. A good example is AMSAT Field Day. It is a 24 hour period. For some 10 years we do not allow contacts on FM satellites beyond 1 per satellite. 
The reason is to allow space for those trying to make their ARRL satellite bonus points enough time. You can still make all the contacts you want on the FM satellites but we will only score 1 per satellite towards AMSAT Field Day. As expected several reported multiple contacts on an FM satellite and their score was adjusted. Field Day rules are written up in the Journal, on the AMSAT website, in ANS and various other locations. Yet, there are mistakes and they make multiple contacts. Sometimes the extra contact is unavoidable. You work your first contact and because your signal was so good, someone heard you and calls you. Instead of leaving them in the dust, you answer their call and give them their bonus points. You just cannot submit it for your AMSAT Field Day score.

This is the type of problem I think you would have if you were to try and make one day an HT day. Being a great idea to have a low power day it would be hard to let everyone know. Any suggestions on the notification process?

I think some of the frustration of new operators is not really having an HT day, it would be the thinning of the crowds. Satellites have become very popular in recent years and low cost HT's have made entry into working them a lot easier. With any FM single channel repeater, when you have two people trying to use it, it is a cake walk. When you have 100 operators across the country all trying to get in, there is still only two that are going to make a contact. I have experienced the issue, I roved with an HT and Arrow and I too had problems getting in. The easiest contact for us in South Texas is when a satellite is ascending from the South and we are one of the first in the states to be in the window. Make a contact and done before the rest of the U.S. is in the window. Same for those in the North when there is a descending pass. 
Sometimes you have to make the satellite location work in your favor. It also works when you are the last in the window towards LOS. Or, for left and right coast only passes there is less of the U.S. in the window. 
These are natural thinning of the operators due to the satellite's position.

73...bruce

On 7/25/2020 3:43 PM, Doug Daniels via AMSAT-BB wrote:
> I am brand new to Satellites, and just made my first Q with my two 
> HTs. I will never have the facilities to have anything more extensive 
> than HTs and a Arrow/Elk type antenna. This type of agreement would be 
> incredibly beneficial to me and those like me.
>
> Great idea, thanks.
>
> 73,
> Doug, K1RDD
>
> On Sat, Jul 25, 2020 at 2:00 AM Walter Holmes via AMSAT-BB < 
> amsat-bb at amsat.org> wrote:
>
>> A little food for thought:
>>
>>
>>
>> Any idea what the chances would be of having something like 1 night a 
>> week or month, on ONE of the FM birds, that could be reserved for HT access only?
>>
>>

>>
>> My thinking on this would be a great way for people to test out their 
>> portable or limited satellite stations with a great deal less 
>> collisions against all the other much stronger stations.
>>
>>
>>
>> I have heard from plenty of people that would like to try a temporary 
>> or portable station on the birds, but we all know that’s not even a 
>> remote possibility unless your on super early in the morning or late at night.
>>
>>
>>
>> Ie..  it would be great to see how many people could test and build 
>> their skills to operate with an HT and an arrow or something, kinda 
>> like the old days. 😊
>>
>>
>>
>> Just dreaming out-loud. 😊
>>
>>
>>
>>
>>
>> Walter/K5WH
>>
>>
>>
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-- 

Bruce Paige, KK5DO

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_______________________________________________
Sent via AMSAT-BB at amsat.org. AMSAT-NA makes this open forum available to all interested persons worldwide without requiring membership. Opinions expressed are solely those of the author, and do not reflect the official views of AMSAT-NA.
Not an AMSAT-NA member? Join now to support the amateur satellite program!
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