[amsat-bb] Re: Another Great Tech Tuesday Net

[Anthony Monteiro]

On 2/14/2014 6:55 PM, Kevin Elliott wrote:
...
Like you, I want to do satellite tracking hardware
and not just point HTs at the birds and do manual
doppler correction. But, there’s a very, very
useful place for the newbie stuff...

Hi Kevin,

Yes, that is why we need and are building
a variety of satellites.

73,
Tony AA2TX
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[amsat-bb] Re: Another Great Tech Tuesday Net

[Anthony Monteiro]

On 2/14/2014 4:57 PM, Michael wrote:

OK then, I have a legitimate satellite question.  Is Fox 2 going to be a
linear bird? See, I have some confusion on this


Hi Michael,

Good question. I think I can clear this up.

The main point of Fox-2 is to develop and fly an
advanced, software defined transponder (SDX.)
An SDX can be programmed to be any kind of
transponder. It will be a linear, inverting,
mode-J transponder by default.

We would also like to try some new and
interesting digital modes perhaps including
digital voice which would be my personal favorite.
That is the tremendous flexibility you get with
an SDX. You can change the transponder in software.

ARISSat-1 was our first attempt at an SDX and it
worked very well. It could only be programmed on
the ground though. The SDX for Fox-2 will
be programmable in orbit.

Fox-2 will be a 3U CubeSat (3x the size of Fox-1)
providing a lot more power and space for the
electronics.

The source of confusion may be because we are
building four Fox-1 flight units. The idea is
to have them available and ready to fly so
we can easily team up with universities that want
to fly science missions and get free launches.
Building them all at once is also a much cheaper
way to build satellites.

All four Fox-1 units will have the same hardware
and avionics. The universities will supply their
experiment cards and the software can be customized
for each satellite as needed.

Once the Fox-1 flight models are built, the engineering
team can begin working on Fox-2. That should start
this year.

The status of the Fox-1 satellites is as follows:

Fox-1 (Fox-1A) is scheduled to fly on NROL-55.

RadFxSat (Fox-1B) is a joint project with Vanderbilt
University. It has already been accepted into the
NASA ELaNa program but it has not been assigned a
launch yet.

Fox-1C and Fox-1D are not currently assingned.

OK?

Best satellite DX and 73,
Tony AA2TX
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[amsat-bb] Re: Another Great Tech Tuesday Net

[Anthony Monteiro]

Dear Friends,

Please use the BB to discuss satellites.

Any other communications should take
place off of the BB.

Thank you!
Tony AA2TX
---

On 2/14/2014 3:45 PM, Roger Kolakowski wrote:

For all the dissenters...

What have you done to promote AMSAT and how many people outside of nthe
satellite hobby have you affected?

I consider the reports of "missionaries" to be a promotion of ideas on
how to spread the word.

If 60,000 doesn't impress ask one of the "missionary's" how you can link
to their presentation either via RF or internet and find you own 60,000
followers.

Roger
WA1KAT


On 2/14/2014 12:44 PM, Michael wrote:

Wow a whole 60,000? So how many of the rest of us couldn't hear it? I
honestly think it's great what you do for the satellite hobby Clint.
At least for the part of it that likes to user HT's and handheld
antennas exchanging grid squares on flying repeaters. At the same time
I get tired of your constant grandiose self promotion. Your E-mail to
the BB did little more than tout how "great" you are to everybody. It
also had the unintended consequence ( by you) of someone calling you
on your BS. Here's an idea, how about keeping on doing what you're
doing for your segment of interest in the hobby and let the accolades
fall where they may instead of constantly patting yourself on the
back. That would be a refreshing change.
73,
Michael, W4HIJ
On 2/12/2014 9:30 PM, Clint Bradford wrote:

... I guess but it's pretty meaningless for

those of us in the rest of the country.

About 60,000 licensed hams were within earshot in
this region - I am not going to ignore such an
"open mic" opportunity to "spread the word" on
the birds.

Clint K6LCS


--
Clint Bradford, K6LCS
http://www.clintbradford.com
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[amsat-bb] Re: Another Great Tech Tuesday Net

[Anthony Monteiro]

Dear Clint,

As a board member, I am well aware of
what transpired.

AMSAT is working on bringing our old
Field Operations organization back up to
being relevant. We are actively looking for
volunteers to be Area Coordinators.

You were contacted as a previous volunteer to
see if you were still interested. Since you
stated that you were not willing to do what
is expected of an Area Coordinator, we are
forced to find someone else who is willing
since we need to fill that position.

In no way were you "dismissed" from AMSAT.

If you want to go about doing things your
own way there is nothing wrong with that.
AMSAT welcomes all volunteer activities
that promote AMSAT and amateur satellites;
including yours.

This is a hobby. It is supposed to be fun.
The amsat-bb is supposed to be used to talk
about satellites not to take shots at
other volunteers. You still owe Barry an
apology.

73,
Tony AA2TX

On 2/13/2014 3:02 AM, Clint Bradford wrote:


Wow - you have no idea what you are talking about. That is NOT how
I was dismissed from AMSAT-NA. And if someone told you that was how
it all went down, then they are misrepresenting the truth.

Clint Bradford

--
Clint Bradford, K6LCS
http://www.clintbradford.com



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[amsat-bb] Re: Another Great Tech Tuesday Net

[Anthony Monteiro]

Hey Clint,

I know you think this is just a funny inside
joke but the negativity and cheap shot at
Barry is uncalled for.

We both know that you were ASKED to be an
Area Coordinator and you DECLINED because
you did not want to take on the full
responsibilities of an Area Coordinator.
That is perfectly fine, not everyone wants
to take on that level of commitment.

But, you were also told, by Barry, that AMSAT
would still appreciate any marketing and
publicity activities that you cared to do
on your own to benefit AMSAT.

So, you may think it is just your little
inside joke since you were the one to reject the
position but poking fun at someone else is not
acceptable behavior on the BB and certainly not
in the spirit of amateur radio fellowship.
You owe Barry an apology.

Tony AA2TX
---

On 2/12/2014 4:46 PM, Clint Bradford wrote:

... we should probably let the AMSAT Area Coordinator know about this ...


Naw ... the current AMSAT-NA board president has written to me and indicated 
that
this type of marketing and public relations activity is not what he thinks is 
valuable
for the organization.

Clint K6LCS
http://www.work-sat.com


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[amsat-bb] Re: Operating linear transponders - Newbie.

[Anthony Monteiro]

Hi Peter,

Dave is correct; tune the higher frequency.
See this link for a more detailed explanation:
http://www.amsat.org/amsat/features/one_true_rule.html

73 and best DX,
Tony AA2TX
---

On 12/31/2013 1:25 AM, David Johnson wrote:

Hi Peter.

If you don't have computer control, always tune the higher frequency. Ie
the one with the most doppler. For ao73 keep the rx fixed and adjust the
uplink as the doppler changes.

73

Dave g4dpz
On 30 Dec 2013 23:39, "Peter Wilson"  wrote:




Hi all,



I have just tried working through AO73, with limited success. I need some
very basic help with satellite operation.



I have an IC-9100, I set the uplink and downlink to mid-range (435.140Mhz
and 145.960Mhz), then call CQ until I hear my own signal

which has worked every time, then I get problems.



When someone calls me back I panic, what do I do when the doppler kicks in,
do I move both TX and Rx, or do I just move my Rx to follow the other guy.

I haven't managed to get SatPC32 controlling my rig yet, also, I want to
learn the hard way - manually.



Can someone point me to an article that explains in detail how to operate.



I know this is a very basic question, but we all have to start somewhere. I
have managed tow contacts so far. First was AO73 and tonight with FO29.

Not sure how I did it, but thanks to ON5NY and EM5SR.



Happy New Year



Peter

G8KEK

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[amsat-bb] Help wanted

[Anthony Monteiro]

Dear Friends,

The AMSAT Fox-1 satellite project is in need of
an analog circuit engineer to work on our power
system. If interested in volunteering, please
send me an email with your phone number or Skype
and some good times to call you.

Note that due to ITAR constraints, you must be
a US citizen or have a green card to work on our
satellite projects.

Thank you and 73,

Tony AA2TX
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[amsat-bb] Re: current operational amateur satellite list

[Anthony Monteiro]

Hi Jim,

In addition to DK3WN's page, you may find
this page useful:
http://oscar.dcarr.org/

73,
Tony AA2TX
---

On 2/22/2013 4:52 PM, Trevor . wrote:

Can anyone direct me to a list of currently operational
amateur satellites?


See http://www.dk3wn.info/p/?s=active+satellites&x=0&y=0

73 Trevor M5AKA


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[amsat-bb] Re: John Heath G7HIA, SK

[Anthony Monteiro]

Dear Jim and AMSAT-UK,

This is terribly sad news. John was a great
guy and I am so sorry to hear he is now SK.

RIP my friend G7HIA.

Tony AA2TX
VP Engineering
AMSAT-NA
---

On 2/16/2013 2:05 PM, Jim List wrote:

AMSAT-UK is very saddened by the passing of John Heath, G7HIA. He was a long
standing member of AMSAT-UK, and contributed to the amateur space programme
in many ways during his lifetime.

John was a regular attendee at the annual AMSAT-UK Colloquia for many years
and he enjoyed meeting up with his friends who shared his passion for
satellites and space.  Sadly his ill heath in recent years prevented his
attendance.

In the days before his passing, John was in contact with AMSAT-UK; and made
a significant financial contribution to the FUNcube project. He chose to do
this by making the donation via the Radio Communication Foundation, which,
as a registered charity will be able to claim any income tax paid by John as
Gift Aid. The size of his donation is very considerable, and will be used at
the discretion of the AMSAT-UK committee. Such is the extent of his
generosity, that it may be feasible to consider the construction of a
further complete CubeSat.

AMSAT-UK is very grateful for this donation.

John will be sadly missed by all members of AMSAT-UK who knew him during his
life, and we send our condolences to his family.

RIP, John

Jim Heck G3WGM
Hon Sec AMSAT-UK

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[amsat-bb] Re: protocol for using sats

[Anthony Monteiro]

Hi Bill,

Take a look at this, still the best info:
http://www.amsat.org/amsat/features/one_true_rule.html

You always receive USB but may need to Tx LSB
if the transponder is inverting.

73,
Tony AA2TX


On 2/8/2013 12:11 PM, Bill Booth wrote:

Its been a while and I need to be refreshed.  When using the sats linear
transponders how does the transmit receive work.

Does the transmit stay on frequency and tune the receiver for best
receive, or does the receiver stay and transmit frequency changes for
best receive. Or do both move if your rig supports a satellite mode.

Also I am hearing what I believe is both USB and LSB on the birds. Is
one sideband considered to be standard.



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[amsat-bb] Re: OT: UHF Linear Amp source

[Anthony Monteiro]

Hi Kevin,

TE systems 4452G

73,
Tony AA2TX
---

On 11/15/2012 9:56 AM, Kevin Muenzler, WB5RUE wrote:


Good morning all and 73/

I know this is a bit off topic (maybe way off topic) but I'm sure that many
of you regularly use UHF.  I have been looking for a source of a UHF LINEAR
amplifier but they seem to be extremely difficult to find.  I can find
repeater amps and ATV amps (FM) but haven't been able to find any that
specify that they are linear.  I'm not looking for legal limit just
100-200watts.  Any help would be appreciated.


Kevin, WB5RUE
Grid-EL09vf
Eagle Creek Observatory
http://www.eaglecreekobservatory.org
I'd be unstoppable if it weren't for law enforcement and physics



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[amsat-bb] Re: Go Erie - Students Building Part of AMSAT satellite

[Anthony Monteiro]

Hi Trevor,

Unfortunately, there were several
errors in the article. AMSAT was not
involved in the article preparation.

AMSAT sponsored this senior design project
at Penn State for the 2011-2012 academic
year. The students developed a super-capacitor
based energy storage device to replace the
battery on ARISSat type satellites. The
advantage of super-capacitors is very long
life but they do not yet have sufficient energy
density to use on a CubeSat.

73,
Tony AA2TX
---
On 5/13/2012 4:32 PM, Trevor . wrote:

Go Erie reports on the work of students from Penn State Behrend who have been 
building part of a satellite for AMSAT.

See http://www.uk.amsat.org/7381

The report says:

"They admit, though, that they're a little disappointed their project will likely 
have to hitch a ride aboard a Russian spacecraft now that the shuttle program has been 
discontinued."

I initially assumed the satellite in question was FOX until I saw the Russian 
reference.

Can someone clarify which satellite is being referred to.

73 Trevor M5AKA



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[amsat-bb] Re: Question of the day!

[Anthony Monteiro]

Hi Graham,

Lithium Ion cells also fail to a short.

But, typical consumer LiIon "batteries" include a
safety protection circuit that will disconnect the
cell from the battery terminals if the cell voltage
drops below the min discharge voltage so it looks
like it fails open.

For example:
http://datasheet.sii-ic.com/en/battery_protection/S8200A_E.pdf

73,
Tony AA2TX
---


On 1/11/2012 7:12 AM, g.shirvi...@btinternet.com wrote:

Hi All,

It is "said that" NiCad battery cells usually fail to "short circuit"
and that Lithium Ion ones usually fail by just loosing their ability to
hold a charge viz they go "open circuit"

Is this true or?

many thanks

Graham
G3VZV
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[amsat-bb] Re: SSTV

[Anthony Monteiro]

Hi Bob,

I also have put MMSSTV on 14.230 and most
of the images look great with a handful
that are terrific. I am not using anything
fancy just a 15' whip and an FT-847.

Maybe the noise level is really high there?

73,
Tony AA2TX
---


On 11/20/2011 7:23 PM, Alan P. Biddle wrote:

Bob,

It is just you.  ;)  Seriously, I do the same thing, and 3 out of 4 are good
pictures, perhaps 1 in 5 outstanding.  I do use Ham Radio Deluxe, which has
a few nice tricks such as automatic slant correction.  A suggestion is to
calibrate the sound card clock.  Many are significantly off.  Not certain
about MMSTV, but HRD has that built in.  Also, check the audio level to make
certain it is correct.

73s,

Alan
WA4SCA



-Original Message-
From: amsat-bb-boun...@amsat.org [mailto:amsat-bb-boun...@amsat.org] On
Behalf Of Bob Bruninga
Sent: Sunday, November 20, 2011 4:48 PM
To: Farrell Winder; AMSAT
Subject: [amsat-bb] Re: SSTV Pictire Successful via ARISSat-1/RadioSKAF-V
TRANSPONDER


Jeff, KB8VCO and I were successful in transmitting
a picture and receiving back an image via the
ARISSat-1/RADIOSKAF-V transponder.


By the way, once I got MMSTV loaded I decided to just park it on 14.230 MHz
all day long and watch the SSTV images come rolling in.  I have been
watching them in my office (when I walk by that PC) and although hear SSTV
all day long, and some signals very strong.  I must admit, only ONE in 2
weeks has been discernable as to what the picture actually is..

ALl the rest you can tell MAYBE that it is some kind of picutre with maybe
some text at the top and the bottom, but NONE of them have been readable.
Yet, the signals sound like they would make a Q5 599 SSB signal.  Is it just
me, or does HF multipath slur the imgaes beyone all recognition.?

Bob, WB4APR
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[amsat-bb] Re: In School ARSSat Demos / lessons

[Anthony Monteiro]

Hi Clint,

Didn't you know that members of the AMSAT board
meet weekly with the ARISS team?

Apparently even the ARISS team is unaware of all
of these ARISSat-1 lesson plans that you think
exist. Please provide a link as it will be most
appreciated.

Thanks!
Tony AA2TX
---


On 11/20/2011 4:48 PM, Clint Bradford wrote:

Doesn't anyone on the board of AMSAT talk to anyone at ARISS?

When submitting an application for an ARISS contact recently, curriculum was established 
for our students. It was part of the application process ... Which means there are 
literally HUNDREDS of classroom projects/topics in the ARISS "archives!"

Sent from my iPod touch.

On Nov 20, 2011, at 13:24, "Gould Smith"  wrote:


That is good to hear Clint.

What we need is exactly what EMike requested:

With ARISSat-1's main mission being Educational I would like to hear about 
people's experiences with
schools in using ARISSat-1 as a teaching tool, in class demonstration, data 
collection, etc.
I am especially interested in hearing from educators, but anybody's experience 
is welcome.


Gould, WA4SXM

-Original Message- From: Clint Bradford
Sent: Saturday, November 19, 2011 5:39 PM
To: amsat-bb@amsat.org
Subject: [amsat-bb] Re: In School ARSSat Demos / lessons


... With ARISSat-1's main mission being Educational I would like to hear about 
people's experiences with schools in using ARISSat-1 as a teaching tool ...


What do you need? Classroom lessons abound for all aspects of amateur radio as 
it applies to the satellites - from elementary school to college classrooms.

Each ARISS contact has a lot of work "behind the scenes" at the campuses. There 
are phenomenal teachers and school administrations who really get
behinds their ARISS projects.

Be a little more specific with what you need - and I can either assist you, or 
point you towards excellent resources.

Clint Bradford, K6LCS
NASA / ARISS school technical support
http://www.work-sat.com
909-241-7666
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[amsat-bb] Re: ARISSat-1 voice telemetry 00:27z 8/21/11

[Anthony Monteiro]

Hi Greg,

That sounds like a great project for a telemetry
"Sherlock!"

73,
Tony AA2TX
---

On 8/23/2011 12:18 AM, Greg D. wrote:

Ah, interesting.  So, values around +/- 0 mean that the battery is (or
thinks it is) fully charged, and the satellite is running on just the
solar panels. Since that happens pretty quickly after start-up (low MET
values), that certainly supports the conclusion that the battery has
nearly zero capacity left in it.

But if it's "fully charged", there must be something else going on,
because I've heard passes where the satellite appears to be in "high
power" mode - several voice, SSTV, and telemetry segments back-to-back -
then suddenly turns off after one of the segments. This is where the
reported battery voltage has remained in the mid- to high-35 volts
range, consistent with high power operation. Did the satellite happen to
spin to a less favorable angle for a moment between telemetry readings,
causing the low power mode threshold to trip?

Playing Armchair Sherlock,

Greg KO6TH


 > Date: Mon, 22 Aug 2011 17:41:29 -0400
 > From: aa...@comcast.net
 > To: ko6th_g...@hotmail.com
 > CC: amsat-bb@amsat.org
 > Subject: Re: [amsat-bb] ARISSat-1 voice telemetry 00:27z 8/21/11
 >
 > Hi Greg,
 >
 > The battery current is not really negative
 > under these conditions. This is just a small
 > drift in the zero point of the measurement.
 >
 > 73,
 > Tony AA2TX
 > ---


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[amsat-bb] Re: ARISSat-1 voice telemetry 00:27z 8/21/11

[Anthony Monteiro]

Hi Greg,

The battery current is not really negative
under these conditions. This is just a small
drift in the zero point of the measurement.

73,
Tony AA2TX
---

On 8/20/2011 8:42 PM, Greg D. wrote:


Hii all,

ARISSAt-1 voice telemetry just now:

00:27z 8/21/2011 received at CM98

MET 42 min
IHU Temp = +30c

Control panel temp = +20c

Battery 3??? (lost to QSB)

Battery current ??? ma

SSTV picture followed (a real one this time, not pre-recorded!), then off.

00:29z 8/21/2011 received at CM98

MET = 45 min
IHU Temp = +31c
Control panel temp = +20c
Battery 35.66v
Battery current -8ma

This was followed by 2 min off, and another voice announcement, children 
chanting, and then off again to LOS.


So, a question...  Why, when the spacecraft is in full sun, is the battery 
current negative?  I'm guessing that there some orientations that will not 
supply sufficient power for operations.  If so, what happens when we lose the 
battery altogether?  Reset?  Or is there a shedding of load first when the 
voltage drops?

Greg  KO6TH


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[amsat-bb] Re: [suitsat2] ARISSat-1 Battery

[Anthony Monteiro]

Hi Phil,

Yes, that is correct.

73,
Tony AA2TX
---

On 8/15/2011 1:26 AM, Phil Karn wrote:

On 8/14/11 6:11 PM, Anthony Monteiro wrote:


Yes, Zinc dendrites will form also if the battery is
overcharged but we should not be able to do that on
ARISSat-1 so only the silver ones should be an issue.


Oh, so they form on both plates. Interesting. Charging the battery
plates out zinc metal on the negative plates, but any metallic silver on
the positive plates should be oxidized back to silver oxide. Silver
dendrites should form only during discharge, right?

-Phil




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[amsat-bb] Re: [suitsat2] ARISSat-1 Battery

[Anthony Monteiro]

Hi Phil,

I think the initial dendrites DO just spark and
open up but eventually the spacer is damaged
and the short is enough to bring the cell voltage down.

Yes, Zinc dendrites will form also if the battery is
overcharged but we should not be able to do that on
ARISSat-1 so only the silver ones should be an issue.

73,
Tony AA2TX
---

On 8/14/2011 6:56 PM, Phil Karn wrote:

On 8/14/11 3:18 PM, Anthony Monteiro wrote:


I think the explanation is that the battery experienced a
significant event on Aug 11 where it lost the electrolyte
in one or more cells. If this is true, the bad news is
that it will no longer hold a charge and will not operate
in eclipse any more.


I agree with your analysis in that one or more cells seems to have gone
open-circuit, or at least greatly reduced in capacity. If you know these
batteries and their specific failure mechanisms, then I'd say your lost
electrolyte theory is a pretty good one.

I never have understood why the dendrites would not be melted by high
current as soon as they crossed the gap between the two plates. I assume
they grow on the zinc plates as the battery is charged?

-Phil



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[amsat-bb] ARISSat-1 Battery

[Anthony Monteiro]

Dear Friends,

This is speculation but it looks to me like we
have had a bit of good luck regarding the battery.

Looking at the battery voltage from deployment on...

Up until Aug 11, the battery seems to be deteriorating
"normally" with a slight downtrend in the max voltage
as expected. But on Aug 11, the battery voltage
suddenly rises up to 36 V max and the satellite
has started resetting in eclipse.

I think the explanation is that the battery experienced a
significant event on Aug 11 where it lost the electrolyte
in one or more cells. If this is true, the bad news is
that it will no longer hold a charge and will not operate
in eclipse any more.

But the good news is that without electrolyte,
it would also stop dendrite growth that causes
the eventual battery short circuit.

In our ground testing, our test battery failed in the
usual way with the battery load increasing until the
solar panels could not drive the power bus high enough to
run the satellite. But interestingly, several cells also
cracked and dumped their electrolyte during this testing.

If a cell on the flight battery cracked and dumped its
electrolyte BEFORE the shorts were formed, it should
stay that way and the satellite may very well continue
to operate in the sun until it starts to re-enter. We just
need some luck to avoid a bad solar angle that would cause a
reset in sunlight.

Keep your fingers crossed! :)

73,
Tony AA2TX



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[amsat-bb] Low power mode in full sun

[Anthony Monteiro]

Dear Friends,

Please take a look at my article titled
"The ARISSat-1 Power System" in the JAN/FEB
2011 AMSAT Journal. There is an interesting
chart on page 10 "Figure 5. Power System Output."

My analysis, as shown in Figure 5, indicates that
at certain "bad" sun angles, the solar panels
may not provide enough power to run the satellite
even in full sun.

The power from the panels can actually drop to as low
as 2.5 watts at really bad angles but the satellite needs
around 8 watts average to run in high power mode. This means
that the satellite would have to draw current from the battery
to run in high power mode even though it is in the sun.

This discharge would reduce the life of the battery so to minimize
the damage and prolong the life of the satellite, it will switch
itself to low power mode under these conditions.

I don't know for sure if this is what is happening but this
condition is within the predicted nominal operation of the
satellite.

73,
Tony AA2TX
---
On 8/11/2011 2:48 AM, Colin Hurst wrote:

ARISSat was in low power mode during the pass commencing at 0628UTC in full
sunlight.



73

Colin VK5HI



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[amsat-bb] Re: SDX works

[Anthony Monteiro]

Hi Phil,

The transponder is on in low-power mode while the
telemetry beacon is on. You only get 30-40 seconds
at a time but if you are quick, you should be able
to make a short contact.

The BPSK seems to be working very well - Thank you for
all your work!

73,
Tony AA2TX
---
On 8/4/2011 2:27 AM, Phil Karn wrote:
> On 8/3/11 9:28 PM, Andrew Glasbrenner wrote:
>> I was able to hear myself with as little as 1 watt on the 0425Z pass.
>> Antennas are a M2 CP42 on RHCP up, and a 10 element horizontal yagi
>> down. Sounded VERY good, and cycled on and off with the telemetry. I
>> also managed to grab 2 frames of tlm right after AOS. I have a wav file
>> of the transponder test.
>
> Now *THIS* is the best news I've heard all day since the deployment and
> initial reception reports!!
>
> Perhaps the transponder is disabled in low-power mode during night passes?
>
> Remember this spacecraft is carrying a silver-zinc battery. While
> nominally rechargeable, this type of battery has a very short cycle life
> usually specified in the single digits. This is the reason for the
> conservatism in eclipse operation. Without that battery, the computer
> will regularly reset in eclipse and the spacecraft won't behave nearly
> as well as we'd like.
>
>
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[amsat-bb] Re: Congratulations

[Anthony Monteiro]

Many Thanks Bob!

73,
Tony AA2TX

---
On 7/31/2011 9:28 AM, Robert McGwier wrote:
> My sincerest congratulations to AMSAT, Tony and his engineering team.  A JOB
> WELL DONE.
>
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[amsat-bb] Re: ARISSat-1 Battery

[Anthony Monteiro]

Hi Clint,

The battery can run ARISSat-1 for about 6 days on
the ISS so it will still be almost fully charged
if they run it for just 1 day.

Once it is deployed, the solar panels will charge
the battery.

73,
Tony AA2TX

---

On 7/25/2011 6:39 PM, Clint Bradford wrote:
> OK - Charging of the ARISSat-1's battery is scheduled for July 27. And a test 
> this weekend.
>
> Will the battery be charged a second time - before EVA-29 on August 3?
>
> What is the expected/anticipated battery "charge state" to be after the July 
> 30 test? Good enough for deployment without another charge?
>
>
> Clint Bradford, K6LCS
>
>
>
>
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[amsat-bb] Re: FW: A Proposal for ARISS

[Anthony Monteiro]

Dear Friends,

It is important to understand that ARISS is not AMSAT.

 From the ARISS web page:
"ARISS, (Amateur Radio on the International Space Station) is a
program that offers an opportunity for students to experience
the excitement of Amateur Radio by talking directly with crewmembers
of the ISS (International Space Station). Teachers, parents and
communities will see how Amateur Radio can energize youngsters
about science, technology, and learning. Speaking with astronauts
and other crewmembers is a unique educational experience. ARISS
would like to take this opportunity to involve large numbers of
individuals, particularly youth, in technology and the International
space program with the help of Amateur Radio."

The primary reason NASA supports ARISS is to promote their Science,
Technology, Engineering and Math (STEM) education initiatives.
This is also true of our Russian friends at RSC-Energia and
the other members of ARISS International.

So, please excuse my bluntness here, but a transponder that is solely
for the benefit of hams to contact each other, is just not going to
"fly" as an ARISS project as it does not support the program mission.

AMSAT has supported the ARISS program because of the opportunity
to put ham radio hardware in space, including ARISSat-1, without having
to pay launch costs. These costs really are "astronomical." There
is no chance we could afford put any hardware on the ISS without it
being a part of the ARISS program.

P3E sits on the ground because it costs far more than hams could
possibly afford to pay to launch it into orbit. AMSAT-DL has done a
great job promoting the science mission aspects of P3E in an attempt
to get government funding for it but so far, it has been to no avail.
We certainly all wish them luck but realistically, it is a very tough
environment.

The primary reason AMSAT is pursuing the Fox program is because we
CAN actually afford the launch costs. Although the very tiny size of
a CubeSat (4" x 4" x 4") makes it technically very challenging because
we want to actually make contacts through it not just listen to it
beep, you can be assured that it will not sit on the shelf for lack
of a launch.

I hope this helps to clarify the situation.

The next AMSAT Journal issue will have a report on my recent
participation at the Small Payload Rideshare Conference. Several
of the presentations included ballpark launch cost numbers for small
satellites. The numbers (like $10M+) are eyepopping to say the least.
It is clear that AMSAT has to take an opportunistic approach and
pursue all of the opportunities we can find for low-cost or free
launches.

73,
Tony AA2TX
AMSAT, VP Engineering



On 7/1/2011 7:03 PM, Edward R. Cole wrote:
> Dee,
>
> Thanks.  Not sure this a SAREX Project but will let them decide that.
>
> My only thought is a new satellite must find a launch and launch
> money.  MY proposal would get a ride to ISS with cargo.  I am not
> minimizing the issues for placing ham satellite on ISS, but I think
> the concept has promise.
>
> If Fox or P3E sit on the shelf for 5-10 years for lack of a launch
> maybe better redirected for ISS.  Not my call, obviously.
>
> 73, Ed - KL7UW
> PS: some of us are getting old and may not still be here in 10-years?
>
> At 02:19 PM 7/1/2011, you wrote:
>> Redirected to the SAREX group.  I do not agree with all of these point,
>> however, No standing program should be de funded to do these. Get another
>> satellite up ASAP is AMSAT's main goal.
>> 73,
>> Dee, NB2F
>>
>> -Original Message-
>> From: amsat-bb-boun...@amsat.org [mailto:amsat-bb-boun...@amsat.org] On
>> Behalf Of Edward R. Cole
>> Sent: Friday, July 01, 2011 4:55 PM
>> To: amsat-bb@amsat.org
>> Subject: [amsat-bb] A Proposal for ARISS
>>
>> After posting some thoughts a few days ago (RE: ISS, what the heck
>> happened?), I have given the idea more consideration.
>>
>> Proposal (ARISS on ISS):
>> 1)  Install a 100-KHz transponder unit on ISS, with usual digital
>> beacon/engineering
>> 2)  It would run mode-UV
>> 3)  Installed internally in the ISS
>> 4)  Replace most of the current ISS ham radio equipment
>> 5)  Could be considered an upgrade/improvement to the existing ham radio on
>> ISS
>> 6)  Use ISS power and existing ham radio antenna infrastructure (no solar
>> panels)(no thermal requirements for space environ)(perhaps less radiation
>> hardening)
>> 7)  Use batteries for stand-alone operation (recharged from ISS power)
>> 8)  Control commanded from ground (no intervention required by astronauts)
>> 9)  Local access for use of astronaut-hams
>> 10)  Provide emergency back-up comms for ISS (perhaps with a separate FM
>> channel)
>> 11)  (perhaps) Use of existing ham-radio handheld on ISS on low-power to
>> dedicated receiver which would activate astronaut repeater channel.
>> 12)  This FM channel could be used as FM ham repeater when not in use by
>> astronauts  (means world-wide monitoring for the astronauts as well as
>> normal Leo FM act

[amsat-bb] Re: Best FD Sat

[Anthony Monteiro]

Hi Guys,

I can easily work AO-7 on SSB with just Lindenblads
and a vertical for 10m (mode A.) Please give it a try
and work us at NS1RA on FD!

73,
Tony AA2TX
---
On 6/24/2011 3:40 PM, Chris Maness wrote:
> Good deal.  I will give it a go.
>
> Thanks,
> es 73
> de KQ6UP
>
> On Fri, Jun 24, 2011 at 12:18 PM, Patrick STODDARD (WD9EWK/VA7EWK)
>   wrote:
>> Chris,
>>
>>> That would be fun.  I would like to operate a bird that is almost as
>>> old as I am :o)  I have never used AO-7 before.  Do you think it is
>>> doable with an arrow antenna?  Will I need to try to use CW?  I have
>>> never used CW on the sats before.
>>
>> You are welcome to try CW, but SSB will work on AO-7.  Last year, I
>> worked all FM and SSB satellites with 5W and a handheld dual-band
>> Elk log periodic.  As has already been mentioned, if everyone watches
>> their output power to these satellites, it will be a fun time on those
>> passes.  :-)
>>
>> 73!
>>
>>
>>
>>
>> Patrick WD9EWK/VA7EWK
>> http://www.wd9ewk.net/
>>
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[amsat-bb] Re: ARISSatTLM source code

[Anthony Monteiro]

Hi Guys,

This has always been open source, its just that the
server is temporarily down. You can find all of the
original LINUX code without the GUI on Phil's web site:

http://www.ka9q.net/

We hope to have the server with the ARISSatTLM Windows
code up again soon.

73,
Tony AA2TX


On 6/23/2011 7:36 PM, STeve Andre' wrote:
> On 06/23/11 18:40, Gordon JC Pearce wrote:
>> On Tue, 21 Jun 2011 19:08:25 -0500
>> "George Henry"   wrote:
>>
>>
>>> HOpe this helps!!!
>>>
>> What the original poster was asking for is the source, rather than 
>> precompiled Windows and Mac OSX binaries.
>>
>> The source doesn't seem to be available yet.  It's a shame that 
>> closed-source software seems to be so common in amateur radio - you get 
>> people sharing all sorts of information, but they just don't seem to have 
>> grasped the idea that letting people see the source code is a Very Good 
>> Thing.
>>
>> Gordon MM0YEQ
>
> Yeah, absolutely this is a problem.
>
> What bothers me the most about this is saying I don't run Windows, or MacOS,
> or Linux, and then I just get theresponse, and that's it.
>
> I know two kids interested at least to some extent about ham radio, both
> who are learning and understand open source culture, who were not exactly
> impressed with some of the closed source programs they've seen--and wanted
> to improve on.
>
> But this is changing, and is yet another reason to get more younger people
> involved in ham radio in general.
>
> --STeve Andre'
> wb8wsf  en72
>
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[amsat-bb] Re: IHU

[Anthony Monteiro]

Hi Clint,

IHU = Internal Housekeeping Unit. It means the on-board
computer. I recall the term goes back 30 years to OSCAR-9.

73,
Tony AA2TX
---

On 5/16/2011 12:16 PM, Clint Bradford wrote:
> Excuse my ignorance (just consider the source, guys ... ) but what is the 
> "IHU" that's onboard AO-51?
>
> -Internal Heating Unit?
> -Receiver section (I Hear U?)
> -Temp sensor (It's Hot Underneath)
>
>
> DREW>>  ... the IHU crashes each eclipse ...
>
>
> Clint Bradford
> clintbradf...@mac.com
>
>
>
>
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[amsat-bb] Re: ARISSat-1 - Battery Failure

[Anthony Monteiro]

Dear Friends,

There has been a great deal of speculation on the amsat-bb about
the Russian battery on ARISSat-1 having failed. Be aware that this
is nothing other than idle speculation. There has been no
information from RSC-Energia to support this.

I believe the mis-information comes from a report on the ARISSat-1
power system that was written by me and sent to RSC-Energia. One
of the sections included a prediction of the battery life in orbit.
The 825M3 is a Russian space suit battery and its life was not
specified or characterized for operation of a satellite. The most
recent AMSAT Journal includes an article that covers this material.

The article in the AMSAT journal predicts that the 825M3 battery
should last for about 2 months in orbit. That means that if the
satellite was deployed in February as originally planned, it might
be too weak to run the satellite reliably by the time the Yuri
celebration commenced on April 12th. This fact was stated on the
(Russian) Roscosmos web site but is being misinterpreted as the
battery "is weak."

For the record, the battery in ARISSat-1 was a brand new 825M3
space suit battery and was charged on the ISS prior to the February
test. After charging, the battery can run ARISSat-1 for at least 100
hours so it should have had more than enough remaining charge to
operate through the Yuri Gagarin event. It is of course possible
that the battery did indeed fail but any information propagated
on amsat-bb to that effect at this time is not based on facts.
AMSAT is working with RSC-Energia and NASA to identify the actual
reason that the satellite was not heard.

73,
Tony AA2TX




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[amsat-bb] Re: ARRISSat Reception 14.45 UTC

[Anthony Monteiro]

Hi Phil,

You are just forgetting. Remember that we
needed it in a "pull" rather than "push" interface?
That makes it easy to sync everything up.

Low power mode works something like this (my memory
isn't great either)

When it is time to send a frame, the next data frame
gets created and encoded. Then the Tx is turned on and
bits start coming out. When the encoder is ready for the
next frame, we don't send anymore and the encoder is fed
fill characters. Since we know that the interleaver is still
full, a timer is started to clear the interleaver. After the
interleave is cleared, the Tx can be turned off. So, the actual
Tx ON time depends upon the size of the frame but it is
always ON at least ~30 seconds to have time to finish the
voice announcements or SSTV on the FM downlink.

This worked flawlessly in lab testing of the satellite
including tests with significant fading of the BPSK link.

73,
Tony AA2TX
---

At 06:21 AM 4/12/2011, Phil Karn wrote:

>In low power mode, the transmission is started clean
>every time. A single telemetry data frame is only 256
>bytes so about 4 seconds of data. After the 1 frame, the
>transmitter is left on until the interleaver is emptied.
>
>Â
>Excellent. I don't think anybody ever told me 
>this. I'm glad somebody noticed the problem.
>Â
>Let's see...256 bytes is 2K bits. At rate 1/2, 
>that encodes to 4K channel symbols that take 
>4.096 sec to send, just as you said.
>
>The very first symbol of the frame hits the 
>modulator right away at T=0, but the last symbol 
>from the front of the frame won't come out until 
>about T = 16.384 sec, the interleaver span.
>
>4.096 sec after that (at T=20.48 sec elapsed 
>time) the last symbol from the end of the frame 
>emerges. So you take 20.48 sec, start to finish, 
>to transmit 2k bits of user data for an 
>effective data rate of 100 bps (vs 500 bps in 
>continuous mode). And that's only counting the time the transmitter is on.
>
>Does the transmitter then go off at 20.48 sec, 
>or does another frame start? Where does the 40-60 sec interval come from?
>
>During that 20.48 sec, 20,480 BPSK channel 
>symbols are sent. But only 4K of them actually 
>represent FEC-encoded user data; the other 16K 
>symbols represent known (i.e., idle flag) bits 
>and do not help decode the user data.
>
>10*log10(4096/20480) is about -7 dB. I.e., a 
>system that can operate at an Eb/No of about 5.5 
>dB now requires an overall Eb/No of 12.5 dB. 
>That's about 3 dB worse than uncoded BPSK...
>
>On the other hand, it should still be somewhat 
>more fade-resistant than that...
>
>Other than the obvious use of block 
>interleaving, it is possible to improve the 
>efficiency of convolutional interleaving (and 
>coding) on short transmissions with "tail 
>biting". You arrange the encoded symbols in a 
>ring and walk around it once. Then you pick an 
>arbitrary point in the receive buffer to start 
>the Viterbi decoder, run it a few constraint 
>lengths to get it synchronized, and then run it 
>around the ring once to actually decode the 
>packet. The tail of the packet gets interleaved 
>with the head so you don't have to fill and 
>drain it with padding. It's actually just a way 
>to construct a block code (or interleaver) out of a convolutional structure.
>
>You see why I wanted a command to turn interleaving on and off?
>
>
>
>


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[amsat-bb] Re: ARISSat-1 tlm decoder.

[Anthony Monteiro]

Hi David,

Bring up the Windows "Volume Control" and on the mixer
panel for playback, enable "Line In" or "Microphone",
whichever you are using for the input. You can adjust
the volume with the slider.

73,
Tony AA2TX
---

At 06:21 PM 4/11/2011, g0...@aol.com wrote:
>Hi all.
>
>I have a minor (probably operator error) with the TLM software.
>
>Is there a way to get the audio to feed through to the PC  speakers?   I've
>tried Spectran and Spectraview without problem, but  the ARISSat software
>does not appear to send audio out on my system. I cant  hear the radio as I
>have a jack in the headphone socket which mutes the radio's  speaker.
>
>The software is working. I can decode the CW callsign and locator of a 2m
>beacon and the level is controlled nicely with the windows 'microphone'
>record  level.
>
>It's not muted
>It's got the correct input selected and the gain turned up.
>
>But.no audio out...so I'm just setting the frequency by visually
>putting the signal in the right place.
>
>73
>
>David
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[amsat-bb] Re: ARRISSat Reception 14.45 UTC

[Anthony Monteiro]

At 02:50 AM 4/12/2011, Phil Karn wrote:
>To elaborate:
>...
>As I recall, ARISSat-1 data frames can be up to 512 bytes long. Ignoring
>HDLC flags, bit stuffing, CRC, etc, that's 4K bits. At a data rate of 500
>bps (the FEC is rate 1/2), 512 bytes will take 4096/500 = 8.192 seconds to
>transmit.
>
>8.192 seconds is longer than 7.232 seconds.
>
>Ooops.
>
>But wait, there's more. If the satellite sends a series of back-to-back 512
>byte frames, and the transmitter comes on  too late after one has already
>started, you'll have to wait for it to end before you can begin decoding the
>next one. Meanwhile, the clock is quickly ticking down until the transmitter
>goes OFF again...
>
>Double oops.

Hi Phil,

That's why it doesn't work that way.

In low power mode, the transmission is started clean
every time. A single telemetry data frame is only 256
bytes so about 4 seconds of data. After the 1 frame, the
transmitter is left on until the interleaver is emptied.


73,
Tony AA2TX







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[amsat-bb] Re: ARRISat-1 CW

[Anthony Monteiro]

Hi Carl,

It's "A1" mode.

73,
Tony AA2TX
---

At 08:48 PM 4/9/2011, aa...@aol.com wrote:
>
>Greetings,
>
>Is the ARRISat-1 CW signal on 145.919 MHz an "A1" mode or an audio tone on
>an FM signal?
>
>
>73,
>Carl Zelich, AA4MI,
>_aa4mi@arrl.net_ (mailto:aa...@arrl.net)
>AMSAT Member  36366,
>_AMSAT_ (http://www.amsat.org/)  - The Radio Amateur Satellite  Corporation
>
>
>_QRZ  AA4MI_ (http://www.qrz.com/db/aa4mi)
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[amsat-bb] Re: Diplexer

[Anthony Monteiro]

Hi Bob,

It is simple really - all of the common gadgets sold
for ham use as duplexers are really diplexers that
can be used as duplexers or diplexers :)

And Dom is correct. The microwave Radars used
a similar principle but with 1/4 wave sections of
waveguide instead of coax. The gas tubes would short
the waveguides when the transmitter was on making
the other end a high impedance and disconnecting the
receiver.

73,
Tony AA2TX
---

At 04:56 PM 4/9/2011, Bob- W7LRD wrote:

>  I'm really trying to "absorb" all this diplexers/duplexor 
> thread.  Specifically I have a new FT-8800 and want to run  FM sats 
> from my truck.  Not wanting to reinvent the wheel would a simple 
> dual band whip suffice.  Then maybe requiring a preamp, and how all 
> that works maybe with a di/du etc.  My head is starting to hurt.
>
>73 Bob W7LRD
>- Original Message -
>From: "Andrew Rich" 
>To: kc6...@cox.net, "i8cvs" , "Amsat - BBs" 
>, "Anthony Monteiro" 
>Sent: Saturday, April 9, 2011 1:39:01 PM
>Subject: [amsat-bb] Re: Diplexer
>
>DU = TX RX
>DI = RX
>- Original Message -
>From: "Art McBride" 
>To: "'i8cvs'" ; "'Amsat - BBs'" ;
>"'Anthony Monteiro'" 
>Sent: Sunday, April 10, 2011 6:27 AM
>Subject: [amsat-bb] Re: Diplexer
>
>
> > As I understand it,
> > A Duplexer allows for transmission and reception to take place in the same
> > band using a single band antenna.
> > A Diplexer allows for transmission and reception to take place on
> > different
> > bands using a multi-band antenna.
> >
> > Art,
> > KC6UQH
> >
> > -Original Message-
> > From: amsat-bb-boun...@amsat.org [mailto:amsat-bb-boun...@amsat.org] On
> > Behalf Of i8cvs
> > Sent: Saturday, April 09, 2011 10:35 AM
> > To: Amsat - BBs; Anthony Monteiro
> > Subject: [amsat-bb] Re: Diplexer
> >
> > - Original Message -
> > From: "Anthony Monteiro" 
> > To: 
> > Sent: Saturday, April 09, 2011 5:15 PM
> > Subject: [amsat-bb] Re: Diplexer
> >
> >> A "duplexor" is a device that allows both transmitting and
> >> receiving over the same transmission line or antenna. It
> >> may or may not be a passive device and it may or may not
> >> be frequency selective.
> >>
> >> In WWII RADAR systems, a duplexor was used to allow
> >> the transmitter and receiver on the same frequency to
> >> share the same antenna. The duplexor was a waveguide
> >> device that had special gas-filled tubes to quickly
> >> switch the signal direction.
> >>
> >> 73,
> >> Tony AA2TX
> >>
> > Hi Tony, AA2TX
> >
> > I have in my hands the Instruction Book for Radar Recognition
> > Sets AN/UPX-6  of U.S. Navy  Department Bureau of Ships.
> >
> > The UPX6 is a IFF transponder on board of aicrafts and was used
> > in WWII for  Identification of Friend or Foe.
> >
> > The UPX-6  can transmit from 1010-1030 MHz and receive from
> > 1090-1110 MHz and allows both transmitting and receiving over
> > the same transmission line and antenna via a circuit  made of coax
> > cable RG-58/CU that the manual calls a   "DUPLEXER" and not
> > a "duplexor".
> >
> > This "duplexer" is working on the fact that a transmission line,
> > shorted at the far end a quarter wavelenght long for the incoming
> > signal,represent infinite impedance (an open circuit) at the sending
> > end of the line.
> >
> > The UPX-6 was converted in the early 1980's to be used on 1296 MHz
> > and an interesting article written by W6NBI was published in Ham
> > Radio Magazine march 1981
> >
> > I modified it and I got 40 watt output...not too bad for that epoch
> > time !
> >
> > Best 73" de
> >
> > i8CVS Domenico
> > ___
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> >
> > __ Information from ESET NOD32 Antivirus, version of virus
> > signature
> > database 6027 (20110408) __
> >
> > The message was checked by ESET NOD32 Antivirus.
> >
> > http://www.eset.com
> >
> >
> >
> >
> > __ Information from ESET NOD32 Antivirus, version of virus
> > signature
> > database 6029 (20110409

[amsat-bb] Re: Diplexer

[Anthony Monteiro]

Yes Nigil, I need a spell checker on my email.

Thanks!
Tony AA2TX

At 11:30 AM 4/9/2011, Nigel Gunn G8IFF/W8IFF wrote:
>And its diplexer and duplexer.

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[amsat-bb] Re: Diplexer

[Anthony Monteiro]

Dear Friends,

Perhaps this will help clear up the confusion.

A "diplexor" is a passive device that lets you split
and/or combine signals based on their frequencies.
It does not matter whether the frequencies are close
together or on different bands nor does it matter if
you are using it for transmitting or receiving.

A diplexor is commonly used in radio and TV broadcasting
to allow two transmitters on different frequencies
to share the same antenna.


A "duplexor" is a device that allows both transmitting and
receiving over the same transmission line or antenna. It
may or may not be a passive device and it may or may not
be frequency selective.

In WWII RADAR systems, a duplexor was used to allow
the transmitter and receiver on the same frequency to
share the same antenna. The duplexor was a waveguide
device that had special gas-filled tubes to quickly
switch the signal direction.


A typical ham radio cavity duplexor is used in FM repeater
stations to allow the transmitter and receiver to share
the same antenna. Since it is a passive frequency-based
multiplexor, it is also a diplexor.

If you used the exact same device to instead connect
two transmitters to the same antenna, it would no longer
be a duplexor but it would still be a diplexor.


73,
Tony AA2TX

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[amsat-bb] Re: AMSAT-Fox?

[Anthony Monteiro]

Hey Clint,

You wouldn't really want us to call the satellite "Foxtrot"
would you? Think about the logo! Would you have us
"Dancing with the stars...?" :)

73,
Tony AA2TX
AMSAT VP Engineering
---


>-Original Message-
>From: amsat-bb-boun...@amsat.org [mailto:amsat-bb-boun...@amsat.org] On
>Behalf Of Clint Bradford
>Sent: Wednesday, March 02, 2011 12:13 AM
>To: AMSAT BB
>Subject: [amsat-bb] AMSAT-Fox?
>
>OK - I'll ask. Why is this satellite not named, "AMSAT-Foxtrot?"
>
>It was about 1956 that the U.S. military did away with "Fox" in lieu of
>"Foxtrot" for its phonetic alphabet. Even the English army did away with
>"Fox"over 50 years ago.
>
>The ITU and militaries cite the sixth letter of the phonetic alphabet as
>"Foxtrot." Whose phonetic alphabet do we use to name AMSAT satellites?
>
>Clint Bradford

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[amsat-bb] Re: AMSAT Fox News

[Anthony Monteiro]

Hi Trevor,

The AMSAT Fox CubeSat bus will include both an analog FM
transponder and a software defined transponder (SDX.) For the
Fox mission, we intend to program the SDX for high performance
digital modes for our command and telemetry channels but the
SDX could be programmed for almost anything including a linear
or packet transponder on a follow up mission.

73,
Tony AA2TX
AMSAT VP Engineering

---
At 06:01 PM 3/2/2011, Trevor . wrote:
>Under the section "AMSAT-Fox planned features include"
>
>It says
>
>"AMSAT's flexible, CubeSat compatible software defined transponder 
>is a new approach providing a robust and reliable radio link for 
>future CubeSats allowing university teams to concentrate on their 
>scientific objectives."
>
>Now although listed under "AMSAT-Fox planned features" that bullet 
>point doesn't have the key word Fox in it.
>
>Can someone clarify if the FM transponder on Fox will be SDX or if 
>that's an aspiration for later CubeSats ?
>
>73 Trevor M5AKA

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[amsat-bb] Re: pre amp help..

[Anthony Monteiro]

Hi Ted,

I have an ARR 160 watt RF sense unit and it works great.
I also have a couple of SSB RF sense units and they
work great too.


73,
Tony AA2TX
AMSAT VP Engineering

---

At 04:59 PM 2/16/2011, Ted wrote:
>I just sent my ARR pre amp back to ARR for repair for the 3rd time !
>
>(pretty sure I did not tx through it )
>
>What are people using for pre amps. I only see the Mirage as an alternative.
>Any other choices. I'm kind of disappointed in ARR products.
>Is there a pre amp that you can tx through preventing accidental frying?
>
>Any thoughts appreciated
>
>73, Ted, K7TRK

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[amsat-bb] Re: AMSAT-FOX

[Anthony Monteiro]

Hi Clint,

"Fox" is the follow up satellite to "Echo" (now AO-51)
and is not an acronym.

73,
Tony AA2TX
AMSAT VP Engineering

---
At 06:08 PM 2/15/2011, Clint Bradford wrote:
>Is "FOX" an acronym? If not, is the formal title of the project, 
>"AMSAT-Fox" or "AMSAT-FOX"?
>
>Hey - I am married to the owner of http://www.thegrammarbitch.com - 
>a title she earned from appreciative co-workers ... (grin)
>
>Clint, K6LCS
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[amsat-bb] Re: Demonstrator Rotator Setup

[Anthony Monteiro]

Hi Clint,

Mike Stipick, KC4RI, presented a small yagi
tracker at the 2010 AMSAT Space Symposium.

Contact him for info: kc...@att.net

73,
Tony AA2TX
---




At 12:49 PM 12/13/2010, Clint Bradford wrote:
>I have an inquiry from a gentleman who would like to show the 
>"dramatic sight" of a computer-controlled small Yagi tracking a 
>satellite while in a convention booth - but not necessarily a 
>full-blown Yaesu G-5500.
>
>If I am not making sense, just ask ... (grin)
>
>He is thinking 12VDC, laptop, just a six-foot mast with an 
>Arrow-like antenna, Ham Radio Deluxe(?), "smaller" radio like a FT-817ND)?) ...
>
>Brainstorming welcome!
>
>Many thanks.
>
>Clint Bradford, K6LCS
>909-241-7666
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[amsat-bb] Re: UHF antenna help

[Anthony Monteiro]

Hi Larry,

Did you check your new QTH's magnetic declination?

http://www.ngdc.noaa.gov/geomagmodels/Declination.jsp

73,
Tony AA2TX
---
At 08:14 PM 11/29/2010, larry wrote:
>Good evening,
>
>Name here is Larry, N1MIW. I recently moved to a better (higher) QTH and
>finally got around to setting up the satellite station "almost" like it used
>to be, but am experiencing some reception difficulties on UHF. I'm hoping
>someone out here can help me diagnose what I'm doing wrong, or what the
>problem is. I am using a Yaesu FT-847 which is computer controlled, as well
>as the Yaesu G-5400 rotator. The antennas are mounted on a solid fiberglass
>mast only ~17 feet off the ground, and fed with LMR-400. The frequencies are
>correct for the satellite I want to use.
>
>My problem is with the 436CP30 antenna. I cannot seem to find good
>results with it since my move - terrestrial or sat related. My SWR is around
>1.5:1 at 435MHz, and the polarity switch is working. I tried changing
>feedlines and removing the pre-amp, but I still cannot seem to make it work
>correctly. I am trying to receive SO-50 D/L, and VO-52 U/L, but both are
>just not working like I remember it being before the move. I don't have any
>broken or mis-aligned elements (that I noticed - I'll look again). The only
>thing I was looking into was instead of having it placed on the boom in a
>"+" pattern was making it an "x" pattern - would that make a difference? I
>don't remember hearing or reading about that anywhere, so I was looking for
>your opinion.
>
>On a side note, what's your opinion of this antenna? Like I said, I used
>to have good luck with it, but I'm not sure what's different, except the new
>home. Should I get "horizon" to "horizon" coverage (plus or minus a few
>degrees)? Oh, I also looped the coax off the back like the manual states,
>but the improvement is very minimal. I checked the "jumpers" at the tuning
>box, and they seem OK too.
>
>I'm running out of ideas, and any guidance would be appreciated. Thanks &
>looking forward to working the birds again!
>
>73's... Larry N1MIW
>
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[amsat-bb] Re: [sarex] Re: Re: ARISSat-1 and FOX social media fundraising

[Anthony Monteiro]

Hi Samudra,

We haven't worked this out yet.

73,
Tony AA2TX

---
At 06:21 PM 11/18/2010, Samudra Haque wrote:
>Can I ask how many solar panels will be unfurled from the 1U chassis
>which has an internal dimension of approx. 87 x 87 mm? Will it be a
>symmetric or assymetric arrangement? Will the antenna be embedded into
>the extended solar panel?
>
>73 de N3RDX
>
>Samudra
>
>On Thu, Nov 18, 2010 at 4:48 PM, Anthony Monteiro  wrote:
> > Hi Trevor,
> >
> > The current plan is to use the same frequency for the FM downlink
> > and the telemetry beacon. The IHU will have sufficient memory capacity to
> > hold at least a days worth of data so the beacon would be turned on once
> > a day for a telemetry dump and then back to transponder mode.
> >
> > And yes, we plan to use forward error correction on the beacon so
> > that it will be bulletproof. It will likely be a different format
> > than the one used on ARISSat-1 since we want a higher bit rate and Fox
> > will be passive magnetic stabilized (like AO-51) so it will not suffer
> > from tumble fading like ARISSat might and the interleave length does not
> > need to be as long.
> >
> > Thanks for your interest!
> > Tony AA2TX
> > ---
> >
> > At 03:35 PM 11/18/2010, Trevor . wrote:
> >>--- On Thu, 18/11/10, Andrew Glasbrenner 
>  wrote:
> >> >
> >> 
> http://www.amsat.org/amsat-new/images/fck_images/2010_President_Annual_Report%281%29.pdf
> >> >
> >> > Slides 14 through 17
> >>
> >>Hi Drew,
> >>
> >>Really glad to see that AMSAT-NA is going ahead with the FOX project.
> >>
> >> >From my point of view potentially the valuable part of FOX is the
> >> deployable Solar Panels.
> >>
> >>This has never been done on a 1U CubeSat and should significantly
> >>increase the power available. A space proven system to deploy panels
> >>on a 1U sat will benefit not just AMSAT-NA for future projects but
> >>the entire CubeSat community.
> >>
> >>Unfortunately I wasn't able to get to the symposium so perhaps you
> >>could clarify one of the slides for me.
> >>
> >>Slide 16 mentions both a U/V FM transpoder and a V telemetry beacon.
> >>Is the telemetry beacon on a seperate frequency from the transponder
> >>so both can run at the same time ? Also is the beacon using the
> >>robust narrow band, high efficiently, BPSK system developed for ARISSat-1 ?
> >>
> >>I look forward to the launch of ARISSat-1 in the New Year with its
> >>first ever space deployment of a SDX linear transponder, with that
> >>and the Slow Scan TV, its sure to be very popular.
> >>
> >>73 Trevor M5AKA
> >>
> >>
> >>
> >>
> >>
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[amsat-bb] Re: [sarex] Re: Re: ARISSat-1 and FOX social media fundraising

[Anthony Monteiro]

Hi Trevor,

The current plan is to use the same frequency for the FM downlink
and the telemetry beacon. The IHU will have sufficient memory capacity to
hold at least a days worth of data so the beacon would be turned on once
a day for a telemetry dump and then back to transponder mode.

And yes, we plan to use forward error correction on the beacon so
that it will be bulletproof. It will likely be a different format
than the one used on ARISSat-1 since we want a higher bit rate and Fox
will be passive magnetic stabilized (like AO-51) so it will not suffer
from tumble fading like ARISSat might and the interleave length does not
need to be as long.

Thanks for your interest!
Tony AA2TX
---

At 03:35 PM 11/18/2010, Trevor . wrote:
>--- On Thu, 18/11/10, Andrew Glasbrenner  wrote:
> > 
> http://www.amsat.org/amsat-new/images/fck_images/2010_President_Annual_Report%281%29.pdf
> >
> > Slides 14 through 17
>
>Hi Drew,
>
>Really glad to see that AMSAT-NA is going ahead with the FOX project.
>
> >From my point of view potentially the valuable part of FOX is the 
> deployable Solar Panels.
>
>This has never been done on a 1U CubeSat and should significantly 
>increase the power available. A space proven system to deploy panels 
>on a 1U sat will benefit not just AMSAT-NA for future projects but 
>the entire CubeSat community.
>
>Unfortunately I wasn't able to get to the symposium so perhaps you 
>could clarify one of the slides for me.
>
>Slide 16 mentions both a U/V FM transpoder and a V telemetry beacon. 
>Is the telemetry beacon on a seperate frequency from the transponder 
>so both can run at the same time ? Also is the beacon using the 
>robust narrow band, high efficiently, BPSK system developed for ARISSat-1 ?
>
>I look forward to the launch of ARISSat-1 in the New Year with its 
>first ever space deployment of a SDX linear transponder, with that 
>and the Slow Scan TV, its sure to be very popular.
>
>73 Trevor M5AKA
>
>
>
>
>
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[amsat-bb] Re: V/U Satellite Operation Issue/Question

[Anthony Monteiro]

Hi Zachary,

He is probably experiencing receiver desense
which is a common problem trying to work V/U (mode J)
satellites.

See this:
http://www.amsat.org/amsat-new/articles/Mode-J/

73,
Tony AA2TX

---

At 08:43 AM 11/7/2010, Zachary Beougher wrote:
>All, A Ham from Ireland asked me about some 
>issues he was having with his base rig when 
>working the V/U birds.  Since I have have had 
>limited experience using base rigs to work the 
>birds, and I have had no experience with the SSB 
>birds, I thought I would pose his question to 
>some of the more experienced ops here.  Here’s 
>the issue he is having:   1.. His 
>setup:  TS-790a (full duplex rig) and Tonna F9FT 
>9/19 Yagi (This was the description of his 
>equipment he gave me).   2.. Whenever he goes to 
>transmit on the 2m uplink, the 440 receive 
>frequency “drops out” and all he can hear is 
>QRN.  Once he lets off the PTT, receiving goes 
>back to normal.  He mentioned he did make a 
>contact on a FM V/U bird, and received a 59 
>report. 3.. He has worked the U/V 
>satellites, and everything works fine (he can 
>hear himself on the downlink).   4.. He has 
>double-checked all connections. If you have any 
>idea pertaining to this issue, you can email me 
>here or off list and I will pass it along to him. Thanks, Zack KD8KSN


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[amsat-bb] Re: AO-7 Mode A antennas

[Anthony Monteiro]

Hi John,

I have worked AO-7 on field day using a 4-foot
vertical plugged into an ARR preamp.

73,
Tony AA2TX
---

At 11:52 AM 10/30/2010, John Neeley wrote:
>I notice, looking at the logbook on the AO-7 website that the 
>Europeans utilize
>Mode A alot more than use here in NA.  Since the downlink frequency is in the
>upper 10 meter band, and I wondering what antenna they are using for 
>receive?  I
>have tried dipoles, horizontal loops, G5RV, etc to pretty much zero luck in
>hearing the bird, even with close passes.
>
>Any info would be appreciated..
>
>John W6ZKH
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[amsat-bb] Re: What does it mean?

[Anthony Monteiro]

Hi Mike,

Eric is on a DXpedition in Miquelon

http://www.kv1j.com/fp/october10.html

73,
Tony AA2TX
---

At 04:58 PM 10/28/2010, Michae J. Wolthuis wrote:
>I just contacted Eric, who gave me fp/kv1j - gn17.  What does the fp stroke
>mean?  Do I enter this into AC Logger as kv1j without the fp/?
>
>
>
>Something new on AO-51, I'm learning!
>
>
>
>Mike
>
>Kb8zgl
>
>

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[amsat-bb] Re: ARISSat-1 Frequency Plan

[Anthony Monteiro]

Hi Clint,

Almost. The CW-2 beacon was changed to 145.919 MHz.

73,
Tony AA2TX
---

At 01:55 PM 10/1/2010, Clint Bradford wrote:
>Is the following data still correct for ARISSat-1?
>
>2M Downlink
>BPSK 145.920 (telemetry, data from experiments)
>Transponder 145.922 - 145.938
>FM 145.950
>CW-1 145.939
>CW-2 145.921
>
>70CM Uplink
>Input 435.758 - 435.742
>
>Clint, K6LCS
>
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[amsat-bb] Re: AO-51 V/S

[Anthony Monteiro]

Hi Matt,

I recommand a tomato can antenna.

Get an empty can with diameter 3.25" and length 4.25"
(i.e. a tomato can)

Solder a piece of #14 wire to single-hole mount N-connector
so that the total length above the connector is 1.25"

Cut a hole for the connector centered 2-5/8" from
the bottom and mount it to the can.

I have used this with an AIDC 3731 connected directly at
the antenna and feeding an FT-817 to receive AO-51 V/S.
It works for me and it is pretty cheap.

73,
Tony AA2TX
---

At 09:13 AM 9/10/2010, Matt Patterson wrote:
>Hi,
>
>Thanks to everyone for all of your responses.  It looks like I have
>found a downconverter.  Next question...  Does anyone have any ideas on
>a cheap and easy homebrew antenna?  Would a "cantenna" work for a small
>portable setup?  I'm trying to do this as cheaply as possible as AO-51
>isn't in this mode very often.
>
>73 Matt
>W5LL
>
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[amsat-bb] Re: Can I work w/just egg beaters?

[Anthony Monteiro]

At 07:38 PM 7/9/2010, Jeremy Cowgar wrote:
>Hello,
>
>I am curious if the M2 egg beaters w/mast mount preamps would allow me
>to use the current satellites, including AO-7?

Hi Jeremy,

You can work all of the current mode B or J satellites using omni
antennas. A good mast-mount preamp is necessary to be able to
receive on 435 MHz like FO-29 or AO-51 but on 2 meters it is
generally not needed which would include AO-7.

This past field day, Joe, KM1P and I made contacts on AO-07, FO-29,
SO-50, VO-52, SO-67, HO-68 in FM mode and HO-68 in linear mode
operating only a few hours on Sunday morning using omni antennas.
We used an EZ-Lindenblad on 2m mounted at 6 feet with no preamp and a
Parasitic Lindenblad on 70cm mounted at 10 feet with an SP-7000 preamp.
(for antenna info see QST Aug 2007 and Feb 2010.)

I have made contacts down to less than 1 degree of elevation when
conditions are good with just omni antennas.

Give it a try!

73,
Tony AA2TX









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[amsat-bb] Re: question

[Anthony Monteiro]

Dear Friends,

For linear transponders, it is customary to receive in USB.
So, if the transponder is non-inverting, TX in USB. If it is
inverting, TX in LSB.

73,
Tony AA2TX
AMSAT VP Engineering

---

At 07:53 PM 6/29/2010, Nigel Gunn G8IFF/W8IFF wrote:
>Perhaps that's because it doesn't really matter which sideband you 
>use on the linear sats although I believe it's
>customary to Tx USB.
>
>On 29-Jun-10 23:39, Dads wrote:
> >
> >  Hi :  I sent a couple friends that are interested to the AMSAT
> > website.
> >  I told them to look at all the satellites.
> >They found the site  had  all satellites on it.
> >   When they brought up the sats  they didn,t put on the
> >  sidebands on the linear birds, the up 
> and downlinks
> > .
> >  I mean the upper and lower sidebands for these birds.
> >So I sent them to the UK site and they were there.
> >   They didn,t have Oscar 68 on there though.
> >Jerry w0sat
> >
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> >
> >
> >
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> > Version: 9.0.829 / Virus Database: 271.1.1/2967 - Release Date: 
> 06/27/10 18:35:00
> >
>
>--
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>USA.  tel +1 937 825 5032
>Amateur Radio G8IFF W8IFF (was KC8NHF),  e-mail 
>ni...@ngunn.net   www  http://www.ngunn.net
>Member of  ARRL, GQRP #11396, QRPARCI #11644, SOC #548,  Flying Pigs 
>QRP Club International #385,
> Dayton ARA #2128, AMSAT-NA LM-1691,  AMSAT-UK 0182, 
> MKARS,  ALC, GCARES, XWARN.
>
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[amsat-bb] Re: AMSAT Board of Directors Candidates

[Anthony Monteiro]

At 07:40 PM 6/16/2010, Dave Guimont wrote:
>I hope we are getting great financial support from the fm'ers.  I
>assume the reason for fm is the assumed cost of ssw/cw rigs in

Dear Dave and Vince and the group,

You guys have to know that I would love to put up a linear HEO and
resurrect the +20 net!

The reality is that AMSAT just cannot afford to pay for a HEO launch.
I do think we need to work as hard as we can to find another way to get
there but we haven't found a way just yet.

The ARISSat-1 satellite, which many of us are hard at work on right now,
will have a linear transponder but of course it is a LEO.

The AMSAT-Fox project is FM because we need a replacement for AO-51
before it dies (perhaps THE most popular satellite at present) and it is hard
to generate enough power from a 1U CubeSat to have a really good linear
transponder.

Hang in there. The world has changed and it is much more difficult than it used
to be but we are trying really hard to get there.

73,
Tony AA2TX
AMSAT VP Engineering

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[amsat-bb] Re: HELIX REFLECTOR?

[Anthony Monteiro]

Hi Pete,

Take a look at this article on helix ground planes:
http://www.alzacomm.com/downloads/Helix_Letter.pdf
 


It is also possible to make a helix with no ground plane.
This was a cover article of the IEEE Antennas magazine in 1995.
Search for the article

Kraus, J.D. A helical-beam antenna without a ground plane.
IEEE Ant. Prop. Mag., 37 (2), 45, 1995.

at

http://ieeexplore.ieee.org/Xplore/guesthome.jsp
 


You have to buy this one from IEEE if you are not an
APS member.

Best of luck with your projects!

73,
Tony AA2TX
---


At 08:51 PM 6/3/2010, Pete Norris, K1HZU wrote:
>Hi All:
>I am rebuilding a 440 MHZ Helix that I built several years ago . It 
>worked very well, but I would like to reduce the size of the 
>reflector to a more manageable size than I had before. The only 
>reference to reflector size I can find is, "minimum 20" ". I may be 
>looking in the wrong places. I would appreciate it, if someone would 
>steer me in the right direction.
>Thanks,
>Pete, K1HZU
>
>
>
>
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[amsat-bb] Re: HO-68

[Anthony Monteiro]

Hi Don,

If you are standing outside with your arrow, a short
feedline and an HT, you will not need a preamp.

73,
Tony AA2TX
---

At 07:41 PM 5/21/2010, Don wrote:
>I will still take all the help I can get but I think I just answered my own
>question. I was taking another look at the schedule and noticed  it said
>turn on cw/ssb DUH I don't think that is going to work with a FM rig. Now
>that I feel completely stupid I still wonder about the preamp.

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[amsat-bb] Re: Using a FT-897 for Linear Transponders

[Anthony Monteiro]

Hi Reid,

I believe PCSat32 will run an FT-897 to work a linear transponder.

Of course you can also use the old InstantTrack with InstantTune
just tell it you are using an FT-817.

73,
Tony AA2TX

---

At 05:36 PM 5/9/2010, Reid Crowe wrote:
>Has anyone figured out a good way to use an FT-897 for linear
>transponders without an additional receiver?  I would really like to get
>on some of the other birds from Sondrestrom (GP47) and Thule (FQ56)
>before I leave Greenland.
>
>Thanks,
>
>Reid OX/N0RC
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[amsat-bb] Re: PC clock

[Anthony Monteiro]

At 04:48 PM 5/8/2010, Larry Gerhardstein wrote:
>My PC's clock keeps getting off by enough to cause problems on near
>overhead passes.  I've seen it off by more than 30 seconds.  It is using
>Internet synchronization, which happens once a week


Hi Larry,

I use EZTimeSync. It is free and you can set
how often you want it to update.

Available here:

http://www.tucows.com/preview/219295

73,
Tony AA2TX

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[amsat-bb] Re: SSB 70cm Pre AMp

[Anthony Monteiro]

Hi Peter,

Your preamp is overloading. See this article:

http://www.amsat.org/amsat-new/articles/Mode-J/
 


73,
Tony AA2TX

---


At 01:51 PM 4/11/2010, Peter Wilson wrote:
>Hi Everyone,
>
>Just set up my station and started to receive all the main 
>satellites, using a Gulf satellite antenna (2M + 70cm) + SSB 70cm 
>Preamp and FT736R
>
>When I transmit on 2M, especially FM, it's as if the preamp is 
>squelching - the receive signal reduces significantly. If I turn the 
>preamp off I don't get the problem, I can continue to hear the received signal.
>
>Any ideas?
>
>Peter Wilson
>G8KEK
>AMSAT UK 6897
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[amsat-bb] Re: Fractal Antennas?

[Anthony Monteiro]

Dear friends,

See the article by Steven Best in the June 2003
IEEE Antennas and Propagation magazine. His
analysis shows that they do not work any better than
any other small antenna. I attended a presentation on
his findings at an IEEE antennas society meeting and he
makes a very persuasive case.

There are those who argue that his analysis is not perfectly
fair (i.e. those trying to SELL these antennas) but I
have yet to see any technical analysis that shows otherwise.

73,
Tony AA2TX
AMSAT
VP Engineering


At 09:18 AM 3/14/2010, Nigel Gunn G8IFF/W8IFF wrote:
>I beleive fractal antennas have been "ignored" because of patent issues.
>
>On 13-Mar-10 22:26, Dave Marthouse wrote:
> >  This seems almost too good to be true.  Keep in mind 
> that I'm not an engineer.  Maybe this technology could be used for 
> future amateur satellites, wider bandwidth, more gain, less space, etc.
> > http://www.fractalantennas.com/
> >
> > Dave Marthouse N2AAM
> > dmartho...@gmail.com
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> >
> >
> >
> > No virus found in this incoming message.
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> > Version: 9.0.733 / Virus Database: 271.1.1/2743 - Release Date: 
> 03/13/10 07:33:00
> >
>
>--
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>USA.  tel +1 937 825 5032
>Amateur Radio G8IFF W8IFF (was KC8NHF),  e-mail 
>ni...@ngunn.net   www  http://www.ngunn.net
>Member of  ARRL, GQRP #11396, QRPARCI #11644, SOC #548,  Flying Pigs 
>QRP Club International #385,
> Dayton ARA #2128, AMSAT-NA LM-1691,  AMSAT-UK 0182, 
> MKARS,  ALC, GCARES, XWARN.
>
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[amsat-bb] Re: New Lindy's QRV

[Anthony Monteiro]

Very nice work Ed!

For those of you outside of North America who cannot
get "English" sized pvc parts, AMSAT-UK is offering
the 70cm Parasitic Lindenblad in kit form using metric
components thanks to John, G7HIA.

Go to www.uk.amsat.org   select "Shop" from the
left hand menu and "hardware."

73,
Tony AA2TX
AMSAT VP Engineering

---
At 03:03 PM 2/6/2010, Edward Cole wrote:
>Just a note that I copied HO-68 beacon yesterday on my new 
>Lindenblad antennas.
>I have updated the webpage:
>http://www.kl7uw.com/LBant.htm
>
>I am only running mode-VU with the "Lindys" because the UHF antenna
>has a preamp and the VHF one does not.
>
>My directional satellite array is not quite QRV; needs cables
>connected in shack.
>They have full capability for modes; VU, UV, US, VS, LU, LS
>So I will not be on AO-7, VO-52, or FO-29 quite yet.
>
>73, Ed - KL7UW, WD2XSH/45
>==
>   BP40IQ   500 KHz - 10-GHz   www.kl7uw.com
>500-KHz/CW, 144-MHz EME, 1296-MHz EME
>DUBUS Magazine USA Rep dubus...@hotmail.com
>==

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[amsat-bb] Re: Coaxial line question

[Anthony Monteiro]

Hi Luc,

I am assuming you meant 7/8" Heliax.

45' of Heliax and a short LMR400 jumper will have around
0.6 dB of loss on 70cm so that just adds 0.6 dB to
the noise figure of your preamp (i.e. ~1.0 dB to ~1.6 db.)
With even a modest gain antenna, you probably will not be
able to notice any difference on a satellite downlink.

On 2 meters, even less difference.

73,
Tony AA2TX

---


At 05:04 AM 1/24/2010, Luc Leblanc wrote:
>Yes again a returning question "preamp at the tower or near the shack"
>
>I will have to do soon some maintenance work on my satellite 
>antennas tower. I planned to use 2 heliax 1/78" 45'  individual line. Each
>line will be terminated by high quality 2psp coaxial microwave 
>switch feeding UHF and VHF antennas. I don't know if i can move my VHF and
>UHF preamp at the other end near the shack where each line will 
>enter the house on short LMR 400 run 10 feet max?
>
>I know the theory says the best place to put a preamp is at the 
>antenna but with the very low loss on the Heliax coaxial line,  is in the
>real world there will be any significant degradation in the noise 
>figures who will be really noticeable?
>
>Note: If the relays are introducing too much loss i can feed the 
>antenna directly from them on the 8' run on LMR-400 directly on the female
>N type heliax connector.
>
>P.S. One commercial microwave technician is telling me that i will 
>be able to see difference only on labs spectrum/signal generator in
>short i will be unable to tell any difference due to the short 
>length of my coaxial line. He told me he's playing with 300 to 600 feets of
>lines in his day to day work and 45 feet heliax run are nearly 
>consider as jumper line in his world...
>
>
>"-"
>
>
>Luc Leblanc VE2DWE
>Skype VE2DWE
>www.qsl.net/ve2dwe
>DSTAR urcall VE2DWE
>WAC BASIC CW PHONE SATELLITE
>
>
>
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[amsat-bb] Re: Life Members

[Anthony Monteiro]

At 12:03 PM 1/17/2010, Glen Zook wrote:
>...
>Based on the consumer price index, the $50 that I spent for my life 
>membership back around 1970 is today the equivalent of right at 
>$3300!  That is 66 times in "absolute dollars".  Compare that to the 
>present life membership fee of $880.  That means that we who 
>obtained our life memberships back in the early 1970s paid 3.75 
>times what new life members are paying.
>
>If you don't believe these figures then do the calculations on the 
>following website:
>
>http://www.measuringworth.com/uscompare/

...


Hi Glen,

I appreciate your sentiment about the fact that
AMSAT needed the money back then but I don't think
your math is correct. $1 in 1970 is equivalent to
around $5.50 - $6.00 in todays dollars depending
on how you compare it.

Using the "Measuring Worth" web site, the CPI
equivalent value of $50 in 1970 is $277.17
in 2009 dollars.


73,
Tony AA2TX
AMSAT VP Engineering



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[amsat-bb] Re: ARISSat-1 Documentation site

[Anthony Monteiro]

Hi George,

Yes, it is safe. You get a warning because
the site's certificate is invalid.

73,
Tony AA2TX

AMSAT VP Engineering

---
At 08:03 PM 1/13/2010, George Henry wrote:
>I tried to visit the ARISSat-1 documentation site mentioned in the Nov/Dec
>AMSAT Journal to look at the current schematics, and received a warning that
>the site's security certificate was not issued by a trusted source.
>
>Dare I proceed?
>
>
>George, KA3HSW
>
>
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[amsat-bb] Re: Programming question - frequency units

[Anthony Monteiro]

Hi Phil,

InstantTune used Hertz and DOUBLE for the configuration
info and the frequency calculations. That way there is
effectively no limits to precision or frequency range.
You get 52 bits for the mantissa in a DOUBLE.

For the actual radio drivers, it used LONG internally for
the frequencies in Hertz. This was done to conserve cpu since
it was meant to run as a DOS TSR on 16 MHz '386 class machines
with no floating point processor.

Given today's PCs, why bother with integers? Hertz and DOUBLE
is simple and there is no cpu issue anymore.

In any case, best of luck with your project,

Tony AA2TX

---

At 02:49 AM 12/16/2009, Phil wrote:
>Thank you for reading this.
>
>After a five year rest from the satellites I may soon be in a 
>position to once
>again resume one of my favourite hobbies. So, over the past couple of
>months I have been updating my tracking programme. In the process I have
>discovered that I need to make a design change.
>
>Originally the whole programme used Hertz as the frequency unit until
>AO-40 came along and the numbers became too large for the int variables.
>It wasn't too difficult, at the time, to change to long variables but I found
>the long strings of numbers confusing especially in the 
>configuration file. So
>then I experimented with double variables in Kilohertz. Around the same
>time AO-40 died and a lifestyle change ended my access to all satellites as
>well.
>
>I've rewritten the configuration class and modelled it around Erich
>Eichmann's sqf Doppler file which has made selecting satellites with multiple
>modes neater. This is where the design decision comes in.
>
>The main class now uses Kilohertz as the frequency unit while the radio
>class still uses Hertz. The main class is responsible for the conversion each
>way but confusion reigns supreme because some variables are in Hertz and
>others in Kilohertz. This is currently causing me a problem where I'm
>modifying the code that takes care of calculating a new uplink frequency
>when the receiver VFO dial is moved.
>
>It seems to me that the best idea is to rewrite the radio class so that it
>accepts double type Kilohertz parameters. This introduces minor frequency
>errors of a few Hertz due to rounding errors but I don't think that is a
>problem since my FT-847 only has a ten Hertz resolution anyway.
>
>Alternatively, I could convert the double frequencies in the configuration
>class to longs and use long variables in all other classes. This 
>will now be a
>more difficult and error prone task to undertake.
>
>To answer my own question, I think working in Kilohertz might be the best
>option but I'd still like to know how others have handled frequency units.
>
>--
>Regards,
>Phil
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[amsat-bb] Re: Mode A antennas?

[Anthony Monteiro]

At 11:32 PM 9/11/2009, John Geiger wrote:
>What is the minimal antenna you can use on 10m to hear the AO7 
>downlink in Mode A?  I have a homebrew G5RV type antenna up and 
>can't hear AO7 on it at all.  What kind of antennas are others using 
>on 10m for mode A?
>
>73s John AA5JG
>
>
>


Hi John,

I use an MFJ 4-foot, loaded whip feeding
an ARR low-noise preamp at the base.
Works great.

73,
Tony AA2TX

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[amsat-bb] Re: IC910 and AO-51 VS

[Anthony Monteiro]

Hi Gene,

Assign the IC-910 as a receiver using the
rx command (instead of as a xcvr) in the
satellite configuration record in the
itune.cfg file.

Something like this:

satellite AO-51 V/S ; mode V/S
downlink  2401.200 fm
uplink 145.920 fm
rxconverter 2256; for 145 MHz (tweek as needed)
rx ic910 1 60   ; on com 1, hex address 60
tx Radio2 etc   ; fill in whatever the other radio is


This will use only the IC-910 receiver on just
2 meters. The other radio will be used only
on 145 MHz as a transmitter. You can share the
same com port if they are both ICOM radios.

Operation with separate RX and TX is in the
documentation on page 13 "Configuring Radios".
(itune110.doc)



73,
Tony AA2TX

---


At 12:30 AM 8/20/2009, WB2LLP wrote:
>I have been trying to get Instant Track 150 to control my IC910 when 
>tracking AO-51 VS.   Since my down converter translates to 145 Mhz, 
>I assign the down path to the 2 meter side of the 910.  I then 
>create a factious path for the 432 side. When I enter the R command, 
>IT starts displaying both the 144 and 432 sides but in alternating places.
>
>Is it possible to tell Instant Track to concentrate solely on the 
>144 path and ignore the 432 path?  I have not found a way to do this 
>and a search of the documentation does not find a solution.   What I 
>was trying to do was let Instant track handle the 2401 Doppler shift 
>and I would handle a separate radio for the 144 uplink.
>
>Can I do what I want to do with IT or is it time to say goodbye to a 
>friend and move up.
>
>TNX es 73 de WB2LLP   Gene
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[amsat-bb] Re: AMSAT Officer Assistance

[Anthony Monteiro]

Dear Friends,

I thought this was already answered:

A gentleman is considering a CubeSat mission for weather research, and
needs answers to his inquiry after reading the AMSAT FAQ regarding
using ham frequencies ...


 >> Related to Q2 & Q5 (compensation):
 >> * As university staff, can I transmit to the CubeSat, or is my
 >> salary considered compensation?
 >>
 >> * Is the refurbishment of a club ground station (man hours,
 >> equipment repair/purchase) considered compensation?



Clint Bradford, K6LCS
909-241-7666

---
97.113 (5) (c) A control operator may accept compensation as an incident of
a teaching position during periods of time when an amateur station is used
by that teacher as part of classroom instruction at an educational
insitution.

73,

John
KD6OZH

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[amsat-bb] Re: Proposed AMSAT-NA Symposium Paper

[Anthony Monteiro]

At 11:14 AM 6/8/2009, Bill Ress wrote:
>Hi Dan,
>
>I will be submitting a paper entitled:
>
>"A Linear U/v Transponder for SuitSat2"
>
>Abstract:
>
>SuitSat2 will incorporate several advanced circuit functions which will
>be directly applicable to the "modular" development program under way at
>AMSAT-NA. One of the SuitSat2 modules, the linear U/v RF transponder,
>uses the latest in solid state device technology to provide a very
>efficient 1/2 watt 145 MHz transmitter and a low noise 435 MHz to 10.7
>MHz down converter. The design philosophy and circuit details will be
>presented.

Hi Bill,

Excellent!
Looks like we will have the whole RF system covered.

73,
Tony AA2TX 

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[amsat-bb] Re: 2009 AMSAT Annhual Meeting and Space Symposium - Call for papers

[Anthony Monteiro]

At 12:25 AM 6/1/2009, Daniel Schultz wrote:
>This is the first call for papers for the 2009 AMSAT Annual Meeting and Space
>Symposium to be held October 9 - 11 at the Four Points Sheraton Hotel at the
>Baltimore Washington Airport. Proposals for papers, symposium presentations
>and poster presentations are invited on any topic of interest to the amateur
>satellite community. We request a tentative title of your presentation as soon
>as possible, with final copy submitted by September 1, 2009 for inclusion in
>the printed proceedings. Abstracts and papers should be sent to Dan Schultz,
>N8FGV, at n8...@amsat.org.


Hi Dan,

Here is my proposed paper:


Software Radio Technology on SuitSat-2

SuitSat-2 will be the first amateur satellite in orbit to rely on
software radio technology. All of the radio signals will be generated
via digital signal processing software including a CW beacon, an FM
audio signal, a BPSK beacon, and a linear transponder. This paper
provides an overview of the radio system and digital signal
processing software developed for SuitSat-2.

73,
Tony AA2TX


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[amsat-bb] Re: AMSAT bouncing email redirections?

[Anthony Monteiro]

Hi Paul,

The problem that Bob, Alan and I have seen is that the AMSAT
server sends a reject message back to us. We were speculating that
it was related to something that Comcast was doing but it is working
at the moment. Comcast had a nation-wide network email system
crash in April. Hopefully, they fixed it permanently.

I don't think the problem was with the AMSAT server.

73,
Tony AA2TX

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[amsat-bb] Re: AMSAT bouncing email redirections?

[Anthony Monteiro]

At 07:44 AM 5/1/2009, Robert Bruninga wrote:
>Is anyone else having issues with the AMSAT email re-director?

Hi Bob,

Today it works but I often get reject messages from the AMSAT server.
My ISP is comcast

73,
Tony AA2TX

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