Saturday, January 18, 2020

AMSAT NEWS SERVICE ANS-019

The AMSAT News Service bulletins are a free, weekly news and
information service of AMSAT North America, The Radio
Amateur Satellite Corporation.  ANS publishes news related to Amateur
Radio in space including reports on the activities of a worldwide
group of Amateur Radio operators who share an active interest in
designing, building, launching and communicating through analog and
digital Amateur Radio satellites.

The news feed on http://amsat.org publishes news of Amateur Radio
in space as soon as our volunteers can post it.

Please send any amateur satellite news or reports to:
ans-editor at amsat dot org.

In this edition:

* GOLF-TEE Reaches Major Milestones
* ARISS Contact Opportunity Call for Proposals February 1, 2020 to March 31, 2020
* Satellite Status and Tracking API's Added to AMSAT Website
* Qarman Beacon Telemetry Information Released
* China Telecoms Regulator Proposing to Delete Some Current Amateur Allocations
* Memorial Service for Brian Kantor, WB6CYT
* Upcoming Satellite Operations
* ARISS News
* Satellite Shorts from All Over


SB SAT @ AMSAT $ANS-019.01
ANS-019 AMSAT News Service Weekly Bulletins

AMSAT News Service Bulletin 019.01
From AMSAT HQ KENSINGTON, MD.
January 19, 2020
To All RADIO AMATEURS
BID: $ANS-019.01


GOLF-TEE Reaches Major Milestone

A group of GOLF-TEE (Greater Orbit Larger Footprint - Technology
Evaluation Environment) satellite prototype boards transmitted
telemetry for the first time on Tuesday, January 14, 2020. The boards
are laid out on a bench as a "flat-sat" with interconnecting wires,
bench power supplies, and a dummy load on the transmitter. The
interconnected boards include:

- An early RT-IHU (Radiation Tolerant Internal Housekeeping Unit
  (i.e. computer) prototype,
- A CIU (Control Interface  Unit) prototype, and
- A set of spare boards from HuskySat-1 that act  as prototypes for
  the LIHU (Legacy IHU) and legacy VHF/UHF RF components.

Now that the development team has reached this point, it has RF to
use as a basis for developing a GOLF-TEE decoder for FoxTelem, the
ground telemetry receiver software.

Thousands of hours of work by many AMSAT volunteers have gone into
the hardware and software that got GOLF-TEE this far, with much work
yet to be done before flight units are ready.

GOLF-TEE is designed as a Low Earth Orbit (LEO) testbed for
technologies necessary for a successful CubeSat mission to a wide
variety of orbits, including MEO(Medium Earth Orbit) and HEO (High
Earth Orbit).

To help support the GOLF program, please consider volunteering or
donating today.

https://www.amsat.org/volunteer-for-amsat/

https://www.amsat.org/donations/amsat-golf-program-donations/

[ANS thanks Burns Fisher, WB1FJ, AMSAT Flight Software, and the
entire GOLF team for the above information]

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ARISS Contact Opportunity Call for Proposals February 1, 2020 to
March 31, 2020

The Amateur Radio on the International Space Station (ARISS) Program
is seeking formal and informal education institutions and
organizations, individually or working together, to host an Amateur
Radio contact with a crew member on board the ISS. ARISS is happy to
announce a proposal window which will open February 1, 2020  for
contacts that would be held between January 2021 and June 2021. Crew
scheduling and ISS orbits will determine the exact contact dates. To
maximize these radio contact opportunities, ARISS is looking for
organizations that will draw large numbers of participants and
integrate the contact into a well-developed education plan.

The proposal window for contacts between January 2021. and June 2021
will open on February 1, 2020 and close on March 31. 2020.  Proposal
information and documents can be found at www.ariss.org. Two ARISS
Introductory Webinar sessions will be held on two different date and
times. The first is at January 23 at 2100 ET and the second is at
January 27 at 1800 ET. The same material will be covered during both
sessions, so choose the session that best fits your schedule. The
Eventbrite link to sign up is
https://ariss-proposal-webinar-spring-2020.eventbrite.com

The Opportunity

Crew members aboard the International Space Station will participate
in scheduled Amateur Radio contacts. These radio contacts are
approximately 10 minutes in length and allow students to interact
with the astronauts through a question-and-answer session.

An ARISS contact is a voice-only communication opportunity via
Amateur Radio between astronauts and cosmonauts aboard the space
station and classrooms and communities. ARISS contacts afford
education audiences the opportunity to learn firsthand from
astronauts what it is like to live and work in space and to learn
about space research conducted on the ISS. Students also will have an
opportunity to learn about satellite communication, wireless
technology, and radio science. Because of the nature of human
spaceflight and the complexity of scheduling activities aboard the
ISS, organizations must demonstrate flexibility to accommodate
changes in dates and times of the radio contact.

Amateur Radio organizations around the world with the support of NASA
and space agencies in Russia, Canada, Japan and Europe present
educational organizations with this opportunity. The ham radio
organizations' volunteer efforts provide the equipment and
operational support to enable communication between crew on the ISS
and students around the world using Amateur Radio. 

For More Information

For proposal information and more details such as expectations,
proposal guidelines and proposal form, and dates and times of
Information Webinars, go to www.ariss.org.

Please direct any questions to ariss.us.education@gmail.com .

[ANS thanks ARISS for the above information.]

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     Need new satellite antennas? Purchase Arrows, Alaskan Arrows,
    and M2 LEO-Packs from the AMSAT Store. When you purchase through
           AMSAT, a portion of the proceeds goes towards
                  Keeping Amateur Radio in Space.
        https://amsat.org/product-category/hardware/

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Satellite Status and Tracking API's Added to AMSAT Website

Thanks to an initiative by Heimir, W1ANT,  AMSAT added Application
Programming Interfaces (APIs) to the AMSAT web site to make it easy
for developers to write apps for mobile devices and the Internet of
Things (IoT).  For example, the satellite status page
www.amsat.org/status does not work well on small screens.  By
accessing the status data directly developers can easily present the
data in a way appropriate for their screens.  

These APIs also make it easy for IoT homebrewers to do things like
build next pass reminder gizmos so they can beep out notices in CW.  
The developers have set a goal of February 15, 2020 to finalize the
APIs, and consider them operational on March 1, 2020.   Developers
are encouraged to send suggestions or questions to
www.amsat.org/webmaster-contact/   For details of API use
visit www.amsat.org/status/api/ and www.amsat.org/track/api/

[ANS thanks Joe Fitzgerald, KM1P for the above information.]

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Qarman Beacon Telemetry Information Released

QARMAN, a nano-satellite designed and built at VKI, was launched to
the International Space Station on December 5, 2019. Deployed is
expected to take place in the week of February 12, 2020.

QARMAN (Qubesat for Aerothermodynamic Research and Measurements on
AblatioN) is the world's first CubeSat designed to survive
atmospheric re-entry. Work on it started in 2013 at the von Karman
Institute for Fluid Dynamics (VKI).

The aim of the QARMAN mission is to demonstrate the usability of a
CubeSat platform as an atmospheric entry vehicle. Spacecraft
descending towards a planet with an atmosphere experience very harsh
environment including extreme temperatures (several thousand
degrees).

Information about Qarman's 437.350 MHz 9600 bps GMSK AX.25 beacon has
now been released by the team.

Download the Qarman Beacon Definition QARMAN_BCNdef_v1.1 at
https://ukamsat.files.wordpress.com/2020/01/qarman_bcndef_v1.1.pdf

Download the Beacon Decoder spreadsheet QARMAN_BCNdecoder at
https://ukamsat.files.wordpress.com/2020/01/qarman_bcndecoder.xlsx

Reports can be sent to operations@qarman.eu

[ANS thanks AMSAT-UK for the above information.]

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           The digital download version of the 2019 edition of
      Getting Started with Amateur Satellites is now available as a
         DRM-free PDF from the AMSAT Store.  Get yours today!
            https://tinyurl.com/ANS-237-Getting-Started

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China Telecoms Regulator Proposing to Delete Some Current
Amateur Allocations

China's telecommunications regulator has proposed amending the
Measures for the Administration of Amateur Radio Stations, and some
amateur bands are in danger of being eliminated. Lide Zhang, BI8CKU,
told ARRL that the proposal would prohibit amateur operation on the
2200-meter band as well as on 146 - 148 MHz, 1260 - 1300 MHz,
3400 - 3500 MHz, 5650 - 5725 MHz, and all bands above 10 GHz.

Radio communications engineer and Chinese Amateur Satellite Group
(CAMSAT) CEO Alan Kung, BA1DU, told ARRL that government efforts to
eliminate some amateur bands are nothing new, but proposals that have
been aired for a while now are on the regulatory agency's schedule.
Kung said he does not anticipate that all of the bands proposed will
be taken away, but he conceded that the climate will "undoubtedly"
become increasingly more dangerous for China's amateur radio
community.

"The attempt to crowd out the amateur radio bands has a long history
throughout the world," he said, "but it may never have become so
urgent for the amateur radio community as it is today. We all
understand that radio spectrum resources have become a bottleneck for
further development." He said today's radio communication industry
"is working hard to share spectrum resources." Kung characterized
spectrum as "the soil on which amateur radio depends."

[ANS thanks the ARRL for the above information.]

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Memorial Service for Brian Kantor, WB6CYT

Phil Karn, KA9Q shares the following announcement:

"As you know, Brian Kantor, WB6CYT passed away suddenly on
November 21, 2019. We will hold a memorial service for Brian on
Saturday, Feb 1 2020 at 1:30 PM in La Jolla, CA (part of San Diego).
Please see this link for details:
https://tinyurl.com/ANS-019-Kantor-Memorial

"Please bring any photos, mementos and (above all) stories and
anecdotes about Brian to share. Brian wasn't exactly a highly formal
person who stood on ceremony, so we'll keep this informal. If you
have a story to tell, it's up to you whether you stand up and relate
it to the whole group or just a few others at a time. There will be
plenty of time for both.

"Everyone who knew Brian is welcome. His friendships spanned at least
three distinct social circles, and I know he'd be very happy to see
everyone meet and enjoy everyone else's company. Even if he'd be a
little embarrassed that we were doing it in his honor.

"Free snacks and refreshments will be provided, so please RSVP
through the evite link so we can tell the hotel how much to make
available. If you have special dietary needs, please say so; the
hotel has a menu we can choose from.

"Please forward this email to anyone you think might be interested.
Hope to see you on the 1st."

[ANS thanks Phil Karn, KA9Q for the above information.]

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    AMSAT, along with our ARISS partners, is developing an amateur
    radio package, including two-way communication capability, to
          be carried on-board Gateway in lunar orbit.
   Support AMSAT's projects today at https://www.amsat.org/donate/

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Upcoming Satellite Operations

New Orleans, LA (EL49, EL58, EM59, EM40, EM50, EM60) January 14 -
February 1, 2020
Adam, KC3OBS, will be roving EM40, EM50, EL49, EL59, January 14 -
Feb 1. In between, Adam will be EL58, January 18 or 19
depending on weather, and in EM60 January 29. Adam will announce
passes and updates on Twitter: https://twitter.com/sparky_husky

Labrador (GO11 +) January 19-27, 2019
Chris VE3FU, Dave VE9CB, and Frank VO1HP will be active as VO2AC in
the 2020 CQ160 CW contest, January 24-26, from Point Armour
Lighthouse, in Labrador. If time permits before the contest, they
may be active on FM satellites from GO11 as VO2AC or VO2AAA.
Depending on weather and timing of passes, you might catch them on
FM satellites as they make their way from FO93 to GO-11, passing
through FO92, GO02, GO13, GO12, and GO22 along the way, but no
promises. They will also make the reverse trek on January 27.

Montserrat (FK86) January 26 - February 2, 2020
Mel, W8MV, will be in Montserrat 26 January until 2 February,
operating under the call sign VP2MCV on FM Sats. QSL via LOTW.

Antigua (FK97) February 2 - 9, 2020
Mel, W8MV, will be in Antigua 2-9 February.  Mel is waiting for his
operating license.  Will update as soon as it arrives. FM only.
QSL via LOTW

Isla Perez, Mexico (EL52, EL50, EL51) February 11 - 17, 2020
Members of Radio Club Puebla DX will be active as 6F3A from
Isla Perez, Mexico, between February 11-17. The operators mentioned
are Patricia/XE1SPM (Team Leader), Ismael/XE1AY, Rey/XE1SRD and
Ricardo/XE1SY. Activity will be on 80/40/20/17/15/12/10/6 meters, and
include the ARRL DX CW Contest (February 15-16). QSL via XE1SY.
Ismael, XE1AY, reports that he doing CW and the satellites, and will
also TX from EL50 and XE1AY/mm from EL51.

Big Bend National Park (DL88)  March 16-17, 2020
Ron AD0DX, Doug N6UA, and Josh W3ARD will operate from Big Bend
National Park to put grid DL88 on the air.  Details will be added
here, as they come available, but you are more than welcome to keep
an eye on their individual Twitter feeds:  https://twitter.com/ad0dx,
https://twitter.com/dtabor, and https://twitter.com/W3ARDstroke5

[ANS thanks Robert Bankston, KE4AL for the above information.]

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ARISS News

(Editor's Note: See school contact opportunity story above.)

+ Upcoming Contacts

Morita Junior High School, Fukui, Japan, direct via 8J9MO
The ISS callsign is presently scheduled to be NA1SS
The scheduled astronaut is Luca Parmitano KF5KDP
Contact is go for: Wed 2020-01-22 08:00:46 UTC 27 deg

Ontario Science Centre, Toronto, Canada, telebridge via IK1SLD
The ISS callsign is presently scheduled to be OR4ISS
The scheduled astronaut is Luca Parmitano KF5KDP
Contact is go for: Wed 2020-01-22 17:21:36 UTC 32 deg

[ANS thanks Charlie Sufana, AJ9N  for the above information.]

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           Purchase AMSAT Gear on our Zazzle storefront.
          25% of the purchase price of each product goes
            towards Keeping Amateur Radio in Space
              https://www.zazzle.com/amsat_gear

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Shorts from All Over

+ ARISS-US Educators Review Processes for US Proposal Window

A team of educators who are members of the ARISS-US Education
Committee is finalizing the last few processes related to the late
2019 ARISS-US Proposal Window.  The team had ranked the education
proposals and then sent a list to the ARISS-US leaders of the top
schools and education groups recommended for hosting an ARISS
contact. A news release is in draft stage. The organizations selected
will be in the queue for scheduled ARISS contacts during the second
half of 2020.  A new ARISS-US Proposal Window will open soon and
details on this will be forthcoming.

[ANS thanks ARISS for the above information.]


+ WIA 2020 Annual Conference Presentations

The Wireless Institute of Australia Annual Conference will be held in
Hobart, Tasmania May 8-10 2020 and registrations are open.

On the Saturday afternoon a wide range of presentations are organized
to showcase the conference theme which is the "Antarctic Gateway".

Following lunch there will be two presentation streams which can be
categorized as the "Antarctic" stream and the "Radio" stream.
Complete information can be viewed at:
https://www.wia.org.au/newsevents/news/2020/20200111-3/index.php

[ANS thanks the Wireless Institute of Australia for the above
information.]


+ AMSAT Argentina Celebrates LO-19 30th Anniversary

On Feb-22-1990 LUSAT/LO-19 was launched along with AO-16, DO-17,
WO-18, UO-14 & UO-15. It was the first Argentina Satellite, and one
of first to use PACSAT protocol.  LUSAT is still calling home with
its carrier at +/-437.125.

Members of AMSAT Argentina (LU7AA) celebrate the 30th anniversary of
the LUSAT (LO-19) satellite between Jan. 18 and 26 on HF on SSB,
FT8, CW. An award is available as well. QSL via LU7AA (d), eQSL.
Find complete information at:
http://lu4aao.org/lu7aa/cert_30_aniv_lusat_2020.htm and
http://amsat.org.ar/certlusat30.htm

[ANS thanks the DARC DX Newsletter and AMSAT-LU for the above
information.]


+ AMSAT-SA Announces A New Date Fre Their Space Symposium

The annual AMSAT SA Space symposium date has changed to
Saturday, 11 July 2020. While the call for papers is ongoing till the
end of February, AMSAT SA is pleased to announce that Burns Fisher,
WB1FJ, of AMSAT NA will delivery two papers at the symposium:
Fox-in-a-box: Fox telemetry reception using an inexpensive
Raspberry Pi and a J-pole antenna including a discussion on the
optimal positioning for a J-pole antenna for satellite reception and
an overview of what is in orbit currently and expected in the near
future and their features. Prospective authors are invited to
propose other papers by submitting a brief synopsis to
admin@amsatsa.org.za before 28 February 2020.


+  Cardiff Microwave Roundtable Saturday, March 7, 2020

The Cardiff University ARS will host a meeting of the UK Microwave
Group on Saturday March 7, 2020 at our campus in Cardiff. This one
day event is a mix of talks, measurements, and socializing about
activities in the GHz frequencies.
GNU Radio Workshop

On the following day, Sunday March 8, there will be a hands on
Introduction to GNU Radio and Software Defined Radio. More info
coming soon, please send an email to officers@cardiffars.org.uk
if you are interested.

[ANS thanks the UK Microwave Group for the above information.]


+ Lockheed Martin Launches First Smart Satellite Enabling Space
  Mesh Networking

Recently, Lockheed Martin launched the Pony Express 1 mission as a
hosted payload on Tyvak-0129, a next-generation Tyvak 6U spacecraft.
Pony Express 1, an example of rapid prototyping, was developed, built
and integrated in nine months.  Some of the key technologies being
flight-tested include:

- Software validates advanced adaptive mesh communications between
  satellites, shared processing capabilities, and can take advantage,
  of sensors aboard other smart satellites,
- A software-defined radio that allows for high-bandwidth hosting of
  multiple RF applications, store-and-forward RF collection, data
  compression, digital signal processing and waveform transmission,
- 3D-printed wideband antenna housing.

Read the full story at
http://www.spaceref.com/news/viewpr.html?pid=55121

[ANS thanks Spaceref.com for the above information.]

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In addition to regular membership, AMSAT offers membership in the
President's Club. Members of the President's Club, as sustaining
donors to AMSAT Project Funds, will be eligible to receive
additional benefits. Application forms are available from the
AMSAT office.

Primary and secondary school students are eligible for membership at
one-half the standard yearly rate. Post-secondary school students
enrolled in at least half time status shall be eligible for the
student rate for a maximum of six post-secondary years in this
status.

Contact Martha at the AMSAT office for additional student
membership information.

73,
This week's ANS Editor,
Frank Karnauskas, N1UW
n1uw at amsat dot org

Sent via AMSAT-BB@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.

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