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:
* AMSAT President Urges Members to
Renew/Donate Now
* AMSAT Treasurer's Report Posted
* 2020 AMSAT Academy
Cancelled
* IARU Announces R2 Satellite Communication Workshop 31 May
2020
* AMSAT-BR Announces QO-100 FT8 QRPp Experiment
* Changes to AMSAT-NA
TLE Distribution for March 19, 2020
* Upcoming Satellite Operations
*
Hamfests, Conventions, Maker Faires, and Other Events
* ARISS News
*
Satellite Shorts from All Over
SB SAT @ AMSAT $ANS-082.01
ANS-082
AMSAT News Service Weekly Bulletins
AMSAT News Service Bulletin
082.01
From AMSAT HQ KENSINGTON, MD.
March 22, 2020
To All RADIO
AMATEURS
BID: $ANS-082.01
AMSAT President Urges Members to
Renew/Donate Now
AMSAT President Clayton Coleman, W5PFG has put out a
call for new and
renewing AMSAT members to act now and register online.
Coleman says, "All things considered, cancellation of Hamvention 2020
was the right thing to do and we recognize the difficult decision
that
the Dayton Amateur Radio Association Executive Committee had to
make.
"The cancellation of Hamvention will have a dramatic effect on
the
well-being of many vendors and associations that serve the Amateur
Radio community. AMSAT is no exception. Hamvention has always been
a
major fund-raising tool for both recruiting and renewing members
as well as
selling AMSAT branded merchandise, software, books and
antennas. The loss
of this important venue has the potential to
adversely affect the projects
that AMSAT has underway already and
planned for the months and years
ahead.
"This is a very exciting time for Amateur Radio in Space with the
new
Interoperable Radio System for ARISS, the GOLF satellite program,
updating member services and launching our Youth Initiative. It has
been many years since we have seen this kind of excitement and
interest
in space communications. We would hate to lose that
momentum and fall
behind.
"I am asking everyone to act now and join or renew their AMSAT
membership NOW while it is on our minds. Your immediate willingness
to
act will help strengthen AMSAT and help ensure our mission of
'Keeping
Amateur Radio in Space'. There are membership
opportunities for everyone to
consider:
- Basic Membership from $44
- Student Membership from
$22
- Additional Household Memberships from $22
- School and Club
Memberships from $80
- QRO Membership from $80
- Lifetime Membership $880
(or only $74/mo. For twelve months)"
Coleman also adds, "And, while
you're at it, don't be afraid to kick
in a few extra dollars with a one-time
or sustaining donation to
AMSAT's general operating fund. Especially
appreciated are those
Amateurs who can make an extra difference by
contributing to the
President's Club with contributions of $120 or more.
Whatever you
can contribute, please understand that every dollar
counts.
"Additionally, with Hamvention's cancellation, we lost the
opportunity to personally greet and thank all of AMSAT's membership
and
to share our enthusiasm for the upcoming year. Watch for
upcoming news on
our plans and launches for 2020. We'll be talking
soon."
[ANS thanks
Clayton Coleman, W5PFG, AMSAT President 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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AMSAT
Treasurer's Report Posted
During the AMSAT Board of Directors meeting
held March 17, 2020
Robert Bankston, KE4AL, AMSAT Treasurer presented a
report to the
board members. Bankston said," Now that I’ve had a few months
to
settle into my new position as AMSAT Treasurer and spend a little
time digging through the numbers, I thought it was time to share what
I
have found and set the record straight about some of the
misinformation that
is being spread about AMSAT’s financial position.
" Despite rumors and
misquotes of AMSAT being on an unsustainable
path, let’s look at where we
really are and how we are doing.
- Over the past ten years (2010-2019),
AMSAT has averaged a $34,357
- increase in net assets (what most people
refer to as profits)
per year.
- Our combined revenues over
expenditures (profits) for the past 5
years (2015-2019) were $110,962,
which includes launching 4 amateur
satellites into space, readying
RadFxSat-2 (Fox-1E) and the ARISS
InterOperable Radio System for flight,
and getting started on GOLF
and Lunar Gateway projects.
- In 2019,
AMSAT generated $756,256 in revenues with $617,425 in
expenditures.
"Year to year fluctuations are generally a result of timing
differences between project fundraising efforts and when AMSAT needs
to
spend money. In addition, AMSAT maintains its reserves in
investment
accounts, which are subject to market price fluctuations
and must be
included in our financial statements.
"2018 is a perfect
example:
- AMSAT authorized a $62,055 payment to NASA, which was not
reimbursed until 2019.
- AMSAT spent $62,397 on the initial hardware
development for GOLF.
- AMSAT launched two satellites in 2018, Fox-1D (AO-92)
and
Fox-1 Cliff (AO-95).
- AMSAT had to report a $77,128 fair market
value loss in investments
(which was fully recovered in
2019)."
Bankston adds, "Don’t get me wrong – there is certainly room for
improvement. I have already identified and started to implement
cost-
saving and budgetary control measures that can and will make us more
efficient. As AMSAT Treasurer, it is my job to safeguard AMSAT’s
resources from both fraud and waste, and I intend to do exactly that.
I
look forward to what more we can achieve."
In his report Bankston also
summarized a number of other financial
matters.
Membership
-
Membership revenues continue to rise and have increased 65.68% in
just
that past 5 years, all without any increase in dues rates for
its
members.
- New memberships, renewals, life memberships, and AMSAT Store
purchases for the first three months of 2020 are on track to exceed
the
same revenue sources for 2019.
Transparency
AMSAT is fully committed
to financial transparency. Its financial
statements and regulatory
informational reports (Form 990's) are and
have always been publicly
available. Furthermore, to add confidence,
an independent certified public
accounting firm reviews AMSAT's
financial statements and includes their
report with our financials.
AMSAT financial reports and related documents
are available online at
www.amsat.org/audit-and-other-financial-reports/.
Solvency
AMSAT is on a solid financial footing and headed in the
right
direction. AMSAT started this year with over $134,000 in cash and
over $591,000 in investments. The level of its reserves, its ability
to
generate more revenues than expenses, and its ability to continue
to grow
its members has AMSAT fiscally positioned to accept whatever
challenges and
opportunities tomorrow brings.
Bankston concluded his report by saying,
"AMSAT does not expect to
fully fund itself with membership dues. Member
dues are meant to
cover member services and benefits. Funding for
everything else
must come from other sources.
"In 2019, member dues
accounted for only $134,570 of AMSAT’s total
revenues. The remaining
$621,686 came from the kind hearts of our
donors and the incredible work of
our volunteers – seeking out new
revenue streams and securing grants to
further support our mission.
"We, at AMSAT, are keeping our promise to
Keep Amateur Radio in Space
and doing so in a fiscally responsible
manner."
This report including graphs and charts can be seen at
https://www.amsat.org/amsat-treasurers-report.
[ANS
thanks Robert Bankston, KE4AL, AMSAT Treasurer for the above
information.]
--------------------------------------------------------------------
2020
AMSAT Academy Cancelled
Due to the unfortunate cancellation of the 2020
Hamvention, the AMSAT
Academy has also been canceled. Registrants will be
notified
directly with refund information.
[ANS thanks Robert
Bankston, KE4AL, Vice President User Services 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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IARU
Announces R2 Satellite Communication Workshop 31 May 2020
This 3-hour
online workshop is an opportunity for all English
speaking Radio Amateurs in
IARU Region 2 and specifically the
Caribbean to meet and share their
experience with amateur satellite
communications. No prior experience in
satellite communications is
required.
Tentative workshop agenda will
include:
- How to get started in satellite communications
- A
practical demonstration using inexpensive and simple components
(Handy and
portable Antennas)
- Useful tools, helpful tips, techniques and websites to
find
information on how to get started
- Explain the different
components of a ground station for more
advanced users (LNA,
Cross-Polarized Antennas, phased lines,
coaxial loss at VHF and upper
frequencies, equipment, SDR's, etc.).
- Using satellite communications as a
way to encourage young people
to become Amateurs and generate connections
and projects with local
universities, college and schools in STEM programs
- Attendees are all Amateurs interested in satellite communications,
whether experienced or wanting to learn how to get started.
Workshops
General Information:
- Working language will be English for both
workshops.
- Preference will be given to amateurs in the Caribbean.
-
Workshops will start at 1400 local time (AST/ET, 1800 UT).
- Access will be
via Zoom, an easy to use online conference tool
available on a number of
platforms.
- Agenda and information on how to participate will be sent to
registered participants in mid-May.
Registration for the online
workshop can be found at
https://tinyurl.com/ANS-082-IARU-Workshop
[ANS
thanks the IARU for the above
information.]
--------------------------------------------------------------------
AMSAT-BR
Announces QO-100 FT8 QRPp Experiment
AMSAT-Brazil is organizing a reverse
beacon FT8 QRPp experiment/
contest via the QO-100 geostationary amateur
radio transponder.
The first ten spotted stations with lower SNR will
receive a
Certificate of Accomplishment. The dead line will be May 1, 2020.
To
qualify, the SNR must be lower than -18 dB (as measured by the FT8
decoder). The receiver will be active on Saturdays and Sundays from
12:00 UTC to 24:00 UTC and will be tuned to 10.489540 GHz with a
3.5 kHz
bandwidth. All stations calling CQ will be logged.
The objective for the
project is to incentive low power
experimentation through the QO-100 narrow
band transponder. Stations
participating in the experiment are welcome to
send a brief
description of their setup, including information about RF
power
output, hardware and software setups, antenna type and gain, photos,
etc. to the email address py2sdr at gmail dot com.
[ANS thanks
AMSAT-UK for the above
information.]
--------------------------------------------------------------------
Changes
to AMSAT-NA TLE Distribution for March 19, 2020
Ray Hoad, WA5QGD reports,
"I am pleased to announce that AMSAT-NA's
request to re-distribute TLE
elements from Space-Track website has
been approved for the period April
1,2020 to April 1, 2021. Our ODR
(Orbital Data Request) to re-distribute the
Space-Track TLE's was
approved by Air Force 18 SPCS on February 27, 2020
(Received
March 12, 2020). Thanks to Air Force 18 SPCS, Perry Klein, W3PK
and Joe Fitzgerald, KM1P for their help in this yearly process. We
are
'good to go' for another year."
The following Amateur Radio satellites
have been removed from this
week's TLE distribution:
EO-79 - NORAD
CAT ID 40025 - Non-operational
UKube-1 - NORAD CAT ID 40074 -
Non-operational
AO-85 - NORAD CAT ID 40967 - End of Mission
[ANS
thanks Ray Hoad, WA5QGD for the above
information.]
--------------------------------------------------------------------
Upcoming
Satellite Operations
+ River Bend Wireless Rove
(EN22,EN33,EN34,EN42,EN43,EN44)
April 2-4, 2020
Mitch AD0HJ is looking
to add six more grids to his rover basket just
before the April 4 AMSAT
presentation/demonstration at the River
Bend Wireless and Mechanical Society
in Faribault, MN. Mitch will be
activating the EN43/EN44 grid line on April
2nd, the EN32/EN42 grid
line on April 3, and the EN33/EN34 grid line on
April 4, 2020.
Watch Mitch’s Twitter feed as the dates approach for a
detailed
schedule at https://twitter.com/AD0HJ.
+ From
the Mountains to the Bay (CM88,89,98,99; DM09,19,29;
DN00,01,02,10,11,20,21) April 12-21, 2020
RJ, WY7AA, is hitting the asphalt
again, roving from Wyoming to
Vacaville, CA. He’s attending a class from
April 15-19, so most of
the roving will be outside of this time. Grids to be
covered include:
CM88,89,98,99; DM09,19,29; DN00,01,02,10,11,20,21. Specific
pass
details will be posted on WY7AA QRZ page and Twitter
(https://twitter.com/WY7AA) as the trip
approaches.
[ANS thanks Robert Bankston, KE4AL for the above
information.]
--------------------------------------------------------------------
Hamfests,
Conventions, Maker Faires, and Other Events
- May 2, 2020 Arrowhead Radio
Amateurs Club Hamfest, Superior, WI
- May 2, 2020, Cochise Amateur Radio
Association Hamfest,
Sierra Vista, AZ
- May 8-9, 2020 Prescott Hamfest,
Prescott, AZ
- June 12-13, 2020, Ham-Con, Plano, TX
Be sure to check
this page and event organizers for cancellations!
To include your
upcoming AMSAT presentation and/or demonstration,
please send an email to
ambassadors at amsat dot org.
[ANS thanks Robert Bankston, KE4AL for the
above
information.]
--------------------------------------------------------------------
ARISS
News
+ Completed Contacts
Turkey Space Camp, Izmir, Turkey,
telebridge via W5RRR.
- The ISS callsign was NA1SS.
- The astronaut was
Drew Morgan KI5AAA.
- Contact was successful on Thursday, March 19,
2020.
- In an ARISS first due to COVID-19, all of the questions were
pre-recorded by the students and no students were on site during
the
contact.
+ Upcoming Contacts
SPDW Voortrekker Movement,
Oranjeville, South Africa, direct
via ZS9SPD.
- The ISS callsign is
presently scheduled to be NA1SS.
- The scheduled astronaut is Drew Morgan
KI5AAA.
- Contact is go for: Friday, March 27, 2020 at 09:47:49
UTC.
Amur State University, Blagoveshchensk, Russia, direct via RKØJ??.
- The ISS callsign is presently scheduled to be RSØISS.
- The scheduled
astronaut is Oleg Skripochka.
- Possible contact on Tuesday, March 31, 2020
at 2020-03-31 08:50 UTC.
"ARISS is very aware of the impact that
COVID-19 is having on schools
and the public in general. As such, we may
have last minute
cancellations or postponements of school contacts. As
always, I will
try to provide everyone with near-real-time updates."
[ANS thanks Charlie Sufana, AJ9N for the above
information.]
--------------------------------------------------------------------
Shorts
from All Over
* AMSAT February 4, 2020 BoD Minutes Available
Online
The minutes for the AMSAT Board of Directors meeting held on
February 4, 2020 are now available online for viewing at
https://tinyurl.com/ANS-082-BoD-Minutes
[ANS
thanks the AMSAT office for the above information.]
+ Sean Kutzko New
Article: Upgrading to Linear Satellites
Wondering what to do after
working the FM birds? Sean Kutzko, KX9X
has updated his series of satellite
operating tips with "Satellite
Basics (Part 3): Upgrading to the Linear
Satellites". Covering
everything from equipment suggestions to proper
tuning procedures,
this information-packed article can be found at
https://tinyurl.com/ANS-082-Linear-Birds.
[ANS
thanks the Sean Kutzko, KX9X for the above information.]
+ Hamvention
Announces Refund Information
The Dayton Amateur Radio Association has
made the following
announcement regarding Hamvention refunds:
"Due to
unfortunate cancellation of Hamvention 2020, we know that
tickets, inside
booth spaces and flea market spaces have been
purchased. These purchases
have been made by online credit cards,
mail order checks and purchased from
our outside vendors. All refunds
will be through the same method of
purchase. All credit card sales
will be refunded to the original card used
to make the charge. All
check and cash sales will be refunded by check. We
anticipate all
refunds completed as soon as possible but not later than
August 1."
Further information is available at https://hamvention.org/.
[ANS thanks
DARA for the above information.]
+ Australis OSCAR 5 Book Available
in the U.S.
Australis OSCAR 5 - The Improbable Story of Australia's First
Private
Satellite book (second edition) is now available in the U.S. The
book details how, in the 1960's, a group of University of Melbourne
Science and Engineering students and one Law student banded together
to
build a satellite in their spare time.
You can order the book directly
from the publisher at
https://isdistribution.com/BookDetail.aspx?aId=122391
[ANS
thanks Owen Mace for the above information.]
+ FUNCube TLM Receive
Antenna Available
AMSAT-UK is pleased to offer a simple, low cost antenna
system, for
use with a FUNcube Dongle (or any other receiver) to receive the
FUNcube telemetry signals. Based around a Winkler Crossed Dipole
antenna, this kit includes the antenna, a RF cable (2m long) for
connection between the antenna and a FUNcube Dongle, and a USB cable
(approximately 1.8 m long) for connecting the dongle to a
computer.
Ordering information is available at
https://tinyurl.com/ANS-082-FUNcube
[ANS
thanks Graham Shirville, G3VZV for the above information.]
+ Remote
Display over USB for Kenwood TH-D74
Many operators love their Kenwood
TH-D74 handheld for satellite
operation but there is always room for
improvement. Tony Milluzzi,
KD8RTT offers plans for an external remote
display that connects to
the radio's USB port. The device is based on a
Raspberry Pi Zero W
and a 16×2 LCD. The complete plans are available at
https://tinyurl.com/ANS-082-TH-D74
[ANS
thanks Tony Milluzzi, KD8RTT for the above information.]
+ Amateur
Radio Satellite Spreads Fight Coronavirus Message
Indonesia’s national
amateur radio society ORARI reports the ham
radio satellite LAPAN-A2 (IO-86)
is being used to send a Fight
Coronavirus message using APRS. A translation
of the ORARI post says,
“Stay Healthy, Stay at Home
#LawanCorona”.
See the complete story at https://tinyurl.com/ANS-082-Coronavirus.
+
M2 Pathfinder Satellite Launch Imminent
M2 Pathfinder satellite's next
launch window is reportedly no earlier
than March 29, 2020. The M2
Pathfinder is a collaboration between
the University of New South Wales
(UNSW) Canberra Space and the
Australian Government. The M2 Pathfinder will
test communications
architecture and other technologies that will assist in
informing
the future space capabilities of Australia. The satellite will
demonstrate the ability of an onboard software-based radio to
operate
and reconfigure while in orbit.
The mission has been named ‘Don’t Stop Me
Now’ in recognition of
Rocket Lab board member and avid Queen fan Scott
Smith, who recently
passed away.
Complete information on the mission
is available at
https://www.rocketlabusa.com/missions/next-mission/.
[ANS
thanks Terry Osborne ZL2BAC for the above
information.]
--------------------------------------------------------------------
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.
Not an AMSAT member? Join now to
support the amateur satellite
program!
Subscription settings: http://www.amsat.org/mailman/listinfo/amsat-bb
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