Mark Johns – Page 3

ANS-140 AMSAT News Service Weekly Bulletins

May 19, 2024 by Mark Johns

In this edition:

* AMSAT at Hamvention
* Save the Date! Symposium 2024
* Multiple QO-100 DX-Peditions to VO1
* Lost and Found: Missing Satellite Rediscovered
* Starliner: A Decade of Challenges
* 2024 AMSAT Board of Directors Election
* Changes to AMSAT-NA TLE Distribution for May 16
* ARISS News
* Upcoming Satellite Operations
* Hamfests, Conventions, Maker Faires, and Other Events
* Satellite Shorts From All Over

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

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

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

You can sign up for free e-mail delivery of the AMSAT News Service Bulletins via the ANS List; to join this list see: https://mailman.amsat.org/postorius/lists/ans.amsat.org/

ANS-140 AMSAT News Service Weekly Bulletins

To: All RADIO AMATEURS
From: Radio Amateur Satellite Corporation
712 H Street NE, Suite 1653
Washington, DC 20002

DATE 2024 May 19

AMSAT at Hamvention

This issue of the AMSAT News Service bulletins is being produced at the AMSAT booth at Hamvetion 2024 in Xenia, Ohio. AMSAT has a major presence at Hamvention, with booths devoted to teaching satellite basics, membership recruitment, the AMSAT Store, Engineering, Education, and the Ambassador program.

Traffic was heavy on Friday morning, May 17, as soon as Hamvention opened its doors. While some came directly to the AMSAT booth with their questions, or to make purchases at the Store, many other ham attendees were attracted by the displays as they wandered through the several Hamvention venues.

Volunteer members of the AMSAT Engineering team were on hand to show off models of the GOLF-Tee and Fox Plus satellites currently under construction. Engineering team members also discussed various projects that are part of the ASCENT program, developing possible components for future satellites.

At the Education booth, Cubesat SIM models were transmitting actual telemetry and slow-scan TV data across the table, demonstrating how these tools can be assembled and used in classrooms and other settings to provide hands-on instruction in satellite basics.

At the “Beginners Corner,” experienced satellite operators answered questions and helped the curious to understand how easy and exciting it is to get started in this fascinating aspect of the amateur radio hobby. Rain on Friday morning prevented live satellite demonstrations, but these took place as satellite passes and Hamvention circumstances permitted on Saturday and Sunday.

The sixteenth annual joint AMSAT/ TAPR Banquet was held on Friday evening at the Kohler Presidential Banquet Center in Kettering, Ohio, just south of Dayton. This year’s banquet speaker was Bill Reed, NX5R, AMSAT PACSAT Project Manager, who highlighted the forthcoming PACSAT digital communications payload. This payload is drawing on lessons learned from previous digital satellites to provide smoother operations for users in the future.

The AMSAT Forum was held on Saturday afternoon. Robert Bankston KE4AL, AMSAT President, highlighted recent activities within AMSAT and discussed some of our challenges, accomplishments, projects, and late breaking news (See following story). Jerry Buxton, NØJY, AMSAT Vice President for Engineering, provided a video status update about upcoming satellite missions currently in development. Alan Johnston, KU2Y, AMSAT Vice President Education Relations, spoke about opportunities for using the AMSAT CubeSat Simulator in educational settings. Drew Glasbrenner, KO4MA, Vice President Operations, briefed those attending on the status of current satellites. And Frank Karnauskas, N1UW, Vice President of AMSAT Development, reported on the AMSAT Youth Initiative and its features.

Attendance was steady at all AMSAT exhibits throughout the Hamvention weekend, and satellite operators enjoyed meeting, fact to face, the voices and callsigns encountered on the satellites.

[ANS thanks Mark Johns, KØJM, ANS Senior Editor, for the above information]

The 2024 AMSAT President’s Club coins are here now!
Help Support GOLF and Fox Plus

Join the AMSAT President’s Club today and help
Keep Amateur Radio in Space!
https://www.amsat.org/join-the-amsat-presidents-club/

Save the Date! Symposium 2024

Mark your calendar now for the 2024 AMSAT Symposium, October 25-27, 2024 in Tampa, Florida!

AMSAT President Robert Bankston, KE4AL, announced this week at the Hamvention that the 2024 Symposium will be held October 25-27, 2024 at the Doubletree by Hilton Tampa Rocky Point Waterfront.

Watch for announcements in future AMSAT News Service bulletins, the AMSAT Journal, and on the AMSAT.org website concerning further details as plans are formulated.

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

Multiple QO-100 DX-Peditions to VO1

This week sees three separate groups operating from just outside the coverage footprint of the QO-100 satellite.

From Newfoundland the geostationary QO-100 satellite is nominally 1 degree below the horizon. After 5 years in orbit and much speculation, three groups are in the St. John’s area to try operating QO-100 with its S band uplink and 10GHz downlink.

First in Newfoundland was Gopan, M0XUU. He was operating with a 0.8m dish from just north of the harbor entrance and updates could be found on the QO-100 DX Club web site. https://qo100dx.club/ Despite frequency periods of no signal or deep QSB, Gopan managed to work stations via FT8, FT4, and CW. After a week on the air as VO1/M0XUU, Gopan left Newfoundland on May 15.

Arriving Monday 13 May and remaining until to Friday 17, was a Canadian team with a 1.8m dish and up to 100W. Poor weather hampered their operations. Details of the operation by Stefan Wagener, VE4SW, and John Langille, VE1CWJ, can be found at the QRZ.com page for special callsign, VO100QO at https://www.qrz.com/db/VO100QO

Finally, Graham Shirville, G3VZV, and David Bowman, G0MRF, arrived on Wednesday, May 15 with two sets of equipment and were active as VO1/G3VZV and VO1/G0MRF. They will fly back to the UK early Sunday, May 19. Operating from the old lighthouse keepers bungalow on the southern side of the harbor entrance, GN37PN85, they attempted working all modes including an attempt with DATV with a 175W S band amplifier. When not actively on the bands, a personal beacon was operating on 10489.539 MHz in CW to act as a propagation indicator.

[ANS thanks David Bowman, G0MRF, for the above information]

Need new satellite antennas?
Purchase 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/

Lost and Found: Missing Satellite Rediscovered

After 25 years lost in the vastness of space, a missing satellite has finally been located, highlighting the challenges of tracking the multitude of objects orbiting Earth. The rediscovery sheds light on the difficulty of monitoring the approximately 27,000 objects that populate Earth’s orbit, a number that continues to grow with each rocket launch and satellite deployment.

The satellite in question, the Infra-Red Calibration Balloon (S73-7), was part of the United States Air Force’s Space Test Program and was launched in 1974. Its purpose was to serve as a calibration target for remote sensing equipment, but a deployment failure left it adrift as space debris. Despite initial attempts to track its whereabouts, it vanished from ground-based sensors in the 1990s, only to resurface last month.

The Air Force’s KH-9 Hexagon satellite deployed the tiny IRCB (S73-7) satellite in 1974. (Illustration: U.S. Air Force)

Jonathan McDowell, an astrophysicist from the Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics, discovered the satellite’s reappearance while reviewing archival data. He explained that the satellite’s low radar cross section and possible malfunctioning equipment made it difficult to detect. This underscores the challenges faced by ground-based radar and optical sensors tasked with monitoring objects in orbit.

Tracking objects in space is akin to air traffic control, with sensors relying on identifying the orbit of moving objects and matching them with designated satellite orbits. However, this becomes increasingly complex as Earth’s orbit becomes more congested, particularly in geostationary orbit where monitoring is hindered by a lack of radars positioned precisely on the equator.

A screenshot of a screenshot of a graph Description automatically generated

The Department of Defense’s Space Surveillance Network currently tracks over 27,000 objects, predominantly defunct satellites and debris. As the number of satellites and rocket launches continues to rise, maintaining accurate tracking becomes crucial to mitigate the risk of collisions and space debris hazards.

While the rediscovery of the missing satellite serves as a reminder of the challenges of space tracking, it also underscores the importance of continued efforts to monitor and manage Earth’s orbital environment. With technology evolving and space activity increasing, effective space surveillance remains paramount to ensure the safety and sustainability of activities in Earth’s orbit.

[ANS thanks Passant Rabie, Gizmodo, for the above information]

Starliner: A Decade of Challenges

Boeing is delaying its first flight with humans on its Starliner spacecraft yet again, the company said on May 14. The launch, which has been delayed for years and was most recently scheduled for May 18, was pushed back until Tuesday afternoon, May 21 at the earliest because of a helium leak.

Boeing’s Starliner spacecraft marks the culmination of a tumultuous journey fraught with setbacks and challenges. What’s surprising isn’t merely Boeing’s eventual loss in the commercial crew space race to SpaceX but rather the fact that Boeing managed to reach this point at all.

The story traces back a decade when NASA’s human spaceflight leaders convened to select a replacement vehicle for the retired Space Shuttle. Boeing emerged as the frontrunner, backed by its illustrious history in spaceflight. However, the eventual decision to award contracts to both Boeing and SpaceX marked the beginning of Boeing’s struggle to adapt to the demands of a fixed-price environment.

Boeing’s Starliner spacecraft is lifted to be placed atop an Atlas V rocket for its first crewed launch. [Credit: NASA/Cory Huston]

Unlike SpaceX, which was already immersed in multiple space projects, Boeing found itself grappling with a new paradigm. Accustomed to cost-plus contracts, where expenses could be billed to the government, Boeing now faced the challenge of delivering a spacecraft within strict budget constraints. This shift exposed deep cultural and structural inefficiencies within the company.

Boeing’s difficulties were compounded by technical hurdles, particularly in software development and propulsion. Fragmented software teams and strained relationships with suppliers like Aerojet Rocketdyne hindered progress. The consequences of these challenges became evident during Starliner’s ill-fated uncrewed test flight in 2019, marred by critical software errors and propulsion anomalies.

Boeing’s CST-100 Starliner ahead of the Orbital Flight Test-2 (OFT-2) mission in 2022 [Credit: NASA/Joel Kowsky]

While Boeing struggled, SpaceX surged ahead, buoyed by its vertically integrated approach and a culture of innovation. SpaceX’s success underscored the shortcomings of Boeing’s traditional aerospace model, further exacerbated by broader crises within Boeing’s aviation division, notably the 737 MAX disasters and the COVID-19 pandemic.

Boeing’s tumultuous journey with Starliner offers valuable lessons about the perils of resisting change and the imperative of embracing innovation in the rapidly evolving space industry. Despite its setbacks, Boeing’s perseverance underscores the dedication of the engineers and technicians who tirelessly worked to bring Starliner to fruition.

[ANS thanks Eric Berger, Ars Technica, for the above information]

2024 AMSAT Board of Directors Election – Call for Nominations

AMSAT solicits nominations for the 2024 AMSAT Board of Directors election, to be held in the third quarter of the year. The seats of the following three incumbent Directors expire in 2024 and will be filled by this year’s election:

– Mark Hammond, N8MH
– Bruce Paige, KK5DO
– Paul Stoetzer, N8HM

Further, up to two Alternate Directors may be elected for one-year terms. A valid nomination for Director must be written and requires either one Member Society or five current individual members in good standing to nominate an AMSAT member. Written nominations, with the nominee’s name, call sign, and contact information, as well as the nominators’ names, call signs, and contact information, should be sent to the AMSAT Secretary:

Jeff Davis, KE9V
PO Box 11
Yorktown, IN 47396

AMSAT bylaws require that the nomination be written and in the form specified by the Secretary who has elected to accept written nomination materials via postal mail or in electronic form, including email or electronic image of a paper document. Fax transmissions cannot be accepted.

Email nominations may be sent to jdavis [at] amsat [dot] org.

No matter what means are used, petitions MUST be received by the Secretary no later than June 15th. The Secretary will verify the qualifications of candidates and nominating members or Member Societies as petitions are received and will notify candidates whether their nominations are in order by the end of June.

[ANS thanks Jeff Davis, KE9V, AMSAT Secretary for the above information.]

Want to fly the colors on your own grid expedition?
Get your AMSAT car flag and other neat stuff from our Zazzle store!

25% of the purchase price of each product goes towards
Keeping Amateur Radio in Space
https://www.zazzle.com/amsat_gear

Changes to AMSAT-NA TLE Distribution for May 16

Two Line Elements or TLEs, often referred to as Keplerian elements or keps in the amateur community, are the inputs to the SGP4 standard mathematical model of spacecraft orbits used by most amateur tracking programs. Weekly updates are completely adequate for most amateur satellites. TLE bulletin files are updated daily in the first hour of the UTC day. New bulletin files will be posted immediately after reliable elements become available for new amateur satellites. More information may be found at https://www.amsat.org/keplerian-elements-resources/.

The following satellite has been removed from this week’s AMSAT-NA TLE distribution:

CHOMPTT NORAD Cat ID 43855 Decayed from orbit on or about 13 May 2024

[ANS thanks Joe Fitzgerald, KM1P, AMSAT Orbital Elements page editor, for the above information]

ARISS NEWS

Amateurs and others around the world may listen in on contacts between amateurs operating in schools and allowing students to interact with astronauts and cosmonauts aboard the International Space Station. The downlink frequency on which to listen is 145.800 MHz worldwide.

COMPLETED:
Eric Knows CIC, Newcastle upon Tyne, United Kingdom, telebridge via K6DUE
The scheduled crewmember was Matthew Dominick, KCØTOR. The ARISS mentor was MØXTD
Contact was scheduled for: Sat 2024-05-11 08:42:32 UTC 48 degrees elevation

UPCOMING:
Ulukulevo Secondary School, Ulukulevo, Bashkortostan, Russia, direct via TBD
The ISS callsign is presently scheduled to be RSØISS
The scheduled crewmember is Nikolay Chub. The ARISS mentor is RV3DR.
Contact is go for Wed 2024-05-22 15:05 UTC

Amur State Medical Academy, Blagoveshchensk, Russia, direct via TBD
The ISS callsign is presently scheduled to be RSØISS
The scheduled crewmember is Nikolay Chub. The ARISS mentor is RV3DR.
Contact is go for Thu 2024-05-23 10:25 UTC

Children’s Technopark “Quantorium”, Obninsk, Russia, direct via TBD
The ISS callsign is presently scheduled to be RSØISS
The scheduled crewmember is Aleksandr Grebyonkin, RZ3DSE. The ARISS mentor is RV3DR.
Proposed for Mon 2024-05-27 14:10 UTC

The crossband repeater continues to be ACTIVE (145.990 MHz up {PL 67} & 437.800 MHz down). If any crewmember is so inclined, all they have to do is pick up the microphone, raise the volume up, and talk on the crossband repeater. So give a listen, you just never know.

The packet system is also ACTIVE (145.825 MHz up & down). Digital amateur television operations (2395.00 MHz down) is currently STOWED.

As always, if there is an EVA, a docking, or an undocking; the ARISS radios are turned off as part of the safety protocol. Upcoming:
+ Powering off for Progress undocking on May 28. OFF TBD. ON TBD.
+ Powering off for Progress docking on June 01. OFF TBD. ON TBD.

Note, all times are approximate. It is recommended that you do your own orbital prediction or start listening about 10 minutes before the listed time.

The latest information on the operation mode can be found at https://www.ariss.org/current-status-of-iss-stations.html

The latest list of frequencies in use can be found at https://www.ariss.org/contact-the-iss.html

[ANS thanks Charlie Sufana, AJ9N, one of the ARISS operation team mentors for the above information]

Upcoming Satellite Operations

No rovers have reported operations as of this publication date. Please submit any rover operations to k5zm (at) comcast (dot) net.

A growing number of satellite rovers are currently engaged in sharing their grid square activations on https://hams.at. By visiting the website, you gain easy access to comprehensive information about the operators responsible for activating specific grid squares. Additionally, you have the ability to assess the match score between yourself and a particular rover for a given pass, while also being able to identify the upcoming satellite passes that are accessible from your location.

[ANS thanks Ian Parsons, K5ZM, AMSAT rover page manager, for the above information]

Hamfests, Conventions, Maker Faires, and Other Events

AMSAT Ambassadors provide presentations, demonstrate communicating through amateur satellites, and host information tables at club meetings, hamfests, conventions, maker faires, and other events.

Hamvention 2024
Continues through 1:00 p.m. EDT, Sunday May 19, 2024
Greene County Fairgrounds and Expo Center
120 Fairground Road
Xenia, OH 45385
https://hamvention.org

[ANS thanks the AMSAT Events page for the above information]

Satellite Shorts From All Over

+ Congratulations to Maksym “Max” Romenskyy, SA5IKN, M0SKN, US6IKN, EI6KC, who has earned his THIRD satellite Worked All Zones (WAZ) award, this time as EI6KC #121. This is the first WAZ Satellite Award in Ireland. He is also the first in the world to complete three WAZ Satellite Awards from three different locations in three countries. He already holds a special plague “IN RECOGNITION OF WORLD # 1 SAT WAZ AWARD WITH TWO CALLS” for WAZ awards #40 as SA5IKN (38 zones) and #92 as MØSKN. (ANS thanks Max Romenskyy, US6IKN, for the above information.)

+ Since April 28, 2019, the Swiss satellite net on QO-100 has been a consistent weekly event, marking its fifth anniversary on the same date in 2024. Hosted by HB9RYZ initially and later by HB9TSI from Italy, the round convenes every Sunday at 9:00 p.m. on 10489.740 MHz, typically with 5 to 10 participants, though 15 joined for the anniversary round. Led by Paul, HB9DFQ, the round maintains a familiar format: participants check in, share station updates and radio experiences, delve into topics, and bid farewell. Despite no specific celebration planned, the anniversary drew a hearty attendance. Notable moments include Roman, HB9HCF’s reports from Antarctica during the pandemic, while regular attendees like IS0/HB9SJP and supportive listeners add to the camaraderie. The inaugural round was preserved on Soundcloud by HB9WDF, encapsulating the enduring spirit of this community gathering. (ANS thanks AMSAT-HB for the above information for the above information)

+ The recently released GreenCube BackPack antenna by Arrow Antennas, designed specifically for IO-117 satellite communication, can now be purchased from their website for $219. It boasts a three-piece split boom design and 15 UHF elements, along with a pre-assembled and pre-tuned Gamma Match compatible only with BNC connectors. Engineered for maximum gain and efficiency, the antenna utilizes aluminum Arrow Shafts for its elements and a 3/4″ square boom measuring 116.8″ in length. Mounting near its balance point is recommended due to its weight, and plastic tips ensure safety. While the foam handle grip can be removed using isopropyl alcohol, using the tripod hole for mounting is discouraged due to balance issues. Additionally, customers have the option to purchase a separate element set for cross-polarized antenna configuration, priced at $99.00. Info at https://arrowantennas.com/arrowii/greencube.html (ANS thanks Arrow Antennas, for the above information.)

+ Prof. Robert “Bob” Twiggs, KE6QMD, and a group of former students and colleagues are working on gathering and publishing a series of books on the history of the creation and adoption of the CubeSat. Take a look at the LinkedIn announcement here: https://lnkd.in/eNZgv6Tk. If this sounds like something you’d be interested in supporting, please take a look at our GoFundMe page here: https://www.gofundme.com/f/cubesat-history-project. The community’s response has been amazing! Over a hundred interviews were conducted, and countless images and documents from the earliest days of the CubeSat were collected! The result is that we have accumulated one of the most comprehensive histories of the CubeSat, with many unique, never-before-told stories! Reach out if you are interested in sponsoring the project to get a signed copy and your organization’s name in the book. Please email Dr. Aaron Zucherman at [email protected]. (ANS thanks Aaron Zucherman, KM6CHY, for the above information.)

+ Last week, as Sol continues to edge into the most active phase of its 11-year cycle, multiple massive X-class solar flares (the largest an X5.8 flare) erupted from associated active sunspots, along with coronal mass ejections (CMEs) directed towards Earth. This sustained activity caused a G5 solar storm last weekend (NOAA’s space weather scales for reference), leading to aurorae visible from middle latitudes as far south as Puerto Rico in the US and all over Europe. This was one of the most powerful solar storms since an estimated X28-45 flare in 2003 contributed to the 2003 Halloween solar storms that damaged or interrupted services from multiple spacecraft, saturated measurement instruments, and made ISS astronauts shelter in the more shielded Russian segment. (ANS thanks The Orbital Index for the above information.)

+ Japan’s Moon Sniper, also known as SLIM, has astounded experts by surviving its third lunar night, despite not being designed for such harsh conditions. Initially landing near the Shioli Crater on January 19, the spacecraft encountered an anomaly during descent, landing on its nose and facing west, hindering its solar panels’ ability to generate power. However, Moon Sniper continues to defy expectations by waking up after each lunar night, transmitting new images before going back into hibernation. Despite enduring both the extreme cold of the lunar night and the searing temperatures of the lunar day, the spacecraft has maintained functionality, prompting close monitoring from the mission team to identify potential deteriorating components. As Moon Sniper enters hibernation again, the team plans to resume operations in May, expressing gratitude for ongoing support and even composing a song titled “15 Degree Slope” to commemorate the mission’s unexpected journey. (ANS thanks CNN for the above information.)

Join AMSAT today at https://launch.amsat.org/

In addition to regular membership, AMSAT offers membership to:

* Societies (a recognized group, clubs or organization).
* 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 6 post-secondary years in this status.
* Memberships are available for annual and lifetime terms.

Contact info [at] amsat.org for additional membership information.

73 and remember to help Keep Amateur Radio in Space!

This week’s ANS Editor, Mark Johns, KØJM
k0jm [at] amsat.org

ANS-105 AMSAT News Service Weekly Bulletins

April 14, 2024 by Mark Johns

In this edition:

* NASA Astronaut Loral O’Hara, Crewmates Return from ISS
* 2024 AMSAT/TAPR Banquet To Be Held Friday, May 17
* New NASA Strategy Envisions Sustainable Future for Space Ops
* Trash From The ISS May Have Hit A House In Florida
* VUCC and DXCC Satellite Standings for April 2024
* Changes to AMSAT-NA TLE Distribution for April 12
* Ending an Era, Final Delta Rocket Launched This Week
* ARISS News
* Upcoming Satellite Operations
* Hamfests, Conventions, Maker Faires, and Other Events
* Satellite Shorts From All Over

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

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

You can sign up for free e-mail delivery of the AMSAT News Service Bulletins via the ANS List; to join this list see: https://mailman.amsat.org/postorius/lists/ans.amsat.org/

ANS-105 AMSAT News Service Weekly Bulletins

DATE 2024 April 14

NASA Astronaut Loral O’Hara, Crewmates Return from ISS

NASA astronaut Loral O’Hara, KI5TOM, returned to Earth after a six-month research mission aboard the International Space Station on April 6, along with Roscosmos cosmonaut Oleg Novitskiy, and Belarus spaceflight participant Marina Vasilevskaya.

The trio departed the space station aboard the Soyuz MS-24 spacecraft at 03:54 UTC, and made a safe, parachute-assisted landing at 07:17 (12:17 p.m. Kazakhstan time), southeast of the remote town of Dzhezkazgan, Kazakhstan.

NASA astronaut Loral O’Hara returned to Earth on April 6, 2024, after a six-month research mission aboard the International Space Station.
(NASA image)

O’Hara launched Sept. 15, 2023, alongside Roscosmos cosmonauts Oleg Kononenko, RN3DX, and Nikolai Chub, who both will remain aboard the space station to complete a one-year mission. Novitskiy and Vasilevskaya launched aboard Soyuz MS-25 on March 23 along with NASA astronaut Tracy C. Dyson, who will remain aboard the orbiting laboratory until this fall.

O’Hara spent a total of 204 days in space as part of her first spaceflight. She completed approximately 3,264 orbits of the Earth and a journey of more than 86.5 million miles. O’Hara worked on scientific activities aboard the space station, including investigating heart health, cancer treatments, and space manufacturing techniques during her stay aboard the orbiting laboratory.

Following post-landing medical checks, the crew returned to the recovery staging city in Karaganda, Kazakhstan. O’Hara then boarded a NASA plane bound for her return to the agency’s Johnson Space Center in Houston.

(Oct. 4, 2023) — The official Expedition 71 crew portrait with (bottom row from left) Roscosmos cosmonaut Alexander Grebenkin and NASA astronauts Mike Barratt, Matthew Dominick, and Jeanette Epps. In the back row (from left) are, NASA astronaut Loral O’Hara and Roscosmos cosmonauts Nikolai Chub and Oleg Kononenko. (NASA photo)

With the undocking of the Soyuz MS-24 spacecraft with O’Hara, Novitskiy and Vasilevskaya, Expedition 71 officially began aboard the station. NASA astronauts Michael Barratt, KD5MIJ, Matthew Dominick, KCØTOR, Tracy C. Dyson, and Jeannette Epps, KF5QNU, as well as Roscosmos cosmonauts Nikolai Chub, Alexander Grebenkin, RZ3DSE, and Oleg Kononenko, RN3DX, make up Expedition 71 and will remain on the orbiting laboratory until this fall.

[ANS thanks NASA for the above information]

The 2024 AMSAT President’s Club coins are here now!
Help Support GOLF and Fox Plus

Join the AMSAT President’s Club today and help
Keep Amateur Radio in Space!
https://www.amsat.org/join-the-amsat-presidents-club/

2024 AMSAT/TAPR Banquet To Be Held Friday, May 17

The 15th annual AMSAT/TAPR Banquet will be held at the Kohler Presidential Banquet Center on Friday, May 17th at 18:30 EDT. This dinner is always a highlight of the TAPR (Tucson Amateur Packet Radio) and AMSAT (Radio Amateur Satellite Corp.) activities during the Dayton Hamvention. This year’s banquet speaker will be Bill Reed, NX5R, AMSAT PACSAT Project Manager, who will highlight the forthcoming PACSAT digital communications payload.

The Kohler Presidential Banquet Center is located at 4548 Presidential Way, Kettering, Ohio – about 20 minutes away from the Greene County Fairgrounds.

Tickets ($60 each) may be purchased from the AMSAT store. The banquet ticket purchase deadline is Friday, May 10th. Banquet tickets must be purchased in advance and will not be sold at the AMSAT booth. There will be no tickets to pick up at the AMSAT booth. Tickets purchased on-line will be maintained on a list with check-in at the door at the banquet center. Seating is limited to the number of meals reserved with the Kohler caterers based on the number of tickets sold by the deadline.

Menu

Set out as guests arrive

Crudite Platter
with dip on the side

Dinner Buffet

Roast Prime Rib of Beef Au jus
Carved on site. Served with horseradish and au jus on the side.

Almond Chicken

Deep Fried Tempura Shrimp
with Tomato Lemon Aioli

Risotto Cake

Fresh Asparagus

Smashed Cauliflower

Served to the table

Strawberry Fields

Assorted Dinner Rolls
Served with butter

Separate table

Assorted Layer Cake

Cheesecake

Beverages

Cash Bar

Regular and Decaf Coffee, Hot & Iced Tea, Water

New NASA Strategy Envisions Sustainable Future for Space Operations

To address a rapidly changing space operating environment and ensure its preservation for generations to come, NASA released the first part of its integrated Space Sustainability Strategy, on April 9, advancing the agency’s role as a global leader on this crucial issue.

“The release of this strategy marks true progress for NASA on space sustainability,” said NASA Deputy Administrator Pam Melroy. “Space is busy – and only getting busier. If we want to make sure that critical parts of space are preserved so that our children and grandchildren can continue to use them for the benefit of humanity, the time to act is now. NASA is making sure that we’re aligning our resources to support sustainable activity for us and for all.”

For decades, NASA has served as a proactive leader for responsible and sustainable space operations. Entities across the agency develop best practices, analytic tools, and technologies widely adopted by operators around the world. The new strategy seeks to integrate those efforts through a whole-of-agency approach – allowing NASA to focus its resources on the most pressing issues. To facilitate that integration, NASA will appoint a new director of space sustainability to coordinate activities across the agency.

Key aspects of our approach include providing global leadership in space sustainability, supporting equitable access to space, and ensuring NASA’s missions and operations enhance space sustainability.

Space environments currently are seeing the rapid emergence of commercial capabilities, many of them championed by NASA. These capabilities include increased low Earth orbit satellite activity and plans for the use of satellite constellations, autonomous spacecraft, and commercial space destinations. However, this increased activity also has generated challenges, such as an operating environment more crowded with spacecraft and increased debris. Understanding the risks and benefits associated with this growth is crucial for space sustainability.

Developed under the leadership of a crossagency advisory board, the space sustainability strategy focuses on advancements NASA can make toward measuring and assessing space sustainability in Earth orbit, identifying cost-effective ways to meet sustainability targets, incentivizing the adoption of sustainable practices through technology and policy development, and increasing efforts to share and receive information with the rest of the global space community.

NASA’s approach to space sustainability recognizes four operational domains: Earth, Earth orbit, the orbital area near and around the Moon known as cislunar space, and deep space, including other celestial bodies. The first volume of the strategy focuses on sustainability in Earth orbit. NASA plans to produce additional volumes focusing on the other domains.

Learn more about the Space Sustainability Strategy at: https://www.nasa.gov/spacesustainability

[ANS thanks NASA for the above information]

Need new satellite antennas?
Purchase 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/

Trash From The ISS May Have Hit A House In Florida

A few weeks ago, something from the heavens came crashing through the roof of Alejandro Otero’s Florida home, and NASA is on the case.

Otero wasn’t home at the time. A Nest home security camera captured the sound of the crash at 2:34 pm local time (19:34 UTC) on March 8. That’s an important piece of information because it is a close match for the time—2:29 pm EST (19:29 UTC)—that US Space Command recorded the reentry of a piece of space debris from the space station. At that time, the object was on a path over the Gulf of Mexico, heading toward southwest Florida.

In all likelihood, this nearly 2-pound object came from the International Space Station.
Otero said it tore through the roof and both floors of his two-story house in Naples, Florida.
(Photo by Alejandro Otero on X)

This space junk consisted of depleted batteries from the ISS, attached to a cargo pallet that was originally supposed to come back to Earth in a controlled manner. But a series of delays meant this cargo pallet missed its ride back to Earth, so NASA jettisoned the batteries from the space station in 2021 to head for an unguided reentry.

NASA has recovered the debris from the homeowner, according to Josh Finch, an agency spokesperson. Engineers at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center will analyze the object “as soon as possible to determine its origin,” Finch told Ars. “More information will be available once the analysis is complete.”

The entire pallet, including the nine disused batteries from the space station’s power system, had a mass of more than 2.6 metric tons (5,800 pounds), according to NASA. Size-wise, it was about twice as tall as a standard kitchen refrigerator. It’s important to note that objects of this mass, or larger, regularly fall to Earth on guided trajectories, but they’re usually failed satellites or spent rocket stages left in orbit after completing their missions.

In a post on X, Otero said he is waiting for communication from “the responsible agencies” to resolve the cost of damages to his home. If the object is owned by NASA, Otero or his insurance company could make a claim against the federal government under the Federal Tort Claims Act, according to Michelle Hanlon, executive director of the Center for Air and Space Law at the University of Mississippi.

“It gets more interesting if this material is discovered to be not originally from the United States,” she told Ars. “If it is a human-made space object which was launched into space by another country, which caused damage on Earth, that country would be absolutely liable to the homeowner for the damage caused.”

This could be an issue in this case. The batteries were owned by NASA, but they were attached to a pallet structure launched by Japan’s space agency.

NASA typically doesn’t want large chunks of space debris falling to Earth with an uncontrolled reentry. You can trace the reason this object came down unguided back to a Russian launch failure more than five years ago. NASA astronaut Nick Hague and Russian commander Alexey Ovchinin aborted their launch on a Soyuz spacecraft when their rocket failed shortly after liftoff.

One of Hague’s jobs at the International Space Station would have been to go outside on spacewalks to help install a new set of lithium-ion batteries recently delivered by a Japanese HTV cargo ship. But Hague didn’t reach the station in 2018, so NASA put off the spacewalks until a new team of astronauts arrived at the complex.

This interruption to the space station’s carefully choreographed schedule threw off the entire multiyear plan for upgrading the batteries on the outpost’s electrical system. Instead of putting the old batteries back into the HTV for a guided destructive reentry over the open ocean, NASA held onto the cargo pallet at the station when the HTV supply ship needed to depart.

Each of the subsequent HTV missions delivered more fresh batteries to the space station and then departed the complex with the cargo pallet and decommissioned batteries from the previous HTV mission. That was the case until there were no more HTVs to fly. Japan’s last HTV spacecraft departed the ISS in 2020 with the cargo pallet and batteries from the prior flight, stranding the last battery pallet at the station.

The space station’s other cargo vehicles—SpaceX’s Dragon, Northrop Grumman’s Cygnus, and the Russian Progress—can’t accommodate the HTV cargo pallet.

So NASA decided to jettison the battery pallet using the space station’s robotic arm in March 2021 in order to free up real estate on the lab. Without any propulsion of their own, the batteries were adrift in orbit for three years until aerodynamic drag finally pulled the pallet back into the atmosphere on March 8, almost exactly three years later.

It is notoriously difficult to predict where a piece of space junk will reenter the atmosphere. US Space Command precisely tracks tens of thousands of objects in Earth orbit, but the exact density of the upper atmosphere is still largely an unknown variable. Even a half-day before the reentry, US Space Command’s estimate for when the battery pallet would fall to Earth had a window of uncertainty spanning six hours, enough time for the object to circle the planet four times.

And if you don’t know when something will reenter the atmosphere, you can’t predict where it will come down.

If NASA confirms the projectile that fell through Otero’s house last month came from the ISS, it would join a small handful of incidents when an object falling out of orbit damaged someone’s property.

Earth is a big place. It’s fairly common for someone to find a piece of fallen space junk in a field or washed up on a beach. But it is rare for a reentry to hit a structure or injure a person.

Falling space debris has never killed anyone. According to ESA, the annual risk of an individual human being injured by space debris is less than 1 in 100 billion.

[ANS thanks ARS Technical for the above information. Read the entire story at https://bit.ly/3xFJs9W.]

VUCC and DXCC Satellite Standings for April 2024

————————————————————
VUCC Satellite Award/Endorsement Change Summary for March 01, 2024 to April 01, 2024.
————————————————————

Callsign	March 2024	April 2024
K8DP	1629	1701
AA5PK	1450	1500
N8RO	1444	1455
KF7R	1128	1154
XE1AO	1000	1111
KE8RJU	950	1030
WI7P	975	1008
K9UO	950	1001
KQ4DO	880	906
K0JM	702	801
KK4YEL	728	768
N8MR	684	700
A65BR	554	632
JS1LQI	500	617
N3CAL	580	610
SV8CS	New	511
JR0GAS	360	500
KO9A	434	472
N7UJJ	308	462
HC2FG	350	413
PA7RA	408	409
DL8GAM	375	400
HB9RYZ	248	365
W6AER	302	355
K6VHF	300	325
JH0BBE	322	324
XE1BMG	120	300
KA9CFD	126	283
I1FQH	173	249
AG1A	100	200
JO4JKL	135	188
W0PR	New	176
JK4JMO	New	161
AA0K	100	155
WD9EWK(DM25)	120	138
N6UTC(DM05)	101	128
N8HRZ	New	102
WD5GRW	New	101
K9DOG	New	100
W9FF	New	100

————————————————————

Congratulations to the new VUCC holders.
SV8CS is first VUCC Satellite holder from KM07

DXCC Satellite Standing April 2024
————————————————————
DXCC Satellite Award/Endorsement Change Summary for March 01, 2024 to April 01, 2024.
————————————————————

Callsign	March 2024	April 2024
SV8CS	153	159
KB8VAO	135	148
HB9RYZ	145	147
DL4ZAB	138	139
NK1K	129	138
DL2MIH	111	132
XE1MEX	122	125
KK5DO	106	108
K9UO	101	106
DL8GAM	100	101
XE1L	New	100

————————————————————

Congratulations to the new DXCC Satellite holder.
XE1L is first DXCC Satellite holder from DL80

[ANS thanks Jon Goering, N7AZ, for the above information]

Want to fly the colors on your own grid expedition?

Get your AMSAT car flag and other neat stuff from our Zazzle store!
25% of the purchase price of each product goes towards
Keeping Amateur Radio in Space
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Changes to AMSAT-NA TLE Distribution for April 12

This week there are no additions or deletions to the AMSAT TLE distribution.

[ANS thanks Joe Fitzgerald, KM1P, AMSAT Orbital Elements Manager, for the above information]

Ending an Era, Final Delta Rocket Launched This Week

Ending an era in U.S. rocketry, United Launch Alliance fired off its 16th and final triple-core Delta 4 Heavy Tuesday, launching a classified spy satellite in the last hurrah of a storied family of rockets dating back to the dawn of the space age.

The Heavy’s three hydrogen-fueled RS-68A first stage engines ignited with a rush of bright orange flame at 12:53 p.m. EDT, smoothly pushing the 235-foot-tall rocket away from pad 37 at the Cape Canaveral Space Force Station in Florida.

The last Delta 4 Heavy rocket climbs away from the Cape Canaveral Space Force Station on April 9, 2024,
carrying a classified National Reconnaissance Office spy satellite. (United Launch Alliance photo.)

The launch came 12 days late, primarily because of work to replace a pump in a system that supplies nitrogen gas to multiple launch pads from a pipeline running through the Kennedy Space Center and the Cape Canaveral Space Force Station. There were no problems Tuesday.

Mounted atop the rocket was a classified satellite provided by the National Reconnaissance Office, the secretive government agency that manages the nation’s fleet of sophisticated optical and radar imaging reconnaissance satellites and electronic eavesdropping stations.

In keeping with standard NRO-U.S. Space Force policy for such missions, no details about the NROL-70 payload were released. But about six hours after launch, the National Reconnaissance Office declared the launch a success, indicating the satellite reached its planned orbit.The final appearance of a Delta rocket 63 years after the first variant’s maiden flight was an emotional milestone for the managers, engineers and technicians who assembled and launched the last member of the family.

The Delta family of stages and rockets had its roots in the early space program, first serving in the nation’s fleet of intermediate-range ballistic missiles and evolving through multiple versions used to put military, NASA and civilian payloads into orbit.

The now-retired Delta 2 debuted in 1990, putting the first Global Positioning System satellites into orbit and sending multiple planetary probes into deep space, including Messenger to Mercury, multiple Mars orbiters, the Pathfinder, Spirit and Opportunity Mars rovers, the Spitzer Space Telescope and many more.

The single-core Delta 4 first flew in 2002 with the first Heavy following two years later. The single-core version flew the program’s final flight in 2019. Tuesday’s launch was the 45th flight of a Delta 4 and the 16th and final Delta 4 Heavy.

“Launching the last Delta 4 is bittersweet for me,” Col. Eric Zarybnisky, director of NRO’s Office of Space Launch, said in a statement. “I was part of the team that launched the first Delta 4 for the NRO. Since that time, the Delta 4 has put amazing capability on orbit for this nation.”

Tory Bruno, president and CEO of United Launch Alliance, also called the flight a “bittersweet” moment as the company continues its transition to next-generation Vulcan rockets, phasing out its more expensive Delta and Atlas families.

“Soon, Vulcan will pick up that mantle and we’re going to retire this venerable rocket that has made so much important work for our country,” he said after launch in a pre-recorded video.

[ANS thanks William Harwood, CBS News, for the above information]

ARISS NEWS

RECENTLY COMPLETED

ARTADEMIA, Milano, Italy, AND Scuola Secondaria I grado “A. Moro”, Ponte Lambro (CO), Italy, direct via IK1SLD
The ISS callsign was OR4ISS. The crewmember was Jeanette Epps, KF5QNU. The ARISS mentor was IZ2GOJ.
Contact was successful: Wed 2024-04-10 13:16:48 UTC 53 degrees elevation
Congratulations to the ARTADEMIA and Scuola Secondaria I grado “A. Moro” students, Jeanette, mentor IZ2GOJ, and ground station IK1SLD!
Watch the recorded Livestream at https://www.youtube.com/live/sJoKzK2292U?si=BxXWi41cfsJJv4c2

UPCOMING

Mrs Ethelston’s CE Primary Academy at Axminster Community Academy Trust, Lyme Regis, United Kingdom, direct via GB4ACA
The ISS callsign is presently scheduled to be NA1SS. The scheduled crewmember is Matthew Dominick, KCØTOR. The ARISS mentor is MØXTD.
Contact is go for: Wed 2024-04-17 10:44:49 UTC 81 degrees elevation
Watch for Livestream at https://live.ariss.org

Mountain View Elementary, Marietta, GA, direct via KQ4JVI
The ISS callsign is presently scheduled to be NA1SS. The scheduled crewmember is Jeanette Epps, KF5QNU. The ARISS mentor is K4RGK.
Contact is go for: Thu 2024-04-18 17:48:40 UTC 44 deg
Watch for Livestream at https://youtube.com/live/lDjyV6P9x6I

The crossband repeater continues to be active (145.990 MHz up {PL 67} & 437.800 MHz down). If any crewmember is so inclined, all they have to do is pick up the microphone, raise the volume up, and talk on the crossband repeater. So give a listen, you just never know.

The packet system (145.825 MHz up & down) is currently misconfigured and not in operation.

The Ham TV system (2395.00 MHz down) is aboard but currently stowed. The BATC Ham TV wiki is at https://wiki.batc.org.uk/HAMTV_from_the_ISS and there is also a discussion channel available on the site.

The SSTV system (145.800 MHz down) is currently stowed.

As always, if there is an EVA, a docking, or an undocking; the ARISS radios are turned off as part of the safety protocol.

Note, all times are approximate. It is recommended that you do your own orbital prediction or start listening about 10 minutes before the listed time.

The latest information on the operation mode can be found at https://www.ariss.org/current-status-of-iss-stations.html

The latest list of frequencies in use can be found at https://www.ariss.org/contact-the-iss.html

[ANS thanks Charlie Sufana, AJ9N, one of the ARISS operation team mentors for the above information]

Upcoming Satellite Operations

Doug, N6UA will soon embark on a big circuitous rove covering parts of MT, ID, OR and NV. I’m guessing this will take place in the next week or two, but only Doug knows for certain. APRS is gonna be your friend here.

[ANS thanks Ian Parsons, K5ZM, AMSAT rover page manager, for the above information]

Hamfests, Conventions, Maker Faires, and Other Events

AMSAT Ambassadors provide presentations, demonstrate communicating through amateur satellites, and host information tables at club meetings, hamfests, conventions, maker faires, and other events.

2024 CubeSat Developer’s Workshop
Tuesday April 23rd – Thursday April 25th
Cal Poly, San Luis Obispo, CA
https://www.cubesatdw.org/

Dayton Hamvention 2024
Friday May 17th – Sunday May 19th
Greene County Fairgrounds and Expo Center
120 Fairground Road
Xenia, OH 45385
https://hamvention.org

[ANS thanks the AMSAT Events page for the above information]

Satellite Shorts From All Over

+ NASA now knows what knocked Voyager 1 offline, but it will take a while to fix. Voyager 1’s remaining Flight Data Subsystem (its redundant copy failed in 1982) is the reason that the distant spacecraft is currently offline. Voyager’s FDS were the first computers on a spacecraft to use volatile memory. Unfortunately, one of Voyager 1’s FDS memory chips is malfunctioning—NASA hopes they can work around it, but it will likely take months.(ANS thanks The Orbital Index for the above information.)

+ If you have 26 minutes to spare, and want to explore more intricacies of Ohm’s Law than you were taught in school, watch electricity flow through a wire a nanosecond at a time at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2AXv49dDQJw (ANS thanks The Orbital Index for the above information.)

+ Following repairs to a liquid oxygen leak in the Falcon Heavy’s core booster, NASA and SpaceX have rescheduled the launch of the GOES-U satellite, the final installment in NOAA’s GOES-R Series, for June 25. The adjustment aims to ensure thorough examination and resolution of the issue, discovered during a routine inspection in February. With preparations now back on track, the deployment of GOES-U from Kennedy Space Center’s Launch Complex 39A will proceed using a SpaceX Falcon Heavy rocket. Managed cooperatively by NOAA and NASA, the GOES-R Series Program encompasses satellite operations, data dissemination, and ground systems oversight, with NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center leading spacecraft acquisition and instrument development. Lockheed Martin’s contributions include design, construction, and testing of the satellites, while L3Harris Technologies has provided key instruments and ground systems essential for capturing atmospheric observations. (ANS thanks Clarence Oxford, SpaceDaily, for the above information)

+ The European Union is poised to finalize a security deal with the United States, enabling payments to Elon Musk’s SpaceX for satellite launches due to delays in Europe’s Ariane rocket system. Approved by national general affairs ministers, the agreement grants European Union and European Space Agency (ESA) personnel continuous access to launch facilities and prioritized debris retrieval rights in case of SpaceX rocket failures. With a 200 million deal already struck last year, SpaceX is contracted to launch four Galileo satellites as Ariane 6 faces further delays. While Ariane 6 is slated for a summer launch, commercial missions await later scheduling. The arrangement with SpaceX allows for two Galileo satellite launches this year, necessitated by Soyuz launcher cancellations and Ariane 6 delays. The security pact ensures access to classified Galileo equipment, with provisions for debris retrieval and a sunset clause by 2027 to address concerns about reliance on SpaceX over Ariane. (ANS thanks Joshua Poaaner, Politico Europe, for the above information)

+ NASA has been tasked by the White House to establish a lunar-centric time reference system, known as Coordinated Lunar Time (LTC), to aid missions requiring extreme precision on the moon. The agency has until the end of 2026 to set up LTC, which is not akin to Earth’s time zones but provides a frame of time reference for the moon. LTC will accommodate the slightly faster passage of time on the moon, approximately 58.7 microseconds each day compared to Earth, due to its lower gravity. It will serve as a benchmark for timekeeping for lunar spacecraft and satellites, crucial for their missions. NASA’s Artemis program, set to begin astronaut missions to the lunar surface in 2026, necessitates LTC for synchronization among Earth, lunar satellites, bases, and astronauts, without which data transfers and communications could be compromised. Developing LTC will require international agreements, possibly influenced by the Universal Coordinated Time (UTC) standard, with potential implementation involving atomic clocks on the moon and adherence to existing space agreements like the Artemis accords. (ANS thanks Diana Ramirez-Simon, The Guardian, for the above information)

Join AMSAT today at https://launch.amsat.org/

In addition to regular membership, AMSAT offers membership to:

Contact info [at] amsat.org for additional membership information.

73 and remember to help Keep Amateur Radio in Space!

This week’s ANS Editor, Mark Johns, KØJM
k0jm [at] amsat.org

ANS-077 AMSAT News Service Weekly Bulletins

March 17, 2024 by Mark Johns

In this edition:

* First SONATE 2 Images Received
* FUNcube Mode Change
* Free On-Line Amateur Radio Operating Class
* Starship Lifts Off On Third Test Flight
* Changes to AMSAT-NA TLE Distribution for March 15
* NASA’s SpaceX Crew-7 Finishes Mission, Returns to Earth
* ARISS News
* Upcoming Satellite Operations
* Hamfests, Conventions, Maker Faires, and Other Events
* Satellite Shorts From All Over

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

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

You can sign up for free e-mail delivery of the AMSAT News Service Bulletins via the ANS List; to join this list see: https://mailman.amsat.org/postorius/lists/ans.amsat.org/

ANS-077 AMSAT News Service Weekly Bulletins

To: All RADIO AMATEURS
From: Radio Amateur Satellite Corporation
712 H Street NE, Suite 1653
Washington, DC 20002

DATE 2024 March 17

First SONATE 2 Images Received

First images were received this week from the SONATE 2 satellite. A low-resolution Slow-Scan TV (SSTV) image that had been pre-loaded onto the satellite prior to launch was received on March 8. The first wide field of view earth image from the onboard camera was received on March 11. Both images can be viewed at https://www.informatik.uni-wuerzburg.de/en/aerospaceinfo/staff/kayal/research-activities/sonate-2/

[12.03.2024 First wide field of view image from SONATE-2]

SONATE 2 was built by students and faculty in the Aerospace Information Technology program at at Würzburg University in Germany. It was launched on March 4 as part of the SpaceX Transporter 10 mission from Space Launch Complex 4E in Vandenberg SFB, Calif.

Using Doppler measurements, Nico Janssen, PAØDLO, has identified SONATE 2 as object 59112. The telemetry downlink frequency is 437.0254 MHz, just slightly above the published target frequency of 437.025 MHz. Telemetry is in 9k6 G3RUH GMSK AX.25 using a protocol that may be downloaded from https://www.informatik.uni-wuerzburg.de/fileadmin/1003-ifex/2024/SONATE-2_protocol_definition_for_radio_amateurs.xlsx

The SSTV downlink is at 145.880 MHz FM using the Martin M1 protocol. The satellite also carries an APRS digipeater for 145.825 MHz, but the digipeater is not yet active. A schedule for upcoming SSTV transmissions is published at https://www.informatik.uni-wuerzburg.de/aerospaceinfo/mitarbeiter/kayal/forschungsprojekte/sonate-2/information-for-radio-amateurs/

[ANS thanks Würzburg University and Nico Janssen, PAØDLO, for the above information.]

The 2024 AMSAT President’s Club coins are here now!
Help Support GOLF and Fox Plus

Join the AMSAT President’s Club today and help
Keep Amateur Radio in Space!
https://www.amsat.org/join-the-amsat-presidents-club/

FUNcube Mode Change

The FUNcube team are pleased to announce that FUNcube 1 (aka AO-73) is out of Safe mode back in Eclipse mode as of March 11. “Eclipse mode” means that the transponder is normally operational only when the satellite is in eclipse, i.e. the solar panels are NOT being illuminated.

The nominal transponder frequencies are:

Uplink: 435.150 – 435.130 MHz LSB (Inverting)
Downlink: 145.950 – 145.970 MHz USB
Telemetry Tx: 145.935 MHz BPSK

(The passband may be up to 15kHz higher depending on on-board temps. Lower temperatures give higher freqs!)

[ANS thanks David Johnson, G4DPZ, and https://funcube.org.uk/ for the above information.]

Need new satellite antennas?

Purchase M2 LEO-Packs from the AMSAT Store.
When you purchase through AMSAT, a portion of the proceeds goes towards
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Free On-Line Amateur Radio Operating Class

A free, weekly, 3-hour Amateur Radio Operating Class on Zoom will begin on Thursday April 4 and run through June 20 at 6:30 p.m. Eastern / 5:30 p.m. Central time. The presenters will be various experienced folks in the various subjects.

A detailed syllabus will be published before the classes begin. Attend them all, or any that you like, but you must register for the classes. To receive registration information, contact Rol Anders, K3RA, at [email protected].

Subjects will include:

All About Operating–A general Introduction
Amateur Radio Organizations—Local to International
Ham Radio Awards
DXing-History and Tips from the Experts
QSLing-How to get that needed card for DXCC or WAS
VHF/UHF Weak Signal Work and “Roving”
Image Operating—Slow Scan and Fast Scan TV
Remote Station control over internet
Learning CW in the no-code era
Digital Modes—From RTTY to FT8 and beyond
Contesting—How to get started, tips for the beginner and intermediated contester
Logging Software—What’s available, how to use
Propagation—A general intro to HF Propagation
*Amateur Satellites—How to get started*
Portable (backpacking) operation—Tips from an expert
Setting Up a Modern (or not so modern) HF Station
Lightning Protection and Grounding
Traffic Handling
Public Service, Emergency Communications

[ANS thanks Dan Hausauer, WØCN, and Rol Anders, K3RA, for the above information.]

Starship Lifts Off On Third Test Flight

SpaceX’s Starship vehicle lifted off on its third test flight March 14, making significant progress compared to its first two by achieving most of its planned test milestones.

The Starship/Super Heavy vehicle lifted off from the company’s Starbase site at 9:25 a.m. Eastern. The liftoff was delayed by nearly an hour and a half because of ships in restricted waters offshore. SpaceX reported no technical issues during the countdown.

[Starship lifts off on its third integrated test flight March 14. Credit: SpaceX webcast]

The Super Heavy booster fired all 33 of its Raptor engines for nearly three minutes before executing “hot staging”, with the Starship upper stage’s engines igniting while still attached to Super Heavy before separating.

The booster then performed burns to attempt what SpaceX webcast hosts called a “soft splashdown” in the Gulf of Mexico, where it would not be recovered. However, the landing burn did not appear to go correctly, and the company later said that the booster broke apart 462 meters above the ocean after lighting several Raptor engines for a landing burn.

The Starship upper stage performed its burn, placing the vehicle onto its planned suborbital trajectory. It avoided the fate of the previous Starship launch in November, when the vehicle broke apart late in its burn after catching fire while venting propellant.

While in space on its suborbital trajectory, SpaceX opened a payload bay door that will be used on later Starship vehicles for deploying Starlink satellites. It also performed an in-space propellant transfer demonstration as part of a NASA contract where it would move propellant from one tank within the vehicle to another. SpaceX said it was evaluating the data from both tests.

SpaceX had planned to perform a brief relight of a Raptor engine on Starship about 40 minutes after liftoff, but the company said on the webcast that this test was skipped for reasons not immediately known. The company later said the engine test was called off because of the vehicle’s roll rates.

Several minutes later, the vehicle started reentry. A camera mounted on a flap on Starship provided dramatic images of the reentry, relayed through Starlink satellites. Telemetry was lost about 49 and a half minutes after liftoff when the vehicle was descending through an altitude of 65 kilometers. SpaceX later said on the webcast that it lost contact through both its own Starlink satellites as well as through NASA TDRSS data relay satellites at the same time, speculating that the vehicle may have broken up.

While the mission did not achieve all its test objectives, the company considered the launch a success. “What we achieved on this flight will provide invaluable data to continue rapidly developing Starship,” it said in a statement.

[ANS thanks SpaceNews for the above information.

Want to fly the colors on your own grid expedition?

Changes to AMSAT-NA TLE Distribution for March 15

This week there are no additions or deletions to the AMSAT TLE distribution.

[ANS thanks AMSAT Orbital Elements page for the above information.]

NASA’s SpaceX Crew-7 Finishes Mission, Returns to Earth

The SpaceX Crew Dragon Endeavour spacecraft, with NASA astronaut Jasmin Moghbeli, KI5WSL, ESA (European Space Agency) astronaut Andreas Mogensen, KG5GCZ, Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) astronaut Satoshi Furukawa, KE5DAW, and Roscosmos cosmonaut Konstantin Borisov aboard, splashed down in the Gulf of Mexico off the coast of Pensacola, Florida, on Tuesday, March 12, 2024. Moghbeli, Mogensen, Furukawa, and Borisov are returning after nearly six-months in space as part of Expedition 70 aboard the International Space Station.

The Crew-7 mission lifted off at 3:27 a.m. on Aug. 26, 2023, on a Falcon 9 rocket from NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida. About 30 hours later, Dragon docked to the Harmony module’s space-facing port. Crew-7 undocked at 11:20 a.m. Monday, March 11, to begin the trip home.

Moghbeli, Mogensen, Furukawa, and Borisov traveled 84,434,094 miles during their mission, spent 197 days aboard the space station, and completed 3,184 orbits around Earth. The Crew-7 mission was the first spaceflight for Moghbeli and Borisov. Mogensen has logged 209 days in space over his two flights, and Furukawa has logged 366 days in space over his two flights.

[A thermal screenshot showing the successfully deployed four parachutes of the Dragon Capsule as it makes its descent on March 12]
(Image credit: NASA)

Throughout their mission, the Crew-7 members contributed to a host of science and maintenance activities and technology demonstrations, including a number of ARISS amateur radio contacts. Moghbeli conducted one spacewalk, joined by NASA astronaut Loral O’Hara, replacing one of the 12 trundle bearing assemblies on the port solar alpha rotary joint, which allows the arrays to track the Sun and generate electricity to power the station.

The crew contributed to hundreds of experiments and technology demonstrations, including the first study of human response to different spaceflight durations, and an experiment growing food on the space station.

This was the third flight of the Dragon spacecraft, named Endurance. It also previously supported the Crew-3 and Crew-5 missions. The spacecraft will return to Florida for inspection and processing at SpaceX’s refurbishing facility at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station, where teams will inspect the Dragon, analyze data on its performance, and process it for its next flight.

The Crew-7 flight is part of NASA’s Commercial Crew Program and its return to Earth follows on the heels of NASA’s SpaceX Crew-8 launch, which docked to the station March 5, beginning another science expedition. That crew consists of Matthew Dominick, KCØTOR, Michael Barratt, KD5MIJ, Jeanette Epps, KF5QNU, and Alexander Grebenkin, RZ3DSE.

[ANS thanks NASA for the above information.]

ARISS NEWS

Second Chance School of Orestiada, Orestiada, Greece, telebridge via VK4KHZ
The ISS callsign is presently scheduled to be NA1SS
The scheduled crewmember is Loral O’Hara KI5TOM, Mike Barratt, KD5MIJ (Observing)
The Moderator is scheduled to be Will KW4WZ
The ARISS mentor is IKØWGF
Contact is go for: Wed 2024-03-20 17:45:54 UTC 60 deg
Watch for Livestream at https://youtube.com/@sdeorestiadas9736?si=RPdn0JxEjpbK2Rhx

Amur State University, Blagoveshchensk, Russia, direct via TBD
The ISS callsign is presently scheduled to be RSØISS
The scheduled crewmember is Aleksandr Grebyonkin, RZ3DSE
The ARISS mentor is RV3DR
Contact is go for Mon 2024-03-25 08:40 UTC

Kursk, Russia, direct via TBD
The ISS callsign is presently scheduled to be RSØISS
The scheduled crewmember is Aleksandr Grebyonkin, RZ3DSE
The ARISS mentor is RV3DR
Contact is go for Wed 2024-03-27 14:55 UTC

Ufa, Russia, direct via TBD
The ISS callsign is presently scheduled to be RSØISS
The scheduled crewmember is Marina Vasilevskaya
The ARISS mentor is RV3DR
Contact is go for Fri 2024-03-29 16:20 UTC

The crossband repeater is active (145.990 MHz up {PL 67} & 437.800 MHz down). If any crewmember is so inclined, all they have to do is pick up the microphone, raise the volume up, and talk on the crossband repeater. So give a listen, you just never know.

The packet system is currently misconfigured (145.825 MHz up & down). The SSTV system is currently stowed.

As always, if there is an EVA, a docking, or an undocking; the ARISS radios are turned off as part of the safety protocol.

Note, all times are approximate. It is recommended that you do your own orbital prediction or start listening about 10 minutes before the listed time.

The latest information on the operation mode can be found at https://www.ariss.org/current-status-of-iss-stations.html

The latest list of frequencies in use can be found at https://www.ariss.org/contact-the-iss.html

[ANS thanks Charlie Sufana, AJ9N, one of the ARISS operation team mentors for the above information.]

Upcoming Satellite Operations

Jay Stephenson, WA1JAY, pays a visit to Paradise Isl. from March 15 to April 2. QRV as C6A/WA1JAY on HF (SSB, FT4/8) and via FM satellites. QSL via ClubLog OQRS, LoTW.

F4DXV Jérôme (@F4DXV) and EA4NF Philippe (@EA4NF_SAT) announce that they will be actívating Noirmoutier island EU-064 IN86 from April 1 to 4, 2024 with the special callsign TM4J. This International DXpedition is the 1st 100% SAT from this French island:
LEO (FM+SSB)
GEO (QO-100)
MEO (GREENCUBE IO-117)
Updates available on @TM4J_SAT

Please submit any additions or corrections to k5zm (at) comcast (dot) net.

[ANS thanks Ian Parsons, K5ZM, AMSAT rover page manager, for the above information.]

Hamfests, Conventions, Maker Faires, and Other Events

AMSAT Ambassadors provide presentations, demonstrate communicating through amateur satellites, and host information tables at club meetings, hamfests, conventions, maker faires, and other events.

AMSAT-Francophone Seventh Amateur Radio Space Meeting
Saturday March 16th – Sunday March 17th
Electrolab Hackerspace à Nanterre
52 Rue Paul Lescop
92000 Nanterre, France
https://site.amsat-f.org/

JAMSAT Symposium 2024
Saturday March 23rd – Sunday March 24th
Hotel Binario Saga Arashiyama
3-4 Hiromichicho, Saga Tenryuji, Ukyo Ward
Sagano, Kyoto, Japan
https://www.jamsat.or.jp/?p=2446

Raleigh NC Hamfest
Saturday, 6 April 2024
Jim Graham Building, NC State Fairgrounds
https://www.rarsfest.org/

2024 CubeSat Developer’s Workshop
Tuesday April 23rd – Thursday April 25th
Cal Poly, San Luis Obispo, CA
https://www.cubesatdw.org/

Dayton Hamvention 2024
Friday May 17th – Sunday May 19th
Greene County Fairgrounds and Expo Center
120 Fairground Road
Xenia, OH 45385
https://hamvention.org

[ANS thanks the AMSAT Events page for the above information.]

Satellite Shorts From All Over

+ NASA has terminated its OSAM-1 mission, a multibillion-dollar endeavor aimed at showcasing robotic satellite servicing technology in space, due to ongoing technical, cost, and schedule challenges. Originally intended to demonstrate satellite refueling, the mission expanded to include in-orbit assembly, incorporating a 16-foot robotic arm named SPIDER. Despite significant congressional funding, the project faced continual delays and ballooning costs, reaching $1.5 billion with an estimated additional cost of nearly $1 billion for launch. Changes in the satellite servicing market, with a shift towards alternative technologies like Northrop Grumman’s Mission Extension Vehicle, contributed to the cancellation. Maxar, the prime contractor for OSAM-1, faced criticism for poor performance, leading to delays and cost overruns, although the company cited other factors like the COVID-19 pandemic. The cancellation impacts approximately 450 workers at NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center, prompting NASA to review strategies to mitigate workforce impacts and consider alternative uses for developed technologies. (ANS thanks Ars Technica, for the above information.)

+ China’s human spaceflight agency, CMSA, is progressing towards its goal of landing astronauts on the moon before 2030. The spacecraft developed for this purpose has been named Mengzhou, translating to “Dream Vessel,” for lunar missions, and Lanyue, meaning “Embracing the Moon,” for orbital travel. These names were selected through a public contest, with Mengzhou having a variant for low Earth orbit (LEO) carrying seven astronauts and a moon version transporting three astronauts into lunar orbit. The China Aerospace Science and Technology Corporation (CASC) is designing and building the spacecraft and lander, along with a new rocket, the Long March 10. The moon landing plan involves two Long March 10 rockets launching Mengzhou and Lanyue, rendezvousing in lunar orbit, with astronauts descending to the lunar surface. A 440-pound crew rover will accompany the lunar lander. Progress on various mission hardware is reportedly on track, including completed development of the primary spacecraft and technical proposals for launch and landing sites. Recently, models of the rocket, spacecraft, and lander were showcased at an exhibition in Shanghai. (ANS thanks Space.com, for the above information.)

+ U.S. regulators have approved ground rules for allowing SpaceX and other satellite operators to use radio waves from terrestrial mobile partners to keep smartphone users connected outside cell tower coverage. The Federal Communications Commission voted March 14 unanimously in favor of its Supplemental Coverage from Space (SCS) regulatory framework. SCS providers would operate as a secondary service to companies providing Mobile Satellite Services (MSS) with conventional frequencies already approved for use from space. This means an SCS operator would have to immediately cease operations if they interfere with an MSS provider or terrestrial telco with primary rights. (ANS thanks SpaceNews for the above information.)

+ A rocket made by a Japanese company exploded seconds after launch on Wednesday, in a spectacular failure for the start-up’s bid to put a satellite into orbit. Tokyo-based Space One’s 18-metre (60-foot) Kairos rocket blasted off in the coastal Wakayama region of western Japan, carrying a small government test satellite. But around five seconds later, the solid-fuel rocket erupted in fire, sending white smoke billowing around the remote mountainous area as orange flames raged on the ground, live footage showed. Space One said it had taken the decision to “abort the flight” and details were being investigated. (ANS thanks Space Daily for the above information.)

Join AMSAT today at https://launch.amsat.org/

In addition to regular membership, AMSAT offers membership to:

Contact info [at] amsat.org for additional membership information.

73 and remember to help Keep Amateur Radio in Space!

This week’s ANS Editor, Mark Johns, KØJM
k0jm [at] amsat.org

ANS-049 AMSAT News Service Weekly Bulletins

February 18, 2024February 18, 2024 by Mark Johns

In this edition:

* SpaceX Delays Crew-8 Astronaut Launch to Make Way for Private Moon Mission
* Upcoming Rideshare Launch to Include Amateur Payloads
* Bill Introduced to Eliminate Private Land Use Restrictions on Amateur Radio
* Small Launch Companies Seek Niches to Compete With SpaceX Rideshare
* Changes to AMSAT-NA TLE Distribution for February 16
* ARISS News
* Upcoming Satellite Operations
* Hamfests, Conventions, Maker Faires, and Other Events
* Satellite Shorts From All Over

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

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

You can sign up for free e-mail delivery of the AMSAT News Service Bulletins via the ANS List; to join this list see: https://mailman.amsat.org/postorius/lists/ans.amsat.org/

ANS-049 AMSAT News Service Weekly Bulletins

To: All RADIO AMATEURS
From: Radio Amateur Satellite Corporation
712 H Street NE, Suite 1653
Washington, DC 20002

DATE 2024 Feb 18

SpaceX Delays Crew-8 Astronaut Launch to Make Way for Private Moon Mission

NASA’s next astronaut launch will delay nearly a week to let a moon mission leave Earth first.

NASA’s Crew-8 astronauts, who will launch on a SpaceX Crew Dragon, will fly to space no earlier than Feb. 28. The delay from Feb. 22 will make room for the expected launch of Intuitive Machines’ moon lander from the same launch pad at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida.

Odysseus, a robotic lunar lander built by the Houston-based company Intuitive Machines, lifted off atop a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket from NASA’s Kennedy Space Center (KSC) in Florida early in the morning on Thursday, Feb. 15.

If all goes according to plan, Odysseus (designated IM-1) will touch down near the moon’s south pole on Feb. 22, becoming the first-ever private spacecraft to ace a lunar landing. Success would also be a big deal for the United States, which hasn’t been to the lunar surface since NASA’s Apollo 17 mission more than half a century ago.

“NASA and SpaceX will continue to assess Crew-8 readiness and may adjust the Crew-8 launch date following a successful IM-1 launch,” agency officials wrote in a statement on Feb. 13, while announcing the delay. The astronaut mission will serve as relief for Crew-7, which flew to space on Aug. 26 for an International Space Station mission expected to last six or seven months.

SpaceX Crew-8 crew. From left to right: Roscosmos cosmonaut Alexander Grebenkin, NASA astronaut Michael Barratt, KD5MIJ, NASA astronaut Matthew Dominick, KCØTOR, and NASA astronaut Jeanette Epps, KF5QNU.

Crew-8 includes NASA astronauts Matthew Dominick, KCØTOR (commander), Michael Barratt, KD5MIJ (pilot), and Jeanette Epps, KF5QNU (mission specialist), along with Roscosmos cosmonaut and mission specialist Alexander Grebenkin.

Both the ISS crew and the IM-1 launch are using a pad SpaceX leases at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center. The moon mission has a fairly narrow launch window as the IM-1 lander needs specific landing conditions to land at the lunar south pole, which is part of why the launch date for Crew-8 may be adjusted.

Crew-8, as the name implies, is the eighth crewed operational mission by SpaceX that sends commercial crews to the ISS on NASA’s behalf. Starliner, the second vendor, may fly its first test crew in mid-April 2024.

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

The 2024 AMSAT President’s Club coins are here now!
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Join the AMSAT President’s Club today and help
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Upcoming Rideshare Launch to Include Amateur Payloads

The SpaceX F9 Transporter-10 Rideshare mission has been scheduled for launch on 1 March 2024. In addition to a half dozen commercial payloads, two amateur satellites are on the launch manifest: SONATE-2 from Germany and CroCube from Croatia.

SONATE-2

SONATE-2 is a 6U+ CubeSat designed and built by the University of Wuerzburg in Germany. As for many university satellites, the mission objectives of the SONATE-2 satellite can be divided into three different parts:
– The operation of an amateur radio payload
– The development and operation of the satellite for the education of students.
– The operation of a novel payload as a technology demonstration in space.

The amateur payload of SONATE-2 consists of a VHF transceiver that was already built for the predecessor mission SONATE over the course of several student theses. For SONATE-2 additional student theses extended the transceiver functionalities. It will provide regular SSTV downlinks with images from the optical sensors included in the AI payload as well as an APRS digipeater and CW beacon.

On the education side, the mission will serve as a foundation for different aspects of the university aerospace and computer science engineering program. In the context of practical courses, theses or as student assistants, students can participate in the development of all subsystems of the space and ground segment, including the amateur radio payload and the technology demonstration payload. In the context of mandatory lectures and exercises on space operations every student will also be included in the operations of the satellite. The German Aerospace Center (DLR) offers a School Lab for high school students at the location of our external ground station in Neustrelitz, Germany.

Besides experiments on space and satellites, the School Lab includes amateur radio contacts to the ISS under the supervision of licensed local radio amateurs, which they wish to extend to other satellites like in this cooperation with the SONATE-2 mission.

In addition to the amateur and educational mission parts, the SONATE-2 mission also has a research objective for the demonstration of novel artificial intelligence technology in the space environments. While the AI payload is mainly operated using a separate up/downlink in the space operation service in S-band, the satellite bus and the amateur payloads are operated in the amateur service. Housekeeping telemetry in the amateur service also contains status information of the non-amateur payload.

Proposing CW, SSTV using Martin M1 and APRS downlinks on VHF and a 9k6 G3RUH AX25 telemetry downlink on UHF. Planning a launch into a 550 km Sun-Synchronous Orbit (SSO). More info at https://go.uniwue.de/hk. Downlinks on 437.025 MHz, 145.825 MHz, 145.840 MHz and 145.880 MHz have been coordinated by the International Amateur Radio Union (IARU).

CroCube

CroCube is a 1U CubeSat mission to support the Croatian, but also worldwide amateur radio community with many HAM services and activities. The mission’s goal is also to facilitate the technological development of Croatia, create an advanced society focused on prosperity and innovation, and increase participation in the global space sector. Also, drive Croatia into the space era, increase interest in astronomy and space projects, and develop STEM and tech entrepreneurship, create a platform for founding a space center in Croatia, increase investments and employment in robotics, technology and ICT and finally reduce unemployment and prevent brain drain.

The CroCube satellite is designed for HAM radio activities. The main purpose is to provide services for radio amateurs in Croatia and worldwide, and also for students of technical universities to get hands-on experience with satellite communication and get radioamateur licences. One of the project goals is to popularize HAM activities across the common population, students and children in Croatia.

CroCube will provide these HAM services:
– AX.25 telemetry
– CW beacon
– Digipeater
– Anniversary/special occasions AX.25 & CW messages for community engagement
– Experimental SSDV transmissions
– SATNOGS integration, decoder, dashboard

Proposing a UHF downlink using 9k6 G3RUH GFSK with AX25 telemetry. Planning an Exolaunch deployment into a 510 km SSO. More info at https://drustvo-evo.hr . A downlink on 436.775 MHz has been coordinated by IARU.

[ANS thanks Libre Space, Jan van Gils, PE0SAT, and IARU for the above information]

Need new satellite antennas? Purchase M2 LEO-Packs
from the AMSAT Store. When you purchase through
AMSAT, a portion of the proceeds goes towards
Keeping Amateur Radio in Space.
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Bill Introduced to Eliminate Private Land Use Restrictions on Amateur Radio

U.S. Senators Roger Wicker (MS) and Richard Blumenthal (CT) introduced S.3690 on January 30, 2024, the Senate companion bill to H.R.4006, introduced last June. Both bills reflect the Congressional campaign efforts by ARRL to eliminate homeowner association land use restrictions that prohibit, restrict, or impair the ability of an Amateur Radio Operator to install and operate amateur station antennas on residential properties they own.

Amateur Radio Operators repeatedly are relied upon to provide essential communications when disaster strikes, but their ability to do so is being impaired by the exponential growth of residential private land use restrictions that hinder their ability to establish stations in their homes with which to train and provide emergency communications when called upon.

In announcing the introduction of S.3690, Senator Wicker said: “Because communication during natural disasters is often hindered, we should be making every attempt to give folks more options. Reliable access can make the difference between life and death in an emergency. Our legislation removes roadblocks for amateur radio operators looking to help their friends, families, and neighbors.”

In a similar announcement, Senator Blumenthal stated: “Our measure will help clarify the rules so ham radio enthusiasts can successfully continue their communications.

In the face of emergency or crisis, they help provide vital, life-saving information that allow listeners to properly and safely respond, but prohibitive home association rules and confusing approval processes for installing antennas have been an unnecessary impediment. The Amateur Radio Emergency Preparedness Act resolves these bottlenecks and ensures that radio operators can function successfully.”

ARRL President Rick Roderick, K5UR, and Director John Robert Stratton, N5AUS, Chair of the ARRL’s Government Affairs Committee, both extended on behalf of ARRL, its Members, and the Amateur Radio community their thanks and appreciation for the leadership of Senator Wicker and Senator Blumenthal in their continuing efforts to support and protect the rights of all Amateur Radio Operators.

[ANS thanks ARRL News for the above information]

Small Launch Companies Seek Niches to Compete With SpaceX Rideshare

Small launch vehicle developers are working to carve out niches in a market for smallsat launches that is increasingly dominated by SpaceX’s Transporter rideshare missions.

The Transporter missions, which fill a Falcon 9 often with more than 100 smallsats, offer per-kilogram prices significantly below dedicated small launch vehicles. SpaceX has seen high demand for those missions and announced plans last year for a related line of missions called Bandwagon that will go to mid-inclination orbits.

“The Transporter program was created a few years ago with, in my opinion, the sole purpose of trying to kill new entrants like us,” said Sandy Tirtey, director of global commercial launch services at Rocket Lab, during a panel at the SmallSat Symposium in Mountain View, Calif. on Feb. 7. “Yet, we are still flying because we offer something unique.”

That uniqueness, he argued, is the ability to fly missions to specific orbits not served by Transporter rideshare missions. An example is Rocket Lab’s next Electron launch, which will place into orbit the ADRAS-J inspector satellite for Astroscale. That mission requires a specific, precise orbit so that ADRAS-J can rendezvous with a derelict Japanese upper stage.

A Rocket Lab Electron launched four smallsats for NorthStar Earth and Space Jan. 31. Credit: Rocket Lab

“Electron is really the only vehicle capable of delivering such a complex mission on an expedited timeline,” Peter Beck, chief executive of Rocket Lab, said in a Feb. 7 statement about the launch, scheduled for Feb. 19 (New Zealand time). Rocket Lab said the specific launch time will be determined just a day before launch, with a near-instantaneous launch window.

“Most of the missions that we fly are enabled by the fact that we offer dedicated services,” Tirtey said, citing the upcoming ADRAS-J launch. “There is no way you could do this on a rideshare.”

Other panelists said they are targeting customers with specific requirements or needs that make them less price-sensitive than those who opt for the less expensive Transporter launches. That includes dedicated orbits and high reliability, said Pablo Gallego, senior vice president of sales and customers at Spanish launch company PLD Space. “We are offering a premium service for the ones that are willing to pay.”

That argument, though, is in danger of being undercut by the combination of rideshare launches and orbital transfer vehicles (OTVs), which can take satellites to their desired orbit after being deployed from a Transporter or similar launch. Several companies are offering such vehicles and using them on Transporter launches.

While that combination may still be less expensive than dedicated launches, it still doesn’t offer sufficient flexibility, launch providers argued. “We are excited to partner with a lot of OTV providers in providing that service to our customers, but it comes down to performance and how quickly you can get there,” said Robert Sproles, chief technology officer of launch services company Exolaunch. “If it takes you multiple months on orbit to get to that final destination, there’s a strong argument to be made to going dedicated.”

Tirtey said that maneuvers that require plane changes can take months to complete, adding that current OTV providers have yet to demonstrate the ability to perform such complex maneuvers. “It could be useful, but you can’t expect a revolution because of physics.”

However, on another panel at the conference Feb. 6, industry officials said they see challenges for small launch vehicles coming from SpaceX’s Starship, which promises much greater performance at significantly lower prices. “If you’re a smallsat company, your business model should be looking forward to the model of the Starship rideshare,” a scaled-up version of Falcon 9 rideshare, said Abhishek Tripathi, director of mission operations at the University of California Berkeley’s Space Sciences Lab and who previously worked at SpaceX.

He said that the introduction of Starship could change how spacecraft are designed, allowing the use of heavier but cheaper materials and components. “You can throw mass and power and volume at your problem and thereby scale up your satellite bus and still be cheap.”

[ANS thanks SpaceNews for the above information]

Want to fly the colors on your own grid expedition?
Get your AMSAT car flag and other neat stuff
from our Zazzle store!

25% of the purchase price of each product goes
towards Keeping Amateur Radio in Space
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Changes to AMSAT-NA TLE Distribution for February 16

Lume-1 NORAD Cat ID 43908 Decayed from orbit on or about 13 February 2024
FEES NORAD Cat ID 48082 Decayed from orbit on or about 12 February 2024

[ANS thanks AMSAT Orbital Elements page for the above information]

ARISS NEWS

COMPLETED CONTACTS
School TBD, Naro-Fominsk, Russia, direct via UB3AYC
The ISS callsign was RSØISS
The crewmember was Nikolay Chub
The ARISS mentor was RV3DR
Contact was successful for Thu 2024-02-15 08:22 UTC
Congratulations to the Naro-Fominsk students, Nikolay, and mentor RV3DR!

B. Russell High School, Rome, Italy, direct via IKØUSO
The ISS callsign was OR4ISS
The crewmember was Jasmin Moghbeli KI5WSL
The ARISS mentor was IKØUSO
Contact was successful: Thu 2024-02-15 11:32:10 UTC 54 deg
Congratulations to the B. Russell High School students, Jasmin, and mentor IKØUSO!
Watch for Livestream at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R0YEgMvzbn8

Immanuel Kant Baltic Federal University, Kaliningrad, Russia, direct via R2FDB
The ISS callsign was to be RSØISS
The crewmember was Konstantin Borisov
The ARISS mentor was RV3DR
Contact was successful for: Fri 2024-02-16 09:10 UTC
Congratulations to the Immanuel Kant Baltic Federal University students, Konstantin, and mentor RV3DR!

SCHEDULED CONTACTS
Girl Scout Troop 1089, Sacramento, CA, direct via N6NA
The ISS callsign is presently scheduled to be NA1SS
The scheduled crewmember is Loral O’Hara KI5TOM
The ARISS mentor is AA4KN
Contact is go for: Thu 2024-02-22 18:26:02 UTC 89 deg

The crossband repeater continues to be active (145.990 MHz up {PL 67} & 437.800 MHz down). If any crewmember is so inclined, all they have to do is pick up the microphone, raise the volume up, and talk on the crossband repeater. So give a listen, you just never know.

The packet system is also active (145.825 MHz up & down).

As always, if there is an EVA, a docking, or an undocking; the ARISS radios are turned off as part of the safety protocol.

Note, all times are approximate. It is recommended that you do your own orbital prediction or start listening about 10 minutes before the listed time.

The latest information on the operation mode can be found at https://www.ariss.org/current-status-of-iss-stations.html

The latest list of frequencies in use can be found at https://www.ariss.org/contact-the-iss.html

[ANS thanks Charlie Sufana, AJ9N, one of the ARISS operation team mentors for the above information]

Upcoming Satellite Operations

Jonathan Eernisse, N4AKV has been QRV from FM05/FM06 and FM15/FM16 this week. Both LEO and IO-117. Details available on hams.at

[ANS thanks Ian Parsons, K5ZM, AMSAT rover page manager, for the above information]

Hamfests, Conventions, Maker Faires, and Other Events

AMSAT Ambassadors provide presentations, demonstrate communicating through amateur satellites, and host information tables at club meetings, hamfests, conventions, maker faires, and other events.

+ 40th Anniversary Celebration of the Positive Impact of Amateur Radio on Human Spaceflight
Thursday February 22nd through Saturday February 24th, 2024
Center for Space Education: Astronauts Memorial Foundation
Kennedy Space Center, M6-306 405 State Road, FL 32899
https://www.ariss.org/overview.html

+ Dayton Hamvention 2024
Friday May 17th through Sunday May 19th, 2024
Greene County Fairgrounds and Expo Center
120 Fairground Road
Xenia, OH 45385
https://hamvention.org

[ANS thanks the AMSAT Events page for the above information]

Satellite Shorts From All Over

+ The JAMSAT Annual General Meeting and Symposium 2024 will be held in Sagano, Kyoto on 23-24 March 2024. To join the Symposium by ZOOM, please send e-mail to Ueda-san, [email protected], with your Callsign and Name by 16 March. He will send you invitation email including Zoom URL. If you are adept at reading Japanese (or have a good translation program) the latest edition of the JAMSAT Newsletter is packed with excellent articles, including a full report of satellite operations by the JAMSAT VK9QO DXpedition to Cocos (Keeling) Island, amateur transmissions from the moon by the SLIM LEV-1/LEV-2 landers, and a how-to on restoring a Yaesu G-5500 rotator. Visit the JAMSAT website at https://www.jamsat.or.jp/ to learn more. (ANS thanks Mikio Mouri, JA3GEP, JAMSAT Newsletter Editor, for the above information.)

+ An unspecified defect in early model Starlink satellites has prompted SpaceX to preemptively deorbit the units before they potentially fail and become hazards in low Earth orbit. The company has already initiated the disposal of 406 units from the nearly 6,000 satellites launched to date. Among these, 17 are currently non-maneuverable but are expected to naturally decay and eventually burn up in Earth’s atmosphere in the coming years. However, the decision to deorbit a large batch of approximately 100 satellites within a brief amount of time is certainly out of the ordinary. (ANS thanks Gismodo for the above information.)

+ The European Space Agency’s Cluster mission, which has spent 24 years revealing the secrets of Earth’s magnetic environment, is coming to an end. The first of the four satellites in the Cluster quartet, named ‘Salsa’, will reenter Earth’s atmosphere in September 2024. This month, spacecraft operators carried out a series of manoeuvres to ensure this reentry will take place over a sparsely populated region in the South Pacific. The end of the Cluster mission offers a rare chance to study the safe atmospheric reentry of four identical satellites under different conditions. (ANS thanks The European Space Agency for the above information.)

+ Copernicus, the Earth observation component of the European Union’s Space programme, has confirmed that January 2024 was the warmest January on record. Samantha Burgess, Deputy Director of the Copernicus Climate Change Service (C3S) said: “2024 starts with another record-breaking month – not only is it the warmest January on record but we have also just experienced a 12-month period [with a mean global average temperature] more than 1.5°C above the pre-industrial reference period. Rapid reductions in greenhouse gas emissions are the only way to stop global temperatures increasing.” (ANS thanks https://climate.copernicus.eu for the above information.)

+ Voyager 1, humanity’s most distant scientific outpost, is currently careening away from Earth at 17 kilometers every second and unable to transmit useful scientific or engineering data back to us across nearly a light-day of space. The problem with the 46-year-old spacecraft cropped up back in November, when Voyager started sending gibberish back to Earth. Flight controllers have determined that the problem lies within the one remaining flight data system (FDS) computer on board, most likely thanks to a single bit of corrupted memory. The team has tried rebooting the FDS, to no avail. With most of the engineers who originally built the spacecraft long gone now, the team is treading very carefully. (ANS thanks Hackaday for the above information.)

Join AMSAT today at https://launch.amsat.org/

In addition to regular membership, AMSAT offers membership to:

Contact info [at] amsat.org for additional membership information.

73 and remember to help Keep Amateur Radio in Space!

This week’s ANS Editor, Mark Johns, KØJM
k0jm [at] amsat.org