Archivos de la categoría AMSAT

AO-73 (FUNcube-1) – Image credit Wouter Weggelaar PA3WEG

After some eight months in continuous sunlight, FUNcube-1 has now started to see some eclipses during each orbit.

The telemetry received has shown that the spacecraft continued to function perfectly during this period and the on board temperatures did not reach excessively high levels.

After this became clear, our next concern was the battery. Having been kept fully charged for this period, would it actually hold a charge and do its job when in eclipse?

After three weeks of increasing eclipse periods we can now see that indeed the Li battery appears to be ok and the bus voltage has not yet dropped below 8.1 volts.

So today we have changed the operating mode from high power telemetry educational mode to continuous amateur mode withe the transponder ON. The telemetry continues to be available, albeit at low power.

We will, of course, continue to carefully monitor the data but are planning to leave the spacecraft in this mode for at least the next week. Please enjoy using it!

Thailand’s regulator, the National Broadcasting and Telecommunications Commission (NBTC), has issued the special callsign, E2STAYHOME, to the Radio Amateur Society of Thailand under the Royal Patronage of His Majesty the King (RAST) for use during the outbreak of the COVID-19 virus.

This is because it is very important for people to boost their immune systems to fight off germs that can enter their bodies and to reduce the chance of getting infected by the COVID-19 virus. Now, it is very important to stay home and to keep a distance of at least one metre from others, if this is possible, which is one way to help prevent the spread of the disease on a global basis.

This is a rare opportunity for ham radio operators who are interested in satellite communications to legally communicate with Thai amateur radio stations by means of the Es’hail-2 or QO-100 geostationary satellite which licensed by the Thai regulator, the NBTC, in response to requests from RAST, and using the special callsign E2STAYHOME on the evenings of each working day in Thailand and on every weekend.

The operating schedule is as follows:
Monday to Friday, 1100 – 1500 UTC
Saturday and Sunday, 0800 – 1500 UTC
all days after 1600 UTC and up to 2200 UTC Thailand has an emergency curfew in place. Please STAY HOME!!

During these times, Thai hams will be operating using this callsign on all bands and in all modes, including all satellite modes under the supervision of the Radio Amateur Society of Thailand (RAST) in an effort to help prevent the spread of COVID-19 and they will be QRV from today until July 15, 2020. QSOs with E2STAYHOME can be confirmed via Tim W. Tadsri, HS6MYW and QSL cards will be sent to all via the bureau.

73 de HS1JAN
Tanan Rangseeprom

AMSAT Bulletin Board http://www.amsat.org/mailman/listinfo/amsat-bb

RAST https://www.qsl.net/rast/

5 watt 2400 MHz Amplifier Kit

The AMSAT-UK shop has fresh stocks of the popular 5 watt 2.4 GHz amplifier kit for use with the QO-100 geostationary satellite.

The amplifier was designed by Kurt Moraw DJ0ABR and the kit was implemented by Arved Viehweger M0KDS.

The kit includes a single sided PCB on which is already mounted the PA transistor, there is a suitable heat sink on which to mount the PCB with the provided screws. All electronic components are included as are 2 SMA sockets. Assembly of the kits will require some surface mount components to be soldered to the PCB.

Note: It does not include a case for the unit and a separate 24 volt power supply will be required.

Kit details at https://shop.amsat-uk.org/QO-100_5W_Amplifier_Kit_designed_by_DJ0ABR_and_implemented_by_M0KDS/p3815740_20307881.aspx

Assembled PCB https://shop.amsat-uk.org/product/u-100ampassembled

QO-100 information https://amsat-uk.org/satellites/geo/eshail-2/

Radio amateur and Executive Chairman of SSTL, Sir Martin Sweeting G3YJO, has recorded a series of home videos from Coronavirus lockdown to record answers to the questions he is most frequently asked.

In this episode he talks about his inspiration for pioneering the original SmallSats revolution and reveals two of his favourite SSTL missions.

Watch Sir Martin Sweeting G3YJO – early years & favourite missions

What is Amateur Radio? http://www.essexham.co.uk/what-is-amateur-radio

Free UK amateur radio online training courses and FAQ that describes how to apply to take the Foundation exam online from your own home
http://www.southgatearc.org/news/2020/april/online-training-for-amateur-radio.htm

AMSAT-UK https://amsat-uk.org/
https://twitter.com/AmsatUK

Artist’s impression of HuskySat-1 in Space

After a week of testing, the transponder on HuskySat-1 is enabled and open for use and testing. It’s fairly sensitive, and 5-10 watts is plenty most of the time. There are some fades due to satellite orientation, and some passes are definitely better than others. The operations and engineering teams are also watching a few anomalies. Please keep an eye on the beacon during transponder ops, for those with spectrum scopes. Strong signals may impact the beacon strength.

HuskySat-1 CubeSat

HuskySat-1 is the Husky Satellite Lab at University of Washington’s first cubesat, and the first mission with AMSAT’s linear transponder module (LTM-1), a V/u transponder and integrated telemetry beacon and command receiver. UW recently completed their Part 5 operations and have graciously let AMSAT’s Part 97 transponder operations commence. This transponder module is available for use in educational cubesat missions willing to enable the transponder for worldwide use. Contact Drew KO4MA or VP Engineering Jerry Buxton N0JY for additional details.

Reports and observations are welcome to the Amsat-BB mailing list.

Congratulations to Husky Satellite Lab, and to the entire AMSAT Engineering team for keeping amateur radio in space. Thanks to Dr. Mark Hammond, N8MH for commissioning and operations support.

73, Drew KO4MA
AMSAT VP Operations

HuskySat-1 V/u inverting transponder, 145.910 to 145.940 uplink, 435.810 to 435.840 downlink, telemetry beacon 1200 baud BPSK at 435.800

HuskySat-1 Boards