SB SAT @ AMSAT $ANS-114.01 ARSENE LAUNCH DELAYED! HR AMSAT NEWS SERVICE BULLETIN 114.01 FROM AMSAT HQ SILVER SPRING, MD APRIL 24, 1993 TO ALL RADIO AMATEURS BT BID: $ANS-114.01 ASTRA-1C Antenna Damaged Delays ARSENE Launch Until Early May The AMSAT News Service (ANS) has recieved information from F6BVP that the launch of the ARSENE-OSCAR satellite has been delayed until early May. Although the details are rather sketchy right now, it appears that an omni- direction antenna was damaged on the main payload, ASTRA-1C, during handling. At the present time, the ASTRA-1C satellite manufacturer, HUGHS, is making a determination how best to proceed with the repair and/or replacement. The first estimates of the repair and/or replacement of the ASTRA-1C antenna show it might be anywhere from 10 days to 3 weeks. The length of the delay depends on whether the antenna can be repaired or it has to be replaced. As soon as this information becomes available, F6BVP will make it known to the entire amateur radio community as quickly as possible. Please stay tunned to the AMSAT News Service (ANS) bulletins for any further updates on the launch of the ARSENE satellite. [The ANS would like to thank Bernard Pidoux (F6BVP), RACE Vice President for International Public Relations, for the information which went into this bulletin item.] /EX SB SAT @ AMSAT $ANS-114.02 STS-55 SET TO FLY 26-APR-93 HR AMSAT NEWS SERVICE BULLETIN 114.02 FROM AMSAT HQ SILVER SPRING, MD APRIL 24, 1993 TO ALL RADIO AMATEURS BT BID: $ANS-114.02 STS-56/SAREX Mission Launch Set For 26-APR-1993 The second Shuttle Amateur Radio Experiment (SAREX) is planned to lift off on 26-APR-93 at 14:52 UTC. This mission will utilize a the 2M voice/packet configuration of the SAREX payload. The following is the initial orbital elements for this mission and additional information about the mission from Frank Bauer (KA3HDO): 1 00055U 93116.66861589 .00120200 00000-0 36300-3 0 79 2 00055 28.4697 268.5815 0003812 314.2100 45.8202 15.90487610 22 Satellite: STS-55 Catalog number: 00055 Epoch time: 93116.66861589 = (26-APR-93 16:04:48.41 UTC) Element set: JSC-007 Inclination: 28.4697 deg RA of node: 268.5815 deg Space Shuttle Flight STS-55 Eccentricity: .0003812 Prelaunch Keplerian Elements Arg of perigee: 314.2100 deg Launch: 26-APR-93 14:50 UTC Mean anomaly: 45.8202 deg Mean motion: 15.90487610 rev/day G.L. Carman (WA5NOM) Decay rate: 1.2020e-03 rev/day*2 NASA Johnson Space Center Epoch rev: 2 The seven person crew on STS-55 includes ham radio operators Steve Nagel (N5RAW), Jerry Ross (N5SCW), Charlie Precourt (KB5YSQ), Hans Schlegel, (DG1KIH) and Ulrich Walter (DG1KIM). SAREX operations planned on this flight includes 2M voice and packet. The primary voice callsign will be N5RAW. The packet radio callsign is W5RRR-1. The 2M FM voice and packet downlinks for the SAREX station are on 145.550 MHz. Uplinks are: Voice Packet Europe 144.80 144.49 144.75 144.70 Rest of World 144.99 144.49 144.97 144.95 144.93 144.91 Note: The crew will not favor any specific voice uplink frequency, so your ability to communicate with SAREX will be the "luck of the draw." For all operations, Earth stations should listen to the downlink frequency and transmit only when the Shuttle is in range and the astronauts are on the air. Listen for any instructions from the astronauts as to specific uplink frequencies in use during the current pass. Also, listen to the uplink frequencies before transmitting to avoid interference to other users. In addition to the U.S. SAREX ham gear in the Shuttle mid-deck, an additional ham radio station will be flown in the German spacelab module. This station, designated SAFEX (for Spacelab Amateurfunk-Experiment), includes a 2M FM downlink and a 70CM FM uplink capability. A dual band (2M/70CM) external antenna, mounted on the German spacelab module, will be used for SAFEX contacts. Payload Specialists Schlegel and Walter expect to make a few scheduled contacts with European schools with this equipment. The externally mounted SAFEX antenna gives the SAREX team an opportunity to compare the performance of the U.S. SAREX window mounted antenna to an externally mounted antenna. A special A/B antenna test is planned on orbits 61 and 62 using the normal SAREX downlink frequency, 145.550 MHz. During orbit 61 the crew will transmit using the SAREX window antenna and on orbit 62 the crew will use the SAFEX external antenna. Individuals in the Southeastern U.S. are welcome to help participate in this test by taking signal strength readings of the received signal for both orbit passes. [The AMSAT News Service (ANS) would like to thank Frank Bauer (KA3HDO) for this bulletin item.] /EX SB SAT @ AMSAT $ANS-114.03 DUAL-HOP TEST PLANNED FOR AO-21 HR AMSAT NEWS SERVICE BULLETIN 114.03 FROM AMSAT HQ SILVER SPRING, MD APRIL 24, 1993 TO ALL RADIO AMATEURS BT BID: $ANS-114.03 Another Dual-Hop Test Planned Between AO-21 And RS-10 For 16-MAY-93 Another transatlantic dual-hop (DoHop) opportunity between RS-14/AO-21, Mode B, and RS-10, Mode A, is expected to take place on 16-MAY-93 from 16:22:12 to 16:27:32 UTC. In addition, the following orbit (at approxi- mately 18:04-18:11 UTC depending upon your location) will provide an outstanding opportunity for DoHop contacts over much of North America. The Russian Ground Command station has been requested to switch RS-14/AO-21 to Mode B, Transponder 2, during these orbits as well as several earlier ones during which there will be DoHop opportunities for European stations. Stations wishing to participate by transmitting are asked to uplink to RS-14/AO-21 using CW or LSB between 435.100 and 435.110 MHz, holding your uplink frequency constant. Call CQ DoHop or otherwise identify each transmission as DoHop. DoHop signals are likely to be much weaker than those from stations uplinking to RS-10 on 145 MHz; it will thus be apprec- iated if all stations refrain from uplinking to RS-10 on 2M during the few minutes of the DoHop tests in order to keep RS-10's sensitivity as high as possible; instead, please listen for DoHop stations on RS-10, Mode A. North American stations please report results via packet to W2RS @ WA2SNA.#NJ.USA.NA or via Internet to w2rs@amsat.org, and those in the UK and Europe to G0NKA @ GB7DTX.#26.GBR.EU. [The AMSAT News Service (ANS) would like to thank Ray Soifer (W2RS) for this bulletin item. /EX SB SAT @ AMSAT $ANS-114.04 AMSAT OPS NET SCHEDULE HR AMSAT NEWS SERVICE BULLETIN 114.04 FROM AMSAT HQ SILVER SPRING, MD APRIL 24, 1993 TO ALL RADIO AMATEURS BT BID: $ANS-114.04 AMSAT Operations Net Schedule AMSAT Operations Nets are planned for the following times. Mode B Nets are conducted on AO-13 on a downlink frequency of 145.950 MHz and Mode J/L on a downlink of 435.970 MHz. Date UTC Mode Phs NCS Alt NCS 02-May-93 0000 J 135 W9ODI N7NQM 9-May-93 0030 B 65 W5IU WA5ZIB 15-May-93 2030 B 148 WJ9F VE2LVC Any stations with information on current events would be most welcome. Also, those interested in discussing technical issues or who have questions about any particular aspect of OSCAR statellite operations are encouraged to join the OPS Nets. In the unlikely event that either the Net Control Station (NCS) or the alternate do not call on frequency, any participant is invited to act as the NCS. ************************************** Slow Scan Television on AO-13 SSTV sessions will be held on Saturdays and Sundays UTC: Mode J Downlink 435.980 MHz Mode B after J Downlink 145.960 MHz OPS NETS will take priority, look for SSTV activity immediately after the net. SSTVer's are invited to join the Net to make schedules at other times if desired. /EX SB SAT @ AMSAT $ANS-114.05 PHASE-3D INITIAL BANDPLAN HR AMSAT NEWS SERVICE BULLETIN 114.05 FROM AMSAT HQ SILVER SPRING, MD APRIL 24 1993 TO ALL RADIO AMATEURS BT BID: $ANS-114.05 PHASE-3D Satellite Frequencies At the Phase-3D transponder meeting in Muenchen, Germany the following frequencies were chosen for the Phase-3D satellite: Downlink frequencies (Satellite-to-Earth ) 1. 10 GHz ( 3CM ) 10.451000 - 10.451500 GHz 2. 2.4 GHz ( 13CM ) 2400.500 - 2400.900 MHz 3. 435 MHz ( 70CM ) 436.000 - 436.400 MHz 4. 29 MHz ( 10M ) 29.310/29.320/29.330/29.340/29.350 MHz one frequency selected by the control station. Uplink frequencies (Earth-to-Satellite ) 1. 1.2 GHz ( 23CM) A: 1269.000 - 1269.500 MHz B: 1269.500 - 1270.000 MHz 2. 435 MHz ( 70CM) A: 435.200 - 435.700 MHz B: 436.000 - 436.500 MHz 3. 145 MHz ( 2M) 145.800 - 145.975 MHz All bands except the 29 MHz band are switched in a matrix and allow any configuration of operational modes. Minor last minute changes or additions are still possible if necessary depending on transponder builders. A more detailed frequency plan will be distributed as soon as all final technical details are available. [The AMSAT NEWS SERVICE (ANS) would like to thank Freddy de Guchteneire (ON6UG), IARU Satellite Coordinator, for the information which went into this bulletin item.] /EX