The launch from India of AMSAT-NA’s Fox-1D CubeSat will take place on January 12 (UTC). The Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle (PSLV) flight had to be rescheduled from December 30. AMSAT Vice-President Engineering Jerry Buxton, N0JY, delivered Fox-1D to Spaceflight Inc in Seattle last November for integration.
In addition to a Fox-1 U/V FM transponder, Fox-1D will carry several university experiments, including a MEMS gyro from Pennsylvania State University-Erie, a camera from Virginia Tech, and the University of Iowa’s High Energy Radiation CubeSat Instrument (HERCI) radiation mapping experiment. Fox-1D also carries the AMSAT “L-Band Downshifter,” which gives the option of utilizing a 1.2 GHz uplink for the FM transponder. The Fox-1D downlink will be on 145.880 MHz, and uplinks will be on 435.350 and 1,267.350 MHz (67 Hz CTCSS), switchable.
In addition to the Fox-1D Amateur Radio payload, the PSLV will carry the French PicSat, which carries a V/U FM transponder. PicSat will perform space observations. The transponder uplink is 145.910 MHz, the downlink is 435.525 MHz. Some 30 smaller secondary payloads from India, the US, and other international entities will also be on the launch, AMSAT News Service has reported.
AMSAT said it will release Fox-1D’s Keplerian elements on its website as soon as they are known, and it’s seeking telemetry data on the CubeSat to assist with commissioning.
“Participation in telemetry collection by as many stations in as many parts of the world as possible is essential as AMSAT Engineering looks for successful startup and indications of the general health and function of the satellite as it begins to acclimate to space,” AMSAT said over the weekend. AMSAT advised those capturing telemetry using the FoxTelem software to check the “Upload to Server” option and to complete the “Ground Station Params” section. If AMSAT Engineering sees nominal values from the telemetry gathered, Fox-1D will be commanded from Beacon Mode to Safe Mode on the first good pass over the US. AMSAT said the on-orbit checkout procedure could be completed in a few days. AMSAT asks the Amateur Satellite community to refrain from using the transponder uplink while on-orbit testing is under way.
Meanwhile, AMSAT-UK reports that China will launch Hunan Amateur Radio Society’s constellation of five similar 6U CubeSat spacecraft on January 17 from its Jiuquan Space Center. Identified as TY-2 through TY-6, the satellites will carry out ionospheric transmission-detection experiments, in addition to Amateur Radio HF/VHF/UHF re-transmitting experiments in any narrow-band mode.
The constellation will also carry out inter-satellite communication experiments that include Amateur Radio loads, Li-Fi high-speed LED digital downlink, and CW lamp signal communication experiments. Downlinks are on 70 centimeters using 9.6 kbps GMSK and on 2.4 GHz and 5.8 GHz using 5 Mbps OFDM.
Source:ARRL
Antenna
Super Versa Xseries Antenna [ Japan ] 11 and 8 elemets HF Antenna
Type number KA1-211X KA1-408X KA1-411X Gain table / size Frequency (MHz) 14-50 7-50 7-50 The total number of elements 11 Elements 8 Elements 11 Elemen... Read more
Long Range Wi-Fi Dish Antenna by AB9IL
Long Range Wi-fi Dish Antenna THIS INEXPENSIVE WI-FI DISH ANTENNA OUTPERFORMS ALL OTHERS! Presented here is a project showing how to convert common sa... Read more
5 element TRI-BANDER – HB35c – Tet Emtron
Description The HB35C utilises the most advanced three-band antenna design developed in recent years. This phase tuned 5 element TRI-BANDER is neither... Read more
MFJ-1835 Cobweb assembly by two beginners
Danielle’s back!! This time she’s hosting the show and got a little help from her friends to put together an MFJ-1835 Cobweb antenna Read more
Building Coaxial Cable Traps by W8WWV
“ “Introduction This page describes the design and construction materials I used to build a coaxial cable trap. A coaxial cable tr... Read more
Review
Anytone AT-D578UV Pro Quick Review with Katie WY7YL
“The Anytone AT-D578UV Pro is a mobile, dual-band, analog and DMR radio. With tons of features in a nice compact build, it’s sure to be a... Read more
Sending CW With a Straight Key–Morse Code
Jim, W6LG discusses how to send with a straight key using a World War II telegraph key. Also, a brief portion of a video on how to send Morse Code wit... Read more
MFJ-1924 Programmable Screwdriver Antenna Controller
Programmable Screwdriver Antenna Controller 10 Memories. . . Super Accurate. . . AutoPark . . . StallProtector. . . Super bright LEDs Tuning your mobi... Read more
KB8O Demonstrates Receive 4-Square on 160m
Jay Pecora, KB8O from Elyria, OH demonstrates his DX Engineering Receive Four-Square system on 160 meters. Read more
VHF
Amateur Radio Guide to Digital Mobile Radio (DMR) by W2XAB
What is DMR? Digital Mobile Radio (DMR) was developed by the European Telecommunications Standards Institute (ETSI) and is used worldwide by pr... Read more
New ! BIG TAJFUN 1000 144 MHz – 1KW
Description New robust Heatsinks – Fischer. Continuous 900W DIGI-modes. Quiet fans. TAJFUN 1000 is small, lightweight but robus LDMOS Power Ampl... Read more
Icom IC-2730A vs IC-2720
Ray Novak and George Thomas compare the IC-2730A to it’s predecessor, the IC-2720. Read more
VR-P25 Power Amplifier for Handheld Radios
VR-P25 is a portable, lightweight, Wide coverage RF booster amplifier for Handheld Radio equipment, proprietary and emerging waveforms. Two Way Radio... Read more
App - Mobile
Tutorial – Using the new routing function in RT Systems featuring RFinder
Once again RFinder and RT Systems have partnered to kick radio programming up a notch. This tutorial will show you how to get the most o... Read more
EchoLink for iOS version 2.6.14 is now available
EchoLink for iOS version 2.6.14 is now available in the App Store. This is a 64-bit build that is fully compatible with iOS 10 and modern iOS devices.... Read more
AmsatDroidFree now open source
AmsatDroidFree satellite tracking App for Android devices is now open source. This App predicts future passes for amateur radio satellites for a speci... Read more
New! RemoteHamRadio App
Hold a mega-station in the palm of your hand. Wherever you are, you can work DX and log it. Operate from our 18 unique stations to snag a new country,... Read more
Nifty app uses Morse code to send Apple Watch messages
Although there are ways of messaging people with the Apple Watch — either with Siri dictation, or using pre-written responses and emojis — as far as I... Read more