************************************************************************** * * * THIS IS THE WD0GML-AMSAT-ST.LOUIS BBS 24HR 7DAY AT (314)447-3003 * * 300/1200/2400 BAUD * * Mike Parisey WD0GML SYSOP * * Norm Newman NZ0Z Co-SYSOP * * * ************************************************************************** SB ALL @ AMSAT $ANS-331.01 Mir Operations Continue HR AMSAT NEWS SERVICE BULLETIN 331.01 FROM AMSAT HQ SILVER SPRING, MD November 26, 1988 TO ALL RADIO AMATEURS BT Mir Operations Begin In Earnest Reports are coming in from all over the world about amateur radio contacts with Mir. Frequencies of operation have been anywhere 145.500 MHz to 145.600 MHz. Sometimes Musa, U2MIR, works SPLIT frequency but most of the time he works SIMPLEX, calling CQ in 145.550 and then tuning the range (if necessary) for a signal he can copy through the "silent pile-up" effect noted by previous hams in space during similar operations. During the early days of operation, Musa had some long QSOs with W4BIW, W2RS, N4HY and others, but now he mainly gives just short signal report exchanges in order to work as many stations as possible in the time available. The times of operation seem to vary. Musa is frequently on during the "wee hours" over the East Coast of North America, but has also been worked in Europe around 1900-1930 UTC. Junior, PY2BJO, of Sao Paulo, reports a QSO with Vlada, U1MIR, at 1930 UTC on the 24th. During a pass on Sunday Nov. 20th at 0615 UTC, Musa had a very strong signal over St. Louis, MO but Musa sounded quite exhausted when he QSO'ed with WD0GML. All due consideration should be given to the Cosmonauts in avoiding the hideous "pile-up" situations which are common experiences on HF. Short calls, no longer than "1x2", with plenty of listening in between, will be most effective. If possible, try to use a directional antenna, since this will maximize your signal at the spacecraft while lessening QRM for other listeners. It must also be mentioned that those wishing to work U2MIR must use a current set of Keplerian elements for their tracking programs. With the upcoming Soyuz TM-7 mission to the Mir Space Station complex, the Mir orbit will be changing enough to cause considerable error in the predicted AOS times. To date, no "official" QSL information has been mentioned but it is assumed that a card sent to U2MIR in care of the Central Radio Club QSL Bureau, P.O. Box 88, Moscow, will eventually be answered. Bear in mind, however, that delays in replies to cards sent through Box 88 are often anywhere from 2 to 5 years, so it may be wise to wait until more QSL information on Mir becomes available. The following is an updated set of Keplerian elements for Mir provided by WA5ZIB and WA5NOM. Satellite: mir Catalog Number:16609 Epoch time: 88327.73245878 Element Set: 539 Inclination: 51.6229 RA of node: 332.6309 Eccentricity: 0.0023707 Arg of perigee: 75.3817 Mean Anomaly: 284.9551 Mean Motion: 15.71511044 Decay rate: 0.00044321 Epoch rev: 15880 /EX SB ALL @ AMSAT $ANS-331.02 Gateways Needed For AO-13 R AMSAT NEWS SERVICE BULLETIN 331.02 FROM AMSAT HQ SILVER SPRING, MD NOVEMBER 26, 1988 TO ALL RADIO AMATEURS BT OSCAR Gateways Needed For Educational Purposes AMSAT-NA Science Education Advisor Rich Ensign, N8IWJ, is compiling a list of stations which can Gateway OSCAR-10 and OSCAR-13 to local repeaters. Rich is especially interested in Gateway stations willing to participate in school interchanges via satellite. If you have a Gateway station and wish to participate, please call or write to Rich Ensign. You can reach him by phone at (313) 274-1718 or by mail at 421 N. Military Dr., Dearborn, MI 48124. Those who wish a copy of the compiled list should send Rich a s.a.s.e. Both Mode B and Mode L Gateway stations are being sought. Gateways in all countries are welcomed and encouraged to participate. /EX SB ALL @ AMSAT $ANS-331.03 Amsat News Service Under New Leadership HR AMSAT NEWS SERVICE BULLETIN 331.03 FROM AMSAT HQ SILVER SPRING, MD NOVEMBER 26, 1988 TO ALL RADIO AMATEURS BT Amsat News Service Director Named AMSAT President Doug Loughmiller, KO5I, has announced the appointment of Dave Cowdin, WD0HHU as the Director of the AMSAT News Service effective immediately. WD0HHU will be responsible for the collection and dissemination of information to be used in the support of the weekly AMSAT nets and packet radio bulletins. Dave has been a very active HF net control station having been NCS for the 20 meter International AMSAT Net for the past four years. Anyone wishing to supply information to the AMSAT News Service is asked to forward such information to WD0HHU. The deadline for inclusion of material into the weekly ANS release is typically Thursday evening US time. Provisions will be made for the release of late breaking news items as situations warrant. AMSAT congratulates WD0HHU on his appointment and we wish him well in his efforts towards his new responsibilities. /EX SB ALL @ AMSAT $ANS-331.04 AMSAT Seeks Advertising Volunteer HR AMSAT NEWS SERVICE BULLETIN 331.04 FROM AMSAT HQ SILVER SPRING, MD November 26,1988 TO ALL RADIO AMATEURS BT AMSAT Seeks Advertising Volunteer AMSAT seeks the volunteer services of an individual with a background in the advertising field. If you have a background in this area and would be interested in volunteering your services, please contact: Doug Loughmiller, KO5I 620 Fairway Drive Paris, TX 75460 (214) 784-0194 Any offers of help with this important activity would be greatly appreciated. /EX SB ALL @ AMSAT $ANS-331.05 73 Magazine Plans OSCAR Issue HR AMSAT NEWS SERVICE BULLETIN 331.05 FROM AMSAT HQ SILVER SPRING, MD November 26,1988 TO ALL RADIO AMATEURS BT 73 Magazine Plans OSCAR Issue AMSAT Vice President of User Operations and 73 Magazine columnist Andy MacAllister, WA5ZIB has announced that 73 Magazine will devote the entire editorial content of it's May 1989 issue to the topic of OSCAR satellites. That's Right! 50 pages (15 to 20 articles) devoted to the amateur satellite program. Needless to say, this is a major public relations opportunity for AMSAT and the efforts of several different authors are needed. WA5ZIB has agreed to act as coordinator for the various articles to be submitted to avoid any duplication of effort. Andy is seeking a wide variety of articles from construction and "how to" articles to equipment reviews, mission profiles of the various OSCAR satellites and much much more. Some of the articles Andy already has lined up include: Review of AMSAT software by W5IU Review of Silicon Ephemeris by WA5NOM Review of Project OSCAR software by Project OSCAR (WB6GFJ) An Inexpensive Mode L dish by WB5ZDP A poor man's approach to RS by N5LKJ Microsat overview by N5BF Obviously we need more articles! If you have an idea for an article or would like to volunteer to author some material, please contact: Andy MacAllister, WA5ZIB 14714 Knightsway Drive Houston, TX 77083 (713)561-9691 /EX SB ALL @ AMSAT $ANS-331.06 Short Burst Items HR AMSAT NEWS SERVICE BULLETIN 331.06 FROM AMSAT HQ SILVER SPRING, MD November 26,1988 TO ALL RADIO AMATEURS BT Short Burst Items Space Education Net Schedule (SEN012) The next session of the Space Education Net (SEN) has been scheduled for Saturday December 3, 1988. The Mode B session will run from 1845 to 1945 UTC. The downlink frequency will be 145.960 MHz. No mode L session has been scheduled because of a lack of mode L net control stations. Slow Scan TV will be transmitted on a downlink frequency 145.965 MHz. Tests have shown that a SSTV signal at beacon strength provides a FB picture. The SEN would like to hear from stations that have been watching the SSTV. Additional Net Control Stations are needed, particularly for the mode L sessions of the SEN. If you would like to assist the SEN in this important position please volunteer today. Contact K.O. Learner, K9PVW at P.O. Box 5006, Kokomo, IN 46904 or via packet @KD9QB with your SEN questions or comments or to volunteer to assist the SEN. Check-ins and participants are invited for both sessions. /EX FLASH! FLASH! FLASH! FLASH! FLASH! FLASH! FLASH! FLASH! FLASH! FLASH! FLASH! LATE BREAKING NEWS ADDED BY WD0GML-AMSAT-ST.LOUIS BBS (314)447-3003 24hr 7dy Current Notes on Working U2MIR Musa, U2MIR, continues to make contacts, having been worked by several stations during Orbits 15826 and 15827. Following up on recent comments from N4HY and K1KSY, here are some more operating "hints and kinks": 1. While Musa's early QSO's were on 145.550 simplex, lately he has begun to vary the procedure. One station reported calling him on 145.525 and having Musa come back on the caller's frequency, an operating tactic which has come to be known on the HF bands as "Russian roulette" (no pun intended). This morning, AF1U reported working Musa split-frequency, with U2MIR on 145.550 and AF1U on 145.575. 2. I hope that Musa continues to work split-frequency, because downlink QRM on 145.550 is getting to be a problem. If you do observe Musa working simplex, please keep your calls short! No more than a "1x2" call, e.g., "U2MIR from W2RS W2RS" ought to be sufficient, with frequent listening pauses between calls. I've heard stations making calls as long as "3x3" on simplex; not only are those less likely to be effective in the pile-up, but they may also prevent Musa from being heard in the vicinity of the calling station. 3. At the AMSAT-NA meeting in Atlanta, UA3CR said that Musa's FT-290 transceiver is programmed to operate between 145.50 and 145.60 MHz. Although his primary frequency will be 145.55, he literally could tune and pop up anywhere in that range. 4. If Musa ever did "go begging" after calling CQ, those days are gone forever, at least over populated areas of North America. I've listened to several of the tapes which W0ORE made from Challenger, and from those we know what an FM pile-up sounds like...silence! A large number of stations on one frequency, with none strong enough to induce capture, results in no intelligence at all getting through. That probably accounts for Musa's long periods of silence during orbits in which he is known to be on. He's listening, but hasn't heard anything through the "silent pile-up." To break through yourself, you either need good luck in calling during a "hole" in the QRM, or to make a "hole" yourself with a high-gain antenna aimed at the spacecraft. No simple omnidirectional antenna in the world will beat a good beam for working a manned spacecraft on FM, as experience with W0ORE and W5LFL clearly demonstrated. 5. To use a high-gain antenna successfully, you need current Keplerian elements. Because Mir's orbit is constantly changing, be sure you have the latest set of keps in your computer at all times. 6. As noted by K1KSY, please do not call Musa while he is in QSO with another station; that just slows things down for everyone. 7. My suggestion for phonetics is to stick to the standard ICAO alphabet, e.g., "whisky two romeo sierra". As a cosmonaut, Musa obviously has a good background in aviation and has proven to be familiar with these phonetics. This will avoid any possible problems with unfamiliar English words, or confusion over Roman-vs.-Cyrillic letters. 8. All contacts of which I am aware were made between 2 a.m. and 9 a.m., Eastern time, with the emphasis on the early part of that range. However, be aware that Musa's available time slot may change; he could pop up any time Mir is within range. Please, therefore, encourage users in your area to keep 145.55 clear if possible. Good luck to all, and 73, from Ray, W2RS QUIKTRAK V4.0 In anticipation of the release of QT version 4.0, the sales of QT 3.2 are hereby SUSPENDED. No one may sell QT 3.2 for ANY reason. The update to QT 4.0 will not come under the old update rule and I don't someone crying foul because they just paid X for QT 3.2 and the update to 4.0 costing X/2. Please spread this to all the field organization members as soon as possible. Bob N4HY U2MIR QSL INFO I Picked this up from the BBS here at the university, guess this is of any use. 73 de Michael G0/PA3BHF (UoSAT) Msg # 12880 Type:B Stat:$ To: ALL @GB From: UB5UN Date: 25-Nov/0427 Subject: MIR SPACE STATION ACTIVITY Bulletin ID: 7457UB5UN Path: GB7DGK!GB7UWS!GB7ESX!GB7MXM!GB7VLS!GB7LDI From: UB5UN@G3LDI MIR SPACE STATION COSMONAUTS U1MIR AND U2MIR WILL OPERATE 145.4OO MHZ STARTING NOVEMBER 26. UNTILL THIS DATE THEY WILL BE QRV ON 145.000 MHZ. QSL CARDS SHOULD BE SENT TO UW3AX: USSR, MOSCOW, 107207, P.O.BOX 679, B.STEPANOV. 73 - UB5UN. 73 - UB5UN GB3UP BBS> MIR-POST OFFICE The Cosmonaut team of Alexander Volkov, Sergei Krikalev, and Frenchman Jean-Loup Chretien lifted off from Baikonur this morning (Eastern time) in theur Soyuz TM-7 spacecraft enroute to a Monday rendezvouz and docking with MIR. Early indications were that all was progressing normally and a docking could be anticipated in the range of 1445z/28 Nov. Listeners in the Northeast may hear TM7 on 121.750--FM--as they contact the tracking ship positioned off Nova Scotia. Krikalev and Volkov are destined for a six month stay aboard the station and presumably will be carrying at least one new amateur call sign with them, if not two. It will be interesting to see how the ham station progresses over the next month as there will be a total of six cosmonauts aboard with at least three call signs and proficiency in at least three languages (Russian/French/English). In addition, Chretien has brought along his portable electronic organ so we may even hear it in the background! He also brought along the latest Pink Floyd live album for on-board listening and two members of the band were at Baikonur for the launch (talk about promo!). Another item of possible note to hams is the fact that the first post office in space will be commissioned Monday after the docking. The "MIR Post Office" with it's own rubber stamp will open for business. Mission commander Titov will be designated Postmaster and they will have the ability to postmark their own mail for delivery home. Although it would seem unlikely, one wonders about the possibility of a QSL card with a MIR postmark on it (I cant even get through the QRM). 73 Ed KC2ZF