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1994-11-13
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Date: Wed, 21 Sep 94 04:30:33 PDT
From: Ham-Space Mailing List and Newsgroup <ham-space@ucsd.edu>
Errors-To: Ham-Space-Errors@UCSD.Edu
Reply-To: Ham-Space@UCSD.Edu
Precedence: Bulk
Subject: Ham-Space Digest V94 #266
To: Ham-Space
Ham-Space Digest Wed, 21 Sep 94 Volume 94 : Issue 266
Today's Topics:
ARLK041 Keplerian data
Military SATCOM advice needed!
Packet Radio (SAREX)!!!
Satellite frequencies listing
STS-64 Checkpoint #11
Two-Line Orbital Element Set: Space Shuttle
Windows satellite logging program
Send Replies or notes for publication to: <Ham-Space@UCSD.Edu>
Send subscription requests to: <Ham-Space-REQUEST@UCSD.Edu>
Problems you can't solve otherwise to brian@ucsd.edu.
Archives of past issues of the Ham-Space Digest are available
(by FTP only) from UCSD.Edu in directory "mailarchives/ham-space".
We trust that readers are intelligent enough to realize that all text
herein consists of personal comments and does not represent the official
policies or positions of any party. Your mileage may vary. So there.
----------------------------------------------------------------------
Date: Tue, 20 Sep 1994 16:57:29 EDT
From: psinntp!arrl.org!usenet@uunet.uu.net
Subject: ARLK041 Keplerian data
To: ham-space@ucsd.edu
SB KEP @ ARL $ARLK041
ARLK041 Keplerian data
ZCZC SK09
QST de W1AW
Keplerian Bulletin 41 ARLK041
------------------------------
Date: Tue, 20 Sep 1994 12:49:27
From: ihnp4.ucsd.edu!agate!howland.reston.ans.net!gatech!news-feed-1.peachnet.edu!ukma!harold.ca.uky.edu!hpeach@network.ucsd.edu
Subject: Military SATCOM advice needed!
To: ham-space@ucsd.edu
Last Christmas I received a Grove ScannerBeam as a gift. I am now getting around to putting it
up (I have a lot of half-built kits too). My thought has been that my main use for this antenna
would be to receive military satellites in the 200-400 MHz band. To do this is going to require
the outlay of some additional cash so I have a few questions:
1) Is there enough traffic being transmitted in the clear via these birds to make the investment
worthwhile? What type of comms (i.e., would I be able to listen to the operations going on in
Haiti if I had this in place now or would I just pickup routine stuff?) can one expect to hear?
2) Is the typical mode FM, SSB, or what?
3) Is it reasonable to assume that a log periodic, 10dB preamp, and a PRO-2004 (feeding an
ICOM 745 if SSB is needed) will do a decent job?
4) WHO MAKES AN INEXPENSIVE, REMOTELY POWERED PREAMP THAT WOULD WORK
FOR THIS APPLICATION?
5) WHERE CAN I FIND AN INEXPENSIVE, LIGHT DUTY AZ-EL ROTOR FOR THIS
APPLICATION?
Please reply via e-mail as I do not regularily read this group.
73, Harold, N4FLZ
---
Harold
hpeach@ca.uky.edu
------------------------------
Date: 21 Sep 1994 08:24:44 GMT
From: ihnp4.ucsd.edu!dog.ee.lbl.gov!agate!howland.reston.ans.net!cs.utexas.edu!usc!nic-nac.CSU.net!charnel.ecst.csuchico.edu!csusac!csus.edu!netcom.com!ix.netcom.com!netnews@network.ucsd.edu
Subject: Packet Radio (SAREX)!!!
To: ham-space@ucsd.edu
For those of you who read my article, "(SAREX) Packet Radio MAYBE!!!", I rec'd
many responses to it in various forms, some supportive, some critical and then
there was this response that really hit home. As you can see, Gerry spent a
fair amount of time to prepare this letter and I felt that I couldn't keep it
to myself. He clearly represents the "SPIRIT OF AMATEUR RADIO" and did a great
job in explaining SAREX to me... Thanks Gerry, I hope all of you enjoy this as
much as I have.
73's to all
Mike
WD6EFM - Sacramento, Ca.
<start of forwarded message>
===============================================================================
Mike, I feel like maybe a personal response might help...
In article <35gum4$7m2@ixnews1.ix.netcom.com> you write:
>Well, after spending many late nights waiting for the shuttle to pass
>over.. hearing nothing time after time, it's real nice to know that
>they "MIGHT" turn it on for the last few orbits... in fact, trying
>to work the shuttle has gotten as bad as trying to find an open lane
>at a bowling alley. The only way you can bowl anymore is to become a
>member of a league. Do the members of the amateur radio community have
>to go back to elementary school to be allowed to talk to the shuttle
>anymore? STS-64 was more boring than watching the crystals grow in
>previous missions.
Let me start with a caveat: I'm off for several years going back to school...
trying to get into medical school. Officially, I'm on leave without pay from
my job as a contractor at NASA's Johnson Space Center. I am still a
co-investigator on SAREX. I'm no longer involved in the day-to-day warfare
iwith SAREX, but I did ALL the training for over 6 years, and am intimately
familiar with the problems the Team faces from management and the Astronaut
Office...
Over time, the missions have gotten more involved. This serves to severely
impact crew time for SAREX operations. Therefore, when the crew are all busy,
it gets harder for them to look out the window, say to themselves, "Selves, I
think I'll play SAREX during this CONUS pass," and just do it. On missions
when there are a lot of maneuvers, the Pilot and Commander are pretty busy.
This time, that was 2 of 3 licensed operator (Dick, SIW, and Blaine, HBS).
During EVA, they are all busy playing safety observer, copying comments from
MCC, etc.
Unfortunately, SAREX remains a secondary experiment. This means that we can
be demoted in priority with little notice. Further, our sponser at NASA HQ is
the Office of Education. Of all the SAREX Goals and Objectives, the
conversations with school kids have a higher profile than talking to Joe Ham.
And, let me be candid. In dealing with the astronauts, I came to the
realization that with some notable exceptions, the crews also see this as a
unique opportunity to have some positive impact on the kids. It took some
serious soul searching to get back the reality that talking to the general ham
population was THAT important, and we had some raucous SAREX team meetings
where I took the unpopular position that we should carry SAREX even if all we
did was the school contacts... and crew personal contacts... In fact, for
some period, when there was some official flak from the Cief of the Astronaut
Office (Dan Brandenstein, at that time), I was on record as telling the crew
in training that while it'd be nice if they'd do General QSO passes, it wasn't
THAT important. And before the flames come, realize that I was working from a
different, and possibly incorrect perspective, I don't know. I do know I've
modified my position over time, though.
On this mission, the electrical power constraint that prevented packet
operations was considered very real by mission management. So real, in fact,
that as late as 5 weeks before launch, we considered cancelling SAREX
operations completely, because we were being told we'd just get school passes,
ONLY on batteries, and nothing else. That was not an acceptable alternative
to us. Nor was it to the crew. Commander Dick Richards called in some
markers and got a little relief on the position. Further, from what I
understand, Dick was the one who got permission to turn on PACKET, after the
SAREX representatives in Mission Control (yes, Virginia, we maintain a
full-time presence there during SAREX missions) were turned down. Further,
Dick elected to delay stowage by almost 8 hours on his own initiative. We
decided that, if we made an issue of it, some paper pusher might make him stow
on-time... we sat quietly.
One more note: We schedule a primary and a backup pass in the Crew timeline
for each school. Lou McFadin, the Principal Investgator was able to convince
me, and subsequently the Astronaut Office and NASA Mission Management that if
the school contact was successful on the primary pass, rather than giving the
backup pass back to the mission, we would retain it for General QSO
Operations. This actually put quite a bit of operating time into the timeline
for general ops that never was there before. Packet Ops were ALWAYS intended
to be there for when voice ops were not possible... In fact, the original
intent of packet ops on STS-35, where Ron Parise (WA4SIR) wore us down to
redesign the hardware to include packet, was to have a no-crew-time-impact
operating mode, since he was so busy. The fact that we were able to make it
such a power miser was a bonus (Thanks, Heathkit, for the HK-21's!).
>At least they showed something on NASA SELECT. This time, even when
>they were doing something of interest, the videos were short if not
>at all. The Video Highlights were the only thing that even gave you a
>hint of what was going on up there.
>
>What happened to the cargo bay cameras when everyone up there was
>asleep?
>
>They used to show live earth views during sleep periods but lately
>this has not been happening at all.
Even during Shuttle missions, NASA shares TDRSS time for communications.
Between the mandatory data downlinks (on the order of 95 mbits/sec), the Deep
Space Network's requirements, Orbiter communications, and experiment data
downlinks, the ~300 Mbits/sec bandwidth doesn't last too long. A lot of the
payload bay earth views were predicated on Earth-Obs mission requirements in
the past, so NASA targetted them. Further, during Spacelab missions, Marshall
Space Flight Center frequently has data requirements for PLD BAY camery views,
just specifically for background. My personal opinion: The NASA/JSC folks
are so proud of the Silicone graphics DMOS display (that simulation of the
shuttle including accurate attitude info and ground track) that they've
forgotten how captivating the view out the window is! I intend to talk to
them later this week about that...
>The last SAREX mission was only good for those who lived south of the
>28th para. because the orbiter never faced north anytime during that
>mission. I guess thats o.k. if you live in Texas, Florida or any of
>the southern states. I would have liked to have at least had a shot
>at getting a QSL card for the 25th aniversary of the APOLLO lunar
>landing. I realize that not everyone can make contact during a SAREX
>mission but it gets a little frustrating when you get cut entirely
>out of the loop.
Sorry.... Realize that I didn't get a contact, either, last time... Between
classes, and weekends in MCC, I was NEVER near a radio when they came
overhead. And that's the way it's gone for ME the whole project. My first
SAREX contact was with STS-45 during an unscheduled pass... one of the crew
wanted to ask us some questions, and as that had been happening, we staffed
W5RRR (JSC's ham club station). Since this one was at 0-dark-30, I was told
by the FLight Director to leave my console and go cover it... I did, and
talked to Brian Duffy for my first Shuttle contact... From his voice, I don't
know if he or I was happier (STS-45 is the fondest memory I have of crew
training... one of the best groups of humans I've ever known). My other
contacts have been a single packet QSO on STS-50, and voice contacts on
STS-55, -56 and -64... And I'm supposed to have an inside track according to
some folks Ive seen posting...
>If I sound a little bitter, it's only a small token of what many of us
>are feeling about the last few SAREX missions... I am only passing on
>some of the complaints that I have heard along with some of my own...
>I hope that NASA is listening and takes the time to acknowledge this
>amoung all of the other problems that they have to deal with.
Color it noted... I will make a point to bring this up to the rest of the
Team. We are cognizant of the folks on the ground, and would like to see more
general QSOs. I still maintain my position that the educational aspect is the
most important, but I do realize how important it is to get the crews talking
to the population in general as a means of maintaining support for the program
(both Shuttle AND SAREX!).
>In closing, I seriously hope that this improves over time and all
>amateurs are allowed to become active participants in the space
>program, not just selected groups.
We do still have to compete for the crew's time. We're real lucky to have
folks like Steve Nagel (N5RAW), Ken Cameron (KB5AWP), Jay Apt (N5QWL), Dick
Richards (KB5SIW), and Ellen Baker (KB5SIX) who are so enthusiastic that they
go out of their way to make time for SAREX. We also have some crew members
who are so motivated by the education aspect that THAT alone was their reason
for getting the ticket. And some who were browbeaten into it... but that's
another story (ask me later about the crew whose intraoffice routing and
approval slips were a list of callsigns and "OTHER").
>P.S. It was not my intent to discredit those who work directly with
> SAREX at NASA... I know that they work very hard to make SAREX
> work for ALL amateurs. Keep up the good work and try not to
> forget the rest of us who want to participate too!
Thanks... We DO try...
Hope this offers some solace. I can understand the frustration, and wish
there was something I could do about it. I actually feel that, when I get
back down there I might be able to have more impact on some of the issues,
like crew training and attitudes, as well as some of the bureaucracy that I
deal with better than some other Team members...
<
<this portion deleted in consideration of Gerry's privacy.. malari>
<
73, Gerry
--
Gerry Creager N5JXS * SAREX Co-Investigator
gerry@cs.tamu.edu * A little radio that lets kids talk
gcreager@gothamcity.jsc.nasa.gov * to astronauts, and smile
******************************************************************************
===============================================================================
<end of forwarded message>
P.S.
If you think this was as good as I thought it was, drop Gerry an e-mail to let
him know.
- Mike -
------------------------------
Date: 21 Sep 1994 00:12:13 GMT
From: dog.ee.lbl.gov!overload.lbl.gov!dancer.ca.sandia.gov!cronkite.nersc.gov!fastrac.llnl.gov!usenet.ee.pdx.edu!cs.uoregon.edu!news.uoregon.edu!vixen.cso.uiuc.edu!howland.@@ihnp4.ucsd.edu
Subject: Satellite frequencies listing
To: ham-space@ucsd.edu
Looking for latest list of all possible satellite frequencies. Latest list
in my possession is dated May 1993 and must be outdated by now. Anyone having
the latest listing may post same either here or e-mail to me at:
wstaub@random.ucs.mun.ca
Any help will be appreciated. 73, VO1CAT, Werner
------------------------------
Date: 20 Sep 1994 06:07:04 -0400
From: newstf01.cr1.aol.com!newsbf01.news.aol.com!not-for-mail@uunet.uu.net
Subject: STS-64 Checkpoint #11
To: ham-space@ucsd.edu
MacSPOC Users-
The enclosed checkpoint reflects tracking into Monday evening CDT and
removes 13.2 miles of downtrack error accumulated since the last update.
After Discovery's Monday wave-off from a KSC landing, both KSC and EDW
deorbit opportunities will be assessed Tuesday. Although weather
violations at KSC continue to be forecast, EDW conditions appear
acceptable. The following sequence of deorbit opportunities is included in
this checkpoint for v1.5 users. It may be input manually by v1.1 users by
selecting "Maneuvers..." from the "Update" menu.
Deorbit to KSC on Orbit 174:
TIG = 10/18:49:39 MET
DVx =-206.9 fps (retrograde)
DVy = 231.9 fps (southward)
DVz = -87.5 fps (upward)
Deorbit to KSC on Orbit 175:
TIG = 10/20:22:34 MET
DVx =-209.1 fps (retrograde)
DVy =-211.7 fps (northward)
DVz =-125.4 fps (upward)
Deorbit to EDW on Orbit 176:
TIG = 10/21:53:16 MET
DVx =-219.2 fps (retrograde)
DVy =-234.7 fps (northward)
DVz = -33.9 fps (upward)
Deorbit to EDW on Orbit 177:
TIG = 10/23:26:53 MET
DVx =-227.1 fps (retrograde)
DVy = 225.6 fps (southward)
DVz = -42.2 fps (upward)
-Dan Adamo
=================
File: STS64-11.cp
=================
Orbit 165 at 10/04:37 MET
1994 252 ( 9- 9) 22 22 54.947
1994 263 ( 9-20) 3 0 .000
0.244961562568D+07 0.764113911174D+00
1 165
-0.216105434000D+08 0.327415600000D+06 0.202423350000D+07
0.178103426400D+04 -0.139513201880D+05 0.212479171440D+05
986.5 221912.0 79.00 2.72
010/18:49:39.0 -206.900 231.900 -87.500
010/20:22:34.0 -209.100 -211.700 -125.400
010/21:53:15.6 -219.200 -234.700 -33.900
010/23:26:52.8 -227.100 225.600 -42.200
------------------------------
Date: Thu, 15 Sep 1994 23:06:47 GMT
From: news.cerf.net!nntp-server.caltech.edu!netline-fddi.jpl.nasa.gov!news.byu.edu!gatech!swrinde!howland.reston.ans.net!math.ohio-state.edu!scipio.cyberstore.ca!vanbc.wimsey.com!@@ihnp4.ucsd.edu
Subject: Two-Line Orbital Element Set: Space Shuttle
To: ham-space@ucsd.edu
The most current orbital elements from the NORAD two-line element sets are
carried on the Celestial BBS, *(205) 409-9280*, and are updated daily (when
possible). Documentation and tracking software are also available on this
system. As a service to the satellite user community, the most current
elements for the current shuttle mission are provided below. The Celestial
BBS may be accessed 24 hours/day at 300, 1200, 2400, 4800, or 9600 bps using
8 data bits, 1 stop bit, no parity.
Element sets (also updated daily), shuttle elements, and some documentation
and software are also available via anonymous ftp from archive.afit.af.mil
(129.92.1.66) in the directory pub/space.
STS 64
1 23251U 94059A 94258.03341559 .00002177 10701-4 73754-5 0 215
2 23251 57.0069 200.6040 0010111 266.8489 76.3802 16.06008853 813
1994059B
1 23253U 94059B 94257.91157669 .00076921 13414-4 10754-3 0 42
2 23253 57.0045 201.1786 0010001 276.5519 82.9036 16.05864435 167
--
Dr TS Kelso Adjunct Professor of Space Operations
tkelso@afit.af.mil Air Force Institute of Technology
------------------------------
Date: 20 Sep 1994 22:58:52 GMT
From: ihnp4.ucsd.edu!dog.ee.lbl.gov!news.cs.utah.edu!cs.utexas.edu!swrinde!gatech!news-feed-1.peachnet.edu!news.duke.edu!eff!news.kei.com!ssd.intel.com!chnews!tboza@network.ucsd.edu
Subject: Windows satellite logging program
To: ham-space@ucsd.edu
Does anyone know where I can acquire a Windows logging program
that is designed for satellite operation? I want to track satellite
awards (WAS & DXCC) on each of the differnet birds and satellite modes
(SAT MODE: A, B, J, S, etc..) (QSO MODE: SSB, Packet, CW etc..)
Today Im using an EXCEL spread sheet because all the Windows based
logbook programs currently available are designed for HF operation.
HF logging programs don't take in consideration all the additional
satellite options, modes and freqs.
Tnx and 73s
Tom WB7ASR...
------------------------------
Date: Tue, 20 Sep 1994 13:46:03 GMT
From: netcomsv!telesoft!garym@decwrl.dec.com
To: ham-space@ucsd.edu
References <STS-64.94253.615@alsys.com>, <STS-64.94260.272@alsys.com>, <STS-64.94262.565@alsys.com>oms
Reply-To : elements-request@alsys.com
Subject : STS-64 Element Set (94263.557)
STS-64
1 23251U 94059A 94263.55791700 .00054878 10930-4 76563-4 0 382
2 23251 57.0108 174.3179 0010435 300.6551 59.3503 16.12408131 1723
Satellite: STS-64
Catalog number: 23251
Epoch time: 94263.55791700 = (20 SEP 94 13:23:24.02 UTC)
Element set: 038
Inclination: 57.0108 deg
RA of node: 174.3179 deg Space Shuttle Flight STS-64
Eccentricity: .0010435 Keplerian element set JSC-038
Arg of perigee: 300.6551 deg from NASA flight Day 11 vector
Mean anomaly: 59.3503 deg
Mean motion: 16.12408131 rev/day Gil Carman
Decay rate: 5.4878e-04 rev/day^2 NASA Johnson Space Center
Epoch rev: 172
--
--
Gary Morris Internet: garym@alsys.com (garym@cts.com)
Alsys Inc. Packet: KK6YB @ N0ARY.#NOCAL.CA.USA.NA
San Diego, CA, USA Phone: +1 619-457-2700 x128 (voice/fax)
------------------------------
Date: (null)
From: (null)
------------------------------
End of Ham-Space Digest V94 #266
******************************