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CX2SA > SATDIG 15.08.09 20:05l 1235 Lines 48006 Bytes #999 (0) @ WW
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Today's Topics:
1. Lighthouse/Lightship Event this weekend (Peter)
2. FS: Yaesu FIF-232c interface (James French)
3. Re: rotator questions (Greg D.)
4. Special Event- Lighthouse Weekend (roib@xxxxxxxxx.xxxx
5. EN63 active today (Chris Lemon)
6. Re: AO-7 mode B (Luc Leblanc)
7. Re: rotator questions (w6zkh@xxxxxxx.xxxx
8. Re: rotator questions (David Gendle)
9. Lets Fix ISS, Replace ARISS (MM)
----------------------------------------------------------------------
Message: 1
Date: Fri, 14 Aug 2009 17:20:12 -0400
From: Peter <roi@xxxxxxxxx.xxx>
Subject: [amsat-bb] Lighthouse/Lightship Event this weekend
To: AMSAT-BB@xxxxx.xxx
Message-ID: <005101ca1d25$53d45420$6901a8c0@xxxxx>
Content-Type: text/plain; charset=Windows-1252
Hello Again,
Gail, KB0RZD asked me if other Satellite Operators were involved with this
event. If anyone is planning to operate from a Lighthouse/Lightship this
weekend, please let us know. If you're radio club is planning to operate,
why not join them and make a few contacts, thank you.
73,
Pete, WB2OQQ
CQ CQ... this is W2GSB/Lighthouse - Fire Island Lighthouse NYSpecial Event
Station, August 14th, 15th.
------------------------------
Message: 2
Date: Fri, 14 Aug 2009 17:47:43 -0400
From: James French <w8iss@xxxxxxxxxxxx.xxx>
Subject: [amsat-bb] FS: Yaesu FIF-232c interface
To: AMSAT-BB <AMSAT-BB@xxxxx.xxx>
Message-ID: <1250286463.28431.20.camel@xxxxxxxxx>
Content-Type: text/plain
Wondering if anyone has a need for a Yaesu FIF-232c interface
box?
I have had one laying around here for the past couple of years and
wondering if anyone needs one. Asking 75 dollars plus shipping from
48146 area code or best offer.
Have no idea if it even works other than the LED for power switches
on and off. Have no way to test it as all equipment here is Icoms.
James W8ISS
------------------------------
Message: 3
Date: Fri, 14 Aug 2009 22:41:00 -0700
From: "Greg D." <ko6th_greg@xxxxxxx.xxx>
Subject: [amsat-bb] Re: rotator questions
To: <nigel@xxxxx.xxx>
Cc: amsat-bb@xxxxx.xxxx n0jy@xxxxxxx.xxx
Message-ID: <BLU133-W1AEBBF4B7D8BACBBB0EF0A9030@xxx.xxx>
Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1"
Hi Nigel,
In theory, yes, the Sun is a known signal generator and can be used for this
purpose, if you've got a good enough receive system to pick up the noise, and
have the right test equipment to measure it. (Recall the original question
started around an Elk-class antenna system, which I do not believe qualifies.)
Logistically, however, you are up on the roof or tower, screw drivers and
wrenches in hand, and likely your instrumentation is not. How are you going
to know when you have the right position? Using the shadow method - I
actually use the shadow of my 2.4 ghz feed on the BBQ Grill dish as my guide -
takes me all of a few seconds, and I'm consistently within a few degrees of
perfect. Why not go with the easy method?
Greg KO6TH
> Date: Thu, 13 Aug 2009 12:17:10 +0000
> From: nigel@xxxxx.xxx
> To: ko6th_greg@xxxxxxx.xxx
> CC: n0jy@xxxxxxx.xxxx bhowell@xxxx.xxxxxx.xxxx amsat-bb@xxxxx.xxx
> Subject: Re: [amsat-bb] Re: rotator questions
>
> How about aiming for maximum receiver noise? That should be even more
accurate.
>
> Greg Wrote: and then adjust the antenna so the shadow falls directly
down the antenna boom.
_________________________________________________________________
Get back to school stuff for them and cashback for you.
http://www.bing.com/cashback?form=MSHYCB&publ=WLHMTAG&crea=TEXT_MSHYCB_BackToS
chool_Cashback_BTSCashback_1x1
------------------------------
Message: 4
Date: Fri, 14 Aug 2009 08:33:54 -0400
From: roib@xxxxxxxxx.xxx
Subject: [amsat-bb] Special Event- Lighthouse Weekend
To: AMSAT-BB@xxxxx.xxx
Message-ID: <000d01ca1cdb$9d4d8800$6901a8c0@xxxxx>
Content-Type: text/plain; charset=Windows-1252
Hello All,
As part of the International Lighthouse/Lightship event, I will be
operating on most of the FM Satellites, thru the weekend. In addition we
will have AMSAT information available to the many visitors that tour the
Fire Island Lighthouse, our goal is to have fun and bring new Satellite
operators to the airwaves. So when you hear W2GSB/Lighthouse, give us a
call, you can visit http://www.gsbarc.org to view the QSL card and more
information about the event, thank you.
73,
Pete, WB2OQQ
CQ CQ... this is W2GSB/Lighthouse - Fire Island Lighthouse NYSpecial Event
Station
W2GSB/Lighthouse - August 15 and 16, 2009
Fire Island Lighthouse, Fire Island National Seashore, Fire Island, Suffolk
County, New York
The event is always held on the 3rd full weekend in August starting at 0001
UTC on Saturday and finishing at 2359 UTC on Sunday. It also now coincides
on the Sunday with the International Lighthouse Day which is an event
organized by the International Association of Lighthouse Keepers whereby as
many world lighthouses will be open to the public for the day.
The following are the various designators for the operation W2GSB/Lighthouse
location information:
Grid Square: FN-30-jp
QSL via W2GSB/LH,
PO Box 1356, West Babylon, NY 11704-0356.
S.A.S.E. Please.
The International Lighthouse/Lightship Weekend came into being in 1997 from
the Scottish Northern Lighthouses award weekend by Mike Dalrymple, GM4SUC, a
member of the Ayr Amateur Radio Group, see also this web site for further
history and this page for the event's first web site. Over the years it has
grown to over 380 lighthouses in some 51 countries around the world
participating in the event.
73,
Pete, WB2OQQ
------------------------------
Message: 5
Date: Fri, 14 Aug 2009 09:37:03 -0400 (EDT)
From: Chris Lemon <kb9cl@xxxxxx.xxx>
Subject: [amsat-bb] EN63 active today
To: AMSAT-BB@xxxxx.xxx
Message-ID:
<745637947.1152941250257023397.JavaMail.root@xxxx.xxx.xxxxxxx.xxx>
Content-Type: text/plain; charset=utf-8
Hello all,
I will be active from EN63 Wisconsin today on the FM birds.? I made it here?in
time to work some folks on the 1251Z AO-51 pass, and I plan to be on the 1756Z
(low elevation) and 1933Z AO-27 passes, the 2227Z and maybe the 0006Z AO-51
passes, and the 2333Z SO-50 pass.? All subject to change as I am working and
my time is not always under my control.
Don't know if EN63 is a terribly rare grid, but I don't have it so it's rare
to me!? I know there were some other rare ones on AO-51 this morning, so
hopefully folks can work some new ones today.
Chris
KB9CL
------------------------------
Message: 6
Date: Fri, 14 Aug 2009 11:05:23 -0400
From: Luc Leblanc <lucleblanc6@xxxxxxxxx.xx>
Subject: [amsat-bb] Re: AO-7 mode B
To: amsat-bb@xxxxx.xxx
Message-ID: <4A8544F3.13520.88D982@xxxxxxxxxxx.xxxxxxxxx.xx>
Content-Type: text/plain; charset=ISO-8859-1
On 14 Aug 2009 at 3:05, Roland Zurmely wrote:
> Here is an audio recording from QSO with Andre ZS2BK, distance = 6890 km !
> ?
> http://www.qsl.net/py4zbz/satelite/ZS2BK_AO7.wav
> ?
> Only 2 element Yagi on VHF and 6 el on UHF:
> ?
> http://www.qsl.net/py4zbz/satelite.htm#owa6
> ?
> 73 de Roland PY4ZBZ
> ?
>
>
As the earth circumference shrink towards the poles the same satellite
footprint will cover more distance. This does not diminish this
quite impressive edge QSO. I was also making one of FO-29 with Domenico I8CVS
last year and it was below 5 degree. Some have reported
having hard time with DX QSO'S due to their location on the planet i think the
south pacific Australia and New Zeland region is the less
favourable spot as they are surrounded by oceans and the south pole.
Could be i'm wrong here if you know the worse place to be on earth for an
amateur satellite operator just mention it? (Poles excluded)
P.S. For those who come after AO-40 this was one of the explanations why an
HEO is the ultimate goal for an amateur satellite operator. As
P3E is one of our last card to play for an HEO it will be also the last chance
for a lot of us who will probably not be able to see it
happen in their life time. As i ever said aging is a sickness and when your
weekly pills bills became higher than your supermarket food
bill this will tell you that you are old.:(
"-"
Luc Leblanc VE2DWE
Skype VE2DWE
www.qsl.net/ve2dwe
WAC BASIC CW PHONE SATELLITE
------------------------------
Message: 7
Date: Sat, 15 Aug 2009 14:20:15 +0000 (UTC)
From: w6zkh@xxxxxxx.xxx
Subject: [amsat-bb] Re: rotator questions
To: "Greg D." <ko6th_greg@xxxxxxx.xxx>
Cc: amsat-bb@xxxxx.xxxx n0jy@xxxxxxx.xxx
Message-ID:
<1490985757.15347071250346015041.JavaMail.root@xxxxxxx.xxxxxxxxxxx.xx.xx
xx.xxxxxxx.xxx>
Content-Type: text/plain; charset=utf-8
Good morning all...........well, interesting reading to say the least for me,
being a noobie here chasing the birds. Now that I have my KLM's up for LEO's,
and not having computer control of the cheap Radio Shack rotator, (which only
travels about 355 degs stop to stop),I used the "close enough for govt work"
or "horseshoe and hand grenade" approach. I ended up trying the compass method
with inclination correction, and set it like that, but didnt seem right. So
next used the "Dracula" method of driving a stake into the ground and waited
till High Noon (1pm PDT) and looked at the shadow. Well, the compass method
was as close and being I dont need exact degrees, this is where I am set.
Course someday I hope to get the nice AZ-EL system up with computer control
and then I will probably be more critical. Subject is interesting though about
using the sun for a noise generator.
John W6ZKH
----- Original Message -----
From: "Greg D." <ko6th_greg@xxxxxxx.xxx>
To: nigel@xxxxx.xxx
Cc: amsat-bb@xxxxx.xxxx n0jy@xxxxxxx.xxx
Sent: Friday, August 14, 2009 10:41:00 PM GMT -08:00 US/Canada Pacific
Subject: [amsat-bb] Re: rotator questions
Hi Nigel,
In theory, yes, the Sun is a known signal generator and can be used for this
purpose, if you've got a good enough receive system to pick up the noise, and
have the right test equipment to measure it. (Recall the original question
started around an Elk-class antenna system, which I do not believe qualifies.)
Logistically, however, you are up on the roof or tower, screw drivers and
wrenches in hand, and likely your instrumentation is not. How are you going to
know when you have the right position? Using the shadow method - I actually
use the shadow of my 2.4 ghz feed on the BBQ Grill dish as my guide - takes me
all of a few seconds, and I'm consistently within a few degrees of perfect.
Why not go with the easy method?
Greg KO6TH
> Date: Thu, 13 Aug 2009 12:17:10 +0000
> From: nigel@xxxxx.xxx
> To: ko6th_greg@xxxxxxx.xxx
> CC: n0jy@xxxxxxx.xxxx bhowell@xxxx.xxxxxx.xxxx amsat-bb@xxxxx.xxx
> Subject: Re: [amsat-bb] Re: rotator questions
>
> How about aiming for maximum receiver noise? That should be even more
accurate.
>
> Greg Wrote: and then adjust the antenna so the shadow falls directly down
the antenna boom.
_________________________________________________________________
Get back to school stuff for them and cashback for you.
http://www.bing.com/cashback?form=MSHYCB&publ=WLHMTAG&crea=TEXT_MSHYCB_BackToS
chool_Cashback_BTSCashback_1x1
_______________________________________________
Sent via AMSAT-BB@xxxxx.xxx. Opinions expressed are those of the author.
Not an AMSAT-NA member? Join now to support the amateur satellite program!
Subscription settings: http://amsat.org/mailman/listinfo/amsat-bb
------------------------------
Message: 8
Date: Sat, 15 Aug 2009 11:02:53 -0400
From: David Gendle <dgendle@xxx.xx.xxx>
Subject: [amsat-bb] Re: rotator questions
To: amsat-bb@xxxxx.xxx
Message-ID: <20090815150417944.JMVK8845@xxxxxxxxxxxxx.xxxx.xx.xxx>
Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii"; format=flowed
Greetings!
This thread is bringing back memories.
Eons ago (60's) when I was servicing long range radar for the USAF
once a month the third shift crew would have to verify the proper
azimuth and elevation orientation of our antennas. We would stop all
antenna motion, stop transmitting and crank the receiver gain full
up. At a specific instant when the sun just broke over the horizon
we would verify if the azimuth and elevation of the antenna was
correct by using the large noise burst from the sun. Using this
method we could get the antennas within 2 degrees of perfect
orientation. It was a foolproof procedure because the location of
the sun was always predictable.
Ahh.... the good old days! :-)
73,
Dave _ K4DLG
------------------------------
Message: 9
Date: Sat, 15 Aug 2009 10:20:38 -0700 (PDT)
From: MM <ka1rrw@xxxxx.xxx>
Subject: [amsat-bb] Lets Fix ISS, Replace ARISS
To: amsat-bb@xxxxx.xxx
Message-ID: <394473.2938.qm@xxxxxxxx.xxxx.xxx.xxxxx.xxx>
Content-Type: text/plain; charset=utf-8
Marex
Miles Mann WF1F
Marex
wf1f@xxxxxxx.xxx
August 25, 2009
Dear ARISS supporters:
I am writing to you because of the extremely poor track record that ARISS has
accumulated over the past 12 years regarding ISS hardware projects.
The only way to correct the problem and fix the Amateur Radio educational
program is to completely reorganization the current ARISS hardware structure.
Under the new ARISS Closed Door policy, only selected members from AMSAT-NA
are allowed to participate.
This new policy has turned the once open ARISS into a closed door Monopoly
controlled by the AMSAT Corporation.
Based on the current actions of ARISS and their very poor performance with in-
flight hardware I would like to propose a complete reorganization of the ARISS
hardware process.
Please review the enclosed information.
I look forward to discussing the proposal with you are your earliest
opportunity.
Sincerely
G. Miles Mann
Memo from ARISS April 2009
>From Gaston Bertels ARISS Chairman
Hi Miles,
By decision of the ARISS Board, participation to ARISS-i meetings is limited
to delegates from the Member Societies and observers nominated by these
societies.
USA member societies are the ARRL and AMSAT NA.
Only these societies can nominate participants to the ARISS-i meetings.
Best regards
73
Gaston Bertels, ON4WF
ARISS Chairman
ARISS Reorganization Proposal
By Miles Mann
June 17, 2009
Rev 1.01
What is ARISS?
The goal of ARISS was to create an organization to select, control and
coordinate Amateur Radio projects designed for the International Space Station
(ISS).
The ARISS program would then assist the 16 countries (Russia, Canada, Japan,
Brazil, USA, member nations of ESA, Belgium, Denmark, France, Germany, Italy,
The Netherlands, Norway, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, and the United Kingdom),
which are supporting the ISS to help choose the best educational Amateur Radio
projects for ISS.
Each county would have delegate-voting privileges on ARISS and project
selection activities.
Summary:
When Dave Larsen and Miles Mann (MAREX) helped form ARISS in August 1996, one
of our goals was to keep Space open for the public and not turn the ISS, into
a monopoly controlled by the AMSAT Corporation.
We were partially successful. Unfortunately most of the ARISS voting
delegation came from AMSAT Corporation representatives from different counties
and a few other radio clubs. The newly formed ARISS agreed to allow competing
clubs to submit proposals. The MAREX team helped create ARISS, however since
the majority of people present were from the AMSAT Corporation, MAREX was not
allowed to have any voting privileges.
Prior to 2009, ARISS would say that its meetings were open to the public and
other clubs were welcome to observer. In 2009 ARISS changed its open door
policy to a closed-door policy. The public is no longer allowed to attend any
of the meetings.
Now, only selected members of the AMSAT Corporation are allowed to present
Amateur radio project proposals to ARISS for International Space Station.
The AMSAT Corporation has full control over the voting and the hardware
selection process, thus creating a monopoly on the International Space station
for Amateur Radio projects.
ARISS Reorganization Proposal:
There are two main reasons to reorganize the ARISS delegate voting structure.
1) The AMSAT Corporation has a monopolistic control over ARISS and has
routinely blocked competitive Educational Amateur radio projects from being
submitted. The new closed-door policy and "Selected AMSAT Members only" policy
are part of the struggling AMSAT Corporations attempt to make the
International Space Station their private Space Station monopoly.
The actions of the AMSAT Corporation remind me of a fictional movie Quote
"Star Wars, A New Hope" Princess Leia, says to Governor Wilhuff Tarkin:
"The more you tighten your grip, the more star systems will slip through your
fingers"
2) Over the past 12 years AMSAT Corporation has demonstrated its inability to
Select, Manage and Maintain Educational Amateur Radio hardware projects for
the International Space Station. The hardware track record of the AMSAT
Corporation control over ARISS projects on ISS has been very poor.
In a separate document I will go over the hardware failures and the success we
have had in the ARISS project. You will clearly see a pattern of extremely
poor hardware management, including:
Poor project selection (even when there is ample evidence to reject a project,
the AMSAT Corporation would approve a project)
Inability to maintain projects in flight. When problems were discovered in-
flight, the AMSAT Corporation would either deny the problem existed or take 3
or 4 plus years to correct the problem.
Failure to provide NASA and ESA valid project status information. The AMSAT
Corporation would routinely deny there are problems with equipment, even when
ISS crewmembers in-flight reported the problems with the ARISS projects.
AMSAT Corporations refusal to perform basic compatibly and usability testing
on projects has led to some embarrassing failures. The lack of testing has
been a reoccurring team throughout the ARISS projects.
Reorganization Solution:
Change the current voting delegate structure from an AMSAT Corporation
controlled formation to a new structure in which corporations do not control
the Hardware project selection and voting. The best way to manage ARISS fairly
is to select representatives from Universities from around the wold to take
over the delegate voting positions in ARISS hardware projects.
What I proposed is that representative from 16+ ISS countries each select two
Universities to act as voting ARISS delegates. The new University delegates
would take the place of the existing ARISS delegates.
The supporting corporations would still be welcome to participate in ARISS
projects, however the corporations would not have Voting rights.
I also envision that most of the existing duties current performed by the
existing ARISS volunteers wold still continue with the same volunteers and
supporting agencies. The majority of changes will be focused on the University
providing an independent view on which projects make the best sense.
The ARISS team claims to provide educational opportunities for the world.
However during the 12 years of ARISS existence, no school or university has
ever built a project for ARISS. The new University Delegate plan would now
open the doors for Universities and other schools to participate in future
ARISS projects.
Note: the Military funded PC-Sat-2 project by the US Naval Academy may have
had some student involvement.
Who should choose the University Delegates?
The Space Agency representatives from each supporting ISS nation will be asked
to contact qualifying universities in their countries. Our goal is to have two
universities, with educational programs related to RF technologies or Space
exploration / satellite programs participate as delegates for ARISS.
The universities will be asked to participate in the ARISS program as a voting
delegate for 4-year terms, with the option to renew.
University Delegate responsibilities:
The responsibilities of the university delegates will be similar to the
existing ARISS tasks, including:
Hardware Guild Lines
Project Selection
Hardware meetings and conferences
Work with ESA, NASA and other agencies for the proper approvals and additional
guidelines.
In-flight Project Management
Existing ARISS supporting corporations:
The existing corporations and clubs such as, ARRL, AMSAT, IARU, MAREX and
others will still be allowed to act as technical consultants and manage
different aspects of ARISS. However these corporations will not have voting
privileges in the hardware selection process.
Additional Benefits:
TBD
This section contains a brief over view of example of common ARISS/AMSAT
Corporation failures.
Poor project selection:
When ample evidence is presented to ARISS to reject a hardware project, the
ARISS team will still peruse projects that have little benefit for the Amateur
Radio community based on the amount of effort required to fly a project to
ISS.
Toss-Satellites:
Toss-Satellites are usually small projects which are literally tossed out the
hatch of the Space Station. Several of these projects were successfully
launched from the Space Station Mir during its 15-year flight. Toss-Satellites
will only run for a few months. Due to the orbit of ISS/Mir the orbit decay
will cause these satellites to re-enter the earth astmothsphere in 6-18
months.
With ISS scheduled to be retired in 2015, it is very important for ARISS to
select projects that have a short development time and a great return on the
effort.
Early on during the ISS project, Frank Bauer (ARISS Chairman and VP of AMSAT
Corporation) said he did not want to waste our valuable resources on building
Toss-Satellites. The MAREX team supported Frank Bauer?s position on Toss-
Satellites. A few years later Frank Bauer and ARISS approved the Suit-Sat1
Toss-Satellite project.
The Suit-Sat1 project incorporated a "Expired" spacesuit that was scheduled to
be disposed of in an incinerating Progress module. Instead, the spacesuit was
stuffed with an Amateur Radio beacon and released as a free flying project.
The original plan called for the "off-the-shelf-hardware" to be partially
pressurized inside the spacesuit. At the last minute the plans changed and the
equipment was exposed to the full vacuum of space. The transmitter for the
project failed and only a handful of stations were able to hear its extremely
weak signal.
The project was partially successful in that it generated worldwide attention
to ISS and Amateur Radio.
The Suit-Sat1 version of the project used a combination of existing ARISS
hardware and "off-the-shelf-hardware". The project was completed in a
relatively short periods of time (less than 2 years) primary because it used
mostly existing hardware. The Suit-Sat1 project did consume resources that
could have been used for longer duration projects.
In 2006, AMSAT Corporation director and ARISS Hardware Manager Lou McFadin
proposed building another project called Suit-Sat2. For this project, rather
than using affordable and easy to deliver "off-the-Shelf" hardware, McFadin
decided to custom build a new transceiver from scratch, using new technology
called "Software Defined Radio".
The Suit-Sat2 project required over 4 years to develop and will not be ready
for flight until 2010. The Suit-Sat2 project will have a flight life
expectancy of 4-12 months.
The effort placed into Suit-Sat2 has caused other long term projects to be
ignored.
Summary:
The Suit-Sat1 transmitter failed immediately.
Design called for a pressurized suit, was changed to full vacuum, without any
testing.
AMAST Corporation is continuing to push for more short duration projects.
Longer duration projects are being ignored
University Charter proposal changes:
Under the new ARISS Reorganization Charter, I propose that we cancel all Toss
Satellite projects for the duration of the remaining ISS mission and focus our
attention on longer duration projects that reach more users.
Inability to Maintain projects in flight
Kenwood TM-D700 Project:
The Kenwood TM-D700 Transceiver, is a very good product. It is unique it that
is has a built in Data modem and mailbox. The downside to this transceiver is
that it gives the users too much control over the "User Editable Software". It
is possible to modify the software in a way that makes the transceiver too
difficult to operate, and that is exactly what happened on this ARISS project.
The MAREX team encouraged the AMSAT Corporation to keep the software setup
simple. The MAREX team had used a similar transceiver on Mir and quickly
discovered the Mir cosmonauts were easily confused by the Kenwood PM buttons
(a PM button is a Function button that have the ability to reboot the radio
into a completely new configuration).
For the sake of brevity, the software complexity failed in many ways, I will
highlight one of the significant failures caused by the complex "User Editable
Software" TM-D700 software.
The first thing we noticed in December 2003 when the Kenwood TM-700 was
activated from the International Space Station, was that the Packet Mailbox
was practically unusable. Only a very experienced operator, with thousands of
watts of power could access the TM-D700 mailbox. The Data delays caused by the
"User Editable Software" reduced the Mailbox data throughput from 300 bits per
second to less than 50 bits per second (See Data Test note #1). Even very
experienced Satellite packet mailbox users had extreme difficulty access the
TM-D700 mailbox. By comparison, entry level users could easily access the
Mailbox that MAREX installed on Mir.
ARISS was immediately notified of the problem, however ARISS did not put any
effort into analyzing or correcting the problem. The MAREX team researched the
problem independently of ARISS and discovered that stock terrestrial versions
of the TM-700 had a working Packet Mailbox. The MAREX team soon discovered the
problem was caused by the Criss-Cross software configured that ARISS had used
on the ISS version of the TM-D700. It took MAREX 4 years of actively lobbying
ARISS to fix the problem.
In the spring of 2008 (4+ years after the problem was first discovered) the
ARISS team finally had a new version of software that appeared to work. The
MAREX team tested a subset of this software that was manually configured on
board ISS. The TM-D700 Mailbox began to work for the first time 4 years, with
a normal data throughput. Unfortunately, due to a lack of coordination, a
Replacement TM-D700 was sent to ISS in the summer of 2008. The Replacement TM-
D700 was not loaded with the new software and we are back where we were in
December 2003, running the bad software.
As of spring 2009 the working "User Editable Software" software has NOT been
loaded on to the ISS version of the TM-D700. The packet mailbox is still
broken on ISS TM-D700.
Summary:
The ARISS / AMSAT Corporation never performed any type of functionality
testing of the TM-D700 project before flight.
The ARISS team accepted the project from Bob Brurunga team at face value and
never attempted to verify if the project meet the original operational goals.
The ARISS team took no action to research or fix the problem. After 5 years of
flight, the easily fixable mailbox feature is still broken on ISS.
University Charter proposal changes:
Under the new ARISS Reorganization Charter, I propose that the university form
a monitoring team to periodically review the status of all Amateur Radio
projects on board ISS and other satellites sharing the same frequencies. The
Review team will provide the NASA and ESA representatives the status of the On
board projects. These reports will include the health of the projects and what
adjustments if any may be required for the safe operation of the equipment.
It is normal for projects to require simple periodic maintenance to ensure
proper operation. The Amateur Radio projects are often used for dedicated
School two-way radio links. It would be a simple procedure to have a basic
safety check worked into each school schedule to verify basic aspects of the
Amateur Radio project being used.
If at any time an Amateur Radio project on ISS appears to be unstable or
possibly on the verge of an unsafe condition, the Review team will notify NASA
and ESA immediately and request the project be shutdown until it can be
reevaluated for safety.
Failure to provide NASA and ESA valid project status information
The AMSAT Corporation would routinely deny there are problems with equipment,
even when ISS crewmembers in-flight reported the problems with the ARISS
projects.
One example, Kenwood TM-D700 Fan.
The TM-D700 transceiver has a built in Cooling Fan that operates when the
transmitter is active. None of us really paid much attention to the cooling
fan, nor did anyone bother to research the Duty cycle of the fan or its life
span. Instead we did focus on trying to keep the radio cool by not using the
High power mode and "Hard Wiring" the radio so that it would never transmitter
with more than 25 watts, (the terrestrial of the TM-D700 version is capable of
operating at 45 watts transmitter output).
When the packet Radio options were being discussed, one of the features of
packet is called the Beacon Mode. With this option the packet station would
send out a short 1-2 second bust of data every few minutes.
Example:
RS0ISS>CQ [07/21/02 05:19:44]: <<UI>>:ARISS - INNTERNATIONAL SPACE STATION
The purpose of the beacon is to signal stations on Earth that the ISS packet
station is in range of their location. Normally the window of access
opportunity to ISS is a small 10-minute window. By setting the beacon
correctly we could ensue that most stations would hear the beacon at least
once during their access window. If the beacon were set too frequently, it
would waist power and increase the heat load on the transmitter.
The MAREX team requested a beacon set for 3-4 minutes at a power setting of 5
watts. ARISS wanted a beacon set for 2 minutes at 10 watts transmitter power.
ARISS got their way. The beacon option may seem trivial, however it did have a
big effect on the status of the cooling fan.
No one knew at that time, how the fan worked and what controlled the fans
On/Off cycle.
The way it works, is when the transmitter is ON, the Fan is ON. When the
transmitter turns OFF, a timer is set and the fan keeps running for 2 more
minutes after the transmitter turns OFF.
Had we known this early, it would have influenced the beacon decision. Since
the beacon was set to Broadcast every two minutes. And the Cooling fan would
run for 2 minutes after the transmitter stopped, it meant that the fan was
running continuously 24 hours a day 7 days a week, whenever the TM-D700 was
turned on.
The Packet software was designed to be on at all times (except during Repeater
mode). Even when the radio was in Voice mode, the packet system was still
running on a different pair of frequencies. And every two minutes the packet
system would send out another beacon, which kept the cooling fan running all
of the time.
In August 2006 after 2.5 years of TM-D700 operations in flight, Cosmonaut
Commander Pavel Vinogradov reported the TM-D700 fan did not seem to be
working, "I blow on it, the fan moves and then stops". The day before the
Radio had over heated and locked up due to a problem with the Laptop
transmitter Vox-Box control cable (I will cover Vox-Box control cable in a
separate section).
I was in the Tele-conference with ARISS when our Energia representative
repeated the conversation he had with Commander Pavel Vinogradov. ARISS
immediately went into denial mode and refused to believe the comments made by
Commander Pavel Vinogradov. The MAREX team requested on several occasions that
ARISS should perform a routine check out of the TM-700 on during one of the
weekly School schedule link days. It would be easy to add a few new "check
list" items to the school schedule checklist to examine the operation of the
fan to verify its status. ARISS flat-out refused to perform any examination of
the fan on the TM-D700.
Frank Bauer said "I do not want to bring any attention to NASA that we may be
having a problem with fan".
In August 2007 I talked to ISS crewmember Clayton Anderson on board ISS. I
asked Clayton the question that ARISS had been refusing to ask, "Is the fan on
the TM-D700 working". Clayton responded, "It?s hard to tell, I do not think
the fan is working".
The statements made by Clayton Anderson and Commander Pavel Vinogradov while
using the TM-D700 on board ISS do not confirm the fan is actually broken,
however there is substantial information present for ARISS to at least start
an investigation. ARISS still refused to investigate the problem.
Fortunately the Russian engineering team frequently ignores ARISS and decided
that there was sufficient information and decided to send a replacement TM-
D700 and Vox-Box to ISS in 2008.
Summary:
ARISS / AMSAT Corporation knew there was a possibility the critical cooling
fan on the TM-D700 may have failed and took no action.
ARISS / AMSAT Corporation went out of their way to deny there was any problem
with the suspected cooling fan and continued to allow the transceiver to
operate in unattended modes.
ARISS / AMSAT Corporation refused to investigate the problem which had been
reported by 2 ISS crewmembers in-flight.
University Charter proposal changes:
Under the new ARISS Reorganization Charter, I propose that the university
assign an independent team to perform a complete safety and functionality
check on every project approved by ARISS for ISS.
The safety check will included the following:
Complete review of all technical documentation.
Hardware compatibility testing. Including full End-to-End testing at least a
year before flight.
RFI emissions testing
Human Interface testing (Is the project too complex for the ISS crew to
operate?)
Project delivery schedule (If the project can not be completed in 2-years or
less, it should be canceled)
Hardware Donation to ARISS:
The Kenwood Company donated (15) Kenwood TM-D700 transceiver to ARISS (around
the year 2000) for the ISS projects. Very early on in the project TM- D700,
MAREX asked Frank Bauer if we could to borrow one of the TM-D700 to evaluate
the performance of the TM-D700 Software, Packet Mail system and over all
functionality. Frank agreed and promised to let MAREX borrow one of the (15)
TM-D700?s. MAREX made the request several time and was always give the same
response, "Yes we will send you one when they are available".
ARISS never came through with their promise and as a result the TM-D700 never
received the planned crosscheck evaluation of the project as had been planned.
This critical missing Quality Assurance check allowed many correctable
problems to slip through and resulted in an over all very poor performing and
embarrassing project for ARISS and ISS.
Failure to test projects:
AMSAT Corporations refusal to perform basic compatibly and usability testing
on projects has led to some embarrassing failures. The lack of testing has
been a reoccurring team throughout the ARISS projects.
There are many example of the "Failure to test", however I will only highlight
one of the best document cases.
Slow Scan TV project (SpaceCam1 SSTV):
The SSTV project consisted for 5 parts:
SSTV Software, provided by MAREX and Silicon-Pixels
MAREX Delivered the Beta software in 1999.
Laptop Computer
ARISS took the responsibility of acquiring an approved Laptop to be used for
Amateur Radio project including Packet and Slow Scan TV. ARISS began the
acquisition in 1999 and was finally able to secure a Laptop in 2008. The
Laptop portion of the project only required 9 years to complete. Occasionally
the ISS crew would borrow the "Tourist" Laptops from other projects that would
be used intermittently with Amateur Radio projects.
Erickson Transceiver
The original SAREX team had some leftover hardware from previous Shuttle
Missions. This hardware was flight qualified for ISS and delivered to ISS in
2000.
Vox-Box adapter
An interface needed to be built to allow a Laptop computer to connect to the
Erickson transceiver. AMSAT Corporation directory Lou McFadin (ARISS Hardware
Manager) volunteered to build the interface cable. This cable would be used
for SSTV and other Amateur radio projects. The Vox-Box cable design began in
1999.
Antenna System (Team effort from multiple agencies)
A total of 5 cable feed-throughs, with antennas were made available to Amateur
Radio project in the Russian modules.
Lack of End-to-End Testing:
In the summer of 2000, AMSAT had sufficient hardware and software to start
performing End-to-end testing of the SpaceCam1 project. The ARISS/AMSAT
hardware team had the Antennas, Flight-Laptop (IBM-760XD), SpaceCam1 software,
VOX-Box hardware and the Erickson Transceivers.
The AMSAT hardware team never performed any End-to-end testing until August
2003. At a meeting with ARISS in 2003, I was finally given access to the
Erickson hardware for the first time. To my utter amazement, no one on the
AMSAT hardware team had ever connected all of this equipment together prior to
this meeting. The ARISS hardware team had only tested individual parts
separately.
I discovered numerous problems that should have been discovered years earlier.
The SpaceCam1 project was scheduled to fly to ISS in 2004 and we had to
perform qualifications testing in Moscow in November 2003.
#1 Erickson Transceiver could not receive SSTV images.
The first big problem was that the Erickson transceiver was not able to
receive SSTV images.
The Erickson Transceivers had an audio port connection, which would be
connected to the Laptop through the Vox-Box adapter. The Audio voltage level
coming out of the Erickson connection was approximately 10 volts p-p. The
Laptop microphone input port requires a voltage level of 1-2 volt p-p.
Since the Erickson was running a voltage much higher than the requirements of
the Laptop, the images displayed on the laptop were completely distorted and
unusable.
The fix for this problem was never implemented by ARISS and thus the Erickson
Transceiver could not be used for SSTV or any other type of Laptop project.
#2 Vox-Box oscillations
The Vox-Box is an adapter cable that takes the audio from the Laptop and sends
it to the Radio. The Vox-Box is also responsible to telling the Radio, when to
"Transmit". When the Vox-Box detects audio from the Laptop, it will then tell
the radio to "Transmit". When the audio stops, the Vox-Box will tell the radio
to switch back into receiving mode.
During the Houston testing in August 2003, we noticed the Vox-Box adapter
would intermittently go into an uncontrolled Oscillation. The Oscillation
would then scramble any images being sent to the radio.
Eventually a specific hardware configuration was found that seem to reduce the
Oscillations. The Kenwood TM-D700 and the IBM-760XD seemed to be compatible.
The AMSAT team that built the Vox-Box did not perform any additional circuit
modifications to understand or eliminate the Oscillation problem.
The two Vox-Box cables used on board ISS are both having problems controlling
the transmitter. When the Laptop signals the Vox-Box to start transmit, the
transmitter is activated correctly. When the Laptop signals the Vox-Box to
Stop transmitter, the Transmitter gets stuck ON.
#3 Wiener Laptop
The Wiener Laptop (166 MHz CPU, Windows 2000) was a backup Laptop provided by
the Russian team. This was the first time anyone at ARISS had seen this
Laptop. The Russians said, there was a spare Wiener Laptop on ISS and we were
welcome to use this computer for our Amateur Radio projects.
The main problem with this computer was also associated with the Audio output
voltage levels. This Laptop was designed to run either low voltage headsets
(1-2 volts p-p) or higher voltage external speakers (15-20 volts p-p). The
Windows 2000 operating Systems was all in Russian and we had very limited
access to a Russian translator to assist with the settings. As a result we
were not able to fully document the changes required to keep the Laptop
running in the low voltage-operating mode. All images transmitted from the
Wiener Laptop while in the default Speaker setting came out scrambled.
Moscow KIS testing November 2003
During the months before the trip to Russia, the ARISS and MAREX team linked
up frequently by conference call. One of the goals requested by MAREX was that
we have a pre-test staging day set aside so that we could retest all of the
hardware, before going to the KIS testing facility. The pre-test staging was
very important because of the poor results we had during the August 2003
Houston testing session. Frank Bauer and the ARISS team agreed and plans were
made to set aside a day to stage all of the hardware before taking the
hardware to the KIS facility.
Shortly after we arrived in Moscow, Frank Bauer told me that we would not have
a Staging test day and that we wold not have access to the hardware until the
morning of the KIS flight certification testing. A disaster was looming.
On the testing day, a good portion of the morning was taken up by going
through the required security processes. When we finally arrived in our
testing office with all of our hardware, we only had 1 hour to unpack and get
ready for the testing, inside the mockup module of the ISS service module.
All of the problems we had in Houston came back and then some. The first
stumbling block was that we did not have our translator with us. During the
previous 2 days of meetings, we had full access to a qualified translator.
However, in the KIS facility we did not have a translator, which would have
really been useful.
The Wiener Laptop was installed in the Service module first. Unfortunately the
settings I made to the Wiener Laptop in August 2003 had been changed and the
Laptop was now sending speaker audio out at 20 volts p-p. The high voltages
caused all SSTV images sent from the service module to become completely
scrambled.
The IBM 760XD and TM-D700 combination in the Office overlooking the Service
module was also having problems sending images to the Service Module.
Our Back up Kenwood HT with a SSTV microphone (VCH1-Communicator) was out of
service because the battery had not been charged. Fortunately we had the 220
Volt power cube for the HT, unfortunately the plug pins were too short to
reach inside the Russian AC power outlet or Power strips.
I went to a group of Russian engineers wearing white jackets and handed them
the Power Cube and a Power Strip and said in English, "Fix". The engineers
took the power cube and power strip and walked a way. A few minutes later they
came back. They had removed the protective cover to the power strip and taped
the Power Cube on to the exposed 220-Volt brass contact bars. The engineer
said in English "No Touch". Wow that was fast and simple Russian engineering.
I now had 1 working SSTV system. Unfortunately I needed two working SSTV
systems.
I began working on the IBM-760XD in the lab and discovered the Audio levels
were set incorrectly, which was easy to correct. After a few minutes I was
able to send and receive SSTV images to the Backup VCH1-Commander system in
the same lab. I was also able to send Frank Bauer SSTVimages in the Service
module. Frank was still not able to Send images because of the audio level
problems with the Wiener Laptop.
Frank ordered me into the Service Module to fix the Wiener computer.
Unfortunately, without a Russian translator, I could not easily navigate the
Russian version of Windows 2000 to find the correct audio settings. At one
point, a group of Cosmonauts squeezed into the Service model to see the new
SSTV project. Everyone posed for pictures. One of the cosmonauts looked at the
scrambled SSTV images on the screen and said in English, "Not working?" I
responded in poor Russian "Little Problem", I was very embarrassed.
Then we got lucky, the battery on the Wiener computer died. We were not
allowed to run the laptops on AC power, they had to run on batteries for their
emission portion of the tests. The dead batter allowed us the blame the
battery for the problems and gave us the opportunity to swap over to the IBM-
760XD and Kenwood TM-D700 configuration. Within a few minutes the working IBM-
760XD was moved from the lab, into the Service Module. Once setup Frank and I
were able to Send and receive good quality SSTV images to and from the Service
Module and we were able to pass the emissions testing.
Changes to the Vox-Box power source:
A few weeks after the Moscow certification test, the power source for the Vox-
Box was changed from a 9-Volt battery to be able to receive power directly
from inside the Kenwood TM-D700 transceiver. This modification was only
performed on the TM-D700 in Russia, one of which was flown to ISS in the fall
of 2003. None of the other TM-700 in the USA based ARISS Hardware team made
the same changes or confirmed their functionality.
When the Vox-Box was used in-flight for SSTV in August 2006, the Vox-Box would
turn ON the transmitter, however the Vox-Box circuit would get stuck and would
not turn the transmitter OFF.
A new Vox-Box and TM-D700 were flown to ISS in the summer of 2008. When the
SSTV was activated again, the same problem occurred, the transmitter would get
stuck in the ON position. Flight participant Richard Garriott, tried two
different SSTV applications and both had the same problem. ARISS wants to
blame the SpaceCam1 SSTV software, however, since the problem was seen with
two completely different SSTV applications, we can assume that is its not a
software issue.
The cause of the stuck transmitter is most likely and RF interference on the
DC power source feeding from the TM-D700 transmitter into the Vox-Box. I have
shown a few engineers the schematic for the ARISS Vox-Box and they all ask the
same questions, "Where is the RF bypass filtering, there is none". Without
proper RF bypass circuits, it would be easy for the Vox-Box switch to get
stuck on the ON condition.
Summary:
Lack of End-to-end testing left us poorly prepared with limited hardware
options.
Canceling of the pre-test Staging resulted in an embarrassing and stressful
testing session.
The Vox-Box Oscillation problem was observed by oscilloscope in Moscow.
Changes to Vox-Box power source were not fully tested and may be the cause of
the two In-flight failures.
University Charter proposal changes:
Under the new ARISS Reorganization Charter, I propose that the university
assign an independent team to perform a complete safety and functionality
check on every project approved by ARISS for ISS.
The safety check will included the following:
Complete review of all technical documentation.
Hardware compatibility testing. Including full End-to-End testing at least a
year before flight.
RFI emissions testing
Human Interface testing (Is the project too complex for the ISS crew to
operate?)
Project delivery schedule (If the project can not be completed in 2-years or
less, it should be canceled)
Last minute changes will need to be verified before ARISS will signoff on a
problem.
------------------------------
_______________________________________________
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End of AMSAT-BB Digest, Vol 4, Issue 401
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