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CX2SA > SATDIG 21.08.09 07:41l 1747 Lines 76332 Bytes #999 (0) @ WW
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Today's Topics:
1. Don't Fly SuitSat2 to ISS (MM)
2. Re: New ICOM VHF / UHF / SHF Radio (John Geiger)
3. Re: Don't Fly SuitSat2 to ISS (Rocky Jones)
4. Re: Use of ICOM 910 for AO-51 L-Band BBS Uplink? (Greg D.)
5. Re: KLM 2M 22C (Don Roland)
6. Re: The future of the ISS. (Rocky Jones)
7. Re: Don't Fly SuitSat2 to ISS (Tim Lilley)
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Message: 1
Date: Thu, 20 Aug 2009 12:39:40 -0700 (PDT)
From: MM <ka1rrw@xxxxx.xxx>
Subject: [amsat-bb] Don't Fly SuitSat2 to ISS
To: amsat-bb@xxxxx.xxx
Message-ID: <273358.20471.qm@xxxxxxxx.xxxx.xxx.xxxxx.xxx>
Content-Type: text/plain; charset=utf-8
Don?t Fly Suit-Sat to the
International Space Station
The International Space Station will be retired in 20015-2016.
We do not have much time left, before NASA pulls the plug!
We need your help to convince NASA, ESA and RSA to send more Long term
educational projects to ISS and to not send short term disposable Toss-
Satellites projects such as the Suit-Sat-2 to ISS.
In this document I will go over several reasons why Suit-Sat-2 is the wrong
project for the International Space Station (ISS) and offer suggestions on how
to best use Suit-Sat-2.
Introduction: 3
What is Suit-Sat-2: 4
Reason #1: The Orbit: 5
Reason #2: Access Window Time: 5
Reason #3: Satellite Footprints: 6
Reason #4: Suit-Sat-2 needs a new container: 7
Batteries: 7
Solar Panels: 7
Battery Charging System: 7
Antenna System: 7
Satellite flight container: 7
Reason #5: Launch Date January 2010: 8
Reason #6: The ISS is the wrong place for Suit-Sat-2 : 9
What can we do with Suit-Sat-2 ? 10
Long Term Project Suggestions: 11
SpaceCam1 meets our Long term goals: 12
SpaceCam1, Best Bang for the Buck: 13
Current ISS Amateur Radio hardware Status: 15
November 2000 Ericsson System: 15
February 2003 Packcom Modem: 15
January 2002 Antenna Systems: 16
December 2003 Kenwood TM-D700: 17
October 2005 SpaceCam1 and Suit-Sat1: 17
February 2008 Columbus Antennas: 18
Unused Amateur Radio hardware on ISS: 19
Unused Coax Cables: 19
Unused Antennas: 19
Unused Radios (Ericsson UHF Transceiver): 20
Suit-Sat-1 Burns up: 20
Summary: 20
VHF Society Meeting July 24, 2009 21
Introduction:
This is an open letter to representatives of the organizations and technical
communities, including:
NASA, European Space Agency, Russian Space Agency, AMSAT, ARISS, ARRL, Amateur
Radio community and the Short Wave Listener community.
Do you want to see more Education Amateur Radio activity from ISS?
If so, then we need to take decisive action now before we lose International
Space Station completely.
In this memo I am going to discuss the reasons we should change the launch
vehicle for the Suit-Stat-2 project from the low orbiting International Space
Station (ISS) to different unmanned rocket launch vehicle and how we can all
benefit from the changes.
What is Suit-Sat-2:
Suit-Sat-2 is a small satellite radio about the size of a toaster. It will
allow amateur radio operators and Short waver listeners to monitor the signals
from the satellite while it?s in orbit.
The exact specifications of Suit-Sat-2 have not been published.
Suit-Sat-2 may contain the following features:
Slow Scan Image Transmitter.
FM Cross band transponder.
SSB mode U/V transponder.
Suit-Sat-2 will run on batters and a solar panel while in orbit. This will
extend the life of the operational satellite. The original Suit-Sat-1
satellite only had batteries, no solar panel and was only operational for 3
weeks.
The original plan was to send the Suit-Sat-2 hardware to the International
Space Station and then stuff the hardware into Space suite that is scheduled
for disposal. The satellite radio, plus the space suit is how Suit-Sat got
its name.
Unfortunately Suit-Sat-2 missed its original planed hardware completed date
for the fall of 2007 and also missed a rocket launch opportunity in 2008. As
of July 2009 the hardware for Suit-Sat-2 is still being developed.
In the summer of 2009 ARISS was informed that ISS could not wait any longer
and disposed of the extra empty space suit. Now the ARISS hardware team needs
to redesign Suit-Sat-2 to fly in its own satellite container, which has not
been designed.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/SuitSat_2
http://www.arrl.org/news/stories/2006/11/09/101/
Some information about its predecessor Suit Sat-1
http://www.amsat.org/amsat-
new/satellites/satInfo.php?satID=24&retURL=satellites/frequencies.php
Reason #1: The Orbit:
The Orbit of the International Space Station is approximately 250 miles (350
kilometers). This is actually a very low orbit. Any satellite launched into
this type of orbit will re-enter the earth?s atmosphere and burn-up in less
than 1 year. The only reason the ISS has not burnt up is because NASA keeps
sending more fuel to the space station and they use that to keep boosting the
Station back up to 250 mile orbit.
If the Suit-Sat-2 satellite is launched from the ISS orbit, it will simply
burn up in 6-12 months.
Suit-Sat-2 needs to be in a high orbit such as the common 700-800 kilometer
orbit, which will allow the satellite to orbit for decades.
Reason #2: Access Window Time:
The Access Windows Time, is how many minutes can you use Suit-Sat-2
transceivers when it is in range of you location. At an altitude of 250 miles
your maximum access window will be 10 minutes per orbit. Depending on where
you live you will have orbit access 4-6 times per day. Only a few of these
orbits will approach the maximum 10 minute access window time. Most of the
orbits will be very low on the horizon and your access window time will be
shorter.
If Suit-Sat-2 was paced a more common higher orbit such as the commonly used
700-800 kilometer orbit, your maximum access window time will be in the 15-18
minute range.
Reason #3: Satellite Footprints:
The higher the altitude of the satellite, the greater the Radio link coverage
will be. From ISS, the maximum footprint size is approximately 1500 mile
radius or a diameter of 3000 miles across.
In simple terms this means that two radio stations 2000 ? 3000 miles apart can
communication via the satellite when it is in-between them. Suit-Sat-2 will
have a smaller foot print at 250 miles then it will at 800 km. The Suit-Sat-
2 project will not have enough altitude to support communications links
between the USA and Europe.
During the short 6-12 month life of Suit-Stat2, the orbit will decrease in
altitude daily. After a few months the size of the Satellite footprint will
be noticeably smaller. The Radio link coverage will also decreases daily.
The Satellite Access Window time will decrease daily as Suit-Sat-2 gets closer
to the ground.
Reason #4: Suit-Sat-2 needs a new container:
Suit-Sat-2 was designed to be stuffed into a used space suit. The Ariss
Hardware team now needs to completely redesign the Suit-Sat-2 project to fit
into a yet-to-be-designed satellite container box. This will not be a simple
task.
Areas that need to be redesigned for Suit-Sat2:
Batteries:
The original design called for large 24 volt batteries located inside the
space suite. New smaller Space flight qualified batteries will need to
located that will fit into the smaller satellite container. A completely new
power budget will need to be calculated.
The old batteries cannot be reused.
Solar Panels:
The old panels were going to be tied to the back of the space suit. The new
panels will need to be custom designed to fit onto the exterior of the new 6
sided satellite box.
The old panels cannot be reused.
Battery Charging System:
Since we now have to use New Batteries and a new yet-to-be-designed Solar
panel system, we will now have to redesign the existing SuitSat-2 charging
system to accommodate the new changes.
The whole power budget has just changed.
Antenna System:
The Suit-Sat-2 antennas system was designed to be tied to the space suit. It
seems to make sense since you have to build a new satellite box, new
batteries, new solar panels, you may as well build a better antenna system,
rather than bungee cording the antenna to the box.
This means a new Antenna system designed from scratch.
Satellite flight container:
Suit-Sat-2 was originally designed to be stuffed into an old space suit that
has reached the end of useful life. RSA could not wait any longer for Suit-
Sat-2 so they have made plans to stuff the suits into a Russian Progress cargo
rocket and let the Progress trash truck burn up on re-entry.
The ARISS Hardware team now needs to design a new box to hold their satellite
transceiver board, etc.
The box will need to be strong enough to be placed inside a Russian Progress
rocket for its flight to ISS. The unmanned cargo rocket will exceed 5-9 G?s
of force. Remember the satellite A0-40? The AO-40 Satellite frame had to be
completely re-designed after the G-Force load numbers changed. If you make
the frame too light, components could break loose during the launching phase.
Reason #5: Launch Date January 2010:
The Suit-Sat-2 project was first presented to the ARISS team in January 2006.
The project was headed by AMSAT Director and ARISS Hardware Project manager
Lou McFadin. In October 2006 ARISS publicly present the project at the ARISS
International meeting in San Francisco.
At the ARISS Team meeting in 2006, Lou McFadin said we could be ready to
launch Suit-Sat-2 in the fall (2007).
http://www.arrl.org/news/stories/2006/11/09/101/
Comments from McFadin at the ARISS meeting in 2006
An ISS crew could launch SuitSat-2 during a spacewalk as early as next fall.
"We're talking about October of next year [2007], in conjunction with the 50th
anniversary of Sputnik-1,"
***
Here were are in July 2009 and the 18 month project is now into its 30+ month
of development. The Suit-Sat-2 project has missed 2 launch opportunities and
is ready to miss it?s third. As of July 2009 status of the Suit-Sat-2 hardware
still seems to be at the prototype level, with a considerable amount of work
to be done before the transceiver becomes flight ready. See the attached memo
from the July 24-25 the Central States VHF Society meeting.
In order to meet the January 2010 launch date, you need to deliver a few
flight qualified versions of your project to the Russian space agency a few
Months BEFORE flight.
In my professional opinion, the Suit-Sat-2 transceiver system will require 6-9
more months of development time. In my estimate the earliest time we could
expect to see a pair of electronics modules of ?Flight Quality? would be the
end of 2010.
The Satellite box does not exist and would required 18-24 months to design and
build a container that will survive Proton Rocket G-forces of 5-9g?s. All
Amateur Radio hardware is set to the ISS via the Russian unmanned Proton Cargo
rocket. The cargo rockets are exposed to much higher G-forces than the manned
rocket launches.
If the Ariss Hardware team did not have to build the Satellite container for
Suit-Sat-2, they would still miss the January 2010 Progress rocket launch by a
full year.
Reason #6: The ISS is the wrong place for Suit-Sat-2 :
The ISS will be retired in 5-6 years.
We only get approximately 1 launch opportunity per year for Amateur Radio
projects, and we have missed a few since we did not have any ARISS approved
projects ready for flight. Short term projects such as Suit-Sat-1 and Suit-
Sat-2 have caused long term projects to get bumped off the project
consideration lists.
We need more "Longer" term projects on ISS that reach a greater audience.
There are over 2 million licensed Amateur Radio users worldwide and there are
over 10 million Short Wave Listeners (SWL). We need projects that can reach
the majority of the people with the ability to listen to our educational
projects. Projects should not be designed just for the Amateur Radio
operators; we also need to take into consideration the educational opportunity
to show the Short Wave Listeners public what we can do.
Short term projects such as Toss-Satellites (Suit-Sat-2 ) are a waist of a
very valuable ISS resource.
With the few launch opportunity remaining we need to focus all of our
attention on longer term project that will cover the largest possible number
of users.
The number of users and the short duration of the Suit-Sat-2 mission do not
justify the amount resources required for such a short run project. Instead
we need to use the ISS launch opportunity to fly project that will last for
years and proved easy access to millions of users.
Toss-Satellite projects have no real benefit to the ISS crew. Once the
project is tossed out the door the crew has nothing more to do with the
project.
What can we do with Suit-Sat-2 ?
The long term plan for Suit-Sat-2 was to use it as a Free flying micro
satellite that is part of other unmanned launches into higher orbits. Let?s
go for the long term Plan. The AMSAT Corporation said they were looking for
projects that can fly quickly when a launch opportunity arrives. I believe
that the Suit-Sat-2 project can be boxed up and made viable for launches in
the 2013 time frame. The AMSAT Corporation and ARISS should start looking for
higher altitude unmanned rockets in that time frame to place Suit-Sat-2 in a
more functional orbit.
The flights in the 2013 time frame will also provide ARISS/AMSAT with the time
they require to redesign Suit-Sat-2 to fit into its own satellite box.
Long Term Project Suggestions:
Here are a few long term project suggestions, which have been reject by the
ARISS-Project and Selection committee.
VOX Box Replacement to enable continuous Slow Scan TV (SpaceCam1).
Kantronics KPC-9612 Mail box (supports 8+ simultaneous users)
Icom ID-800 D-Star Analog/digital radio system.
Out of all of these projects the SpaceCam1 project has the ability to reach
Millions of listeners around the world. The reason we do not see much SSTV
from the International Space Station is because the VOX box that connects
between the Laptop computer and Kenwood TM-D700 radio is defective.
The VOX box gets its 12 volt power from wires coming out of a modified TM-
D700. When the VOX box hears Audio coming from the Laptop, it sends a signal
to tell the TM-D700 to transmit (which it does). Unfortunately, the stray RF
energy coming through the power wires from the TM-D700 into the VOX Box, jam
the transmitting Op-amp inside the VOX box which caused the radio to get stuck
in the transmitting mode.
The defective VOX box is preventing us from seeing an SSTV from the Laptop
SpaceCam1 application. The SpaceCam1 application has the ability to send over
300 SSTV images per day (Live or from Disk).
The ISS crew does have a backup system called the VCH1-Communicator. This is
a big microphone with a built-in SSTV coded/decoder (just like your camera on
a cell phone). For safety reason the ISS crew is only allowed to run the VCH1
on batteries (4 x AA batteries). Spare batteries are in very short supply.
The VCH1 is power hungry and will eat a good set of AA batteries in a few
hours.
SpaceCam1 meets our Long term goals:
What is SpaceCam1?
SpaceCam1 is a very simple software application that runs on a typical windows
laptop computer. The software will convert any JPG or BMP image into a format
that can be sent over a simple radio voice channel. The images in SSTV
format, can be easily decoded with free /shareware software and a laptop. The
only other hardware you need is a simple scanner (Police Scanners or any radio
receiver that can receive FM signals on the 145.800 MHz radio frequency)
The MarexMG team installed a hardware version of SpaceCam1 on the Russian
Space Satiation Mir in 1998-2000. The Mir system took 20,000 images and sent
them Earth during the projects 2 years of activity. The MarexMG SSTV project
only required 18 months from Theory to Switch On, from the Russian Space
Station. The project was so successful that the RSA asked the MarexMG team to
build a new system for the International Space Station.
MarexMG Currently has SpaceCam1 already installed in tested on board the
International Space Station. We have received a few hundred images from
SpaceCam1 already. Please check out the links below.
Here are some Images from the MarexMG SpaceCam1 project, taken on board the
International Space Station.
http://www.issspacecam.org/SSTVProject/BestSC/index.htm
The SpaceCam1 project has had some success on the International Space Station.
However, the interface cable that connects between the laptop computer and the
Kenwood TM-D700 radio has a flawed design that is preventing us from using any
computer-to-radio applications for more than a few minutes at a time. The
interface cable is called a Vox Box. The Vox Box is responsible for turning
radio transmitter On and OFF. Due to a problem with RF interference the Vox
Box only turns the transmitter ON and will not turn the transmitter OFF.
Vox Box link
http://www.marexmg.org/hardware/voxbox.html
The MarexMG team has proposed a replacement VOX Box system that should resolve
all of the RF interference problems. The Vox Box we have chosen is an Off-
The-Shelf produce in which over 5000 units have been sold. The manufacture
claims there have been no reported problems of RF interference causing their
VOX Box to get stuck in the transmitting mode.
SpaceCam1, Best Bang for the Buck:
The SpaceCam1 project will provide the greatest benefit to the Amateur Radio
Satellite community and the Short Wave Listener community of all of the
currently suggested Amateur Radio projects planned for ISS.
The hardware required to hear SpaceCam1 and decode the SSTV images is readily
available. Most Short Wave Listener's already have a basic FM receiver and
antenna that can receive the SSTV downlink frequency 145.800 Mhz.
The Image decoding software is available from multiple web sites as Share Ware
and Free Ware.
SpaceCam1 can be left running unattended on board ISS for weeks at a time.
This will allow the word to spread and encourage more people to tune in and
see the crew selected and live images coming down from ISS.
Schools from around the world will setup radio receiving stations at their
homes and schools to be the first to receive the new batch of images
transmitted that day.
In order to Re-Active SpaceCam1 we will need your help. We need to replace
the old Vox box with the new USB Vox Box.
The new USB Vox Box will allows the Amateur Radio community and the Short-
wave-listeners community to be able to receive up to 250+ images per day from
the International Space Station.
Amateur Radio stations will also be allowed to Send images to ISS. SpaceCam1
also included a built-in image Repeater, which can retransmit from orbit.
Example:
ISS is in orbit 250 miles over the city of Chicago. An Amateur Radio station
in Boston MA sends an image to SpaceCam1-Image-Repeater on board ISS. The
Image Repeater then retransmits the image. Most of the Amateur Radio stations
and Short Wave listeners on that frequency within 1000 miles (1600
kilometers) of Chicago will be able to see the Repeated image from Boston.
Add USB link here
http://www.marexmg.org/pressrelease/newsrelease10192005.html
Current ISS Amateur Radio hardware Status:
November 2000 Ericsson System:
The First Crew arrives in ISS. A few months later Sergei K. Krikalev, call
sign U5MIR was on the air using an Ericsson HT radio system. Krikalev was
allowed to use and existing Un-used antenna for the Amateur Radio system.
The first packet mail modem for the Ericsson system failed due to a bad
battery. The ROM chip was never configured with the correct boot up settings.
Ericcson HT link
http://www.marexmg.org/hardware/ericcson.html
February 2003 Packcom Modem:
A backup packet mail modem arrived on ISS. The ISS crew used the Packet
mailbox to send mail to Amateur Radio stations worldwide. The system was used
for approximately 9 months. The last 2 months the modem began to lock up
frequently. The system was replaced by the Kenwood TM-D700 in December 2003.
The Ericsson HTs were retired in December 2003 and have since been discarded.
January 2002 Antenna Systems:
The ARISS designed antenna systems are installed on ISS
Now we have the ability to run more projects at the same time.
Current antennas systems:
(1) Mono band 2-meter (147 mc)
The Sirrus antenna system mounted on the Zarya module. This antenna was
connected to the Amateur Radio Ericsson 2-meter Voice/Packet station (2000 -
2003)
This antenna is not currently being used, however it may be reassigned to a
commercial telemetry system in the near future.
ARISS Multi Band antenna project.
This project includes 4 new coax cable runs through the hull of the Service
module, with 4 antenna systems attached. The 4 new antenna systems provided
us with the equivalent of 11 new antennas.
One of the cables is connected to the Amateur Radio project (Kenwood TM-D700).
The antennas WA-2 and WA-4 are not used and are available for future Amateur
Radio projects.
The antenna WA-3 was assigned to some type of TV system for monitoring signals
from remote RF cameras. I do not have any more details on this hardware.
Antenna WA-1 supports (145 MHz, 438 MHz, 1296 MHz and 2400 MHz) (TM-D700)
Antenna WA-2 supports (145 MHz, 438 MHz, 1296 MHz and 2400 MHz) Unused
Antenna WA-3 supports (145 MHz, 438 MHz, 1296 MHz and 2400 MHz) RSA TV System
Antenna WA-4 supports (28 MHz, 1296 MHz and 2400 MHz) Unused
Antenna link
http://www.marexmg.org/hardware/antennas.html
December 2003 Kenwood TM-D700:
Kenwood TM-D700 project arrives.
Due to user configurable software setting error, the Packet Mailbox feature
was rendered unusable. The Digital Repeater mode called Digi-peating was
still functional. The user configurable software changes to correct the
Packet Mailbox problem were never implemented.
While Testing SpaceCam1 SSTV with the Kenwood TM-D700 radio overheated in
August 2006. It was determined the VOX Box caused the radio to repeatedly get
stuck in the transmitting mode over night. The next day, the ISS crew
reported the radio was hot and would not respond to button or microphone
commands until after the power cord was disconnected and reconnected.
Kenwood Link
http://www.marexmg.org/hardware/kenwood.html
October 2005 SpaceCam1 and Suit-Sat1:
Two projects were delivered to ISS this month. The Laptop for the Amateur
Radio station and SpaceCam, which was scheduled for 2001, did not arrive until
2008. SpaceCam1 was activated for a few weeks in August 2006 and again in
October 2008.
Suit-Sat-1 was tossed out the air lock in February 2006 for a 3-week mission.
February 2008 Columbus Antennas:
Two more antennas arrive via the Columbus module. Antennas designed for L and
S bands.
These two antennas can also be used for Amateur Radio projects. However there
are no ?Viable? projects officially scheduled for these antennas.
September 2008
Progress M-65 cargo rocket delivers backup Kenwood TM-D700 to ISS. It also
brings the Kenwood VC-H1 Communicator (a SSTV microphone) and a backup VOX Box
for SSTV to laptop operations.
It should be noted that a fixed version of TM-D700 Email software had been
successfully tested on Earth, and a subset of the parameters were also tested
on ISS. The new TM-D700 Email software settings worked, however it was never
loaded into the replacement Kenwood TM-D700.
The Packet Email on the TM-D700 is still not usable.
The Backup VOX box was sent to ISS to replace the defective VOX box. The
Backup VOX box is identical to the VOX box that caused problems in 2006. The
New VOX box was never modified to resolve the RF locking problems reported in
2006. When the New Laptop was connected to the New Kenwood TM-D700 with the
New VOX Box in October 2008, there were no surprises when the TM-D700 got
stuck in Transmitting mode Again.
Unused Amateur Radio hardware on ISS:
Unused Coax Cables:
Total Hull Feed through Coax Cables = 6
Only 1 coax cable, which is attached to the WA-1 antenna, is currently being
used. It is currently connected to the Kenwood TM-D700 Project. The other 5
coax cables are not being used.
There are no long-term viable projects scheduled for these unused resources.
Unused Antennas:
Total Installed Antennas that can be used for Amateur Radio Projects = 6 to 14
Only the WA-1 Antenna is being used by an Amateur Radio project. The WA-1
antenna supports (145 MHz, 438 MHz, 1296 MHz and 2400 MHz). Only the 145 MHz
and 438 MHz and 1296 MHz antennas are being used by the Kenwood TM-D700
project.
The remaining 13 antennas that could be used for Amateur Radio projects are
not being used, and there are no long term viable projects scheduled for
these unused resources.
Have you heard the term ?If you snooze, You loose??
Since we only had 1 working transceiver on ISS, the other antennas are slowly
being reassigned to other projects.
The Sirrus antenna is in the process of being assigned to a new project.
The Amateur Radio Ericsson project was disconnected in December 2003. No
other amateur radio projects were available to use this port so it was
reassigned.
The WA-3 Antennas has been reassigned to some type of Video system.
(Note some of the coax cables are attached to Multiple Band Radio antennas)
Unused Radios (Ericsson UHF Transceiver):
Ericsson UHF Transceivers System was actually two different radio systems.
The package contained a VHF transceiver systems and a UHF transceiver system.
Both systems arrived on ISS in 2000. Only the VHF system was ever deployed.
The Ericsson UHF and VHF transceiver have since been discarded.
Suit-Sat-1 Burns up:
Suit-Sat-1 was launched on Feb 4, 2006.
The damaged radio was able to send out a weak audio and an SSTV image signal
for approximately 3 weeks. Only Amateur Radio stations with high gain
antennas systems we able to detect the damaged transmitter (you needed an
Antenna System with 12-dBd gain or more).
On the 7th of September, 2006 at 16:00 GMT, Suit-Sat-1 re-entered the Earth's
atmosphere over the Southern Ocean at 110.4? East longitude and 46.3? South
latitude.
Total transmitter life 3 weeks.
Total flight time approximately 7 months
Summary:
Short Term Satellites such Suit-Sat-2 are a waist of ISS Resources.
Our unused antennas are being reassigned to other Non-Amateur Radio projects.
The SpaceCam1 SSTV project can be reactivated with a minimal amount of effort
and will provide a huge benefit to the Amateur Radio and Short Waver Listener
community.
We need your support to encourage NASA, ESA and RSA to cancel Suit-Sat-2
Sincerely
Miles Mann
Wf1f@xxxxxxx.xxx
VHF Society Meeting July 24, 2009
>From the Amsat.org web page
Operational Suit-Sat-2 Prototype Hits the Road - Seen in Chicago
On July 24-25 the Central States VHF Society hosted their 43rd Conference in
the Chicago area. The event attracted radio Amateurs interested in
experimentation with weak signal VHF/UHF, microwave, terrestrial and space
communications, and EME.
SuitSat-2 System Engineer Gould WA4SXM was at the Conference with a
functioning prototype of the SuitSat-2 hardware, antennas, and initial
software. The success of the Phoenix ARISS system integration meeting held
July 10-12 was evident as SuitSat-2 transmitted live signals that everyone at
the Conference could monitor on 145.920 (BPSK), 145.930 (Xponder), 145.939
(CW) and 145.950 MHz (FM audio and SSTV).
The SSTV subsystem was transmitting live pictures in Robot36 mode captured by
the cameras. Reminder: if your computer SSTV capture software such as MMSSTV
is functional viewing existing terrestrial SSTV transmissions you will be
ready to receive SuitSat-2 video.
Earlier this month at the Phoenix integration meeting the command receiver
boards were assembled and ready for testing. The command receiver and receiver
boards were integrated for the first time this weekend. The team was able to
report that the receiver is now providing good input to the SDX transponder
and as a result the transponder became operational and produced a signal on
the output with the CW, FM and BPSK signals. The transmitter was drawing 330mA
and produced +25dBm output in the test configuration.
System engineering progress was also report on additional issues:
? SPI communications between the IHU and SDX were debugged
? Battery charging circuit undergoing testing
? Space frame issues have started to be addressed to replace the missing
suit.
Due to storage considerations on the International Space Station, the two
surplus Orlan space suits in storage on the International Space Station were
discarded via the Progress Cargo Vessel. One of these suits was to be used to
house the electronics for the upcoming SuitSat-2 mission where the batteries
were to be mounted inside the suit, solar panels attached to the extremities
with the electronics, video cameras and antenna mounted on the helmet by the
ISS crew prior to deployment during an EVA. The Progress vehicle, with the
suits included, has undocked from ISS.
The ARISS International Team has been informed that there is still space
available for shipment of the SuitSat-2 electronics on the projected cargo
flight to the Space Station in January 2010 and the EVA scheduled for April
2010 still has a 'SuitSat-2' deployment scheduled.
Consequently, the AMSAT team developing SuitSat-2 electronics on behalf of
ARISS International is focusing on completing development in anticipation that
deployment will still take place in Spring 2010 using a new structure to house
it. In addition, the experiment being developed by Russia's Kursk State
University is still expected to be integrated into the electronics once the US
produced equipment is delivered to Russia this fall. Discussions are currently
taking place between Russian ARISS members and the AMSAT project managers
concerning the design of the new structure and where it will be constructed
with these decisions to be made in the next few weeks.
The removal of the Orlan space suits from ISS removes the 'Suit' component of
this deployment and at some point a new project name will be used to reflect
the change in configuration. However, the significant importance of this
project to both ARISS and AMSAT is not diminished.
ARISS sees this mission as an important component of education outreach as it
will provide an opportunity for students around the world to listen for
recorded greetings from space as well as learn about tracking spacecraft in
orbit.
Meanwhile, the deployment of SDX (Software Defined Transponder), the
associated receiver and transmitter modules, and control electronics is a
critical milestone for AMSAT as this upcoming flight provides an opportunity
to flight test the next generation of spacecraft hardware. Lessons learned
from this deployment will be applied to future flight opportunities as AMSAT
moves towards a 'modularization approach' to spacecraft development with the
expectation the future spacecraft missions will utilize a derivative of SDX
and the associated hardware.
------------------------------
Message: 2
Date: Thu, 20 Aug 2009 20:23:51 -0700 (PDT)
From: John Geiger <aa5jg@xxxxx.xxx>
Subject: [amsat-bb] Re: New ICOM VHF / UHF / SHF Radio
To: "Simon \(HB9DRV\)" <simon@xxxxxx.xx>, amsat-bb@xxxxx.xxx
Message-ID: <445469.22689.qm@xxxxxxxx.xxxx.xxx.xxxxx.xxx>
Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii
Will it do full duplex for the satellites, or dual receive?
73s John AA5JG
--- On Thu, 8/20/09, Simon (HB9DRV) <simon@xxxxxx.xx> wrote:
> From: Simon (HB9DRV) <simon@xxxxxx.xx>
> Subject: [amsat-bb] New ICOM VHF / UHF / SHF Radio
> To: "EU-AMSAT" <eu-amsat@xxxxxxxxxxx.xxx>, "AMSAT.org" <amsat-bb@xxxxx.xxx>
> Date: Thursday, August 20, 2009, 2:17 AM
> Looks like the IC-9100 will make a
> possible sneak appearance in a few days, there's a Yahoo!
> group here:
>
> http://groups.yahoo.com/group/ic9100/
>
> This group for the new ICOM transceiver, IC-9100
> HF+VHF+UHF+(D-Star+23CM, optional), built-in HF/50MHz
> ATU(tuner), 32 bit IF-DSP, 24 bit A/D conv. HF/50MHz 100
> watts, 144MHz 50 watts, 430MHz 50 watts, optional 1200MHz 10
> watts output.
>
> Simon Brown, HB9DRV
> www.ham-radio-deluxe.com
> _______________________________________________
> 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: 3
Date: Thu, 20 Aug 2009 22:42:17 -0500
From: Rocky Jones <orbitjet@xxxxxxx.xxx>
Subject: [amsat-bb] Re: Don't Fly SuitSat2 to ISS
To: <ka1rrw@xxxxx.xxx>, Amsat BB <amsat-bb@xxxxx.xxx>
Message-ID: <COL106-W36D3031CC7D853B1C55971D6FC0@xxx.xxx>
Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1"
I'd be curious to know what the bottom dollar is for "suitsat 2" including
integration cost...estimate? Anyone?
Robert Oler WB5MZO
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------------------------------
Message: 4
Date: Thu, 20 Aug 2009 21:33:18 -0700
From: "Greg D." <ko6th_greg@xxxxxxx.xxx>
Subject: [amsat-bb] Re: Use of ICOM 910 for AO-51 L-Band BBS Uplink?
To: <jimlist@xxxxxx.xx.xxx>, <amsat-bb@xxxxx.xxx>
Message-ID: <BLU133-W113B3D20410CBDEE66E3B3A9FC0@xxx.xxx>
Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1"
Hi Jim,
I have a Yaesu 736R, which is also blessed with 10 watts on L-band, though I
think it's got a little more spunk than that. I run about 20m of 1/2"
hardline with about 2-3m of RG8-ish cable (RG-213 or 214, I forget what it is)
at each end for rotor flex and shack entry. There's also a Polyphaser
lightning arrestor thingy in there too, which claims to be good to 1000mHz
(close enough?), and all the associated connectors to put it all together.
I've probably got at least as much loss as you are predicting. At the
business end is a homemade 18 turn RHCP Helix. With this setup I have no
trouble getting into AO-51 to within a few degrees of the horizon on the phone
modes. (I don't have any 9.6k packet equipment for L-band, so I don't know
how well the digital modes would work.)
The biggest problem for me isn't power, it's the trees around my house, which
make the southerly parts of a pass hard to hit. It's not quite as bad as
receiving on 2.4 ghz, but I definitely notice the effect.
Reading other's reports, your results may be different. The only sure way to
find out is to try it!
Good luck,
Greg KO6TH
> From: jimlist@xxxxxx.xx.xxx
> To: amsat-bb@xxxxx.xxx
> Date: Thu, 20 Aug 2009 10:05:30 +0100
> Subject: [amsat-bb] Use of ICOM 910 for AO-51 L-Band BBS Uplink?
>
> Hi Folks,
>
> I would be interested to know if anyone is using an ICOM 910 with the L-
Band
> module for Ao-51 uplink on the BBS? (The optional L-Band unit for the 910
runs 10
> watts according to the book).
>
> I am particularly interested to know what type/gain of antenna I would
need to get
> a reliable up link. I am planning to use about 20 metres of Ecoflex 10,
which will
> introduce a loss of something like 3 Dbs.
>
> I know that the LBand/Digital up link is currently off, just gettting
ready for
> the next 'on' period!
>
> 73s
>
> Jim G3WGM
>
> _______________________________________________
> 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
_________________________________________________________________
Hotmail? is up to 70% faster. Now good news travels really fast.
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------------------------------
Message: 5
Date: Thu, 20 Aug 2009 14:29:30 -0300
From: "Don Roland" <dmroland@xx.xxxxx.xxx>
Subject: [amsat-bb] Re: KLM 2M 22C
To: "Luc Leblanc" <lucleblanc6@xxxxxxxxx.xx>, <amsat-bb@xxxxx.xxx>
Cc: eu-amsat@xxxxxxxxxxx.xxx
Message-ID: <000b01ca21bb$deaa8ac0$d616ba89@xxxxxxxx>
Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1"
Hi Luc,
I've assembled several of these antennas and never found a problem.
I would suspect assembly error; page 7 of the manual has all
the dimensions to verify proper assembly. there are four columns
of figures.
The leftmost column is the distance from the end of the boom
to that particular element, while the rightmost column is the length of
that element. Those 2 columns are for the horizontal elements.
The middle two columns are the measurements for the vertical plane
elements. Again the "middle-left" column is the distance from the end
of the boom, while the "middle-right" column is the element length.
The most likely element(s) to miss mounting are the one(s) that are
mounted through the balun or tight against the polarity switcher.
If you don't have the manual let me know and I will get a copy to you.
73 Don -VE1AOE-
> I just assemble and "old" oscar 1 era KLM 2M 22C beam over the week end to
ended stuck up with one element and no matching pre drilled hole
> in the boom tube. Did anyone recollect if KLM ever missed pre drilled hole
in their workmanship? My assembly was on the side of a bit hurry
> and i will have to recheck al the measurements but with the pre drilled
bolt holes boom section attachment it is hard to make mistakes but
> we never know!
>
> Thank's for your inputs?
>
------------------------------
Message: 6
Date: Thu, 20 Aug 2009 13:52:25 -0500
From: Rocky Jones <orbitjet@xxxxxxx.xxx>
Subject: [amsat-bb] Re: The future of the ISS.
To: <la2qaa@xxxxx.xxx>, <eu-amsat@xxxxxxxxxxx.xxx>
Cc: allan_gm1sxx@xxxxxxx.xxxx Amsat BB <amsat-bb@xxxxx.xxx>
Message-ID: <COL106-W160F229714E88626B8231BD6FD0@xxx.xxx>
Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1"
>
> 73 John. <la2qaa@xxxxx.xxx>
> _______________________________________________
> 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
call me when this moves past wonderful pictures.
Robert WB5MZO
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------------------------------
Message: 7
Date: Thu, 20 Aug 2009 14:06:34 -0700 (PDT)
From: Tim Lilley <n3tl@xxxxxxxxx.xxx>
Subject: [amsat-bb] Re: Don't Fly SuitSat2 to ISS
To: MM <ka1rrw@xxxxx.xxx>, amsat-bb@xxxxx.xxx
Message-ID: <470322.40207.qm@xxxxxxxxx.xxxx.xxx.xxxxx.xxx>
Content-Type: text/plain; charset=utf-8
Mr. Mann and all,
?
I?m not sure I have a dog in this hunt, but I am an AMSAT member and
enthusiastic user of the amateur satellites and the ISS amateur station.
?
Before responding specifically to your most recent post, I would like to ask
anyAMSAT Board of Directors candidate who reads this to weigh in on your ideas
over the next few days because I have not cast my ballot yet, and I?d like to
hear candidates? thoughts so I can make a more-informed voting decision.
?
Now ? on to my response to your most recent post.
?
I find myself believing your reasoning and arguments to be self-serving
because last October, I?heard Richard Garriott?s side of a conversation with
you during his stay on the ISS, when it was apparent that you used precious
time available for other amateurs to make contact with Richard to ask whether
you could transmit SSTV images to the ISS.
?
Nowhere in the multiple posts you have made over the past week have you
addressed the impact of your SSTV proposal(s) on the existing U/V voice
repeater and/or the VHF packet station on the ISS. I presume that, since you
propose (in this post I?m responding to) only replacing/upgrading hardware
necessary to make the existing SSTV system operational, that its time on the
air will mean no packet station and no opportunity for voice contacts, either
with the crew or with other amateurs via the repeater. We all have our
interests and preferences. Mine, as it relates to the use of the amateur radio
gear aboard the ISS, is two-way communication with other amateurs ? including
ISS crew members and private citizens who are licensed amateurs and who visit
the ISS. As is the case with SSTV transmissions, those who choose to do so can
use ground stations as you described to monitor voice communications, and (as
you pointed out with SSTV) free software is
available to anyone for use in setting up a sound-card-based TNC to copy and
decode packet radio from the ISS. From here, as a result, you seem to be
advocating a trade-off in operational modes with an eye toward increasing SSTV
operation using the existing gear. So unless I?m missing something, your
recent post argues only for a mode change, not an increase in operating
opportunities.
?
Further, if that is, indeed, the case, then the biggest bang for the buck ? it
seems to me, at least ? would be to not spend any money and encourage ARISS
members to work with the appropriate officials in the various space agencies
to take advantage of remaining voice and packet opportunities. Of course, that
won?t bring SSTV back to the ISS station. But it also won?t cost a dime moving
forward. Free makes for the biggest bang (i.e., no bucks involved).
?
Like you, I would like to see a new satellite with SSTV, FM-crossband-repeater
and V/U SSB transponders placed into a higher orbit. More than a few times,
since hearing about China?s plans for the XW-1 satellite, I have found myself
thinking how cool it would be for a satellite with its capabilities to be
placed in an AO-7-like (or even slightly higher) orbit. In that regard, I
don?t disagree with arguments that suggest finding some way to make whatever
form SuitSat-2 ultimately takes stay in orbit and remain active as long as
possible.
?
BUT (there?s always a but? hihi) I don?t see the wisdom in scrapping plans to
place another? satellite with multiple-mode capabilities in operation ?
regardless of the duration ? just to get the ISS station running SSTV again ?
especially when the station is fully capable of providing two-way voice and
packet contacts in its current form.
?
In a previous post, you provided other options for ARISS projects, in addition
to repair of the gear necessary to operate SSTV with the current station.? Two
days ago, the following statements appeared in the same post from you:
?
?The longest it required from Theory to Switch-on from Mir for any project was
15 months.?
?With ISS it does take longer.? The average time is (ouch) 4-7 years.?
?The ISS laptop project required 9 years.?
?The SpaceCam1 project, from Beta software demo to switch on was 7 years.?
?
And
?
?We have 5-6 years left of ISS.? We need to make the best of what little time
we have left.?
?
Unless I?m missing something, and if the numbers you state in each section of
your Aug. 18 post are accurate, it appears to me as though there?s no
guarantee there will be enough time to achieve anything you advocate because,
as I understand it from your posts, these proposals would pretty much start
from scratch in moving through the system from proposal to delivery to the ISS
and activation.
?
I am a relative newcomer to ?space radio,? having made my first-ever satellite
contact on June 28, 2008. That being said, I believe that an AMSAT decision to
abandon SuitSat-2 so that it could focus on getting the necessary hardware to
the ISS to add SSTV to the currently operating station would be a distinct
disservice to the AMSAT membership and the amateur radio community.
?
Before closing, I would like to express my personal gratitude to everyone
associated with ARISS for providing the opportunities it does. I discovered
all of our other currently operational satellites only because I learned it
was possible to make two-way contacts with the crew aboard the ISS. I had been
totally off the air and away from amateur radio from early 1992 until May
2007. It was another year before I learned that ARISS existed, and I set out
with the goal of working an astronaut on the ISS with a handheld station. I
did that with Mike Fincke several months ago, after I was fortunate enough to
have a contact with Richard on his last day aboard the ISS. I did not use my
handheld station for that contact because I didn't think 5 watts would break
the pileup?? hihi. However, early in the morning of the day I worked Richard,
I stood in my front yard and pointed my Elk antenna at the then-visible ISS
and listened to Richard work two amateurs I
have developed friendships with over the past 14 months ? N8MH and WB2OQQ. I
wouldn?t trade that for any SSTV transmission.
?
73 to all,
Tim ? N3TL
Athens, Ga.? EM84ha
________________________________
From: MM <ka1rrw@xxxxx.xxx>
To: amsat-bb@xxxxx.xxx
Sent: Thursday, August 20, 2009 3:39:40 PM
Subject: [amsat-bb] Don't Fly SuitSat2 to ISS
Don?t Fly Suit-Sat to the
International Space Station
The International Space Station will be retired in 20015-2016.
We do not have much time left, before NASA pulls the plug!
We need your help to convince NASA, ESA and RSA to send more Long term
educational projects to ISS and to not send short term disposable Toss-
Satellites projects such as the Suit-Sat-2 to ISS.
In this document I will go over several reasons why Suit-Sat-2 is the wrong
project for the International Space Station (ISS) and offer suggestions on how
to best use Suit-Sat-2.
Introduction:??? 3
What is Suit-Sat-2:??? 4
Reason #1: The Orbit:??? 5
Reason #2:? Access Window Time:??? 5
Reason #3:? Satellite Footprints:??? 6
Reason #4:? Suit-Sat-2 needs a new container:??? 7
Batteries:??? 7
Solar Panels:??? 7
Battery Charging System:??? 7
Antenna System:??? 7
Satellite flight container:??? 7
Reason #5: Launch Date January 2010:??? 8
Reason #6: The ISS is the wrong place for Suit-Sat-2 :??? 9
What can we do with Suit-Sat-2 ???? 10
Long Term Project Suggestions:??? 11
SpaceCam1 meets our Long term goals:??? 12
SpaceCam1, Best Bang for the Buck:??? 13
Current ISS Amateur Radio hardware Status:??? 15
November 2000 Ericsson System:??? 15
February 2003 Packcom Modem:??? 15
January 2002 Antenna Systems:??? 16
December 2003 Kenwood TM-D700:??? 17
October 2005 SpaceCam1 and Suit-Sat1:??? 17
February 2008 Columbus Antennas:??? 18
Unused Amateur Radio hardware on ISS:??? 19
Unused Coax Cables:??? 19
Unused Antennas:??? 19
Unused Radios (Ericsson UHF Transceiver):??? 20
Suit-Sat-1 Burns up:??? 20
Summary:??? 20
VHF Society Meeting July 24, 2009??? 21
Introduction:
This is an open letter to representatives of the organizations and technical
communities, including:
NASA, European Space Agency, Russian Space Agency, AMSAT, ARISS, ARRL, Amateur
Radio community and the Short Wave Listener community.
Do you want to see more Education Amateur Radio activity from ISS?
If so, then we need to take decisive action now before we lose International
Space Station completely.
In this memo I am going to discuss the reasons we should change the launch
vehicle for the Suit-Stat-2 project from the low orbiting International Space
Station (ISS) to different unmanned rocket launch vehicle and how we can all
benefit from the changes.
What is Suit-Sat-2:
Suit-Sat-2 is a small satellite radio about the size of a toaster.? It will
allow amateur radio operators and Short waver listeners to monitor the signals
from the satellite while it?s in orbit.
The exact specifications of Suit-Sat-2 have not been published.?
Suit-Sat-2 may contain the following features:
Slow Scan Image Transmitter.
FM Cross band transponder.
SSB mode U/V transponder.
Suit-Sat-2 will run on batters and a solar panel while in orbit.? This will
extend the life of the operational satellite.? The original Suit-Sat-1
satellite only had batteries, no solar panel and was only operational for 3
weeks.
The original plan was to send the Suit-Sat-2 hardware to the International
Space Station and then stuff the hardware into Space suite that is scheduled
for disposal.? The satellite radio, plus the space suit is how Suit-Sat got
its name.
Unfortunately Suit-Sat-2 missed its original planed hardware completed date
for the fall of 2007 and also missed a rocket launch opportunity in 2008.? As
of July 2009 the hardware for Suit-Sat-2 is still being developed.
In the summer of 2009 ARISS was informed that ISS could not wait any longer
and disposed of the extra empty space suit.? Now the ARISS hardware team needs
to redesign Suit-Sat-2 to fly in its own satellite container, which has not
been designed.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/SuitSat_2
http://www.arrl.org/news/stories/2006/11/09/101/
Some information about its predecessor Suit Sat-1
http://www.amsat.org/amsat-
new/satellites/satInfo.php?satID=24&retURL=satellites/frequencies.php
Reason #1: The Orbit:
The Orbit of the International Space Station is approximately 250 miles (350
kilometers).? This is actually a very low orbit.? Any satellite launched into
this type of orbit will re-enter the earth?s atmosphere and burn-up in less
than 1 year.? The only reason the ISS has not burnt up is because NASA keeps
sending more fuel to the space station and they use that to keep boosting the
Station back up to 250 mile orbit.
If the Suit-Sat-2 satellite is launched from the ISS orbit, it will simply
burn up in 6-12 months.?
Suit-Sat-2 needs to be in a high orbit such as the common 700-800 kilometer
orbit, which will allow the satellite to orbit for decades.
Reason #2:? Access Window Time:
The Access Windows Time, is how many minutes can you use Suit-Sat-2
transceivers when it is in range of you location.? At an altitude of 250 miles
your maximum access window will be 10 minutes per orbit.? Depending on where
you live you will have orbit access 4-6 times per day.? Only a few of these
orbits will approach the maximum 10 minute access window time.? Most of the
orbits will be very low on the horizon and your access window time will be
shorter.
If Suit-Sat-2 was paced a more common higher orbit such as the commonly used
700-800 kilometer orbit, your maximum access window time will be in the 15-18
minute range.
Reason #3:? Satellite Footprints:
The higher the altitude of the satellite, the greater the Radio link coverage
will be.? From ISS, the maximum footprint size is approximately 1500 mile
radius or a diameter of 3000 miles across.?
In simple terms this means that two radio stations 2000 ? 3000 miles apart can
communication via the satellite when it is in-between them.? Suit-Sat-2 will
have a smaller foot print at 250 miles then it will at 800 km.? The Suit-Sat-2
project will not have enough altitude to support communications links between
the USA and Europe.?
During the short 6-12 month life of Suit-Stat2, the orbit will decrease in
altitude daily.? After a few months the size of the Satellite footprint will
be noticeably smaller.? The Radio link coverage will also decreases daily.?
The Satellite Access Window time will decrease daily as Suit-Sat-2 gets closer
to the ground.
Reason #4:? Suit-Sat-2 needs a new container:
Suit-Sat-2 was designed to be stuffed into a used space suit.? The Ariss
Hardware team now needs to completely redesign the Suit-Sat-2 project to fit
into a yet-to-be-designed satellite container box.? This will not be a simple
task.
Areas that need to be redesigned for Suit-Sat2:
Batteries:
The original design called for large 24 volt batteries located inside the
space suite.? New smaller Space flight qualified batteries will need to
located that will fit into the smaller satellite container. A completely new
power budget will need to be calculated.?
The old batteries cannot be reused.
Solar Panels:
The old panels were going to be tied to the back of the space suit.? The new
panels will need to be custom designed to fit onto the exterior of the new 6
sided satellite box.
The old panels cannot be reused.
Battery Charging System:
Since we now have to use New Batteries and a new yet-to-be-designed Solar
panel system, we will now have to redesign the existing SuitSat-2 charging
system to accommodate the new changes.?
The whole power budget has just changed.
Antenna System:
The Suit-Sat-2 antennas system was designed to be tied to the space suit.? It
seems to make sense since you have to build a new satellite box, new
batteries, new solar panels, you may as well build a better antenna system,
rather than bungee cording the antenna to the box.?
This means a new Antenna system designed from scratch.
Satellite flight container:
Suit-Sat-2 was originally designed to be stuffed into an old space suit that
has reached the end of useful life.? RSA could not wait any longer for Suit-
Sat-2 so they have made plans to stuff the suits into a Russian Progress cargo
rocket and let the Progress trash truck burn up on re-entry.
The ARISS Hardware team now needs to design a new box to hold their satellite
transceiver board, etc.
The box will need to be strong enough to be placed inside a Russian Progress
rocket for its flight to ISS.? The unmanned cargo rocket will exceed 5-9 G?s
of force.? Remember the satellite A0-40?? The AO-40 Satellite frame had to be
completely re-designed after the G-Force load numbers changed.? If you make
the frame too light, components could break loose during the launching phase.
Reason #5: Launch Date January 2010:
The Suit-Sat-2 project was first presented to the ARISS team in January 2006.?
The project was headed by AMSAT Director and ARISS Hardware Project manager
Lou McFadin.? In October 2006 ARISS publicly present the project at the ARISS
International meeting in San Francisco.
At the ARISS Team meeting in 2006, Lou McFadin said we could be ready to
launch Suit-Sat-2 in the fall (2007).
http://www.arrl.org/news/stories/2006/11/09/101/
Comments from McFadin at the ARISS meeting in 2006
An ISS crew could launch SuitSat-2 during a spacewalk as early as next fall.
"We're talking about October of next year [2007], in conjunction with the 50th
anniversary of Sputnik-1,"
***
Here were are in July 2009 and the 18 month project is now into its 30+ month
of development.? The Suit-Sat-2 project has missed 2 launch opportunities and
is ready to miss it?s third. As of July 2009 status of the Suit-Sat-2 hardware
still seems to be at the prototype level, with a considerable amount of work
to be done before the transceiver becomes flight ready.? See the attached memo
from the July 24-25 the Central States VHF Society meeting.
In order to meet the January 2010 launch date, you need to deliver a few
flight qualified versions of your project to the Russian space agency a few
Months BEFORE flight.
In my professional opinion, the Suit-Sat-2 transceiver system will require 6-9
more months of development time.? In my estimate the earliest time we could
expect to see a pair of electronics modules of ?Flight Quality? would be the
end of 2010.
The Satellite box does not exist and would required 18-24 months to design and
build a container that will survive Proton Rocket G-forces of 5-9g?s.? All
Amateur Radio hardware is set to the ISS via the Russian unmanned Proton Cargo
rocket.? The cargo rockets are exposed to much higher G-forces than the manned
rocket launches.
If the Ariss Hardware team did not have to build the Satellite container for
Suit-Sat-2, they would still miss the January 2010 Progress rocket launch by a
full year.
Reason #6: The ISS is the wrong place for Suit-Sat-2 :
The ISS will be retired in 5-6 years.
We only get approximately 1 launch opportunity per year for Amateur Radio
projects, and we have missed a few since we did not have any ARISS approved
projects ready for flight.? Short term projects such as Suit-Sat-1 and Suit-
Sat-2 have caused long term projects to get bumped off the project
consideration lists.
We need more "Longer" term projects on ISS that reach a greater audience.?
There are over 2 million licensed Amateur Radio users worldwide and there are
over 10 million Short Wave Listeners (SWL).? We need projects that can reach
the majority of the people with the ability to listen to our educational
projects.? Projects should not be designed just for the Amateur Radio
operators; we also need to take into consideration the educational opportunity
to show the Short Wave Listeners public what we can do.
Short term projects such as Toss-Satellites (Suit-Sat-2 ) are a waist of a
very valuable ISS resource.?
With the few launch opportunity remaining we need to focus all of our
attention on longer term project that will cover the largest possible number
of users.
The number of users and the short duration of the Suit-Sat-2 mission do not
justify the amount resources required for such a short run project.? Instead
we need to use the ISS launch opportunity to fly project that will last for
years and proved easy access to millions of users.
Toss-Satellite projects have no real benefit to the ISS crew.? Once the
project is tossed out the door the crew has nothing more to do with the
project.
What can we do with Suit-Sat-2 ?
The long term plan for Suit-Sat-2 was to use it as a Free flying micro
satellite that is part of other unmanned launches into higher orbits.? Let?s
go for the long term Plan.? The AMSAT Corporation said they were looking for
projects that can fly quickly when a launch opportunity arrives.? I believe
that the Suit-Sat-2 project can be boxed up and made viable for launches in
the 2013 time frame.? The AMSAT Corporation and ARISS should start looking for
higher altitude unmanned rockets in that time frame to place Suit-Sat-2 in a
more functional orbit.
The flights in the 2013 time frame will also provide ARISS/AMSAT with the time
they require to redesign Suit-Sat-2 to fit into its own satellite box.
Long Term Project Suggestions:
Here are a few long term project suggestions, which have been reject by the
ARISS-Project and Selection committee.
VOX Box Replacement to enable continuous Slow Scan TV (SpaceCam1).
Kantronics KPC-9612 Mail box (supports 8+ simultaneous users)
Icom ID-800 D-Star Analog/digital radio system.
Out of all of these projects the SpaceCam1 project has the ability to reach
Millions of listeners around the world.? The reason we do not see much SSTV
from the International Space Station is because the VOX box that connects
between the Laptop computer and Kenwood TM-D700 radio is defective.?
The VOX box gets its 12 volt power from wires coming out of a modified TM-
D700.? When the VOX box hears Audio coming from the Laptop, it sends a signal
to tell the TM-D700 to transmit (which it does).? Unfortunately, the stray RF
energy coming through the power wires from the TM-D700? into the VOX Box, jam
the transmitting Op-amp inside the VOX box which caused the radio to get stuck
in the transmitting mode.?
The defective VOX box is preventing us from seeing an SSTV from the Laptop
SpaceCam1 application.? The SpaceCam1 application has the ability to send over
300 SSTV images per day (Live or from Disk).
The ISS crew does have a backup system called the VCH1-Communicator.? This is
a big microphone with a built-in SSTV coded/decoder (just like your camera on
a cell phone).? For safety reason the ISS crew is only allowed to run the VCH1
on batteries (4 x AA batteries).? Spare batteries are in very short supply.?
The VCH1 is power hungry and will eat a good set of AA batteries in a few
hours.
SpaceCam1 meets our Long term goals:
What is SpaceCam1?
SpaceCam1 is a very simple software application that runs on a typical windows
laptop computer.? The software will convert any JPG or BMP image into a format
that can be sent over a simple radio voice channel.? The images in SSTV
format, can be easily decoded with free /shareware software and a laptop.? The
only other hardware you need is a simple scanner (Police Scanners or any radio
receiver that can receive FM signals on the 145.800 MHz radio frequency)
The MarexMG team installed a hardware version of SpaceCam1 on the Russian
Space Satiation Mir in 1998-2000.? The Mir system took 20,000 images and sent
them Earth during the projects 2 years of activity.? The MarexMG SSTV project
only required 18 months from Theory to Switch On, from the Russian Space
Station.? The project was so successful that the RSA asked the MarexMG team to
build a new system for the International Space Station.
MarexMG Currently has SpaceCam1 already installed in tested on board the
International Space Station.? We have received a few hundred images from
SpaceCam1 already.? Please check out the links below.
Here are some Images from the MarexMG SpaceCam1 project, taken on board the
International Space Station.
http://www.issspacecam.org/SSTVProject/BestSC/index.htm
The SpaceCam1 project has had some success on the International Space
Station.? However, the interface cable that connects between the laptop
computer and the Kenwood TM-D700 radio has a flawed design that is preventing
us from using any computer-to-radio applications for more than a few minutes
at a time.? The interface cable is called a Vox Box.? The Vox Box is
responsible for turning radio transmitter On and OFF.? Due to a problem with
RF interference the Vox Box only turns the transmitter ON and will not turn
the transmitter OFF.
Vox Box link
http://www.marexmg.org/hardware/voxbox.html
The MarexMG team has proposed a replacement VOX Box system that should resolve
all of the RF interference problems.? The Vox Box we have chosen is an Off-
The-Shelf produce in which over 5000 units have been sold.? The manufacture
claims there have been no reported problems of RF interference causing their
VOX Box to get stuck in the transmitting mode.
SpaceCam1, Best Bang for the Buck:
The SpaceCam1 project will provide the greatest benefit to the Amateur Radio
Satellite community and the Short Wave Listener community of all of the
currently suggested Amateur Radio projects planned for ISS.
The hardware required to hear SpaceCam1 and decode the SSTV images is readily
available.? Most Short Wave Listener's already have a basic FM receiver? and
antenna that can receive the SSTV downlink frequency 145.800 Mhz.
The Image decoding software is available from multiple web sites as Share Ware
and Free Ware.
SpaceCam1 can be left running unattended on board ISS for weeks at a time.?
This will allow the word to spread and encourage more people to tune in and
see the crew selected and live images coming down from ISS.
Schools from around the world will setup radio receiving stations at their
homes and schools to be the first to receive the new batch of images
transmitted that day.
In order to Re-Active SpaceCam1 we will need your help.? We need to replace
the old Vox box with the new USB Vox Box.
The new USB Vox Box will allows the Amateur Radio community and the Short-
wave-listeners community to be able to receive up to 250+ images per day from
the International Space Station.
Amateur Radio stations will also be allowed to Send images to ISS.? SpaceCam1
also included a built-in image Repeater, which can retransmit from orbit.
Example:
ISS is in orbit 250 miles over the city of Chicago.? An Amateur Radio station
in Boston MA sends an image to SpaceCam1-Image-Repeater on board ISS.? The
Image Repeater then retransmits the image.? Most of the Amateur Radio stations
and Short Wave listeners on that frequency within 1000? miles (1600
kilometers) of Chicago will be able to see the Repeated image from Boston.
Add USB link here
http://www.marexmg.org/pressrelease/newsrelease10192005.html
Current ISS Amateur Radio hardware Status:
November 2000 Ericsson System:
The First Crew arrives in ISS.? A few months later Sergei K. Krikalev, call
sign U5MIR was on the air using an Ericsson HT radio system.? Krikalev was
allowed to use and existing Un-used antenna for the Amateur Radio system.
The first packet mail modem for the Ericsson system failed due to a bad
battery.? The ROM chip was never configured with the correct boot up settings.
Ericcson HT link
http://www.marexmg.org/hardware/ericcson.html
February 2003 Packcom Modem:
A backup packet mail modem arrived on ISS.? The ISS crew used the Packet
mailbox to send mail to Amateur Radio stations worldwide.? The system was used
for approximately 9 months.? The last 2 months the modem began to lock up
frequently.? The system was replaced by the Kenwood TM-D700 in December 2003.
The Ericsson HTs were retired in December 2003 and have since been discarded.
January 2002 Antenna Systems:
The ARISS designed antenna systems are installed on ISS
Now we have the ability to run more projects at the same time.
Current antennas systems:
(1) Mono band 2-meter (147 mc)
The Sirrus antenna system mounted on the Zarya module.? This antenna was
connected to the Amateur Radio Ericsson 2-meter Voice/Packet station (2000 -
2003)
This antenna is not currently being used, however it may be reassigned to a
commercial telemetry system in the near future.
ARISS Multi Band antenna project.
This project includes 4 new coax cable runs through the hull of the Service
module, with 4 antenna systems attached.? The 4 new antenna systems provided
us with the equivalent of 11 new antennas.
One of the cables is connected to the Amateur Radio project (Kenwood TM-
D700).? The antennas WA-2 and WA-4 are not used and are available for future
Amateur Radio projects.
The antenna WA-3 was assigned to some type of TV system for monitoring signals
from remote RF cameras.? I do not have any more details on this hardware.
Antenna WA-1 supports (145 MHz, 438 MHz, 1296 MHz and 2400 MHz) (TM-D700)
Antenna WA-2 supports (145 MHz, 438 MHz, 1296 MHz and 2400 MHz) Unused
Antenna WA-3 supports (145 MHz, 438 MHz, 1296 MHz and 2400 MHz) RSA TV System
Antenna WA-4 supports (28 MHz, 1296 MHz and 2400 MHz) Unused
Antenna link
http://www.marexmg.org/hardware/antennas.html
December 2003 Kenwood TM-D700:
Kenwood TM-D700 project arrives.
Due to user configurable software setting error, the Packet Mailbox feature
was rendered unusable.? The Digital Repeater mode called Digi-peating was
still functional.? The user configurable software changes to correct the
Packet Mailbox problem were never implemented.
While Testing SpaceCam1 SSTV with the Kenwood TM-D700 radio overheated in
August 2006.? It was determined the VOX Box caused the radio to repeatedly get
stuck in the transmitting mode over night.? The next day, the ISS crew
reported the radio was hot and would not respond to button or microphone
commands until after the power cord was disconnected and reconnected.
Kenwood Link
http://www.marexmg.org/hardware/kenwood.html
October 2005 SpaceCam1 and Suit-Sat1:
Two projects were delivered to ISS this month.? The Laptop for the Amateur
Radio station and SpaceCam, which was scheduled for 2001, did not arrive until
2008.? SpaceCam1 was activated for a few weeks in August 2006 and again in
October 2008.
Suit-Sat-1 was tossed out the air lock in February 2006 for a 3-week mission.
February 2008 Columbus Antennas:
Two more antennas arrive via the Columbus module.? Antennas designed for L and
S bands.
These two antennas can also be used for Amateur Radio projects.? However there
are no ?Viable? projects officially scheduled for these antennas.
September 2008
Progress M-65 cargo rocket delivers backup Kenwood TM-D700 to ISS.? It also
brings the Kenwood VC-H1 Communicator (a SSTV microphone) and a backup VOX Box
for SSTV to laptop operations.
It should be noted that a fixed version of TM-D700 Email software had been
successfully tested on Earth, and a subset of the parameters were also tested
on ISS.? The new TM-D700 Email software settings worked, however it was never
loaded into the replacement Kenwood TM-D700.
The Packet Email on the TM-D700 is still not usable.
The Backup VOX box was sent to ISS to replace the defective VOX box. The
Backup VOX box is identical to the VOX box that caused problems in 2006.? The
New VOX box was never modified to resolve the RF locking problems reported in
2006.? When the New Laptop was connected to the New Kenwood TM-D700 with the
New VOX Box in October 2008, there were no surprises when the TM-D700 got
stuck in Transmitting mode Again.
Unused Amateur Radio hardware on ISS:
Unused Coax Cables:
Total Hull Feed through Coax Cables = 6
Only 1 coax cable, which is attached to the WA-1 antenna, is currently being
used. It is currently connected to the Kenwood TM-D700 Project.? The other 5
coax cables are not being used.?
There are no long-term viable projects scheduled for these unused resources.
Unused Antennas:
Total Installed Antennas that can be used for Amateur Radio Projects = 6 to 14
Only the WA-1 Antenna is being used by an Amateur Radio project.? The WA-1
antenna supports (145 MHz, 438 MHz, 1296 MHz and 2400 MHz).? Only the 145 MHz
and 438 MHz and 1296 MHz antennas are being used by the Kenwood TM-D700
project.
The remaining 13 antennas that could be used for Amateur Radio projects are
not being used, and there are no long term viable? projects scheduled for
these unused resources.
Have you heard the term ?If you snooze, You loose??
Since we only had 1 working transceiver on ISS, the other antennas are slowly
being reassigned to other projects.
The Sirrus antenna is in the process of being assigned to a? new project.? The
Amateur Radio Ericsson project was disconnected in December 2003.? No other
amateur radio projects were available to use this port so it was reassigned.
The WA-3 Antennas has been reassigned to some type of Video system.
(Note some of the coax cables are attached to Multiple Band Radio antennas)
Unused Radios (Ericsson UHF Transceiver):
Ericsson UHF Transceivers System was actually two different radio systems.?
The package contained a VHF transceiver systems and a UHF transceiver system.?
Both systems arrived on ISS in 2000.? Only the VHF system was ever deployed.?
The Ericsson UHF and VHF transceiver have since been discarded.
Suit-Sat-1 Burns up:
Suit-Sat-1 was launched on Feb 4, 2006.
The damaged radio was able to send out a weak audio and an SSTV image signal
for approximately 3 weeks.? Only Amateur Radio stations with high gain
antennas systems we able to detect the damaged transmitter (you needed an
Antenna System with 12-dBd gain or more).
On the 7th of September, 2006 at 16:00 GMT, Suit-Sat-1 re-entered the Earth's
atmosphere over the Southern Ocean at 110.4? East longitude and 46.3? South
latitude.
Total transmitter life 3 weeks.
Total flight time approximately 7 months
Summary:
Short Term Satellites such Suit-Sat-2 are a waist of ISS Resources.
Our unused antennas are being reassigned to other Non-Amateur Radio projects.
The SpaceCam1 SSTV project can be reactivated with a minimal amount of effort
and will provide a huge benefit to the Amateur Radio and Short Waver Listener
community.
We need your support to encourage NASA, ESA and RSA to cancel Suit-Sat-2
Sincerely
Miles Mann
Wf1f@xxxxxxx.xxx
VHF Society Meeting July 24, 2009
>From the Amsat.org web page
Operational Suit-Sat-2 Prototype Hits the Road - Seen in Chicago
On July 24-25 the Central States VHF Society hosted their 43rd Conference in
the Chicago area. The event attracted radio Amateurs interested in
experimentation with weak signal VHF/UHF, microwave, terrestrial and space
communications, and EME.
SuitSat-2 System Engineer Gould WA4SXM was at the Conference with a
functioning prototype of the SuitSat-2 hardware, antennas, and initial
software. The success of the Phoenix ARISS system integration meeting held
July 10-12 was evident as SuitSat-2 transmitted live signals that everyone at
the Conference could monitor on 145.920 (BPSK), 145.930 (Xponder), 145.939
(CW) and 145.950 MHz (FM audio and SSTV).
The SSTV subsystem was transmitting live pictures in Robot36 mode captured by
the cameras. Reminder: if your computer SSTV capture software such as MMSSTV
is functional viewing existing terrestrial SSTV transmissions you will be
ready to receive SuitSat-2 video.
Earlier this month at the Phoenix integration meeting the command receiver
boards were assembled and ready for testing. The command receiver and receiver
boards were integrated for the first time this weekend. The team was able to
report that the receiver is now providing good input to the SDX transponder
and as a result the transponder became operational and produced a signal on
the output with the CW, FM and BPSK signals. The transmitter was drawing 330mA
and produced +25dBm output in the test configuration.
System engineering progress was also report on additional issues:
???? SPI communications between the IHU and SDX were debugged
???? Battery charging circuit undergoing testing
???? Space frame issues have started to be addressed to replace the missing
suit.
Due to storage considerations on the International Space Station, the two
surplus Orlan space suits in storage on the International Space Station were
discarded via the Progress Cargo Vessel. One of these suits was to be used to
house the electronics for the upcoming SuitSat-2 mission where the batteries
were to be mounted inside the suit, solar panels attached to the extremities
with the electronics, video cameras and antenna mounted on the helmet by the
ISS crew prior to deployment during an EVA. The Progress vehicle, with the
suits included, has undocked from ISS.
The ARISS International Team has been informed that there is still space
available for shipment of the SuitSat-2 electronics on the projected cargo
flight to the Space Station in January 2010 and the EVA scheduled for April
2010 still has a 'SuitSat-2' deployment scheduled.
Consequently, the AMSAT team developing SuitSat-2 electronics on behalf of
ARISS International is focusing on completing development in anticipation that
deployment will still take place in Spring 2010 using a new structure to house
it. In addition, the experiment being developed by Russia's Kursk State
University is still expected to be integrated into the electronics once the US
produced equipment is delivered to Russia this fall. Discussions are currently
taking place between Russian ARISS members and the AMSAT project managers
concerning the design of the new structure and where it will be constructed
with these decisions to be made in the next few weeks.
The removal of the Orlan space suits from ISS removes the 'Suit' component of
this deployment and at some point a new project name will be used to reflect
the change in configuration. However, the significant importance of this
project to both ARISS and AMSAT is not diminished.
ARISS sees this mission as an important component of education outreach as it
will provide an opportunity for students around the world to listen for
recorded greetings from space as well as learn about tracking spacecraft in
orbit.
Meanwhile, the deployment of SDX (Software Defined Transponder), the
associated receiver and transmitter modules, and control electronics is a
critical milestone for AMSAT as this upcoming flight provides an opportunity
to flight test the next generation of spacecraft hardware. Lessons learned
from this deployment will be applied to future flight opportunities as AMSAT
moves towards a 'modularization approach' to spacecraft development with the
expectation the future spacecraft missions will utilize a derivative of SDX
and the associated hardware.
? ? ?
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End of AMSAT-BB Digest, Vol 4, Issue 414
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