Satellites on Rails.

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ATTENTION! Satellite on Rails Operation!

NEW! FM satellite Users Forums. There are two FM satellite forums. The Egroups fm-satellite mailing list/web forum, run by myself (alternate link to subscribe via email), and the FM Easysat Forum, which is a web based message board, run by Drew, KO4MA. Discuss FM satellite operation with other users!

Taming the SO-35 Parrot - Tips and techniques for working SO-35's unique parrot (simplex) repeater mode.

A Closeup of Doppler Shift - Looking at satellite Doppler shift in more detail.

Satellites for SWLs - You don't need a licence to share in the excitement of satellite activities!

Build an antenna for portable Mode B and Mode J operation.

Working the Easy Sats Down Under - Getting on satellites may be easier than you think!

Satiquette - Be a courteous satellite operator. Please read before transmitting on the satellites!

Working your first satellite! (Updated October 2004 for AO-51) - Original version

The VK RailSat Challenge.

SO-35 No Longer Operational - My reflections.

Below is my journal of satellite operations, from my first SO-35 QSO to the current date. To download a .MP3 recording of satellite activity, click on the date of interest. Please note that the MP3 files are approximately 1/2 - 1 MB in size each. To save diskspace on the qsl.net server, only recent MP3 recordings will be mirrored there. Older MP3s will continue to be available from the quest.apana.org.au site, and hyperlinks have been altered to point to the correct sites.

• 11 Sep 1999. - First attempt to contact satellite from home QTH. No signals were heard. This was due to a last minute change of frequencies which I was unaware of at the time.
• 12 Sep 1999. - Second attempt to contact SUNSAT from the station. Several contacts in VK2, 3 and 5 were made, with VK4 and ZL being heard. Signals were better than S9 + 20 on both uplink and downlink on handheld equipment. These excellent results show good promise for train and tram operation.
• 18 Sep 1999. - First tram mobile attempt. No signals from SUNSAT were observed on either the portable gear or the station logger at the base QTH, which was monitoring the downlink. MP3 files from the station logger will be available for download here after successful passes.
• 19 Sep 1999. - Second attempt at tram mobile operation. For a brief period at 02:44 UTC, contact was possible with VK6 from the tram, though there was insufficient time to exchange callsigns and reports before losing the satellite. At 02:47, it was decided to call off the attempt, with only a minute of the pass remaining. VK6ZKO from Perth was worked briefly from outside the tram before the pass concluded. Unfortunately, no .MP3 of the pass this time. The scanner which is being used for logging appeared to be suffering overload from pagers and the VK3RCW beacon, which caused desense on the downlink. A 2 way QSO and subsequent QSL remains elusive. The main problems on this pass appeared to be attenuation and noise from the tram on the 2m downlink frequency. The uplink from the tram seemed to be accessing the satellite's transponder with ease.
• 25 Sep 1999. - Tram mobile operation was again attempted, but no contacts were made. I could access either the uplink or downlink, but not both at the same time. I suspect the high pass combined with the orientation of the tram at the time adversely affected the signals. The audio log of this pass was kindly provided by Brett, VK3ZBN in December 1999.
• 26 Sep 1999. - Attempted to work this pass from the home QTH, but no success. Several stations heard on the downlink, as can be evidenced by the accompanying MP3 audio. In any case, portable antennas work better than the main omni, except at very low elevations, especially on 70cm (which is to expected, as my antenna has a low angle of radiation). If you listen very carefully, you may hear me putting out a call or two at the very end of the recording.
• 2 Oct 1999. - Success at last! After considerable planning of both the tram mobile sked and the monitor/audio logging in the shack, the first QSO via an amateur satellite from a tram was successfully conducted with Jack, VK3WWW and recorded during this pass. A second QSO was conducted with Lionel, VK3NM a few minutes later. Both QSO's can be heard in the audio log. A .WAV of the first QSO with VK3WWW can be downloaded here as well. Apologies to those stations who tried to make contact but didn't succeed, the noise on the downlink was severe and much of the traffic on the transponder was missed as a result. QSL cards are now available. The two stations contacted, as well as any amateur, scanner user or SWL who submits a reception report with at least time/date, stations heard (my call is VK3JED) and a signal report can obtain a QSL by direct mail. For those without access to a current callbook, please email your report to me and I'll give you the address to send your QSL.
• 3 Oct 1999 - This pass was worked using a pair of handhelds at the home QTH. Several stations were worked, including 2 ZL stations and a few locals. Signals were mostly strong, with a slight dip in strength as the satellite passed almost directly overhead. Activity was a bit quiet overall, perhaps due to the slightly earlier pass time and being a Sunday.
• 9 Oct 1999 - No scheduled pass over VK due to special event in the USA utilising 3 passes.
• 10 Oct 999 - SUNSAT was again worked, this time during the Radio on Rails contest. Two stations were worked while I was waiting for a train at Victoria Park, a few km NE of Melbourne. Shortly afterwards, the first satellite contact from a train was made with Chris, VK3JEG while the train passed through Collingwood. Further attempts to work SUNSAT were unsuccessful due to pager interference on the downlink and several small dogpiles on the satellite. Apologies for the lack of audio for this pass, due to my participation in Radio on Rails and the scanner being in use, a recording could not be made. If anyone has a recording of this pass, a copy would be appreciated, either in digital format or plain old tape.
• 15 Oct 1999 - A new goal is set, the VK RailSat Challenge! The aim is to work from a train in VK3 (Melbourne) to another train in VK6 (Perth) via a satellite.
• 16 and 17 Oct 1999 - No passes scheduled over VK.
• 23 Oct 1999 - No pass scheduled over VK.
• 24 Oct 1999 - The transponder didn't appear to be active for the scheduled pass. One station reported hearing SUNSAT on its 2.4 GHz downlink, but nothing was heard on 145.825. Murphy at his best, which means the attempt to contact ZL from a train, as well as work from train to train/tram/bus has been postponed.
• 30 Oct 1999 - The best pass to date for general operation. All states of Australia were heard, with the sole exception of VK8. Signals were good, as to be expected. Due to a busy period, operation was from the home QTH, and rail operation isn't expected to resume until mid - late November (The VK6s reading this have a few more weeks to prepare! :) ). Apologies for the poor audio quality at the start of the pass. I used a different receiver for the audio log, to avoid the interference that affects the scanner. It seems the receiver is a few kHz low in frequency, which when combined with the Doppler shift of the satellite, caused poor reception for the first half of the pass. Once the Doppler fell to zero (and later went negative), the audio improved 100 percent. Time for a quick tweak... An observation made during this pass was that even though being portable (meaning that I'm able to adjust my antenna orientation to suit the satellite), the uplink was difficult to access while the satellite was near maximum elevation, but very easy to access at low elevations.
• 31 Oct 1999 - As anticipated, I was in Ballarat, 120km W of Melbourne during this pass. The pass was worked while portable at the Ballarat Hamfest, with one SWL and a Novice Limited looking on. The pass itself was a low angled pass over Perth, with only about 12 degrees elevation in the Melbourne area. Despite the > 2200 km range from Ballarat to the bird, several VK3s, 2 VK6s and a VK5 were worked with signals up to 5x9. This pass has probably set the dubious record of the shortest SUNSAT contact of a mere 200 metres (via a 5000+ km total path!) to Lionel, VK3NM who was parked in a nearby car park. And the shortest SWL monitoring was, of course, the listeners next to me, one of whom listened to the pass on his own 2 metre handheld. This pass proved that even with handheld equipment, it is still possible to contact SUNSAT at distances up to around 3000 km (by which time it's practically on the horizon anyway).
• 6 Nov 1999 - This pass was worked from a portable station in St Kilda as a PR exercise for a hobby fair. Several onlookers watched as stations from VK2, VK3 and VK5 were worked via SUNSAT. As well as good contacts, there were several questions from members of the public and some interesting discussions about amateur satellite operation. An audio recording was made, but the scanner suffered from intermods. A 2 stage relay will be needed for future unattended recordings. It is hoped to have a suitable system in place by the following weekend (Nov 13/14). SUNSAT is turning out to be an excellent PR vehicle! :-)
• 13 Nov 1999 - Cancelled due to software upgrades on the satellite.
• 14 Nov 1999 - Cancelled due to software upgrades on the satellite.
• 20 Nov 1999 - After a week's break, it was good to see SUNSAT active over VK again. While I went train mobile in an attempt to work other stations, including a bus mobile and hopefully, some ZLs, the high angle of the pass, combined with the poor alignment of the train left me as a spectator this time around. The highlight of this pass was Peter, VK3YE who made the first QSO via an amateur satellite from a bus. Here is a .WAV of the first few QSOs Peter made from the bus. Traffic was initially slow, but became quite heavy, with stations from VK2 and VK3, plus one ZL and a VK4. Back in the shack, I took a leaf out of the SUNSAT operators' book and upgraded the audio recording software. The new software has the facility to record the passes unattended (I just plug in the start and stop times), and allows me to utilise the best receiver for the job, without having to jury rig special antennas (which have required someone present for safety reasons :) ). Expect longer, higher quality recordings. With the increasing traffic on the bird, there is the problem of congestion. Please, listen before hitting the PTT!! It makes it easier for the lower powered/portable stations. If you listen carefully to the audio track, you may hear the odd station getting trampled in the rush.
• 21 Nov 1999 - Another busy pass, with several stations from VK2, VK3 and VK6 participating. The VK2s, in particular, did well to reach the satellite, as the elevation was quite low (one station reported 7 degrees from Sydney) over VK2. The new audio recording setup gave excellent perofrmance with this low pass, with one of the best recordings os a SUNSAT pass so far. In the near future, all audio logs will be available in Real Audio format, to provide further improved audio quality.
• 27 Nov 1999 - This pass crossed the middle of Australia from south to north. Activity was dominated by stations from VK2 and VK3, with VK6ZKO being the only station outside these areas on the satellite. The use of a 2m 5/8 wave antenna for the downlink improved received signals dramatically. While it's good to see a lot of stations giving SUNSAT a try, the increased traffic means that operating procedures need to be of a high standard to ensure everyone gets a fair turn.
• 28 Nov 1999 - As expected, ZL was active on this pass, with one ZL being worked by several VK stations and another briefly heard. Other stations heard or worked were from VK2, VK3, VK4 and VK5.
• 4 Dec 1999 - Despite the relatively distant (1700km closest approach) pass, signals from SUNSAT were excellent, after a fade early during the pass. Activity was a bit quieter than previous passes, and on air conduct was excellent on the most part. Several VK3s, along with several VK2s and a VK6 were worked.
• 5 Dec 1999 - Quite a busy pass, but conduct was mostly orderly with a few minor dogpiles. Stations from VK2, VK3, VK5 and VK6 were worked. There were a couple of changes to the station here. Firstly, an overhaul of the feedline in the shack was carried out, mainly to overcome severe losses on 70cm. This may have been the reason for the exceptionally good signals logged in the day's .MP3 recording, despite only a few dB at most improvement expected on 2m. Also, I experimented with diversity reception as one means of overcoming downlink fading. In addition to the usual portable 2m receiver that was carried, a short range radio link was setup between the logging receiver and a portable broadcast FM receiver. Audio from each receiver was fed to one ear. While most of the time, fades occured simultaneously on both receivers, there were occasions where the diversity system did improve on the reception that would otherwise have been possible. The separation between the two receivers was up to 20 metres, which was the limit of the FM relay transmitter. Beyond the 20 metre limit, reception fell back to the normal portable rig.
• 11 Dec 1999 - Due to work commitments, this pass was worked from Sydney (VK2). As expected, this was an excellent pass, with one ZL, several VK2s and VK3s, as well as a VK7 station on air. Signals were particularly strong, exceeding S9 for most of the pass, which was more than enough to overcome the severe band noise caused by the Sydney CBD. The selection of a location shielded from the Sydney CBD also improved reception of the downlink. Due to my abscence from the shack, there is no audio recording of this pass, unless someone had made their own recording and can provide a copy.
• 12 Dec 1999 - No pass scheduled over VK.
• 18 Dec 1999 - Other than a lack of stations from VK4 and VK8, this was pretty much a "perfect pass". Signals from the satellite exceeded S9 on the portable receiver, and stations from VK2, VK3, VK5 and VK6 were worked. In general, on air ettiquette was excellent. Most stations waited their turn and just about everyone got a fair chance to work a few stations. Only one question remains: Where are the Queenslanders? (haven't heard from VK4 for several weeks). And a reminder that we are still looking for people to participate in the RailSat Challenge.
• 19 Dec 1999 - Signals were weaker than expected during this pass. At times, accessing the uplink was quite difficult with the usual 5 W EIRP, and downlink signals were only S2 - S3 instead of the usual S5 to S9. Several stations from VK2 and VK3, as well as one VK5 and a couple of VK6s were heard or worked via SUNSAT during the pass.
• 25 Dec 1999 - No pass scheduled over VK.
• 26 Dec 1999 - This was the most challenging pass to date, with the satellite passing over Perth and approaching no closer than 2300 km at an elevation of 8 degrees. To maximise the performance of the link, I took advantage of family affairs which put me close enough to Mt Macedon to make a stop and work SUNSAT from there. At more than 400 metres above the surrounding terrain (total elevation approx 1000m ASL), the mountain provided a clear path to the western horizon. Activity on the satellite was quiet (probably due to a combination of a public holiday and the pass being over less populated areas), but there were a total of 2 VK3s, 3 VK5s and 2 VK6s, with everyone getting a chance to work everyone else. Signals were reasonable, given the distance of the pass, and the height of the mountain provided an extra 30 - 60 seconds of air time beyond the predicted LOS. The activity heard from the mountain extends more than 30 seconds beyond the end of the recording of this pass.
• 1 Jan 2000 - Due to a scheduling problem, the time that SUNSAT was scheduled didn't coincide with a pass over Australia. There was a last minute attempt to reschedule the pass, but due to a technical hitch here (radio not connected to an antenna! d'oh :) ), I was unable to confirm if the reschudled pass went ahead.
• 8 Jan 2000 - SUNSAT appeared right on cue this time around, with solid S9 signals on the downlink. Activity was slow initially, but soon became quite heavy. Stations from VK2, VK3, VK4 (been a while guys!), and VK5 were heard. No stations from ZL this time, despite the favourable pass.
• 15 Jan 2000 - SUNSAT fired up right on the scheduled time for this pass. Signals seemed to be down a little from other recent high angle passes, peaking only at S7-S9, instead of the more usual S9+20. There were numerous stations on, mostly from VK3, with a few VK2s, 2 VK5s, one VK6 and a P29 station, which caused a late flurry of activity from DX chasers. :-) I've also changed the format for future pass prediction information. Instead of the old list, it will be presented in a tabular form, one table for each day a satellite is active over VK. This makes it clearer with the increased amount of information that is presented each week.
• 22 Jan 2000 - There were some delays in getting hold of the pass schedule for this pass, and as a result, activity on SUNSAT was quiet with only a handful of stations being worked or heard. A couple of "ragchew like" QSOs resulted from this light activity. Stations from VK2, VK3, VK5 and VK6 were heard. Signals were initially very good, exceeding S9, but dropped off markedly to about S2 from about mid pass onwards. The satellite also has an excellent sense of time, the switch on time is currently within 2 seconds of my clocks, which are synchronised to the Internet using NTP.
• 27 Jan 2000 - The JAWSAT mission, carrying several amateur satellites was successfully launched at 03:03 UTC.
• 29 Jan 2000 - SUNSAT fired up right on cue again for this pass. Signals were about S9 on the 2m 5/8 during most of the pass, with the uplink being easily accessible right to the end. Stations heard/worked included several VK2s, VK3s VK5s and a VK6.
• 5 Feb 2000 - Again, a pass that went like clockwork. SUNSAT is within on second of the clocks in the shack, which are synchronised to the Internet using NTP. Signals were down on previous passes, despite the high elevation (74 degrees). Stations from VK2, 3, 5 and 6 were worked or heard, with activity being very heavy for most of the pass. Surprisingly, no ZL stations were on air, despite this being the best opportunity for them for the next few weeks.
• 12 Feb 2000 - SO-35 fired up on schedule again. Signals were mostly strong with a few minor fades on the downlink and good signals on the uplink. Stations from VK2, VK3, VK5, VK6, ZL and P29 were worked or heard during the pass.
• 14 Feb 2000 - StenSat is operational, according to reports from the USA. However, its downlink is very weak, and high gain antennas (i.e. beams) will be needed to work this bird. Stensat is currently orbiting near the "grey line", so will be overhead near sunrise and sunset local time in any part of the world. The frequencies for StenSat are 145.840 MHz uplink and 436.625 MHz for the downlink. Later reports indicated that the initial report of Stensat's status may have been in error, and the satellite hasn't yet been heard. More news as it comes to hand.
• 19 Feb 2000 - Another copybook pass from SUNSAT. Signals did seem a little weaker than normal for most of the pass, rarely exceeding S5 on the portable receiver. Activity was a little less frantic than usual but steady, with stations from VK2, VK3, VK5 and VK6 active.
• 20 Feb 2000 - With the recent aquisition of a 10 metre transceiver, I am now able to work Mode A. This means that I am now able to work RS-13 on Mode A (2m up, 10m down, SSB/CW). I usually call and monitor on 29.486 (downlink frequency) on SSB. Any contacts would be welcomed, Unlike SO-35, RS-13 is a very quiet bird. I will be publishing a brief summary of pass schedules for RS-13. However, due to the sheer number of passes, these will be for Melbourne only. The earlier passes in a group of 2 or 3 will be towards the east, the latter ones towards the west. The middle pass of a group of 3 will be fairly high elevation.
• 23 Feb 2000 - Sunsat celebrated its first birthday with a special message broadcast over several parts of the world. Unfortunately, I didn't managed to record the VK pass, but Mike, N1JEZ, kindly provided a copy of the recorded message.
• 24 Feb 2000 - Some unexpected good news! UO-14, which has been running various digital modes for 10 years has been configured to operate as a Mode J (2m up, 70cm down) FM repeater, similar to SUNSAT. Unlike SUNSAT, UO-14 is available continuously (i.e. every visible pass). I have worked this bird and can confirm that it is indeed operating in FM mode and can be accessed with 2 watts from a handheld. This is another one to try from the trains and trams. :-) Here is a sample audio recording from a pass just after 13:00 UTC on Feb 24. An RF link back to the shack has been cobbled together at short notice to allow unattended recording, despite the large Doppler shift on 70cm. A new page with UO-14 pass information (Melbourne only) is now available.
• 26 Feb 2000 - The Moorabbin and District Radio Club operated a portable club station at the St Kilda Hobby Show in Melbourne to demonstrate Amateur Radio to the general public. A major part of the station was devoted to amateur satellites, with 2m and 70cm Yagis erected for satellite operation. A total of 6 satellite passes were attempted, which consisted of 2 SUNSAT passes, both of which are recorded in the accompanying .MP3 audio track, 2 UO-14 passes and 2 FO-20 passes. On the SUNSAT passes, the first had very weak signals for the first part of the pass. At this stage, we were still setting up, and the Yagis weren't erected, so I operated from the normal handheld gear. Reception of the downlink was difficult. It's interesting to note that the recording (which was made from the home QTH) shows a similar trend. The first pass was used to provide last minute information (such as the availability of UO-14) to other stations. On the second pass, the club station was in full swing, with several onlookers observing events while worked several stations from all over VK. Signals were generally much stronger during the second pass. UO-14 proved tricky, with the first pass being difficult on the 70cm 1/2 wave, partly due to local noise. The second pass was better, with 2 QSOs before the downlink dropped out. FO-20 worked well, but there were no other stations (but our own signal was coming in 5x3! :) ). The FO-20 passes demonstrated the effects of Doppler shift to those watching on.
• 5 Mar 2000 - A new 70cm antenna for SO-35's uplink and UO-14's downlink has been completed and tested with excellent results on UO-14. Details will be posted when construction of the 2m antenna and testing is complete. The new antennas are portable, and will suit the Fuji birds, as well as the FM satellites..
• 11 Mar 2000 - Sunsat came up in parrot mode, which was a bit of a surprise. This mode seemed to work well, with a number of stations being heard. The downlink seemed a bit weaker than usual (much like the first pass a fortnight before), but the weaker signals didn't affect the uplink as much. Not having to use 70cm meant I could run 25W on one of the base rigs. I've also aquired a Philips FM92A, which is an ex commercal 2 way with 100 programmable (via EPROM) channels. These radios came from the fire bridages, which had to upgrade several years ago due to a change of frequency allocations. One quirk of the new system is I am able to record my own audio when transmitting on the same rig, which can be handy at times. I'm yet to evaluate the RF sensitivity against the handheld I previously used, but on terrestrial QSOs, it keeps up with the all mode Standard C58. The biggest advantage of the Philips rig is it's easily modified for whatever purpose, and service manuals are readily available. A UO-14 pass was worked immediately afterwards with excellent results. The new 70cm antenna has made a big difference to UO-14 operations.
• 14 Mar 2000 - This was the first of SUNSAT's weeknight passes. As usual, the pass went extremely well. Activity was a little lighter than on the weekend, though several stations were there to work the pass. This pass also marks the first time my new antenna has been used on SO-35. Despite a low angle pass, the new antenna gave excellent signals.
• 16 Mar 2000 - With an elevation of 75 degrees over Melbourne, the second night pass was spectacular, with good signals all round. Again, the new antenna pulled in some extremely strong signals. Several stations were worked, though this pass was also relatively quiet.
• 17 Mar 2000 - This pass was a 20 degree pass. However, signals were quite weak, as reported by several VK3 stations. A highlight of the pass was the first appearance of VK8 on the satellite, with a station from Alice Springs working a few on the bird. This recording was the first test of the new "inline" recording system. Instead of the PC in the shack recording the signal in an unattended mode, the new system uses an FM wireless transmitter to link the received audio to a portable radio cassette recorder. The FM link is received by the inbuilt FM radio and then recorded on tape. The headphones used to monitor the downlink are also connected to this unit. What this means is that these recordings are literally what I hear on the downlink (sort of like those in car cameras used in motor racing telecasts!). Even though I was only using a 5/8 wave antenna on the downlink, the recording is noticeably superior to most of the previous recordings, due to my normal operations correcting for any fades on the downlink. The old automated "direct to disk" recordings will be run as a backup, in case the new system fails in the field. The new system is also capable of being used for UO-14, or even the SSB birds. Stay tuned for even more spectacular audio when the beam is in use!
• 18 Mar 2000 - Worked 2 passes, one from UO-14 and one from SO-35. The SO-35 pass was quite busy with stations from VK2, VK3, VK5, VK6 and VK8 worked, and a few minor dogpiles were observed. However, conduct was generally very good during the whole pass. The UO-14 pass a few minutes before was a little quieter, with stations from VK2, VK3 and VK4 being worked. These passes were also the first to be worked and recorded off the new satellite beam, exactly as I heard them myself. Recordings are available from both the UO-14 and SO-35 passes. This will be the standard of future audio tracks.
• 21 Mar 2000 - Was portable in the Geelong area with the satellite beam. Signals from SO-35 were extremely strong, with 4 stations active.
• 22 and 23 Mar 2000 - SO-35 Passes were cancelled due to tests being conducted on one of the onboard computers. However, UO-14 continues to perform well, as this audio clip shows. The audio was supplies by Peter, VK3DI.
• 24 Mar 2000 - Portable again, this time from the inner suburbs of Melbourne, while waiting for a lift home from a party! More strong signals with stations from VK2, VK3, VK6 and ZL being heard or worked.
• 25 Mar 2000 - SO-35 passed over Western Australia. Signals were fairly good, though not as strong as the passes during the week. Stations from VK2, VK3, VK5 and VK6 were heard or worked. Earlier, UO-14 was also worked, with good signals from VK2, VK3, VK5 and ZL.
• 28 Mar 2000 - Two events worthy of note. Firstly, at 21:58 UTC on March 27 (07:58 Melbourne time on the 28th), an attempt was made to work UO-14 while train mobile. The pass was very low, only 6 degrees in the eastern sky. Despite the weak downlink on this bird, I had reception at several stages during the pass. However, no contacts resulted. Will try again at the next available opportunity. In the evening there was a pass from SO-35, which caught most operators off guard. Signals were good, but only 2 stations worked, VK6DM and a VK7 whose call eludes me (these guys left their scanners running on the downlink and heard my calls!). An hour later, UO-14 was worked, with only one contact, namely John, VK2YOC.
• 29 Mar 2000 - A fairly high angle pass, though not as strong as a similar pass the previous week. With the beam, there was noticeable polarisation rotation during the pass, which required a manouvre a little like a slow pirouette to keep the antenna aligned to the downlink signal! :-) The highlight of this pass was VK6AKI working ZL2VAL briefly. There were also stations from VK2, VK3, VK5 and VK7 present during the pass.
• 30 Mar 2000 - This pass was the most westerly for the week, with extremely good signals for most of the pass. Stations from VK2, VK3, VK6 and VK7 were worked.
• 31 Mar 2000 - I was at the VK3RSE users social dinner during this pass. Some of the guys had worked the birds before, but most hadn't, and had only heard of the exploits of those of us who were active on satellites. I setup an inpromptu demonstration with a pair of handhelds (i.e. what had been my SUNSAT station for about 5 months!). Several stations were worked, from VK2, VK3, VK6 and VK7. In addition, one of the guys pulled out his VX-1R and with a few pointers proceded to work the bird with 500 mW and a dual band whip! I'm sure he'll be back for more when he gets back home. No audio as I didn't want to leave the old power supply running unattended. Another attempt was made to work UO-14 from the train on the way home. The downlink was surprisingly clear, except for when the train passed under bridges. The uplink needs a bit more attention. I was trying to keep a low profile, due to some of the unsavoury looking people on the train, so I didn't run full duplex, which alone may have been enough. A little side note. The following day, I had an amateur approach me and asking what was going on the 2m band the previous night. He had heard me working VK6 and thought there was a phenomenal opening. When VK7 come up on the frequency, he was getting a little curious. Turns out he had stumbled on SO-35's downlink! :-) All was revealed when I told him about the satellite. :-)
• 1 Apr 2000 - Almost missed this pass due to sleeping in. This is likely to become more of a problem with morning passes as the satellite's orbit changes with time (08:23 next Sunday morning is going to be a bit tough!). With no time to spare, I fired up the trusty Philips FM92A ex commercial box on the downlink and cobbled up a 15W uplink out of the 70cm transverter with a 2m box driving it on 148.290(!). With that lashed together setup, I managed to work several stations before losing the bird. No recording this time, as Windows took too long to boot, and it was practically over by the time recording was possible! By the time of the UO-14 pass, 15 minutes after SO-35 had switched off, I had the beam fired up and worked several VK and ZL stations.
• 2 Apr 2000 - This one almost passed be by as well, but I did have 10 minutes to get ready, so was able to fire up the beam and work several stations via Sunsat. Interestingly enough, only VK3s were present on this pass. Perhaps everyone else was still asleep or in church? Missed out on audio. In the rush to get everything together, I forgot to put the antenna on the 2m radio, and "inline" recording would have taken too long to setup, as I barely made the start of the pass myself. UO-14, 45 minutes later was very quiet, with only Andy, VK2AES being worked via that bird during the entire pass.
• 4 and 5 Apr 2000 - A couple of interesting passes. The downlink was extremely strong on both passes, but the uplink was more difficult to access. Activity was relatively quiet with only a handful of stations heard or worked, mostly from VK3, with VK2, VK6 and VK7 also present.
• 5 Apr 2000 - For a change of pace, instead of working satellites, I was being interviewed on community radio, Southern FM (88.3 MHz), about my involvement with amateur satellites, on their space program. This was an opportunity to introduce a different aspect of satellites to the general public and make people aware of our activities, and perhaps add another dimension to any existing interest they may have in space technology. As I said in the interview, an interest in space in general was one of the factors leading me to becoming active on satellites. I don't have an audio recording available yet. I have to ascertain that someone did manage to record the show, then resolve any copyright issues before I can put anything online.
• 6 Apr 2000 - This SO-35 pass was to the east of Melbourne. As with any easterly pass, ZL activity was likely and sure enough, ZL2VAL came to the party. VK6DM also joined in the activity. There were also a couple of stations from VK2. The downlink was extremely strong again, especially early in the pass. I wonder if an inversion that was present during the evening (I was hearing VK7 repeaters 30 minutes after SO-35 went over) helped improve signal strengths when the bird was at low elevation.
• 7 Apr 2000 - This pass was the most westerly pass for the week. Activity was light, with 2 VK6 and 2 VK3 stations participating in a roundtable ragchew for most of the pass. Despite several calls for other stations, none made their presence known. Signals were fairly strong, with occasional abrupt polarisation shifts noticed on the 70cm uplink.
• 8 Apr 2000 - It had to happen! As SO-35's orbit changes, it passes over earlier as time progresses. I missed the 9AM pass due to sleeping in, so no recording or report on this one (did anyone manage to catch this pass?). Tomorrow's pass is even worse - 08:23 local. Fortunately, I will be up anyway, preparing for the Radio on Rails contest which starts at 9AM.
• 9 Apr 2000 - A quiet SO-35 pass (might have been a bit early on the Sunday morning :) ). One ZL and a handful of VKs were present for a quiet roundtable chat. Signals seemed to fade out quite early though. Later in the morning, VK5ZAI was worked via UO-14 while portable at a tram stop for a point in the Radio on Rails contest. :-)
• 11 Apr 2000 - Another quiet pass for SO-35. Worked VK5EX for most of the pass. I suspect few people in VK or ZL were aware SO-35 would be active at this time.
• 12 Apr 2000 - Worked this pass from inside the shack, due to a bout of the dreaded bug. :-( Compared to the portable station, the QSB is severe and the uplink frequently doesn't make it to the bird, despite being up to 10 times the power I use while portable! Still, I managed to work several stations from VK3, VK5 and VK7.
• 13 Apr 2000 - A relatively quiet pass, with only a couple of VK3s, one VK6 and a ZL worked. Signals seemed a little down on the usual. Lucky I was able to use the beam this time.
• 14 Apr 2000 - SO-35 didn't come on air for some as yet unknown reason.
• 15 Apr 2000 - A fairly quiet SO-35 pass with 3 VK3s and a VK6 present for most of the pass. Signals were quite good during the whole of the pass. The procedure for updating the pass information will be changing this weekend, so that information will be available on a tentative basis well before the passes are officially confirmed. This will minimise the problem of information not arriving in time for the Tuesday night passes. Also had a listen for Mir, which is currently carrying a crew. Maggie, VK3CFI was heard working the cosmonauts at around 06:30z.
• 16 Apr 2000 - Just managed to get up in time to work the SO-35 pass. Signals were quite good, with the vertical being sufficient to access the bird most of the time. A handful of stations from VK2 and VK4 were worked. No audio for this pass, as the PC wasn't ready until the end of the pass. Also worked a VK6 station via UO-14, which continues to work well. Mir was again active around 06:50z. Here is another QSO heard between VK3CFI and Mir.
• 17 Apr 2000 - As often is the case, something can catch you off guard. In this case, it was voice operation on Mir. I listened to a pass around 10:15z in case. Nothing heard for 7 or 8 minutes, except for some packet which appeared to be terrestrial in origin. Suddenly, U8MIR appeared on air, talking to a VK3. A few minutes later, I managed to make contact with one of the cosmonauts briefly, before Mir disappeared over the horizon. Signals were grotty by this time, as you can hear in this audio clip (111 kB .WAV).
• 18 Apr 2000 - Missed this pass, but Lionel, VK3NM kindly provided this report:
  • Here is my short report on the pass for the 18/04/00. At first I was putting in a real strong signal into the bird I had to call CQ about 3 times before I got a reply. Not many stations appeared but the few on all put in S 9 signals it was like 80 metres at night. Stations on were ZL1CMR, ZL2VAL, VK6TS, VK2BRG , VK7KBD I don't think there any other VK3s and no VK5 or VK4s. I must say it was one of the best pass for me.
• 19 Apr 2000 - Another excellent pass. The more easterly pass enticed several ZL stations to the satellite, as well as a number of VK2, VK3 and VK5 stations.
• 20 Apr 2000 - This pass started out slowly, with only 3 stations active, but later became quite busy, with several stations from VK3, VK5 and VK6 present. Signals were very strong, with a few of the stations able to run QRP into simple antennas.
• 21 Apr 2000 - Seems the Easter holidays has brought everyone out. This was the busiest pass for a few months with many stations from VK2, VK3, VK5, VK6 and ZL worked. Signals were again excellent.
• 22 Apr 2000 - Was portable in Footscray for this pass and also showing a friend how amateur satellites work. The pass was another impressive pass, with stations from VK3, VK5 and VK6 present.
• 23 Apr 2000 - Well, finally got nobbled by Easter social engagements, so unable to make this pass. I haven't heard how it went yet.
• 26 Apr 2000 - I don't know if this pass went ahead. I was airborne over Canberra when it was due (and airlines don't take kindly to radios being operated on planes :-) ).
• 27 Apr 2000 to 30 Apr 2000 - Unfortunately, no train mobile operation from Sydney was possible, due to the cancelled satellite passes. I did manage a dry run with a non amateur friend, who one day may join in the fun, when he gets his licence. Looks like Sydney has to wait until the next trip north, at least. There will be no further operation on SO-35 until further notice.
• 6 May 2000 - SO-35 is back, on a limited basis. The controllers decided to resume weekend operation only until the thermal problem is resolved. It's good to see the bird back in action. :-) With only an hour's warning that the pass would go ahead, I set about drumming up some users from the local repeaters, as well as sending SMS messages to a SWL friend in Sydney, so he could make his first attempt at receiving a satellite. The pass, as it turns out was an excellent one with very strong signals and stations from VK2, a heap of VK3s ( :-) ), VK5, VK6 and ZL. One of the best moments was assisting VK6YY from Kalgoorlie, Western Australia, who was working his first SO-35 pass, to work ZL1TTS near Auckland. Not bad for his first day on satellites! :-)
• 7 May 2000 - Pass not heard. This turned out to be due to a last minute schedule change, and other amateurs reported activity on the rescheduled pass.
• 13 May 2000 - During the marning, the Moorabbin and District Radio Club put on their annual hamfest, and satellite demonstrations were part of the proceedings. A couple of stations were worked via UO-14, and one station was heard, but not quite worked (he heard us more clearly it seems) via FO-20. FO-29 was also available, but no one seemed to be there. :-(. In the evening, there was a good SO-35 pass with stations from VK2, VK3 and VK4 present. Also at least one SWL known to be monitoring as well. I was portable with another amateur in Footscray at the time, and while we were on SO-35, a passer by came up and asked what we were up to. A quick demo with a VK2 from Coffs Harbour left our visitor more than a little impressed. :-)
• 14 May 2000 - Another excellent pass. Signals were good and stations from VK2, VK3, VK4, VK6 and ZL worked. The satellite was also heard by a SWL in Sydney on his handheld scanner. Any SWLs looking to receive SO-35 should have little difficulty receiving the downlink on 145.825 MHz.
• 16 May 2000 - Weekday SO-35 operations resume. I wasn't able to work this pass, so no report.
• 17 May 2000 - Nothing heard.
• 18 May 2000 - Worked several stations from VK2, VK3, VK4, VK5 and VK6, with a couple of friends looking on. They were impressed with the performance of SO-35 from a couple of handhelds, while standing on a street corner! :)
• 19 and 20 May 2000 - No pass due to a couple of technical hitches.
• 21 May 2000 - Excellent signals from SO-35and many stations on air from P29, VK2, VK3, VK4, VK5, VK6 and VK7. The pass got a bit out of hand at one stage, with stations talking over each other. Please listen carefully before transmitting! A highlight was working the Olympic special event station, AX2000.
• 23 May 2000 - Another excellent SO-35 pass with strong signals. Stations from VK2, VK3, VK4, VK5 and VK6 were present. The audio recording is now getting complete passes. The system did have a problem with NTP synchronisation, which caused the system clock to gain slowly over time after the NTP reference suddenly went offline. The problem was fixed by using a different time server. The constant "rustling" background noise in the audio is due to a misbehaving VCO in the receiver used for recording. Will have to look at that in due course.
• 24 May 2000 - Sunsat came up in digital mode, so no voice activity resulted.
• 25 May 2000 - Many stations came up for another good pass on SO-35. Stations from VK2, VK3 and VK5 were worked. Unfortunately, a couple of "alligators" who weren't monitoring their downlink caused a few minor problems by trampling over established QSOs early in the pass, otherwise things went pretty well. Remember, keep an ear on your receiver before hitting that button!
• 26 May 2000 - This SO-35 pass was superb, with stations from North Queensland across to VK6 active during the pass. Traffic was busy, but mostly orderly, with stations from VK2, VK3, VK4, VK5 and VK6 present.
• 27 May 2000 - Many stations present on this pass, and things got a little out of order occasionally. Stations from VK2, VK3, VK4, VK5 and ZL worked this pass. However, there was a lot of rubbish on the uplink. Are there people not listening first, or is this some, as yet unidentified accidental QRM? The level of QRM is now making it difficult for QRP stations.
• 28 May 2000 - Very strong signals this time around. The pass was mostly well behaved, except for one station who obviously can't hear the downlink, as he called underneath several other stations and didn't respond when called several times. The level of general uplink rubbish was again high, making things chaotic. And there's that persistent clown who doesn't seem to know anything besides how to whistle. (anyone able to hear that one on the uplink?). Over all of that, stations from VK2, VK3, VK5 and VK6 managed to make numerous contacts through SO-35.
• 30 May 2000 - A good pass to the east, with a few ZLs taking advantage of the more easterly path of SO-35 this time around. I first attempted to work this one from the shack (due to inclement weather), but 10 - 15W into the vertical just didn't make the grade. In the end, the weather cleared and I was able to get excellent results for the last few minutes of the pass with the portable beam. Signals were fading on the vertical, perhaps down slightly from the last few passes, but solid on the beam. The uplink was quite easy to access with 3.5W into the beam as well. Stations from VK2, VK3, VK5, and ZL were present during the pass.
• 31 May 2000 - May ended with a very busy pass! Many stations were active, with strong signals all round. Stations present were from VK2, VK3, VK4, VK5, VK6 and VK7. Despite the high level of activity, conduct was mostly orderly with the odd minor dogpile occuring. One highlight was another brief appearance by John, VK4JKL from Cairns in North Queensland.
• 1 Jun 2000 - Now getting some good passes to the east, and this should have been one of them. Signals were very good for most of the pass, but activity was surprisingly light - a complete contrast to the previous few nights. The biggest surprise was the lack of ZLs, despite good visibility from that region. Only a handful of stations from VK2, VK3 and VK5 were present during the pass.
• 2 Jun 2000 - This pass had extremely strong downlink signals. The audio track showed a solid signal with almost no fading, which is quite unusual for a vertical antenna. Outside, on the beam, the downlink sounded more like a local repeater. Many stations took advantage of the good pass. Call areas present were VK2, VK3, VK4, VK5 and VK6.
• 3 Jun 2000 - Good signals on SO-35, though not as many ZL stations as expected for this pass.
• 4 Jun 2000 - Signals were down on normal, but a small number of stations were worked.
• 6 Jun 2000 - Missed this pass, but Lionel, VK3NM reported a quiet pass with few stations present and good signals. There was some confusion as to the availability of this pass due to work being done on SO-35.
• 7 and 8 Jun 2000 - These SO-35 passes were adversely affected by ADAC experiments on board the satellite. The downlink was very strong, but the uplink was almost impossible to access, no doubt due to the unusual attitude of the satellite.
• 9 - 11 Jun 2000 - Nothing heard.
• 13 Jun 2000 - Nothing heard again. Received word that SO-35 will be off air until further notice, due to excessive internal temperatures caused by the satellite being in continual sunlight. Let's hope for a speedy return to service. There will be no more daily updates on this page, until regular passes resume, or other significant news is received.
• 24/25 Jun 2000 - 1200 bps packet scheduled on SO-35, but nothing heard over VK. Several reports of success from the US. Also worked UO-14 with good results a couple of times while SO-35 was off the air.
• 8 Jul 2000 - Welcome back SO-35! SO-35 is heard for the first time in a month. Signals were excellent with stations from VK2, VK3 and VK5 being worked.
• 9 Jul 2000 - SO-35 turns in another excellent performance. This time, stations from VK2, VK3, VK5 and ZL were heard. Also had teed up VK8MS in Darwin and YJ8WR in Port Vila, Vanuatu, to have a go at monitoring the pass. I'm awaiting feedback from these stations via email.
• 15 Jul 2000 - SO-35 switched to Mode J (2m uplink, 70cm downlink). Seems not everyone is aware of the mode switch, as activity was quiet, with 1 VK1, 1 VK2 and a handful of VK3 stations present (reminder to stay tuned to this page and the SUNSAT home page). Downlink signals on 70cm were weaker than what we're used to, which is as expected, and there was mild Asian QRM early in the pass, though not as severe as I have heard on UO-14. No audio until a new audio link is set up, as it is impossible to configure the shack receivers to automatically track the Doppler on 70cm. I will have a new local and "long haul" link up soon for the UHF downlinks. Earlier in the day, I got feedback from YJ8WR that he heard us on SO-35 the previous week.
• 16 Jul 2000 - A quiet pass on UO-14 in the morning, with only 3 stations working each other, and a 4th station who wasn't able to hear his downlink. An excellent SO-35 pass, with strong signals on the downlink. The uplink is still less sensitive than expected. I'd estimate about 10 - 15 dB down on that of UO-14 (both satellites in Mode J). Worked a couple of new stations, Daniel,VK4TDB and Terry, VK3RB. In all, several stations from VK1, VK2, VK3, VK4 and VK5 were worked in a very busy pass. Finished the night off with a couple of UO-14 passes. The first with only VK3TBC worked (hmm, 5000km round trip to talk to someone a few km away! :) ), and on the second pass, worked VK5AH, VK5EX and VK2DOR with the lunar eclipse as a spectacular backdrop! :-) A perfect way to end a day of satellites.
• 17 Jul 2000 - Due to a typo in the schedule, this pass didn't materialise, but some lucky hams somewhere got a bonus unscheduled pass (whoops!). :-)
• 18 Jul 2000 - A good SO-35 pass, with a small number of enthusiastic stations from VK3 and VK5, as well as one ZL. All present has a good time on this light hearted pass. :-)
• 19 Jul 2000 - SO-35 was very quiet, with only a total of 5 stations present, 4 from VK3 and one ZL. Poor signals were experienced by most of the stations, though I had excellent results on my beam.
• 20 Jul 2000 - Another quiet pass on SO-35, with only a few stations active, mostly from VK3.
• 21 Jul 2000 - An interesting pass on SO-35. Worked this one from a stationary mobile position in a car park. Several VK3 stations, as well as a couple of VK5s were worked during this pass. As is common with Mode J operation, portable stations fared better with the 70cm downlink.
• 22 Jul 2000 - A very quiet pass on SO-35, with only a couple of VK3 stations and one VK6. An interstate ragchew featured for most of this pass, due to the lack of stations present.
• 23 Jul 2000 - It was very good to see a few ZLs turn out in response to this SO-35 pass, which had been deliberately placed well east of Australia. 2 of the ZLs had fairly good signals, a third was obviously unable to hear the downlink. The only VK stations were VK2TP and myself, VK3JED. This pass illustrated the importance of being able to hear your downlink, as much of the time was spent with stations trying to establish contact with each other. The portable beam is proving to be so good at pulling in the 70cm downlinks that I'll have to increase power to match my receive capabilities, as I can hear the downlink well before being able to access the uplink, and always lose the uplink first towards the end of the pass. I am also receiving a number of reports of QRM from cable TV systems. I have detected this interference myself, which is usually centered between 436.250 and 436.255 MHz. :-(
• 24 Jul 2000 - Attempted this SO-35 pass from the Diamond vertical. Severe interference from local cable TV systems prevented reception of the first half of the pass, but managed to work a few ZLs, VK3s and a VK5 once the Doppler shift had moved the downlink sufficiently far from the cable TV birdies.
• 25 Jul 2000 - Missed this pass altogether.
• 26 Jul 2000 - Severe weather conditions necessitated operation from inside the shack again. A 3/4 wave antenna was setup on the car for reception of SO-35's downlink, with the Diamond vertical being retained for the uplink. This setup eliminated the QRM and allowed operation for about half of the pass, once SO-35 became visible at about 40 degrees elevation. A couple of ZLs and a few locals were worked with this system.
• 27 Jul 2000 - Back to the beam. With SO-35 well to the west, Asian interference dominated for the first half of the pass, making the uplink difficult. The pass was quiet, with a total of 4 VK3s and VK5EX being present. The deaf 2m uplink limited the useability of the latter stages of the pass.
• 28 Jul 2000 - Missed SO-35 due to other commitments.
• 29 Jul 2000 - Tried an experiment on SO-35 where I used the vertical with the higher powered transmitter on the uplink and the beam on a portable mast outside for the downlink. This worked quite well, and also allowed an audio recording to be made. The recording starts about 2 minutes into the pass. Note the Asian QRM that appears during the first few minutes of the audio track. The pass was very quiet with only VK3LE and VK6TS being worked.
• 30 Jul 2000 - Made a late start on SO-35 here. Managed to work ZL1CMR for the last few minutes of the pass. VK2DOR was heard weakly, but apparently unable to hear us. There may have been other stations present earlier in the pass that I missed.
• 31 Jul to 3 Aug 2000 - Due to the increased number of passes, I won't be providing daily summaries of SO-35 activity, just occasional reports, unless there is an audio track for the day. The first 3 passes for the week went well, but activity has been fairly quiet. On Tuesday August 1, I had 2 ZL stations all to myself. It can be a pleasurable ragchew, but it would be good to see some new stations on the satellites. If you've ever had an inclination to work satellites, now is your chance, with few stations competing for access. As a side note, I missed the August 3 pass myself, can't make them all. :-)
• 4 Aug - 21 Aug 2000 - SO-35 continues to work well in Mode J, except for a solar storm induced failure on the weekend of Auguse 12/13.
• 22 Aug - 27 Aug 2000 - SUNSAT will be operating over Australia in an experimental mode as a dual channel FM repeater, with two independent channels on board. See the voice schedule for more information.
• 22 Aug - 19 Sep 2000 - Various tests were done on the single and dual channel voice repeater configurations aboard SO-35. Unfortunately, the dual channel mode appeared to desense the bird severely, which limited its usefulness. At this stage, there will be no further dual channel voice passes, while the satellite is running Mode J.
• 2 Oct 2000 - First anniversaty of the first tram mobile satellite QSO. :-)
• 7 - 10 Oct 2000 - SUNSAT was in parrot repeater mode for the voice passes on these days, to coincide with UN Radio Week. While no exotic DX was worked, the parrot provided an opportunity for newcomers to try satellite operation, and proved very popular among the regular (and not so regular) VK and ZL operators.
• 11 Oct 2000 - SUNSAT returns to Mode B operation.
• 13 Oct 2000 - Worked this pass mobile while driving home from work. Despite a lot of fiddling with the radio to get something approximating split operation, managed to work ZL2VAL, ZL1HAU, VK2ZER and VK3YLV during the pass.
• 16 Oct 2000 - Tram mobile returns!!! :-) For the first time in a year, I was able to operate while mobile on a tram. This time, ZL2VAL was the lucky station who earned a QSL card, not only the third (still to my knowledge, no one else has attempted tram mobile operation) station to be worked from a tram, but also the first international tram mobile QSO! A couple of other stations missed out this time around, but SUNSAT's current orbit will bring it more in line with my regular travelling times. I expect there will be many more opportunities for QSOs from the tram or train right up until Christmas, and perhaps into the New Year! Stay tuned, and claim your QSL next time I'm on the rails. For the rest of October, I can also sign as AX3JED, and will have cards prepared with this call as well.
• 17 Oct 2000 - Another train mobile station on air! Peter, VK3YE worked VK3NM via SO-35 while mobile on a train in Melbourne's SE suburbs.
• 26 Oct 2000 - Tram mobile yet again! This time, VK3YLV and VK3CAT (mobile) earned their QSL cards while I was working SO-35 from the tram. :-)
• 27 Oct 2000 - An interesting pass on SO-35. Was standing on a street corner with only the IC-T81A and Diamond quad band antenna. Managed to work VK8KCS, VK3NM and a ZL3 station while standing on the street! SO-35 certainly doesn't take much to work these days.
• 29 Oct 2000 - This pass deserves special mention, due to the excellent turnout from ZL. There were many ZL stations from all over New Zealand present, and activity was very heavy for the whole pass. Stations worked or heard included VK2, VK3, VK4, ZL1, ZL2 and ZL3. Hope to hear even more ZLs in the future.
• 10 Nov 2000 - Worked VK3TYR via SO-35, while train mobile. The QSO can be heard on the day's MP3 track.
• 15 Nov 2000 - Worked ZL3RX via SO-35 while train mobile on a busy pass.
• 16 Nov 2000 - A new era in Amateur Satellites is born, with the launch of Phase 3D, later to be known as AO-40, at 01:07z aboard an Ariane 5 rocket from Kourou in French Guiana.
• 17 Nov 2000 - A big tram mobile pass, with 6 stations worked from the tram!- VK3CBV, VK3YLV, VK3GRL, VK3NM, ZL1CMR and ZL3DY.
• 20 Nov 2000 - Worked ZL1CMR via SO-35 from the train
• 19 Nov 2000 - A user survey has commenced. SO-35 operators are being asked whether they prefer using Mode B or Mode J. If you haven't completed the survey, please see the SO-35 schedule page for more details.
• 26 Nov 2000 - An unusual SO-35 pass, with a major fade on the uplink from the VK direction. Also experimented with using the HF rig and transverter for recording, which was successful, though the tone was lacking a bit of bass.
• 30 Nov - 2 Dec 2000 - Experimented with receiving telemetry from AO-40, using the Italian soundcard based demodulator and the P3T telemetry decoder. Results were generally good.
• 3 Dec 2000 - Leighton, VK3TLJ, became the third person to operate train mobile satellite, when he worked me via SO-35. I was running portable in a local car park, with 2 SWLs looking on. Leighton was also heard by several other stations, including several ZLs (I can't recall if there were any other completed QSOs). Are there any others outside of VK3 operating satellites from trains?
• 9 Dec 2000 - Local VK3 activity on the two FM birds is getting a number of SWLs interested in monitoring satellite activity. I was made aware of a number of SWLs in northern Victoria, who regularly listen to SO-35 and UO-14, Reception reports from SWLs are always welcome as it's interesting to know who's listening. The day's SO-35 pass was very busy and rather chaotic at times. Stations from east coast VK and ZL were quite active. Later on, UO-14 was worked. Activity was quiet, with a number of VK3 stations testing various antenna configurations. On a different note, live broadcasts of satellite activity may occur from time to time via the Internet. Due to the short notice likely, it will be difficult to announce such rebroadcasts in advance, but stay tuned to "VK3JED Internet Radio", the new webcast service, for details.
• 19 Jan 2000 - The last contact the SUNSAT ground station had with the satellite occured on this day. Nothing further has been heard from the satellite since.
• 3 Feb 2000 - SUNSAT OSCAR-35 was officially pronounced non operational in the last couple of days, following 2 weeks of unsuccessful recovery attempts. The full text of the press release appears on the SUNSAT home page, and can be read by clicking here. SO-35 will be missed by amateurs all over the world, including the myself and many I communicated with from the VK/ZL region.
• Feb - Mar 2001 - While I've been fairly quiet on the satellites, with only a handful of UO-14 contacts during this period, attention has shifted towards AO-40 and the microwave bands it supports. 1.2 and 2.4 GHz transverters for the shack have been planned and some parts were ordered during this period - construction will commence soon and take advantage of cold winter days stuck indoors! :) The new additions to the station will support Mode L/S operations on AO-40, as well as terrestrial portable weak signal activity and amateur television. The 23cm transmitter will produce 10W SSB or 15W FM voice/TV into a helical antenna. Antennas for 2.4 GHz have not yet been finalised. Either a small dish or a long helix will be used here. Initially an ex Galaxy TV downconverter will be tried on AO-40, until the high performance transverter is built. Hope to catch everyone on AO-40, especially international readers outside LEO range, with whom AO-40 will enable communication for the first time!
• 23 Mar 2001 - Mir plunged to Earth after a series of de-orbiting manouvers, which brought the station safely down in the South Pacific. This marked the end of an era in space operations, and has left behind many fond memories among the Amateur Radio community. RIP Mir.
• 9 Apr 2001 - The packet TNC aboard ISS was fired up and many US and European amateurs reported successfully digipeating through the system.
• 10 Apr 2001 - ISS is heard on the air! While waiting to try out packet operations with ISS, voice was heard from the space station. As it turns out, there was a scheduled contact between a school in the US, who were being linked to the ISS by Tony, VK5ZAI. The audio recording captured the ISS side of the contact.
• 2004 - AO-51 comes online, several contacts through this bird.  ISS repeater operation starts, but I haven't worked this one yet.
  

VK RailSat Challenge!

The VK RailSat Challenge is an attempt to work via satellite between trains located in different capital cities. The original intention was to operate between Melbourne (VK3) and Perth (VK6), At this time, we are interested in making contact with train mobile stations from anywhere who are able to access the SUNSAT satellite. While satellite operation has previously been achieved from a train, the coordination of train mobile stations across the country presents some interesting logistical and technical challenges:

• Initial communications with other stations via satellite from a train. This has been achieved in VK3, but not in any other state at this stage. The main issues are downlink noise and signal attenuation caused by the train itself. A quick evaluation of the Tangara trains in VK2 was done in December 1999. These trains are very promising for satellite work, as they seem to have low attenuation.
• Development of suitable antenna systems. Again, some work on this has been done in VK3.
• Recruitment of interested people in other states to take part in the exercise.
• Coordination between VK3 and other states. This will require a regular HF sked, packet exchanges and/or an Internet mailing list.
• Status at December 2000 is that with suitable antennas, train mobile satellite operation is almost routine in VK. The most suitable antennas found so far are the Diamond SRH999 (this is actually a quad band antenna), which performs particularly well on 70cm, and 1/4 wave whips for 2m.
• With antennas sorted out, we will be attempting train - train contacts in VK3 in late 2000 or early 2001.
• The loss of SO-35 in January 2001 has made the challenge more challenging, so to speak. To date, train mobile operation has not been achieved via UO-14, the only remaining FM satellite, but it should be possible to achieve.

Currently, the following amateurs are involved (click on callsign to send email):

• Peter, VK3YE
• Tony, VK3JED

Satellite related links

The following links are amateur satellite related sites, with an emphasis on FM repeater based satellites.

AMSAT North America - General information on Amateur satellites, Keplerian elements, downloads and more.

K5OE's Home Brew Amateur Satellite Equipment page - Want to roll your own gear?

ON1CAU Satellite Page - Links to just about anything related to Amateur satellites. If you can't find it here, it probably doesn't exist!

Email me