REVISION: 9 MAY 1994



CONTENTS:



  Foreword - my ramblings

  Bibliography - list of sources and how to get more information

  Modes - common satellite operating modes

  Satellites - descriptions and background history of common satellite

  Antennas - discussion of what works best

  Preamps - discussion of what is needed

  Rigs - popular satellite rigs and features

  Accessories and Other Stuff - things that make satellte operation easier

  Frequencies - list of most hamsats with uplink/downlink freq/modes

  Aliases - list of satellite common names with their other aliases



FOREWORD:



Having recently started to get into Satellites, I asked MANY people what

it took to get started and what to do.  I found few people who could offer

all the information necessary to start.  I have attempted to compile this

information for future newbies.  If I have missed something, please ask and

I will attempt to add it to the collection.  Any comments can be sent

directly to me, stephen@mail.boi.hp.com.  Copies of this article should be

available in the following locations:



	oak.oakland.edu:/pub/hamradio/docs/faq

	ftp.cs.buffalo.edu:/pub/ham-radio

	Clear Skies BBS (608)249-7130



Also, if you really want to get serious about satellites, I would STRONGLY

recommend joining AMSAT to help promote the satellite hobby.  AMSAT is a

volunteer organization that works for the interests of amateur satellites.

Dues are only US$30 per year and you will receive a subscription to "The

AMSAT Journal".  For US$80, you will receive first year dues and a copy

of Instant Track computer tracking software which is a top-notch program.

Instant Track was donated to AMSAT by its author and its sales account for

a considerable portion of AMSAT's income. AMSAT-NA, 850 Sligo Avenue,

Silver Spring, MD 20910-4703.  (301) 589-6062.  Credit cards welcome.

NOTE:  I am in no way connected with AMSAT-NA, other than I have found their

publications quite useful.



BIBLIOGRAPHY:



The following text was compiled from the following sources and from comments

from many operators:



* "How to use the EZSATS pass tables by N9LTD" and "Hamsat aliases"

  reprinted with permission.  Full text, tables, and lots of other useful

  information can be obtained by sending a SASE to David Mullenix N9LTD, 

  2052 Brentwood Pky, Madison, WI 53704 or call the Clear Skies BBS at

  (608)249-7130.



* "Amateur Radio Satellite Frequencies"  This file can be obtained from the

  ARRL e-mail server.  For information on the server, send an e-mail message

  to info-serv@arrl.org with 'HELP' in body of message.



* "Summary - Getting onto the Hamsats"  This was an article posted to

  rec.radio.amateur.misc newsgroup by Stephan Greene (sgreene@access.digex.com)

  on 20 Mar 1992.  The article is also available via anon ftp from

  ftp.cs.buffalo.edu or Australian mirror at grivel.une.edu.au as file

  pub/hamradio/ham_sat_sum.



* "An Amatuer Satellite Operation Upgrade Path" from the AMSAT Journal,

  September/October 1993, pp. 24-26.



MODES:



The combination of uplink freq, downlink freq, and transmission mode are all

lumped together into standardized satellite MODES.  Here is a list of common

satellite modes used by satellites covered by this article:



A - This mode requires a 2 meter SSB/CW trasmitter and a 10 meter SSB/CW

    receiver and supports CW and voice.



B - This mode requires a 70 cm SSB/CW transmitter and a 2 meter SSB/CW

    receiver and supports CW and voice.  Some satellites also support RTTY

    and SSTV in this mode.



K - This mode requires a 15 meter SSB/CW transmitter and a 10 meter SSB/CW

    receiver and supports CW and voice.  This mode is unique in that it can

    be done with a simple HF rig.



JA- This mode stands for J Analog and requires a 2 meter SSB/CW transmitter

    and a 70 cm SSB/CW receiver and supports CW, voice.



JD- This mode stands for J Digital and requires a 2 meter FM transmitter and

    and a 70 cm SSB/CW receiver and supports packet.



S - This mode requires a 70 cm SSB/CW transmitter and a 2.4 GHz SSB/CW

    receiver and supports CW and voice.  Many people use a 2.4 GHz to 2 meter

    converter with a 2 meter SSB/CW receiver instead of buying a 2.4 GHz 

    SSB/CW receiver.



T - This mode requires a 15 meter SSB/CW transmitter and a 2 meter SSB/CW

    receiver and supports CW and voice.



Some satellites have dual modes that operate simultaneously.  For example,

AO-13 can operate in mode BS which means that it can do both mode B and mode

S simulaneously.  Other common dual modes are KT and KA.



Also, satellites have 3 basic types of retransmissions:  beacon, transponder,

and repeater.



Beacon - Most satellites have a fixed Morse beacon at the lower end of the

satellites band-pass transponder.  This is useful to detect when the satellite

has crossed the horizon and is in range for operation.  It can also be used to

determine dopler shifts.



Transponder - A transponder is a band-pass repeater.  It accepts a range of

frequencies on the input and retransmits the entire range on the output.  All

offsets withing that range are preserved.  NOTE:  since the satellite is 

transmitting many signals at the same time, it is dividing its output power

amongst all of these signals.  If someone transmits a very powerful signal

into the satellite, it will spend most of its power retransmitting that

signal and all of the other signals will drop in power.  This is NOT a way

to earn friends and people who overpower the satellites input are called

"alligators" and are not very popular.



Repeater - This closely resembles a land-based repeater.  It listens for

signals on one frequency and retransmits it on another frequency.  All

satellite repeaters (and transponders) are full duplex, meaning you can

(and should) listen to you signal on the downlink (with headphones) while

you are transmitting.



SATELLITES:



Some satellites are easier to work than others.  The satellites that follow

can be operated fairly easily and are referred to by some as the Easy Sats.

What follows is a breif description of each satellite.  A summary list of

operating frequencies is included later.



				Mir



Mir (promounced "mere" - "Peace" in Russian) is the Russian Space Station.

It's been in orbit since 1986.  All recent Russian Cosmonauts have been hams

and have callsigns with "MIR" in them, such as U2MIR.  Mir has 2-meter

equipment on board and they operate packet and voice on 145.55 MHz.  (This is

the same freq as the Space Shuttles.) The cosmonauts also have a digital

voice recorder which can repeatedly transmit voice announcements.



The best way to get a QSL card from Mir is to connect to their TNC's mailbox,

R0MIR-1, (That's R Zero MIR) leave a message AND GET A MESSAGE NUMBER.  You

must have the message number to qualify for a QSL.  The TNC is often busy

because amatuers forget to disconnect before Mir goes under their horizon.

In a case like this, try connecting to yourself or a friend VIA R0MIR.  And

if you hear a heavily accented voice calling CQ, by all means say hello!



70 cm and ATV gear is being prepared for future flights!



QSL Address:

	Sergei Samburov (RV3DR)

	Prospect Kosmonavtov. d.36, kw.96

	Kaliningrad City, MOSCOW 141070, RUSSIA.



Sergei can also be reached via packet radio as RV3DR @ RK3KP.#MSK.RUS.EU



A special note on caculating Mir's orbit: Mir is big and it's in a low

orbit.  This means that there's a lot of atmospheric drag and it has to fire

its rockets every month or two to boost itself back up or it would have

re-entered and burned up long ago.  Unfortunately, whenever this happens, it

throws off all pass predictions.  When this happens, Mir will arrive LATER

than predicted, so if you tune to 145.55 and nothing happens at the predicted

time, keep waiting, it may be along in 10-30 minutes.



SEEING MIR: Mir is also the only EZSAT that can bee seen.  Mir is very big,

about the size of a semi-trailer, and when it comes over just after sunset or

just before sunrise, you can often see it go by.  This is because Mir will

still be in sunlight whil you're in the earth's shadow.  In these cases, Mir

looks like a very bright star gliding acress the sky.  It's a beautiful sight

and well worth looking for.  It's best to use a tracking program set to

VISUAL to find visible passes.  The best such programs will even draw you a

star map and show you Mir's path across it.  Don't forget to tune to 145.55

when you see it.  Also, don't forget to get on the local repeater and tell

people when you spot it so that others can share in the fun.



			RS-10/11, RS-12/13, OSCAR-21(RS-14)



These three satellites are all in 600 mile high polar orbits, which carry

them over the US six to eight times a day for 10-18 minutes at a time.

They all have orbital periods of about 95 minutes and we typically get two

sets of three or four passes spaced 95 minutes apart.  The two sets of

passes are spaced 12 hours apart and their passes come a little earlier each

day because their orbits don't take quite exacly 95 minutes.



These satellites all have a coverage circle about 4000 miles in diameter, so

when they're about the horizon, you can use them to work hams anywhere in the

conteinental US, Canada, Alaska, Mexico, Central America, South America down

to the Equator, the Caribbean, Greenland, Iceland and parts of Scandinavia.

Eastern hams can work Europe and the West can work Hawaii.



All of these satellites are in boxes that are bolted to larger Russian

satellites and draw their power from the large satellite's solar cells.

They are VERY easy to hear and fairly simple to work.



				OSCAR-21



My favorite satellite.  This is a German/Russian radio that uses a Digital

Signal Processor (DSP) chip and it is Flexible with a capital "F"!  It was

launched in January, 1990 configured as a linear translator which received a

band of 70 cm CW and SSB signals and relayed them on 2 meters.  The bird was,

to put it mildly, under-utilized.  Then in 1992 the DSP chip was reprogrammed

in orbit into a cross band FM repeater!  If you've been wondering if DSP is

as powerful as you've heard, now you know!  In the past year, it's telemetry

has been re-programmed from an obscure format to standard 1200 baud packet.

WEFAX pictures (which are uploaded by teh ground controllers) were added in

December 1993.  (This is the same format used by many weather sats and short

wave weather stations.)



OSCAR-21 has an input frequency of 435.016 MHz, but 435.015 works just fine.

It's output frequency is 145.987 MHz, but 145.985 or 145.990 will recieve it

quite well.  It has a strong transmitter and a ground plane antenna and most

HTs have no trouble picking its signals up when it passes over.  Mobiles and

base stations with omni antennas will receive it full quieting.  You can get

into this bird with 20 watts and a six element beam antenna.  I mount my beam

on a photo tripod next to my car and run coax to my dual band mobile.  You

have to point the beam accurately, so I take a list of altitude and azimuth

bearing generated by simple tracking software out with me and re-point the

beam once a minute.  In one summer, I worked the east and west coasts,

several Canadians, Texas and Guantanamo Bay, Cuba before fall's cold weather

drove me indoors.



Some OSCAR-21 tips: you can hardly get a word in edgewise during "prime time"

opening passes.  Try the late night passes instead, they're much less

crowded.  OSCAR-21's transmit and recieve polarity rotate constantly during a

pass.  Mount your beam so you can easily rotate it for the best signal.

Remember, all these ham sats are full duplex, so you can and should monitor

your signal on the downlink.  (Use headphones.) Turn the beam for minimum

noise.  You'll probably have to modify your dual band rig to get it to

transmit on 435.015.  BE CAREFUL beacuse FM is generally NOT appreciated

below 440 MHz.  Also, the mod may allow you to transmit out of band, which is

a real no-no.



OSCAR-21 is also known as RS-14, AO-21 and Rudak-2.  It's bolted to a

satellite called INFORMATOR-1, which is often abbreviated INFORMTR-1.  It's

NORAD ID number is 21087.  Be careful, the rocket booster that launched the

satellite is still up there and it's named INFORMTR-1 R/B in some element

sets.  Your tracking program may find it instead of the satellite if you're

not careful.



				RS-10/11



This is probably the easiest satellite to work of them all.  It has an

incredibly sensitive receiver that can pick up the faintest two meter signal

and relay it on ten meters.  There are documented examples of people having

QSOs on RS-10/11 by clicking Morse on HTs with rubber duck antennas!  I

guarantee you that your HT can put a useable signal into RS-10/11, I've done

it myself.  WARNING: if you try this, disable the microphone so you don't

transmit any FM sidebands and turn your CTCSS (PL) OFF!



RS-10/11 (Radio Sputnik) is for CW and SSB signals, so an all mode 2 meter

rig is ideal for transmitting to this bird.  The input bandpass is from

145.860 - 145.900 and the output freqs are from 29.360 - 29.400 MHz.  There

is also a morse beacon at 29.357 MHz.



RS-10 is also equiped with a feature called ROBOT.  The ROBOT is an automatic

on-board QSO computer.  To work it, send the following at about 15-20 wpm

on 145.82 MHz (an automated keyer works best):



	RS-10 DE (your call) AR



If the ROBOT hears you, it will respond on the 29.403 MHz downlink with:



	(your call) DE RS-10 QSL NR (number) OP ROBOT TU USW QSO (number) 73 SK



If you want a QSL card, try sending the QSL number the ROBOT sent back to

you on your QSL (along with an SASE and return postage) to:



	Andrey Mironov

	UL Vvoloshinoj. D11. KV72.

	141000 Station Perlovskaya

	Moscow, Russia



				RS-12/13



A cousin to RS-10/11, RS-12/13 is also a 40 KHz wide linear transponder.

However, this bird is unique because its input frequencies are in the fifteen

meter band!  This is also the only ham sat in the sky that requires more than

a code free technician license to work it, because its input band is from

21.210 - 21.250 MHz.  This straddles the Advanced and Extra portions of the

15 meter band.  Its output freqs are from 29.410 - 29.450 MHz.  Because of

skip, this satellite can often be heard and worked when it's below the

horizon!  At least one person has earned DXCC on this satellite!  RS-12/13 is

bolted to yet another Russian satellite and its NORAD ID is 21089.  RS-12/13

also has a ROBOT mode like its brother RS-10/11.



				DOVE



DOVE is short for Digital Orbiting Voice Encoder and is a transmit-only 

hamsat (it has no user accessible receiver).  Built in Argentina, DOVE was

launched in 1990 as a good will satellite to introduce children and newcomers

to amateur satellites.  It was originally intened to transmit digitized voice

messages that could be picked up by students with simple receivers. 

Unfortunately, the digital voice hardware and software has been a constant

source of problems since launch.  Atempts to get DOVE to works properly are

proceeding as this is written, so the best bet is to tune your 2-meter rig or

scanner to 145.825 MHz and see what the bird is up to currently.  Be ready

for Morse, standard 1200 baud packet or (with luck) digitized voice messages.

The signals are strong enough so that an HT with a rubber duck will hear it

when it's overhead, although ground plane antennas will give better coverage

when the bird is near the horizon.



				AO-10



Known as Phase 3-B before it's launch by the European Space Agency in June,

1983, this satellite was designed for launch into a high elliptical orbit.

This orbit, called "Molniya" orbit, places the satellite over one spot on 

the Earth for up to several hours at a time.  This orbital configuration

also allows for consistent, long haul DX communication because the satellite

is visable to roughly half the Earth!  This orbit virtually eliminates the

frantic "hurry up" style of operation.  But such a luxury is not without

cost.  At the farthest point in the Molniya orbit, this satellite is over

25,000 miles away from the Earth, meaning high gain antennas and higher

power levels are required to get a workable signal up and through the bird.

Also, even though radio waves travel at the speed of light, the over 50,000

mile round trip creates a signal path delay of about 1/4 second on the

downlinked signal.  It takes some time for satellite operators to get used

to simultaneously speaking and listening to their own voices returning in

their headphones a quarter second later.  



The first Phase 3-A launch ended in disaster when the Ariane booster

malfunctioned, dropping the bird in the Atlantic.  Phase 3-B, later to

become OSCAR 10, met with somewhat better fortune, surviving the launch and

first burn of its "kick motor" just fine.  However, we later learned that

the booster had apparently bumped OSCAR 10 shortly after separation which

damaged one or more of its antennas and also caused other internal injuries

because the second and subsequent kick motor firings never happended.  This

left OSCAR 10 in a lower inclination elliptical orbit.  This meant that

the bird didn't have the intended operational coverage nor enough solar

panel illumination to sustain full operations.  So today, OSCAR 10 is "sort

of" operational.  It is stuck in mode "B" with only its omnidirectional

antennas working and it is slowly tumbling.  Users are requested to listen

for AO-10's 145.810 MHz beacon for a steady, unmodulated carrier before

operating the bird.  If the beacon is raspy or if your downlink signal 

appears to be shifting in frequency, users are asked NOT to use the

transponder until it has a chance to slowly recharge its batteries.



				AO-13



Launched in June, 1988, OSCAR-13 is now carrying the bulk of the long haul

DX available via amateur satellite.  It is the current--and much improved--

brother to OSCAR 10.  However, unlike OSCAR 10, it did managed to achiieve

its "Molniya" orbit.  OSCAR 13 also has the ability to automatically select

transponders for each mode at different points in its orbit.  This helps

optimize the mode in use with its corresponding downlink antenna gain.  OSCAR

13 did have some problems, however.  It had a RUDAK experiment onboard that

failed shortly after launch.  Also, in June 1993, the 70 cm downlink

transmitter ceased to function, putting an end to Mode J and L operation.

However, modes B and S are still being supported and mode S is becoming

increasingly popular.  Also, AO-13's batteries are beginning to show signs

of age and its orbit it deteriorating.  The progressive effects of previously

unknown gravitational interactions between AO-13, the Sun, the Moon and the

Earth will all conspire to cause the satellite's re-entry into the atmosphere

sometime in 1996.



ANTENNAS:



For AO-13, the consensus is get to get KLMs, Telex/Hy-Gains, or roll-your

own,  Nobody liked the Cushcraft satellite antennas - they appear to have

problems in wet weather.  Bigger is also better, if you have the space. 

Several people mentioned the KLM  22C and 40CX pair as excellent performers

(again - you need the room for those long booms!)  KE4ZV stated his pair of 

KLMs (the big ones!) lets him work AO-13 with 3 to 30 watts (hardline feed

and rigorous attention to routing the feedlines and cables properly to

maintain the antenna patterns helps, too.).  Others mentioned the KLM 

14C/18C pair as good performers - but you need more power on the uplink.  



Telex/Hy-Gain antennas were recommended by several people as a less 

expensive alternative to KLMs that work almost as well.  There's also M2

(started by an engineer from KLM).  While no one who responded uses them, 

the information I received from a call to their factory in California 

suggests they are comparable to slightly better than the KLMs in performance,

and about the same in cost.  Dave, WB6LFC, said homebrewing antennas is also

feasible - it takes work, but attention to detail results in top-notch

performance for very little money.  Finally, Ross, VE6PDQ, reported good 

results using a pair of Cushcraft 215WBs on receive.



Problems encountered with AO-13 antennas include routing cables and 

feedlines off the back of the antennas (to preserve antenna patterns), use 

of fiberglass cross booms, mounting preamps as close to the feedpoint as 

possible, and long antenna booms drooping.  (Gary, KE4ZV, recommends using

a rope to brace the boom or stiffening booms and fiberglass masts internally

with foam-in-a-can insulation.)



On antenna rotators, it appears the Alliance UD-100 is no longer made, 

though it should still show up at hamfests.  People with long-boom antennas

report the Alliance rotator is too weak to move a big array anyway, and 

recommended Yaesu's elevation-only rotator or their Model 5400 azimuth-

elevation unit.



Antennas for the low-altitude satellites appear to be much less critical. 

J-poles were most frequently mentioned (the design from the AMSAT Journal?),

but dipoles, ground-planes, and yagis are also in use.  Several people work 

RS-10 quite well with antennas in the attic.  Best results are with 

steerable antennas, but the high operator workload during a pass (unless 

the satellite is just grazing your access circle) almost demands computer 

control of the rotators.



PREAMPS:



You need a preamp for AO-13.  (I can hear the downlink after a fashion on

a Ringo fed with cheap coax and a 10 dB preamp in the shack, but it's not 

communications quality reception!)  Only two people mentioned a specific 

brand name (Advanced Receiver Research and the unit included with the 

Ten-Tec 2510), so I assume almost any GAsFET preamp in the 20dB gain class 

is adequate.  THE PREAMP MUST (almost always) BE MOUNTED AT THE ANTENNA 

(check the discussion in Chapter 9 of the Satellite Experimenter's Handbook 

and you'll see why!).  KE4ZV recommends mounting the preamp AT the antenna 

feedpoint, if your elevation rotator can handle the unbalanced load.



While no one mentioned it (maybe it's obvious), if the antenna is used to 

transmit (say Mode J) as well as receive (on Mode B, for example), the 

preamp MUST either include RF-sensed switching, or be switched out of the 

line before you transmit.  TRANSMITTING INTO AN UNPROTECTED PREAMP WILL 

DESTROY IT INSTANTLY!



Preamps also seem to help on RS-10 (especially with older HF rigs) and on 

the Pacsats.  It seems to be a case of "try it, and get a preamp if it looks 

like it would help").



RIGS:



Three radios were mentioned by name - Yaesu FT736 (and it's predecessor, 

the 726 with satellite module), Kenwood TR751 (a mobile-capable 2 meter 

multimode), and Ten-Tec's 2510.  The Ten-Tec unit is out of production.  

The few units left are selling for about $300-350.  I'm sure other multi-

mode radios, and setups with converters and transverters work well, too - 

it's just that no one mentioned any by name.



Power output required is a function of the satellite, your antennas, and 

how badly you want to communicate.  [QRP on the satellites is just like 

QRP on HF - you need good antennas and feedline, you have to pick optimal 

passes, and skilled operators at both ends are needed.  Given the apparent 

"calmer" operating style on AO-13, QRP is probably easier there than on 

20 meters!]



Anyway -about power for AO-13.  3-30 watts will work if you have top-notch 

antennas (KE4ZV).  KC7IT uses 50-100 watts (Ten Tec 2510, Mirage D1010 

amplifier, KLM 14C/18C fed with 50 feet of 9913).  Both KE4ZV and KC7IT 

use Mirage D1010 amplifiers on 70 cm when they need a little extra power.  

For an "optimum station", WA5ZIB recommends 60 watts on 70 cm and 80 watts 

on 2 meters for AO-13, assuming good antennas (Telex/Hy-Gain or better) and 

feedlines, and 20 watts to a 5' dish for Mode L.  Andy emphasized that you 

can get by and have lots of fun with much less!



For Mode A, WA5ZIB said 6 watts to the AO-13 2 meter antenna will work well.

People using omnis report success with the Pacsats running 50-70 watts to a 

J-Pole (N5VGC).  Several people said they (or someone they know) have no 

trouble using RS-10 at lower power (10-25 watts) with simple, omnidirectional 

antennas.  Again, it's a case of "try it and see if it works."



There was unanimous consensus that the receiving quipment (antenna, preamp,

feedline, and receiver) is more important than the transmit equipment.  

Running more power "to hear yourself" is frowned upon, to say the least! 

It's also important to be able to vary uplink power to adjust to specific 

conditions.  Both the Ten Tec 2510 and the Yaesu 736 have continuously 

variable power output  (I guess the rest of us just have to fiddle with the 

drive controls on our rigs!).



ACCESSORIES AND OTHER STUFF:



You need a PSK modem to use the Pacsats.  PacCom makes fully assembled 

units, either already integrated with their own TNC, or as a board you 

install in your TNC-2 clone.  They make similar 9600 bps units for accessing 

UO-22.  The downlink receiver (on 70 cm) should be capable of being tuned by 

the PSK modem's AFC lines.  Newer radios can use the up/down lines from the 

microphone jack or an accessory connection on the rear panel.  Older radios 

must be modified, or be tuned manually.  N5VGC told me he sees about 20KHz 

of doppler on an AO-16 pass, and that without automatic tuning, operator 

workload is too high to do much else besides tune the receiver!



Just about any radio suitable for packet on 2 meters will work for  AO-16,

WO18, and LU-19.  To run 9600 bps on UO-22, modifications to bypass the 

microphone and speaker's audio processing circuits are required.  I've seen 

some reports on rec.radio.packet and in the various Hamsat columns that 

differences between UO14 and UO-22's transmitters make UO-22 more difficult 

to copy.  (I'll worry about that problem later - I'll start with AO-16 and 

LU-19 first!)



No one mentioned computers - again, it must be obvious (also, we're 

"talking" using computers!).  They're handy, and you need one IN THE SHACK 

when working the Pacsats or for automated, real-time control of antenna 

rotators (useful for low altitude satellites).  



Other operator aids mentioned, or I thought of on my own:  If your radio 

can't slave uplink and downlink tuning (Ten Tec 2510 and Yaesu 736 can), 

you need something to help convert between uplink and downlink frequencies 

(and account for doppler shift and calibration errors on the radios' 

frequency readouts).  A cardboard slide scale or dial will work.  I'm 

thinking of programming my HP48 to do the conversion for me.  You need 

something like this to know where to tune on the uplink to hear a given 

downlink frequency.



Software to track satellites and predict passes.  There are many programs 

that work.  Price ranges from free to $70 for state-of-the-art QuickTrack 

or InstantTrack (available from AMSAT).  Special software is also needed 

to use the Pacsats, and to interpret telemetry data.  This software is also 

available from the usual ham sources, and from AMSAT (BTW, software sales 

support the amateur satellite program!)



Polarity switchers optimize antenna performance by allowing switching 

antenna feeds from RHCP to LHCP as the need arises.  They are a very useful 

add-on, but don't appear essential.  



Equipment to measure power output, SWR, transmit frequency - all useful 

(see - satellites are not that different from HF!).



FREQUENCIES:



Amateur Radio Satellite Frequencies (as of January 1994)



Designation Frequencies    Transponder/    Mode

                           Beacon

AO-10      

  Downlinks 145.810        B               B

            145.825-.975   T               B

            145.987        B               B (Usually off)

  Uplinks   435.027-.179   T               B



RS-10      

  Downlinks  29.357        B               A

             29.360-.400   T               A

             29.403        B (Robot)       A

            145.857        B               T/KT

            145.903        B (Robot)       T/KT

  Uplinks   145.860-.900   T               T/KT

	    145.820        B (Robot)       T/KT



RS-12      

  Downlinks  29.408        B               K

             29.410-.450   T               K

             29.454        B (Robot)       K

            145.913        B               T/KT

            145.959        B (Robot)       T/KT

  Uplinks    21.210-.250   T               K



AO-13      

  Downlinks 145.812        B               B

            145.825-.975   T               B

            145.985        B               B (Usually off)

            435.651        B               L/JL

            435.677                        RUDAK

            435.715-6.005  T               L/JL

           2400.664        B               S

           2400.711-.749   T               S

  Uplinks   435.423-.573   T               B/S

            435.601-.637   T               B/S



AO-16      

  Downlinks 437.02625      T/B             J Dig. (1200b SSB) (secondary)

            437.05130      T/B             J Dig. (1200b Rai. Cos SSB) (pri)

           2401.14280      B               1200 bps SSB (Usually off)

  Uplinks   145.900        T               1200 bps AFSK FM Digital

            145.920        T               1200 bps AFSK FM Digital

            145.940        T               1200 bps AFSK FM Digital

            145.960        T               1200 bps AFSK FM Digital



DO-17      

  Downlinks 145.82438      B               1200 bps AFSK FM or Dig Voice

            145.82516      B               1200 bps AFSK FM or Dig Voice

           2401.22050      B               1200 bps BPSK (SSB) (usually off)

  Uplinks       None



WO-18      

  Downlink  437.10200      B               1200 bps BPSK, J Dig (Telem, Image)

  Uplink        None                                         



LO-19      

  Downlinks 437.125        T/B             J Digital (secondary)

            437.127        B               CW

            437.154        T/B             J Digital (primary)

  Uplinks   145.840        T               1200 bps AFSK FM Digital

            145.860        T               1200 bps AFSK FM Digital

            145.880        T               1200 bps AFSK FM Digital

            145.900        T               1200 bps AFSK FM Digital



FO-20      

  Downlinks 435.795        B               J Analog

            435.800-.900   T               J Analog (See below)

            435.910        T/B             1200 bps BPSK (SSB), J Digital 

  Uplinks   145.850        T               1200 bps AFSK FM Digital

            145.870        T               1200 bps AFSK FM Digital

            145.890        T               1200 bps AFSK FM Digital

            145.910        T               1200 bps AFSK FM Digital

  OR        145.900-6.00   T               CW/SSB (Alternates with above

                                           every other week.  Changes on

                                           Wednesdays)



AO-21      

  Downlinks 145.852-.932   T               CW/SSB

            145.866-.946   T               CW/SSB

            145.985        Repeater        FM (Alternates with voice 

                                               bulletins and telemetry)

  Uplinks   435.022-.102   T               CW/SSB

            435.601-.637   T               CW/SSB

            435.015        Repeater        FM (See above)



UO-22      

  Downlink  435.120        T               9600 bps FM Digital

  Uplinks   145.900        T               9600 bps FM Digital

            145.975        T               9600 bps FM Digital



KO-23 (KITSAT)

  Downlink  435.175        T               9600 bps FM Digital

  Uplinks   145.850        T               9600 bps FM Digital

            145.900        T               9600 bps FM Digital



Mir        

  Downlink  145.550        T/Robot         (Packet mailbox. Alternates 

                                            with simplex FM voice QSOs 

                                            occasionally)

 

KO-25 (KITSAT-B)

  Downlink  435.175/436.500 MHz            9600 bps FSK FM Digital

  Uplink    145.870/145.980 MHz            9600 bps FSK FM Digital

 

AO-26 (ITAMSAT)

  Downlink  435.867 MHz                    1200 bps PSK Digital

  Uplinks   145.875 MHz                    1200 bps FM Digital

            145.900 MHz                    1200 bps FM Digital 

            145.925 MHz                    1200 bps FM Digital

            145.950 MHz                    1200 bps FM Digital

 

AO-27 (AMRAD)

  Downlink  436.798 MHz                    Analog FM voice/9600 bps FSK FM

  Uplink    145.850 MHz                    Analog FM voice/9600 bps FSK FM



PO-28

  Uplink    145.975 MHz                    JD 9600 bps FSK (Primary)       

            145.925 MHZ                    JD 9600 bps FSK (Secondary)

  Downlink  435.075 MHz                    JD 9600 bps FSK (Primary)

            435.050 MHz                    JD 9600 bps FSK (Secondary) 

  Note: PoSat will be available to all radio amateurs from January 28, 1994.



ALIASES:



NORAD Common Name [Aliases]                   (Parent satellite)

----- ----------- --------------------------- ------------------

14129 AO-10       [OSCAR 10, Phase 3B]

14781 UO-11       [OSCAR 11, UO-11, UOSAT-B, UOSAT 2]

16609 Mir

18129 RS-10/11    [RS-10]                      (COSMOS 1861)

19216 AO-13       [OSCAR 13, Phase 3C]

20437 UO-14       [OSCAR 14, UOSAT-OSCAR 14]

20438 UO-15       [OSCAR 15, UOSAT-OSCAR 15]

20439 AO-16       [OSCAR 16, Pacsat, Microsat-A]

20440 DO-17       [OSCAR 17, DOVE, Microsat-B]

20441 WO-18       [OSCAR 18, WEBERSAT, Microsat-C]

20442 LO-19       [OSCAR 19, LUSAT, Microsat-D]

20480 FO-20       [Fuji-OSCAR 20]              (JAS 1-B)

21087 AO-21       [OSCAR 21, RS-14, RUDAK-II]  (INFORMTR-1 or INFORMATOR-1)

21089 RS-12/13    [RS-12]                      (COSMOS 2123)

21575 UO-22       [OSCAR 22, UoSAT, UOSAT-F]

22077 KO-23       [OSCAR 23, KITSAT A]

22654 ARSENE

22825 AO-27       [OSCAR 27, AMRAD]            (EYESAT-1)

22826 AO-26       [ITAMSAT, IO-26]

22829 PO-28       [POSAT, POSAT 1]

22830 KO-25       [KITSAT B]



 ____       ____

|   / /_  __\   | Disk       Stephen Holmstead            All comments (c)1994

|  | / / /_/ |  | Memory     stephen@mail.boi.hp.com      Opinions are mine,

|___\   /   /___| Division   Fax: 208/396-6858            not my employer's.

