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   ZL 100 C is the callsign  celebrating the centenary of NZART   
   the New Zealand Association of Radio Transmitters which was formed   
   on 16 August 1926.   
      
   The callsign is valid until 6 August 2026.   
      
   QSL via the bureau and LoTW.   
      
   (425dxnews)   
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   To mark the 60th anniversary since the first French satellite, named   
   Asterix, was launched into orbit, on 26 November 1965, members of the   
   Wingles Radio Club (F 4 KLR) will be active as TM 60 ATX on Fridays and   
   Saturdays  between 14 November and 13 December and again on 19-23   
   December.  All SSB and CW QSOs will be confirmed automatically via the   
   bureau; FT8 QSOs will be confirmed via eQSL.   
   (425dxnes)   
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   WW SPECIAL INTEREST GROUPS --- ASTRONOMY (and Wireless Weather)   
      
   When we think of weather we often think of sunshine, or lack thereof   
      
   Our first story in Special Interest Group news this week sheds some light   
   on a satellite company's plan to shed some light - some real reflected   
   light, from the sun back to the earth after twilight, this to benefit   
   solar power users.   
      
   Kent Peterson KCDGY from NewsLine 'illuminates us.   
      
   The FCC's Space Bureau has been asked to approve a proposed launch next April   
   for a satellite in non-geostationary orbit that will deploy mirrors to   
   provide "sunlight on demand," according to the company's website.   
      
      
   Reflect Orbital, a start-up company based in California, filed its   
   application this past summer for a license for what it hopes will be the   
   first of 4,000 mirrored satellites that it wants to place in low-Earth orbit   
   by 2030. The April launch is being eyed for a demonstration satellite which   
   will carry a mirror that measures 18-by-18 meters, or 60-by-60 feet.   
   Sunlight's reflection by that envisioned constellation would extend daylight   
   beyond twilight by as much as four hours, increasing solar-power production   
   to locations where Reflect Global has customers.   
      
      
   The company says that its technology supports clean-energy generation - but   
   astronomers, biologists and other scientists have raised questions about the   
   prospect of light pollution on human and animal health and the ability to   
   study the skies effectively.   
      
      
   Astronomers in particular have said that lighting up dark skies would impede   
   their work, which uses sensitive cameras. According to published reports,   
   Reflect Orbital recently began working with astronomers to minimize the   
   mirrors' impact. on them. Meanwhile, scientists have observed how nocturnal   
   species' lives can be disrupted and perhaps imperilled by artificial light   
   during the night.   
      
      
   This past May, the US Air Force awarded the project a $1.25 million Small   
   Business Innovation Research contract to support its progress.   
      
   (newsline 2506)   
      
   Ai Fix from Earth Restores James Webb Telescope Clarity,   
   No Astronauts Needed, just VK2 initiative.   
      
   NASAs James Webb Space Telescope has received a remarkable upgrade  not   
   from astronauts or hardware, but from artificial intelligence. Researchers   
   at the University of Sydney developed a software-based solution that   
   corrected subtle image blurring in one of JWSTs most sensitive instruments,   
   restoring the telescopes precision without the need for any on-orbit   
   servicing mission.   
      
      
   The issue affected JWSTs Aperture Masking Interferometer (AMI), a specialized   
   instrument designed to resolve extremely fine features when observing stars   
   and exoplanets. Soon after operations began, scientists noticed faint   
   distortions caused by tiny electronic effects within the infrared detector.   
   Rather than planning a complex repair mission, similar to how astronauts   
   serviced the Hubble Space Telescope decades ago, the team pursued a   
   software-only approach.   
      
      
   Two PhD researchers, Louis Desdoigts and Max Charles, created a new   
   calibration system called AMIGO that uses artificial intelligence to model   
   the behaviour of JWSTs detector in space. By correcting a phenomenon known as   
   the brighter-fatter effect, where electrical charge slightly spreads between   
   pixels, their software restored AMIs ability to produce extremely sharp,   
   high-contrast images from millions of miles away.   
      
   tinyurl.com/yv4dvmzb   
   (amsat)   
      
   WW SPECIAL INTEREST GROUPS - FINAL FRONTIER   
   AMSAT-VK Secretary - secretary@amsat-vk.org   
      
   CatSat is listening or YOU, when the linear transponder is active,   
   listens on 5.663 GHz and transmits on 10.47 GHz, providing approximately   
   200 kHz of bandwidth. Power considerations limit each activation to about   
   15 minutes, a balance that allows the spacecraft to support both mission   
   science and amateur communications.   
      
   CatSat, a 6U CubeSat developed and flown by students, faculty, and staff   
   at the University of Arizona in partnership with FreeFall Aerospace and   
   Rincon Research, has been on orbit since July 2024 and is now entering   
   the phase of its mission focused on community engagement and technology   
   demonstration.   
      
   Measuring roughly the size of a family-size cereal box, the spacecraft   
   carries a suite of experimental payloads, including ionospheric   
   monitoring via high-frequency radio measurements and imaging of the   
   Earth, CatSat includes a linear transponder for amateur radio, extending   
   the University of Arizonas long legacy in space science down to hands-on   
   student involvement.   
      
   Frequencies again?   
      
   5.663 GHz (uplink) and transmits on 10.47 GHz (downlink),   
      
   catsat.arizona.edu   
      
   tinyurl.com/4ath7dtu   
      
   (amsat)   
      
   The European Space Agency, ESA now estimates that over 140 MILLION pieces   
   of space debris, each larger than 1 mm, are traveling in Earths orbit at   
   an average velocity of 7-8 km/second.   
      
   As the number of defunct and fragmented human-made objects in space rapidly   
   increases, so do the hazards they presentthis number has grown.   
      
      
   The Tiangong Space Stations core module, Tianhe, launched in 2021 was   
   impacted by a Micrometeoroid and Orbital Debris event within just two years.   
   The impact damaged solar panels, causing a partial loss of power,   
   necessitating two spacewalks for repairs and the installation of external   
   debris protection devices.   
      
      
   The 25-year-old International Space Station has performed more than THIRTY   
   in-orbit manoeuvres to avoid satellites and trackable space debris.   
      
   MMOD damage over the years to the ISS has impacted Russian Progress and Soyuz   
   vehicles, Canadarm2, and one of the seven windows of the cupola.   
      
      
   When the Resurs-P1 satellite broke apart in 2024, creating more than 100   
   pieces of trackable debris, the ISS crew took emergency shelter in their   
   return vehicles for over an hour.   
      
   (orbitalindex)   
      
   WW SPECIAL INTEREST GROUPS - MILITARY   
   Recordings of military transmissions can be found on the   
   Signal Identification Guide Wiki at   
   sigidwiki.com/wiki/Category:Military   
   youtube.com/@militaryhfradio244   
   open.spotify.com/playlist/28SXuX8vL2wHbnfCS0uBVF?si=d9ee366a38a4472e   
      
   SA Armour Museum:-   
      
   ZS 4 AFV, from the SA Armour Museum, will be active on Friday 21 and   
   Saturday 22 November from the Maluti Military Fair at the Sandstone   
   Heritage Estate in the Eastern Free State.   
      
   The AFV suffix stands for Armoured Fighting Vehicle.   
      
   QSL via ClubLog.   
      
   (sarl)   
      
   WW SPECIAL INTEREST GROUPS --- RADIO AMATEUR YOUNG TIMERS - YOTA   
   (Youngsters On The Air)   
   WIA committee:- Steve VK6SJ, Alec VK2MV and Pete VK2LP.   
   ham-yota.com/category/yota-region-3/   
   facebook.com/groups/YOTAOC/   
   youtube.com/channel/UClAapljf0VQ751sOgu2IzaA   
      
   CB radio enthusiasts and hams are taking to the mountains for an   
   annualchallenges.   
      
      
      
   [continued in next message]   
      
   --- SoupGate-Win32 v1.05   
    * Origin: you cannot sedate... all the things you hate (1:229/2)