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application of amateur radio in space. This 2.4 GHz experimental beacon
transmitter can switch to transmit five different modes of radio signals,
and it will work continuously when the satellite is fully powered.
This project aims to cultivate students’ knowledge, skills and inte
rests in
amateur radio satellites. All transmission modes operate at 2.4 GHz, and
the working modes are converted by the on-board computer program and ground
remote control commands. It can work in the following modes: CW Telemetry
Beacon, FT8 Telemetry Beacon, PPM Telemetry Beacon, or USB/SSTV Robot36,
PD120 1. This beacon will transmit at 2405.500 MHz, EIRP 27 dBm.
CAS-11 carries three cameras, and the photos it takes are stored in the
flash memory on the satellite. The builders have designed a simple remote
control system based on DTMF commands. Amateur radio enthusiasts around the
world can send DTMF commands to download the photo catalog and all photos
taken by all cameras.
Anticipating a launch in September, 2025 into a 536 km polar orbit from
Haiyang Sea Launch Platform, Shandong, China.
[ANS thanks IARU and Alan Kung, BA1DU, of CAMSAT for the above information.
]
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*Need new satellite antennas?*
*Purchase M2 LEO-Packs from the AMSAT Store.*
*When you purchase through AMSAT, a portion of the proceeds goes towards*
*Keeping Amateur Radio in Space.*
*https://amsat.org/product-category/hardware/*
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Update on PARUS-T1A Satellite
The satellite frequency coordination committee of the International Amateur
Radio Union (IARU) on November 20 updated information regarding the
approved frequency requests from the National Formosa University for
satellite PARUS-T1A. The satellite is tentatively scheduled for launch in
January.
PARUS-T1A, a 3U CubeSat, is designed to continue the successful legacy of
the PARUS- T1 mission. This satellite will provide essential services to
the global amateur radio community.
The Primary Mission is an FM Voice Cross-Band Repeater to facilitate
real-time voice communication between amateur radio operators on 145.980
MHz (Uplink tone 67Hz) and 435.250 MHz (Downlink).
The satellite will also carry an APRS Digipeater to enable the transmission
of real-time position and status information from APRS-equipped devices on
145.825 MHz.
A telemetry beacon downlink on 437.850 MHz has also been coordinated, with
unencrypted telemetry packets accessible to the public through online
dashboards like SatNOGS, promoting transparency and community collaboration
.
Anticipating a SpaceX launch from Florida in January, 2025 into a 590 x 510
km 98 degree orbit.
[ANS thanks IARU and Randson Huang, BV2DQ, for the above information.]
------------------------------
Air Leak on ISS Russian Module Is Getting Worse
For the past five years, air has been escaping through a Russian section of
the International Space Station (ISS) at an increasing rate. NASA and its
Russian counterpart, Roscosmos, are still in disagreement over the root
cause of the leak, as well as the severity of the consequences.
The leak was first discovered in 2019 in the vestibule (named PrK) that
connects a docking port to the Russian Zvezda module, which Roscosmos had
launched to low Earth orbit in July 2000. Earlier this year, NASA elevated
the leak to the highest level of risk as the rate of air escaping from the
module had doubled from one pound of air per day to a little over two
pounds.
“While the Russian team continues to search for and seal the leaks,
it does
not believe catastrophic disintegration of the PrK is realistic,” B
ob
Cabana, a former NASA astronaut who now chairs the ISS Advisory Committee,
said during a meeting on Wednesday, SpaceNews reported. “NASA has e
xpressed
concerns about the structural integrity of the PrK and the possibility of a
catastrophic failure.”
“The Russians believe that continued operations are safe but they c
an’t
prove to our satisfaction that they are, and the U.S. believes that it
s
not safe but we can’t prove to the Russians’ satisfaction t
hat that’s the
case,” he added.
Russian teams believe the air leak was likely caused by high cyclic fatigue
from micro vibrations, while teams at NASA think pressure and mechanical
stress, residual stress, material properties of the module, and
environmental exposure are all at play, according to SpaceNews.
*The ISS is set for retirement by 2030. [NASA photo]*
The air leak was addressed in a recent report by NASA’s Office of I
nspector
General (OIG), which highlighted its true severity and the risk it poses to
the crew. The OIG report stated that the two space agencies can’t s
eem to
agree on the point at which the leak should be considered unsustainable.
NASA and Roscosmos met to discuss the ISS air leak, with NASA officials
noting that Roscosmos “is confident they will be able to monitor an
d close
the hatch to the Service Module prior to the leak rate reaching an
untenable level,” according to the report.
“Although the teams continue to investigate the causal factors for
the
crack initiation and growth, the U.S. and Russian technical teams don
t
have a common understanding of what the likely root cause is or the
severity of the consequences of these leaks,” Cabana is quoted in S
paceNews
as saying.
The rate of air leaking from the hole increased around a week before the
February 14 launch of the Progress MS-26 cargo spacecraft, which docked to
the aft end of Zvezda. The hatch that connects the module to the ISS
remained open for five days as the crew offloaded the cargo from Progress
MS-26 onto the space station, but was closed shut afterwards.
NASA and Roscosmos are currently monitoring the leak and preparing to close
the hatch to the service module when access is not required in order to
minimize the amount of air lost and isolate the leak itself from the rest
of the space station. If required, the space agencies are prepared to
permanently shut off the hatch should the leak rate became unmanageable.
The ISS would function normally, but there would be one less docking port
for spacecraft delivering cargo to the space station.
As the two space agencies continue to discuss the potential risk, the aging
space station is inching closer to retirement within the next six years and
its hardware may finally be giving in to the wear and tear of the harsh
space environment.
[ANS thanks Gizmodo for the above information.]
------------------------------
*Want to fly the colors on your own grid expedition?*
*Get your AMSAT car flag and other neat stuff from our Zazzle store!*
*25% of the purchase price of each product goes towards*
*Keeping Amateur Radio in Space*
*https://www.zazzle.com/amsat_gear*
------------------------------
Changes to AMSAT-NA TLE Distribution for Nov. 22
Two Line Elements or TLEs, often referred to as Keplerian elements or keps
in the amateur community, are the inputs to the SGP4 standard mathematical
model of spacecraft orbits used by most amateur tracking programs. Weekly
updates are completely adequate for most amateur satellites. TLE bulletin
files are updated daily in the first hour of the UTC day. New bulletin
files will be posted immediately after reliable elements become available
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--- SoupGate-DOS v1.05
* Origin: you cannot sedate... all the things you hate (1:229/2)
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