Satellites Down Under

Photo credit Paul Swanson AA0K

“Hi Nick,

I was an avid satellite user back when AO-40 was alive but once it died I sold up all my satellite equipment. Now I’m in a QTH that will only accept antennas that are small and look like a TV antenna and following having read your article about the lack of use by Hams of the opportunities afforded by these LEO birds I’m costing up what it

will take to set up again.

My main question right now is can you give me an indication, other than needing to buy the IC-9700, what yagis I would need to make or buy and for what frequencies please?

Is there a listing of the Satellite names that are currently being used by you and others please?

Your response will be appreciated as I’m out of touch with this means of communication. I’m 88 yrs old and have been a Ham since I was 16 yrs old operating from 2 or 3 different countries where I lived prior to coming to Australia in 1983.

73, Merv VK6BMT”

Hi Merv,

Before we go any further – a piece of good news: the Green Cube is still on air, and AMSAT Italia is working hard to get the access and continue management:

‘AMSAT Italia would like to inform the amateur community that its request to the Italian Space Agency, the owner of the GREENCUBE satellite, to reconsider its decision of decommissioning the satellite is under evaluation.

Waiting for its decision, IO-117 is still operational.

The GreenCube satellite was born as a scientific experiment placed in MEO orbit which successfully concluded its mission.

IO-117 is the HAM Radio part of the satellite consisting of a digipeater which was promoted by AMSAT Italia and coordinated by IARU-R1.

At the moment AMSAT Italia is committed to promoting the continuation of the mission for the HAM Radio part of GreenCube.

AMSAT Italia BoD

EDA73, Francesco De Paolis – IKØWGF

AMSAT Italia – President

ARI – Space Manager’

We really need IO-117 up in orbit, open to amateurs!

Right now, there are a couple of other satellites of interest to us: RS-44 with uplink on VHF and downlink on UHF. Linear transponder (SSB/CW).

DOSAAF-85 is a small scientific satellite created by specialists of the company Information Satellite Systems (ISS) Reshetnev and students of the Siberian State Aerospace University (SibSAU) Krasnoyarsk.

The satellite is named after the 85th anniversary of the Voluntary Society for the Assistance to the Army, Aviation and Navy, the organization responsible for the military training of Soviet youth.

The DOSAAF-85 satellite is designed to provide amateur radio communications, as well as to develop promising technologies. This is the third satellite that was created by specialists of ISS-Reshetnev and is based on the Yubileyniy platform, which features a hexagonal prism structure with body mounted solar cells.

The satellite was launched into orbit on December 26, 2019 from the Plesetsk Cosmodrome and is in an elliptical orbit with a perigee of 1175 km, an apogee of 1511 km and an inclination of 82.5 degrees.

Transmitter power: 5 watts

Beacon: 435.605 MHz – transmits CW call sign RS44

Inverting transponder:

Earth-to-Space: 145.965 MHz +/- 30 kHz

Space-to-Earth: 435.640 MHz +/- 30 kHz