[FCARC] satellite operations

[Craig Szczublewski]

Hi folks,

As a few of you saw at Field Day, I brought some gear out to work
satellites.  While I was able to hear most of them, I was not successful in
completing a QSO (I would contend that working a satellite on a normal day
requires patience and effort, on Field Day weekend it can be downright
frustrating when the number of people competing for time increases
tenfold).

It was still a cool experience to hear nothing but static until an FM LEO
satellite breaks the horizon and you start to hear QSOs being conducted
from locations hundreds of miles away.

To those that saw some of the tech I had, here are some links:

On my Android phone, I was running w1ant Pro Satellite Tracker ($3.99)
https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.coolprimes.sattrack.pro&hl=en_US&gl=US

I do not have an iPhone, but I understand Satellite Tracker Pro is
highly recommended and does the same type of prediction:
https://apps.apple.com/us/app/satellite-tracker-pro/id1518484999

On my PC, I do have a free app called gPredict which can be downloaded here:
https://sourceforge.net/projects/gpredict/files/Gpredict/
(look for the green box saying Download latest version). It is a zip file
and does not have an installer, just extract to a folder and run the
gpredict executable.

Of course, AMSAT is an invaluable resource for all things amateur
satellite:
https://www.amsat.org/

I would recommend always checking the AMSAT status page to see if the
satellite you want to work is actually being heard by anyone else.
Sometimes equipment fails!  https://www.amsat.org/status/

Regarding the antenna I was using, it is made by Arrow Antennas. It is a
solid boom model with a built-in duplexor.  I picked mine up second-hand at
the Chelsea hamfest a few years back and consider myself lucky:
https://www.arrowantennas.com/arrowii/146-437.html

Elk Antennas also have one highly rated for satellite work, but it looks a
little cumbersome, and their website art and graphics is kind of painful to
look at:
https://elkantennas.com/product/dual-band-2m440l5-log-periodic-antenna/

These are both pretty costly commercial solutions, but fear not, there are
plenty of plans and projects on the internet to get you started.  Here are
some I found with a quick search:

https://www.amsat.org/cheap-and-easy-yagi-satellite-antennas/
https://www.kb6nu.com/diy-for-cheap-satellite-operation/
http://k0lee.com/duplexer.php
http://ve2zaz.net/Arrow_Ant/Arrow_Style_Ant.htm
http://www.wa5vjb.com/references.html

Regarding the radio I was using, it is a simple Yaesu 2m/440 HT with the
capability of split operation (i.e., I can listen on one band and transmit
on another).  I found it helps to preprogram the FM satellite frequencies
into the radio (remember to turn off the automatic repeater shift) along
with any PL tone the satellite uplink might have.  I program them in groups
of "5" where I change the downlink frequency by 0.005 MHz to compensate for
the Doppler effect (i.e., if the satellite downlink is 436.795, I might
start at 436.805 and decrement by 0.005 in every memory channel, eventually
ending up at 436.785).

While there are SSB satellites in low earth orbit also, all of the above is
geared toward FM operation. SSB will be a topic for a different day as it
does require some specialized radio gear like an FT-817 or similar for
all-mode portable operation.

Some other good reading:

https://makezine.com/projects/homemade-yagi-antenna/
https://www.amsat.org/introduction-to-working-amateur-satellites/
https://stationproject.blog/wp-content/uploads/2020/06/Get-Started-with-Amateur-Satellites-v2.pdf

Of course, youtube has a mind-numbing array of how-to videos also.

Happy Listening!
Craig - KD8KBU
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