[SFDXA] OM3BD now QRV on QO-100 from Slovakia

[Bill Dzurilla]

Hi folks,
Just wanted to drop a note to tell Florida hams about QO-100, the first ham satellite in geostationary orbit. The footprint extends from Brazil to China, but unfortunately does not include the USA. It is pretty cool how we can work the world with such a tiny station and antenna. 
The uplink is on 2.4 ghz and the downlink is on 10.489 ghz. To work via this sat, all we need for an antenna is a TV satellite dish (mine is 79 cm, about 31 inches). Since the sat is in geostationary orbit, a rotator is not needed, the dish stays pointed at the same spot at all times. To receive, we use the TV LNB on the dish, a $20 SDR receiver USB dongle, and a laptop or tablet (I'm using a 7" tablet). On transmit, less than 5w at the antenna is all that is necessary, because the dish provides huge gain at microwave frequencies. Several European and Chinese firms are making inexpensive 28, 144 or 432 mhz to 2.4 ghz upconverters.
Some think that QO-100 is not "real" ham radio, because we can work anywhere within the footprint anytime, always with good copy, like shooting fish in a barrel. I've enjoyed it so far, however, and I've met nice really nice people and have learned a lot about microwaves. Sooner or later there will be a ham geostationary satellite with a U.S. footprint. In the meantime, if you are curious, you can listen to QO-100 QSOs via the web SDR at https://eshail.batc.org.uk/nb/. You may even hear me.
For more about QO-100, see https://amsat-uk.org/satellites/geo/eshail-2/. For a photo of my Setup, see https://photos.google.com/share/AF1QipOjnwwiFPZHAESP4br1Nky9-kebkkbn5O5-CXQ1jtoPbKSFcnFvnUpU1SGMUkvOKQ?key=Ri1VMEZXTFhnTDZwSnlRbFRNdUJuTFpTZ0VkdDNn  

73, BillNZ5N/OM3BD
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