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VK4GRC > SAREX 10.07.96 03:07l 98 Lines 4020 Bytes #-10877 (0) @ AMSAT
BID : STS-78.SUP
Read: DJ2JJ GUEST OE7FMI
Subj: STS-78 SAREX Bulletin SUPPLEMENTAL
Path: DB0AAB<DB0KCP<DB0CZ<HB9EAS<DB0GE<LX0PAC<ON5VL<ON4AIC<ON1AEO<ON6AR<
F6CNB<PU3DTA<VK3ERM<VK4CJO<VK4CJO<VK4KEL<VK4JON<VK4GRC
Sent: 960709/1158z 12355@VK4GRC.#HER.QLD.AUS.OC
Silver Spring, Maryland USA
TO ALL RADIO AMATEURS BT
Monday, July 8, 1996
STS-78 SAREX MISSION SUMMARY
by Pat Kilroy, WD8LAQ
The Shuttle Amateur Radio Experiment (SAREX) on STS-78, the Life and
Microgravity Sciences mission from June 20 to July 7, will be remembered
by many amateur radio experimenters and students for years to come.
Education scored outstanding achievements on three continents. The
scheduled SAREX contacts were 100% successful with the eleven school
groups across Australia, France, Canada and the USA. The students'
interest in space, math, science and technology were sparked through
their contact preparation, as well as by the answers to their combined
total of 116 questions posed to six Columbia crew members. Amateur
radio and the schools enjoyed substantial news media exposure with
multiple television crews and several newspapers visiting nearly
every contact site.
Hundreds of random voice contacts were established with hams worldwide.
Signal strength and gravity-gradient propagation observations were
shared freely among experimenters both on-the-air and through the
Internet mail list sarex@amsat.org. New list members are added
frequently by e-mailing a request to Paul Williamson at
listserv@amsat.org.
Crew members were heard using their personal call signs and often
honoring their Johnson Space Center Amateur Radio Club by using W5RRR.
At times, the simple phrase "Space Shuttle Columbia" gave away the
voice from space.
The packet radio robot beaconed messages of greetings to the world, as
updated occasionally by various members of the crew. The normally
tireless W5RRR-1 robot was not active during crew sleep periods during
this mission, yet the packet QSO count was above 1300 in number and
climbing two days before landing.
Unique to this mission, Columbia's packet TNC digipeater was enabled
for Automatic Position Reporting System (APRS) users around the globe
to experiment with geographical position 2-way transmissions. Results
of this activity are available from Bob Bruninga, WB4APR at
wb4apr@amsat.org.
All reception reports and QSL card requests are to be mailed to the
American Radio Relay League with a business-size self-addressed
stamped envelop.
Thirty-two SAREX bulletins were issued, providing status, operating
tips, orbital element updates, advisories, and orbiter rise & set
information for selected cities in the USA and worldwide. A sincere
thanks go to Gil Carman WA5NOM, Dan Schultz N8FGV, John Nickel WD5EEV
and Karen Nickel WD5EEU for substantial contributions to the bulletins.
The SAREX equipment was to be stowed about a day before landing. On
landing day Sunday morning, many in North America and beyond enjoyed
spectacular sighting opportunities similar to those throughout most of
the mission. There was also a rare opportunity for some in the southwest
and south USA to see the fireball and plasma trail of reentry and hear
the sonic boom.
A report was received from amateurs attempting an experiment to
communicate by reflecting their radio signals across the orbiter's
ionized wake.
The Space Shuttle Columbia glided into Kennedy Space Center at 12:37
UTC marking the end of the longest shuttle flight in program history.
Columbia's life sciences and microgravity mission set the new record
by lasting 16 days, 21 hours and 48 minutes.
Submitted by (Pat Kilroy, WD8LAQ for) Frank H. Bauer, KA3HDO for the
SAREX Working Group
========================================================================
Patrick L. Kilroy Phone: 301-286-5910
TRMM Project Parts Engineer Fax: 301-286-1695
NASA/Goddard Space Flight Center E-mail: pat.kilroy@gsfc.nasa.gov
Building 6, Code 311 WWW URL: http://epims1.gsfc.nasa.gov/
Greenbelt, Maryland 20771 people/pat_kilroy.html
=========================================================================
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