All posts by Fred Kemmerer

I enjoy station building, contesting and helping new folks to join and have fun with our hobby.
Featured, General, Newsletter, Space

ISS Voice Repeater is QRV!

Thanks to some great work by the ARISS Team, a new Voice Repeater system is operating on the International Space Station (ISS)! Here is the access information…

Source: ISS Voice Repeater is QRV!

Thanks to some great work by the ARISS Team, a new FM Voice Repeater system is operating on the International Space Station!

ISS Voice Repeater Hardware
ISS Voice Repeater Hardware

The link above provides the details and the information needed to access the ISS Voice Repeater.

I was able to work several stations using the new Voice Repeater this morning. It is very sensitive and uses 5 watts of downlink power with a good antenna on the ISS. I was able to make solid contacts using the Ground Station here using only 1.5 watts uplink power when the ISS was at 10 degrees above the horizon. At least one of my contacts was with a station using an HT with a whip antenna!

The voice repeater is sensitive enough and uses a power level that will enable folks with an HT and a whip antenna to make contacts using the ISS when its close to the horizon. It should also be easy to make contacts using mobile rigs that can support cross-band operation as well. Program your radios!

I’m looking forward to working you through the ISS!

Fred, AB1OC

Antennas, Featured, General, Newsletter, Station Equipment

EME Station 2.0 Part 9 – H-Frame Assembly

The final major component in our 2m EME Station Upgrade to be assembled is the 2MXP28-32-2X2-3K H-Frame which will support our four 2MXP28 Antennas. The H-Frame is one of the most mechanically complex components in our EME antenna system…

Source: EME Station 2.0 Part 9 – H-Frame Assembly

We are almost ready to put our new 2m EME Antenna System. We’ve been working to pre-assemble and test all of the components in the new Antenna Array. The last major component to be prepared in the H-Frame assembly which is used to mount our four new antennas on our Tower. The H-frame component is one of the most mechanically complex parts of our Antenna System. The link above shares all the details of this part of our project.

Fred, AB1OC

Antennas, Featured, General, Newsletter, Station Equipment

EME Station 2.0 Part 8 – EME Elevation Rotator Assembly and Sub-System Test

The next major component in our new EME station is the assembly of the Elevation Rotator. This step also involves pre-assembly and testing of the MAP65 Pre-amp Housing, Antenna Power Dividers, Tran…

Source: EME Station 2.0 Part 8 – Elevation Rotator Assembly and Sub-System Test

We are continuing to make progress on our 2m EME Station build. The latest step in the project was to assemble and test the Elevation Rotator and the MAP65 Preamp System. The article at the link above explains what we did to complete this step in our project and to test what is a major sub-system in our 2m EME Station.

EME Elevation Rotator
MAP65 Preamp Housing

This part of the project includes installation and testing of the MAP65 EME Preamp Housing on the rotator assembly. This unit and the rotator are tested along with a Green Heron Engineering RT-21 Rotator Controller and a MAP65 EME Sequencer.

We are getting close to installing our new 2m EME Array on the tower. The final preparation step in our project will be the final assembly and preparation of a large H-frame that will mount the four antennas in our EME Antenna Array.

You can learn more about our EME Station Project Goals and Plans here.

Fred, AB1OC

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