Thursday, October 17, 2024

Ope Vraag - Is Suid Afrikaanse Innovasie in Amateur Radio dood?


Hendrik Johannes van der Bijl (23 November 1887 – 2 December 1948) was a South African electrical engineer and industrialist and is regarded as one of the greatest South Africans for his contribution to the country's development.  More information on this remarkable South African available HERE

Betekenis van innovasie = Innovasie is die praktiese implementering van idees wat lei tot die bekendstelling van nuwe goedere of dienste of verbetering in die aanbieding van goedere of dienste. Die definisie van  innovasie is "'n nuwe of veranderde entiteit wat waarde besef of herverdeel". Ander het verskillende definisies; 'n algemene element in die definisies is 'n fokus op nuutheid, verbetering en verspreiding van idees of tegnologieĆ«.   As jy Amateur Radio op die hart dra luister dan gerus na die klankgreep.  Ja hy is 28 minute lank maar dit kan jou uitkyk tov amateur radio ingrypend verander. 

Wednesday, October 16, 2024

Ham Dashboard a great tool for Radio Amateurs

 

A couple of days back I decided to test the above dashboard a single page application written by VA3HDL It is free and open source in case you wanted to add it to a PC monitor in your radio room.  This is absolutely the best software addition to my Shack.


The files are available on GitHub and it is super easy to install and get the application up and running.  I am not going to go into detail regarding the installation and setup here as the following useful links will get you up and running.  I am currently running the application on Linux Mint using the Mozilla FireFox Browser and have not experienced any issues.  This program also runs on Windows using the Google Chrome Browser and also on a Raspberry Pi.

Here is a few useful links and a short instruction how to setup and run the application:

 
Instructions:
 
1.   Just download the files from the Github repository (hamdash.html, config.js, and wheelzoom.js) and keep them together on the same folder.
2.  Open hamdash.html with any browser of your preference and you done.
3.  With any text editor (like Notepad) you can change the source images (can be more than one per box) or the menu options from the config.js file.

I am currently using the following 12 Dashboard Windows ("source images") in my application:

1.  VIS Satellite Image (WX Image for South Africa)
2.  Seismic Activity (World Wide)
3.  NOAA D-Rap (World Wide)
4.  ISS Tracking  (Mossel Bay KF15bt)
5.  Rainfall Prediction (South Africa)
6.  Hepburn Propagation Charts  (South Africa)
7.  Cyclone Probability  (World Wide)
8.  Airmass Satellite Image  (WX Image for South Africa)
9.  Grey Line Chart (World Wide)
10  Cape Town Web Cam (South Africa)
11.  Mossel Bay Airfield Web Cam (South Africa)
12.  HF Propagation Charts  (World Wide)
 
A few notes:
 
I saved Hamdashboard under my Bookmarks and this is how I open the application
To start Hamdashboard
Open Firefox Web Browser
Click 3 lines top right hand corner of Firefox
Select  VA3HDL Ham Radio Dashboard under your Bookmarks

Another method to start Hamdashboard is to go to the Downloads Folder
Click on hamdashboard-main
Right click on hamdash.html
Select Open with Firefox Web Browser
Hamdashboard will open in your Firefox Web Browser

To edit any of the 12 Dashboard Windows ("source images")
Go to Downloads Folder
Click on hamdshboard-main
Right Click on JS - config.js
Select Open with Text Editor
File will open and you can now edit the file only after you made a backup of config.is.  Remember backup! 

Quick Help:

1.  Double click on an image to expand to full screen.
2.  Double click again to close full screen view.
3.  Right click on an image to display the next one. (In the latest version is possible to add multiple images per box.)
4. The content refreshes automatically every 5 minutes.

Finally:  It is a great application and really of great assistance to me in the Shack as I do not have to open various tabs in my browser.  Furthermore this is a "single page application" that runs on Mozilla Firefox  independently of the operating system.
 

Images  (Click on images for larger view.)

 










Tuesday, October 15, 2024

Down Memory Lane: ZS1I 2008 and 2011 ARISS SSTV Historical Archive


In the previous post you can read all about the 2024 ARISS  Series 21 SSTV Experiment.   Click HERE

I wanted to submit two images that I downloaded from the ISS.  When I entered my call sign I was amazed to find archived images that I submitted in 2008 and 2011.  Now what makes this so special you would say?

No I did nothing special but there is a fair amount of history now involved in the images I downloaded in 2008 and 2011.  Let's take a closer look.

ISS SSTV Images during the 2008 Richard Garriot 1 Mission:

In 2008 I downloaded 3 images from the ISS on the 17, 18, 19 October 2008 during the Richard Garriot 1 Mission.

Richard, the son of NASA astronaut Owen Garriott, became the second space traveler, to have a parent who was also a space traveler. On October 12, 2008, he flew aboard the Soyuz TMA-13 mission to the International Space Station as a space tourist (sixth private astronaut to live aboard the ISS), returning 12 days later aboard Soyuz TMA-12.

Richard is an avid explorer, having traveled around the globe from the jungles of the Amazon to the South Pole, the deep seas of the Titanic and hydrothermal vents to orbiting the earth aboard the International Space Station, and most recently to Challenger Deep, the deepest point in our Oceans. He currently serves as the President of the Explorers Club, the first explorer to have explored pole to pole, orbited the Earth, and reached the deepest point in the Ocean.

During his spaceflight, Garriott took part in several education outreach efforts. The free Metro newspaper in London provided him with a special edition containing details of British primary school students' space experiment concepts that Garriott took to the ISS. The Metro has claimed, as a result, that it was the first newspaper in space. He communicated with students and other Amateur Radio operators and transmitted photographs using the Amateur Radio on the International Space Station (ARISS) slow-scan television system, and placed a geocache while aboard the ISS.

Images I downloaded :  Click on images for larger view.


Submitted by: Johan, ZS1I, Africa
Acquired: 2008-10-17 17:49:00
Mission: Richard Garriott 1

Submitted by: Johan, ZS1I, Africa
Acquired: 2008-10-18 18:16:00
Mission: Richard Garriott 1

Submitted by: JOHAN, ZS1I, Africa
Acquired: 2008-10-19 17:06:00
Mission: Richard Garriott 1

2011 ARISSAT-1 SSTV Images on the 50 th aniversary of Yuri Gagarin's first manned space flight:

In 2011 I downloaded 1 image from the ARISSAT-1 Satellite on the 7 August 2011.  At the time of downloading the satellite was rotating less and the images were getting much cleaner. Here is the image I downloaded.

 

Submitted by: Johan Terblanche, ZS1I, Africa
Acquired: 2011-08-07 16:29:00
Mission: ARISSat-1_Aug_2011

Now what is interesting about this image?

On the 13 April 2011 it was reported that the ARISSat-1 satellite will be deployed in celebration of the 50th anniversary of Yuri Gagarin's first manned space flight.  Roscosmos has announced that the satellite will be deployed into orbit during the next EVA in late July of this year (2011).  ARISSat-1 was deployed at 1843 UTC by Sergey Volkov on the 3 August 2011.

ARISSat-1 is a new Amateur Radio satellite that was deployed from the International Space Station (ISS) during a space walk.

Amateurs were able to communicate through it’s linear transponder using SSB/CW and receive it’s FM, BPSK and CW downlinks. The FM downlink also transmitted Slow Scan TV that was received using the free MMSSTV software.

The amateur radio satellite ARISSat-1, fell silent on Wednesday, 4 January 2012, as it re-entered the Earth’s atmosphere."

I am privileged to have downloaded the above SSTV image from ARISSAT-1 with the call sign  RS0IS.

Final Comments by Johan ZS1I: 

Now why would one write an article about yourself and also about a experimental project that was undertaken in 2008 and 2011?  

1.  Definitely not to brag or boast about it at my age as it is rather late to look for attention now.  Those who know me will know that I am not an attention seeker. Neither do I enjoy to be in the limelight.
2.  One reason is the above mentioned events are now historically and forms part of my series of articles called "Down Memory Lane" that I publish on the ZS Link Network Blog to save it for future generations.
3.  Another and very important reason is that I am getting on in the years and this article serves to inform the younger generation that they have a responsibility to assist ARISS with experimental projects.   ARISS lets students worldwide experience the excitement of talking directly with crew members of the International Space Station, inspiring them to pursue interests in careers in science, technology, engineering and math, and engaging them with radio science technology through amateur radio.   More information about ARISS is available HERE.  (Worthwhile the read) 
4.  This article should be an example to the younger generation in Amateur Radio that there is always an opportunity to learn and experiment more.  We as Radio Amateurs have the resources to assist with space exploration.  I would like to see that radio amateurs increasingly become involved in ARISS projects.
5. I trust that this article will kindle and energize radio amateurs anew to get involved in future space experiments, projects and thereby also contribute to amateur radio space history.
 
Johan Terblanche ZS1I
Mossel Bay
15 October 2024


Monday, October 14, 2024

Feed Back from the Southern Cape: Mission - Expedition 72 - ARISS Series 21 SSTV Experiment

The official portrait of the International Space Station's Expedition 72 crew. At the top (from left) are, Roscosmos cosmonaut and Flight Engineer Alexey Ovchinin, NASA astronaut and space station Commander Suni Williams, and NASA astronaut and Flight Engineer Butch Wilmore. In the middle row are, Roscosmos cosmonaut and Flight Engineer Ivan Vagner and NASA astronaut and Flight Engineer Don Pettit. In the bottom row are, Roscosmos cosmonaut and Flight Engineer Aleksandr Gorbunov and NASA astronaut and Flight Engineer Nick Hague. Credit: NASA/Bill Stafford and Robert Markowitz

The recent ARISS Slow Scan Television (SSTV) experiment from the International Space Station took place from Tuesday, October 8, at 16:00 GMT and run until Monday, October 14, at 14:10 GMT.  Great interest was shown in the experiment by radio amateurs in the Southern Cape Area, Bloemfontein and Orania, with several participating in the project.

What did the Experiment entail?

"The SSTV transmissions will be made using the amateur radio station in the ISS Service Module. The transmission frequency will be 145.800 MHz (+/- 3.5 kHz Doppler shift) FM, using SSTV mode PD120.

Many FM rigs can be switched been wide and narrow deviation FM filters. For best results you should select the filter for wider deviation FM. Handhelds generally have a single wide filter fitted as standard.

The ISS call-sign will be RS0ISS.

Reports are requested: please send ARISS uploading your decoded pictures in the official ARISS SSTV gallery: https://www.spaceflightsoftware.com/ARISS_SSTV/

Useful information to receive the pictures can be found here: https://amsat-uk.org/beginners/iss-sstv/

Follow ARISS on X for official updates during the event https://x.com/ARISS_Intl  "

ED - Congratulations to Gerrit ZS1KLO, Rulhof ZS4RM and Zayn ZR3VO in receiving your ARISS SSTV Award.  Well done!!


Herewith some images (Click to enlarge) of the radio amateurs that participated in the ARISS SSTV Experiment:

Gerrit ZS1KLO  Rheebok, Mosselbaai:






Johan ZS1I Heiderand, Mossel Bay:

I used this ARISS SSTV Event to experiment with Doppler Shift, 2 element Quad Antenna, Nagoya NA-771 Whip Antenna, 1/4 Wave Ground Plane Antenna, Robot36 Software, GPredict and Baofeng UV82 HT.  I tried to use the same or similar pass predictions, Az and El for each antenna in KF15bt.  Unfortunately the weather was different every time I downloaded an image.  None the less a very interesting experiment.

 



Rulhof ZS4RM,  Bloemfontein:





Thys ZS1TBP Heiderand, Mossel Bay:






Zayn ZR3VO,  Orania:





Tweet by ARISS - Amateur Radio on the ISS:  @ARISS_Intl

Suggestion by ZS1I:

Great PR project for ARISS, Ham Radio and New Radio Amateurs. New interest in space coms in S/Africa. Suggestion: Shorter gaps between TX would be great. Thanks for making this project available.

Ope Vraag - Is Suid Afrikaanse Innovasie in Amateur Radio dood?

Hendrik Johannes van der Bijl (23 November 1887 – 2 December 1948) was a South African electrical engineer and industrialist and is regarded...