YouTuber 'saveitforparts' was recently contacted by the ground controller of the Russian UmKA-1/RS40S cubesat asking if he'd like to try and receive an SSTV image from the satellite. UmKA-1/RS40S is a small educational satellite assembled by a Russian high school. Originally it was intended for a radio astronomy experiment, but due to technical issues it's been switched to the secondary ham radio mission only.
Saveitforparts uses an RTL-SDR, directional Yagu antenna, PC running the MMSSTV decoder, and Android phone running the Stellarium satellite tracking app. After a few failed attempts he was able to eventually successfully track and receive the SSTV image as well as some telemetry.
We note that the SSTV image appears to have been specifically scheduled for saveitforparts personally, so if you try to receive this satellite yourself you will probably only be able to receive the telemetry signal.
In deze sessie van de CWops CW Academy Intermediate klas had ik wat meer zin dan de vorige. Vol trots kon ik vertellen dat het huiswerk beter ging, vooral de Short Stories (korte verhaaltjes) gingen goed en dat ik een aantal QSO’s had gemaakt. Voor de eerste dag was het huiswerk op 18 woorden per minuut en voor de tweede en derde dag zelfs 20 wpm. In beide gevallen kon ik na het eerste keer beluisteren al zo’n 60 á 70% nemen en was het verhaaltje in grote lijnen al een beetje duidelijk. De beide QSO’s gingen ook best redelijk op de moeilijke QTH’s na. Op de tweede dag was de kennismaking met de CWT contest van CWops, een contest georganiseerd door CWops (verderop meer hierover). Het was een luisteroefening van een ‘running’ station op 20 woorden per minuut. We moesten call, naam en state of nummer proberen te nemen. Dit lukte na een paar keer beluisteren.
Ook vertelde ik over de deelname aan de NTC QSO Party en de SST Slow Speed (con)Test afgelopen week waarin ik ook nog een ragchew QSO heb gehad met CWA advisor Daniel (Danny) M0SDB. Onze advisor Bruce K9OZ vond dat ik erg goed bezig was en dat er ook goede voorgang is.
Volgens Bruce zijn wij een van de weinige klassen zijn waar niemand halverwege is gestopt. Meestal stopt er wel iemand halverwege. En dat is deels ook wel begrijpelijk. Helemaal de Intermediate Class is pittig omdat de head copy daar pas in ontwikkeling komt in de hersenen en nog grotendeels ontbreekt. Het kost je toch zeker 2 uur per dag en soms meer. Het is uiteraard haalbaar maar wel pittig.
Na het bespreken van het huiswerk ging Bruce weer short sentences (korte zinnen) seinen. En net als de vorige week ging hij gedurende het half uur er steeds meer CW abbreviations (morse code afkortingen) in plaatsen. Dit keer had ik toch wat moeite met het nemen van de zinnen. In bijna alle zinnen zat wel een lastig woord of naam waar ik op bleef hangen. Slechts 1 keer kon ik de zin nemen en mocht deze ook terug seinen. Vreemd is dan dat het seinen dan slecht gaat, terwijl het tijdens een QSO of tijdens het oefenen veelal foutloos begint te gaan. Helemaal foutloos zal natuurlijk nooit gebeuren maar nu was het ineens wel veel. Uiteraard niet erg.
Nu nog 3 sessies te gaan waarin de snelheid op gaat lopen naar 25 woorden per minuut met 1 opdracht zelfs op 30 wpm. Dat is volgende week, de laatste week. Voor komende donderdag is alles op 20 wpm. Speciale aandacht gaat in het komende huiswerk naar de CWT van CWops.
CWops Tests, of CWT’s, zijn contests ter promotie van CWops en morse code (CW). Deze duren 60 minuten en worden elke week op woensdag en donderdag gehouden. Er zijn nu vier evenementen per week, op tijden die verschillende geografische gebieden bevoordelen. Iedereen is welkom – je hoeft geen CWops lid of student te zijn om mee te doen. CWT’s zijn een goede gelegenheid om andere CW-fans te ontmoeten die misschien geïnteresseerd zijn in CWops of in de CWops CW Academy.
Voor het huiswerk van ‘dag 2’ moeten wij naar de CWops CWT contest luisteren en van 5 ‘running’ stations de gegevens noteren. Het is voor Europa op de woensdagavond van 19:00 – 20:00 uur UTC. Het komt normaal slecht uit vanwege het huiswerk voor de CWA maar nu het onderdeel is van het huiswerk is het ook leuk om een paar QSO’s te maken. Proberen althans.
About UV-K5 CEC Firmware Version 0.1X (from v0.1p)
1.About Version 0.1X
This version is the stable version of UV-K5 Version 0.1P
In Version 0.1P, many things were changed, including the internal variable structure, and we received feedback for about 8 days to check if there were any problems. The original plan was to just change the name from Version 0.1P to Version 0.1X, but several features were added as follows. Please read Version 0.1P for main features
2.SSB Filter (bandwidth)
The filter can select one of these : VFO, 3K, 2K, 1.7K, 3K+, 2K+,1.7K+
This filter operates only in SSB mode and is disabled in existing FM mode. If you select a filter with +, the + mode is also applied to CW mode
VFO : Previous firmware state. It is selected among WIDE/NARROW selected in VFO
3K ~ 1.7K : When actually measured, it is a little wider than stated.
3K+ ~ 1.7K+ : It improves the functionality of the existing filter. Based on SINAD, there is an improvement effect of about 1dB.
3.SSTV
3.1 Scottie 1 Mode
Scottie1 mode was added to the existing Martin1 mode. You can select it from STVEnc in the settings menu.
3.2 TX Screen preview
Shows which screen is being transmitted.
3.3 QSO TX Number
SSTV transmission sequence record. It is displayed at the top right when transmitting SSTV.
3.4 SSTV transmission resolution has been increased. If this causes problems, I plan to reduce the resolution again.
X-TAL is not connected to the MCU (CPU) used in UV-K5. (Internal LC res) So, there is a slight problem during precise transmission like SSTV.
Introducing UV-K5 Version 0.1M (SSTV, Text Configuration)
In version 0.1M, items related to text settings and SSTV transmission function were added. As previously announced, only compiled binaries will be released from 0.1M until 1.0 is released.When the version is upgraded to 1.0, we will organize the source code and release it together. It probably won't take long.
1.Improved text input
Most of the contents are the same as the existing firmware. I only did something very small. Since you will be using text input frequently in the firmware (UV-K5 CEC version), changed it to make input more convenient. I only changed the function of the * button and the F button very slightly.
Once you select a letter, press the 'M' button to move to the next step. If you enter something incorrectly, you can press * to go back.
Press 'F' to change the input to uppercase, lowercase, _ (do not enter), or Space
For example, when you want to input the capital letter 'C', press the 'F' key to make it 'A', then press the UP KEY twice to make 'C' appear, then press the 'M' button to move to the right
2.Text settings
The available channels have been reduced from 200 to 170, I needed some text related settings and decided to use the channel name fields from channel 171 to channel 200
It will remain compatible with other firmware. If you delete my firmware and install another firmware, only the channel name will be changed
U.Info - > My Call : your call sign
U.Info - > My Name : your name
U.Info - > My Grid : your grid (using https://www.qrz.com/gridmapper)
You only need to enter 4 digits (Example : EM37)
U.Info - > DX Call : Call sign of the other party (This is used on SSTV and CW Eleckeyer)
U.Info - > DX Name : Name of the other party (This is used on SSTV and CW Eleckeyer)
And there are a few additional text items (CW message, GPS Location and etc). Enter whatever you want to enter.
3.SSTV transmission function
SSTV supports Martin v1. Due to limitations in flash memory space for writing firmware, various functions could not be included. However, I am also considering adding the ability for SSTV users to create their own templates if they wish.
(The implementation included scottie and PD90 protocols, but they were excluded when compiling due to lack of firmware space)
The text to be included in the picture must be entered in SSTV M1 (SSTV message 1) in the text input menu (U.Info).
Please enter your message on M2 as well. Usually, it is good to input the signal status of the other station.
Enter the T.SSTV menu.
Press the 'M' button to select CQ.
And if you press it again, SSTV will be transmitted
When transmitting a QSO, the call sign of the other station is displayed. In the text input menu, enter the call sign of the other station in advance in the DX CALL item.
The LCD menu is just for a bit of fun. When you press this button, it is transmitted as a radio wave to the screen of your UV-K5 10 seconds later. Of course, your call sign will be overlaid on the screen
I have ported a few games to UV-K5 and will release them later when I have the chance. It might be fun to transmit your Tetris screen and scores to SSTV. LOL
Additional: I thought a lot about resolution when transmitting SSTV. If this is not a toy but a function that is actually used, I thought it should have a resolution that can be read when transmitted with a 5W radio rather than being flashy.
An ARISS Slow Scan TV (SSTV) event is scheduled from the International Space Station (ISS) December 16-19, 2023, on 145.800 MHz FM to celebrate the 40th anniversary of amateur radio in human spaceflight.
The event is slated to begin on Saturday, December 16, at 10:15 GMT for setup and operation and continue until Tuesday, December 19, ending at 18:00 GMT. These times are tentative and are subject to change due to crew availability.
Images will be downlinked at 145.800 MHz +/- 3 kHz for Doppler shift and the expected SSTV mode of operation is PD-120.
The signal should be receivable even on a handheld with a 1/4 wave whip. If your rig has selectable FM filters try the wider filter for 25 kHz channel spacing.
ISS SSTV image 5/12 received by Murray Hely ZL3MH January 31, 2015
The SSTV system in the Service Module will be activated to attempt to verify a replacement piece of hardware during the period of Oct 27 until Nov 01.
The system will be off around the required period of no transmissions during the planned EVA on Oct 31. Images will be transmitted on 145.800 MHz and in the typical PD120 format.
There are 2 windows for testing, separated by an EVA:
Fri Oct 27 at 12:15 GMT – Sun Oct 29 at 18:50 GMT
Tue Oct 31 at 10:05 GMT – Wed Nov 01 at 18:10 GMT
Since this is a test of replacement components of the system, there still may be unexpected outages or issues.
The signal should be receivable on a handheld with a 1/4 wave whip. If your rig has selectable FM filters try the wider filter for 25 kHz channel spacing.
ISS SSTV image 5/12 received by Murray Hely ZL3MH January 31, 2015
UPDATE: Event to be Rescheduled. R4UAB reports that from October 3, 2023 to October 5, 2023 images will be transmitted from the International Space Station via the SSTV protocol as part of the “About Gagarin from Space” experiment. The topic of the program is the first artificial Earth satellite, amateur radio satellites, school satellites.
SSTV images will be transmitted on 145.800 MHz using a Kenwood TM-D710 transceiver. They are expected to use the PD-120 SSTV format.
The scheduled start of transmission is October 03, 2023 at approximately 14:40 UTC. The end of transmission is scheduled at October 05, 2023 at approximately 18:15 UTC. The date and time may change.
The “Russia ISS SSTV” diploma is awarded to radio amateurs (observers) for receiving SSTV (slow-scan television) broadcasts from aboard the International Space Station (ISS) as part of the space experiment (SE) “About Gagarin from Space.” To receive the “Russia ISS SSTV” Diploma, one must receive and decode three images transmitted over a radio channel from on board the ISS using the SSTV protocol only on the days of the SE . Each image must be at least 90% complete and of acceptable quality. Information on earning the certificate is available at https://r4uab.ru/diplom-iss-sstv/
AMSAT Argentina is also offering a diploma for reception of ISS SSTV images. Learn more at http://amsat.org.ar/?f=9
The signal should be receivable on a handheld with a 1/4 wave whip. If your rig has selectable FM filters try the wider filter for 25 kHz channel spacing.
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