WEBVTT 00:00:09.540 --> 00:00:12.359 Thanks for tuning in. HamTalk Live will be on 00:00:12.359 --> 00:00:30.280 the air shortly. Please stand by. Thanks for 00:00:30.280 --> 00:00:33.039 tuning in. HamTalk Live will be on the air shortly. 00:00:33.340 --> 00:00:38.049 Please stand by. This episode of HamTalk Live 00:00:38.049 --> 00:00:41.689 is brought to you by Tower Electronics. For connectors, 00:00:42.070 --> 00:00:47.509 cables, and more, call 920 -435 -2973 or visit 00:00:47.509 --> 00:00:53.369 pl -259 .com. And by ICOM, heard it, worked it, 00:00:53.649 --> 00:00:58.630 logged it. Visit www .icomamerica .com slash 00:00:58.630 --> 00:01:02.490 amateur for more information about ICOM radios. 00:01:33.319 --> 00:01:35.840 Hey good evening everyone, coming to you live 00:01:35.840 --> 00:01:40.159 from Echo Mike 69, it's HamTalk Live, episode 00:01:40.159 --> 00:01:44.540 number 135. Portable satellite operation with 00:01:44.540 --> 00:01:49.859 Patrick WD9EWK, recorded live on Thursday, October 00:01:49.859 --> 00:01:54.780 4th, 2018. I'm your host, Neil Rapp, WB9VPG. 00:01:55.239 --> 00:01:58.379 Thanks for tuning in to another episode of HamTalk 00:01:58.379 --> 00:02:01.469 Live tonight. We're joined by Patrick Stoddard 00:02:01.469 --> 00:02:06.189 WD9EWK and we'll take your calls live in just 00:02:06.189 --> 00:02:10.330 a few minutes. Last week Christian Kudnick K0STH 00:02:10.330 --> 00:02:14.349 was here to talk about Fallout 3 from 100 Watts 00:02:14.349 --> 00:02:16.449 and a Wire and if you missed that you can listen 00:02:16.449 --> 00:02:19.729 anytime. Just go to HamTalkLive .com or you can 00:02:19.729 --> 00:02:23.229 catch the podcast version over on Apple Podcasts 00:02:23.229 --> 00:02:25.969 or Stitcher, iHeart Podcasts, Google Play, TuneIn 00:02:25.969 --> 00:02:30.719 or SoundCloud. we're also over on YouTube and 00:02:30.719 --> 00:02:34.439 Speaking of fallout is next weekend October 12th 00:02:34.439 --> 00:02:37.939 through the 14th. So we encourage everybody to 00:02:37.939 --> 00:02:42.419 get on and enjoy the weather and enjoy Fall and 00:02:42.419 --> 00:02:46.379 enjoy your radio. So don't forget about fallout 00:02:46.379 --> 00:02:50.460 Coming up October 12th through the 14th Bear 00:02:50.460 --> 00:02:53.139 with me here. We have a few announcements tonight. 00:02:53.139 --> 00:02:55.860 There's a lot going on here in October. I think 00:02:55.860 --> 00:03:00.349 it's a Just, you know, fall coming up and cooler 00:03:00.349 --> 00:03:05.090 temperatures and more radio stuff going on. So 00:03:05.090 --> 00:03:08.870 there's a lot of things here to talk about. One 00:03:08.870 --> 00:03:12.569 thing we did want to mention is that the HamTalk 00:03:12.569 --> 00:03:16.449 Live limited edition t -shirts are now on sale, 00:03:16.610 --> 00:03:19.229 the way they went on sale. I think it was on 00:03:19.229 --> 00:03:22.669 Monday we put those up. We had a request from 00:03:22.669 --> 00:03:24.909 some of the satellite community for a satellite 00:03:24.909 --> 00:03:29.069 themed shirt and did a little Twitter poll and 00:03:29.069 --> 00:03:33.710 finally selected a saying to put on the back. 00:03:33.849 --> 00:03:37.310 The winner was may the grid square be yours. 00:03:37.889 --> 00:03:41.490 Kind of a play on the may the good DX be yours 00:03:41.490 --> 00:03:44.030 which is a play on may the good news be yours 00:03:44.030 --> 00:03:47.949 from friend Les Nesman. So anyway, it says may 00:03:47.949 --> 00:03:51.370 the grid square be yours. And if you want to 00:03:51.370 --> 00:03:53.969 order a shirt, there's a Google form for that. 00:03:54.370 --> 00:03:58.210 You can go to Facebook or Twitter and it's the 00:03:58.210 --> 00:04:03.129 pinned post there on Facebook and Twitter will 00:04:03.129 --> 00:04:06.050 give you a link to the order form or you can 00:04:06.050 --> 00:04:08.590 go to hamtalklive .com and click on the show 00:04:08.590 --> 00:04:11.490 schedule link and on the show schedule there 00:04:11.490 --> 00:04:15.069 is a link to the Google form and then you'll 00:04:15.069 --> 00:04:20.149 have to PayPal the the cost of that but all the 00:04:20.149 --> 00:04:22.050 instructions are there so if you'd like one of 00:04:22.050 --> 00:04:25.750 those limited edition shirts we're gonna give 00:04:25.750 --> 00:04:30.129 everybody two or three weeks and then we'll get 00:04:30.129 --> 00:04:33.410 the order put in and then once they're done I'll 00:04:33.410 --> 00:04:36.750 send them out to you. So make sure you check 00:04:36.750 --> 00:04:40.430 that out if you like. Some other on -air activities 00:04:40.430 --> 00:04:43.129 coming up. School Club Roundup is October 15th 00:04:43.129 --> 00:04:46.790 through the 19th. So I'll be working overtime 00:04:46.790 --> 00:04:51.560 every day with the School Club Roundup and I 00:04:51.560 --> 00:04:53.779 encourage you to get on the air and talk to all 00:04:53.779 --> 00:04:57.439 the schools that are on that week, primarily 00:04:57.439 --> 00:05:01.660 on HF but also on some of the local stuff too. 00:05:03.779 --> 00:05:07.720 And then Jamboree on the Air is that weekend 00:05:07.720 --> 00:05:11.420 after School Club Roundup and we'll talk about 00:05:11.420 --> 00:05:16.110 that next week. The guys from Jodo will be here 00:05:16.110 --> 00:05:18.769 on the show, so we'll be talking about that more, 00:05:18.829 --> 00:05:22.250 but that's coming up. That's big for youth as 00:05:22.250 --> 00:05:26.889 well. And then the other note, the ARRL division 00:05:26.889 --> 00:05:29.730 director ballots are starting to arrive in the 00:05:29.730 --> 00:05:33.029 mail. And if you're an ARRL member in the Central, 00:05:33.170 --> 00:05:36.350 Hudson, New England, Northwestern, or Roanoke 00:05:36.350 --> 00:05:39.990 divisions, you should be receiving a ballot soon. 00:05:40.029 --> 00:05:43.259 So be sure you vote. and the ballots are due 00:05:43.259 --> 00:05:46.339 back to Newington by November 16th. So please 00:05:46.339 --> 00:05:48.759 watch your mail for your ballot. If you don't 00:05:48.759 --> 00:05:53.279 receive one, make sure you let ARRL staff know. 00:05:53.279 --> 00:05:55.480 Otherwise, they're just going to assume you received 00:05:55.480 --> 00:05:58.259 it and they won't know that anything is wrong. 00:05:58.519 --> 00:06:02.279 And so that... You know you need to let them 00:06:02.279 --> 00:06:05.660 know if that does happen so Get your questions 00:06:05.660 --> 00:06:08.480 ready to go and after the interview you can give 00:06:08.480 --> 00:06:10.220 us a call I'll go ahead and give you the phone 00:06:10.220 --> 00:06:12.300 number so you can write it down. It's eight one 00:06:12.300 --> 00:06:16.879 two net ham one eight one two six three eight 00:06:16.879 --> 00:06:20.360 four two six one or you can Skype us or ham talk 00:06:20.360 --> 00:06:23.100 live on Skype or you can tweet us on Twitter 00:06:23.100 --> 00:06:26.720 at ham talk live and we're gonna talk to Patrick 00:06:26.720 --> 00:06:29.339 for a little bit tell a few stories and then 00:06:29.680 --> 00:06:31.660 We'll take a break and then we'll come back and 00:06:31.660 --> 00:06:34.600 take your calls. So we'll get Patrick on the 00:06:34.600 --> 00:06:37.519 line here and be back after this word from Tower 00:06:37.519 --> 00:06:40.600 Electronics right here on HamTalk Live. Hey, 00:06:40.860 --> 00:06:45.680 honey, have you seen the PL 259s anywhere? No, 00:06:45.680 --> 00:06:51.399 I haven't. Come on, kids. Let's go. There's just 00:06:51.399 --> 00:06:54.199 one place to go for all of your connector needs. 00:06:54.439 --> 00:06:59.800 Tower electronics. A giant warehouse of connectors 00:06:59.800 --> 00:07:02.800 and adapters for every occasion. Thousands to 00:07:02.800 --> 00:07:05.160 choose from in every shape, size, and color. 00:07:05.339 --> 00:07:08.079 And they have antennas, soldering supplies, cables, 00:07:08.360 --> 00:07:11.100 meters, and more. Where do you go if you want 00:07:11.100 --> 00:07:13.439 to buy a connector at a fraction of retail cost? 00:07:13.560 --> 00:07:17.399 Tower electronics. Tower electronics. Tower electronics. 00:07:17.860 --> 00:07:20.100 And this weekend only, take advantage of our 00:07:20.100 --> 00:07:23.040 special liquidation sale. Buy nine solder -type 00:07:23.040 --> 00:07:26.379 PL -259s. Get the tenth one for just one penny. 00:07:28.740 --> 00:07:34.220 They make great Christmas presents. And what 00:07:34.220 --> 00:07:36.800 better way to say I love you than with the gift 00:07:36.800 --> 00:07:44.240 of a PL 259. Tower Electronics. Hi, I'm Scott 00:07:44.240 --> 00:07:47.879 Cole, KB9 AMM, president of Tower Electronics. 00:07:48.240 --> 00:07:50.480 I like the company so much that I bought it. 00:07:50.540 --> 00:07:52.920 Tower Electronics. Coming to a hand fest near 00:07:52.920 --> 00:07:58.019 you or online at PL -259 .com. And we're in the 00:07:58.019 --> 00:08:00.680 yellow pages under amateur radio connectors. 00:08:00.959 --> 00:08:04.360 My, wherever did you get that lovely PL -259? 00:08:04.540 --> 00:08:10.639 Tower Electronics, PL -259 .com or call 920 -435 00:08:10.639 --> 00:08:15.720 -2973. Do we sell PL -259 connectors? Sorry for 00:08:15.720 --> 00:08:18.639 the delay. Your host, Neil Rapp, is reading a 00:08:18.639 --> 00:08:21.509 book on anti -gravity. and he just can't put 00:08:21.509 --> 00:08:33.350 it down. Now here's more HamTalk Live. Thanks 00:08:33.350 --> 00:08:36.129 to Scott and Jill at Tower Electronics for sponsoring 00:08:36.129 --> 00:08:38.649 the show again tonight to help bring you HamTalk 00:08:38.649 --> 00:08:42.879 Live. Coming up this weekend, it's Belton, Texas. 00:08:43.000 --> 00:08:46.639 That's tomorrow and Saturday and then October 00:08:46.639 --> 00:08:50.220 20th, Greenville, Tennessee and October 27th 00:08:50.220 --> 00:08:54.600 in Lagrange, Georgia, but they're always at PL 00:08:54.600 --> 00:09:00.919 -259 .com. So check that out. Well, our guest 00:09:00.919 --> 00:09:07.139 tonight is Patrick Stoddard, WD9EWK and VA7EWK. 00:09:07.389 --> 00:09:11.289 He's operated all sorts of modes on HF, Sideband, 00:09:11.409 --> 00:09:16.110 CW, PSK -31, Ready, Amtor, Pactor, HF packet, 00:09:16.289 --> 00:09:20.909 10 meter FM, you name it, and also VHF and UHF, 00:09:20.950 --> 00:09:24.889 some Sideband even, and of course FM, and operating 00:09:24.889 --> 00:09:28.389 through amateur radio satellites and the International 00:09:28.389 --> 00:09:32.429 Space Station. He became a ham in 1977 and obtained 00:09:32.429 --> 00:09:36.990 his Canadian license in 2002. Patrick is an AMSAT 00:09:36.990 --> 00:09:39.690 ambassador, which is a volunteer representing 00:09:39.690 --> 00:09:43.129 AMSAT at HamFests and other ham -related events. 00:09:43.710 --> 00:09:47.389 He's done that since 2006 and continues to serve 00:09:47.389 --> 00:09:51.490 AMSAT in that role. He's been an alternate member 00:09:51.490 --> 00:09:55.710 of AMSAT's board of directors from 2011 to 2013 00:09:55.710 --> 00:09:58.789 and has served in other appointments with AMSAT 00:09:58.789 --> 00:10:01.909 over the past 10 years, and he's regarded as 00:10:01.909 --> 00:10:05.070 a top source for current information about satellites, 00:10:05.090 --> 00:10:08.330 and he's been kind enough to be on the show tonight. 00:10:08.490 --> 00:10:12.610 So Patrick, welcome to HamTalk Live. Thanks for 00:10:12.610 --> 00:10:16.509 having me on, Neil. We've been talking before 00:10:16.509 --> 00:10:18.629 the show, and already we've talked longer than 00:10:18.629 --> 00:10:24.389 we normally do, because it's usually WD9EWK WB9VPGECHOMIC69. 00:10:27.450 --> 00:10:31.090 Much longer than usual on the radio. Yep. Okay. 00:10:31.250 --> 00:10:33.009 So there we go. There's the show. Good night 00:10:33.009 --> 00:10:36.370 folks. No, no, no, just kidding. Uh, yeah, it's, 00:10:36.370 --> 00:10:38.450 it's, uh, it's got a nice to actually be able 00:10:38.450 --> 00:10:41.950 to, uh, to talk a little bit, um, because those 00:10:41.950 --> 00:10:45.669 satellite contacts are pretty quick. So, uh, 00:10:45.690 --> 00:10:48.009 let's, let's talk a little bit about that. You 00:10:48.009 --> 00:10:50.870 know, it's been fun to, uh, to get going on, 00:10:50.909 --> 00:10:54.299 on the satellite stuff for me. It is a bit of 00:10:54.299 --> 00:10:57.279 a challenge, but there's some there's some easy 00:10:57.279 --> 00:11:02.200 ways to to start out and Portable is a fun way 00:11:02.200 --> 00:11:05.799 to go with this and you've logged Literally thousands 00:11:05.799 --> 00:11:09.580 of miles doing this So what are your best tips 00:11:09.580 --> 00:11:12.139 for people who want to try out satellite and 00:11:12.139 --> 00:11:16.659 specifically? Portable satellite operation Well, 00:11:16.659 --> 00:11:19.700 the big thing is to practice, you know, don't 00:11:19.700 --> 00:11:22.659 just assume I can hook up a radio and an antenna 00:11:22.889 --> 00:11:25.450 and I'm going to make contacts. I suppose that 00:11:25.450 --> 00:11:28.149 happens, but it just takes practice like anything 00:11:28.149 --> 00:11:31.970 else in ham radio. You learn the technique for 00:11:31.970 --> 00:11:35.330 operating, you get your equipment together, do 00:11:35.330 --> 00:11:38.809 a little listening to hear how activity goes 00:11:38.809 --> 00:11:42.289 on the different satellites, and then jump in. 00:11:43.429 --> 00:11:45.509 The easiest thing would be if you're listening 00:11:45.509 --> 00:11:48.669 on a pass and you hear somebody making some contacts, 00:11:48.710 --> 00:11:52.559 call that station. as opposed to announcing yourself 00:11:52.559 --> 00:11:55.980 over and over and over again. And in my case, 00:11:56.480 --> 00:11:59.720 I operate with the same equipment I use on the 00:11:59.720 --> 00:12:03.940 road as I do at home. I don't have a proper station 00:12:03.940 --> 00:12:08.019 at home for satellites or anything ham radio. 00:12:08.220 --> 00:12:11.179 So when it comes to satellites, I'm doing the 00:12:11.179 --> 00:12:13.759 same thing in my front yard or backyard as I 00:12:13.759 --> 00:12:16.460 would on the side of a highway out in the Arizona 00:12:16.460 --> 00:12:20.200 or California desert or on a dry lake bed in 00:12:20.200 --> 00:12:23.480 Mexico or when I've gone to Canada and Australia 00:12:23.480 --> 00:12:28.960 over the years. So what do you think are the 00:12:28.960 --> 00:12:34.120 most important things for somebody starting out 00:12:34.120 --> 00:12:37.080 operating portable? What do you think are the 00:12:37.080 --> 00:12:40.419 most critical things that they need to do as 00:12:40.419 --> 00:12:46.289 far as getting on the bird? As with any satellite 00:12:46.289 --> 00:12:48.450 operating, knowing when the passes are coming 00:12:48.450 --> 00:12:52.210 by, but operating portable away from home, for 00:12:52.210 --> 00:12:58.490 example, be safe in what you're doing. Usually 00:12:58.490 --> 00:13:02.649 it's not wise and probably illegal to park along 00:13:02.649 --> 00:13:06.110 the shoulder of an interstate highway or US highways 00:13:06.110 --> 00:13:09.990 unless you're broken down. So find a safe spot 00:13:09.990 --> 00:13:11.970 to operate, even if that means you're not going 00:13:11.970 --> 00:13:15.750 to be on the prime grid boundary or four grid 00:13:15.750 --> 00:13:21.049 intersection, be safe. You don't want to cause 00:13:21.049 --> 00:13:23.529 yourself problems with the authorities. You don't 00:13:23.529 --> 00:13:27.110 want other people to run into problems because 00:13:27.110 --> 00:13:30.169 of where you've set up to operate. Out here in 00:13:30.169 --> 00:13:32.409 the West, there's a lot of desert, but not all 00:13:32.409 --> 00:13:37.389 desert is free and open for operating, federal 00:13:37.389 --> 00:13:40.289 land, state lands, tribal lands, private property. 00:13:41.059 --> 00:13:44.620 everybody takes their property seriously so you 00:13:44.620 --> 00:13:48.759 know find a safe spot you know atlases were good 00:13:48.759 --> 00:13:52.179 and now google maps really helps in trying to 00:13:52.179 --> 00:13:55.220 pinpoint good places to go and of course have 00:13:55.220 --> 00:13:58.220 a good view to the sky wherever you go to operate 00:13:58.220 --> 00:14:02.559 all right well you mentioned the authorities 00:14:02.919 --> 00:14:05.440 And we've already had a little fun with this 00:14:05.440 --> 00:14:10.179 before the show tonight, but you've had a couple 00:14:10.179 --> 00:14:17.840 of Couple of of questionable looks will say From 00:14:17.840 --> 00:14:20.320 some law enforcement while you've been operating. 00:14:20.320 --> 00:14:23.820 So so these are some good stories. So tell us 00:14:23.820 --> 00:14:31.379 about About your adventures with NSA. Oh Of course, 00:14:31.379 --> 00:14:37.299 you'd ask about that In 2014, AMSAT had its annual 00:14:37.299 --> 00:14:41.039 symposium in Baltimore at a hotel next to BWI 00:14:41.039 --> 00:14:45.500 Airport, which happened to be in an office park 00:14:45.500 --> 00:14:48.580 area called Friendship Annex. Friendship Annex 00:14:48.580 --> 00:14:51.720 is the annex for the NSA, the National Security 00:14:51.720 --> 00:14:55.059 Agency. They're headquartered between Baltimore 00:14:55.059 --> 00:14:58.460 and Washington, but they have a series of buildings 00:14:58.460 --> 00:15:02.509 in this office park. with fences around them. 00:15:02.509 --> 00:15:05.409 They're very well secured. But the hotel that 00:15:05.409 --> 00:15:07.990 was in this area was the site of the symposium. 00:15:08.669 --> 00:15:12.090 And what do AMSAT people do at symposiums oftentimes? 00:15:12.429 --> 00:15:16.490 We go outside and operate. So the first morning 00:15:16.490 --> 00:15:20.669 there, I went outside and worked FO29 and AO7 00:15:20.669 --> 00:15:23.870 with two FT -817s sitting on top of my rental 00:15:23.870 --> 00:15:27.389 car. And as I was finishing up the two passes, 00:15:27.490 --> 00:15:31.200 I was surrounded by a couple police cruisers 00:15:31.200 --> 00:15:35.419 and Once they pulled up I saw it on the sides 00:15:35.419 --> 00:15:37.539 of the police cruisers. They said National Security 00:15:37.539 --> 00:15:43.139 Agency police and the officers came out and Asked 00:15:43.139 --> 00:15:46.059 me for identification asked me what I was doing 00:15:46.059 --> 00:15:50.200 and as I was answering the officer who was asking 00:15:50.200 --> 00:15:53.340 questions the other officer was Scribbling everything 00:15:53.340 --> 00:15:57.179 I said down on the notepad Which led to a third 00:15:57.179 --> 00:16:00.350 officer showing up after a few minutes? who started 00:16:00.350 --> 00:16:02.990 asking me questions like what frequency was i 00:16:02.990 --> 00:16:05.190 transmitting on what frequency was i receiving 00:16:05.190 --> 00:16:08.970 on what mode of transmission was i using i don't 00:16:08.970 --> 00:16:12.809 know if the officer knew you know radio or amateur 00:16:12.809 --> 00:16:16.250 radio or he was given questions to ask regardless 00:16:16.250 --> 00:16:19.509 answered the questions and after about 20 minutes 00:16:19.509 --> 00:16:21.750 of sitting out in this parking lot with all of 00:16:21.750 --> 00:16:24.409 them i was told that i wasn't breaking any laws 00:16:24.409 --> 00:16:28.169 which i figured i wasn't being in the hotel parking 00:16:28.169 --> 00:16:33.450 lot But it was good to get confirmation and and 00:16:33.450 --> 00:16:35.850 the officer encouraged me to go up the road about 00:16:35.850 --> 00:16:40.370 a half mile away from The hotel and the office 00:16:40.370 --> 00:16:45.330 office park area Throughout the rest of the weekend 00:16:45.330 --> 00:16:48.509 a bunch of us went out to the hotel parking lot 00:16:48.509 --> 00:16:52.049 and operated in one time they had a half a dozen 00:16:52.049 --> 00:16:54.870 different stations operating from parking lots 00:16:54.870 --> 00:16:58.259 and we were being watched by the NSA police, 00:16:58.399 --> 00:17:00.980 but nobody ever came by to question us after 00:17:00.980 --> 00:17:04.160 that first encounter. I explained why I was there, 00:17:04.500 --> 00:17:08.039 had my symposium credential, and I'm sure they 00:17:08.039 --> 00:17:10.240 could have confirmed with a hotel or a simple 00:17:10.240 --> 00:17:16.500 Google search what was going on. So you get some, 00:17:16.500 --> 00:17:19.200 some strange looks and, and, you know, that, 00:17:19.200 --> 00:17:23.180 that does happen from time to time. I know Foxhunt 00:17:23.180 --> 00:17:27.039 sometimes get out in a mall parking lot and here 00:17:27.039 --> 00:17:29.259 comes the mall cop wanting to know what's going 00:17:29.259 --> 00:17:35.180 on. So not NSA though. So you've got me beat 00:17:35.180 --> 00:17:39.779 on that one. But this isn't the only time this 00:17:39.779 --> 00:17:43.700 has happened, Patrick? Well, I've had encounters 00:17:43.700 --> 00:17:48.740 with local police, municipal police, county sheriffs, 00:17:49.279 --> 00:17:52.599 state police. Here in Arizona, if I'm near the 00:17:52.599 --> 00:17:55.619 Mexican border, Border Patrol almost always stops 00:17:55.619 --> 00:17:59.920 by. Even in the Organ Pipe National Monument 00:17:59.920 --> 00:18:02.740 on the Mexican border, I've had Border Patrol, 00:18:02.940 --> 00:18:05.779 County Sheriff, and the National Park Police 00:18:05.779 --> 00:18:09.740 come by just to ask what's going on. And sometimes 00:18:09.740 --> 00:18:12.579 I strike up a conversation with them because 00:18:12.579 --> 00:18:17.240 maybe an uncle or grandfather of the officer 00:18:17.240 --> 00:18:22.019 or the park ranger was a ham. And he knows something 00:18:22.019 --> 00:18:25.420 about ham radio and one night a Border Patrol 00:18:25.420 --> 00:18:27.799 officer asked me if I knew anything about programming 00:18:27.799 --> 00:18:30.660 a Kenwood commercial VHF radio he bought off 00:18:30.660 --> 00:18:37.380 eBay. And I told him I've never used Kenwood's 00:18:37.380 --> 00:18:40.460 commercial equipment, but software for many of 00:18:40.460 --> 00:18:44.299 the radios could be found online, programming 00:18:44.299 --> 00:18:47.539 cables. You need to build one or also find them 00:18:47.539 --> 00:18:49.880 on eBay. And he was happy that I could at least 00:18:49.880 --> 00:18:53.180 point them back to, you know, online to find 00:18:53.180 --> 00:18:57.059 answers to what he was looking for. Oh my goodness. 00:18:57.420 --> 00:19:00.819 Well, you know, one of the things that I mentioned, 00:19:00.819 --> 00:19:04.619 you know, was the whole Wimploda thing. And we 00:19:04.619 --> 00:19:09.519 really didn't get too many crazy looks that I 00:19:09.519 --> 00:19:13.930 heard about at least from Wimploda. But I figured 00:19:13.930 --> 00:19:16.349 that would have been a prime opportunity for 00:19:16.349 --> 00:19:23.089 it. It could have. For me, I was only at a Walmart 00:19:23.089 --> 00:19:25.930 store. For the most part, I was only at a Walmart 00:19:25.930 --> 00:19:29.950 store for 10, 15, 20 minutes or so, arrived before 00:19:29.950 --> 00:19:33.250 the pass, worked the pass, and moved on. So I 00:19:33.250 --> 00:19:38.259 wasn't loitering long enough to attract... Walmart 00:19:38.259 --> 00:19:42.099 security mall cops or even the city police to 00:19:42.099 --> 00:19:44.500 come out and wonder what I was doing. And I was 00:19:44.500 --> 00:19:48.119 going through, I was in Phoenix and Mesa and 00:19:48.119 --> 00:19:50.900 Scottsdale plus the Salt River Indian Reservation 00:19:50.900 --> 00:19:54.059 that's next to Scottsdale. So I was in different 00:19:54.059 --> 00:19:56.839 police jurisdictions, but I had no encounters 00:19:56.839 --> 00:20:00.220 with any of them on that day. I visited eight, 00:20:00.440 --> 00:20:03.079 I visited nine different Walmarts and made contact 00:20:03.079 --> 00:20:06.920 from eight. Yeah, that was pretty impressive 00:20:06.920 --> 00:20:10.720 you got the the Rover award there for for that 00:20:10.720 --> 00:20:15.180 getting all those passes in The one weekend. 00:20:15.259 --> 00:20:20.140 Well, let's that's you know, the right ends are 00:20:20.140 --> 00:20:22.480 a few and far between but they make good stories 00:20:22.480 --> 00:20:25.559 so we had that we had to put those in but but 00:20:25.559 --> 00:20:29.700 You know normally, you know, we don't get too 00:20:29.700 --> 00:20:35.210 many strange looks but Let's take this a little 00:20:35.210 --> 00:20:40.650 bit in a different direction. What would you 00:20:40.650 --> 00:20:45.369 suggest for somebody who's been operating some 00:20:45.369 --> 00:20:47.630 satellites and just doing some of the FM Low 00:20:47.630 --> 00:20:52.829 Earth orbit satellites and some of that, and 00:20:52.829 --> 00:20:56.490 now they're ready to take on maybe the linear 00:20:56.490 --> 00:21:00.680 satellites? What are your... suggestions for 00:21:00.680 --> 00:21:04.619 making that transition from beginning to maybe 00:21:04.619 --> 00:21:11.619 intermediate? Well, for operating FO -29 is probably 00:21:11.619 --> 00:21:15.220 the easiest stepping stone into the linear satellites. 00:21:16.259 --> 00:21:20.240 FO -29 uses uplink on two meters and a downlink 00:21:20.240 --> 00:21:24.819 on 70 centimeters and of the linear satellites 00:21:24.819 --> 00:21:29.579 that one lends itself well to operating with 00:21:29.579 --> 00:21:34.579 a single radio like an FT -817, an FT -857, those 00:21:34.579 --> 00:21:37.440 sorts of multi -band radios that are not designed 00:21:37.440 --> 00:21:41.279 for satellite, but you can operate split VFO, 00:21:41.440 --> 00:21:45.839 transmit on one frequency on two meters and tune 00:21:45.839 --> 00:21:51.079 around on 70 centimeters to hear stations responding 00:21:51.079 --> 00:21:55.960 to your CQ or QRZ calls. From there, It usually 00:21:55.960 --> 00:21:59.380 involves getting a second radio as a downlink 00:21:59.380 --> 00:22:02.579 receiver to really do well on the other satellites 00:22:02.579 --> 00:22:05.140 where the uplink is on 70 centimeters and the 00:22:05.140 --> 00:22:07.660 downlink is on 2 meters, which could be another 00:22:07.660 --> 00:22:12.460 radio like an FT -817, an all -mode receiver. 00:22:13.380 --> 00:22:17.460 The Kenwood THD -74 does very well for single 00:22:17.460 --> 00:22:21.170 sideband downlinks. or a software defined receiver 00:22:21.170 --> 00:22:24.490 hooked up to a laptop or tablet or perhaps a 00:22:24.490 --> 00:22:28.390 mobile phone with SDR software. Lots of options. 00:22:30.750 --> 00:22:34.670 Alright, well there's some good tips on doing 00:22:34.670 --> 00:22:38.069 some of that portable operation and we want to 00:22:38.069 --> 00:22:40.690 give you a chance to call in and ask some questions 00:22:40.690 --> 00:22:43.289 and oh we've got more that we can talk about 00:22:43.289 --> 00:22:46.509 too but we want to give you a chance to do that 00:22:46.509 --> 00:22:49.950 so we're going to take a break here and when 00:22:49.950 --> 00:22:52.890 we come back we'll give you a chance to call 00:22:52.890 --> 00:22:59.950 in. The phone number is 812 -638 -4261, 812 -NETAM1 00:22:59.950 --> 00:23:03.789 and we'll take your questions with Patrick right 00:23:03.559 --> 00:23:06.980 after this word from ICOM America right here 00:23:06.980 --> 00:23:10.829 on HamTalk Live. Heard it? worked it, logged 00:23:10.829 --> 00:23:13.369 it. It's time to get the transceiver that is 00:23:13.369 --> 00:23:16.849 best suited for your lifestyle. ICOM offers a 00:23:16.849 --> 00:23:19.849 variety of high performance and innovative products. 00:23:20.029 --> 00:23:22.029 See how you can make the most out of contest 00:23:22.029 --> 00:23:24.930 season with one of these transceivers. First, 00:23:25.049 --> 00:23:28.829 the ICOM IC7851, the competitive edge you've 00:23:28.829 --> 00:23:31.430 been looking for. Raise the bar and hear what 00:23:31.430 --> 00:23:35.490 others cannot with this flagship HF and 50 megahertz 00:23:35.490 --> 00:23:38.539 transceiver. It has reciprocal mixing dynamic 00:23:38.539 --> 00:23:42.220 range, crystal clear LO design, a spectrum scope, 00:23:42.539 --> 00:23:45.259 dual receivers and digital voice recorder. The 00:23:45.259 --> 00:23:50.220 ICOM IC7610 is the SDR every ham once and just 00:23:50.220 --> 00:23:53.400 in time for contesting season. This high performance 00:23:53.400 --> 00:23:56.119 SDR has the ability to pick out the faintest 00:23:56.119 --> 00:23:59.180 of signals even in the presence of stronger adjacent 00:23:59.180 --> 00:24:04.089 ones. The new ICOM IC7610 is a direct sampling 00:24:04.089 --> 00:24:06.829 software -defined radio that will change the 00:24:06.829 --> 00:24:10.130 world's definition of an SDR transceiver. Featuring 00:24:10.130 --> 00:24:14.650 RF direct sampling system, 110 dB RMDR, independent 00:24:14.650 --> 00:24:18.069 dual receiver, and dual digicel. And then the 00:24:18.069 --> 00:24:21.970 ICOM IC7300 is changing the way entry -level 00:24:21.970 --> 00:24:25.029 HF is designed. This high -performance, innovative 00:24:25.029 --> 00:24:28.309 HF transceiver with a compact design will far 00:24:28.309 --> 00:24:32.210 exceed your expectations. With RF direct sampling, 00:24:32.609 --> 00:24:36.309 15 discrete bandpass filters, a large 4 .3 -inch 00:24:36.309 --> 00:24:38.809 color touchscreen, real -time spectrum scope, 00:24:38.950 --> 00:24:41.849 and an SD memory card slot. Be sure to visit 00:24:41.849 --> 00:24:45.930 icomamerica .com slash amateur for more information 00:24:45.930 --> 00:24:52.259 on Join the conversation. Call us on voice with 00:24:52.259 --> 00:24:56.019 Skype at HamTalk Live or give us a call at 812 00:24:56.019 --> 00:25:02.420 -NET -HAM -1. That's 812 -638 -4261. Now, here's 00:25:02.420 --> 00:25:30.420 more HamTalk Live. Ham talk lives on the air 00:25:30.420 --> 00:25:33.359 every Thursday night at 9 p .m. Eastern time 00:25:33.359 --> 00:25:37.680 right here at ham talk live comm and Be sure 00:25:37.680 --> 00:25:40.539 to check us out on Facebook Twitter and Instagram 00:25:40.539 --> 00:25:43.019 and it's time for your call So if you have a 00:25:43.019 --> 00:25:47.819 question for Patrick WD9 EWK Give us a call at 00:25:47.819 --> 00:25:57.400 number is 8 1 2 net ham 1 8 1 2 6 3 8 4 2 6 1 00:25:57.740 --> 00:26:05.079 or you can give us a call here on Skype at HamTalk 00:26:05.079 --> 00:26:12.000 Live or you can tweet us at HamTalk Live as well 00:26:12.000 --> 00:26:17.819 and we'll try to get you in here. We had a call 00:26:17.819 --> 00:26:20.619 and it didn't go through so we'll see if we can 00:26:20.619 --> 00:26:23.599 get that and I think we ended up losing Patrick 00:26:23.599 --> 00:26:28.400 in the process. So Patrick, you back? Okay, very 00:26:28.400 --> 00:26:31.500 good. Yep. Oh, he had a call come in and then 00:26:31.500 --> 00:26:33.980 all of a sudden it failed. So, okay. All right. 00:26:33.980 --> 00:26:35.740 Very good. All right. We'll get you turned back 00:26:35.740 --> 00:26:39.440 on here and so everybody can hear you. So if 00:26:39.440 --> 00:26:42.119 you have a question, give us a call. 812 -638 00:26:42.119 --> 00:26:47.420 -4261. 812 -net -ham -1. And we'll try to get 00:26:47.420 --> 00:26:51.279 that in. Now you've... not only made a lot of, 00:26:51.359 --> 00:26:53.539 oh, here we go. We're going to try this again. 00:26:53.579 --> 00:26:56.000 Let's see if we can get this call here. Hello. 00:26:56.019 --> 00:27:03.500 Welcome to HamTalk Live. Hello. Hello, this is 00:27:03.500 --> 00:27:06.140 RJ, W -I -7 -A -A. I had a question for Patrick. 00:27:06.440 --> 00:27:10.259 Oh, very good. RJ, good evening. Patrick? Hi, 00:27:10.279 --> 00:27:14.759 RJ. Hey, Patrick. Hello, RJ. I'm doing all right. 00:27:17.220 --> 00:27:20.809 Go ahead, RJ, and ask your question. OK, you 00:27:20.809 --> 00:27:23.130 already answered one of my questions. But my 00:27:23.130 --> 00:27:27.109 next one is I was interested in trying to get 00:27:27.109 --> 00:27:32.329 started doing APRS over ISS. And I wanted to 00:27:32.329 --> 00:27:38.769 know if using a diamond or a comet small whip 00:27:38.769 --> 00:27:41.609 antenna would work, or how that works compared 00:27:41.609 --> 00:27:49.549 to the arrow antenna on a D72. A directional 00:27:49.549 --> 00:27:52.309 antenna like an arrow or an elk would do better 00:27:52.309 --> 00:27:56.710 to make best use of the 5 watts from your radio, 00:27:57.210 --> 00:28:01.450 but if you're using a mobile whip, you probably 00:28:01.450 --> 00:28:03.769 would want something closer to a quarter wave 00:28:03.769 --> 00:28:07.509 whip than one with lots of gain. With the gain 00:28:07.509 --> 00:28:10.950 whips, you're losing some of the radiation pattern 00:28:10.950 --> 00:28:14.269 and not as much of the signal as going up toward 00:28:14.269 --> 00:28:18.200 the ISS or NO84, for example. where a quarter 00:28:18.200 --> 00:28:21.920 wave is radiating all around including up and 00:28:21.920 --> 00:28:24.900 you would have a better chance but with the five 00:28:24.900 --> 00:28:28.720 watt radio your arrow or an elk or a homebrew 00:28:28.720 --> 00:28:30.660 equivalent would you know if the directional 00:28:30.660 --> 00:28:34.680 antenna would probably be a better option okay 00:28:34.680 --> 00:28:39.460 um with the arrow what do you when you're doing 00:28:39.460 --> 00:28:41.799 fm you're you know you kind of have that audio 00:28:41.799 --> 00:28:46.740 feedback of hearing someone Are you getting a 00:28:46.740 --> 00:28:50.460 signal back that you can follow easily when you're 00:28:50.460 --> 00:28:55.740 using a directional antenna? For the ISS, for 00:28:55.740 --> 00:29:00.700 APRS? Correct. With that, you're getting a signal 00:29:00.700 --> 00:29:03.380 when your radio stops transmitting, you should 00:29:03.380 --> 00:29:05.900 be hearing a signal coming back from the ISS 00:29:05.900 --> 00:29:10.339 that's easy to hear. OK. NO84 is not as strong 00:29:10.339 --> 00:29:15.299 as the ISS. everything on those those two digipeders 00:29:15.299 --> 00:29:18.319 is simplex. So you're either transmitting or 00:29:18.319 --> 00:29:21.720 receiving and full duplex isn't really an option 00:29:21.720 --> 00:29:26.099 in that case. But the ISS is easy to hear. You 00:29:26.099 --> 00:29:29.400 could hear it with a rubber duck antenna, but 00:29:29.400 --> 00:29:32.460 you would do better to be heard by using the 00:29:32.460 --> 00:29:36.940 directional antenna. Very good. Well, thank you 00:29:36.940 --> 00:29:39.480 for the info and thanks for all the help in the 00:29:39.480 --> 00:29:44.279 past and Thanks for another good podcast. And 00:29:44.279 --> 00:29:46.940 thanks for your trips. I've worked you a lot 00:29:46.940 --> 00:29:50.180 in the last few months. Good to hear relatively 00:29:50.180 --> 00:29:53.140 new operators take the portable operating on 00:29:53.140 --> 00:29:57.240 the road like you've done. Thanks, RJ. Well, 00:29:57.240 --> 00:30:00.000 thank you. It's been a blast. Thank you too, 00:30:00.059 --> 00:30:02.500 RJ. I appreciate you calling in and appreciate 00:30:02.500 --> 00:30:07.279 some of the contacts. All righty. Thank you, 00:30:07.420 --> 00:30:12.759 Neil. All right. Thanks a lot, RJ. 812 -638 -4261 00:30:12.759 --> 00:30:15.579 is the phone number and we also have a couple 00:30:15.579 --> 00:30:19.799 of tweets so let's see if we can get those in 00:30:19.799 --> 00:30:26.619 here. N6UTC wants to know have you sent slow 00:30:26.619 --> 00:30:32.839 scan television images through AO85 on experimenters 00:30:32.839 --> 00:30:40.319 Wednesday and go latent orient. Uh, Leighton 00:30:40.319 --> 00:30:42.980 Orient's an inside joke. It's an English soccer 00:30:42.980 --> 00:30:47.740 club, uh, not in the, uh, top league that, that 00:30:47.740 --> 00:30:50.759 he thinks I'm a supporter of. As for SSTV, I've 00:30:50.759 --> 00:30:54.180 never, I've never transmitted it anywhere, HF 00:30:54.180 --> 00:30:58.099 or satellite. Uh, I have tried copying it on 00:30:58.099 --> 00:31:01.740 AO85 on some occasions, and when the ISS has 00:31:01.740 --> 00:31:06.059 had the SSTV activities, uh, I will copy and 00:31:06.059 --> 00:31:08.640 decode the pictures. but I've not transmitted 00:31:08.640 --> 00:31:14.160 it myself. All right. Very good. And, uh, let's 00:31:14.160 --> 00:31:17.839 see, Brett, W Y seven B G says, be sure to mention 00:31:17.839 --> 00:31:21.200 bark fast in Logamont, Colorado this weekend. 00:31:21.420 --> 00:31:25.460 Big swap meat. So yeah, uh, we've got, uh, the 00:31:25.460 --> 00:31:28.220 Hoosier Hills, uh, ham fest down in Bedford, 00:31:28.220 --> 00:31:30.900 uh, coming up in Bedford, Indiana this weekend. 00:31:30.900 --> 00:31:34.089 And, uh, So yeah, we can't get them all in, but 00:31:34.089 --> 00:31:39.849 we got that one in, Brett, so there you go. And 00:31:39.849 --> 00:31:45.069 WI4T, I had a solid copy in EM27. Okay, very 00:31:45.069 --> 00:31:48.990 good. Well, we've got some tweets in here. Let's 00:31:48.990 --> 00:31:54.940 see, I think we're caught up on those. So eight 00:31:54.940 --> 00:31:57.500 one two six three eight four two six one is the 00:31:57.500 --> 00:32:00.220 phone number if you'd like to call in we have 00:32:00.220 --> 00:32:05.140 the line open now so give us a call and Where 00:32:05.140 --> 00:32:10.640 I was headed Before we got the call was not only 00:32:10.640 --> 00:32:15.640 have you traveled? In the united states and north 00:32:15.640 --> 00:32:20.099 america but you've actually traveled to australia 00:32:20.099 --> 00:32:23.819 and as well as mexico and canada to do some. 00:32:24.140 --> 00:32:26.299 Satellite contact so talk a little bit about 00:32:26.299 --> 00:32:29.079 the trip to australia and one thing that i'm 00:32:29.079 --> 00:32:32.240 wondering is we talked about the law enforcement 00:32:32.240 --> 00:32:37.339 stuff how do you how did you deal with. Packing 00:32:37.339 --> 00:32:40.359 the gear and getting the gear onto the plane 00:32:40.359 --> 00:32:43.140 and and getting through all the security and 00:32:43.140 --> 00:32:46.980 all that kind of thing Well, the rate the radios 00:32:46.980 --> 00:32:51.519 I carry the radios in an old laptop bag the two 00:32:51.519 --> 00:32:56.220 ft -817s handhelds and other Accessories that 00:32:56.220 --> 00:33:00.259 I can take on to a plane go in that bag and then 00:33:00.259 --> 00:33:03.099 my antenna and anything else That's not suitable 00:33:03.099 --> 00:33:06.420 for the passenger cabin goes in a check suitcase 00:33:06.650 --> 00:33:11.269 And going to Australia was no problem with the 00:33:11.269 --> 00:33:15.029 equipment. Australia had just joined the European 00:33:15.029 --> 00:33:20.369 CEPT licensing system in 2010, so that meant 00:33:20.369 --> 00:33:24.029 I could operate there without applying for an 00:33:24.029 --> 00:33:27.130 Australian license and call sign. That had just 00:33:27.130 --> 00:33:30.450 started in the months before I went there myself, 00:33:30.849 --> 00:33:36.299 so operating was simple. The airport was... was 00:33:36.299 --> 00:33:39.140 nothing. They didn't even x -ray my bags that 00:33:39.140 --> 00:33:42.160 I carried through customs. They just looked at 00:33:42.160 --> 00:33:45.720 me and waved me through and I proceeded to operate 00:33:45.720 --> 00:33:48.259 from a few locations around Melbourne and a couple 00:33:48.259 --> 00:33:50.740 of places around Sydney while I was in Australia 00:33:50.740 --> 00:33:58.700 in 2011. Okay, very good. 812 -638 -4261 is the 00:33:58.910 --> 00:34:02.789 phone number and then what about Getting across 00:34:02.789 --> 00:34:06.430 the border at Mexico and of course, you've got 00:34:06.430 --> 00:34:09.730 your Canadian license. So that probably helps 00:34:09.730 --> 00:34:13.909 a little bit there Actually, I've never had to 00:34:13.909 --> 00:34:18.170 show ham licenses going into Canada or Mexico 00:34:18.170 --> 00:34:22.619 the Canadians I've offered to show them my licenses 00:34:22.619 --> 00:34:25.940 at the border crossings and they're not interested. 00:34:26.480 --> 00:34:28.880 I have been pulled aside for secondary inspection 00:34:28.880 --> 00:34:32.219 and they'll see the radio gear, but when I tell 00:34:32.219 --> 00:34:35.760 them I'm an amateur radio operator licensed in 00:34:35.760 --> 00:34:39.480 Canada and in the US, that's been the extent 00:34:39.480 --> 00:34:42.480 of my interaction about radio. Once I get away 00:34:42.480 --> 00:34:44.659 from the border, I've never had any problems 00:34:44.659 --> 00:34:47.599 operating around Ontario or British Columbia. 00:34:47.960 --> 00:34:50.960 other than the electrical noise on the power 00:34:50.960 --> 00:34:55.159 lines in Ontario. They are noisy. British Columbia, 00:34:55.300 --> 00:34:57.800 I even drove up and down Vancouver Island for 00:34:57.800 --> 00:35:00.440 part of a trip in 2010. I spent several days 00:35:00.440 --> 00:35:03.780 on the island and then several days driving from 00:35:03.780 --> 00:35:06.099 Vancouver to other parts of British Columbia 00:35:06.099 --> 00:35:10.139 operating and sightseeing. And that was fun. 00:35:10.460 --> 00:35:14.460 Never had an encounter with Mounties or local 00:35:14.460 --> 00:35:18.230 police or anything law enforcement in Canada. 00:35:19.070 --> 00:35:22.590 Mexico, same thing, except there I've operated 00:35:22.590 --> 00:35:26.690 when Mexican army patrols have gone by and the 00:35:26.690 --> 00:35:28.730 soldiers, if they do anything, it's just a wave 00:35:28.730 --> 00:35:31.670 as they are passing by in their vehicles. They 00:35:31.670 --> 00:35:35.469 don't even bother to stop seeing a car from the 00:35:35.469 --> 00:35:39.550 U .S. with people holding antennas playing radio 00:35:39.550 --> 00:35:43.769 out in the middle of a dry lake bed. Maybe they 00:35:43.769 --> 00:35:47.719 know what I'm doing. But you know never a problem 00:35:47.719 --> 00:35:50.179 and getting across the border I haven't done 00:35:50.179 --> 00:35:52.920 that in a few years in Mexico because I can't 00:35:52.920 --> 00:35:55.360 get a permit in Mexico anymore as a foreigner 00:35:55.360 --> 00:35:58.260 So I haven't bothered taking equipment across 00:35:58.260 --> 00:36:05.219 in many years Okay, very good 812 -638 -4261 00:36:05.219 --> 00:36:08.760 is the phone number or you can tweet us or at 00:36:08.760 --> 00:36:11.380 ham talk live on Twitter we have a few minutes 00:36:11.380 --> 00:36:14.110 left with Patrick this evening, so If you have 00:36:14.110 --> 00:36:17.590 a question about portable operations, give us 00:36:17.590 --> 00:36:27.289 a call at 812 -638 -4261. So we talked a little 00:36:27.289 --> 00:36:30.269 bit about the Walmart parking lots on the air 00:36:30.269 --> 00:36:36.610 when PLOTA, and you were able to manage nine 00:36:36.610 --> 00:36:39.550 different sites, I believe, during the first 00:36:40.230 --> 00:36:44.570 when Pluto weekend, did you come up with a certain 00:36:44.570 --> 00:36:49.449 strategy for getting all those in? The strategy 00:36:49.449 --> 00:36:52.590 was looking at passes and having the Walmart 00:36:52.590 --> 00:36:56.230 store locator map up in a browser and engaging 00:36:56.230 --> 00:36:59.730 the time between passes versus the distances 00:36:59.730 --> 00:37:03.449 between stores. And then that's how I was able 00:37:03.449 --> 00:37:07.409 to make my big loop through Phoenix. where I 00:37:07.409 --> 00:37:10.050 didn't have as many passes in the mid morning, 00:37:10.449 --> 00:37:15.289 but by midday, I had passes coming, you know, 00:37:15.469 --> 00:37:17.730 several of them, one right after the other, you 00:37:17.730 --> 00:37:22.929 know, within 20, 30, 40 minutes. So I just planned 00:37:22.929 --> 00:37:25.829 it. So I was out in the east end of the Phoenix 00:37:25.829 --> 00:37:28.570 metropolitan area where on one street, there's 00:37:28.570 --> 00:37:32.329 a Walmart store every two miles. So I knew I 00:37:32.329 --> 00:37:35.010 could... you know, make that drive in a few minutes, 00:37:35.130 --> 00:37:39.710 get set up and wait for the next pass. And I 00:37:39.710 --> 00:37:42.369 just ran out of stations to work on the ninth 00:37:42.369 --> 00:37:46.230 pass. It was a very low pass in Phoenix and only 00:37:46.230 --> 00:37:48.670 Californians would have been in the footprint 00:37:48.670 --> 00:37:50.869 except nobody was there. Otherwise I would have 00:37:50.869 --> 00:37:54.650 had contacts from nine different stores that 00:37:54.650 --> 00:37:58.570 morning and afternoon. But it was fun. It was 00:37:58.570 --> 00:38:03.440 roving like I've done around the desert. California, 00:38:04.059 --> 00:38:06.079 Nevada, New Mexico, except I'm doing it within 00:38:06.079 --> 00:38:09.159 Metropolitan Phoenix. You know, the same idea 00:38:09.159 --> 00:38:13.500 is just, you know, going, you know, going much 00:38:13.500 --> 00:38:17.320 more rapidly between spots instead of spending 00:38:17.320 --> 00:38:20.400 a couple of hours in any one place. Well, it 00:38:20.400 --> 00:38:24.380 was fun watching you, uh, go from, from one to 00:38:24.380 --> 00:38:28.000 another. And, uh, it was a, it was a fun event. 00:38:28.460 --> 00:38:31.699 So hopefully, uh, well, we'll do that again someday. 00:38:31.929 --> 00:38:37.110 812 -638 -4261 is the phone number and I hope 00:38:37.110 --> 00:38:39.989 I'm not putting you on the spot here because 00:38:39.989 --> 00:38:43.929 this is not something we discussed, but I know 00:38:43.929 --> 00:38:51.289 that Fox One Cliff is ready to go. So what do 00:38:51.289 --> 00:38:54.010 you know about the new bird that's getting ready 00:38:54.010 --> 00:39:00.929 to go up? Well, Fox 1 Cliff is essentially a 00:39:00.929 --> 00:39:07.070 twin of AO92 with the FM repeater. It also has 00:39:07.070 --> 00:39:11.130 the optional 1 .2 GHz uplink that AMSAT can command 00:39:11.130 --> 00:39:14.170 on, and I believe there's a camera on it too. 00:39:14.630 --> 00:39:18.050 The main difference for the FM repeater is the 00:39:18.050 --> 00:39:20.409 automatic frequency control. The AFC circuit 00:39:20.409 --> 00:39:24.650 is not present on Fox 1 Cliff, so stations will 00:39:24.650 --> 00:39:28.449 need to tune the uplink to Fox One Cliff from 00:39:28.449 --> 00:39:33.150 start to finish and not rely on the AFC circuit 00:39:33.150 --> 00:39:37.929 to reduce the tuning work for the uplink. Otherwise, 00:39:38.489 --> 00:39:42.550 it should sound just like working AO91, AO92, 00:39:42.869 --> 00:39:48.349 AO85, and hopefully hear very well those of us 00:39:48.349 --> 00:39:51.309 on the ground using the portable equipment, low 00:39:51.309 --> 00:39:56.639 power and so on. So what I read was that Jerry's 00:39:56.639 --> 00:40:00.980 turned it over to Be launched and now we're just 00:40:00.980 --> 00:40:05.300 got to sit back and and wait for a rocket We 00:40:05.300 --> 00:40:07.639 just have to wait for the launch and once launched, 00:40:07.639 --> 00:40:11.199 you know wait for stations on the ground to hear 00:40:11.199 --> 00:40:15.099 it transmit it's usually you know 30 to 60 minutes 00:40:15.099 --> 00:40:18.420 after it's deployed from the launcher and Then 00:40:18.420 --> 00:40:21.099 AMSAT will do its testing to verify that everything 00:40:21.099 --> 00:40:24.900 is working before opening it up to the rest of 00:40:24.900 --> 00:40:29.179 us to use. AMSAT's had good practice with that 00:40:29.179 --> 00:40:32.579 in the last couple years. And like with AO -92, 00:40:32.699 --> 00:40:36.099 there is a lot to test with FOX -1 Cliff. The 00:40:36.099 --> 00:40:40.119 FM repeater with the different uplinks, the camera 00:40:40.119 --> 00:40:44.539 should be fun. All right. Well, we'll look forward 00:40:44.539 --> 00:40:48.659 to it. Whenever they can get that one launched, 00:40:49.460 --> 00:40:53.320 we'll definitely be watching for it. All right. 00:40:53.400 --> 00:40:56.940 Well, we're just about out of time here. Let's 00:40:56.940 --> 00:40:59.980 check the Twitter here and see if we have missed 00:40:59.980 --> 00:41:01.880 anything. You don't want to leave anybody out, 00:41:02.059 --> 00:41:06.659 but I think we're about to finish up here this 00:41:06.659 --> 00:41:10.000 evening. But if you have a last minute question, 00:41:10.179 --> 00:41:15.400 give us a call at 812 -638 -4261. And yeah, Patrick, 00:41:15.519 --> 00:41:17.599 if you've got something else that you need to 00:41:17.599 --> 00:41:21.099 throw in here, go right ahead. Sure. Sure. Out 00:41:21.099 --> 00:41:23.739 here, since it's so hot in the desert in the 00:41:23.739 --> 00:41:26.119 summertime, most of the ham fest start up in 00:41:26.119 --> 00:41:29.739 the fall. And I will do my thing going out to 00:41:29.739 --> 00:41:32.760 ham fest around Arizona starting late in October, 00:41:33.380 --> 00:41:36.440 where I will have an AMSAT booth or table and 00:41:36.440 --> 00:41:38.659 I'll do demonstrations. And the first one of 00:41:38.659 --> 00:41:43.079 those is on the 27th of October in Maricopa, 00:41:43.239 --> 00:41:48.130 which is south of Phoenix. The Maricopa Amateur 00:41:48.130 --> 00:41:50.789 Radio Association has their CopaFest then. But 00:41:50.789 --> 00:41:53.809 I also want to mention that on December 15th, 00:41:53.809 --> 00:41:58.710 we just got clearance for this. I and a couple 00:41:58.710 --> 00:42:01.010 of others will be operating satellites from the 00:42:01.010 --> 00:42:04.269 deck of the Queen Mary in Long Beach using the 00:42:04.269 --> 00:42:08.190 Queen Mary's amateur called W6RO on the 15th 00:42:08.190 --> 00:42:12.650 of December. We'll be operating FM, single -side 00:42:12.650 --> 00:42:15.789 band, if the packet digipeders are available. 00:42:16.190 --> 00:42:20.090 We'll be making contacts through the ISS or NO84 00:42:20.090 --> 00:42:24.969 or Falcon Sat -3 using the W6RO call. Long Beach 00:42:24.969 --> 00:42:29.889 is in grid DM03, which isn't terribly rare, but 00:42:29.889 --> 00:42:33.150 W6RO hasn't been on satellites very much for 00:42:33.150 --> 00:42:36.469 a long time. And this will be all portable operation 00:42:36.469 --> 00:42:41.269 out on one of the decks on that Saturday. Very 00:42:41.269 --> 00:42:45.400 good. One of my favorite QSL cards from when 00:42:45.400 --> 00:42:51.400 I was a kid was from them. Got them on HF and 00:42:51.400 --> 00:42:55.480 it was a pretty impressive card at the time. 00:42:55.800 --> 00:43:00.820 So I'm well familiar with the Queen Mary out 00:43:00.820 --> 00:43:03.920 there. So congratulations on getting that squared 00:43:03.920 --> 00:43:06.599 away and look forward to hearing you from out 00:43:06.599 --> 00:43:11.269 there. And hope to hear you and others too. I 00:43:11.269 --> 00:43:14.030 operated from the Queen Mary's wireless room 00:43:14.030 --> 00:43:16.909 when they still had the satellite equipment installed 00:43:16.909 --> 00:43:21.889 in 2016, was it? Made three contacts on a single 00:43:21.889 --> 00:43:26.650 AO7 pass, but this is intended to be a day -long 00:43:26.650 --> 00:43:29.969 activity on that Saturday, working whatever passes 00:43:29.969 --> 00:43:34.570 are available in the different modes, all done 00:43:34.570 --> 00:43:39.690 portable. And with thanks to the... Associated 00:43:39.690 --> 00:43:42.369 radio amateurs of Long Beach who operate the 00:43:42.369 --> 00:43:45.730 radio room on the Queen Mary and the Queen Mary 00:43:45.730 --> 00:43:50.929 management for allowing this to happen. Yeah, 00:43:51.050 --> 00:43:55.269 always nice to have those opportunities and great 00:43:55.269 --> 00:43:57.769 to hear about that one coming up on December 00:43:57.769 --> 00:44:03.269 15th, correct? That's correct. Okay, very good. 00:44:03.690 --> 00:44:06.050 Well, we're going to wrap things up here tonight, 00:44:06.150 --> 00:44:09.500 but Patrick, thanks so much for coming on, taking 00:44:09.500 --> 00:44:13.420 some time to give us some traveling stories on 00:44:13.420 --> 00:44:17.920 your portable operations and some tips on how 00:44:17.920 --> 00:44:22.639 to do some of that. And we hope that you're not 00:44:22.639 --> 00:44:27.719 stopped by the mall cops again. That's probably 00:44:27.719 --> 00:44:33.480 wishful thinking, but thanks. All right. Well, 00:44:33.480 --> 00:44:37.260 that's a wrap for this week's edition. of HamTalk 00:44:37.260 --> 00:44:40.559 Live. Thanks to Patrick Stoddard, WD9EWK, and 00:44:40.559 --> 00:44:43.420 everybody out there in cyberspace for listening 00:44:43.420 --> 00:44:46.320 and calling in and invite you back next Thursday 00:44:46.320 --> 00:44:49.940 night at 9 p .m. Eastern Time. Jim Wilson, K5ND, 00:44:50.059 --> 00:44:52.920 and Bill Stearns, NE4RD, will be here to talk 00:44:52.920 --> 00:44:57.539 about the 2018 Jamboree on the air and for a 00:44:57.539 --> 00:45:00.510 list of all of our upcoming guests. just go to 00:45:00.510 --> 00:45:04.309 HamTalkLive .com and click on the show schedule 00:45:04.309 --> 00:45:06.789 link. And if you like the show, please consider 00:45:06.789 --> 00:45:09.650 leaving us a review on iTunes or wherever you 00:45:09.650 --> 00:45:12.869 listen. That helps others find us a little faster. 00:45:12.949 --> 00:45:16.610 So for now, this is Neil Rapp, WB9VPG, saying 00:45:16.610 --> 00:45:20.389 seven three, seven five, and may the grid square 00:45:20.389 --> 00:45:35.650 be yours. Bye bye.