Flight Announcement Page

02/13/2012 16:09:48 (CT) - Frequencies and payloads updated, Payload Plan added, Flight systems updated to reflect current payload weights

Corrections encouraged and welcome

EOSS-173

Flight Coordinator: none specified yet
LAUNCH DATE: February 18th, 2012 (wx delay +1 day)
LAUNCH TIMES: 07:10 am MST (14:10 UTC)
LAUNCH SITE: Windsor, CO (Click Here for directions)

FAA Waivers for 2012

• Please read the waivers if you will be present at the launch site.
• Click here for more info and the Waivers

EOSS Flight Day Frequencies:

Tracking and Recovery Frequencies

• Preflight Net:
  • 147.225 MHz 8 pm MDT preceding night
  • 146.640 MHz will serve as a backup frequency
• Tracking and Recovery Operations
  • Repeaters 
    • 449.450 MHz (103.5 Hz Tone) RMRL Machine
  • Field Simplex Frequencies  
    • 446.100 MHz simplex for field recovery operations
      • Note: Some radios insist on incorrectly placing a negative 5 MHz offset when selecting frequencies from the simplex portion of the 70 CM band. Check your radio and if this is the case. Consider programming in this simplex frequency to a memory channel as some radios have demonstrated the annoying habit of re-inserting the offset if you momentarily shift to a repeater then return to the simplex freq. Check the operation of your radio on this simplex freq to be ready for however your radio behaves.
    • 146.550 MHz Backup field simplex
  • Repeater Coverage Pages - Listings of all repeaters available in the expected flight areas.
  • There may be FRS operations see THIS PAGE for a list of channel numbers and their associated UHF Frequencies.
  • HF (possible but not pre-arranged as of this update)
    • 3.810 MHz USB
    • 7.235 MHz LSB

• Launch Site Simplex
  • 146.550 MHz

 

EOSS-173 Balloon Payload Frequencies

• Beacons
  • 147.555 MHz
    • CW ID: K0SCC-11

APRS
• 144.340 MHz
  • ID: AEØSS-11
  • DIGI: EOSS
  • Node: BALNOD
  • APRS Time Slotted Every 30 seconds at 0:00 and 0:30
    • power up at 58 seconds past the GPS minute to properly slot telemetry
  • Telemetry once a minute
  • Sample Data
• 147.555 MHz
  • ID: K0SCC-11
• 145.600 MHz
  • ID: K0ANI-11
• Telemetry
  • 28.223 MHz
    • 0.1 Watt output
    • ID: N0HF
      • ID and Altitude on CW

   

   

Video Might Be available, check http://www.eoss.tv

Various Online Live Tracking Pages

Flight Systems:

EOSS-173

Payload Configuration:

• Payload_Plan_173_DraftE.pdf

Payload Experiment Designer

This is an EOSS test flight to qualify payloads. Some payload systems from outside entities may/will be flown.

Experimenters are welcome to submit websites for linking or overviews which I will post on a page on the EOSS website.

Internet Gateway Stations:

Future I-Gaters:

EOSS is always in need of I-Gate stations. Check out the EOSS I-Gate page for information on how to participate and why we need you.

Current I-Gate Station:

If you are present at your iGate during the flight try and monitor the tracking and recovery frequency. The ground station likes to check the frequency prior to launch to find out if any stations are out there ready to igate the traffic onto the net for the FAA to monitor.

The prediction program used to determine the track of the balloon prior to flight can now output a prediction for the Rise, Closest Approach, and Set of the balloon for each of your stations. I have posted a prediction page for stations that I have been able to discover geographic coordinates. See the I-Gate prediction page for an example. The page will not be updated daily, however, it will be updated the evening prior to flight for I-gate planning purposes.

I have often been asked by iGaters when they should expect to either start receiving signals (AOS) or expect to see those signals disappear (LOS). This prediction page should answer all those questions for you.

Your Log Files

Our technical committee members would also request you open a log file and record all the packets you hear and forward onto APRS-IS. Whenever there is a technical failure of a package it is always helpful to have the most complete dataset possible to attempt to determine the cause of failure and possible fixes. After a flight send your data files to me (webmaster) and I will distribute them to the appropriate payload builders. They appreciate these logs even if all goes fine during a flight.

Tracking and Recovery

FROM PREVIOUS FLIGHT
Updated Evening Prior to Flight

Breakfast

• Denny's exit 7 on I-25 just south of Cheyenne
• 6:00 am MST depart to recovery activity

ALPHA News

Wear warm clothes and good boots. Fill up with gas!

Grid   

Location	Grid X	Grid Y
West Intersection of CR 71 and CR 14	25	15
Test Coordinates   41.25° N  x  -103.5° W	missed	58.9

   

 

Tactical Call Signs 

Tactical	Callsign	Name	Notes
Alpha	WA0GEH & K5JFD	Marty & John	Tracking and Recovery Coordinator
Bravo	K0SCC	Steve and Parker	Tracker
Charlie	KG6HXM, KC0ZIE	Sam, Darren	Tracker, Big Blue Bus
Delta	KB0YRZ	Chris	Tracker +1
Echo	N0IX	Doug	Flight Coordinator & Tracker
Foxtrot	withdrawn		Tracker
Golf	moved to alpha
Hotel	KB0UBZ	Ben	Tracker +1
India	N0NDM	Larry	Launch Coordinator, Tracker Pro Tem

Flight Related Info

• Prediction Page offers a map and text prediction of the flight path for the upcoming mission.
• A couple of WX Links
• EOSS Hardware Page - some photos and descriptions of various EOSS payloads
• APRS LIVE Tracking of EOSS Payloads on the Internet
• Maps and Directions to "all" of the EOSS standard Launch Sites.
• Check the EOSS Mailing Lists from Yahoo for the most up to date info.

Support Amateur Radio Repeater Groups

Future Flight Schedule

as of Nov 6th, 2011

All dates and launch locations should be considered tentative. The WX delay date is indicated by a "plus" x days indicator i.e. +1 means a one day delay is available +7 a one week delay is available. An "n" indicates no available WX delay date.

Tentative in fuchsia
Recently updated in Red

Flight numbers are always in a state of flux and so are not highlighted as being changed

SGC = Space Grant Consortium
GPSL = Great Plains Super Launch
USAFRL = United States Air Force Research Lab
NOAA = National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration
JOTA = Jamboree on the Air (Boy Scouts of America)