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vx8r satellite help cont.

K

KB3TQO

Member
Mar 26, 2010
53
0
16
Chambersburg PA
ok. my girl friend has a huge problem with me downloading sat tracking software onto the computer. so i have been using amsat's pass prediction page along with the n2yo.com tracking page and im getting different pass times(about 45mins apart)between the two. my locations on both sites are the same, ao 51's location seems to be the same on both sites but the pass times are different. which one is more acurate? or should i try something totally different?
oh! and does ao-51 work in the dark, like off of batteries or does it shut down untill it can be powered by the sun?
 

The different pass predictions are likely due to one of the two sites not updating the keplerian elements information often enough. Go to satscape and use the java tracking program. Tell your girlfriend that it's technically a web application ;). I would have to compare the two sites you mentioned against satscape to see which one is more accurate but I've never had an issue with satscape.

AO-51 will work at night; I have done it. Most of the others will work fine, too. Remember, the ham birds are not in a fixed orbit; they are getting sun on every pass. There are one or two satellites that amsat.org notes as having battery issues, but AO-51 is not one of them.
 
ok!!!! i got away with putting satscape on the computer and im having all kinds of success. ive been making a few qso's on ao-51 and so-50. working satellites so far has been a little difficult as far as remembering call signs, it reminds me of flash cards from my childhood. what frequency steps should i use during doppler shift on so-50? ive been using the same format as used for ao-51 but i feel im cutting myself short in my window of opportunity. not really getting the sat untill just before its peak and losing it shortly after the peak.
thanks to everyone who has answered my sometimes ridiculous questions.
 

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