Shuttle Launch Frequencies

The Shuttle mission STS-115 should be launched during the next couple of weeks. It will carry two Radio Amateurs into space, Mission Specialists Heide Stefanyshyn-Piper, KD5TVR, and Dan Burbank, KC5ZSX

Graham Tanner posted the following information on Shuttle frequencies to the Monitoring Monthly email list http://groups.yahoo.com/group/monitoring_monthly/

Here is some information for those wishing/hoping to hear the launch on HF. This is the third flight/launch since the disaster in February 2003 and the mission will last 11 days.

Of course, you're not going to hear the Shuttle on HF, as it is not equipped with HF equipment. However, you can hear the various support aircraft and ships involved in the launch. And there is a lot to hear!

There are usually two USAF MC-130 aircraft orbiting in the eastern Atlantic, using the callsigns 'King 1' and 'King 2'; and there may be other 'King' callsigns either waiting in reserve or orbiting in the mid or western Atlantic.

There is usually a USN Frigate patrolling the waters off the Atlantic coast of Florida, and also the SRB recovery vessels, M/V Liberty Star and/or M/V Freedom Star. A USN E-2C Hawkeye aircraft usually patrols the same area, on the lookout for aircraft and ships straying into the launch area - this uses the callsign 'Clearance 1'.

Finally, there are a few Ground Stations to consider - 'Cape Radio' and 'Cape Osborne'.

The Launch
Since this is a trip to the ISS the flight will be using a '51 degree orbit' so there is a good chance that it will be visible from the UK.

Missions to ISS
If the Space Shuttle is due to visit the ISS in orbit, then the launch must occur when the ISS is in an orbit which passes over Florida (the launch site). It does not matter where the ISS is in that orbit, as the Shuttle can 'slow down' or 'speed up' to meet with the ISS as required.

HF
For HF listeners, the best place to start is 10.780MHz about 3-4 hours before the launch. At some point most of the aircraft and ships involved will check in with 'Cape Radio' to find out which other HF frequencies they are using for the launch. Keep listening until you hear them mention this freq, as most of the signals will be on this other freq rather than 10.780 MHz.

Once you find the other freq, keep switching between it and 10.780 in case other aircraft/ships are sent to other freqs. For the attempted launch of the previous flight in July the NASA SRB recovery vessels "Liberty Star" and "Freedom Star" were using 5.711 MHz USB, in comms with Cape Radio. Cape Radio tried to QSY them to HF freq 9.132 MHz, but Cape Radio could not hear them. They may use the same frequencies for the launch of STS-115, only time will tell!

Amateur HF Freqs
The amateur station WA3NAN from the Goddard Amateur Radio Club usually do a 're-broadcast' of various signals from the launch. They can be found on the following HF freqs (all +/- 5KHz due to interference):
3.860 MHz LSB
7.185 MHz LSB
14.295 MHz USB
21.395 MHz USB
28.650 MHz USB

UHF
About 15-20 minutes after launch the shuttle will pass over/near the UK, and it is possible to hear them on UHF airband. The comms are quite short, but it is definitely them! Typically, you will only hear one or two sentences, perhaps 10 seconds in total.

Tune to 259.7 MHz AM, but don't expect to hear too much if you're just using a set-top rubber-ducky. They are only 'in range' for a few minutes, so don't expect to hear too much! - however, some listeners have reported hearing brief comms on this freq using simple equipment, so please try to listen just in case, you may be surprised (from personal experience, I have heard them using just a small telescopic aerial on my Yupi MVT-7100 - so it can be done!)
A secondary freq of 296.8 MHz AM is also available, if necessary.

SATCOM
If you have a good enough external aerial, ideally a beam, and maybe a pre-amp, it is possible to hear the MC-130s orbiting in the eastern Atlantic as they maintain contact with the Cape using satellite comms in the UHF airband. Tune to 261.75 MHz NFM or 263.625 MHz NFM (the commonest 2 freqs) and listen for 'King' callsigns. They have also been known to use 261.8 MHz NFM, so check that freq too.

These guys seem to spend most of their time doing radio-checks with Cape. They provide a kind of 'emergency service' for the Shuttle launch, so don't expect to hear much else unless it all goes very pear-shaped in the launch.

INMARSAT
I do not personally have the ability to listen to these signals, but I know that some do. There is a TAL site pre-launch briefing held sometime in the 24 hours prior to the launch, which should pop up in the range 1535 to 1545 MHz on AOR east.

The European Space Agency may arrange a video feed of the launch via satellite into Europe as they did for the previous launch, and there should also be a relay of NASA TV for Reuters. Both will be carried on NSS K at 21 degrees west in digital format.

I would recommend checking emails from John Locker, as he usually provides some good clues as to launch frequencies

SHF
NASA TV usually cover the launch in-depth, and I am sure that John Locker can give details of what freq(s) to listen to.

Live TV coverage
Don't forget Sky Newsdigital (now with 8 interactive screens) and also BBC interactive news. The great thing about the interactive news channels is that they can carry a shuttle launch for much longer by using one of their sub channels, so it's well worth keeping an eye on those two.

For those of you with access to IRC (Internet Relay Chat), a number of us meet on channel #SATCOM, and you're welcome to join us. This is usually from about 1 hour before the planned launch time, until about 30 minutes afterwards. With people all over Europe receiving signals from different stations, most frequencies are quickly reported when anything happens.

Graham Tanner
London, UK.

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