Amateur radio satellite FCAL successfully deployed from Shuttle

FCAL was built by members of the NRL Amateur Radio Club and is a 75 kilogramme 17.5" brass sphere which contains an Atmospheric Neutral Density experiment and an Amateur Radio Packet system.

It is in a 300 km 40 degree inclination orbit and will have an expected lifetime of 12/18 months depending upon rate of orbit decay and battery life.

The downlink frequency of the FCAL 1200 bps AX.25 beacon is 437.385 MHz FM and the callsign is KD4HBO.

For full details see FCAL website at:
http://web.ew.usna.edu/~bruninga/fcal.html

Ivan Galysh of NRL posted this email to the AMSAT-BB announcing the succesfull deployment of the satellite from the STS-116 Shuttle:

FCAL successfully deployed. Please let me know if you detect a 1200 baud AFSK packet signal at 437.385 MHz. The MAA is stuck in the canister and may pop out when it warms up.

As soon as I or Bob Bruninga get new keps, we'll post them. Right now the shuttle keps should work for a little while.

I am at Chantilly Academy with a bunch of students watching the deployment and hopefully will get to pick up the signals.

Thanks,

Ivan Galysh

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