For radio operators
Telemetry and beacon data from F-1 contain critical information about the satellite’s health (battery & solar cell voltages, temperature readings) and they are very important to us. This is our first space mission so we would like to ask the amateur radio community to help in tracking and receiving data from F-1 CubeSat. You will receive the verification card from us!
Here is a quick summary on F-1’ frequencies:
145.980 MHz: main channel, 1W RF output, FM, AFSK 1200bps, one telemetry packet every 30 seconds, operates in the dark by default (but can be commanded later to operate in sunlight as well)
437.485 MHz: backup channel, 0.2W RF output, FM, PWM CW beacon, each beacon transmission lasts about 20 seconds then 90 seconds delay, only operates in sunlight
1. Latest TLE of F-1 (updated Sep 24, 2012)
We will try to provide TLE as soon as possible but initially you can use the ISS’s because F-1′s orbit will be very much similar to that of the ISS.
ISS (ZARYA) 1 25544U 98067A 12268.26025190 .00017277 00000-0 30696-3 0 3551 2 25544 51.6496 348.9327 0018454 95.4346 318.9373 15.50115148793411
2. Satellite pass prediction
3. F-1 Telemetry Decoder
– F-1 Telemetry Decoder v2.1.2 update 04/October/2012 (please uninstall earlier version first, if any)
– F-1 Telemetry Decoder User Manual (detailed instructions)
– Sample audio F-1 PWM CW beacon
– Sample audio F-1 packet beacon (this audio file contains a burst of 3 similar telemetry packets from F-1, please use it to verify that F-1 Telemetry Decoder is running correctly on your computer and ready to decode received packets from F-1)
If your software modem only support TCP/IP port:
-Please visit: http://www.mixw.net/index.php?j=related and download, then installation “serial port emulation driver”.
-Download and Installation TCP2COM
-Run your software modem.
-Run and config TCP2COM software.
-Run F-1 Telemetry Decoder.
4. F-1 beacon data format
| No1 | Data | Description | Size (bits) | Size (chars) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | F-1’s callsign | “XV1VN” | 5 | |
| 2 | OBC1 reset count | Number of OBC1 reset | 8 | |
| 3 | Temp. 1 | Temperature inside F-1, OBC board, oC | 8 | 5 |
| 4 | Temp. 2 | Temperature outside Y- side, oC | 8 | |
| 5 | Checksum bit | 0 if sum of items #2 to #4 is even, 1 if it is odd | 1 | |
| Total | 10 |
4.2 VX-3R2
| No | Data | Description | Size (bit) |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Date time | Date: dd/mm/y: 5/4/3=12 bits Time: hh/mm/ss: 5/6/6=17 bits |
29 |
| 2 | Battery voltage | Battery voltage multiplied by 100 (divide by 100 to get actual value) | 11 |
| 3 | Solar cells voltage | Solar cells voltage multiplied by 10 (divide by 10 to get actual value) | 8 |
| 4 | Temp. 1 | oC (outside Y+) | 8 |
| 5 | Temp. 2 | oC (outside Y-) | 8 |
| 6 | Temp. 3 | oC (outside X-) | 8 |
| 7 | Temp. 4 | oC (outside Z+) | 8 |
| 8 | Temp. 5 | oC (outside Z-) | 8 |
| 9 | Temp. 6 | oC (outside X+) | 8 |
| 10 | Temp. 7 | oC (inside Z-) | 8 |
| 11 | Temp. 8 | oC (inside, under VX-3R1) | 8 |
| Total | 112 bits = 14 bytes |
Note:
- F-1 periodically sends a burst of 3 telemetry packets with the same content to avoid loss of packet
- Time in UTC, 24 hours format
- Year count starting from 2012 (2012 equals 0, 2013 equals 1 and so on…)
- Battery voltage reading is accurate to 0.01V, values are multiplied by 100. Divide by 100 to get actual value
- Solar cells voltage reading is accurate to 0.1V, values are multiplied by 10. Divide by 10 to get actual value
- Temperature reading from sensors, will be added with 100 before transmission to ensure a positive number so please subtract 100 to get actual value
- 112 bits, divide to 14 chunks of 8 bits, each chunk becomes one byte
5. Decoding data from F-1
Please feel free to ask if there is any question. We would really appreciate your kind support!