Automatic Position Reporting System (APRS)

Automatic Position Reporting System (APRS) Kevin Paetzold (K1KWP) Minuteman Repeater Association April 14, 2002 K1KWP@ARRL.NET Thanks to Mike Heskett (WB5QLD), Ralph Fowler (N4NEQ), Tom Kinahan (N1CPE), Bill Northup (N1QPR) for their prior work included this presentation. 1

Agenda What is APRS and how does it work Various APRS implementations Components of an APRS station and typical station examples Tracking, Messages, and Objects Weather Stations and Severe Weather Warnings APRS over the Internet APRS over satellites Other APRS features 2

What is APRS? A method of disseminating status and tactical information via Amateur radio packet networks. An integration of radio, data transfer protocols, computers, GPS, and video displays Invented by WB4APR (Bob Bruninga). He still owns the rights. Typical information transmitted via APRS Location, Course, and Speed Status Messages Telemetry Weather Information Information is typically displayed on a computer displayed map Very (most?) popular VHF packet mode 3

View of Eastern MA @K1KWP 2002-03-26 4

Map showing all heard stations 5

View of USA MAP @K1KWP 2002-03-26 6

Typical 2M Direct Stations Range vs. a Band opening These stations were heard direct during a band opening last summer Stations characteristically heard direct at K1KWP (no band opening or special propagation) 7

How APRS and its Network Operate APRS uses the UI (connectionless/beacon) Frames of the AX.25 protocol. APRS protocol is layered above AX.25 The AX.25 specification is available at http://www.tapr.org/tapr/pdf/ax25.2.2.pdf The APRS protocol specification is available at ftp://ftp.tapr.org/aprssig/aprsspec/spec/aprs101/aprs101.zip APRS does not use the connected packets (eg. like a BBS) Generally uses 2M AFSK at 1200 baud Packets are Addressed to APRS and the packet path is determined by the UNPROTO setting When a station wants to transmit a packet it listens and when the frequency is clear transmits the packet. Not unlike how Ethernet works. Uses generic digipeating to route packets 8

Generic Digipeating APRS packets can be propagated without prior knowledge of the network Digipeaters use pre-defined/known aliases to recognize those packets that should be digipeated. The common aliases are: RELAY: all nodes are assumed to be RELAYs (note 1) WIDE: High site (large coverage area) digipeaters WIDEn-n: A better implementation of WIDE which helps prevent packet duplication GATE: HF to VHF gateway (note 2) There are other aliases. See the APRS protocol spec. Example paths RELAY,WIDE RELAY,WIDE2-2 W1YK,WIDE2-2 Note 1: In a populated area with good coverage (like Eastern MA) not all nodes should be RELAYs. There should almost never be more than one RELAY in a path and RELAY should always be only the first alias in a path. Note 2: Packets should never ever be gated from VHF to HF as HF is limited to 300Baud. 9

Generic Digipeating Example Coverage area of station N1zzz which is a WIDE digipeater If packets from N1xxx (red) include a WIDE in their UNPROTO path N1sss (blue) should hear N1xxx (red) packets after being digipeated by N1zzz (green). N1ttt (orange) and N1yyy (Yellow) would not hear these packets 10 Coverage area of N1sss a mobile station Coverage area of station N1www which is a WIDE digipeater ea ar ge y ra e ve bil 1yy Co mo n N of atio st Coverage area of station N1xxx C wh ove i c r ag h is e a a r ea RE o LA f h Y om di e gi s pe ta at tio er n N 1t tt Packets from N1xxx (red) and N1yyy (yellow) are only heard in their respective coverage areas if not digipeated If packets from N1yyy (yellow) include a RELAY,WIDE2-2 (or RELAY,WIDE,WIDE) in their UNPROTO path N1sss (blue) should hear N1yyy (yellow) packets after being digipeated by N1ttt (orange) followed by N1www (purple) followed by N1zzz (green)

WIDEn-n Example In example below WIDEn-x. n specifies how many successive WIDE digipeaters should retransmit a packet. The initial transmission of the packet should have n and x equal. For example WIDE3-3. n =3 and x =3. Each WIDEn-x digipeater will decrement the x value when retransmitting the packet. Each WIDEn-x digipeater keeps a checksum of each retransmitted packet and does not retransmit packets seen recently with the same checksum. WIDE3-3 example: Originating station sends the packet via WIDE3-3. Any WIDE which heard the packet direct (being sent to WIDE3-3) retransmits using WIDE3-2*. Any WIDE which heard the packet second hand (being sent to WIDE3-2*) retransmits using WIDE3-1* Any WIDE which heard the packet third hand (being sent to WIDE3-1*) retransmits it as WIDE3*. Any WIDE which hears the WIDE3* packet will not retransmit it. The packet s lifespan on the network ends. 11

More on APRS Digipeaters Digipeaters will respond to their own callsign, plus other aliases such as WIDE, RELAY, etc To work successfully APRS needs a number of dedicated WIDE digipeaters. All WIDE digipeaters are on the same channel, but are carefully positioned to avoid extra contention. Digipeaters keep track of the checksum of a packet for a defined period of time (eg. 30 seconds) and suppress digipeating packets which have the same checksum as they would be duplicates. How far will a wide get around Eastern MA: One WIDE Potentially most of Eastern MA Two WIDEs Most of Massachusetts (at least East of Springfield) plus neighbouring parts of RI, CT, VT, NH ME, etc Three WIDEs Probably most of New England plus NY, NJ etc Even one WIDE is good enough for the packet to make it the Internet gateways described later in the presentation 12

Typical Station Operations Upon entry into APRS the user supplies a location or a GPS unit can provide continuously updated locations over a serial port This location is transmitted to other stations on network following a the defined unproto path including various generic digipeaters. User can define how their station is displayed on map (Antenna, Tower, QTH, Car, Jeep, Bus, Plane, dozens more) Mobile stations with GPS receivers periodically transmit the NMEA strings from their GPS unit onto the APRS frequency. APRS decodes these packets and places the station on the map of the receiving stations. 13

Example of some RAW APRS packets AHUBWEST>APAX17,TCPIP*:!3241.32N\11425.33W& ahubwest.net ports 2023 (APRS Feed), 14579 (Regional Feed) 7 users HB9IBI 9>TV1QW4,HB9IAC 4,HB9BA 4,DB0LC*:' 'Rl >/]"8K} N0DYB 9>GPS,N0BKB*,WIDE,WIDE:$GPRMC,170553,A,4129.043,N,09522.968,W,000.0,196.3,270302,004.1,E*6F IK2ANB 11>APND0U,IK1VGG 11*,TRACE7 7,IK1SLD,I:=4542.15NN00939.73E#PHG6630/Digi_Ned: A.R.I. Bg www.aribg.it K4HG>APM344,TCPIP*:=2439.68N/08128.95WiPHG0000/Steve via Internet FLDADMIAMI 344 <138> PAKP>APRS,KK5WM 6,I:@271615z6808.00N/15144.00W_040/010g000t 18r000p000h62b10040wMETR N9OIG>APS203,TCPIP*:<IGATE MSG_CNT=23175 LOC_CNT=76 FILL_CNT=0 KB8UUW 1>APT202,RELAY,W8JEU 10,W8APR*:!3908.20N/08430.77W>000/000/A=000770 PAKP>APRS,KK5WM 6,I:>KK5WM METAR Virtual WX Stn PAKP Anaktuvuk Pass AL K3JF 15>WA2UEM 4*>APRS:!4050.56NT07439.50W#PHG6460 Succasunna NJ Digi Wide/Relay/Trace VA3ZIP>APW246,TCPIP*::VA3DVR 14:ack057 W9KXQ 15>APRS,WA9RES,W9DF 15*:!3851.36N/08926.93W#PHG5330/W R T...Greenville, IL VA3ZIP>APW246,TCPIP*::VA3DVR 14:ack058 K4HG>APM344,TCPIP*:_03271549c007s009g012t076r000p000P000h79b10177mU2K K4LKL 10>APRS,K4FB 14*,WIDE3 3/1:!2803.43NN08157.17W#PHG7460 Lakeland ARC W R T FL k4fb@arrl.net K4FRQ 10>APRS,WIDE:!2821.00NN08239.32W#PHG7260 Hudson,FL Digi D KE6FOA 15>APRS,W6BXN 3*,WIDE:$GPRMC,170558,A,3724.267,N,12051.087,W,000.0,309.7,270302,015.5,E*6B AG4GR>APK101,KD4HTW 9*,WIDE3:@271603z3452.33N/08221.78W;294/000/Mic E/M0/Off duty> AG4GR>STUR3T,KD4HTW 9*,WIDE3:'n1kl"z;/]"79} N8UMU>ID,RELAY,WIDE5 5:N8UMU/R WIDE/D N8UMU 1/B DB0ZWI>APZ186,WIDE,WIDE:!5044.58N/01227.00E#PHG5630/APRS DIGI Zwickau/Sax. S60 {UIDIGI 1.8} F1MPR 9>TX3WU0,F8KRH 15*,WIDE7 6,TRACE7 7,F5STO,I:`x5dl >/>Phone sur V/U 91... KD5LBK>APW247,TCPIP*:=3301.38N/09700.55W_PHG0000/WinAPRS 2.4.6 / Davis WMII TXDENLEWISVIL 247 <530> EB7HGZ>APU24N,TCPIP*:=3723.23N/00604.14WIe mail: r.munoz.moyano@terra.es {UIV32} KB9GN 9>APRS,K9MOT*,WIDE3 3:$GPRMC,170557.00,A,4205.70,N,08803.86,W,0.0,0.0,270302,0.0,E/GPS FIX K4IWL 15>APK101,WR6ABD*:@271710z3715.35N/12157.65Wk117/000/Mic E/M1/Enroute> VE6RAM>UQQWYP,RELAY,WIDE:'*XSl >/> W9RPM>APW251,TCPIP*:_03271606c164s010g010t048r000p000P000h00b00000wDAV KD7BYY 7>APK101,N7LF 10*,WIDE:@271610z4522.83N\12245.85WK336/009/Mic E/M1/Enroute> K4IWL 15>SW1USU,WR6ABD*:'1U^l! k/]"4v}len Plano TX k4iwl@arrl.net KD7BYY 7>TU2RXT,N7LF 10*,WIDE:'2Iql}@K\]"4F} KD5LBK>APW247,TCPIP*:_03271606c177s001g003t058r000p000P000h51b10067wDAV DL0REN>APZ186,DB0ZWI*,WIDE:!5026.51N\01127.09ELPHG2880/JO50RK Wetzstein KD4LZN 1>SR2T0U,LTROCK,WIDE3*,KD5AAY,I:'r)]l Fv/]"4a} N1WTQ>APW251,RELAY*,WIDE,W1YA,N1RWY,WIDE2 2:_03271706c114s000g001t037r000p000P000h99b10088wDAV KC0CNT>AP0922,N0ZED 5*,WIDE3 3:=3941.20N/10505.74WrAPRS+SA KF6HJO>APW251,TCPIP*:_03271703c142s003g004t055r000p000P000h91b10115wU2K KD4LZN 1>APK101,N4PK 10*,WIDE3:@271606z3224.05N/08613.65Wv042/000/Mic E/M1/Enroute> KE4HTM>APW251,TCPIP*:=3542.56N/08144.03WyPHG7190/Jamie in Morganton, NC USA (TCP/IP Only) NCBURMORGANTO 251 <630> 14

Frequencies VHF/UHF 144.390 MHz HF 10.151 LSB - Active 7.085 LSB - Not very active 15

The More Popular Implementations of APRS APRSdos Bob Bruninga (WB4APR) The original implementation The most functionality MacAPRS Mark Sproul KB2ICI, Keith Sproul WU2Z WinAPRS Keith Sproul WU2Z, Mark Sproul KB2ICI A version for Windows 9X and a version for MACs Someday will also work on Linux JavAPRS Steve Dimse, K4HG APRS+SA Brent Hildebrand, KH2Z PalmAPRS Mike Musnic UIVIEW XASTIR URLs to obtain the above (and others) at the end of this presentation and in the handout and at www.tapr.org 16

DOSAPRS Screenshot 17

APRS+SA Screen Shot 18

Typical Components of an APRS station 2M Radio There is also APRS over HF TNC Essentially a computer modem for radio. Some radios now have built in TNCs GPS Optional. Makes current latitude and longitude available to TNC or computer Computer Optional. Displays APRS information. Weather Station Optional. Mic-E 19 Optional. From TAPR. Allows mobile stations to update various APRS parameters and information. Also provides compression of APRS packets. Some radios with built in TNCs also provide the same functionality

GPS Receiver GPS satellite system is used to determine current positions especially of mobile stations Data from GPS receivers communicate to computers/tncs via ASCII strings over a serial port and transmitted over APRS Interpreted by received stations Strings are actually called sentences and the format is specified by the NMEA (National Marine Electronics Association). There are multiple sentences that can be used for APRS. One of them is detailed below. $GPRMC,220516,A,5133.82,N,00042.24,W,173.8,231.8,130694,004.2,W*70 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 10 11 12 20 1.220516 Time Stamp invalid 3.5133.82 current Latitude 5 00042.24 current Longitude 7 173.8 Speed in knots 9 130694 Date Stamp 11 W East/West 2. A validity A ok, V 4. 6. 8. 10. 12. N North/South W East/West 231.8 True course 004.2 Variation *70 checksum

TNC The TNC is usually the connection between computer and radio. Essentially a modem for radio. ASCII in/out of computer via RS232 and AFSK in/out of radio Other features: 21 GPS compatible Many support two serial ports Low power consumption Advanced routing BBS Mailbox, KA-NODE Telemetry Kantronics KPC3+ is a favorite (around $150 new) Kantronics KPC3+ PacComm Tiny TNC-2

TNC to RADIO wiring diagrams The Packet Radio and PSK31 Interface Home Page http:// www.packetradio.com/ 22

Typical APRS Mobile Tracker/Station Typical APRS Home Station 23

Typical Simple APRS Remote Digipeater No computers required Remote APRS Digipeater with WX Station 24

APRS Home Station with Weather Station Computer running APRSdos or WINAPRS etc Weather station could alternatively be connected directly to the TNC Many TNCs support two serial ports 25

APRS Tracker with Computer and WX Station Computer running APRSdos or WINAPRS etc Many TNCs support two serial ports Alternatively the WX station could be connected directly to the TNC and the GPS connected to the computer 26

TAPR Tucson Amateur Packet Radio Corporation www.tapr.org - produced the original TNCs Non profit amateur radio R&D corporation. Has membership benefits. The primary organization which promotes and organizes VHF amateur packet radio. Produces designs for equipment (like TNCs), MIC-E (no longer available), PIC-E, etc.. Home of the APRS SIG. Also the place to get latest versions of software, specs, etc URL is http://www.tapr.org/tapr/html/faprssig.html 27

The MIC-E TM Developed by TAPR. Kit not currently available but: Used compression to shorten APRS packets Provided a way for mobile stations to update their status or change unproto paths easily. Performs TNC function. Could be used to add position information to the end of a voice transmission Same protocol mechanisms (such as compression) used by newer APRS ready radios like Kenwood TM-D700 and TH-D7A. 28

Kenwood D700 APRS ready mobile radio 29 2M/440 Mobile with built in TNC and APRS capability, 1200 and 9600 baud Displays received station locations (text) and status/data. Receive and send APRS messages Easy to modify operations parameters and station status Does not include GPS. Requires GPS if used in a mobile/tracker (ie. GPS is external)

Kenwood HT TH-D7A 30 Dual Band (2M/440) HT with 1200 & 9600 baud built in TNC and APRS capability HT version of the same technology as the TM-D700A supplying the same capabilities. Does not include GPS

Station & Object Tracking Works for planes, trains, and automobiles as well as satellites Also works for tracking objects (discussed later in presentation) as well as mobile stations 31 GPS Software programs can record received station locations and replay the locations that were received by those stations

APRS Messaging APRS stations can send messages to other APRS stations. These stations to station messages are retransmitted until a defined maximum or until acknowledged by the target station. Because of the Ack mechanism you can determine if your message was received. Bulletins Short term messages that are time critical. For example storm warnings. Bulletins (and announcements) are not acknowledged Generally repeatedly transmitted at relatively short intervals for a couple hours and then stop. Announcements longer-term messages that are not very time critical. For example club meeting notifications. Generally sent once an hour for several days and then stop. 32

Examples: Messeging, Weather, Track Info 33 Message screen from WINAPRS showing messages between K1KWP and N1NOM

APRS Objects Stations can place objects on maps which are transmitted to the other stations. Objects can be stationary. Examples: Non APRS stations, Hospitals, Houses, DF sites, Firehouses, Fires, Accidents, EOCs, Shelters, Disasters Objects can be moving with predetermined course. Examples: Storms, Hurricanes, Tornados, Satellites Object position can be moved manually and receiving stations will be updated Stations on the network will see the location of these objects Stations on the network can update the location or status of the object if needed. 34

Weather Station Support and Reporting APRS can be used to make local weather observations available. Used by the Citizen Weather Observers Program Used by NWS, SKYWARN, etc Peet Brothers Ultimeter or Davis Weather Station (and others) can be connected to APRS allowing data to be transmitted automatically to the network. Temperature, Wind Speed, Wind direction, Rainfall, Humidity, Pressure Station can also manually enter data and send weather reports Peet Brothers Ultimeter 2000 Weather Station 35

Weather Stations Display 36

Severe Weather Support Highlights the geographical areas that currently have active watches/warnings etc Uses the messaging and object support Essentially the same geographical areas that NWS S.A.M.E. (Specific Area Message Encoding) uses. The APRS operator (or NWS/SKYWARN) can create objects for Hurricanes, Tornadoes, Thunderstorms As the status of the object changes the new status are shown to all stations on the network Notification of regions with watches and warnings can be sent and these regions will be highlighted on maps. Many NWS offices (including Taunton) have APRS support as part of their SKYWARN program MEMA has an APRS station in Framingham bunker 37

Example generated on Tuesday Sept 18,2001 Local NWS office can publish storm warnings on a area by area basis. Affected areas/counties will appear in silhouette 38

An example from a local weather event 39

Overlays Most APRS implementation support map overlays Locations of items of interest can be overlayed onto the map displays Common examples include locations of: All airports All NWS weather stations and/or remote sensors All the radio shacks Zip codes Airplane crash locations Overlay files included in software distribution. Also available from TAPR etc 40

41 Overlay Example: All the Radio Shacks

APRS Internet Support WWW.FINDU.COM For the last several years, the APRS internet system has been collecting APRS data from around the world and linking all the various local RF networks into a single real-time worldwide network hundreds of simultaneous users thousands of stations reporting. about 300,000 packets a day. driving force at this time is Steve Dimse (K4HG) Stores a single position and weather report for each station no provision for any longer-term storage of the data. You can access this database from www.findu.com Precautions have been taken to insure non-hams cannot get on the air. 42

View of the worldwide APRS network using the Internet. View of the USA APRS network using the Internet. 43

Stations Matching k1kwp* url: map.findu.com/k1kwp* Position of K1KWP-4 18.8 miles northeast of WORCESTER, MA Status: K1KWP@AMSAT.ORG;on MMRA 53.81&146.61&449.925;Shrewsbury & N.Eastham MA Report received 6 hours 23 minutes 36 seconds ago Raw packet: K1KWP-4>GPSLJ,N1PWU-15*,WIDE2,W1TYL-00:$GPGLL,4225.715,N,07131.956,W,123221,A*35 44

Amateur Radio Stations heard via PCSat/NO-44 http://www.findu.com/cgi-bin/pcsat.cgi 45

APRS on Satellites Various satellites are configured to support APRS packets Easy way to get exposure to operating with satellites small Doppler shifts when using 2M No special equipment (other than an APRS station) APRS is an efficient way to share a single channel satellite Immediate feedback on received station location The birds MIR was the first. The station went down with ship. Digipeater on the International Space Station PCSAT APRS Internet support also shows APRS packets received from satellites from around the world 46 Note : Because operating parameters may change no frequency specifics are given in this presentation. However that information is available from URLs given in this presentation

MIR Space Station APRS was being tested on the Russian Space Station MIR. MIR acted as a Wide Area Digipeater. The HAM equipment went down with the ship. 47 K9YO>CQ,R0MIR*:Greetings from West Aurora High School ARC, K9YO and gang N5TAM>APW230,R0MIR*:=3225.55N/09749.00W PHG5160/rbost@itexas.net TXHOOGRANBURY 230 <530> KH2NC>CQ,R0MIR*:email kh2nc@gw.n0qcu.ampr.org R0MIR>BEACON:MIR SPACE STATION K9YO>CQ,R0MIR*:Cedrick, Aurora, IL EN51 k9yo@amsat.org N2LZH>FN23AD,R0MIR*:welcome to woodstock, fn23 R0MIR>QST:>MIR SPACE STATION N5TAM>APW230,R0MIR*:=3225.55N/09749.00W PHG5160/rbost@itexas.net TXHOOGRANBURY 230 <530> N2LZH>FN23AD,R0MIR*:welcome to Woodstock R0MIR>QST::BLN1 :The MIR Crew & MIREX Team hopes you enjoy the R0MIR digipeater N3ZLL>FM29BN,R0MIR*:Greetings from Maryland! K1KWP>APW227,R0MIR*:=4216.13N/07143.93W PHG0000/Kevin in Shrewsbury MA K1KWP@ARRL.NET N9YUK 5>OLEYUK,R0MIR*:hello all mir chasers...oleyuk@shw R0MIR>BEACON:MIR SPACE STATION N4ZO>CQ,R0MIR*:http://www.users.sccoast.net/n4zo/n4zo.htm N3ZLL>FM29BN,R0MIR*: N5TAM>APW230,R0MIR*:=3225.55N/09749.00W PHG5160/rbost@itexas.net TXHOOGRANBURY 230 <530> N9YUK 5>BEACON,R0MIR*:>> OLE YUK'S MIR SPACE CHASING SHACK <> CARRIER MILLS, IL. USA R0MIR>QST:>MIR SPACE STATION N4ZO>CQ,R0MIR*:http://www.users.sccoast.net/n4zo/n4zo.htm N3ZLL>FM29BN,R0MIR*:Morning Steve R0MIR>BEACON:MIR SPACE STATION KB0VBZ>DM79,R0MIR*: W4JXM>CQ,R0MIR*,DE,W4JXM: WA6YET>EM36EJ,R0MIR*: K1KWP>APW227,R0MIR*: N9WJJ>CQ,R0MIR*: KD4HBO>CQ,R0MIR*:HELLO N9WJJ N1QAG>APR841,R0MIR*:=445. N/0722. Wy000/000/N.Troy.VT N2LZH>FN23AD,R0MIR*:FN23, Home of Woodstock 2004!!! VE3CBJ 7>T5RQ2X,R0MIR*:`gKvl /> KB2UYF>HELLO,R0MIR*:R0MIR>QST:>MIR SPACE STATION

International Space Station The International Space Station is currently acting as a wide area digipeater Part of ARISS (http://ariss.gsfc.nasa.gov/) Downlink (from ISS to Earth) on 2M. Uplink (from Earth to ISS) is also a 2M frequency APRS Equipment is in Russian part of the station. Callsign is RS0ISS VE4GLS-2>APW251,RS0ISS*:=4924.1 N/09718.2 W`>Gord, EN19; CQ Via ISS! N8IGJ>APW246,RS0ISS*:=4254.16N/08606.55W*PHG5170/n8igj@amsat.org -MIOTTHOLLAND -246-<530> KD6UOI>APR851,RS0ISS*:;KD6UOI *021409z3639.59N/08202.85W`.../.../ABINGDON, VA KD6UOI@AOL.COM VE4KGB>APW251,RS0ISS*:=5027.35N\09657.23WUPHG3294/WinAPRS 2.5.1 Dunnottar, Mb, Ca VE4KGB@rac.ca -251-<530> W2SKY>CQ,RS0ISS*,FN13GD,PETER:qsl k1kwp,w2kq KD6UOI>APR851,RS0ISS*:>021411zHELLO VIA THE INTERNATIONAL SPACE STATION K1KWP-4>APK101,RS0ISS*::ALL :Greetings from FN51; Cape Cod; K1KWP@amsat.org{5 K0TMH>ARISS,RS0ISS*: KB8KPV>CQ,RS0ISS*,EN75MH:Craig KB8KPV EN75MH Charlevoix MI kb8kpv@amsat.org K1EC>APW246,RS0ISS*:=4129.43N/07259.16W-PHG3130/k1ec@arrl.net Conrad -246-<530> KD6UOI>APR851,RS0ISS*:;KD6UOI *021409z3639.59N/08202.85W`.../.../ABINGDON, VA KD6UOI@AOL.COM RS0ISS>CQ:>ARISS - International Space Station KD6UOI>APR851,RS0ISS*:>021411zHELLO VIA THE INTERNATIONAL SPACE STATION KA2HZO-3>CQ,RS0ISS*,FM29US,RON::ALL :Columbia Continues Hubble Chase DE KA2HZO Ron in NJ VE2FCA>CQ,RS0ISS*:73's to all de francois n0an w9kao w2sky W9KAO>CQ,RS0ISS*:hi n0an KA2HZO-3>CQ,RS0ISS*,FM29US,RON:=3946.23N\07416.37WSGood Morning from the JERSEY SHORE ronchap@att.nevka2hzo-3 K1KWP-4>4Q5R4S,RS0ISS*:'aW(l j/]>>fn42&fn51;k1kwp@amsat.org W9KAO>CQ,RS0ISS*:GBA W9KAO,Schaumburg,IL VE2FCA>CQ,RS0ISS*:73's to all de francois n0an w9kao w2sky ve2mjy hi n8igj kb8kpv 48

Stations heard via ISS digipeater Feb 2002 49

NO-44 aka. PCSAT Developed by Naval Academy Midshipmen for <50K$ Has generated a lot of interest! 50 Uses off the shelf components (tape measure for antennas)

Stations heard via PCSAT digipeater Higher orbit allows greater contact range 51

PCsat, A Naval Academy Amateur Radio Satellite http://www.ew.usna.edu/~bruninga/pcsat.html RAW Traffic via PCSAT digipeater K9KNW>RU5X6P,PCSAT 1*:'mGtl v/>test VE3TKB>APM344,PCSAT 1*,WIDE:=4430.05N/08014.05WMPHG1000/ve3tkb@sympatico.ca iss/pcsat 1 watt beacon ONSIMCOLLINGW 344 <063> VE3TKB>APM344,PCSAT 1*,WIDE:=4430.05N/08014.05WMPHG1000/ve3tkb@sympatico44 <063> PCSAT 1>BEACON,SGATE:T#717,072,044,044,024,213,00111111,0100,1 VE3TKB>APM344,PCSAT 1*,WIDE:=4430.05N/08014.05WMPHG1000/ve3tkb@sympatico.ca iss/pcsat 1 watt beacon ONSIMCOLLINGW 344 <063> KG4RXU>S4TT6S,PCSAT 1*,WIDE3 3:'n*El >/>kfox@charter.net KA2HZO 3>CQ,PCSAT 1*,FM29US,RON:=3946.23N\07416.37WSHello via the PCSAT NO 44 FRM ronchap@att.net {UIVKA2 KA2HZO 3>CQ,PCSAT 1*,FM29US,RON:Good Evening PCSAT (NO 44) From Ron in NJ GOOD PASS WA4SAS 3>3U0U4P,PCSAT 1*:`lS=l >/>HELLO FROM CHARLOTTE WA4SSP 7>3URY4X,PCSAT 1*:'lVJl K\>Hello frm Denver,NC N8ULD>CQ,PCSAT 1*,:DAVE,IN,BEXLEY,OH: WA4SAS 3>3U0U4P,PCSAT 1*:`lS=l >/>HELLO FROM CHARLOTTE KC5OXI>SQ5S4S,PCSAT 1*,WIDE:'tW0nKOk/]"5=}Southbound N0AN 5>CQ,PCSAT 1*,EN22XC,HASAN:>EN22XC/ "hasan" in Ogden, IA n0an@amsat.org PCSAT 1>BEACON,SGATE:T#821,015,033,110,098,213,00111111,0100,1 K1KWP>APW251,PCSAT 1*:=4216.08N/07143.58W PHG2110/Kevin; K1KWP@amsat.org; Shrewsbury MA; FN42 251 <530> VE3TKB>APM344,PCSAT 1*,WIDE:=4430.05N/08014.05WMPHG1000/ve3tkb@sympatico.ca iss/pcsat 1 watt beacon ONSIMCOLLINGW 344 <063> VE3TKB>APM344,PCSAT 1*,WIDE:=4430.05N/08014.05WMPHG1000/ve3tkb@sympatico.ca iss/pcsat 1 watt beacon ONSIMCOLLINGW 344 <063> VE3TKB>APM344,PCSAT 1*,WIDE:?APRS? K1KWP>APW251,PCSAT 1*:=4216.08N/07143.58W PHG2110/Kevin; K1KWP@amsat.org; Shrewsbury MA; FN42 251 <530> PCSAT 1>BEACON,SGATE:T#137,015,033,044,024,213,00111111,0100,1 N0AN 5>CQ,PCSAT 1*,EN22XC,HASAN:>EN22XC/ "hasan" in Ogden, IA n0an@amsat.org K1KWP>APW251,PCSAT 1*:=4216.08N/07143.58W PHG2110/Kevin; K1KWP@amsat.org; Shrewsbury MA; FN42 251 <530> N0AN 5>CQ,PCSAT 1*,EN22XC,HASAN:>EN22XC/ "hasan" in Ogden, IA n0an@amsat.org PCSAT 1>BEACON,SGATE:T#241,015,033,044,024,213,00111111,0100,1 N0AN 5>CQ,PCSAT 1*,EN22XC,HASAN:>EN22XC/ "hasan" in Ogden, IA n0an@amsat.org K1KWP>APW251,PCSAT 1*:=4216.08N/07143.58W PHG2110/Kevin; K1KWP@amsat.org; Shrewsbury MA; FN42 251 <530> VE4KGB>APW251,PCSAT 1*:=5027.35N\09657.23W*PHG3294/WinAPRS 2.5.1 Dunnottar, Mb, Ca VE4KGB@rac.ca 251 <530> PCSAT 1>BEACON,SGATE:T#242,096,108,118,086,213,00111111,0101,1 N0AN 5>CQ,PCSAT 1*,EN22XC,HASAN:>EN22XC/ "hasan" in Ogden, IA n0an@amsat.org PCSAT 1>APRS3::BLN3PCSAT:www.ew.usna.edu/pcsat for details of operating 52

Stations can also receive and decode the telemetry packets which show the status of PCSAT PCSAT control program screenshot 53

Direction Finding APRS stations can transmit DF information that includes direction of the object signal from that QTH. Objects are added which correspond to non APRS stations participating in the hunt. These non-aprs stations of known location become part of the MAP that the whole network sees. Triangulation becomes possible. Every APRS station sees the bearings at the same time on the maps. Can be used with Omni-directional or beam antennas Serial Interface to KA4IIA Doppler DF allows automatic bearings to be sent 54

Conventional DF Triangulation using APRS Bearings are drawn just by telling APRS the direction 55

D.F. Stations plotted on map 56

DF ing without beams!! Omni Stations NOT hearing Fox. 57

Omni stations that DO hear the Fox 58

Plotted together on the map, it is EASY to see where the fox is 59

URLs: TAPR WB4APR APRS web page APRS Satellite Tracking and Reporting System Amateur Radio Stations heard via PCSat Amateur Radio Stations heard via ISS A Very Questionable Page Indeed! Geographical warning area support files: 60 TNC to RADIO wiring diagrams AX.25 Specification APRS specification Citizen Weather Observers Program Kantronics web site APRS FINDU Database Access http://www.tapr.org/ http://web.usna.navy.mil/~bruninga/aprs.html http://web.usna.navy.mil/~bruninga/astars.html http://www.findu.com/cgi-bin/pcsat.cgi http://www.findu.com/cgi-bin/ariss/index.cgi http://www.dididahdahdidit.com/ http://isl715.nws.noaa.gov/mapdata/newcat/ http://www.afcpo.com/na4v/nwszone.htm http://www.packetradio.com/ http://www.tapr.org/tapr/pdf/ax25.2.2.pdf ftp://ftp.tapr.org/aprssig/aprsspec/spec/aprs101/aprs101.zip http://www.fiu.edu/orgs/w4ehw/cwop-main.html http://www.kantronics.com/ http://www.findu.com/ Software: DOSAPRS UIVIEW APRS for Linux WINAPRS MACAPRS javaprs APRSPOINT APRS+SA http://www.tapr.org/tapr/html/softf.html http://website.lineone.net/~apritch/uiview.htm http://www.users.cloud9.net/~alan/ham/aprs/ http://www.tapr.org/tapr/html/softf.html http://www.tapr.org/tapr/html/softf.html http://www.aprs.net/javaprs.html http://www.aprspoint.com/index.htm http://www.tapr.org/~kh2z/aprsplus/