Robin ZL3TCM organized a AO-91 and AO-92 SSTV day on Saturday 14th of September. These satellites are good but I and most others have trouble with deep fades. The SSTV mode chosen was Robot 24 160 by 120 and Robot 36 320 by 240. Robot 24 is the fastest speed for a colour picture but Robot 36 with another 12 seconds has 4 times the picture quality ie definition than Robot 24.
Robin hopes to organize another SSTV day around Christmas time.I would like to thank the other uses for putting up with the strange sounding noises on the satellite. Testing in ZL can be done on the eastern passes as there is very little activity over the Pacific Ocean.
With automatic control of the Doppler and may be the antennas clashes with the software can be a major problem. Most properly the easiest way is to use the Microphone and speaker sockets like it used to be done with isolation transformers and optocoupler and relay control of a separate computer. Better still is to have a third computer just to receive the down link SSTV Picture.
The above is what I am working too as I have an array of old computers. MMSSTV does not require a fast computer or much memory. I use an FT847 with CAT control but it will all work I think with one computer on SSB but when the rigs on FM a different plug is used. (designed for packet radio on FM ). For Transmitting this time I used a speaker off the computer sound card, held it up to the FT847 Microphone and keying it manually. Which is not ideal but it works.
Some pictures received in ZL, ZL3MH Murray, ZL3TCM Robin, ZL3GAV Gavin. Stations in VK, VK2EVB Peter, VK4EM Merv, VK1DSH Dale and many others listening.
Author Murray ZL3MH
