On December 12, 1961, Amateur Radio entered the Space Age when OSCAR-1 was launched. Since then, amateurs from more than 22 different countries have launched over 70 satellites, exploring both digital and analog satellite technology. Many of the latest birds have been school experiments, training scientists and engineers. But, you don’t need to be a rocket scientist to participate-- Some satellites operate FM and can actually be worked using a dual-band handheld transceiver. An excellent place to start is the AMSAT-NA FAQ page. AMSAT, or the Radio Amateur Satellite Corporation, has played a key role in building, launching, and using amateur satellites.Occasionally, Radio Amateurs can talk with the astronauts on the International Space Station. For more information check out ARISS.

Bob Allison, WB1GCM, ARRL Test Engineer, interviews some of the key people today in AMSAT. Recorded November 5th, 2011 at the AMSAT Symposium in San Jose, California. Video by ARRL  Laboratory Technical Consultant, Jerry Ramie, Ki6LGY.

For more information about the ARRL's working Oscar 1 prototype, see February, 2012 QST.

• OSCAR-1 Launched 50 Years Ago
  By Andreas Bilsing, DL2LUX. Translated and reprinted with the permission of Funkamateur

• QRP to the ISS by Doug Cook, KD5PDN
  QST February 2012
  Contacting the International Space Station with a few watts and a shoestring budget antenna.

• An Amateur Satellite Primer
  QST April 2000, pp. 36-41
  If you think you might like to work satellites but think it is difficult and expensive, this is a must read
  (Note: This article contains a chart showing the Uplink and Downlink frequencies of several amateur satellites at the time of publication of the April 2000 QST. These frequency pairs can be reversed without notice by the control operator of the individual satellite. If you don't hear the signal near the Downlink frequency, you might want to check for the latest status.
• Those Keplerian Elements
  Operating Manual 3rd Edition p. 13-19
  What do those numbers mean?
• Loading ARRL Keplerian Bulletins into InstanTrack
  Question submitted to the ARRL Technical Information Service
• A Simple Fixed Antenna for VHF/UHF Satellite Work 
  QST August 2001, pp. 38-41
  Work the low-earth orbiting satellites with this effective Turnstile Antenna system
• A Low-Loss VHF/UHF Bias Tee  
  QEX May/June 2002, pp. 52-54
  A simple circuit that lets you superimpose DC control voltage onto the transmission line without altering the RF characteristics.
• An Inexpensive External GPS Antenna
  QST October 2002, pp. 36-39
  An easy to build antenna for your GPS unit for better reception.
• Satellite DXing "To Go"  
  QST June 2002, pp. 40-43
  Working the Amateur Satellites from a mobile.
• Normally a valuable membership benefit, product reviews of the Hamtronics R139 and R303-137 weather satellite receivers are available for download  to assist the educational community.  Hamtronics Receiver Review Download.

• ARISS News and Information
  The latest Information about the ARISS program
• Keplerian Elements from ARRL
• AMSAT - The Radio Amateur Satellite Corporation
• Putting Together Your Receiving System
• Orbitessera
  Orbitessera provides a mosaic of orbital information.
• Welcome to Heavens-Above
  24 hour predictions for radio amateur satellites over your city
  (This site is not very intuitive, but it does work well - Ed.)
• Arrow II Satellite Antenna
  (seen in photo at top)
  Product Review
  QST June 2000, p. 64
  
• PCsat, A Naval Academy Amateur Radio Satellite
• Clint Bradford, K6LCS, describes how to work FM Amateur Satellites with your handheld transceiver.