The performance of the Marshall Amateur Radio Club Experiment (MARCE) is reviewed. The responses, from the World Wide Amateur Radio Ground Stations, who received the Columbia to Earth direct radio downlinks, are discussed. Likewise, the MARCE radio relay link from Columbia through the AMSAT OSCAR AO-10 satellite to Earth is reviewed

Stluka, Edward F.

English

NASA Technical Reports Server

N87-20315
GET AWAY SPECIAL EXPERIMENTERS SYMPOSIUM
OCTOBER 7-8, 1986
GODDARD SPACE FLIGHT CENTER
PROJECT EXPLORER, GAS # 007
MARSHALL AMATEUR RADIO CLUB EXPERIMENT (MARCE)
STS-61C, COLUMBIA FLIGHT
FINAL REPORT
by
EDWARD F. STLUKA, W4QAU
MARCE PRINCIPAL INVESTIGATOR
ABSTRACT
This paper reviews the performance of the MARCE. The responses,
from the World Wide Amateur Radio Ground Stations, who received the
Columbia to Earth direct radio downlinks, are discussed. Likewise, the
MARCE radio relay link from Columbia through the AMSAT OSCAR AO-10
satellite to Earth is reviewed.
INTRODUCTION
GAS #007 was sponsored by Mr. Edward O. Buckbee, the Director of
the Alabama Space and Rocket Center, Huntsville, AL, in cooperation
with the Alabama Section of the American Institute of Aeronautics and
Astronautics. Dr. Konrad Dannenberg, Project Explorer Manager,
performed a cohesive and superb management task of keeping the Project
Explorer team together and interfacing with the Get Away Special
Officials at the Goddard Space Flight Center. Project Explorer was
planned to allow high school science students to fly their own
experiments on the Space Shuttle.
The University of Alabama (UA) Huntsville, UA Tuscaloosa, Auburn
University and The Alabana A & M University counselors selected the
student proposals, in 1978.
Three student experimenters maintained their interest and
persevered. They finally witnessed their experiments: Solidification
of Alloys; Plant Physiology; and Crystal Growth complete the long
sought flight.
The Marshall Space Flight Center Amateur Radio Club (MARC) was
requested to integrate the payload and provide the power, control,
measuring and data systems. The MARCE design, development, testing,
coordination and flight history are described in the 1984 and 1985 GAS
Experimenter's Symposium Proceedings.
The final success of the MARCE primary objective was dependent on
volunteer radio amateur operators, around the world, who would receive
the 435.033 MHz transmitted "voice Message", from Columbia and relay
the data to the MARC, in Huntsville, Alabama.
The secondary objective of relaying MARCE transmissions from
Columbia through the AMSAT (Radio Amateur Satellite Corporation) OSCAR
(Obriting Satellite Carrying Amateur Radio) AO-10 Satellite to Earth
on 145.972 MHz was realized when Joel Chalmers, KG6DX in Guam,
recorded a readable voice message. This amateur radio experiment
objective was considergd remotely improbable by the experts because of
the low 5 watt transmitter power and related link parameters.
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https://ntrs.nasa.gov/search.jsp?R=19870010882 2020-03-20T11:19:49+00:00Z
MARCEcould not have been successfully completed without the
positive and excellent support from those willing to provide hardware,
namely: I. Motorola, Fort Lauderdale, FL - 5 watt FM transmitter and
GSE receiver; 2. National Semiconductor Corp., Interep Associates,
Huntsville, AL - two sets of data system modules; 3. Zero Corp.,
Monson, Mass - Electronic Support Assembly Enclosure; 4. Midwest
Components Inc., Muskegon, MI - Thermal Sensitive Switches; 5. ICOM
America Inc., Bellevue, WA - IC-271A and IC-471A, OSCAR Ground Station
Transceivers; 6. KLM & Mirage, Gilroy, CA - CA-2M-22C and 435-18C
OSCAR Antennas; 7. Trio-Kenwood Communications, Compton, CA - TS-430S
Transceiver, power supply and speaker, TL-922A Linear Amplifier; 8.
University of Alabama, Huntsville Environmental Lab.- Guy Smith, as
head of the Lab. and Principal Investigator of the Plant Physiology
experiment, provided space for the GAS #007 fabrication, assembly and
testing, for both the STS-41G and the STS-61C flights. The UAH also
provided machine shop and related work. Guy performed a vital and
major part of the detail assembly and fastener selection and provided
standard laboratory test equipment.
MARCE was completed, over an eight year period, by volunteers and
support from the electronics industry, The University of Alabama,
Huntsville, amateur radio groups and surplus space hardware. The first
GAS #007 flight, on STS-41G, October 1984, had a 57 degree
inclination, had about four months of advanced coordination and
publicity and was launched on Challenger as planned, however, power
was never applied because of an operational error. STS-61C planning
data was not available until about four weeks prior to the December
18, 1985 first scheduled launch date.
AMSAT's telemail and Amateur Radio International Nets plus the
American Radio Relay League's (ARRL) WIAW bulletins were the primary
pre-flight data desimination methods. The record six delays taxed the
Orbiter mission operations and AO-10 timeline updating, especially to
the remote areas. With the low 28.5 degree inclination and the many
delays, the amateur radio coverage was uncertain. Without AMSAT and
the ARRL's WIAW updates, the MARCE would have not been successful.
The bulk of the cassettes and transcriptions were sent to N6ARE,
Jullian Macassey, Pasadena, CA., (AMSAT Vice President of Operations)
per the AMSAT Report. Julian agreed to be the focal point for
receiving and forwarding the MARCE data to MARC. A few cassettes were
sent direct to MARC, per earlier MARC publicity.
FLIGHT CONFIGURATION
GAS #007 was mounted in the forward position #4 on the GAS
Bridge, to maximize the distance from the aft bulkhead. The GAS Bridge
was designed by the Teledyne Brown Engineering Co., Huntsville, AL.
See Figure i. The MARCE antenna, designed by Reggie Inman, was mounted
so that the half-wave dipole rods were pointed in the X or flight
direction, to reduce RF reflection on the cargo bay's aft bulkhead.
Figure 2 shows the student experiment layout and Figure 3 is the MARCE
side.
The experiment package weighted 170 of the alloted 200 pounds.
The SRB Eagle Picher 50 amp hour battery supplied primary power. The 5
watt FM transmitter was turned on at the start of each minute, during
each eight hour downlink.
88
FIGURE 1 
STS-61C COLUMBIA 
LAUNCHED JANUARY 12, 1986 
GAS # 007 PROJECT EXPLORER 
FIGURE 2 FIGURE 3 
89 
The STS-41G control system, designed by Art Davis, WB4KKA and
Chris Rupp, W4HIY was configured for one transmission every 4 minutes,
to conserve power. The 10 dB attenuator, required on the STS-41G
mission, was not required on this mission.
The data system modules included the Digitalker TM and the NSC 800
microprocessor. The data system memory stored the voice message data
every 10 minutes, through out the powered mission. The direct downlink
data which was transmitted at the start of each minute, during each
eight hour downlink, provided a vital set of data, that would not be
available without world wide amateur radio operator support.
A total of 1,440 transmissions were programmed, for the three 8
hour downlinks. 486 messages have been received to date, which is
33.7%, of the 24 hour transmitter operation.
110 hours of GAS #007 operation were recorded in the MARCE
memory, giving 660 data messages stored in memory. The one minute
messages provided valuable transient data values, allowing more
critical experiment performance evaluation to be conducted. The
pre-prepared GAS #007 power profiles allowed a comparison of design to
flight operations. The results were excellent and exciting, when the
comparison was made in near real time.
PRE-FLIGHT COORDINATION
The three in-space emission notifications were sent to the FCC
and approval was received. Likewise the Cape Canaveral approval for
pre-flight emission tests was received. Two SRB batteries were
activated and load tested. Leigh Du Pre', WB4WCX carried the GAS #007
flight package to Cape Canaveral, FL and with Guy Smith, they
performed the pre-flight final assembly and tests, for the flight GAS
container integration.
Gil Carman, WA5NOM, provided the STS-61C, Columbia timelines and
ground tracks for downlinks i, 2, and 3 and OSCAR AO-10 timelines, for
MARCE to OSCAR AO-10 relay opportunities. AMSAT distributed this data
along with AMSAT's AO-10 tracking data.
Vern (Rip) Riportella, WA2LQQ, president of AMSAT and editor of
the Amateur Satellite Report (ASR), informed the world wide AMSAT
community about MARCE via ASR, Telemail and the AMSAT Radio Nets.
Bernie Glassmier, W9KDR, WIAW manager, sent daily bulletins world
wide, from the ARRL's powerful radio station in Newington, Conn..
FLIGHT SUMMARY AND SUPPORT ACTIVITIES
STS-61C, with Orbiter Columbia, was the 24th Space Shuttle
flight. The crew: Robert L. Gibson, Cmdr.; Charles F. Bolden, Pilot;
Franklin Chang-Diez, Mission Specialist (MS); Steven A Hawley, MS;
George D. Nelson, MS; Robert Cenkter, Payload Specialist (PS)-RCA;
Bill Nelson, PS-U.S. Congressman.
Launch occurred on January 12, 1986, at 11:55 UTC, from The
Kennedy Space Center, FL. The flight completed 6 days, 2 hours and 4
minutes, with the landing at Edwards AFB, CA, on January 18, 1986, at
12:59 UTC. The launch was delayed six times and the landing attempt
waved off three times.
9O
On January 12, 1986, the MARC conducted an STS-61C and MARCE
commemorative and was manned to receive radio relays of the first
downlink. The first transmission started east of Ascension Island, at
the end of orbit #8, at 2345 GMT. Jim Martin, K5QNI, GSFC, coordinated
the NASA Ground Station amateur radio operations with Ascension and
Guam Islands.
The first report received was from Gil Carman, WA5NOM, Houston,
TX. Gil heard the MARCE relay through AO-10, about 30 minutes after
GAS #007 turn-on. The signal was too weak to read the voice message,
but the frequency, the 30 second transmissions, the spin modulation
and the doppler were sufficient to confirm power-on.
The second confirmation received was from V. Rip Riportella,
WA2LQQ, who relayed the 00121, 00122 and 00123 hours, voice messages
received by Junior De Castro, PY2BJO, in Sao Paulo, Brazil. Junior
provided the first real data revealing that the battery was healthy,
the 8 status conditions were proper, as were the temperatures and the
pressure. Junior provided subsequent reports by telephone, whereby the
data was re-recorded on our cassette.
The downlinks i, 2 and 3 tracking timelines were used for
correlating Columbia's location and MARCE transmission times. Many of
the ground stations were equipped with computers. This allowed
independent tracking of Columbia and AO-10, since the Keplerian
elements were available for both. The missing link was the MARCE
transmitter turn-on times. This was provided through AMSAT, WIAW and
other amateur radio means.
The three downlinks occurred as planned. When the STS-61C mission
was cut short due to weather, GAS #007 was powered down at the end of
the third day, with the other GAS payloads. However, when weather
forced the first of three wave-offs, a request to power-up GAS #007
was authorized for a fourth unscheduled eight hour downlink. At the
end of the fourth day, GAS #007 was again powered down, for an
intended landing the next morning. When weather again extended the
mission, a fifth downlink was initiated. Frantic coordination was
attempted to inform as many world wide amateur radio operators as
possible. The fourth downlink could not have been received, but this
was not known until it was learned from the MARCE post flight memory
data dump that the transmitter had not been turned on. The memory data
showed that GCD relay B was not actuated, for the fourth downlink but
was for the fifth downlink. This was easily varifiable by studying the
Ii current reading. The data provided an excellent signature of actual
operation.
On April 17, 1986, a very valuable mini cassete tape was received
from JASBSK/Kohji Yokono in Hokkaido Japan. It provided the only
messages received, to date, from the fifth downlink.
FLIGHT DATA
The "POST FLIGHT DATA ANALYSIS" of the on-board MARCE memory and
data system is presented in a separate paper by Charles C. Rupp,
W4HIY. Chris did it all! He designed the data system, selected the
components, built the pc boards from masking to soldering and testing,
did all of the software and debugging. And he stuck with it during
these many years. That type of dedication and individual expertise is
seen in the many other persons involved in this project,
91
and traceable to the many amateur radio operators who gave their time,
postage, cassette tapes, etc. to make MARCEa SUPER success.
The "DIRECT DOWNLINKGROUND STATION RESULTS" are provided in
Table i, which lists the world wide Amateur station locations and the
MARCEmessage data gathering details, for all direct downlink messages
received. A summary of the direct downlink results is provided at the
end of Table i.
The data analysis revealed large variations in temperature, with
the exception of TI, mounted on the outside of Experiment I, Oven 1
and T2, mounted on the outside of Oven 2. T1 and T2 were designed to
measure and react (control) if either oven developed an over
temperature condition, which never occured. T3 through T6 revealed the
colder than expected temperatures. The low temperatures, at the start
of Downlinks 2 and 3 resulted from low power consumption after each
downlink. T3 shows warmer temperatures because of Experiment 2 heater.
T4 shows a colder than expected condition - Experiment 3 heater
batteries expired. T5 measured the canister internal ambient
temperature. T6 was located in the center of the SRB battery. V1 and
Ii measured the SRB battery voltage and current. Both were nominal,
even with the temperature far below the expected low of -5 v C. PI, the
cansister pressure, varied with the temperature, as expected. The
measurements were taken directly from the data provided by those
listed in Table i.
The response from those listed in Table 1 was beyond our wildest
expectations. The data is extra special, as it filled the gaps,
between the i0 minute on-board data storage points, in significant
numbers. The annotations on the data cassettes and letters received
were very interesting and supportive of MARCE, the Space Shuttle
Program, the Get Away Special Program and Amateur Radio.
The many hours of tracking, listening and planning, by the large
group of ground station operators is evident by the Table 1 analysis.
Those who attempted to receive the AO-10 relays spent many hours with
disappointing results. The many hours of cassette recordings is
factual evidence. Many AO-10 relay signals are recorded, with the spin
modulation very evident, but no voice messages because of the very
weak signals. The 30 and 45 second transmissions are also evident.
A special commemorative certificate will be sent to all those
participating in this very successful space experimentation venture.
STUDENT EXPERIMENT RESULTS SUMMARY
Experiment i, Solidification of Alloys, Ovens 1 and 2 performed
as planned. A thermocouple in each oven malfunctioned. Redundant
thermocouples gave the temperature readings needed.
Experiment 2, Plant Physiology, did not have the 120 hours
desired. Less than 70 hours were available due to the shortened
mission. Also, the growth chamber was colder than planned. A few
centimeters of root growth did occur, so a limited success was
realized.
Experiment 3, Crystal Growth, likewise had limited success. The
heater batteries expired, resulting in a colder environment than
planned. A few millimeters of crystals grew. These short crystals made
it extremely difficult to make measurements. Also, the solution froze
and thawed during the mission. The effects are being studied.
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MARCE DIRECT DOWNLINK VOICE MESSAGES
CALL NAME PLACE
CE3BCF
CE3KB
CE3XK
FICDC
JA2BGX
JA2GSD
JA2NCF
JA3CF
JA3XJK
JA8BSK
JA8PL
JE3MXU
JHIRNZ
JH2DCW
JH3FDA
JAIME G. COSTABAL
RAMON C. JIMENEZ
RENATO C. REEVES
CLAUDE CARLIERE
KAZUYUKI OKUMURA
KIICH YAMAGUCHI
AIJI KAWAI
YOSHI HIRO
TERUO KURODA
KOHJI YOKONO
M. SATO
HIRO
ISAO NAKASHIMA, MD
SHINNOSUKE YAMADA
SANTIAGO, CHILE
SANTIAGO, CHILE
SANTIAGO, CHILE
L'UNION, FRANCE
SHIZUOKA, JAPAN
SHIZUKA-KEN, JAPAN
SHIZUOKA, JAPAN
WAKAYAMA, JAPAN
JYOUD KYOTO, JAPAN
HOKKAIDO, JAPAN
HOKKAIDO, JAPAN
JAPAN
KANAGAWA, JAPAN
SHIZUOKA, JAPAN
JAPAN
JH6EGU/2MICHIYASU SAKAIDA, MD TOKIWA, JAPAN
JH7CKF
JIIVYH
JRIRBR
KG6DX
PY2BJO
VK5AGR
WH6AMX
ZD8LM
ZLIAOX
ZLIPK
ZLITEE
ZS6AKV
ZS6BMN
5Z4EG
5Z4RG
HAJIME JUKUDA
YASUO NAGAI
KEIJI IMAI
MINORU OHMINE
JOEL CHALMERS
JUNIOR T. DE CASTRO
G. R. RADCLIFF
RICK G. DITTMER
LEE MC LAMB
IAN ASHLEY
PHIL KING
R. RALPH CARTER
KWATE, JAPAN
TOKYO, JAPAN
TOKYO, JAPAN
OKINAWA, JAPAN
LATTE HEIGHTS, GUAM, IS
SAO PAULO, BRAZIL
CLARENCE PEAK, SOUTH AUSTRALIA
HONOLULU, HAWAII
ASCENSION, IS
AUCKLAND, NEW ZEALAND
ROTORAU, NEW ZEALAND
AUCKLAND, NEW ZEALAND
J. VAN DE GROENANDALL RYNFIELD, SOUTH AFRICA
JAN HATINGH VERWOERDBURG, SOUTH AFRICA
ANTHONY G. HIGBY NIROBIE, KENYA
ALAN HORNE NIROBIE, KENYA
# OF VOICE
MESSAGES
6
14
31
5
35
30
28
4
12
7
2
4
28
9
17
19
8
NO TIMES
5
5
7O
47
7
I0
44
14
1
2
8
6
3
6
SUMMARY OF MARCE VOICE MESSAGES SUMMARY OF GROUNDSTATIONS
% No.
JAPAN 44 213
ALL OTHERS 56 273
TOTAL 486
TABLE I
No°
JAPAN 16
SO. AFRICA 2
ASCENSION, IS 1
AUSTRALIA 1
BRAZIL 1
CHILE 3
FRANCE 1
GUAM, IS 1
HAWAII 1
KENYA 2
NEW ZEALAND 3
TOTAL 32
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