Ciel 2 Tracking
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At least someone who is READING FCC documents for sure !
[BTW, in my post above it was an example of reading some papers, not direct answer for mistaken post.]
[BTW, in my post above it was an example of reading some papers, not direct answer for mistaken post.]
It is almost scary now, I hope it is just the hollidays that is keeping the TLEs from getting updated and not seeing any activity yet.
While on the n2yo web site looking for any additional details on Ciel-2, I noticed that AMC-14 seems to be alive and well. Based on the figures shown, it seems to me that AMC-14 is in a stable orbit about 22,000 miles high, moving from west to east at 1440 miles per hour. I'm not knowlegeable enough to know, but the orbit may be circular (in the same exact path each rotation). The path is not at the equator, but crosses the equator at intervals. My guess would be that there is probably a 6-12 degree variance in latitude based on the earth's tilt, spin rate, and the speed of the satellite. A quick check of AMC-14 at Wikipedia noted that the satellite contained "advanced" art communications equipment including phased antenna arrays.
I found nothing new on Ciel-2. If anyone with more advanced knowledge cares to comment I would be interested in either facts or speculation.
Best regards and happy new year!
Fitzie
I found nothing new on Ciel-2. If anyone with more advanced knowledge cares to comment I would be interested in either facts or speculation.
Best regards and happy new year!
Fitzie
Understanding better the coverage maps
I am sorry for my ignorance, however you can not blame me for my honesty.
I do not quite understand the maps Nelson61 posted here, the basic part I understand, the different colors of the lines mean different signal strengths and different dish size needed.
The part where I get lost is why are lines and not circles ? And then there is parts where there is circles. For instance it seems that there is a small circle pointing to central Golf of Mexico. There is a yellow line basicaly on the border with Mexico but no circle, does it mean that from that point to the north until next color line the coverage is simply "horizontal" ?
I guess what confueses me is the irregular shapes of all the differnet coverage lines, is this related to most populated areas ? It seems to be a circle in Baja California Sur, is this accurate ?
All the areas out on the see are for yatch and cruise ship coverage ?
Nelson61 if you read this, would you be so kind to explain this a little more ?
There is some irregular shapes also pointing directly to central america.
Sorry if this is too obvious for most of you.
The other interesting part is when you mention "afordable dish size", so there is no limit on offset dish sizes ?
*** Just being curios ***
I am sorry for my ignorance, however you can not blame me for my honesty.
I do not quite understand the maps Nelson61 posted here, the basic part I understand, the different colors of the lines mean different signal strengths and different dish size needed.
The part where I get lost is why are lines and not circles ? And then there is parts where there is circles. For instance it seems that there is a small circle pointing to central Golf of Mexico. There is a yellow line basicaly on the border with Mexico but no circle, does it mean that from that point to the north until next color line the coverage is simply "horizontal" ?
I guess what confueses me is the irregular shapes of all the differnet coverage lines, is this related to most populated areas ? It seems to be a circle in Baja California Sur, is this accurate ?
All the areas out on the see are for yatch and cruise ship coverage ?
Nelson61 if you read this, would you be so kind to explain this a little more ?
There is some irregular shapes also pointing directly to central america.
Sorry if this is too obvious for most of you.
The other interesting part is when you mention "afordable dish size", so there is no limit on offset dish sizes ?
*** Just being curios ***
Did new sweep now - found nothing in 12.2-12.7 GHz range [R/L] between 129W and 148W moving the 1m dish in both directions.
I am more worried about something like a stuck solar panel or something and they are working to resolve it.
The Spaceway satellites are unique in this regard and require an enormous investment for a fraction of the capacity.
Clipper; Regarding your questions.
There is a practical limit to dish size for most of us. As the antenna gets bigger, the beam becomes more focused. A 20 inch dish probably can see satellites within 3 degrees or so of its focus point. A 16 foot diameter dish would see beams within about 0.5 degrees of the focus point. TV Satellites move around in a small figure 8 (box) about 0.1 degrees on a side when on station. You can have an antenna diameter so large that the satellite will move in and out of the focus area.
Regarding "footprints" - They test the antenna and predict performance before launch. You are looking at their prediction of what will actually happen. Vey weak signals extend over large areas of the earth. You can see see "hot spots" and "dead areas" in unexpected locations when the signal "wave" is either reinforced or canceled by secondary waves (think of ocean waves canceling or reinforcing each other) .
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Not necessarily.
If you have your lnb located exactly at the prime focus of the dish you do get a precise view of a smaller area of the sky, but all you have to do to widen that view is slightly defocus the lnb (move it in or out).
This is how the Dish and DirecTV offset dishes work, they are focused in the vertical plane but slightly defocused in the horizonal plane (dish is flattened slightly horizonally) so they see a line in the sky instead of a spot in the sky.
By adjusting the distance of the lnb to the 16 ft dish you can make it see a larger or smaller spot in the sky, with a slight compromise of signal strength.
Good point. Speaking from experience, the only problem is that when you need a really big antenna, you are not interested in compromise and are scratching for every fraction of a decibel.
Hi, Quantum! I suspect they are using the TT&C transponders.
Does anyone in the forum have access to any TT&C equipment that can receive this data?
And speaking of TT&C, what became of that video camera that's supposed to be on one of these EchoStar birds?
TT&C is permanent channel for 24/7 monitoring and control the sat. The freq allocated at an edge of 12.2-12.7 GHz range, it's beaming by narrow conus and can be registered at that particular earth station only.
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