If all goes according to plan (which is never certain
when it comes to space flight), there will soon be a ham station on the surface
of the moon, transmitting a beacon in the 70-centimeter band. According to the
AMSAT News Service, the Japanese OMOTENASHI cubesat is scheduled to be deployed
into lunar orbit by NASA’s Space Launch System on the Artemis launch, which at
press time was scheduled for its third liftoff attempt in late September or
early October. For details and updates, visit the OMOTENASHI website at <
https://tinyurl.com/4rrtw39h>.
Two Genesis satellites built by AMSAT-EA in Spain
are scheduled to launch on the commercial Firefly booster rocket from Vandenberg
Air Force Base in California. The launch, originally scheduled for early
September, was scrubbed twice due to weather conditions, and is now awaiting rescheduling. If successfully orbited, the two
satellites will provide FM voice and AFSK/FSK repeaters, including packet and
APRS capabilities.
