A guide to understanding and using amateur-radio, weather, and tv-broadcast satellites.

The ARRL satellite handbook brings the thrill of satellite communications within your reach. Filled with understandable descriptions and illustrations, this book includes all the tools you need to participate in this exciting field. It's designed to give a broad introduction to the subject, while providing the practical fundamentals you need to explore, track and operate ham radio satellites on your own. Contents : A brief history of amateur radio satellites, satellite orbits and tracking, satellite communication systems, your satellite ground station. Satellite operating and amateur satellite projects.

Amsats and Hamsats provides a step by step guide to how you can communicate through amateur radio satellites and how to receive signals from other small satellites and 'weather' satellites. The book gets right into the techniques you will need for working amateur radio stations through amateur radio satellites, then moves on to listening, or watching, signals from other satellites. There are chapters answering questions like, 'how do satellites stay in orbit' and 'why are they so expensive to launch?' Followed by sections about the history of amateur radio satellites, the mathematics governing orbits, TLE files, different types of satellite and their orbits. It covers the equipment you need, to track and use the amateur satellites and some of the satellite tracking software that is available. There are detailed sections covering transponders, satellite bands, feeders, masthead preamplifiers, antenna systems and automated rotator control. Plus chapters on the FUNcube Satellites, Weather Satellites and even the International Space Station. Amsats and Hamsats provides the ultimate guide to operating satellites and how they work. Its 368 pages are a great value guide to this stimulating and challenging area of amateur radio activity. Whether you want to get started or you are already an experienced operator you will find something of value in these pages.

From setting up a station and choosing the right antenna for the right satellite to tracking the "birds," this volume has info on operating, antennas, software, profiles of active satellites, Internet sites, FCC rules governing amateur satellite service and a glossary.