Video by Fabio Baccaglioni As a consequence of the September 1 explosion of a SpaceX Falcon 9 launch vehicle during a “static fire” test, AMSAT has announced that the planned integration of Fox-1Cliff and Fox-1D on the maiden voyage of the Spaceflight SHERPA platform would be postponed. AMSAT said the impact of the incident on…
Let the conspiracy theories resume! Alaska’s High-Frequency Active Auroral Research Program (HAARP) facility will reopen in 2017. The sprawling facility now is under the ownership of the University of Alaska Fairbanks (UAF), and the UAF Geophysical Institute is preparing HAARP for a new sponsored research campaign that’s set to begin early next year, UAF Researcher…
Launch of the geostationary Es’hail-2 satellite into orbit is planned for December 2016. The satellite will be placed in a 25.5° orbit. Coverage of the Amateur Radio narrowband (NB) and wideband (WB) transponders should extend from Brazil to Thailand. Es’hail 2 will carry two “Phase 4” non-inverting Amateur Radio transponders operating in the 2.4 GHz…
In the early days of espionage, long before the advent of burner phones, satcoms, and other modern-day spy gadgets, getting word to field agents—especially those working behind the Iron Curtain—proved a dangerous game with global consequences should the agent’s cover be blown. But that’s where number stations, and their uncrackable radio codes, come in. A…
This morning, I had to cancel a DXpedition. It was one of the hardest decisions of my life. It was not for lack of permission, it was not for lack of a team and equipment willing to go. The prospect of a P5 activation brings out the worst in this hobby. The posers, the nuts,…