West Texas Connection
Newsletter

JULY - AUGUST 1998
 
 
 

The WTC Newsletter is available on a bi-monthly basis for a subscription/donation of $12 per year.  Subscribers also receive new maps of the system twice a year.  Send $12 to:  WTC, P.O. Box 7033, Odessa, TX  79760  After postage, all money goes toward maintenance of the West Texas Connection.  Editor - Les Blalock, N5KOA   email:  lcb911@apex2000.net or n5koa@yahoo.com
 

 WTC Sunday Morning Net

The WTC Sunday Morning Net meets at 0900 (Central) every Sunday morning.  The net is informal and open to all.  Check in for local ham news and events.

The West Texas Connection homepage is at:
www.apex2000.net/nonprof/wtc
 

WTC News

The Alpine repeater on 146.94- was installed on June 22nd by Ric, KK5RIC.  Ric reports the site has provided excellent coverage in the past so we expect WTC coverage from there to reach well into the Big Bend area.  In the more hilly areas coverage may be spotty.

Some experimenting has been done with the  Midland repeater on 147.22.  Some changes in location may help the interference problem.

In May the antenna at Lamesa, 444.75 was moved up the tower and resulted in excellent coverage.  Stations from the Lubbock area checked in to the Sunday Morning Net and mobile stations were getting back in 45-50 miles away.  A tower climber had to be hired to do the job.

I’ve not heard the status of the Livermore, 147.08 site.  At this time the repeater is still on the mountain and working.

Mark, N5SOR, brought back some pictures of the Dark Canyon site after the tower blew down.  Hopefully, photos of the twisted tower will be posted on the WTC web site by the time this issue of the Newsletter goes out.

My thanks to Ric, KK5RIC for taking the net on June 21st.  I was attending a conference in Cincinnati and my attempt to get a fill-in net control prior to leaving failed.

MISC

Speaking of web sites…  The WTC web site has been updated to include the new Alpine repeater.  The on-line map is up-to-date and we’ll be hoping for a new paper map by next Newsletter.  (I doubt that I’ll be able to get the new maps before this issue goes in the mail.)  If you have a web site please link to the WTC.

New Vanity Callsign Fees

Beginning September 14, 1998, the vanity application fee will be lowered to $13.  As before, the new callsign “renews” your license for a term of ten years.  All vanity gates are now open so you can apply regardless of license class.
 

And now our feature presentation:
 
While pursuing my latest favorite ham radio activity, namely tracking Amateur Satellites (AMSAT), I happened upon a satellite phenomenon I thought others might be interested in – Iridium Flares.

Iridium “flares” (or “glints” as some call them) are simply the flash of light from Iridium satellites when the sun bounces off one of their surfaces – usually a solar panel.  I find a couple of  things particularly interesting about these “flares”.  First of all, they can be truly spectacular.  The first one I witnessed occurred at about 9:30 on the evening of June 6th.  There was enough daylight left to read my compass but a couple of stars were visible and the flare was a brilliant flash of light.  The second thing that fascinates me is the computer programs that predict these flares.

Iridium Flares
by Russell Sipe

Get ready folks. It’s about to begin. First it will be a UFO report:

"I was looking at the sky when I noticed this light traveling along that got brighter and brighter. I knew it wasn’t an airplane because there were no red lights. Just a bright light that got incredible brighter. It nearly blinded me. It couldn't have been from this world."

We will explain to them that what they saw was an Iridium satellite. Then the government conspiracy theories will start:

"Have you seen those bright flashes in the night sky?  The government is radiating us with iridium. It’s part of a vast conspiracy to sterilize males and control population growth."

We will tell them that is hogwash. They will respond by quoting a quatrain from Nostradamus in which he predicted these events.  When they discover that there are to be 66 of these satellites, they will make the minor jump from 66 to 666 and tell us how the Antichrist is behind it all.

Mark my words.

What’s Going On?

While we wait for these events, let’s enjoy this brief window of sanity and enjoy, or vilify (depending on your viewpoint) this phenomenon. In the May 1998 issue of Sky & Telescope Philip Chien wrote an excellent primer on Iridium flares. There are also a number of web sites covering the subject.

Beginning May 1997 Motorola began launching a series of  communications satellites known by the commercial name Iridium. The satellites have no association with the element iridium beyond the name.

Each satellite has three antennas each of which is about the size of a typical door in your home. Each antenna is a near perfect mirror so that when they are oriented just right a small portion of the earth will receive an nearly perfect reflection of the sun. A perfect "hit" will produce a flash of –8 magnitude. If the sun were a door sized object it would shine at a bit more than –8 magnitude. This is bright enough to cause dim shadows on the ground. There are reports that Iridium flares have been visible as glows in thin cloud-covered skies. However the magnitude drop off is rapid. A person at the center of the flash can see a –8 magnitude event while someone twenty miles away will only see a –4 magnitude (equal to Venus in brightness) event. Just using the phrase "only as bright as Venus" to describe a diminished apparition tells you that we are dealing with a new thing in the night sky.

Show Me The Money

The exciting thing is that these flares can be predicted with amazing accuracy. At the 1998 Riverside Telescope Maker’s Conference several predicted flares were observed by hundreds of observers. One, a –7 magnitude event, drew such a huge cheer from the crowd that it could be heard a mile away. Stephen     Edberg, an RTMC leader, commented that "hearing" the flares (i.e. the crowd) was nearly as exciting as seeing them. Another flare on the same night only reached –4 magnitude but was accented by a bright meteor during it’s passage.

The Good, or the Bad and Ugly

On any given night an observer could see a half dozen or more of these flares. Most will be dimmer than the ­8 monsters. You can expect to see a ­6 magnitude or greater flare once or twice a week if you know where to look.

The flares can be a disruptive element to amateur astronomers conducting wide
field astrophotography. The most dedicated photographers will run programs that predict the passage of these objects so as to avoid them.  Obviously, most amateur astronomers look upon these satellites as just one more
step along the slippery road of increased light pollution.

On the other hand, we have an opportunity here to make lemonade out of lemons. The Star Wars generation has been hard to impress with telescopic views of deep sky objects, and our explanations of the vastness of the universe. They are attune to exploding death stars and celestial dogfights. Their WOW factor is set very high. Getting them to come to a dark sky site to get wowed at the eyepiece is very difficult.

Fortunately astronomers have had a couple big wowsers in the last few years that have attracted the interest of the public.  First it was Shoemaker-Levy-9’s title bout with Jupiter. Then it was the Comet Hale-Bopp media tour. And the Hubble Space Telescope chimes in every six months or so with some incredible photo that makes the network rounds. So the one time big events have been there.

Now, with Iridium flashes, there is an ongoing predictable wowser than can serve as a Trojan horse to lure unsuspecting light pollution dwellers into the dark and majestic world of  astronomy. The Iridium satellites could become astronomers’ unwitting partners in building an interest in the night sky if they will seize the day, or should I say seize the night.

Become an expert in these objects. Learn how to predict their passage. Wow your friends. And tickle the interest of a potential new amateur astronomer. Or, depending on your personality, you could also predict the next UFO/government iridium flash over your boss's house.

[For more information about Iridium flares, or to download prediction programs and Keplerian elements, visit:

http://www.satellite.eu.org/sat/vsohp/iridium.html#programs

I’ve been using IRIDFLAR.EXE, a DOS program to predict the flares.  It’s easy to set up and use and it appears to be very accurate.  The flares I’ve seen have appeared within seconds of the predicted time.  Note that you’ll need to know your latitude and longitude within a few degrees for best results.  If you need help, drop me an email or give me a call on the Connection.  Les – N5KOA]

Submissions for the Newsletter are always welcome.  Send material by mail or (preferably) email as an attachment.  Most word processor formats are acceptable.  As editor, I reserve the right to refuse material.

Until next time…

73 de N5KOA