An Introduction to Satellite Meteorology explores the many ways that NOAA satellites help meteorologists predict the immediate weather and long-term climate behavior to make our lives more enjoyable and safer. Start now by clicking on Introduction to Satellite Meteorology
Satellites and Climate Change begins with a review of the natural and man-made causes of climate change and how its impacts our lives over the short and long terms.
Satellites and Pollution Control examines the root causes of pollution, both natural and man-made. It looks at the effects of pollution on our environment and our health.
Several more courses will be added within the year.
Check out the BuzzSat coloring book, available as a free download.
“Satellites in Space” coloring book, free from AMSAT. Credits: AMSAT
BuzzSat designed the coloring book
… for kids with an interest in satellites and how they play a role in our modern lives.
The book is comprised of twelve 2-page spreads that show how satellites are used and the benefits they provide. Topics include satellites and:
Agriculture Broadcasting Communications Climate Change Pollution Control Fighting Wildfires Preserving Wildlife Space exploration Navigation Meteorology Research on the ISS Search and Rescue
The book also includes a discussion guide for each topic. It is written for parents, group leaders or teachers who want to use the coloring books in their educational activities. But, not to worry – please use these coloring books for just plain fun.
===
AMSAT has a deal for joining. The Feb. 22nd issue of the AMSAT News Service Weekly Bulletin says:
AMSAT is offering a limited-time promotion for new and renewing members that includes a free digital copy of Getting Started with Amateur Satellites. The promotion is being offered as AMSAT begins the 2026 membership year.
Anyone who joins or renews their AMSAT membership during the promotional period will receive a download link for the latest edition of Getting Started with Amateur Satellites in their membership confirmation email. The guide is designed to help radio amateurs understand the fundamentals of satellite operation and serves as a practical reference for both newcomers and operators returning to the hobby. Additional information about AMSAT membership is available at https://launch.amsat.org.
Cover page for “Getting Started With Amateur Satellites”. Credits: AMSAT
In addition to this limited-time promotion, AMSAT membership includes a subscription to The AMSAT Journal, access to archived issues, discounts on selected items in the AMSAT online store, and opportunities to participate in AMSAT elections, committees, awards programs, and other AMSAT activities and programs. Members may also access archived proceedings from past AMSAT Space Symposiums through the AMSAT member portal.
Beyond these tangible benefits, AMSAT membership supports the development, launch, and operation of amateur radio satellites, along with education and outreach efforts. Joining AMSAT is not just about individual benefits — it is about being part of the community that builds and operates amateur satellites for radio amateurs worldwide. As AMSAT looks ahead to 2026, the promotion helps launch another year of growth and opportunity for amateur radio in space.
This shows a still image of the supermassive black hole Sagittarius A*, as seen by the Event Horizon Collaboration (EHT), with an artist’s illustration indicating where the modelling of the ALMA data predicts the hot spot to be and its orbit around the black hole. Credits: ESO
Using the Atacama Large Millimeter/submillimeter Array (ALMA), astronomers have spotted signs of a ‘hot spot’ orbiting Sagittarius A*, the black hole at the centre of our galaxy. The finding helps us better understand the enigmatic and dynamic environment of our supermassive black hole.
“We think we’re looking at a hot bubble of gas zipping around Sagittarius A* on an orbit similar in size to that of the planet Mercury, but making a full loop in just around 70 minutes. This requires a mind blowing velocity of about 30% of the speed of light!”
says Maciek Wielgus of the Max Planck Institute for Radio Astronomy in Bonn, Germany, who led the study published today in Astronomy & Astrophysics.
The observations were made with ALMA in the Chilean Andes — a radio telescope co-owned by the European Southern Observatory (ESO) — during a campaign by the Event Horizon Telescope (EHT) Collaboration to image black holes. In April 2017 the EHT linked together eight existing radio telescopes worldwide, including ALMA, resulting in the recently released first ever image of Sagittarius A*. To calibrate the EHT data, Wielgus and his colleagues, who are members of the EHT Collaboration, used ALMA data recorded simultaneously with the EHT observations of Sagittarius A*. To the team’s surprise, there were more clues to the nature of the black hole hidden in the ALMA-only measurements.
By chance, some of the observations were done shortly after a burst or flare of X-ray energy was emitted from the centre of our galaxy, which was spotted by NASA’s Chandra Space Telescope. These kinds of flares, previously observed with X-ray and infrared telescopes, are thought to be associated with so-called ‘hot spots’, hot gas bubbles that orbit very fast and close to the black hole.
“What is really new and interesting is that such flares were so far only clearly present in X-ray and infrared observations of Sagittarius A*. Here we see for the first time a very strong indication that orbiting hot spots are also present in radio observations,”
says Wielgus, who is also affiliated with the Nicolaus Copernicus Astronomical Centre, Poland and the Black Hole Initiative at Harvard University, USA.
“Perhaps these hot spots detected at infrared wavelengths are a manifestation of the same physical phenomenon: as infrared-emitting hot spots cool down, they become visible at longer wavelengths, like the ones observed by ALMA and the EHT,”
adds Jesse Vos, a PhD student at Radboud University, the Netherlands, who was also involved in this study.
The flares were long thought to originate from magnetic interactions in the very hot gas orbiting very close to Sagittarius A*, and the new findings support this idea.
“Now we find strong evidence for a magnetic origin of these flares and our observations give us a clue about the geometry of the process. The new data are extremely helpful for building a theoretical interpretation of these events,”
says co-author Monika Mościbrodzka from Radboud University.
This visible light wide-field view shows the rich star clouds in the constellation of Sagittarius (the Archer) in the direction of the centre of our Milky Way galaxy. The entire image is filled with vast numbers of stars — but far more remain hidden behind clouds of dust and are only revealed in infrared images. This view was created from photographs in red and blue light and form part of the Digitized Sky Survey 2. The field of view is approximately 3.5 degrees x 3.6 degrees. Credits: ESO
ALMA allows astronomers to study polarised radio emission from Sagittarius A*, which can be used to unveil the black hole’s magnetic field. The team used these observations together with theoretical models to learn more about the formation of the hot spot and the environment it is embedded in, including the magnetic field around Sagittarius A*. Their research provides stronger constraints on the shape of this magnetic field than previous observations, helping astronomers uncover the nature of our black hole and its surroundings.
The observations confirm some of the previous discoveries made by the GRAVITY instrument at ESO’s Very Large Telescope (VLT), which observes in the infrared. The data from GRAVITY and ALMA both suggest the flare originates in a clump of gas swirling around the black hole at about 30% of the speed of light in a clockwise direction in the sky, with the orbit of the hot spot being nearly face-on.
“In the future we should be able to track hot spots across frequencies using coordinated multiwavelength observations with both GRAVITY and ALMA — the success of such an endeavour would be a true milestone for our understanding of the physics of flares in the Galactic centre,”
says Ivan Marti-Vidal of the University of València in Spain, co-author of the study.
The team is also hoping to be able to directly observe the orbiting gas clumps with the EHT, to probe ever closer to the black hole and learn more about it.
“Hopefully, one day, we will be comfortable saying that we ‘know’ what is going on in Sagittarius A*,”
Wielgus concludes.
This image shows the Atacama Large Millimeter/submillimeter Array (ALMA) looking up at the Milky Way as well as the location of Sagittarius A*, the supermassive black hole at our galactic centre. Highlighted in the box is the image of Sagittarius A* taken by the Event Horizon Telescope (EHT) Collaboration. Located in the Atacama Desert in Chile, ALMA is the most sensitive of all the observatories in the EHT array, and ESO is a co-owner of ALMA on behalf of its European Member States. Credits: ESO
Here is the latest episode in NASA’s Space to Ground weekly report on activities related to the International Space Station:
** Expedition 67 Space Station Talks with NASA, European Space Agency, Italian Officials-June 17, 2022 – NASA Video
Aboard the International Space Station, Expedition 67 crew members Kjell Lindgren, Bob Hines and Jessica Watkins of NASA and Samantha Cristoforetti of ESA (European Space Agency) discussed life and work aboard the orbital outpost during an in-flight event June 17 with NASA Administrator Bill Nelson, ESA officials, and ministerial representatives in Rome. Lindgren, Hines, Watkins, and Cristoforetti are in the midst of a long-duration science mission living and working aboard the microgravity laboratory. The goal of their mission is to advance scientific knowledge and demonstrate new technologies for future human and robotic exploration missions as part of NASA’s Moon and Mars exploration approach, including lunar missions through NASA’s Artemis program.
An educational in-flight call with ESA astronaut Samantha Cristoforetti on board the International Space Station for teachers and students in Europe, connecting live with local events organised by ESERO Italy, ESERO Portugal and ESERO Luxembourg.
** China’s Shenzhou-14 Crew Busy with Various Tasks After 13 Days in Space Station – CCTV Video News Agency
The three Chinese astronauts who have been piloting the Shenzhou-14 spaceship are now busy with a slew of work tasks after the trio have spent 13 days at the Tianhe core module of China’s Tiangong space station.
** International Space Station Radios | Talk to Astronauts | Cross-Band Repeater Ops – Tim Kreitz Adventures
How to use the radios onboard the International Space Station, presented to the Midland Amateur Radio Club by W5GFO.
Currently, live views from the ISS are streaming from an external camera mounted on the ISS module called Node 2. Node 2 is located on the forward part of the ISS. The camera is looking forward at an angle so that the International Docking Adapter 2 (IDA2) is visible. If the Node 2 camera is not available due to operational considerations for a longer period of time, a continuous loop of recorded HDEV imagery will be displayed. The loop will have “Previously Recorded” on the image to distinguish it from the live stream from the Node 2 camera. After HDEV stopped sending any data on July 18, 2019, it was declared, on August 22, 2019, to have reached its end of life. Thank You to all who shared in experiencing and using the HDEV views of Earth from the ISS to make HDEV so much more than a Technology Demonstration Payload!
A $47,533 ARRL Foundation grant will fund the initial phase of the Amateur Radio on the International Space Station (ARISS‐USA) *STAR* Keith Pugh Memoriam Project. *STAR*, which stands for Space Telerobotics using Amateur Radio, honors the memory of Keith Pugh, W5IU, a highly respected member of the ARISS team who died in 2019. ARISS arranges live question-and-answer sessions via ham radio between International Space Station (ISS) crew members and students. A long-time and enthusiastic supporter of ARISS, Pugh was a star ARISS technical mentor, assisting schools with ARISS contacts, encouraging interest in ARISS among educators, and visiting schools to teach students about wireless radio technology. One goal of ARISS is to engage students in science, technology, engineering, arts, and mathematics (STEAM) subjects.
The ARISS *STAR* Project, is a new educational initiative that will enable US junior and senior high school groups to remotely control robots via ham radio through digital APRS (Automatic Packet Reporting System) commands. Year 1 will focus on systems development and initial validation of ARISS *STAR*, and year 2 will focus on evaluation and final validation.
Systems development and evaluation will be led by university staff and students who will undertake hands-on wireless and telerobotics lesson development, learn about amateur radio, and support *STAR* engineering hardware and software development.
Next, youth teams will be selected to experiment and critique *STAR* telerobotics scenarios in closed courses. In the process, ARISS will encourage students to prepare for and earn an FCC amateur radio license, enabling them to use ham radio to learn and practice concepts in radio technology and radio communication.
ARISS-USA Executive Director Frank Bauer, KA3HDO, praised the ARRL Foundation for its generosity.
“ARISS team member Keith Pugh, W5IU, poured his energy into inspiring, engaging, and educating youth in space and in amateur radio endeavors,” Bauer said. “What better way to honor Keith than through the ARISS *STAR* initiative. We thank the ARRL Foundation for its vision to move this initiative forward. Maybe someday one of our ARISS *STAR* students will use their telerobotics skills to control scientific rovers on the [m]oon or Mars!”
Over the past 2 decades, more than 1,400 ARISS contacts have connected more than 1 million youth with the ISS using amateur radio, with millions more watching and learning.
The overarching goals for *STAR* are to improve and sustain ARISS STEAM educational outcomes. Robotics is gaining popularity among youth and adults alike, and telerobotics adds a wireless accent to robotic control. This will expand ARISS’s educational dimension to attract the attention of more groups, students, and educators — outreach that promises to attract new audiences.
The ARRL Foundation was established in 1973, to advance the art, science, and social benefits of the Amateur Radio Service by awarding financial grants and scholarships to individuals and organizations that support their charitable, educational, and scientific efforts.
ARISS is a cooperative venture of international amateur radio societies and space agencies that support the ISS. US sponsors include ARRL, the Radio Amateur Satellite Corporation (AMSAT), the ISS National Lab‐Space Station Explorers, and NASA’s Space Communications and Navigation program (SCaN). The primary goal of ARISS is to promote exploration of science, technology, engineering, the arts, and mathematics topics. For more information, visit www.ariss-usa.org and www.ariss.org.
A sampling of recent articles, press releases, etc. related to student and amateur CubeSat / SmallSat projects and programs (find previous smallsat roundups here):
For the last five years, students at the BYU College of Engineering have been dreaming up, designing and building two tiny satellites. And after a two-year delay in the launch of NASA’s ELaNa 20 mission, the cube-like modules are finally ready to head to space.
The “CubeSats” have cameras attached to each of their six sides and are designed to take photos of other satellites, giving NASA a cheap method of visually examining the exteriors of spacecraft.
“The idea is you carry up one of these sort of selfie cameras,” said David Long, an engineering professor at BYU, “and when you needed to get a picture of your spacecraft — it is very inexpensive; it’s disposable — you kind of toss it out the window, conceptually, you know, you just deploy it, and it takes pictures of your main spacecraft. And then it just drifts off into space.”
[On Dec.2], the U.S. Department of Education announced the five finalists in CTE Mission: CubeSat, a national challenge to build technical skills for careers in space and beyond. Finalists will each receive $5,000 and in-kind prizes that they may use to build CubeSat (cube satellite) prototypes in the second phase of the challenge.
…
Congratulations to the finalists:
Anderson Clark Magnet High School (La Crescenta, California) is studying whether local encampments are in high-risk wildfire areas, with the goal of helping the local fire department save lives of people without housing.
Freeport High School (Freeport, New York) is measuring Earth’s surface temperature to study the differences in heat absorption and retention between urban and rural areas.
Mooresville High School (Mooresville, North Carolina) is measuring the effect of their town’s population growth on air quality, land use, and temperature.
Opelika High School (Opelika, Alabama) is collaborating with Columbus High School and Northside High School (Columbus, Georgia). The team plans to collect performance data for a new type of core material used in NASA-grade fluxgate magnetometers, which are used to study Earth’s changing magnetic field.
Princeton High School (Princeton, New Jersey) is collaborating with Montgomery High School (Skillman, New Jersey). The team wants to optimize space missions by examining topics such as atmospheric pressure density or habitable planetary environments.
The finalists will now begin work on the second phase of the program:
During Phase 2, which runs from January to May 2021, the finalists will have access to expert mentorship and additional virtual resources as they build CubeSat prototypes and plan flight events to launch their prototypes. The Department understands that due to current conditions, schools will need flexibility to safely collaborate when building and launching prototypes.
The prizes include development kits and expert mentorship donated to the Department from Arduino, Blue Origin, Chevron, EnduroSat, LEGO Education, Magnitude.io, MIT Media Lab Space Exploration Initiative, and XinaBox.
Inside the small probe, named DeMi, was a deformable mirror payload that Cahoy and her students designed, along with a miniature telescope and laser test source. DeMi’s mirror corrects the positioning of either the test laser or a star seen by the telescope. On future missions, these mirrors could be used to produce sharper images of distant stars and exoplanets. Showing the mirror can operate successfully in space is also proof that “nanosatellites” like DeMi can serve as nimble, affordable technology stepping-stones in the search for Earth-like planets beyond our solar system.
Maya-1, the country’s first cube satellite, has completed its mission and flew back to the Earth’s atmosphere after two years.
“Initially, the satellite was expected to stay in orbit for less than a year only, but it had stayed in orbit for about two years and four months,” said Adrian Salces, one of the Filipino graduate students who developed Maya-1, as it returned last Nov. 23.
Maya-1, along with Bhutan-1 of Bhutan and UiTMSAT-1 of Malaysia, are produced under the auspices of the second generation of the Joint Global Multi-Nation BIRDS Satellite Project or the BIRDS-2 Project of the Kyushu Institute of Technology (Kyutech) in Japan.
Maya-1, a 1U cube satellite (CubeSat) in Japan, was deployed through the Japanese Experimental Module Small Satellite Orbital Deployer (J-SSOD) in the “Kibo” module – the same module used to deploy Diwata-1.
The CubeSat is under the Development of Scientific Earth Observation Microsatellite (PHL-Microsat) program, a research program jointly implemented by the University of the Philippines-Diliman (UPD) and the Advanced Science and Technology Institute of the Department of Science and Technology (DoST-ASTI) in partnership with Kyutech in Japan.
Once the University’s CAPE-3 satellite arrives in space, a spring-loaded mechanism will eject it 225 miles above the Earth’s surface. The small satellite – about 10 centimeters square – will circle the globe about every 90 minutes at 17,000 miles per hour.
Along the way, the satellite will dredge the atmosphere for radiation levels with two instruments – a plastic prototype chip about the size of a pencil eraser and a small Geiger counter.
** AMSAT news on student and amateur CubeSat/smallsat projects:
Made In Space is building a satellite that can 3D print itself in space. If successful, their satellite could revolutionize how we design future spacecraft.
