| Mission type | Communications |
|---|---|
| Operator | AMSAT |
| COSPAR ID | 2015-058D |
| SATCAT no. | 40967 |
| Spacecraft properties | |
| Bus | CubeSat (1U) |
| Manufacturer | Radio Amateur Satellite Corporation (AMSAT) |
| Launch mass | 1.3 kilograms (2.9 lb) |
| Dimensions | 10 by 10 by 10 centimetres (3.9 in × 3.9 in × 3.9 in) |
| Start of mission | |
| Launch date | 8 October 2015, 12:49 UTC |
| Rocket | Atlas V 401 AV-058 |
| Launch site | Vandenberg SLC-3E |
| Orbital parameters | |
| Reference system | Geocentric |
| Regime | Low Earth |
| Semi-major axis | 7,020 kilometres (4,360 mi) |
| Perigee altitude | 504.3 kilometres (313.4 mi) |
| Apogee altitude | 795.7 kilometres (494.4 mi) |
| Inclination | 64.8° |
| Period | 97.6 minutes |
| RAAN | 178.6841° |
| Argument of perigee | 312.3881° |
| Mean motion | 14.757262270 |
| Epoch | 25 June 2018 |
| Transponders | |
| Band | FM |
| Frequency | Uplink: 435.172 MHz Downlink: 145.980 MHz |
| TWTA power | 400mW |
Fox-1A, AO-85 or AMSAT OSCAR 85 is an American amateur radio satellite. It is a 1U Cubesat, was built by the AMSAT-NA and carries a single-channel transponder for FM radio. The satellite has one rod antenna each for the 70 centimetres (28 in) and 2 metres (6 ft 7 in) bands. To enable a satellite launch under NASA's Educational Launch of Nanosatellites (ELaNa) program, the satellite continues to carry a Penn State University student experiment (MEMS gyroscope).
According to AMSAT-NA, Fox-1A will replace OSCAR 51. Upon successful launch, the satellite was assigned OSCAR number 85.
Launch and mission
The satellite was launched on 8 October 2015 with an Atlas V rocket together with the main payload Intruder 11A (also known as NOSS-3 7A, USA 264 and NROL 55) and 12 other Cubesat satellites (SNaP-3 ALICE, SNaP-3 EDDIE, SNaP-3 JIMI, LMRSTSat, SINOD-D 1, SINOD-D 3, AeroCube 5C, OCSD A, ARC 1, BisonSat, PropCube 1 and PropCube 3) from Vandenberg Air Force Base, California, United States. After just a few hours, the transponder was put into operation, initial connections were made between amateur radio stations and telemetry was received.
Status
Since December 2018, AO-85 has suffered from dangerously low battery voltage while in eclipse. As a result, AMSAT have disabled all on board transmitters in an effort to extend the usable life of the satellite. Transmitters are periodically turned back on to collect telemetry data.
See also
References
- ^ "Fox 1". NSSDCA. NASA GSFC. Retrieved 2018-06-25.
- ^ "FOX-1A (AO-85)". n2yo.com. Retrieved 2018-06-25.
- "AO-85 (Fox-1A) FM Voice Transponder Activated". Trevor Essex. 9 October 2015. Retrieved 2018-06-25.
- "AO-85 Status Update – AMSAT". 20 December 2018. Retrieved 2021-02-23.
External links
- www.amsat.org Archived 2016-03-28 at the Wayback Machine (PDF)
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