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Report of the working meeting on Thursday 15th May 1997

Were there : FR5FI (Michel), FR1AJ (Alain), FR5SD (Dominique), FR5BT (Marcel) FR5FZ ( Jean Huges), FR5CY (Jean Paul)

Subject : To perfect the Beacon and the new person in charge of the technical part

The announcement of the approching departure of Michel (FR5FI) has rushed the meeting that was to be held atthe end of the month. Many OM have not been able to lfree themselves. Fr5FI engineer at ORSTOM is ofen asked to travel abroad for his work . On 25th May , he's going on a mission to the Seychelles, Mayotte, Comores, Nosi Be, Madagascar and Mauritius Island.. in disorder. He can't be as active as he has ben in the project. After a holiday, he will come back to Reunion Island around 15th june.

FR1AJ (Alain) an excellent and enthousiast electronic specialist, will relieve him and will carry on the realisation with the young member of the radio club,under the direction of Gerard SIX their Teacher. He took part to the meeting with Mr KOURILOV and BODINE in Sainte Rose and knows very well the subject. He will build the beacon prototype N°4 according to the last modifications done to the logic of the circuit and the remark made by F6FAO.

The relationship with the OM in France has been established on good roots. Two specializied magazines " Magahertz and CB magazine " will devote articles to the project ,Others .. ...Radio REF , CQ magazine .... silence ......radio ! !........

Michel FR5FI has been able to establish excellent contact with F6FAO Gerard responsible for the project " Bulle d'Orage " and the engineer in the CNES , Mr Andre CUISIN, who will be in charge of respectively the beacon and the antennas.

The help of the CNES is precious for the authentication of the components and of the connectng up Things required force from our Russian freinds to serve the exigence of the agency russia of the transport " Energezia " This will causeus some problems of the coming and going between reunion Island and France.

After som exchange of ideas for the best way to realiase the beacon N4 " France Telecom " to help us by allowing us to use his professional equipement.°

The order of the day being done , we thank FR5FI Michel for his help and wish him good luck in his mission and waiting his come back.

Good luck for those who stay.

with the 73's QRO of Jean Paul FR5CY

Report of working meeting on Tuesday April 25th 1997

Working meeting Sainte-Rose April 19th 1997 from 2.30 pm till 6 pm

Were there : Mr Victor KOURILOV, Mr Nicolas BODINE, FR5CY (Jean Paul ), FR5FI ( Michel ), FR5GS ( Axel ), FR1AJ ( Alain )

Object :

1. Check the work done
2. Listing :
   • Technical demands ; Russians /Frenchs
   • Problems
   • Solutions

Meeting (session):

It comes out from the differentes exchanges that the pupils of the laboratory have done researches concerning structures and have realised five scale models of the project made of wood.

The proposition done in naltchik with M Pignolet has been submitted to experts in space building. The proposition n°1 has progressed lightly : it hasn't got a final resolution in its details , which will be transmitted as quick as possible. The main lines in the construction will remain the same.

The pupils of the college are will working about electronic generalities. The probleme of the beacon has been the object of reasearch of the best realization by the groupe of radio amateurs of Reunion Island . As a matter of fact ; the lack of precisions on different essential points can't allow the beginning of the realization by the pupils. The work of reflexion and conceiving are on a specialist level

The technical demands :
The information we got were partial:
Volume of a 180 mm in diameter sphere
Under atmosphere (1/2)
The useful volume ; virtual cylinder , 110 mm in diameter , 140 mm hight.

A cardboard shape has been realised in Reunion it can contain 12 lithium batteries (of h =:60 ; o=30 ) that is to say a 3.3 days autonomy for a 0.8w

In the absence of instumentals measure, we can't appreciate exactly the volume required by the new asked dimensions. Our friends present us the projects drawn by the engeneers in Moscow. The " pan " will be an duralumin , 15 mm thick and 197 mm in outer diameter sphere.

The radio part will have to be contained in the virtual cylinder. It will be fixed on the central part in a lockingring which will hold the two hemispheres.One of them will hold the aerials, the other, nothing at the moment.

The work will be done in the vacum. This new technical fact poses the problem of ungases ( batteries, components, conductiors.....) This fact modifies lightly our reseaches, for we thought shot using good components, of the type used in aviation. This new fact exclades these components for a spatial use.

The group agrees on having a maximum security (test) Mr Kourilov, agrees to help us to find the right cabling, but he wants to have the list of components and their conposition in order to submit them to a space committee (cf FR5FI) The request will be done to Guy Pignolet for that.

The English printed circuit is fitting, the volume for the plate can be saved by doing a window. In the cylindrical boy which will contain battery and platen all togetter.

The setting of the radio system in the " pan " will be done in a perforated tube, closed at the top and at the bottom by a bottom screwed on the body of the tube. The plates will be longer than large : 90 mm or 100 mm long by 40mm or 50 mm large. Michel will think about the disposal of the elements.

Mr KOURILOV also wants the plans of the beacon and the emitting mode for the eventual interferences with navigation equipement.

The starting is a mechanical nessity, it must be easy to start for a gloved handeled cosmonaut. For it will be done in the airlock which is about 1.10m.

The magnetic proposition is refued because of a possibility of an inoportune starting . the solution of a plugged key is adapted (simple and sure).

The question of the thermic environement is exposed by our russian freinds. Temperatures into space are around more or less 100° C . The shining surface of the metalic " pan " reflects about 40% of the rays. The rest is reduced by a compact foam layer inside the sphere to make the temprature fall inside to more or less 50°C what is compatible with the work of the electric equipement and above all with the batteries.

The radio part made in Reunion Island is explain to the partners. Then with the radio facts, batteries are essentiel elements to get an efficient work . and a long emission. At the moment, the batteries, amont 10, could provide energy onely during 80 hours, that is to say 3.3 days, wich not enough . Some researches are done to increase this time to one month but the necessary of 12 batteries remain the same . The delegation tkinks it wouldn't be a problem provided they are waterproof. The question about the components is asked again : components of a non volatil type.

The problem of the aerials is then discussed . The delegation says that she is open minded to any discussion and is waiting for any propositions . The aperance of the model musn't be changed and must look exactly line Spoutnik 1. After the explanation of the imprtance and necessity of the 2 aerials quarter of active crossing waves, the idea to slope more on the sphere is accepted in the limit of 70 degres on the central axe.

The mechanical requirement of the aerial deals mainly with its lenghth : one quarter of wave : 500 more or less1 or 2 mm . Its nature is n't linked to space. The overhaeting will depend on its nature. The delegation will give us the name of the metal they have built the aerial with. For them, the length and the fixing of it are really important. 500 mm is fitting , beacause of the airlock . Mr Alexander Serebrov Cosmonaut confirms the possibility for him to screw on the aerials with type N teflon PC.

The problems :

• On The russian side :
  • The kind of components and batteries.
  • The whole wheit of the radio part .
  • The lenght of the aerials.
  • The starting mechanism.
  • Problem of the press and the rings.
  • "different" working test under vacum and temperature.
  • Work of the main ring.
  • The fixing of the aerials to the " pan " (corpus)
• On the french side :
  • The supply of components and cables
  • Long -lasting batteries (12)
  • Coupling of the aerials
  • The control and the lenght o the aerials.
  • The fixing of the platen on the tube .
  • The fasting of the batteries in the tube .
  • The soldering and the connection of the batteries.
  • The screwing-on (kind)

Solutions :

They are used in a better communcation betewen the two proups What is essentiel is to establish an E mail Mr V Kourilov's and that could quickly allow the pursuit of the discussion directly. The opportunity to do with Nathalie Pottier (french student in astronotic in Moscow) would be a positive point for she could translate easily.
Precision, will be given later during the next meeting in St Denis on 23 th April.

Different matters:

• Launching of a logo contest (3 colors : blue white red on a black star background.)
• Conception plan for a receiver for the earphones.
• Exchange of pupils (at the moment impossible to give more precisions). It's necessary that every thing depends on the sponsors campaigne.

73's to everybody FR5CY

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Report of the working assembly on March 18th 1997

It took place in the ORSTOM 'offices in the campus of the Reunion University .

Were there:FR5FI,FR5GS, FR5VZ, FR5SD, FR5HZ, FR5EG, two SWL, FR5FZ, FR5AJ ,FR5FC, FR5AE, FR5CY ;excused Florence PIGNOLET, FR5BT, FR5DN, FR5GZ, FR5EC, Gérard SIX

The meeeting opered at6 p.m. FR5CY presented the vidéo realised by the audio-video club of College J reydellet. This medium will be to support the 40 sponsors campaign It will also be offered to the " General Concil " and the " Regional Concil ", two local assemblies ,to the DRRT to support the request of grants (of money) .

On account of the international information campaign , Reunion island is welcomming , on April 18th 1997 a delegation

of scientists, about a dozen, comming from USA, Japan, Great Britain, Germany, .....

These leading persones in the scientific world will be the president of the sponsoring committees " spoutnik 40 years " in their respective countries.they will be welcomed at 6 p.m. in College J Reydellet in Mr A Armand in place Mayor of St Denis and the different chambers representants , presence and the participation of, every OM to presente the project.This will be followed by a friendly cocktail will all the participants.

The technical meeting was planned to begin with the presentation of the radio module by FR5EG The model went from hand to hand and every one could admire the work done. Most of the OM there had been able to hear it on air and every one agreed to say it was ideal for an eventual " fox hunting ".Some among the OM noticed that the FM signal got from an AM modulation was, less clear than a FM signal directly emitted.

Michel, FR5EG pointed out that it existed a FM emiting Kit ,easy to build around an integrated circuit. The saving of room could be used for used for the battery Michel is asked to make some researches ; in that way . The circuits and composants of the OM F5PU plan will be used by the pupils.

The different chapters of specifications are examined on transparent guides. The most working problem is the one of the Battery . As a matter of fact, in power will determine its length of action, conditioned by its weight (1500 gr) and its volume. Michel FR5FI, will be charge of this probleme (1000 batteries and more) store . In fact, the equipement inside the cell depends on the volume occuped by this element.

Then the problem of thermic dispersion is evoked, we were missingMiss Florence Pignolet , professor at the University and expert : several situations were presented : an isolation foam bed , condition and radiation big legs, milard sheets ..... without any final solutions michel will get in touch with Miss Pignolet in order to raise a thermic check-up. This could be the object of a special meeting.

Then the problem of the cell was studied . Some difficulties in communication among the different parteners are pointed out : the " faxes " promised to be sent before the end of last week , during the video conference with M Fyodorov, on march 11th , are not there yet, neither are the sendings.

Many propositions are made:

Ask the russians

• To build " a pan " with inside 4 legs on which will be set a container for the module,it will be open ( on the upper side ) . The making of the container is fully evoked. FR1H expert in the subject , proposes us autoblocking mini crews, glues he used for motors, lots of ideas for this part . He will contact FR5Fi for experiments under vacuum. The problem will be soled if the whole was working in the atmosphere.

• or to mould a cradle taking the exact shape of " the pan "(FR1AJ ) . The saving of room would be slight but the thermical exchange would be better with a rack with aluminium angles.

• or to set the legs on the equatorial side of the " pan " ((OM FR various) with holes to fix a ring supporting the radio module. The different mass will be put on each side in the hemispheres. This ring could be a ring supporting the mass and the four grips N of the aerials quarters of waves or 5/8 supplied by asymetriseur . This ring could have a double joint up and down , like a stewpan ; FR1AJ proposes a sort of a polar closing by a screw fixed at the bottom of the second hemisphere . This situation will ask again the problem o the repartition of masses.

FR5CY Will contact as quick as possible with mr Kourilov who seems to possess the concrete elements we need . After the greetings , the meeting ended at 8 P .M. The date of the next meeting is not stated yet. It can be devoted to miss Pignolet's communication .

with the 73's QRO with Jean Paul FR5CY