Inmarsat .. something different

[spacedish]

UPDATE

One of the Planeplotter users in France has successfully received data from Inmarsat AERO using a 90cm dish and Titanium lnb.
There is an element of packet drop out , however this suggests that a well aligned 1.2m could be useable.

A new version of Planeplotter software will be available shortly which will extract as much information as possible out of the stream created by the JAERO programme.

So , armed with this new information I would be interested to hear from anyone who might have tried , and succeeded in using a 1.2

 

[Vipersan]

As mentioned in the SDR section ...
It really would be useful to myself and others perhaps...to have links to all neccessary softwares .
..and of course a tutorial on installation and setup if possible.
It is a new subject and although I'm sure one I could get to grips with ..not so easy with aged grey matter at the wheel..
lol

 

[s-band]

The way I did the radio bit (I don't use Planeplotter):
I already had a copy but install SDR# by following this lead: sdrsharp Archives - rtl-sdr.com
make sure that you do not have the TV drivers installed if you use an RTL stick
Get JAERO and read all Jonti's comments: JAERO
Install JAERO
Get and install VB-cable from here: VB-Audio Virtual Apps
Make sure SDR# is working
In JAERO go to settings>soundcard and select VB-Audio Point
In SDR# see settings I posted earlier in this thread. Under the Audio tab, set output to VB-Audio point @ 48k/sec

I may have missed something as this is from memory and my SDR# is v1.0.0.1135 to be compatible with some older software that I use. I used WinXP SP3

Spacedish, I think that my 1.5, with its offset C band feed, is probably working like a 1.2m setup with the feed at the focal point.

 

[spacedish]

Great summary VS , spot on.

The dongles are from Cosycave...
RTL2832U / R820T2 ** 0.5ppm TCXO ** SDR DAB FM USB MCX socket

This version is very stable.
I see a 5khz drift every morning , very strange , almost as if the freq itself has been slightly adjusted , but apart from that , no problems.

As for getting the plots into Planeplotter its very easy and although PP requires a one off sw reg of 25 Euros , plus tax , I am working on a special deal for anyone willing to help to give 24/7 global coverage. [ Its not my sw so I need to ask the boss first :O) ]

I was using Win XP too....on a very old laptop I named Lazarus as it had been brought back from the dead so many times...sadly Lazarus is no more , but it played its part in the initial trials .



>

 

[Vipersan]

Great summary VS , spot on.

The dongles are from Cosycave...
RTL2832U / R820T2 ** 0.5ppm TCXO ** SDR DAB FM USB MCX socket

This version is very stable.
I see a 5khz drift every morning , very strange , almost as if the freq itself has been slightly adjusted , but apart from that , no problems.

As for getting the plots into Planeplotter its very easy and although PP requires a one off sw reg of 25 Euros , plus tax , I am working on a special deal for anyone willing to help to give 24/7 global coverage. [ Its not my sw so I need to ask the boss first :O) ]

I was using Win XP too....on a very old laptop I named Lazarus as it had been brought back from the dead so many times...sadly Lazarus is no more , but it played its part in the initial trials .



>

We have our own Lazarus SD ...and much more entertaining than an old XP lappy ...
;)

 

[scopus]

Great summary VS , spot on.

The dongles are from Cosycave...
RTL2832U / R820T2 ** 0.5ppm TCXO ** SDR DAB FM USB MCX socket

This version is very stable.
I see a 5khz drift every morning , very strange , almost as if the freq itself has been slightly adjusted , but apart from that , no problems.

As for getting the plots into Planeplotter its very easy and although PP requires a one off sw reg of 25 Euros , plus tax , I am working on a special deal for anyone willing to help to give 24/7 global coverage. [ Its not my sw so I need to ask the boss first :O) ]

I was using Win XP too....on a very old laptop I named Lazarus as it had been brought back from the dead so many times...sadly Lazarus is no more , but it played its part in the initial trials .



>

I'm going have a go at this but will need some tutorials, I still use boxes instead of the pc, stuck in a time warp..lol

 

[scopus]

Guys, got this far, found the sigs on 15W got Jaero to talk to SDR with downloading the bridge, but Jero does not want to decode the packets, says console is diabled, bit it is not in the setting, any ideas what is wrong with this setup?

 

[Vipersan]

Guys, got this far, found the sigs on 15W got Jaero to talk to SDR with downloading the bridge, but Jero does not want to decode the packets, says console is diabled, bit it is not in the setting, any ideas what is wrong with this setup?View attachment 91622 View attachment 91623

Cant help yet buddy ..still building my receiver ..
You've made a good start though..
Thumbs up
VS

 

[scopus]

Got Jaero to work seen some data, just need to sus planeplotter now, big learning curve all this

Cant help yet buddy ..still building my receiver ..
You've made a good start though..
Thumbs up
VS

 

[aceb]

Once you've installed PP all you need to do is set it to ACARS from Jaero in the IO settings. If that doesn't produce any plots you may need to change the UDP port in Jaero, it started as 8765, then Jonti changed it to 18765, then in the latest release he changed it back to 8765, PP has tried to keep up with his changes so try both!

If you left shift and click on the map icon it will download a Google map of the displayed area. Are you on the PP Yahoogroup, if not I can paste some of my info here, can you see 54W and 64E?

 

[scopus]

Once you've installed PP all you need to do is set it to ACARS from Jaero in the IO settings. If that doesn't produce any plots you may need to change the UDP port in Jaero, it started as 8765, then Jonti changed it to 18765, then in the latest release he changed it back to 8765, PP has tried to keep up with his changes so try both!

If you left shift and click on the map icon it will download a Google map of the displayed area. Are you on the PP Yahoogroup, if not I can paste some of my info here, can you see 54W and 64E?

No not on that forum yet. 54w and 64E are out of reach for me sadly. Thanks for the info.

 

[Vipersan]

No not on that forum yet. 54w and 64E are out of reach for me sadly. Thanks for the info.

Also out of reach for me sadly ..
So will need to access sats in the clear ..
Roughly 40E to 58W is my practical range..

 

[aceb]

I posted this to the PP group, it's aimed at users familiar with PP and air comms but not so experienced with satellite stuff, especially circular polarity on C-Band.

64E GES:C1 T channel = 1.533.820.000
64E GES:C1 T channel = 1.534.911.000
64E GES:C1 R channel = 1.534.397.000
64E GES:C1 R channel = 1.534.457.000
64E GES:C1 R channel = 1.533.804.000
64E GES:C5 T channel = 1.534.428.000
64E GES:C5 T channel = 1.533.866.000
64E GES:C5 R channel = 1.534.038.000
64E GES:C5 R channel = 1.534.413.000
64E GES:C5 R channel = 1.534.443.000
64E GES:C5 R channel = 1.533.880.000

25E GES:90 T channel = 1.526.013.000
25E GES:90 R channel = 1.525.999.000
25E GES:90 R channel = 1.526.026.000
25E GES:90 R channel = 1.526.228.000
25E GES:90 R channel = 1.526.243.000
25E GES:90 ? channel = 1.526.057.000 ?
25E GES:90 ? channel = 1.526.633.000 ?
25E GES:90 ? channel = 1.526.604.000 ?
25E GES:90 ? channel = 1.526.210.000 ?

15W GES:43 T channel = 1.534.434.000
15W GES:43 R channel = 1.533.857.000
15W GES:43 R channel = 1.534.403.000
15W GES:44 T channel = 1.533.887.000
15W GES:44 R channel = 1.534.419.000
15W GES:44 R channel = 1.533.901.000
15W GES:44 R channel = 1.533.872.000

54W GES:02 T channel = 1.533.864.000
54W GES:05 T channel = 1.533.894.000
54W GES:02 R channel = 1.533.909.000
54W GES:05 R Channel = 1.533.879.000

These are the four satellites I can see and all the channels I can decode on my 1.8M Prime Focus using a Titanium C1W LNB. The four question marked frequencies on 25E are too weak for good decoding on my dish. The ones of interest to Aero monitoring are marked as T channels, the others carry plenty of Aero traffic but no positioning reports.

I've listed the downconverted IF frequencies used to tune SDR Sharp, for the actual C-Band frequency subtract the given frequency from 5.150.000.000

Frequencies are liable to change a few kHz depending on external temperature effects on the LNB and receiver.

On my system which is set correctly for broadcast TV best results are obtained with left hand circular polarisation, this corresponds to the receiver being set to horizontal polarity. Note that rotating the depolarising plate in the LNB throat by 90° and switching the receiver to vertical will also give reception of LHCP. It is worth experimenting with this as many LNBs will have superior performance on one polarity.

As you move further away from due south circular polarity becomes less defined at least on both my systems and both polarities should be tried to ensure you're on the correct one.

I find it convenient to set all the T channels into memories using the frequency manager plugin for SDR Sharp. Another plugin called Aux VFO allows me to monitor multiple channels using virtual audio cable software and multiple instances of Jaero.

Unlike regular TV satellites Inmarsats are on inclined orbits which means they drift above and below their correct position in the Clarke Belt in a figure of eight movement. Once each satellite moves more than about 1° above or below the arc the signals will start to decrease so ideally the dish should be re-adjusted to match the change in elevation. These links will plot in real time where each of the four satellites are in relation to the arc, the exact value is given by its latitude.

64.5E Inmarsat 3-F1. Max inclination 3.1°
Real time satellite tracking for: INMARSAT 3-F1

25E Alphasat (Inmarsat 4A-F4). Max inclination 1.2°
Real time satellite tracking for: ALPHASAT (INMARSAT 4A-F4)

15W Inmarsat 3-F2. Max inclination 1.7°
Real time satellite tracking for: INMARSAT 3-F2

54W Inmarsat 3-F4. Max inclination 5.0°
Real time satellite tracking for: INMARSAT 3-F4

 

[Vipersan]

Well ..that gives me two to go at ...when I eventually get my combo receiver built ..
;)
Cheers Paul ..
nice to see you active again btw...
I intend to try Carl for this ..which as you know has declination control as well as Christina...

rgds
VS

 

[scopus]

With the help of Spacedish, PlanePlotter all up and running, great job!

 

[Archive-8]

With the help of Spacedish, PlanePlotter all up and running, great job!View attachment 91652 View attachment 91653

Does that sdr play box do that please?

 

[aceb]

Yes, any rx that covers upto 1.6GHz will do but SDR makes life a lot easier with super wide bandwidths on USB and waterfall displays. The cheap RTL Dongles work fine but try to get one with a TCXO for better stability. SDR Play and Airspy are more expensive but still very good VFM. Are you uploading to the PP server Scopus, if so what's your share code?

This afternoons view of 64E looks like this.

 

[scopus]

Yes, any rx that covers upto 1.6GHz will do but SDR makes life a lot easier with super wide bandwidths on USB and waterfall displays. The cheap RTL Dongles work fine but try to get one with a TCXO for better stability. SDR Play and Airspy are more expensive but still very good VFM. Are you uploading to the PP server Scopus, if so what's your share code?

This afternoons view of 64E looks like this.
View attachment 91663

Not uploading at the moment, but might well be soon...

 

[spacedish]

Chris is now up and running .

Still hoping to hear from dish users with 1.2m antenna in the hope that we can get some signals from
that size dish.

Our 90cm dish user in France is receiving some pretty good data , which is impressive.

With four dishes active today we had the coverage as below

west to east

 

[Analoguesat]

Scopus - is that a photograph of your monitor screen? It looks like you have windows 7 or higher on that computer - if so have a play with the snipping tool - you can get screen grabs quickly & easily with it.