The average daily sunspot numbers this week were about the same as last week, while the average daily solar flux declined a little more than eight points to 128.9. Geomagnetic indicators were quiet. The average daily sunspot numbers of 95.3 for the week is considerably below the average for the previous 90 days, which was 120.8. Sunspot numbers for December 15-21 were 44, 60, 95, 103, 133, 139 and 93, with a mean of 95.3. The 10.7 cm flux was 124.2, 121, 119.6, 127.4, 128.2, 137.4 and 144.5, with a mean of 128.9. The estimated planetary A indices were 0, 0, 0, 1, 4, 3 and 3, with a mean of 1.6. The estimated mid-latitude A indices were 2, 2, 2, 3, 6, 5 and 5, with a mean of 3.6.
The solar flux has been climbing over the past week, after a low of 119.6 on December 17. The predicted flux values for the near term are 145 on December 23, 140 on December 24-27, 145 on December 28-30, then dropping suddenly to 120 on December 31-January 2, 125 on January 3-4, 128 on January 5-8, and then peaking at 130 on January 9-17. The predicted planetary A index is 5 on December 23 through January 4, 8 on January 5-6, and 5 on January 7-21. This is from NOAA and the U.S. Air Force Space Weather Operations. There is another opinion, of course: Geophysical Institute Prague predicts quiet conditions December 23, quiet to unsettled December 24, active conditions December 25, unsettled to active December 26, quiet to unsettled December 27 and quiet again on December 28-29.
Active conditions are quite different from an A index of 5, although the NOAA/USAF outlook is at least eight hours newer than the Prague prediction. But looking back 24 hours earlier to the December 21 prediction, USAF/NOAA has nothing different on December 25, although they do show an A index of 8 on December 29. You can check here for the latest prediction, which is updated daily after 2100.
Amateur Radio ARRL Amateur Radio in Space: Students and Teachers Invited to "Fly a File" on ARISSat-1
Loyd C. Headrick Published Date Hits: 404
Category: ARRL
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SuitSat-1 was launched into space from the ISS in February 2006. [NASA Photo] |
On February 3, 2006, cosmonaut Valery Ivanovich Tokarev hand-launched the Amateur Radio satellite SuitSat-1 from the International Space Station during an extra vehicular activity (EVA), NASA's term for a spacewalk. A discarded Russian ORLAN spacesuit, SuitSat-1 was equipped with an Amateur Radio transmitter that transmitted telemetry and greetings from youngsters to the youth of the world in several languages. In 2010, an Amateur Radio satellite -- ARISSat-1 -- will once again be hand launched from the ISS. Like its predecessor, ARISSat-1 will transmit messages recorded by students, and teachers and students are invited to "fly a file" aboard this Amateur Radio satellite.
"The ARISSat-1 Team wishes to include a memory stick of files prepared by students on our new satellite," explained Amateur Radio on the International Space Station (ARISS) International Chairman Gaston Bertels, ON4WF. "This should be a .jpg or a PDF of things the student has prepared." He gave such examples as a paper or a study done on a STEM (science, technology, engineering, math) topic, a drawing of spacecraft or a schematic, a journal kept on a STEM topic, a story or news article about a STEM subject or a photo of the class doing a hands-on STEM activity. "Having the students' work be a part of ARISSat-1 means the student is a part of the satellite project and along for the spacewalk and deployment of ARISSat-1."
Dave Jordan, AA4KN, will take delivery of these files via This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. and copy them onto a memory stick and make them available on the Web for anyone to see, Bertels said. "The quantity of files and the size of a file are unlimited, since memory sticks provide for a very large amount of file space."
Bertels said that files must be either in .jpg or PDF format -- no Microsoft Word documents will be accepted. Jordan will ensure that the material sent in is appropriate for students. Files can be in any language, as long as an English translation is also included as a text file.