Information for Radio Amateurs
This page is dedicated to the amateur radio community and lists information related to our SONATE-2 mission. Activation of our amateur radio payloads (SSTV, APRS Digipeater) will usually be announced on our X account @JMUSpace.
Please contact sonate-2@uni-wuerzburg.de for any questions regarding SONATE-2 amateur radio operations.
Two Line Elements (TLE)
The NORAD-ID of SONATE-2 is 59112 and its international designator is 2024-043Q. Current TLE information can be found on the CelesTrak website.
Telemetry Downlink
During passes over our ground stations in Germany the telemetry downlink of SONATE-2 will be activated.
- Frequency: 437.025 MHz
- Modulation: 9k6 G3RUH GMSK (F1D)
- Protocol: AX.25
The protocol format used for encoding the telemetry frames can be found >>here<<.
Recorded AX.25 frames can be forwarded to sonate-2@uni-wuerzburg.de
CW Beacon
SONATE-2's CW Beacon is only sporadically used mainly during LEOP for launch object identification. If activated, a beacon with the callsign of the satellite DP0SNX is transmitted at regular intervals as CW Morse code.
- Frequency: 145.840 MHz
- Modulation: Morse code CW (A1A)
- Interval: 30 sec
APRS Digipeater
The APRS digipeater on SONATE-2 operates in half-duplex operation. The digipeater is only active when published below. When activated, it will transmit a greeting message every 2 minutes. Make sure to include SONATE-2's callsign DP0SNX in the APRS route.
- Frequency: 145.825 MHz Up/Down
- Modulation: 1k2 AFSK (F2D)
- Protocol: AX.25
- TX Power: 500mW
Planned Activation Schedule [Last Update: 16.12.2024]
The activation of the APRS digipeater on SONATE-2 is planned at the following times. Due to unforeseen circumstances, the planned times can also change at short notice. The begin of an APRS event is usually announced on our X account @JMUSpace.
Würzburg, 16.12.2024 – The APRS digipeater will remain activated over Christmas and New Year. However, interruptions are always possible due to unforeseen circumstances.
Würzburg, 11.12.2024 – We are planning SSTV broadcasts again over the weekend. Therefore the APRS digipeater will be deactivated during the entire event period.
| Begin [UTC] | End [UTC] |
| 16.12.2024 11:00 |
Past Transmission Periods
| Begin [UTC] | End [UTC] | Duration [h] | Digipeated Message Count | Worldmap |
| 26.07.2024 16:00 | 29.07.2024 00:00 | 56:00 | 421 |  |
| 09.08.2024 15:00 | 11.08.2024 23:00 | 56:00 | 486 |  |
| 14.08.2024 15:00 | 18.08.2024 23:00 | 104:00 | 833 |  |
| 23.08.2024 15:00 | 25.08.2024 23:00 | 56:00 | 289 |  |
| 13.09.2024 15:20 | 15.09.2024 23:20 | 56:00 | 539 |  |
| 20.09.2024 15:40 | 22.09.2024 23:40 | 56:00 | 632 |  |
| 30.09.2024 15:30 | 07.10.2024 00:00 | 152:30 | 834 |  |
| 07.10.2024 00:00 | 14.10.2024 00:00 | 168:00 | 576 |  |
| 14.10.2024 00:00 | 18.10.2024 15:45 | 111:45 | 406 |  |
| 21.10.2024 11:25 | 28.10.2024 00:00 | 156:35 | 703 |  |
| 28.10.2024 00:00 | 01.11.2024 15:30 | 111:30 | 397 |  |
| 04.11.2024 11:30 | 11.11.2024 00:00 | 156:30 | 463 |  |
| 11.11.2024 00:00 | 15.11.2024 15:30 | 111:30 | 397 |  |
| 18.11.2024 11:00 | 25.11.2024 00:00 | 157:00 | 343 |  |
| 25.11.2024 00:00 | 29.11.2024 15:00 | 111:00 | 201 |  |
| 02.12.2024 11:05 | 09.12.2024 00:00 | 156:55 | 465 |  |
| 09.12.2024 00:00 | 13.12.2024 15:00 | 111:00 | 226 |  |
| 16.12.2024 11:00 |
SSTV Downlink
Regular downlinks of SSTV images captured by SONATE-2's on-board cameras are planned. The SSTV downlinks are only active during the times when published below.
- Frequency: 145.880 MHz
- Modulation: Martin M1 SSTV FM (F3F)
- TX Power: 500mW
Transmission Schedule from 13.12.2024 – 16.12.2024 in UTC [Last Update: 13.12.2024]
The following table shows the UTC times of the planned SSTV transmissions of SONATE-2. Two images are transmitted sequentially at these times. Due to unforeseen circumstances, the scheduled times may change at short notice. The begin of a SSTV event is usually also announced on our X account @JMUSpace.
Würzburg, 11.12.2024 – The APRS digipeater is switched off during the entire planned SSTV event period.
Planned Transmissions [Last Update: 18.12.2024]
The following table shows the times for future planned SSTV transmissions of SONATE-2. Due to unforeseen circumstances, the scheduled times may change at short notice. The begin of a SSTV event is usually also announced on our X account @JMUSpace.
| Planned Period |
| NET Jan 2025 |
Past Transmissions
The following table shows the past transmissions of SONATE-2's SSTV transmitter and the regions of the transmitted images.
| Transmission Period | Image Content | Images |
| 08.03.24 – 11.03.24 | SONATE-2 |  |
| 26.03.24 – 02.04.24 | French Atlantik Coast |  |
| 17.05.24 – 21.05.24 | Strait of Gibraltar |  |
| 21.06.24 – 24.06.24 | Durrat Al Bahrain |  |
| 05.07.24 – 08.07.24 | Hurricane Beryl |  |
| 02.08.24 – 05.08.24 | Dubai and Italy |   |
| 31.08.24 – 02.09.24 | Honshū, Japan |   |
| 27.09.24 – 30.09.24 | Persian Gulf and Karkheh Dam, Iran |   |
| 18.10.24 – 21.10.24 | Tasmania, Australia and Great Salt Lake, UT, USA |   |
| 01.11.24 – 04.11.24 | New York, USA and Cape Town, South Africa |   |
| 15.11.24 – 18.11.24 | San Francisco, CA, USA and Key West, FL, USA |   |
| 29.11.24 – 02.12.24 | Maasvlakte Rotterdam, Netherlands and Korean Peninsula |   |
| 13.12.24 – 16.12.24 | Graham Land, Antarctica and Dalhart, TX, USA |   |
