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 BlueSky account @jmuspace.sky.social.
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 BlueSky account @jmuspace.sky.social
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 BlueSky account @jmuspace.sky.social.
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 BlueSky account @jmuspace.sky.social.
| 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 |   |
