On 3rd May 2012 (Thursday) we will switch the satellite to silent mode again for data aquisition. In silent mode, all RF transmission of the satellite is turned off, the satellite is only on reception. After these experiments regular telemetry transmission will be turned on again.

Planned schedule for 3rd May

• at 18.00 UTC the satellite is commanded to silent mode
• at 22.00 UTC the satellite turns back to normal mode

This means that between 18.00 – 22.00 UTC the satellite’s transmitters will be turned off intentionally, to prevent the disturbance of sensitive EM measurements. According to the schedule, the satellite will turn back to normal mode automatically.

The award was established by the Hungarian Intellectual Property Office (HIPO) in 2000. It is awarded to institutions and communities that play a key role in the protection of intellectual property. We accepted the award on 26 April 2012, which happens to be the World Intellectual Property Day. This is a great honor to our team, and we hereby would like to thank HIPO again for the prize.

For more information visit the HIPO website.

Our updated client-software is available on this page. Thank you for the highly helpful feedback you sent us about the software. Please keep us informed of your opinion and remarks. Notable changes:

• You can allow parallel decoding of 625/1250bps data, no need to switch manually. This will allow users to receive, decode and report file parts, including image parts.
• The program stores some of the user settings upon program close: position of the windows, selected audio input/output, state of the 625/1250 buttons.
• If you load *.log and *.wav files, the decoded packets are not logged to file and online reporting is disabled for these parts. Online reporting is enabled only for packets decoded from audio input.
• Minor enhancements based on the responses from the Radio Amateurs.

Hint: Type “masat” in the frequency waterfall window during a pass and use the LEFT – RIGHT arrow keys 🙂

On 12 April 2012 – the International Day of Human Space Flight – the Hungarian National Bank (Magyar Nemzeti Bank, MNB) and the Hungarian Post Office Ltd. issued a commemorative coin and stamp to celebrate successfully putting Masat-1, the first Hungarian satellite into orbit. The coin and stamp were officially presented following the technical presentations on Masat-1, held in building Q of the Budapest University of Technology and Economics.

The members of the Masat-1 team and the representatives of the university were given a coin and a framed first day cover by the representatives of the central bank and the post office.

The commemorative coin designed by Áron Bohus and manufactured by the Hungarian Mint Ltd. is made of a copper-nickel alloy and has a face value of HUF 1000. It is the latest coin in the series dedicated to the innovations and inventions of Hungarian engineers and inventors. There are five thousand ’Proof’ (glossy) and five thousand ’BU’ (matte) Masat-1 coins.

Masat-1 Coin

The Hungarian Post Office Ltd. issued 250.000 copies (in sheets of fifty) of the commemorative stamp designed by Glória Hefelle on 12 April 2012. The stamp has a face value of HUF 310 and is available as a first day cover for collectors.

Both the coin and the stamp (and its accessories) were designed by the artists in cooperation with the Masat-1 team. The artists asked for our feedback several times during the design process. We often discussed technical aspects concerning the satellite, sometimes, however, we could also add to the artistic concept through our humble suggestions.

Masat-1 Envelope

Our team leader, András Gschwindt had the idea of drawing a parallel between the two sides of a coin and the two equally important aspects of the satellite mission: the space segment (the satellite itself) and the ground segment, i.e. the ground station, through which the satellite can be controlled and from where the data collected by the satellite can be downloaded. This inspired the idea of putting an image of the antennas of the Masat-1 primary ground station on top of building E of BME on the reverse of the coin.

Masat-1 Stamp

The coin and stamp issued to commemorate putting Masat-1, Hungary’s first satellite into orbit are probably unique, since as far as we know these are the first official coins and stamps depicting CubeSat class satellites.

Our satellite was transmitting the ’MASAT-1 ON STAMP & COIN’ beacon signal on the day of issue.

For photos taken at the event see our gallery.

The Hungarian Astronautical Society (HAS) and the Hungarian Space Office (HSO) are organizing ’Youth Forum’, a conference on space research for the tenth time this year. University students and PhD students are going to give presentations on their latest programs and successes at the event. One of the topics, of course, is going to be the Masat-1 project and its continuation, as well as the successful participation of Hungarians in the European Space Agency’s stratospheric balloon and rocket related projects. Topics like astronomy and an experiment currently in progress on the International Space Station are also going to be covered. The Forum begins with the accounts of the two organizers, HAS and HSO. The event is free of charge.

Time and venue: 13 April 2012, 9 a.m. at the head office of the Ministry of National Development (44-50 Fő utca, Budapest, 1011), on the ground floor.