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(meteorobs) New AMS Bulletin No. 203 Released
Hi folks,
You can tell that we are in the lull of the year for meteor observing in the
northern hemisphere because the various meteor organizations are catching up
on paper work, shifting Web sites, and releasing new manuals.
I would like to announce the release of the new revision to the American
Meteor Society (AMS) Bulletin No. 203, "The AMS Radiometeor Project." The
original version came out in January, 1997, so this revision amounts to a
complete rewrite and update.
The bulletin is intended to outline the procedure and give technical
information to those wishing to establish a meteor forward-scatter receiving
station for inclusion into the AMS Radiometeor Network. This manual should
also prove helpful to those who are interested in forward-scatter, but might
not want to join the project itself. I attempted to pull in practical
information from a variety of sources, many of which are now out of print
and difficult to find. The bulletin is about 50 pages long, and includes
illustrations.
The bulletin is being released in three different formats:
1. All AMS members will receive an unbound (stapled) copy of the bulletin,
which has been recently mailed out. If you are an AMS member and do not
receive your copy in the next week or so, please let us know. International
members may have to allow a bit longer for it to arrive.
2. A bound single copy of the bulletin can be obtained for $2.00, in order
to cover production and mailing costs. Requests should be sent to AMS
headquarters at the below address:
American Meteor Society
c/o Dr. David D. Meisel
Dept. of Physics and Astronomy
State University of New York at Geneseo
1 College Circle
Geneseo, NY 14454
3. Those who are seriously interested in joining the project can obtain
bound copies of AMS Bulletin No. 203 and the "Apple IIe Meteor Burst
Software User's Manual" (which outlines the establishment of the computer
automated data collection system) by sending $5.00 to the above address and
requesting both manuals. We are also including a short non-narrated
demonstration video tape of system operation with this package. Again, the
dollar amount is for covering costs only.
I am including below the title sheet and Table of Contents for the bulletin
to give you an idea of the topics discussed:
The American Meteor Society
Radiometeor Project
AMS Bulletin No. 203
January 1977
Revised: December, 1996
copyright: 1997, The American Meteor Society
Compiled and Revised by:
James Richardson
AMS Radiometeor Project Coordinator
Dr. David D. Meisel
AMS Executive Director
-------------------------------------------------------------------
Table of Contents
1.0 INTRODUCTION 1
2.0 PERSONNEL REQUIREMENTS 3
3.0 BASIC PROCEDURE 4
4.0 PHASE I: PRELIMINARY SURVEYS 4
4.1 Receiver Site Survey and Selection 4
4.1.1 Radio Background Noise 4
4.1.2 Other Considerations 6
4.2 Band Survey and Frequency/Transmitter Selection 7
4.2.1 Transmitter Requirements 7
4.2.2 Radio Frequency BAND SURVEY 8
4.2.3 HF Band (Frequencies Below 30 MHz) 8
4.2.4 Frequencies Between 30 MHz and 50 MHz 9
4.2.5 The 6-Meter Amateur Radio Band (50-54 Mhz) 10
4.2.6 The Low VHF Television Band (55-88 Mhz) 11
4.2.7 FM Commercial Band (88-108 MHz) 13
4.2.8 Aircraft Band (108 MHz - 140 MHz) 15
4.2.9 Frequencies Above 140 MHz 15
5.0 PHASE II: SYSTEM ESTABLISHMENT 16
5.1 Establishment of Receiver System 16
5.1.1 Basic Radiometeor Receiver System 16
5.1.2 Antennas and Mounting 17
5.1.3 Transmission Lines and Connectors 21
5.1.4 Filters and Traps (Optional) 21
5.1.5 Pre-amplifier or "booster" 22
5.1.6 Frequency Converter (optional) 22
5.1.7 The Receiver 23
5.1.8 Noise Cancellation Receiver 24
5.2 Establishment of Data Collection System 24
5.2.1 Receiver/Computer Interface 24
5.2.2 Audio Detection of Meteor Events 25
5.2.3 Automated Meteor Event Detection 27
6.0 PHASE III: SYSTEM TESTING AND OPERATION 30
6.1 System Grooming, Testing, and Calibration 30
6.1.1 Meteor Event Verification Test 30
6.1.2 System Calibration Test 31
6.2 System Full-Time Operation and Maintenance 32
7.0 FINAL COMMENTS 33
APPENDIX I: Forward-Scatter Fundamentals 34
A1.1 Introduction to Meteor Radio Scatter 34
A1.2 The Meteor Scatter Signal 35
A1.3 Meteor Scatter Geometry 35
A1.4 Sporadic Flux Variations 37
A1.5 Meteor Velocity Considerations 37
A1.6 Forward-scatter by Aircraft 38
A1.7 Other Propagation Modes 39
APPENDIX II: Link Bearings/Offsets for Meteor Showers 42
APPENDIX III: VHF Frequency Lists and Information 43
APPENDIX IV: Amateur Radiometeor References 44
A4.1 AMS Bulletins and Publications 44
A4.2 Amateur Radiometeor Efforts 44
A4.3 Meteors and Propagation (Advanced) 45
A4.4 Symposium Results (Advanced) 45
APPENDIX V: General Radio Astronomy References 46
A5.1 Radio Astronomy 46
A5.2 Radio Broadcast Guidebooks 46
A5.3 Radio Equipment 47
end of enclosure.
Thank you, Lewis, for letting me post this announcement.
Take care, everyone,
Jim Richardson
Graceville, FL
richardson@digitalexp.com
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