Fox-1D, AO-92 or AMSAT OSCAR 92[3] was an American amateur radio satellite. Fox-1D was a 1U CubeSat developed and built by AMSAT-NA. Fox-1D carried a single-channel transponder for mode U/V in FM. Fox-1D had an L-band converter (the AMSAT L-band downshifter experiment), which allowed the FM transponder to be switched on an uplink in the 23 centimetres (9.1 in) band.

Fox-1D
Mission typeCommunications
OperatorAMSAT[1]
COSPAR ID2018-004AC[1]
SATCAT no.43137[1]
Spacecraft properties
ManufacturerUniversity of Iowa, Virginia Tech, Pennsylvania State-Erie, Radio Amateur Satellite Corporation
Launch mass1.3 kilograms (2.9 lb)
Start of mission
Launch date12 January 2018, 03:59 UTC
RocketPSLV-XL C-40
Launch siteSatish FLP
End of mission
Decay date3 February 2024
Orbital parameters
Reference systemGeocentric
RegimeLow Earth
Eccentricity0.0011184[2]
Perigee altitude490 kilometres (300 mi)[2]
Apogee altitude505 kilometres (314 mi)[2]
Inclination97.5331°[2]
RAAN238.3110°[2]
Argument of perigee77.5681°[2]
Mean motion282.6806°[2]
Epoch24 June 2018[2]
Revolution no.2484[2]

To enable it to launch under NASA's ELaNa (Educational Launch of Nanosatellites) program, the satellite continued to carry the following scientific and technical payloads:

  • High Energy Radiation CubeSat (HERCI);
  • Camera Experiment;
  • MEMS GYRO Experiment.

The satellite had a single whip antenna for the 70 cm and 23 cm bands (uplink), as well as an antenna for the 2 m band (downlink).

Mission

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The satellite was launched on 12 January 2018 at 03:59 UTC with a PSLV XL rocket, along with the main payloads Cartosat-2F, NovaSAR-S, and 31 other small satellites from the Satish Dhawan Space Centre, India. At 05:17 UTC, the antennas were deployed over the North Pole and the satellite began to work. At 05:28 UTC the first telemetry was received and commissioning occurred over approximately two weeks.

By 2021, Fox-1D had experienced battery degradation and became rarely operational, occasionally being turned on and then defaulting into "Safe Mode" at the next eclipse. The satellite re-entered Earth's atmosphere on 3 February 2024.[4]

 
Fox-1D Transponder Mode Beacon.
Fox-1D Transponder Mode Beacon
AO-92 safe mode beacon.
Frequencies
145.880 MHz downlink FM, data transmission DUV 200 bit/s and FSK 9600 bit/s, 400 - 800 mW
435.350 MHz uplink FM CTCSS 67.0 Hz
1,267,350 MHz uplink FM CTCSS 67.0 Hz

See also

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References

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  1. ^ a b c "AO-92". NSSDCA. NASA GSFC. Retrieved 2018-06-24.
  2. ^ a b c d e f g h i "AO-92". Heavens-Above GmbH. Chris Peat. Retrieved 2018-06-24.
  3. ^ "FOX-1D (AO-92)". Ciprian Sufitchi. 12 January 2018. Retrieved 2018-06-24.
  4. ^ "AO-92 Reenters Earth's Atmosphere". 4 February 2024. Retrieved 10 July 2024.
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