My Old LEO Satellite Antenna. The vivid red sunset created by the Mt. Pinatubo eruption in the Philippines on June 15, 1991.
I've been interested in satellite communications for as long as I've been a ham. I have always dreamed of owning a super satellite station but never had the money. I first became active in amateur satellite in the very early 1980's with the Russian RS-3 through RS-8 satellites. These were "mode-A" satellites the had uplink frequencies on 2m and downlink frequencies on 10m. In later years I kept a regular schedule with my friend Mike, AA9IL through the RS-10 satellite. The Russian MIR space station and NASA Space Shuttle SAREX missions have also been a lot of fun for me. In 1991 the (at the time) Soviet Union had a space exhibit here in Fort Worth and the local AMSAT folks (including me) setup a great satellite station at the exhibit to work MIR and other amateur satellites during the exhibit. What other hobby will allow you to do something as exciting as talk to an astronaut in space using your own equipment at home?