Satellites
The ISS gets the attention, but it is one of dozens of spacecraft carrying amateur radio payloads. Orbital elements below come live from CelesTrak’s amateur satellite catalogue.
Amateur satellites in orbit
Every object CelesTrak lists in its amateur group, with orbit shape derived from current elements. Lower and faster means shorter, more frequent passes.
Objects tracked
Lowest orbit
Highest orbit
Oldest still flying
The catalogue
Loading…| Satellite | NORAD | Altitude | Period | Inclination | Launched |
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Where to actually start
The easiest satellites to work are the FM voice birds. They carry a single channel repeater in the sky: you transmit on one band, they retransmit on another, and the whole contact lasts as long as the pass — typically eight to twelve minutes from horizon to horizon. Because it is one channel shared by everyone in the footprint, discipline matters. Give your callsign and grid square, get a report, and get out of the way.
You need less equipment than people expect. A dual band handheld and a small handheld yagi will work the FM birds. The two things that catch beginners out are Doppler shift, which moves the downlink several kilohertz across a pass and needs retuning as you go, and polarisation, which is why rotating the antenna often pulls a fading signal back out of the noise.
The linear transponder satellites are a step up. They carry a slice of spectrum rather than one channel, so several contacts happen at once in SSB or CW, and they tolerate weaker signals. They also demand more: full duplex operation, so you can hear yourself coming back down and correct your own Doppler.
Frequencies and operational status change — satellites fail, get switched to different modes, or are commanded off for power reasons. Check AMSAT for the current frequency list and live status before a pass rather than trusting any printed table, including this page.
