OSCAR - Amateur radio satellites and spacecraft

An historical account is presented of the Orbital Satellite Carrying Amateur Radio (OSCAR) RS series, which was primarily intended for relaying amateur radio signals, along with a description of the latest satellite in the OSCAR series, UOSAT, which differs from its predecessors in its capabilities for conducting experiments on ionospheric research. UOSAT's experimental facilities include a set of radio beacons, solar activity and auroral event particle counters, a magnetometer, and a CCD camera able to cover 300 sq mi with its imagery. These CCD camera images will be transmitted in a way that permits reception by simple VHF FM receivers for display on home TV sets. Attention is also given to Soviet amateur satellites, such as ISKRA 2.