The official USSF SATCAT is now at 100000

URGENT: We ran out of 5-digit catalog numbers with the addition of Saramago on 2026-07-11. We had estimated that to occur around 2026‑07‑12 back on 2026-05-09. The official USSF SATCAT is now at 100000. All newly cataloged objects will have 6-digit catalog numbers of 100000+ and GP data will not be available for them using the TLE format.

CelesTrak developed new formats that removed the 5-digit catalog number limitation (and finally fixed the Y2K problem) in May 2020 and immediately began providing GP data in those formats for software developers. Please be sure to adhere to our usage policy when retrieving any CelesTrak data. The same limitations apply to the legacy fixed-field SATCAT. That legacy format will continue to update but will only contain data for objects with catalog numbers below 70000. Be sure to follow @TSKelso on Bluesky for the latest updates, tutorials, and changes as we move forward. Spread the word!

Source: https://www.celestrak.org/NORAD/elements/

 

Alpha-5 is a stopgap object numbering schema from the United States Space Force that increases the satellite catalog’s capacity to display up to 339,999 objects in the GP/GP_History API classes using legacy fixed-width Two and Three Line Element Set (TLE/3LE) formats.

Replacing the 1st digit of the 5-digit object number with an alphanumeric character makes it possible to represent 240,000 more numbers. Objects less than 100,000 are unaffected by Alpha-5, as are users who download elsets from the GP and GP_History API classes in other formats like XML, JSON, KVN, and CSV. In order to preserve legacy operations that depend on 5-digit integers, our legacy API Classes tle, tle_latest, and tle_publish will not change to Alpha-5.

Only capital letters and numbers are used in Alpha-5. The letters “I” and “O” are omitted to avoid confusion with the numbers “1” and “0”.

Source: https://www.space-track.org/documentation#tle-alpha5

 

ARISS SSTV Series 32 “Cooperation in Space and World Peace”

ARISS has activated Slow Scan Television transmissions from the International Space Station for Series 32.

The SSTV event of ISS Expedition 74, Series 32, organized by ARISS, is part of an ongoing educational initiative that allows people around the world to receive images transmitted directly from the International Space Station using amateur radio. Running from May 8 at 10:30 UTC to May 12 at 16:40 UTC, the event features the theme “Cooperation in Space,” highlighting international collaboration in human spaceflight. During this period, the ISS transmits a series of SSTV images on 437.550 MHz in the 70 cm amateur radio band using the Robot 36 mode, where each image takes about 36 seconds to send, followed by short pauses of 3 minutes.

 

 

You can also receive some APRS packets on this frequency:

1:Fm RS0ISS To 0P0PT1 Via APRSAT <UI R Pid=F0 Len=45> [22:10:39R] [+++]
'v&l SI]ARISS-International Space Station=
1:Fm RS0ISS To 0P0PT1 Via APRSAT <UI R Pid=F0 Len=45> [22:13:39R] [+++]
'v&l SI]ARISS-International Space Station=

ARICA-2 CW beacon

15:21 UTC

00f4ecce9580
a95746ae1538ea
cq cq de js1ysd arica2
7fde078cc317601b
00f588ce9580
a9d746ae1628e9
cq cq de js1ysd arica2
7fde078cca23601b
00f615ce9580
a97746e1660e5
cq cq de js1ysd arica2
7fde078ccc0f601b
00f6b3ce9580
a9d746ae16c8e7
cq cq de js1ysd arica2
7fde078ccbd6401b
00f74fce9580
a9d746ae1600ea
cq cq de js1ysd arica2

ARICA-2 CW beacon

1528 UTC

cq cq de js1ysd arica2
2fde0b0ccb13401b
00f6afd2b100
a85742b0c5b0eb
cq cq de js1ysd arica2
2fde070cca97401b
00f751d2b100
a7d742b0c698eb
cq cq de js1ysd arica2
2fde070cc91b401b
00f7e9d2b100
a7d742afc750eb
cq cq de js1ysd arica2
2fde070cc09b401b
00f876d2b100
a85742b0c638eb
cq cq de js1ysd arica2
2fde070cc19b201b
00f923d2b100
a7d732afc590ec

ARISS SSTV Award

Hello,
Thank you for submitting your report.

The ARISS Series 31 images will consist in 12 pictures commemorating wants Cosmonauts Day, the 100th anniversary of liquid-fueled rockets, the inaugural Space Shuttle launch and SuitSat!
The certificate shows people associated with these events. From left: Konstanin Tsiolkovsky was a visionary and theoretician. He focused on the mathematical foundations of space flight, developed the rocket
formula (the Tsiolkovsky equation), and designed theoretical models of liquid-fuel rockets.
Robert Goddard – He was an engineer and practitioner. He focused on construction and testing. He launched the first liquid-fueled rocket in history in 1926.
The crew of the first space shuttle flight: John Young and Robert Crippen. The STS-1 mission aboard the Space Shuttle Columbia launched on April 12, 1981.
Exactly 20 years earlier, the first man in the world, Yuri Gagarin, made the first space journey on board the Vostok-1 spacecraft. 20 years have passed since another important event for radio amateurs.
SuitSat! (RadioSkaf) – a worn Russian Orlan spacesuit with an attached amateur radio transmitter. It was assembled by the crew of the Soyuz TMA-7 mission residing at the International Space Station. It was
launched into orbit on February 3, 2006, and operated for six months. It burned up in Earth’s atmosphere on September 7, 2006.

Amateur Radio on the International Space Station (ARISS) is a cooperative venture of international amateur radio societies and the space agencies that support the International Space Station (ISS). The
primary goal of ARISS is to promote exploration of science, technology, engineering, the arts, and mathematics topics. ARISS does this by organizing scheduled contacts via amateur radio between crew
members aboard the ISS and students. Before and during these radio contacts, students, educators, parents, and communities take part in hands-on learning activities tied to space, space technologies, and
amateur radio.

Categories: ISS

SAKHACUBE-CHOLBON (RS18S) – SSTV images

From April 10 (12:00 UTC) to April 14 (11:59 UTC), 2026, SAKHACUBE-CHOLBON (RS18S) CubeSat will be transmitting images via SSTV mode. The event commemorates the International Day of Human Space Flight on April 12.

Interval: 120/180 seconds
SSTV mode: Robot-36
Frequency: 437.350 MHz

11 Apr 2026, 10:02 UTC, 10:04 UTC, 10:06 UTC, 10:09 UTC

 

QSL Cards: To confirm reception and request a QSL card, please send your reports to amsat@yksa.space.

Please follow the provided submission format.

Email Subject: SAKHACUBE-CHOLBON 10-14 APR SSTV QSL Request (Your Callsign or Full Name)

Report Form:

  1. Full Name and Callsign (if applicable)
  2. Time of Reception (UTC)
  3. Location (QTH or City/Country)
  4. Mode (SSTV/Telemetry) and optional details on the rig and software
  5. Decoded images (as attachments)
  6. Preferred QSL Card Language (Russian or English)
  7. Paper Card Request: Indicate if you wish to receive a paper QSL card (available for those who have received 2 or more unique images).
  8. Mailing Address: Required only if a paper QSL card is requested.