[aprssig] Satellite positions: FREQUENCY

[Bob Bruninga]

> Would it be possible to send a message to a generic 
> "sat" or "space" to find out the nearest target? 

I'd like the name maybe "SATS"

> Then once the name is known, the user could then send 
> another msg to find out detailed info.

A message to SATS with "?" would return a list of the next 3 satellites in
the format:

ISS in 20m, AO27 in 145m, AO51 in 405m, SO50 in 540m

Arranged first to last, no more than 4 (because the D7, the most popular
Satellite HT ever, can only display 45 characters.  But again, I do not like
this delta-time format because once it is received, it is USELESS unless you
remember when it was received, do all the mental math then, and then
REMEMBER those future times.  This is why I do not like mintues-to-go beyond
99 miniutes.

Also this SATS engine should not include ANY satellites than cannot be
worked with an FM radio.  It is a waste of bandwidth.  But if someone has an
SSB radio, they could ask for "?SSB" and get the next WORKIGN 4 satellites
of any type.

Of course, the way we did this back when APRSdat and DIGI_NED were king was
to send the response in DX CLUSTER format so that it would go to the 10
normally unused DX CLUSTER PAGES in the D7 and D700 radios and not clutter
up the message space.  But again, we preferred the format:

ISS 1045z, AO51 1213z, AO27 1425z, SO50 1920z

Because once received, it was there in the LIST all day for you to refer to
and know when they were doming up without any mental math of remembering
from when the quesry was made.

Bob, WB4APR


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