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Ham Hears Mars Orbiter 45 Million Miles From Earth

Posted by Zonk on from the that's-quite-a-commute dept.

Richard L. James writes "As reported on the Mars-net email list Flight Refuelling Amateur Radio Society's resident satcom + WLAN guru Paul J. Marsh (M0EYT) has managed to detect and receive NASA's Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter on X band at a staggering range of 45 million miles from Earth using a home made receiver setup and a RFspace SDR-14 software radio."

41 of 239 comments (clear)

  1. So... by ToasterofDOOM · · Score: 5, Funny

    ...how soon can I get this sort of range/reliability for my home Wifi?

    --
    I am Spartacus
    1. Re:So... by rossdee · · Score: 2, Funny

      Even if you could, ping times would suck. 8 minutes or so for the round trip.

  2. Nice ... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Funny


    and here I can't get a decent fucking picture from DirecTV.

    1. Re:Nice ... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0, Funny

      and here I can't get a decent fucking picture from DirecTV.

      Karma may be a bitch, but Shannon is a fucking asshole.

  3. Obligatory by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Funny

    "Can you hear me now?"

    1. Re:Obligatory by ToasterofDOOM · · Score: 3, Funny

      Give me a couple of minutes, we're getting some crazy high lag. So much for pwning those martian gamers.

      --
      I am Spartacus
    2. Re:Obligatory by aarku · · Score: 4, Funny

      More obligatory: "Mmmmmm.... orbiting ham.... *garalrahhararar*"

  4. Security risk? by nonother · · Score: 4, Funny

    We better start encrypting our space chats or the aliens will surely hear us.

    1. Re:Security risk? by Lehk228 · · Score: 4, Funny

      apparantly they use the same symmetric key for more than one vehicle.

      --
      Snowden and Manning are heroes.
    2. Re:Security risk? by nacturation · · Score: 5, Funny

      Someone just learned a hard grammer lesson on slashdot for EVERYONE to see - how humiliating.

      Meanwhile, in another post, a humiliating spelling lesson is underway.

      --
      Want to improve your Karma? Instead of "Post Anonymously", try the "Post Humously" option.
    3. Re:Security risk? by dr_d_19 · · Score: 5, Funny

      All NASA communications are encrypted.

      I broke that encryption years ago. According to my findings, proximity and movement correction data was sent as YARDS and not METERS.

    4. Re:Security risk? by Lehk228 · · Score: 4, Funny

      more concerned with someone finding the key from the crashed shuttle and changing all the satellite imagery data to gaping anus imagery

      --
      Snowden and Manning are heroes.
  5. Transcript by coolraul · · Score: 4, Funny

    Orbiter: "Beep beep beep bo beep" Base station: "Da deet da da deet deet da"

    1. Re:Transcript by mboverload · · Score: 2, Funny
      Base Station: 01000111011011110010000001100110011101010110001101 10101100100000011110010110111101110101011100100111 0011011001010110110001100110

      Orbiter: 01000101011101110111011100100001001000000010000001 0011100110111100100000011101110110000101111001

      Base Station: 01101111011011010110011100100000011011000110111101 10110001111010

    2. Re:Transcript by dogwelder99 · · Score: 5, Funny
      Orbiter:

      Dear Sir,

      Confidential Interplanetary Business Proposal

      Having consulted with my colleagues and based on the information gathered from the Martian Chambers Of Commerce And Industry, I have the privilege to request your assistance to transfer the sum of $47,500,000.00 (forty seven million, five hundred thousand Earth dollars) into your accounts. The above sum resulted from an over-invoiced contract, executed, commissioned and paid for about five years (5) ago by an alien contractor. This action was however intentional and since then the fund has been in a suspended account at The Central Bank Of Mars...

    3. Re:Transcript by TubeSteak · · Score: 2, Funny

      Base Station: Go fuck yourself
      Orbiter: Eww! No way
      Base Station: omg lolz

      My Response: 01010010011011110110011001101100011011000100001101 10111101110000011101000110010101110010011110100010 00010010000100100001001100010011000100110001011001 01011011000110010101110110011001010110111001101111 0110111001100101

      Figure it out yourself
      http://nickciske.com/tools/binary.php

      --
      [Fuck Beta]
      o0t!
    4. Re:Transcript by pharwell · · Score: 2, Funny

      Orbiter: "Beep beep beep bo beep" Base station: "Da deet da da deet deet da"

      Sting: "De do do do, de da da da"

      --
      I quote others only in order the better to express myself. -- Michel de Montaigne
    5. Re:Transcript by NeuroManson · · Score: 2, Funny

      Are you sure it wasn't "Bah-weep-granna-weep-nini-bohn"?

      --
      Just because you can mod me down, doesn't mean you're right. Shoes for industry!
    6. Re:Transcript by hazem · · Score: 2, Funny

      And THAT's why we don't want to give Haliburton the Mars contracts too...

    7. Re:Transcript by tnsimonson · · Score: 5, Funny
      Base Station: So what're you wearing?

      Orbiter: I've got on a slinky little number.

      Base Station: Aight, I put on my robe and wizard hat.

      --
      -I like my women like I like my coffee - tied up in a sack and brought to me by Juan Valdez.
  6. WHAT LINK!?! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 4, Funny

    Jesus fucking christ! What link do they want me to click?! My slashdot honed senses are confused by the lack of more then one link in the article summary!!!

    Oh, wait, nevermind, since when did I read articles? Crisis averted! :)

    1. Re:WHAT LINK!?! by ValiantSoul · · Score: 2, Funny

      Just open them all in new tabs and then close them after checking if theres pictures - thats what I do : )
      /. effect!

    2. Re:WHAT LINK!?! by Pollardito · · Score: 2, Funny

      you must be new to WikiDot

  7. How long before he is silenced? by pawstar · · Score: 5, Funny

    So, how long will it take for this guy to be reprimanded for space war driving of satellites ?

  8. Re:Slashdotted by Jeng · · Score: 5, Funny

    Which one?

    --
    Don't know something? Look it up. Still don't know? Then ask.
  9. Re:That is actually pretty cool by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1, Funny

    So you could touch his hand and buy him beers? That's what I try to do to sluts at bars.

  10. Space Modulator by tlynch001 · · Score: 2, Funny

    The article doesn't mention how he also needed a Uranium PU-36 Explosive Space Modulator

  11. Start eating your chips... by postbigbang · · Score: 4, Funny

    because that's one helluva Pringle's can. Defcon contests, you're over.

    --
    ---- Teach Peace. It's Cheaper Than War.
  12. Re:That is actually pretty cool-Geek Cred. by icepick72 · · Score: 2, Funny

    You're absolutely right. Money isn't the most important thing in life ... but it's sure WAY ahead of whatever's in first place!

  13. The problem... by staticsage · · Score: 5, Funny

    The problem with this layout is that there's too much shit to click on. Seriously, who's ever going to click on all those links? The worst blogs are the ones that make every other word a hyperlink to another website so by the time you finish reading this sentence, you've forgotten what you were reading, or why you were reading it in the first place. Hey, this article is great but you know what would make it better? If I could read another article in the middle of it. Great design, morons.

  14. Worked All Planets Yet? by wa2flq · · Score: 5, Funny



    Gonna need a lot fo postage on that QSL Card....

  15. Re:Are you insane? by Ibby · · Score: 3, Funny

    Exactly. If we can communicate with it, we can hack it. I wonder if it's interested in some v1agra...

    --
    Karma: Good. I'm hoping in the same way as pizza is 'good'...
  16. Whoa! by dookus · · Score: 2, Funny

    Pigs' hearing is *that* good?

  17. Re:Whick link to click ? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 2, Funny

    I opened them all in separate tabs, realized how many there were, and then proceeded to read none of them.

  18. Smirnoff by slashdotmsiriv · · Score: 2, Funny

    In Soviet Russia the orbiter hears you. oh..wait...hmmm

  19. Re:Just like Apollo by JourneyExpertApe · · Score: 5, Funny

    How many of you remember the articles in QST and Ham Radio from the 1970's about...

    I'm willing to wager: not many. For most slashdotters, the first season of Friends is retro kitsch.

    "H3y, r3m3mbr wh3n w3 w3r3 k1d5 wh3n 7hey 1nv3n73d dvdburn3rs?"
    "n0, dvdbyrn3rs h4ve 4lw4y5 3xis73d. PWN3D!!!!11"
    "0h y34h, i f0rg0t."

    --
    If you can read this sig, you're too close.
  20. Muppets? by Jah-Wren+Ryel · · Score: 4, Funny

    Did anyone else read that title as:
    "Ham Nears Mars Orbit 45 Million Miles From Earth"

    I thought it was going to a story about Piiiigs in Spaaaaace!

    --
    When information is power, privacy is freedom.
    1. Re:Muppets? by tokul · · Score: 2, Funny

      > Did anyone else read that title as:
      > "Ham Nears Mars Orbit 45 Million Miles From Earth"

      With sufficient thrust, pigs fly just fine. (rfc 1925)

  21. I understand by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Funny

    Slashdot is a public forum where everything is dicussed in far too much depth and 90% of it is pointless

  22. FAKE! by Linker3000 · · Score: 5, Funny

    Working on the (alleged by some) premise that we never went to the moon - how do we know that NASA isn't pumping out a fake, weak signal from a research lab just to fool us!!? I won't believe it until we get some triangulation on that signal!

    --
    AT&ROFLMAO
  23. The real question is... by mtec · · Score: 2, Funny

    Was the antenna in a Spiral or was it flat and Deli thin?

    Oh, and I'll bet all he could hear was 'The Cure'.

    I'm very very sorry. I'm such a ha... never mind.

    --
    Cake or Death? Cake Please!