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| Launch of the European Space Agency's new Vega rocket. (Courtesy ESA website) |
The European Space Agency's new launch vehicle, the Vega, made its first operational launch in mid-Feburary, carrying into orbit eight student-built amateur radio satellites and the LARES Laser Relativity Satellite.
The ARRL Letter reports that the ham-band satellites were built by students in six different countries and will transmit telemetry on VHF, UHF and microwave amateur bands. One, PW-Sat from Poland, includes a voice repeater which will listen on 70 centimeters and transmit on 2 meters.
