Ham Radio Online - Phase 3D On Discovery Channel

[Contents] [Library] [Reprint policy] [Disasters]
Copyright © 1995 Virtual Publishing Co.

DISCOVERY CHANNEL FILMING AT PHASE 3D LAB

HR AMSAT NEWS SERVICE BULLETIN 290.01 FROM AMSAT HQ
SILVER SPRING, MD OCTOBER 17, 1995
TO ALL RADIO AMATEURS BT
BID: $ANS-290.01

As a direct result of a tip from Eric Rosenberg WD3Q at the Dayton Hamvention last April, AMSAT was offered an opportunity to tell our story to a film crew from the Discovery Channel.

That opportunity came to fruition this past week in conjunction with our Annual Meeting and Space Symposium in Orlando. However, what started out as a single day of filming soon turned into much, much more.

Phase 3D satellite Photo at left shows the roughly 8 foot diameter satellite and Russian built rocket fuel tanks.

When it was finally declared "a wrap" on Wednesday afternoon after two days of shooting, the crew had exposed over four thousand feet of 16mm film during some 86 takes. The show will be called "Eyes In The Sky", and will be shown on the Discovery Channel Network as a two hour evening special on or near the 15th of March next year. Featured on-camera spokesperson were Keith Baker KB1SF, Dick Jansson WD4FAB and Stan Wood WA4NFY, In addition, a number of other familiar P3-D Lab faces were used in the piece.

The film crew (six of them) were real pros at their trade....they did their thing complete with audio and film camera extension booms, rolling camera tracks, tripods, and multi-color lights. Shooting was accomplished with all the "Lights-Sound-Camera-Action" lingo of a full Hollywood production, reported Keith Baker, KB1SF who acted as AMSAT's representative during the filming.

2400 MHz prototype Filming was done at three locations. The first had Keith, Dick and Stan scampering around inside Orlando's premier surplus house (Skycraft) looking for parts for the spacecraft. Then, they shot Dick Jansson roaming the aisles of the local K-Mart looking for P3-D "antenna" parts, complete with a "blue light special" PA announcement giving a price reduction on the "hardware" Dick was pulling off the shelf! [See photo of "cake tin" 2400 MHz engineering prototype antenna, at right-Ed] Finally, they finished up the bulk of the shots at the P3-D Lab.

While they wanted it to be a "fun" piece, the overall serious theme the producers were looking for from us was that "High Tech doesn't need to be High Cost". All three of of the AMSAT folks emphasized that concept...and more... in our full-face interviews. Other themes touched on included AMSAT's "KISS" approach to spacecraft design and that the paperwork needed to document the spacecraft need not weigh more than the spacecraft itself. Some time was spent discussing Amateur Radio as a whole....who hams are, and why it's important that their continued access to our frequencies be perserved. Also discussed was the spirit of adventure and commitment that's part of the "glue" that holds AMSAT people, and hams in general together.

Phase 3D satellite Photo at left shows the base of the Phase 3 spacecraft including 430 MHz patch antenna placement, 2 meter folded dipoles and placement of kick motor and 5.7 GHz.

Of course, there's no telling how much of our effort will end up on the cutting room floor, but all in all, it was fun, and AMSAT was given a good chance to give a national audience a good pitch for the amateur space effort and Amateur Radio. Baker said that he thinks it will turn out to be one of (if not "the") most professionally orchestrated piece ever done about AMSAT. Apparently, we will be sharing the limelight with NASA Administrator Dan Goldin and Boston Red Sox pitcher Roger Clemens, along with a lot of other "heavies" in the space biz.

Now, we'll all get to wait and see how we did, Keith Baker said..

ANS is indebted to Keith Baker KB1SF for this material.

Photo shows 5.7 GHz antenna.

Back to table of contents