r/amateursatellites Dec 07 '23

Article / News List of my satellite related guides and tutorials

138 Upvotes

Hi!
I've seen that most of the guides on the Internet are quite out of date, with most suggesting to use abandonware software or having information about satellites that have since ceased to transmit.

Here are some of the guides I made. If you see any mistake, or want to add something, just drop a comment!

Satellite reception and decoding

Automated stations

SatDump usage

All have been moved to SatDump's documentation page

Satellite data processing and usage

Thanks!

Last update 2025-08-24


r/amateursatellites 11h ago

Weather satellites METEOR-M N2-4 2026/09/31 12:15 UTC

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12 Upvotes

This time I didn't adjust the Doppler shift, since it turns out the demodulator handles that automatically. There were fewer dark bands, but a couple of wide ones remained, and the polarization was still fluctuating.

Equipment (listed in order of connection):

  • 137 MHz V-dipole
  • 137 MHz SAW filter before the LNA
  • External LNA with bias tee
  • 5-meter 5D-FB coaxial cable
  • RTL-SDR Blog V4
  • 2-meter USB extension cable
  • Laptop

r/amateursatellites 5h ago

Weather satellites Recommendations for a beginner

1 Upvotes

Hi! I've been messing with my Nooelec RTL-SDR v5 for around 2 months and I recently got a simple V dipole antenna with 53.4cm for each rod, 120 degrees between them and all that.

Now i want to try and capture my first Meteor M2-3/M2-4 satellite image! I use the setup from https://www.rtl-sdr.com/simple-noaameteor-weather-satellite-antenna-137-mhz-v-dipole/

I got a 54 degree pass of the Meteor M2-3 tomorrow morning, Is it worth trying with my new antenna? What are the proper SDR++ settings? I have done some research already but there is a lot of contradicting information so i want to get your opinion.

Any help is appreciated!

UPDATE: Just to note, i do not have an LNA.


r/amateursatellites 1d ago

Weather satellites METEOR-M N2-4 2026/08/31 22:40 UTC

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9 Upvotes

METEOR-M N2-4 2026/08/31 22:40 UTC Nooelec NEsdr v5, diy QFH, Satdump


r/amateursatellites 1d ago

Weather satellites METEOR-M N2-4 2026/08/31 12:36 UTC

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19 Upvotes

Equipment (listed in order of connection):

  • 137 MHz V-dipole
  • 137 MHz SAW filter before the LNA
  • External LNA with bias tee
  • 5-meter 5D-FB coaxial cable
  • RTL-SDR Blog V4
  • 2-meter USB extension cable
  • Laptop

r/amateursatellites 2d ago

Satellite imagery UMKA-1 RS40S

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28 Upvotes

437.625 MHz FM SSTV


r/amateursatellites 2d ago

Weather satellites First Meteor M2-3 Capture

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38 Upvotes

Aug 30, 2026 1:06:35 UTC

So M2-3 satellite always pass here but during the night. This is my first daylight capture with that satellite (gotta appreciate that landmass)

EDIT: only during the night I receive a good pass (60 degrees plus)


r/amateursatellites 3d ago

Weather satellites METEOR-M N2-4 2026/08/29 21:44 UTC

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14 Upvotes

METEOR-M N2-4 2026/08/29 21:44 UTC,
Airspy R2, diy V_Dipole, Satdump


r/amateursatellites 3d ago

Satellite imagery Meteor-M N°2-4 KMSS

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24 Upvotes

Apparently Reddit's stupid filters think that satellite imagery is NSFW so I had to crop it.

Full resolution: KMSS1.jpg) and KMSS2

WARNING BIG IMAGE (50MB EACH) right click -> save to disk, browser will surely crash


r/amateursatellites 3d ago

Satellite imagery NOAA-21 & FY-3H

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40 Upvotes

r/amateursatellites 3d ago

Weather satellites My first LONGEST Meteor M2-4 capture

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38 Upvotes

Aug 29, 2026 06:20 UTC

So I used to just extend the antenna to max(dipole) and I always get only like stripped image and maybe for like few seconds.

After learning some antenna information, I extended it to right length (plus angle it a bit to account for overhead pass) and captured this (clouds hide the land mass but I think it creates a new aesthetic). It lasted around 8 to 10mins if I'm not mistaken.

Maybe having those satellite dedicated antennas would improve this even more (like what ppl are posting here)


r/amateursatellites 3d ago

Weather satellites East Coast US

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12 Upvotes

K4PGD - V-Dipole > SawBird NOAA - Noelec rtl-sdr - RaspiNOAA


r/amateursatellites 3d ago

Software My SSTV project got a bit out of hand. Here is a free encoder/decoder tool for all modes in the Dayton Paper.

5 Upvotes

So my journey started when I was looking for an SSTV encoding library for the satellite payload I was designing. When I couldn't find a suitable library, I built one myself.

After spending a lot of time trying to implement SSTV encodings and ensuring compatibility, I thought why not spend some more time making it actually useful. So I created a free website under www.slowscan.space which lets you encode and decode all SSTV modes in the Dayton Paper. You can also decode live off-air by feeding your rig's audio into your mic input or transmit by playing the encoded audio into your radio.

I am curious if you guys find this useful. Are there any features you are missing? Did I make any mistakes?


r/amateursatellites 4d ago

Weather satellites Trouble trying to receive HRPT/LRPT

3 Upvotes

Hi, new member here. I'm using a helix antenna, a SPF5189Z LNA and an ADALM-PLUTO SDR to receive METEOR M-x, METOP and FENGYUNG satellites. I simulated and built the antenna myself (got a gain of about 13.5 dBi on simulation, as well as S1,1 = -20.6 dB and VSWR = 1.21 in physical measurements). However, I'm not being able to receive any satellite at all. I also tested the setup using a RF generator and a lambda/4 antenna as transmitter and it worked perfectly. What am I doing wrong?


r/amateursatellites 5d ago

Satellite imagery My first successful METEOR-M2-3 LRPT reception!

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49 Upvotes

Got it working!

Received METEOR-M2-3 on 137.9 MHz using an RTL-SDR v4 and a simple V-dipole in my backyard. Decoded with SatDump.

The signal wasn’t perfect there are plenty of artifacts but I actually received an image of Europe directly from a satellite with a couple pieces of wire in the garden. Still kind of amazed that this works. =)

Next goal: improve the antenna setup and get a cleaner full pass.


r/amateursatellites 5d ago

Weather satellites METEOR-M N2-4 2026/08/27 22:27 UTC

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22 Upvotes

METEOR-M N2-4 2026/08/27 22:27 UTC, Airspy R2, diy V_Dipole, Satdump


r/amateursatellites 5d ago

Satellite imagery Would this be sufficient?

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7 Upvotes

Looking into getting into the hobby, am i missing anything?


r/amateursatellites 5d ago

Weather satellites METEOR-M N2-4 2026/08/26 Afternoon Passes

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21 Upvotes

METEOR-M N2-4 2026/08/26 Afternoon Passes CN85 Nooelec NEsdr v5, diy QFH Satdump


r/amateursatellites 5d ago

Satellite imagery METEOR-M N2-3 Reception Troubleshooting

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8 Upvotes

Having a bit of difficulty receiving METEOR-M N2-3 (and N2-4)

Setup:

  • RTL-SDR Blog V4
  • Stock Dipole, 54cm
  • Nooelec NOAA Saw filter & LNA
  • Laptop
    • SatDump
    • 137.9 MHz Primary
    • METEOR M2-x LRPT 72k processing pipeline
    • 1.024 sample rate, DC blocking, gain 25-35
  • hand-held

The dipole plugs into the LNA, which is powered by Bias-T and threaded into the RTL-SDR, which plugs directly into the laptop

I do get syncs reported on Viterbi, with BER around 0.003 and SNR around 14, and I've been attempting passes >70 degrees of elevation

This set of images were from a pass on 2026-08-26

Is this a day/night issue? Noise from the laptop? Drivers or processing errors?


r/amateursatellites 6d ago

Weather satellites I'm getting some annoying interference just below 137.9 MHz, and it's getting close to the METEOR signal. I'm using a DIY QFH-antenna on the roof, a Nooelec SawBird+ NOAA filter+LNA, 13 meters of RG-58 into an RTL-SDRv3. Can I do anything about it?

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29 Upvotes

r/amateursatellites 6d ago

Satellite imagery SSTV from UmKA for Namibia Heroes Day

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41 Upvotes

FN04gf, Uniden BC125AT, using Droid SSTV with a 3 element yagi. The event runs until August 26th, not sure exactly when it ends.


r/amateursatellites 6d ago

Satellite imagery METEOR-M2-4

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17 Upvotes

r/amateursatellites 7d ago

Satellite imagery My very first SSTV decode (ecstatic)

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58 Upvotes

Finally after almost a month of trial and error and tracking, my very first SSTV decode (it's addicting)! yay!

Time: 2026-08-25 02:21:50 UTC
Satellite: UMKA-1
Gear: RTL SDR v4, 16cm dipole (vertical orientation), LNA (TQP3M9037-LNA)


r/amateursatellites 7d ago

Weather satellites Interest in other HRPT instruments besides AVHRR?

5 Upvotes

I'm curious about how much interest there is in the other instruments transmitted through (a)hrpt besides avhrr/msu-mr, such as metop instruments amsu, mhs, iasi, gome, sem or the mtvza on meteor.

Do you find these instruments interesting or useful? If so which ones interest you the most, and why? If not is it because the data is harder to decode, process, visualize, or interpret compared with something like avhrr?

I'm mainly curious about everyone's different perspectives


r/amateursatellites 8d ago

Satellite imagery PROBA II SWAP imagery of the solar eclipse in Europe

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56 Upvotes

Should have probably posted this on here sooner! I had a 89* pass over in Poland. Extremely lucky I had it during the eclipse, albeit not at its peak. Recorded with the discovery dish kit and a hackRF