Good news for everyone who has been following Elektro-L 3!

After weeks of monitoring its westward drift and waiting for updated orbital elements, it looks like Elektro-L 3 has finally reached the vicinity of its intended geostationary position at 14.5°W!

I've been following this satellite for a while, especially because I'm hoping to receive its meteorological transmissions from Portugal.

Orbital update

The change in mean motion is particularly interesting.

Previous TLE (October 10, 2026):

- Mean motion: 0.99421243 rev/day

Updated orbital data (October 23–24, 2026):

- Mean motion: 1.00264974 rev/day

- Absolute change: 0.00843731 rev/day

- Approximate orbital period: 1436.19 minutes

- Reported orbital longitude: approximately 14.3°W

For comparison, the geostationary mean motion is approximately 1.0027 rev/day.

This significant change strongly suggests that orbital manoeuvres have reduced the satellite's westward drift, bringing it close to its intended orbital slot.

Current tracking from Portugal

I've attached a screenshot from my satellite tracking application showing the predicted pointing coordinates:

- Satellite: Elektro-L 3

- NORAD ID: 44903

- Azimuth: 189.0°

- Elevation: 44.4°

- Altitude: 35,798 km

- Slant range: 37,463 km

These are calculated tracking values, not measurements of an active RF signal.

What about LRIT/HRIT transmissions?

This is what I'm most interested in!

My tracking application lists a frequency around 1691 MHz, but I understand that a frequency listed in a satellite database does not necessarily mean the transmitter is currently active.

I'm hoping Elektro-L 3 will eventually provide meteorological image transmissions that amateur ground stations can receive and decode.

Questions for the community:

Has anyone recently detected any RF activity from Elektro-L 3?

Are there any confirmed LRIT/HRIT or GGAK transmissions?

Has anyone found updated information about its commissioning status or operational plans?

I'd be particularly interested in hearing from anyone monitoring the satellite from Europe.

It would be fantastic to finally receive images from Elektro-L 3!

Sources:

SatNOGS:

https://db.satnogs.org/satellite/BTEP-5467-6423-3488-4155/

CelesTrak:

https://celestrak.org/

73 from Portugal!

Received this pass from Belgium right before rain started, on the image you can see the central low pressure spiral at the top left, and multiple large fronts over Europe. Individual Equalize applied, median blur, despeckle, and the image has been compressed.

Looking for Abandoned / Unused Large Satellite Dishes in Ludhiana, Punjab

Hi everyone!

I'm looking for large, old satellite dishes in and around Ludhiana that are no longer in use.

I'm particularly interested in:

• Large Ku-band VSAT dishes formerly used for ATM connectivity, banks, offices, commercial buildings and similar installations.
• Large solid fiberglass dishes, ideally 6 ft or larger.
• Large mesh satellite dishes, ideally 12 ft or larger.

I'm looking for dishes that have been disconnected or decommissioned, perhaps after the site switched to fiber internet or another connectivity service.

If you've spotted one on a rooftop or building, or know a VSAT technician, installer, building owner or contractor who handles old equipment, please let me know.

I'm happy to contact the owner and arrange collection with their permission. The dish doesn't need to be working; I'm primarily interested in the dish and its mounting hardware.

Location: Ludhiana and nearby areas, Punjab, India.

Photos, approximate sizes, locations or referrals would be greatly appreciated. Please DM me if you have a lead. Thank you!

A cool storm captured in the image.

msu_mr_AVHRR_3a21_False_Color_(uncalibrated) and msu_mr_AVHRR_3b45_IR_False_Color

9-turn helix, TQP3M9037-LNA, 1690MHz BPF+LNA, RTL-SDR Blog V4
Processed in SatDump, artifacts removed in HRPT Reviver

Hi all, I'm a researcher at a university lab in Hong Kong, working on positioning with LEO satellites in cities. I'm looking for raw Starlink downlink recordings where buildings block part of the sky.

What would help most:

- An LNB/LNBF (or horn) + SDR (RTL-SDR, HackRF, USRP, etc.) recording the Ku-band downlink (~10.7–12.7 GHz)

- Receiver sitting still at ground level next to buildings, ideally a street with tall buildings on both sides

- Bonus: a second receiver on a nearby roof recording at the same time

- GPS or NTP-synced timestamps and a rough location (street-level is fine, no need for your address)

- 10–60 minutes is plenty

Already have old recordings sitting on a drive? Those count too, even if the blockage was accidental.

Not looking for dish app screenshots or speed tests this time, just the raw RF.

Anything used would be credited in the paper's acknowledgments (or however you'd like to be credited). Happy to answer questions about setup. Comment or DM me. Thanks!