Install Manual MeteorGIS m2-3 137.1-v5

Easy installation Russian Meteor-M2-3 weather satellite
(MeteorGIS v2.25, July, 2023)
Meteor-M No. 2-3 satellite
Au-
thor: C.R.v.d.Laan, PA3CVI
copied from: https://russianspaceweb.com/meteor-m2-3.html
Author, C.R. v.d. Laan, PA3CVI

Manual installation of the Meteor Satellites M2 pag. 2
Content page.
1. Introduction .......................................................................................................3
2. Necessary hardware .........................................................................................7
Antenna ............................................................................................................7
Amplifier ...........................................................................................................7
Bandpass filter..................................................................................................7
RTL-SDR USB stick .........................................................................................8
3. Download all files ..............................................................................................8
MeteorGIS v2.25 download ..............................................................................9
Folder structure ................................................................................................9
4. SDRSharp ........................................................................................................ 12
Installing the RTL-SDR USB stick .................................................................. 12
Frequency Manager setting ............................................................................ 14
ATIS ............................................................................................................... 15
5. Orbitron ............................................................................................................ 17
Installation ...................................................................................................... 17
Setup Orbitron ................................................................................................ 18
6. MeteorGIS 2.24 and 2.25 ................................................................................ 23
Installation and configuration ......................................................................... 23
MeteorGIS configurator ................................................................................. 23
7. Overlays .......................................................................................................... 25
- Watermarks ...................................................................................... 25
- Shapes.............................................................................................. 26
8. SDRSharp continued ...................................................................................... 29
Schedular ...................................................................................................... 29
9. RGB Settings ................................................................................................... 30
Happysat.nl/Meteor/html/Meteor_Status.html ......................................30
10. Start Recording.............................................................................................. 31
11. S-files................................................................................................................ 34
Convert the S-files from the S_file folder ..................................................... 35
12. SmoothMeteor ................................................................................................. 35
13. Desktop ............................................................................................................ 36
14. NightMode Plugin………………...…………………………………………………37
How to do…………………………………………………………………………..38
15. Finally ............................................................................................................... 39
1. Introduction.
Following the first article, NOAA Live Weather Reception, here is a description of
Russia's Meteor satellite reception. In about 6 minutes, for example, it flies into orbit
from Tunisia to Greenland. Below an example of the (ex) Meteor M2-2† live record-
ing, fig.1.
Figure 1, Live Recording of the Meteor M2-2†

You should have sufficient skills to perform basic PC operations such as downloading
and extracting files, installing software, moving and copying files. Also have the mo-
tivation to learn to deal with new software. This manual aims to provide support where
possible.
In this article I have chosen the simplest way to set up a configuration to receive live
satellite recordings. You can then get started relatively quickly. If you want to delve
deeper into this matter later, you can create a completely different setup yourself,
based on the basic program URLs and the many plug-ins that are available.
The Russian weather satellite takes wide-angle images of the Earth to observe the
clouds and the ice sheets. The high image resolution makes it interesting to also
receive live weather images from this satellite.
The digital signals are, in contrast to those of the NOAA analog signals, very sensitive
to surrounding obstacles and therefore hardly or impossible to receive with an indoor
antenna.
Recent developments have caused many problems to arise when setting up a work-
ing Meteor LRPT receiving station. The name LRPT (Low Resolution Picture Trans-
mission) is misleading in that the images are still much sharper than the analog NOAA
images. The image resolution is 1km/pixel.
Below a beautiful Meteor N2 detail enlargement of the volcano Etna, which shows a
large plume of smoke during the eruption, fig.2.
Figure 2, Detail live recording M2 received by Vitor Jacinto, Liège
Another detail shot of the Pyrenees, in November 2018, fig.3.
Figure 3, remnants of snow in the Pyrenees.

Many of the software download URLs have changed. As SDRSharp and its plug-ins
evolve rapidly, incompatibilities arise that can lead to system failure resulting in the
end of support for Windows XP. Current versions of SDRSharp and its plug-ins re-
quire Windows Vista, -7, -8, 10, or -11 to function. They cannot run in Windows XP.
Over the years, a lot has changed with the new versions of the SDRSharp program
and modified plug-ins.
Let's go back in time:

The launch of the Meteor M2 took place July 8, 2014. Unfortunately the LRPT adapter
is not functioning correctly, which is why a so-called glitch occurs every 6 minutes in
the form of a white bar. This is known and cannot be fixed. The cause is, as claimed,
cosmic particles of an occurring Solar storm. Some published images don't show
these stripes and are then photoshopped away.
July 5, 2019 the launch of a second meteor satellite, the zo mentioned MN2-2, but
January 2020, there will be only short-term power-ups in the radio visibility zone and
battery life wil be reduced tenfold. Of particular concern are the batteris they are very
quickly overheated and switching from regular to backup. Onfortunately the power
supply features do not allow the 137MHz transmitter to bu used in abnormal power,
mode (from solar panels) which is use now although technicalli it is working fine.
There will be no LRPT transmission’s anymore. (info Happysat)
The Meteor MN2-2 can still be received in the X-band 61.44MS/s QPSK on 8128MHz
(MSU-MR instrument).
Finally, on June 24, 2023, the launch of the Meteor M N2-3 took place. At the time of
writing this satellite also shows some problems, in particular the signal is strong but
periodically weaker at higher elevations.
Vasili, an SDR RTL plug-in programmer, and Oleg (with whom I've had some contacts
about the encoder of 'Lrptdecoder'), combined ideas to create a new QPSK demod-
ulator plug-in for SDR-RTL that would control the real-time reception and allows de-
coding of the two Meteors.
The demodulator also offers the advantage of faster and longer signal lockout, and
also works much better with weak signals compared to the old method.
At the same time, Vasili has also released another plug-in called "DDE Tracker" that
allows a satellite tracking program, such as "Orbitron", to control "SDRSharp".
The Meteor M2-3 weather satellite is normally active on 137.10 MHz, but it someti-
mes changes to 137.90 MHz to avoid interference from NOAA 19.
There are three places where you must make this frequency change:
1. Frequency Managing setting, page 14.
2 Rotor Radio, page. 22.
3. Scheduler, page. 29.
2. Necessary hardware.
On to practice.
Which components do you need at least for a reasonable reception:
o RTLSDR USB stick..

o QHF, or equivalent, antenna.
o Een 137 LN- amplifier.
o Possibly a bandpass filter, 137 MHz.
o Computer (Windows 11/10/8/7)
Antenna.
For weather satellite reception you should think of a QHF or Turnstile antenna, fig. 4
and 5, in the range of 137Mhz. Googling the internet provides sufficient information
about this. Make sure to place it as high as possible against a metal surface for best
results. Try it first with a high placed antenna, if the signal is still too weak, then you
will have to buy an expensive LNA (Low Nois Amplifier) fig.6 and place it close to the
antenna.
Figure 5, Turnstile antenna.
Figure 6, Amplifier.
Figure 4, QHF antenna.
Figure 7, Helical bandpass filter, Meteosat 137 MHz
Figure 8, bandpass curve, filter

RTLSDR USB stick (tested on Windows 11/10/8/7

32/64 Bit)
Currently the most common RTL-SDR USB sticks are

the R820T/R820T2, usually for sale for about 30 Euro.
fig.9. I have bad experiences with a Chinese-made
RTL sticks. In general, at least a modern fast PC pro-
cessor is needed to run most SDR software
smoothly.
Before we start with the installation, put the RTL-

SDR USB stick aside for a while and the usually sup-
plied CD can go in the trash.
Figure 9, RTL-SDR USB sticks.
3. Download all files.
first of all:
The manual described here, is based on the downloadable MeteorGIS installation file
from Les Hamilton's site. He has already preinstalled almost all settings in the nec-
essary programs, which considerably simplifies the installation.
Despite that, there is still a lot to clarify during the installation, if only to get a clearer
understanding of the whole process. That's what I've tried to do.
The simplest and quickest way to get the required setup for
receiving the Meteor-M2 signals can be found at Les Hamilton's
URL:
https://leshamilton.co.uk/MeteorGIS.htm
(download the MeteorGIS Suite Installer)
In this page, press to download.

the zip file. Place the unzipped Meteor Gis folder in a root di-
rectory, not in a subdirectory, in my case C:/, fig.10.
At this time of writing, MeteorGIS 2.24 will be installed.

On my question to the designer of MeteorGis whether the fonts
of the place names could be displayed a bit larger, version 2.25
has meanwhile been developed. This will become clear later in
the manual.
Download this version from URL:

http://www.meteorgis.space/beta/ Figure10, MeteorGIS folder
MeteorGIS v2.25 download.
With this version you can slightly increase the text size of the cities, see pag.28.
Paste and overwrite the existing

files with these files fig.11, in
the folder: C:\MeteorGIS\Mete-
orGIS.
Figure 11, MeteorGIS 2.25.
NB It is also wise to copy and paste the hole MeteorGIS folders into a USB stick,
because you can fall back on it in case of any PC problems.
Not in the package: Smoothmeteor v 1.68 SmoothMeteor is a development from the

SmoothMODIS program which stretches Meteor images laterally to compensate for
the foreshortened view from satellite.
Folder structure.
The folder configuration then looks like this and it is useful to also include Smooth
Meteor, fig.12.
C:/
MeteorGIS
MeteorGIS Orbitron SDRSharp Images_M2 Finalimages S_file Smooth
M2_Man_LRPT_Decoder.exe 2022_08_02_LRPT_13-10-21.s
Figure 12, folder structure
Explanation storage folders with images, to get an idea of where which picture is
stored, here's a short summary:
• Images_M2: decoded LRPT images, fig.13
• Final Images: MeteorGIS images, fig.14 and 15

• S_file
With the M2_Man_LRPT_Decoder present in the Meteor folder can later possibly be de-
coded the S-Files.
Images_M2
Fig 13, LRPT Images_M2
Fig. 12, MeteorGIS Images
Finalimages
Figure 14, with clearly visible position positions
Figure 15, Treated image
Finalimages
4. SDRSharp
Smooth
Fig. 16, Smooth Meteor Images
First we are going to install SDRSharp.
Run Zadig as administrator,
▪ Installing the RTL-SDR USB stick.
✓ Connect your RTL-SDR USB stick.

✓ Start 'Zadig', from the SDRSharp folder,
✓ (run as administrator!).
✓ Click on 'Options'.
✓ Click on 'List All Devices'.
✓ Select RTL2838UHIDIR.
✓ Click on 'Reinstall Driver', fig.17.
Figure 17, click on Reinstall Driver
When you're done with that, take a look under 'Device

Manager' in 'USB devices' to see if the 'RTL2838UHIDIR' driver
is included, fig.18.
Figurer 18, RTL2838, UHIDIR included.
NB. Note that if you take out the USB stick or insert it into another USB port, you
may need to run 'Zadig.exe' again and then restart your PC. The installation of
the USB stick is now complete.
Start up SDRSharp:
‘C:\Meteor\ \SDRSharp\SDRSharp.exe
SDRSharp Main window

When you press this icon the following window, fig.19, should appear,
SDRSharp then communicates with your RTL stick, 20.
Figure 19, R820T
Figure 20, RTL device

▪ Frequency Manager setting.
With this plug-in, you can pre-set reception

frequency of M2-3 satellite to later select the
this satellite with a simple click. fig.21.
Under the Meteor group, create with “New”

the data of the Meteor M2-3 satellite, fig.
21a
Figure 21a, Meteor M2-3
The ATIS Eindhoven selection is visible

above the Meteor. This is a way to accu-
rately tune your RTL stick.
Figure 21, SDRSharp, Frequency Manager

ATIS.
RTLSDR USB sticks are manufactured in large num-

bers and therefore show small frequency deviations. In
my 'Frequency manager' I also selected an ATIS. The
ATIS (Automatic Terminal Information Service) signal
is sent out by the local airport in Eindhoven, 126.025
MHz.
An ATIS frequency is useful for accurately calibrating

an RTL-SDR USB stick using the 'Tuner Correction' op-
tion of the RTL Controller. In my case I can use the
ATIS Eindhoven signal, which I can receive well, but
maybe you have a different frequency calibration point.
Click on 'Edit or New' in 'Frequency Manager', fig.21
and then adjust the data suitable for you, fig. 22. Figure 22, ATS Eindhoven
Start SDRSharp
The signal appears, in SDRSharp, as a sharp peak at a precise frequency, Fig. 23. If
you want, you can already connect your USB stick to the antenna and perform the
correction by setting SDRSharp to receive, and looking for a known calibration fre-
quency. Zoom in on it and adjust exactly to the signal peak using the RTL-Drivers
'Tuner Correction option', fig.23.
Figure 23, tuner correction and ATS signal.

In ‘Meteor Demodulator ‘select Config and then in ‘QPSK Config’ to folder: 'C:\Mete-
orGIS\ S_file’ folder, fig.24. In it SDRSharp stores the unencrypted data of Meteor
M2, the so-called S-files.
Figure 24, S_files folder.
NB. The installation is not yet complete, after the MeteorGIS installation a final
SDRSharp installation will follow.
Close SDRSharp.
5. Orbitron.
Orbitron, fig.25, is a satellite tracking system for radio amateurs who want to receive
images from the Russian weather satellites and was developed by Sebastian Stoff.
(http://www.stoff.pl/)
The application shows the positions of satellites at any time (in real or simulated time).
It's FREE and, according to thousands of users around the world, it is probably one
of the easiest and most powerful satellite trackers.
Figure 25, Orbitron, Entry Window

Installation.
Beforehand: you will probably come across the abbreviation TLE in the Orbitron win-
dows. What does 'TLE' mean and what is the purpose of 'TLE' anyway?
Very briefly:
TLE is a standard mathematical model for describing the orbit of a satellite and is the
abbreviation of: Two Line Elements. These are processed in a computer program,
which produces predictions for the viewing time and position of the satellite. The pro-
gram determines the location of selected satellites above the horizon from a chosen
(in your case your antenna position) observation location.
Much is pre-installed, but a number of settings you have to adjust yourself and are
described below:
Start Orbitron:
With the keys [Alt] [Enter] the window can be enlarged or reduced.
▪ Preduction setup
Note!: After the first installation, 'Lighting required' and 'Elevation sun' may be
checked. If that's the case, remove both checks, otherwise things won't work, fg.26.
Figure 26, Prediction setup: uncheck both windows if necessary
▪ Set-up Orbitron.
NB. Most settings are already pre-selected, but it doesn't hurt to check a few things
anyway.
From ‘Main’ > 'Settings', settings can be made with the various tabs, fig.27.
Figure 27, Settings.
▪ Miscellaneous, language
If desired, set the your language with the tab ’Miscellaneous’ and then copy the values
stated in fig.28. If "Play Sound" is checked in this, an alarm will sound as soon as the
satellite rises above your horizon and will sound again when the satellite is out of
sight.
Then click on, 'Apply'.
Figure28, Tab Miscellaneous.

▪ General, Time.
Set your time zone, fig.29.
First, make sure your computer clock is right. Absolute accuracy is not necessary,
but should indicate the correct time within seconds. It's a good idea to check that
regularly or use a sync program to maintain accuracy.
If your PC clock is not set to the local time, open the General tab and insert a correc-
tion for the local time.
Figure 29, Local Time

▪ General, Time synch, fig.30.
Figure 27, your time set up.
Figure 30, select NTP server for time synchronization.

(N etwork Time Protocol)
▪ Location.
In the main screen, open 'Location' and under 'Name' enter your city.
If it is not listed in the menu, you must enter these latitude and longitude coordi-
nates manually, fig.31. Enter the height of your antenna and click on 'Choose'.
Figure 32, M2 3, double click.

Figure 31, Location determination.
In the Satellites window, on the right, is the Meteor M2-3 that can be checked as
desired, for example M2-3, fig.32.
After 'Prediction'/'Predict', fig.33 and 33a, the position of the Meteor M2-3 and the
times of the transition is calculated, fig.34, will appear as seen from your antenna
position.
Figure 33, Predict(ion) Figure, 33a 3

Figure 34, Satellite position and transition times.
Interpreting this data needs some explanation. At the

moment this action is made, the local time is 22:01:32
hours, fig.34. The satellite is still a long way from my
hometown Eindhoven and its orbit does not bode well
for a long recording time. How do you find the orbit for
the most optimal recordings?
The Elevation value plays a determining role in this. The
greater the Elv value, the longer the time interval that the
Decoder can decode the signals, in this example a max-
imum elevation of 70.1 !
In the list you can scroll all orbits of that day and in the
list above I’ve looked up the most suitable time to turn
Figure 35, optimal orbit
on my computer and start the recording procedure,
fig.34 and 35.
NB.The whole start-up procedure is explained point by point at the end of this manual
But it's not there yet because there are still a few things to set up!
For example Meteor-M2-3, enter the frequency 137.100000 once in the Dnlink/MHz
window.
The 'Dnlink/MHz' window shows the nominal frequency, while the 'Receive/doppler
window' shows a value slightly adjusted depending on the Doppler effect, fig.36.
▪ Rotor/Radio
Figure 36, M2-3, frequency and Dnlink frequency.
Select the 'Rotor/Radio' tab.

SDRSharp must first be selected in the driver.Then click on the icon: 'Start selected
driver’, fig.37, SDRSharp will now start.
.
Figure 37, icoon select SDSharp driver
Doesn't that work? : Check whether RTL-SDR (R820T) is in the Source.
NB. If you get an error message, check whether the following lines are in your 'Or-
bitron\Config\Setup' of Orbitron, fig. 38:
[Drivers]
SDRSharp =..\SDRSharp\SDRSharp.exe
Figure 38, SDRSharp script
Close Orbitron, SDRSharp will also be closed automatically, all settings of both pro-
grams are ready and in principle you should now be able to receive live recordings
from the Meteor satellites.
The next and last program is MeteorGIS, this program processes the live images in
its own way and is even capable of connecting multiple satellite orbits seamlessly, as
it were.
6. MeteorGIS, designer, Christophe Marchand.

MeteorGIS is a free program for georeferencing images send by the Russian M2
weather satellites. What the program actually does is best described by the images
below.
We are now ready to install the third and final program.
Once everything works, you can start the recording process in two or three clicks. In
that time you can do other other things, the program does the rest. Later in the day
you can retrieve and edit the recording.
Installation MeteorGIS.
▪ Configuration MeteorGIS.
In the MeteorGIS folder you will find the
overwritten file 'MeteorGIS_Configurator', fig.39, with
which you can easily create and save the configuration.
▪ MeteorGIS Configurator.
Start 'MeteorGIS_Configuration.exe', from the folder
MeteorGIS.
▪ Open the 'default.ini' file. Figure 39, root folder contents

After which the configuration
window appears, fig.40.
Figure 40, open de default.ini file

In the following MeteorGIS configuration window, fig. 41, all data can be entered in
Program and M2_LRPT_Decoder.
Figure 41, MeteorGIS configurator.
All you need to enter in the configuration is your location and possibly a ‘cross’ of
your location in the image.
Start filling in the options according to the example shown below:
[Program]
(take the coordinates from Orbitron)
Figuur 41a, your location coordinates
Figuur 41b, your location cross
[M2_LRPT_Decoder]
Figuur 41c, TLE of Meteor M2-3

Don't forget to save the file.
7. Overlays.
Overlays are actually transparent images that are, as it were, pasted over the base
image.
You have 2 similar image overlays available:
1. Watermarks
2. Shapes
1. Watermarks
Shows the information of the meteor pass. This overlay showing information about
the Meteor pass, fig.42. You can set the size, color, text and location yourself, zie
fig.43, under [Program].
Figure 42, Watermark, Llocation, Font and Ccolor
Figure 43, example your watermark settings

2. Shapes.
The designer has created an excellent opportunity to position towns in the image,
among other things. This is very easy to achieve in the Shape setting.
A handy tool is the Manual_M2_GIS.bat file with which you can check whether your
settings are satisfactory. More on this later.
Select Shapes and set the slider to the desired Shape, fig.44.
This Shape overlay offers 5 options that can be set with the slider and is automati-
cally transferred to the default.ini list.
Shape 0: no overlays
Shape 1: coastlines
Shape 2: boundarylines
Shape 3: latitude en longitude grid
Shape 4: position places,towns
Shape 5: indicate major mountains and high elevations
Note that all previous shapes, except shape zero, are included. For example, you
cannot set a single shape.
Figure 44, Shapes button
- Adopt all other settings unchanged.
This file will be Saved as: 'default.ini', (overwrites the old one, which is renamed to
‘default.bak’).
Don't forget to save.

Of course, you want to check whether your setting gives the desired result.
Manual_M2_GIS.bat in de MeteorGIS folder allows the MeteorGIS unwinding pro-
cess to be repeated over and over again. Don't forget to empty the Finalimage
folder first.
With de MeteorGIS v2.25 it is possible to change the font size of the places in
the default.ini list.
Figure 45, Places

The previously pasted 2 files are not enough to increase the FontSize of the places.
That requires another line addition in the default.ini. Open default.ini and add the
following line here, see list below: [Shape3]
filename=ne_50m_populated_places.shp
form=circle
latitudeField=LATITUDE,N,19,11
longitudeField=LONGITUDE,N,19,11
rupturesField=POP_MAX,N,9,0
ruptures=500000,1000000,5000000
colors=004590,006000,BF0000
sizes=41,44,47
fontSize=60
nameField=NAMEASCII,C,100
drawName=fromfield
fromField=FEATURECLA,C,50
contain=Admin-0 capital
containType=strict
Don't forget to save the file.

8. SDRSharp, continued.
Let's go back to SDRSharp for a moment and start this program again.
▪ Scheduler, already preset.

SDRSharp contains a so-called ‘Scheduler’.
The Scheduler is a kind of scheduler that automatically executes commands. In this
case, among other things, the automatic handling of the start and stop time of the
recording.
For those who are interested, the commands in the Scheduler can be made visible
as follows:
The Scheduler can be called up by clicking on
'Config' in 'Tracking DDE Client v1.2', fig.46, but this
Scheduler is already properly preprogrammed.
Figure 46, config scheduler
In the window then displayed, fig.47, the 'DDE Tracker' must be programmed to per-
form the tasks correctly when a Meteor signal is first detected, (AOS: Acquisition of
Signal) and at the end of the passage (LOS: loss of Signal). AOS contains, among
other things, the transmission frequency, type of modulation and bandwidth.
There should be no spaces in the command lines. All available commands can be
selected with the mouse and copied to the center panel using the arrow keys.
Meteor-M 2-3
You do not need to save the Scheduler commands. All quotes and changes are au-
tomatically saved to a file called 'DDESchedule.xml', which can be found in the
SDRSharp folder.
Exit SDRSharp.
Figure 47, Scheduler

9. RGB settings.
The Russian Meteor satellites have three types of optical-mechanical TV sensors on
board that operate in both the visible part of the spectrum and infrared. They can
provide a global picture of cloud cover and the Earth's surface both during the day
and at night.
The infrared camera is sometimes switched on and off by the Russian satellite
tracking station. For this, regularly check the URL, fig.48 and 49.
http://happysat.nl/Meteor/html/Meteor_Status.html
The 1.2.3 RGB setting below is active at the time of writing and you will therefore re-
ceive Infrared recordings.
(R)ed) : channel 1, visible light

(G)reen): channel 2, visible light.
(B)lue) : channel 5, middel infrared.
(R)ed) : channel 1, visible light

(G)reen): channel 2, visible light
(B)lue) : channel 3, visible light
NB. Depending on the satellite setting (1,2,3 or

1,2,5) you need to adjust the next two .ini files
For the LRPT images: the .INI file in the

folder:
• C:\MeteorGIS\M2_LRPT_Decoder.ini
For the S_files: the .INI file M2 in the folder:

• C:\MeteorGIS\ Man_LRPT_ Decoder-M2.ini
Figure 48, Happysat info
Figure 49, A crop of the ini files list, (.ini B=5 or 3).
10. Start recording.
How do you start receiving satellite images now? Well that has become a piece of
cake. A recording will only succeed if all previous operations have been performed
flawlessly!
• Start het Obitron programma.

• Selecteer de Meteor satelliet,M2.
• Prediction, 2x
• OK Figure 50, run driver/SDRSharp
• Rotor/Radio
• Select as Driver: SDRSharp, fig.50.
• SDRSharp is is not yet in recording (Start) mode and waiting for the start
command from the Scheduler
• You don't have to stay with it, recording process starts and stops automati-
cally.
• Then, Orbitron will ring to indicate that the programmed start time has been
reached and SDRSharp Starts.
• The Meteor demodulator plugin start and wating for a lock, fig.51
Figure 51, MeteorGIS waiting for lock
Note: Don't forget to set the sleep time, under 'System' / 'Power Options and Sleep mode' (Win-
dows10) you can set this.
Note: The following figures are shots of the M2-2 while it was still alive
• In the SDRSharp window, during recording, an increasingly strong “bump-

shaped” signal is displayed with a bandwidth of 110000Hz, fig.52 and the de-
coder will write the data and display the current number of MBs.
Figure 52, typical Meteor signal bump
• The decoder has started up and the picture is built up line by line, fig.53.
• The compactness of the four round figures is a measure of the signal strength,
the more compact the stronger the signal.
Figure 53, building the image

The decoding will stop automatically when the signal strength has reached a lower
limit, approx. 8dB.
• Then you have to wait for the end time set by Orbitron. First, the S files are
saved.
• The MeteorGIS processing takes place and, depending on the PC processor
and recording time, it may take some time, fig.54. Finally, the Orbitron and
SDRSharp windows remain on the screen, waiting for the next pass.
Figure 54, MeteorGIS Processing

The saved images can be found in:

▪ Images_2 folder ==> LRPT images
▪ Final Images folder ==> MeteorGIS images
(See also page 9, folder structure)
11. S-Files
You may have noticed that the folder configuration also includes the folder S files.
This is where the so-called 'S_files' are stored, fig.55.
Figure 55, S_files
This enables the system to store uncoded data in addition to the decoded images,
which is useful for two reasons:
a. If the decoding of the LRPTimages does not go well, you can always fall
back on the S files.
b. If you have such a file, you can check whether the decoding program works
correctly.
In SDRSharp (QPSK) you have already defined where the S files are stored, namely
in the folder ‘C:\Meteor\S_file’.
To convert the S files to the basic images from the satellite, a so-called
‘M2_Man_LRPT_Decoder’ is needed, located in the MeteorGIS folder, fig.56.
Figure 56, M2_Man_LRPT_Decoder

Convert the S-files from the S_file folder.

These images are also in JPG format and can be opened with any suitable program.
In the 'images' folder you can find the images edited by MeteorGIS from the satellite,
in which small lines of interference have been cleverly removed.
The oblique arrangement corresponds to the orbit of the satellite, see previous image.
The beauty of this program is that you can make small adjustments to the script from
the MeteorGIS folder yourself. Although the program is written in C#, it is still reason-
ably understandable with the help of the explanations.
The use of existing S-files, fig.57.
Converting an S-file to a Meteor image is very simple:
• Go to: ‘C:\MeteorGIS\ M2_Man_LRPT_Decoder’

• The M2_Man_LRPT_Decoder has been started.
• Click on 72K in the Decoder window
• Select the S file, the image build-up will start and
the image will be saved.
Figure 57
12. SmoothMeteor.
The files are in JPG format and can be opened with any suitable program. With the
program 'SmoothMeteor' you can stretch the images sideways so that the image gets
a more "natural" appearance, fig.58.
Download and install ‘Smooth.exe’ in de Folder ‘Smooth’:
https://leshamilton.co.uk/meteor3m.htm
Smooth Meteor v 1.75(zip)
▪ Start SmoothMeteor
▪ ‘Load an RGB Meteor Image’
▪ ‘Processing’ - ‘Rectify’.
▪ Save as: .JPG of .BMP file.
▪ Open the files from the LRPT_Images folders.
Figure 58, Smooth Meteor process
13. Desktop arrangement.
Note: An example of a desktop arrangement, fig.59. Orbitron is the starting program

with the other icons, the saved images and S files are easily and quickly accessible.
Figure 59 , example desktop layout

14. NightMode Plugin.
On Facebook SDR pages, you will sometimes come across a "tinted black"
SDRSharp main window. Some users find such a dark screen pleasant to work with,
fig. 61 and 62. If you also want to have the choice, a so-called plug-in is available for
this ,fig.60, which you can download via the URL below:
https://www.rtl-sdr.com/forum/viewtopic.php?f=5&t=2123#p5955
Figure 60, NightModePlugin
Figure 62, Default window

Figure 61, Black windnow
How to do:
▪ Extract de ZIP file and looks like this, fig. 63.
Figure 63, extracted ZIP file. Figure 64, Open Plugins.xml
▪ Open the MagicLine.text file, fig.63, with a text editor:

<add key="Night Mode" value="SDRSharp.NightMode.NightModePlugin,SDRSharp.NightMode"
/>
▪ Open with a text editor the Plugins.xml file, fig. 64, copy and paste the line of
the MagicLine.txt in it, fig. 65
<add key="DDE Tracking Client" value="SDRSharp.DDETracker.Dde-

TrackingPlugin,SDRSharp.DDETracker" />
<add key="Night Mode" value="SDRSharp.NightMode.NightMod-
ePlugin,SDRSharp.NightMode" />
</sharpPlugins>
Figure 65, A piece of the modified Plugins.xml text.
▪ Don't forget to save the file !.

▪ Close and Restart SDRSharp
15. Finally:
• The installation procedure in this article has been followed twice from the be-
ginning to check for possible errors, with the end result being an error-free
system.
• A group APT is present on Facebook, in which many enthusiastic members

worldwide put their Meteor satellite images on the site. You can also ask your
questions there.
It would be nice if your Meteor images also appear on the APT group soon.
• Much more information can be found at:
Les Hamilton Web page: https://leshamilton.co.uk/MeteorLRPTSuite.htm
Happysat: http://happysat.nl/Setup_Meteor/Setup.html
Meteor M-N2 and N2-2 Satellite Operational Status:

http://happysat.nl/Meteor/html/Meteor_Status.html?fbclid=IwAR19YlbUWdGcfFuENVDRM-
wtQN054MBVX8Y1oWu-cRrO3cskJ9xLTNgSmGZY
APT Group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/Satellite.apt.group/
RTS-SDR.RU: http://www.rtl-sdr.ru/
RTL-SDR.com: https://www.rtl-sdr.com/weather-satellite-meteor-m2-2-now-transmitting-im-
ages/
Radio Scanner RU: http://www.radioscanner.ru/forum/topic47659-119.html

https://www.facebook.com/groups/Satellite.apt.group/permalink/700059506844154/
Thibaut 'Fouine' beheerder APT group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/Satel-

lite.apt.group/permalink/700059506844154/
RTL-SDR.Com met plug-in Night mode: https://www.rtl-sdr.com/forum/viewto-

pic.php?f=5&t=2123
Group for Earth Observation: http://www.geo-web.org.uk/GEO-nl.php
Last but not least, for those who want to delve deeper into the subject matter of Kun-
stmanen, there is the Kunstmanen working group, which focuses specifically on re-
ceiving weather satellites, with everything related to it (receivers, antennas, rotors,
software, etc.). http://www.kunstmanen.net

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Easy installation Russian Meteor-M2-3 weather satellite

(MeteorGIS v2.25, July, 2023)

Meteor-M No. 2-3 satellite

copied from: https://russianspaceweb.com/meteor-m2-3.html

Author, C.R. v.d. Laan, PA3CVI

Figure 1, Live Recording of the Meteor M2-2†

Figure 2, Detail live recording M2 received by Vitor Jacinto, Liège

Another detail shot of the Pyrenees, in November 2018, fig.3.

Figure 3, remnants of snow in the Pyrenees.

Let's go back in time:

o RTLSDR USB stick..

Figure 5, Turnstile antenna.

Figure 4, QHF antenna.

Figure 7, Helical bandpass filter, Meteosat 137 MHz

Figure 8, bandpass curve, filter

RTLSDR USB stick (tested on Windows 11/10/8/7

Currently the most common RTL-SDR USB sticks are

Before we start with the installation, put the RTL-

3. Download all files.

In this page, press to download.

At this time of writing, MeteorGIS 2.24 will be installed.

Download this version from URL:

MeteorGIS v2.25 download.

Paste and overwrite the existing

Figure 11, MeteorGIS 2.25.

Not in the package: Smoothmeteor v 1.68 SmoothMeteor is a development from the

MeteorGIS Orbitron SDRSharp Images_M2 Finalimages S_file Smooth

Figure 12, folder structure

• Images_M2: decoded LRPT images, fig.13

• Final Images: MeteorGIS images, fig.14 and 15

Fig. 12, MeteorGIS Images

Figure 15, Treated image

First we are going to install SDRSharp.

Run Zadig as administrator,

▪ Installing the RTL-SDR USB stick.

✓ Connect your RTL-SDR USB stick.

When you're done with that, take a look under 'Device

SDRSharp Main window

Figure 19, R820T

Figure 20, RTL device

▪ Frequency Manager setting.

With this plug-in, you can pre-set reception

Under the Meteor group, create with “New”

Figure 21a, Meteor M2-3

The ATIS Eindhoven selection is visible

Figure 21, SDRSharp, Frequency Manager

RTLSDR USB sticks are manufactured in large num-

An ATIS frequency is useful for accurately calibrating

Figure 23, tuner correction and ATS signal.

Figure 24, S_files folder.

Figure 25, Orbitron, Entry Window

Figure 26, Prediction setup: uncheck both windows if necessary

Figure 27, Settings.

Figure28, Tab Miscellaneous.

Figure 29, Local Time

Figure 27, your time set up.

Figure 30, select NTP server for time synchronization.

Figure 32, M2 3, double click.