Outernet rxOS Version 3 Released: Automatic Decompression, APRS, NOAA Weather Data, News Updates

Outernet is a new L-band satellite services which aims to be a “library in the sky”. Their satellite signal can be received from almost anywhere in the world, and they aim to constantly transmit data like news, weather updates, books, images/videos and other data files. The service is free and can be received with an RTL-SDR, LNA and patch antenna. We have a full tutorial on receiving their service available here.

The “rxOS” decoder, file management system and web interface GUI has recently been updated to version 3.0. This new version has several new features:

1. Downloaded files are automatically decompressed after downloading, so they can be viewed directly in the Outernet web interface.
2. An hourly transmission of APRS data which comes from the repeater on board the international space station. APRS messages can now be relayed across the world via the ISS and Outernet.
3. This Monday they will begin transmitting NOAA weather data (we are unsure if this entails images or text data yet)
4. Soon they should begin transmitting news data too.

More details on the update can be found on their forum post. To update the service on a CHIP or Pi 3, download the .pkg file from the links on the forum and choose this file in the Update Firmware section of the Outernet settings menu.