OsTrax Launches for Windows, macOS, and Ubuntu — A Fresh Take on Satellite Tracking

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Satellite operating is one of the more technically demanding corners of the hobby, and the software behind it is just as important as the radio and antenna doing the actual work. A new platform has just arrived aiming to take some of the friction out of that side of things.

Avinstar, LLC has announced the general availability of OsTrax, a satellite tracking and operating platform now available for Windows, macOS, and Ubuntu.

The Problem It's Solving

Working a satellite contact means knowing exactly when and where that satellite will be at a given moment, while coordinating radios and antennas precisely enough to actually make the contact happen — a genuinely involved process with plenty of room for things to go wrong. OsTrax is built around a central satellite information repository, aiming to eliminate the usual headaches around getting accurate, timely satellite data, with the goal of more time actually operating and less time fighting the setup.

What It Offers

OsTrax is built to be user-customisable, giving operators full control over satellite selection and pass management. Key features include:

  • Radio and antenna rotor control, tailored to the requirements of each satellite pass and communication type, with support spanning legacy and current hardware

  • Automatic updates to orbital elements and satellite profile information, so operators always have current data on hand

  • User-defined orbital elements and satellite profiles, opening the door to new or experimental satellites and features not yet in the standard database

  • Simplified contact logging, along with advanced tools for predicting future satellite passes and modelling them in advance

  • Tracking for the Sun and Moon as well, complete with antenna rotor control for both

Try It Before You Buy

A fully functional 15-day trial licence is available for each supported operating system. Publication images are available here, and the full User Guide can be found here.

Who Built It

OsTrax was created by Jim McCullers, WA4CWI, an Extra Class amateur radio operator licensed since 1961. The platform brings together his long-standing interest in satellite operation with his professional programming background. McCullers is also the developer of SigTrax, a signal tracking toolkit available on both the Apple App Store and Google Play Store.

More information is available at ostrax.com, or by contacting Jim McCullers directly at jmccullers@avinstar.com.