OscarWatch Tracker
Know where the bird is. Know where to point. Know where to tune.
Who is it for?
Licensed amateurs who work VHF and UHF satellites: FM cubesats such as SO-50 and the ISS, linear transponders such as RS-44 and FO-29, and similar modes. You should already be comfortable with pass times, azimuth, elevation and Doppler. OscarWatch handles the maths and optional hardware control so you can focus on the contact.
Everything you need to operate
OscarWatch is a pass-tracking and station-assist tool. It does not decode telemetry. It helps you work the bird from the shack or the field.
Map and sky plot
World map with subpoint, ground track, footprint and your QTH. Polar sky plot for azimuth and elevation at a glance. Scrub map time to preview footprints without disturbing live rotator and CAT tracking.
- Optional day/night greyline and footprint motion arrows
- DX station marker with live azimuth and elevation at a remote grid
- Colour-blind-safe satellite colours, with names always visible
Pass predictions and planning
Upcoming pass list with max elevation, TCA and time to AOS. Filter by minimum elevation and duration. Right-click any pass for a polar pass plot at your station.
- Pass planner with home and portable station profiles
- Pass radar gallery for every upcoming pass of one satellite
- Export passes to your calendar (.ics) for contest or Field Day planning
- Mutual pass finder for passes visible from two stations at once
Frequencies and Doppler
Built-in transponder database with live uplink and downlink, Doppler correction, RX offsets and CTCSS access tones. Draggable frequency panel on the map. Voice and CW toggle for linear SSB modes.
- Modes from the published database at tle.oscarwatch.org
- Local edits preserved when you merge updates
- Keyboard shortcuts for offset and mode changes mid-pass
Radio and rotator control
Connect the radio and rotator over serial and let OscarWatch run the pass: satellite mode, Doppler-corrected uplink and downlink, and antenna pointing that follows the bird.
- Icom, Yaesu and Kenwood satellite CAT
- Adaptive Doppler that stays sharp through the pass
- Native rotator control (GS-232, SPID, EasyComm II)
- Direct serial drivers — no HamLib required
Logbook and integrations
A simple local QSO logbook for the pass, with ADIF export and the option to push contacts to Cloudlog. Keep the hams.at rove list in sync in the sidebar, and send live frequency information to Cloudlog or out via the Sat link.
- Local QSO logbook with ADIF export
- Push QSOs to Cloudlog
- hams.at rove list sync in the sidebar
- Frequency push to Cloudlog or via the Sat link
Download OscarWatch Tracker
Pre-built packages for Windows, macOS and Linux are on GitHub Releases. Extract the archive for your operating system and run OscarWatch. You do not need to compile anything.
macOS builds are not code-signed or notarised. macOS install guide covers extract, quarantine and Privacy & Security approval.