Issues with updating TLE files

Gpredict
1

I have been stuck for some time now trying to update TLE files on Gpredict.

Background: I am building a SARCTRAC Mk1a satellite tracker that uses Gpredict and Hamlib to track amateur satellite passes and aim the antenna at the satellite throughout the pass. The instructions from SARCTRAC specifically state that only the Gpredict 1.4 version will work with the tracker, along with the latest version of HAMLIB.

Everything has been installed, and I can successfully open Gpredict and track individual satellites as they come into view. However, the TLE files are very old, so the pass predictions are way off. I have tried to update the TLE files from the internet, and Gpredict runs through the update but does not update any of the 1,200 or so satellites. It returns a message of “0 satellites updated.”

The following url is provided by default in Gpredict: https://www.celestrak.com/NORAD/elements/gp.php?GROUP=amateur@FORMAT=tle and as far as I can tell, this is correct according to Celestrak.

Any help is much appreciated!

2

Hi!

GPredict version 1.4 is more than 5 years old. The current version of GPredict is 2.3 (released 4 years ago!). I recommend you to install this latest version to see if this fixes your problems with TLE updates.

The SARCTRAC Mk1a satellite tracker shouldn’t require ancient software versions (which will certainly break, especially in their interfaces to the internet).

If you still got problems with TLE updates in gpredict 2.3, please let us know your Operating System and how you installed gpredict.

Best regards,
kerel

3

Kerel,

thank you for your quick response. I will try to install version 2.3 and see if that works.

4

If you open that URL in a browser, you will find GROUP "amateur@format=tle" does not exist.
If you’re after amsat tle, you can start with these two:

https://www.amsat.org/tle/current/nasabare.txt
http://www.celestrak.org/NORAD/elements/amateur.txt
5

Hello,

I have also a problem with the update of elements from celestrak.
I use 2.3 on macintosh and ubuntu, and it seems that update form amat is working but not from celestrak
My configuration :
http://celestrak.org/NORAD/elements/satnogs.txt
https://www.amsat.org/tle/current/nasabare.txt

73, Nico

UPDATE : Finally I erased the satdata directory in .config/Gpredict directory. Re-Launch and make an update and it works …

6

No, perhaps the problem was not understood well. So…Celetstrack has been changing all the paths and formats of the TLEs for some time, adapting them to the new standard to allow the management of more objects in space. So it’s discarding the old classic tle files with final .txt, so the new flie path you posted is correct but gpredict doesn’t handle it and doesn’t update anything. I have done various tests and so far the only solution I have found is to save the new tle files in .txt format and upload them as updates via computer in Gpredict
IZ5RZR - Max

7

There is a command line option to do this

gpredict --help

Usage:
  gpredict [OPTION…]

Gpredict is a graphical real-time satellite tracking and orbit prediction program.
Gpredict does not require any command line options for nominal operation.

Help Options:
  -h, --help               Show help options
  --help-all               Show all help options
  --help-gtk               Show GTK+ Options

Application Options:
  --clean-tle              Clean the TLE data in user's configuration directory
  --clean-trsp             Clean the transponder data in user's configuration directory
  --display=DISPLAY        X display to use

gpredict --clean-tle should do exactly what you try to do

8

Hello, I do the same. If you use linux, this is a way to directly download the tle file without web browser. I put it in a script which launch after gpredict …

wget -O satnogs.txt -q https://celestrak.org/NORAD/elements/gp.php?GROUP=satnogs

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