Pass planning
Upcoming Passes (sidebar)
The quickest view while operating. Shows passes for enabled satellites above your minimum elevation (Settings → Tracking). Click a pass to select that satellite.
TCA is time of closest approach — usually the best time in the pass. Badges show when a pass is soon (orange countdown), in progress (green Passing), or being recorded (red REC). See Map & sidebar for details.
Pass plot (home station)
Right-click a pass row and choose View pass plot to open a polar sky plot for your home station — the same style of chart as the mutual pass visualiser, but for a single QTH. The path is drawn in sunlit and eclipse segments; hover along the track for time, azimuth, and elevation. Screenshot saves the window as a PNG. Times follow the local/UTC setting used in Passes → Pass planner.
Pass planner
Passes → Pass planner opens a larger window for planning:
- Choose a station profile (home, portable, etc.) with its own coordinates.
- Set minimum elevation and minimum pass duration to filter weak or short passes.
- Optional horizon mask per station (Settings → Station, or Edit Horizon Mask in the pass planner) raises the visibility floor by azimuth for trees and buildings. Empty mask = minimum elevation only. See Settings.
- See a table of passes over a longer prediction window.
- Filter the table by satellite when you want one bird at a time.
- Schedule a pass from the table or context menu so OscarWatch dings and alerts before AOS while the app is running (same schedule list as Upcoming Passes; Settings → Voice → Scheduled passes).
- Add to calendar on a pass row offers two choices: Save iCalendar (.ics) writes every upcoming pass for that satellite (Outlook, Apple Calendar, or import into Google Calendar); Add this pass to Google Calendar opens Google Calendar in your browser with that one pass filled in (sign in to Google first).
Pass radar gallery
In the pass planner, choose a specific satellite (not All satellites), then click Pass radar gallery. OscarWatch opens a grid of polar sky plots — one card per upcoming pass for that satellite at the selected station. Each card shows the pass time, AOS azimuth, max elevation, and LOS azimuth, with the track drawn in sunlit and eclipse segments (the same style as View pass plot on the sidebar). Cards are arranged four per row; scroll for more passes. Screenshot saves the whole gallery as a PNG. Times follow the local/UTC control in the pass planner.
Mutual pass finder
Passes → Mutual pass finder finds times when a satellite is visible from two stations at once — useful for QSOs between two grids or for rovers. Enter the remote operator’s Maidenhead grid (and an optional callsign or name), set your filters, then press Find mutual passes. The table lists each satellite with the mutual window, overlap duration, and pass times at both stations.
For live azimuth and elevation at a remote grid while you operate, use the DX station monitor on the map (Map & sidebar).
Opening the visualiser
- Double-click a pass row to open the mutual pass visualiser.
- Or right-click a row and choose Open visualiser.
The visualiser shows side-by-side polar plots (west station on the left, east on the right) with the pass path drawn in sunlit and eclipse segments. Green diamond markers show mutual window start; orange circle markers show mutual window end. Hover along a pass track to see a tooltip with time, azimuth, and elevation, and a blue dot on the path showing where you are on the plot. Use the checkboxes to overlay each station’s full pass instead of only the mutual window. Screenshot saves the whole visualiser window as a PNG.
Copying pass details
Right-click a pass row and choose Copy to put a formatted text summary on the clipboard — satellite, both stations, mutual window, pass times, max elevation, and AOS/LOS azimuths. Paste it into an email or message to coordinate a sked. Times follow the local/UTC setting in the mutual pass window.
Sunlight prediction
Passes → Sunlight prediction shows when a satellite is in sunlight or eclipse over a period. Helpful for modes that need illumination or for planning FM shifts.