We are interested in constructing a reentry vehicle to be deployed from a
tether attached to an orbiting platform.  This will be a follow on to our
succesful deployment of a 20 kilometer tether on the March 29 flight of
SEDS (Small Expendable Deployment System), which released an instrumented
payload that reentered the earth's atmosphere and burned up over the west
coast of Mexico.  This time we want to make a payload that can be recovered.
We want to build it from "off the shelf" technology so as to do this as
quickly and inexpensively as possible.  We want to be able to track the
payload after it has deployed its parachute.  An idea we have is to put the
same kind of radio beacon on it that is used with SARSATs (Search and Rescue
Satellites).  It would turn on with the opening of the parachute and aid in
tracking.  These beacons are known in the marine industry as EPIRBs
(Emergency Position Indicating Radio Beacon).  They are rugged (they have to
be to survive a ship wreck!) and cheap.  We have several questions:

1.  What is the world authority regulating the use of SARSAT beacons.  Are
there multiple authorites, i.e. military and civilian?

2.  What are the regulations regarding the use of SARSAT signals.  Can they
be used for one of a kind situations with a long lead time of warning the
relevant authorities, or are they strictly reserved for life threatening
emergencies?

3.  What is the coverage of SARSATS?  Are they in LEO with only intermittant
coverage of a fixed position on the earth, or are they in geosynchronous
orbit?

4.  Is there an industry organization governing the use and manufacture of
these transponders?

Please post replies here or send E-mail to me at:
	fennell@well.sf.ca.us
Thanak you very much for any assistance you can provide.