This project transforms the LILYGO T-Display-P4 development board into a multifunctional portable device capable of acting as a 1090 MHz ADS-B receiver and a Meshtastic-compatible mesh radio. By using an RTL-SDR USB dongle for RF reception and an onboard SX1262 LoRa radio, the system provides real-time aircraft tracking via a touchscreen interface and off-grid messaging capabilities. The device also features integrated MP3 playback, GPS time synchronization, and a companion web application called ADS-B Scope for live map viewing through WebSerial.
Main features include:
* Real-time ADS-B decoding and radar scope visualization with aircraft database enrichment.
* Meshtastic-compatible LoRa mesh networking with encrypted messaging and node discovery.
* Integrated MP3 music player with ID3 tag parsing and cover art display.
* Adaptive RTL-SDR gain control and USB hot-plug support.
* Comprehensive SD card logging for both ADS-B flight data and mesh messages.
* Dual-core ESP32-P4 architecture optimized via a 6-tier FreeRTOS priority scheme.
* WebSerial-based companion app for live mapping, firmware flashing, and file management.
Main features include:
* Real-time ADS-B decoding and radar scope visualization with aircraft database enrichment.
* Meshtastic-compatible LoRa mesh networking with encrypted messaging and node discovery.
* Integrated MP3 music player with ID3 tag parsing and cover art display.
* Adaptive RTL-SDR gain control and USB hot-plug support.
* Comprehensive SD card logging for both ADS-B flight data and mesh messages.
* Dual-core ESP32-P4 architecture optimized via a 6-tier FreeRTOS priority scheme.
* WebSerial-based companion app for live mapping, firmware flashing, and file management.
A specialized ADS-B Software Defined Radio (SDR) kit designed for aircraft tracking using a Raspberry Pi. This blue R820T2 RTL2832U model features high stability with 0.5 PPM TCXO to prevent frequency drift and includes an onboard 1090 MHz filter and amplifier for enhanced signal range. The package comes with a purpose-built 8 inch 5 dBi antenna, an aluminum heat-dissipating case, and industrial-grade microSD software pre-loaded for easy setup via web browser without command line work.
Key features:
- Plug-and-play configuration via WiFi/web browser
- Integrated 1090 MHz filter and amplifier
- High-reliability industrial grade microSD card
- Aluminum case for heat dissipation and interference reduction
- Drop-in replacement for FlightAware Pro Stick Plus
Key features:
- Plug-and-play configuration via WiFi/web browser
- Integrated 1090 MHz filter and amplifier
- High-reliability industrial grade microSD card
- Aluminum case for heat dissipation and interference reduction
- Drop-in replacement for FlightAware Pro Stick Plus
An improved web interface designed for use with ADS-B decoders such as readsb and dump1090-fa. This tool provides an enhanced visual experience for tracking aircraft, featuring adjustable history, faster performance when displaying many planes, multiple map options, and the ability to select multiple aircraft simultaneously.
Key features and capabilities:
- Improved adjustable track history
- Fast "Show All Tracks" functionality
- Map dimming/darkening options
- Aircraft selection and callsign label toggling
- Support for UAT (978 MHz) display integration
- Integration with AIS-catcher for maritime tracking
- Capability to host multiple instances and custom webroots
- Heatmap visualization support when used with compatible readsb forks
Key features and capabilities:
- Improved adjustable track history
- Fast "Show All Tracks" functionality
- Map dimming/darkening options
- Aircraft selection and callsign label toggling
- Support for UAT (978 MHz) display integration
- Integration with AIS-catcher for maritime tracking
- Capability to host multiple instances and custom webroots
- Heatmap visualization support when used with compatible readsb forks
An introduction to ADS-B Scope, an open source firmware project that transforms the LilyGo T-Display-P4 into a standalone, portable aircraft tracking device. By connecting an RTL-SDR dongle, users can view real-time flight data including callsigns, altitude, speed, and position on a 4 inch AMOLED touchscreen without needing a computer or internet connection.
Key features include:
- Real-time aircraft tracking with visual data on an integrated screen.
- A webapp for viewing live maps with aircraft trails and log replays via USB-C.
- Meshtastic-compatible mesh messaging protocol using the built-in LoRa radio.
- SD card logging with GPS timestamps and USB mass storage support.
Key features include:
- Real-time aircraft tracking with visual data on an integrated screen.
- A webapp for viewing live maps with aircraft trails and log replays via USB-C.
- Meshtastic-compatible mesh messaging protocol using the built-in LoRa radio.
- SD card logging with GPS timestamps and USB mass storage support.
This Hackaday article details a DIY passive radar system built to track aircraft by analyzing existing radio wave reflections. Unlike traditional radar, this system doesn't emit its own signal, instead relying on signals already present in the environment, specifically those used for ADS-B transmissions. The system uses a nine-element Yagi antenna to capture these reflections and a computer program to compare the direct and reflected signals, identifying aircraft.
Friend or Foe is an open-source Android app that identifies aircraft and drones in real time using augmented reality. It combines ADS-B data, FAA Remote ID, WiFi analysis, and visual detection to overlay labels on the camera view, providing information about flying objects overhead. The project was built using AI tools like Claude, Grok, Codex, and Gemini, showcasing the potential of AI-assisted development. It offers features like AR viewfinders, multi-source detection, smart classification, and a drone reference guide, all functioning without requiring accounts or API keys.
This software takes a dump1090 stream of ADS-B messages and plops them into a sqlite database with a timestamp.
Mode-S demodulator written in C++ with CRC-based message framing. Stream1090 is a proof of concept implementation taking a different approach in order to identify mode-s messages in an SDR signal stream. Most implementations look for the so-called preamble (a sequence of pulses anounncing a message). Stream1090 skips this step and maintains directly a set of shift registers. Based on the CRC sum and other criteria, messages are being identified. The hope is that in high traffic situations, a higher overall message rate can be achieved compared to a preamble based approach.
This project guides you from data inspection and preprocessing to crafting an end-to-end application for aircraft localization based on crowdsourced air traffic control communication data (ADS-B). It utilizes Apache Spark, Modin, ensemble methods, TabNet, Apache Kafka, Flask, and Leaflet.js.
John McNelly developed ADSBee, an open source ADS-B receiver based around an RP2040, to decode aircraft monitoring signals. It supports both 1090 MHz ADS-B and 978 MHz UAT protocols and is available in various form factors.
