Amateur Radio on the International Space Station (ARISS) Status Report March 21, 2011
1. Upcoming School Contacts
Istituto Comprensivo di Verano Brianza - Scuola Media, Verano Brianza, Italy has been scheduled for an Amateur Radio on the International Space Station (ARISS) contact on Wednesday, March 23 at 12:15 UTC. ESA astronaut Paolo Nespoli is an alumnus of the school and his parents still reside in Verano Brianza. The contact will be integrated into the school lessons that focus on astronautics, astronomy, radio techniques and English.
Istituto Comprensivo "G. Manzi", Civitavecchia, Roma, Italy has been scheduled for an Amateur Radio on the International Space Station (ARISS) contact on Saturday, March 26 at 08:53 UTC. Students are learning about communication in space, the technology required to get into space and the history of human spaceflight.
2. Recent ARISS Contacts
On Monday, March 14, students from Fair Lawn High School, Fair Lawn, New Jersey participated in an Amateur Radio on the International Space Station (ARISS) contact with astronaut Paolo Nespoli, IZØJPA onboard the ISS. The students were able to ask the 10 questions they had prepared for the astronaut with enough time left in the pass to ask an additional question and exchange comments. The contact was the highlight of a science curriculum covering space and earth science as well as human anatomy and physiology. Representatives from three newspapers and one local television station were present. North Jersey Media Group posted an article to its Web site. See: http://www.northjersey.com/news/education/031411_Fair_Lawn_students_talk_to_...
ARISS reached a milestone on Thursday, March 17 when it held its 600th contact between on-orbit astronaut Cady Coleman, KC5ZTH and students from several schools in Plock and Liszyno, Poland. The contact supported lessons about space and space exploration, communication and technology. Scout Amateur Radio Club SP5ZBA handled the radio connection during which the astronaut fielded 19 space related questions. Nearly 120 people were in the audience and came from Plock, Liszyno, Zuromin and Warsaw. There was extensive media coverage that included newspapers, four scientific magazines, one radio magazine, a television station, national radio (two programs) and two internet portals.
On Thursday, March 17, Luitpold-Gymnasium Muenchen students in Munich, Germany spoke with Paolo Nespoli, IZ0JPA on the ISS via an ARISS contact. Nespoli answered 19 questions as an audience of over 110 students, teachers and visitors listened. The contact was the highlight of studies emphasizing aeronautics, scientific work and amateur radio. Several media outlets were present including three radio stations (Bayerischer Rundfunk, Radio Charivari, Radio Arabella), one television station (Bayerisches Fernsehen) and four newspapers (Süddeutsche Zeitung, Abendzeitung, TZ-München, Münchner Merkur). The Bavarian TV channel BR (Bayerisches Fernsehen) posted a clip on its Web site. See: http://www.br-online.de/bayerisches-fernsehen/schwaben-und-altbayern-aktuell...
Italian students from ISIP Cossar/Da Vinci in Gorizia and Elena Guerra School in Rome experienced an ARISS contact with Paolo Nespoli, IZØJPA on Saturday, March 19. An audience of roughly 500 students, teachers and guests gathered for the event and listened as the astronaut handled 21 questions about life and activities in space over two consecutive passes. Before the end of the second pass, Nespoli received greetings from students in the Piemonte, Friuli, Venezia, Giulia, Lazio, Sardegna, Campania and Puglia regions in celebration of the 150th anniversary of the Italian unification. Regional and local media covered the event.
3. ARISS International Team Meeting Held
The ARISS International Team held its monthly teleconference on March 15. The meeting began with an overview of the "ISS National Lab." The team was also updated on the Columbus Module Ham TV project and a brief status was given on ARISSat-1. Minutes have been posted: https://www.rac.ca/ariss/arisstel2011-03-15.htm
4. Astronaut Training Status
Astronauts Luca Parmitano (Expedition 36) and Chris Cassidy (Expedition 35) both passed their amateur radio license exams on March 8. Luca Parmitano was issued call sign KF5KDP and Chris Cassidy received KF5KDR.
5. AMSAT Covers ARISS Contact
The AMSAT (Radio Amateur Satellite Corporation) News Service bulletin (ANS-079) published an item on the recent ARISS contact held between New Jersey students and astronaut Paolo Nespoli. See: http://amsat.org/pipermail/ans/2011/000494.html
6. Amateur Radio Newsline Posts ARISS News
On March 18, the Amateur Radio Newsline Report 1753 posted an item under Ham Radio in Space. "Two More Astronauts Pass their Amateur Exam" covers the latest ARISS astronaut training. The article may be found at: ftp://ftp.arnewsline.org/quincy/News/news.txt