Amateur Radio on the International Space Station (ARISS) Status Report July 19, 2010
1. Upcoming School Contact
International Space University (ISU), located in Illkirch-Graffenstaden, France, has been scheduled for an Amateur Radio on the International Space Station (ARISS) contact on Wednesday, July 21 at 15:36 UTC. The university provides interdisciplinary educational programs to students and space professionals in an international, intercultural environment. Over 130 students are enrolled in the ISU Space Studies Program through which they will learn the basics of satellite communications. They will also study human spaceflight and learn about the legal aspects of space exploration and international cooperation. The ARISS contact will be the featured activity of this program.
2. ARISS Contact with Girl Guides of Canada
On Friday, July 16, the Girl Guides of Canada spoke with on-orbit astronaut Doug Wheelock, KF5BOC via an Amateur Radio on the International Space Station (ARISS) contact. The initial call to the ISS was made by the Commissioner of Girl Guides of Canada. Wheelock then answered 14 questions posed to him by twelve girls while an audience of approximately 2000 Girl Guides and Girl Scouts from around the world looked on. The girls had gathered at Guelph Lake, Ontario for the Guiding Mosaic 2010 to celebrate the 100th anniversary of Girl Guides in Canada. The Guides prepared for the contact by studying orbital mechanics and learning about the value of successful international partnerships.
3. MAI-75 Experiment Activated
The Russian ISS crew members activated the MAI-75 (Moscow Aviation Institute) experiment on July 15 and 16. The system operated Space Cam in slide show mode using the Martin 1 format. Among those who captured Slow Scan Television (SSTV) images transmitted by the crew were ground stations in South America, Europe and Africa. For more information, see: http://ariss-sstv.blogspot.com/ Images have been archived here: http://www.amsat.org/amsat/ariss/SSTV/ .
4. Astronaut Training Status - Upcoming Simulation Contacts
Astronauts Ron Garan, KF5GPO, and Mike Fossum, KF5AQG, have been scheduled for simulated Amateur Radio on the International Space Station (ARISS) contacts with the Challenger Learning Center of Indianapolis on Thursday, July 22 at approximately 16:00 UTC and 16:15 UTC respectively. The contact should be available on IRLP (Internet Radio Linking Project) Node 9010. These training sessions are terrestrial-based amateur radio contacts using ARISS equivalent equipment.
5. ARRL Story on Upcoming CLC Contacts
The ARRL (American Radio Relay League) Indiana Section July Newsletter includes a story about the upcoming Challenger Learning Center (CLC) of Indianapolis contacts (training sessions) with Ron Garan and Mike Fossum. See: http://www.arrl.org/Groups/view/indiana
6. ISS Ham Debrief Scheduled
An Amateur Radio on the International Space Station (ARISS) debrief session has been scheduled with Expedition 22/23 astronaut T. J. Creamer, KC5WKI on Monday, July 19. The feedback provided will help ARISS update program operations.
7. ARISS - Camp Cavett Contact in the News
On Thursday, July 8, Cavett Kids Foundation's Camp Cavett in Kingston, Oklahoma, participated in an Amateur Radio on the International Space Station (ARISS) contact with astronaut Doug Wheelock, KF5BOC. Channel12 KXII Dara Downs covered the contact and a news clip has been posted to YouTube: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UF7BHbNGYbc
For News Talk Radio KRMG's press release, go to: http://krmg.com/localnews/2010/07/oklahoma-kid-campers-to-talk-w.html
The September issues of CQ and CQ VHF are expected to carry stories on the contact as well.
8. ARISS News on Amateur Radio Newsline
On July 16, the Amateur Radio Newsline Report 1718 posted a short story which talked about general ham radio contacts made by astronaut Doug Wheelock on the ISS. To view the article, "Ham Radio in Space: ISS Random Contacts Back," see: ftp://ftp.arnewsline.org/quincy/News/news.txt