Amateur Radio on the International Space Station (ARISS) Status Report November 16, 2009

1. Upcoming School Contact

Flanders District of Creativity and the Department of Education of the Flemish Government have teamed up for an Amateur Radio on the International Space Station (ARISS) contact on Tuesday, November 17 at 13:44 UTC via station LU8YY in Argentina. The groups are partnering to organize the very first congress for kids in Belgium. A conference has been set up with keynote speakers and interactive workshops for 1200 twelve year olds. Dirk Frimout and Sijtn Meuris will give a presentation about astronomy.

2. Italian Students Contact De Winne via ARISS

On Friday, November 13, Frank De Winne, ON1DWN on the ISS spoke with youth from Scuola Istituto Salesiano "Sacro Cuore" Vomero in Napoli, Italy via an Amateur Radio on the International Space Station (ARISS) contact. De Winne answered twenty questions put to him by the students. Approximately six hundred children were present for the contact which highlighted a curriculum of English, astronomy and physics. Prior to the contact, the students learned from amateur radio operators about the history of radio transmissions, radio equipment, the structure and the scientific goals of the ISS, as well as real HF radio contacts with amateur radio stations from around the world. After the contact, an ESA Communication Office representative gave a presentation on the ESA education program and ESA Astronaut Paolo Nespoli was present to meet with and talk to the students. There was extensive media coverage including television and newspapers as well as video streaming on the Web.

3. ARISS Contact Between Robert Thirsk and Montreal Schoolchildren

An Amateur Radio on the International Space Station (ARISS) contact was held between Marie-Rivier School in Montreal, Quebec, Canada and Robert Thirsk, VA3CSA on Friday, November 13 via telebridge station VK4KHZ in Australia. Sixteen questions were asked and answered during the space chat as students learned about the ISS and work and life in space.

4. ARISS International Team Meeting Held

An Amateur Radio on the International Space Station (ARISS) Team meeting was held on Tuesday, November 10. The team provided a status on both the Columbus module antennas and ARISSat-1. See: https://www.rac.ca/ariss/arisstel2009-11-10.htm

5. ARRL Web Article on STS-129 Mission

The American Radio Relay League (ARRL) ran a Web story on the STS-129 mission which will carry Amateur Radio on the International Space Station (ARISS) antennas to the ISS and deploy them during the second spacewalk. See: https://www.arrl.org/news/stories/2009/11/12/11195/?nc=1

There are approximately 100,000 regular readers of the ARRL website.

6. ARRL Letter Posts Two ARISS News Items

The American Radio Relay League (ARRL) posted two ARISS (Amateur Radio on the International Space Station) articles in its November 12 issue of the ARRL Letter. The first item covers the STS-129 mission carrying ARISS antennas to the ISS. The second is an article on the ARISS contact with Garfield Elementary School held in conjunction with the WHEELS NASA Exploration Experience traveling exhibit in Boise, Idaho. See: https://www.arrl.org/arrlletter/index.html?issue=2009-11-12