Amateur Radio on the International Space Station (ARISS) Status Report November 17, 2008

1. Upcoming School Contacts

Planning continues for Amateur Radio on the International Space Station (ARISS) school contacts. New approvals are expected this week.

2. Australian School Contact Successful

On Monday, November 10, Anderson's Creek Primary School in Warrandyte, Victoria, Australia experienced a very successful Amateur Radio on the International Space Station (ARISS) contact via telebridge station VK5ZAI in Kingston, South Australia. Ten students asked two questions each of astronaut Mike Fincke, KE5AIT. An audience of over 230 witnessed the event including the mayor, sergeant, representative from Rotary, Bendigo Bank and the Warrandyte High School principal. There were also many representatives including the president from the local Wireless Institute. The majority of the teaching staff also joined in. The Herald Sun sent a photographer before and during the event and published an article in the paper and online. The Education Times, the Victorian Teacher newspaper, also conducted an interview and will publish a story in its next edition. The Victorian Space Science Education Centre published an account of the event in their emailed newsletter to teachers, and a student was also interviewed on ABC 774 Melbourne radio station. The audio, which was fed into the Internet Linking Project (IRLP) Discovery Reflector 9010, received 6 connections. EchoLink received 16 connections from Australia, New Zealand, Brazil, England and the U.S.

To view The Herald Sun article, see: http://www.news.com.au/heraldsun/story/0,,24632605-2862,00.html

The Wireless Institute of Australia published a story covering the contact: http://www.wia.org.au/newsevents/news/2008/20081110-1/index.php

The Victorian Space Science Education Centre also ran a short summary: http://www.vssec.vic.edu.au/resources/download/capcom/capcom30-1108.pdf

3. International Education Week - ARISS Contact Successful

Students from Maryland, North Carolina and Ecuador participated in a joint Amateur Radio on the International Space Station (ARISS) contact on Friday, November 14 as part of International Education Week (IEW). The contact was facilitated by telebridge station WH6PN in Hawaii. The students asked 17 questions of Mike Fincke, KE5AIT. Enloe Magnet School had three television stations on site and had interviews with radio stations and the district PR personnel. NASA distributed a press release on this contact. See: http://www.nasa.gov/centers/langley/news/releases/08-072.html

On Tuesday, November 18, the schools will tie in to a videoconference for another IEW session with an expert panel. Former astronaut Don Thomas will talk about space exploration and ARISS Chairman Frank Bauer will give an ARISS overview. Amateur radio operators from around the world will also participate, giving talks about amateur radio and their countries.

4. Japanese Club Talks to ISS Astronaut

Members of the Newcomers Club in Saitama, Japan participated in an Amateur Radio on the International Space Station (ARISS) contact on Saturday, November 15. Mike Fincke, KE5AIT, answered all twenty questions posed to him by the 16 students, giving some answers in Japanese. Approximately 100 parents and guests attended the event. Media coverage included 3 newspapers, one television station and one radio station. To view the contact video, see: http://www.ariss.jp/Newcomers/video/Newcomers_contact.wmv

5. ARRL Publishes ARISS News

The American Radio Relay League (ARRL) printed three Amateur Radio on the International Space Station (ARISS) news items in its December issue of QST.

The "Happenings" column (page 54) had a story with a photo about the first few days of Richard Garriott's mission as the magazine went to press.

"This Just In -- In Brief" section (page 12) had a paragraph about Richard Garriott's mission.

A paragraph and photo were printed (page 100) about a revolving display that is circulating in the San Diego Public libraries. The display is about ham radio and includes the topics of satellites, ARISS, packet, moonbounce, and other ham radio modes.

6. NASA Birthday Celebration Includes ARISS Students

The Naples Daily News ran an article about a Florida school that was invited to participate in NASA's Digital Learning Network presentation of its 50th anniversary. Pine Ridge Middle, a NASA Explorer School, was one of ten schools to join in the celebration. Pine Ridge students took part in an Amateur Radio on the International Space Station (ARISS) contact with Bill McArthur, KC5ACR, in February 2006. The story may be found at: http://www.naplesnews.com/news/2008/nov/13/local-students-have-blast-celebra...

7. NASA Cites Article on ARISS Students

NASA Headquarters News Service picked up on an article about four students attending Humber College in Toronto who are building two communications systems to make contact with the space station. Amateur Radio on the International Space Station (ARISS) Delegate Daniel Lamoureux was interviewed for the article. See: http://canadianpress.google.com/article/ALeqM5jiaytfIhmwAy6LAnx0ey42_unrlg