Amateur Radio on the International Space Station (ARISS) Status Report May 7, 2012

1. Upcoming School Contact

An Amateur Radio on the International Space Station (ARISS) contact has been scheduled for Farnsworth Aerospace PK-8 Magnet School in St. Paul, Minnesota on Monday, May 7 at 16:14 UTC. The ARISS contact will complement a curriculum which will pique students' interest in Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM).

2. ARISS - Virginia Contact Successful

On Wednesday, May 2, the Mariners' Museum in Newport News, Virginia experienced a successful Amateur Radio on the International Space Station (ARISS) contact with Don Pettit, KD5MDT via telebridge station IK1SLD in Italy. Groups in Virginia, Louisiana, New York, and Michigan were video conferenced together for the event. Approximately 350 students at the four locations got in seventeen questions before ISS went over the horizon. The contact highlighted a comprehensive Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) education plan.

3. AMSAT News Service on ARISS

The AMSAT (Radio Amateur Satellite Corporation) News Service bulletin (ANS-127) posted on May 6 included information about the upcoming AMSAT Forum at Dayton Hamvention. Mark Hammond, N8MH will give a presentation on education activities with which AMSAT is involved and Gould Smith, WA4SXM will give a talk on "ARISSat-1 Operation in Space." Both are scheduled for Saturday, May 19. See: http://amsat.org/pipermail/ans/2012/000616.html

4. Ham Nation Features Flabob Contact

The ARISS contact with Astronaut Don Pettit and Flabob Airport Preparatory Academy students in Jurupa Valley, California that occurred on April 19, 2012, was featured on the May 1 episode (#46) of the Bob Heil & Gordon West "Ham Nation" video podcast. The video is now available on TwiT TV and Flabob sites. Ham Nation: http://twit.tv/hn Flabob site: http://www.iss-flabob.com

5. Astronaut Training Status

An introductory/basic operations session is planned for Alexander Gerst, KF5ONO on Wednesday, May 9. Gerst is scheduled to fly with Expedition 40 in May 2014.