Amateur Radio on the International Space Station (ARISS) Status Report March 26, 2012

1. Upcoming School Contact

An Amateur Radio on the International Space Station (ARISS) contact has been scheduled for California Polytechnic State University, San Luis Obispo, California on Tuesday, March 27 at 20:13 UTC via telebridge station AH6NM in Hawaii. The ARISS contact is part of a comprehensive education plan which will pique students' interest in Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM).

2. Swiss Contact Successful

An Amateur Radio on the International Space Station (ARISS) contact was held between on-orbit astronaut André Kuipers, PI9ISS and electronic students at the museum "Clin d'Ailes," located on the Payerne Swiss Airforce Base on Wednesday, March 21. The museum's ham radio club HB9SPACE connected with the ISS and the president of the Museum Foundation, Mr. Claude Nicollier, HB9CN, who is also the first Swiss astronaut, greeted Kuipers before the Q&A session. Approximately 100 guests were in attendance. After the contact, the students gave presentations on their payload consisting of video cameras, sensors and beacons which was launched in a stratospheric weather balloon on March 15. After the balloon burst, a search team retrieved the payload and students analyzed the data. More on the event and activities may be found at: http://www.hb4fr.ch/english/our-activities/ariss/index.php

3. North Carolina Students Radio ISS

On Wednesday, March 21, students from Salem Elementary School in Apex, North Carolina and Don Pettit, KD5MDT on the ISS participated in an ARISS contact via station VK5ZAI in Australia. Approximately 650 students attended the event. The contact was the culmination of space-related lessons and activities incorporating NASA materials to interest students in Science, Technology, Engineering and Math (STEM). It received media attention. See: http://www.newsobserver.com/2012/03/21/1949225/apex-school-phones-nasa-250-m... http://triangle.news14.com/content/top_stories/655325/apex-school-kids-talk-...

Listen to an interview with some of the students: http://www.wcpss.net/podcast/2012_march22_salem/index.mp3

4. ARISS International Team Meeting Held

The ARISS International monthly teleconference was held on Tuesday, March 20. The HamTV discussion covered the meetings that ESA and NASA are engaging in to ensure coordination of the project. Minutes have been posted. http://ariss.rac.ca/arisstel2012-03-20.htm

5. AMSAT News Service on ARISS Mentors

The March 25 AMSAT (Radio Amateur Satellite Corporation) News Service bulletin (ANS-085) included an item about the recruitment of ARISS mentors. An information session will be held at the Dayton Hamvention 2012 on May 18 and May 19. For details, see: http://amsat.org/pipermail/ans/2012/000604.html