[sarex] 2012-10-22 ARISS Status

[Carol Jackson]

Amateur Radio on the International Space Station (ARISS) Status Report

October 22, 2012

 

1.            Upcoming School Contacts

 

Meikei High School in Tsukuba, Japan will participate in an Amateur Radio on
the International Space Station (ARISS) contact on Tuesday, October 23 at
11:06 UTC. The school was established in 1979 by an alumni association
formed principally by the graduates of the University of Tsukuba and Tokyo
University of Education. Japanese astronaut Akihiko Hoshide is a graduate of
the school. The school's science club has a Radio & Electronics Group with
its own radio station, callsign JJ1YAF. Club members and other interested
students will learn about the ISS, orbital mechanics and amateur radio
satellite communications through this activity. The group will speak with
Hoshide during this contact, which will be conducted in Japanese.  

 

East Falmouth Elementary School, East Falmouth, Massachusetts will take part
in an Amateur Radio on the International Space Station (ARISS) contact on
Friday, October 26 at 17:40 UTC. Using NASA resources, students are learning
about the solar system, global climate changes on Earth and the advances in
science and technology generated by space exploration.

 

2.            Successful ARISS Contacts Held

 

On Tuesday, October 16, CRA Pozohondo in Nava De Abajo (Pozohondo), Spain
hosted an Amateur Radio on the International Space Station (ARISS) contact
via telebridge station LU8YY in Argentina. ISS astronaut Sunita Williams,
KD5PLB chatted with students, answering 20 of their life-in-space questions.
The activity was tied to lessons in astronomy, photography, radio and
English as a second language. Over 100 students and guests attended. The
school has posted video on its Web site:  

http://edu.jccm.es/cra/cra_pozohondo

 

Students from the Wattsburg Area School District in Erie, Pennsylvania
participated in an Amateur Radio on the International Space Station (ARISS)
contact with on-orbit astronaut Sunita Williams, KD5PLB on Friday, October
19 via telebridge station VK4KHZ in Australia. Approximately 600 students
were in attendance with another 400 participating from their classrooms,
connected by internet. The ARISS contact was part of a comprehensive
education plan which covers Robotics, Astronomy, Amateur Radio and Science. 

 

Scouts visiting the National Scouting Museum in Irving, Texas spoke with
Sunita Williams, KD5PLB via an Amateur Radio on the International Space
Station (ARISS) contact on Saturday, October 20. The contact was part of the
Jamboree on the Air (JOTA) weekend event whereby Scouts of all ages from
around the world connect with each other using Amateur Radio equipment.
Williams was able to answer over 20 questions  put to her by the Scouts and
had time for longer than usual answers due to sharing of the contact by
Australian telebridge stations VK6MJ and VK5ZAI.   The audience consisted of
around 200 scouts, parents, and friends and at least three television
stations and several newspapers representatives were present.  

 

3.            ARISS International Team Meeting Held

 

The ARISS International Team monthly teleconference was held on Tuesday,
October 16. A status was given on the HamTV project as well as the new VHF
unit to be flown to the ISS and subsequently installed in the Columbus
Module.  Minutes have been posted. See:
http://ariss.rac.ca/arisstel2012-10-16.htm

 

4.            Astronaut Training Status

 

Luca Parmitano, KF5KDP attended his preflight session on October 17. He is
slated to fly with Expedition 36 crew in May 2013.

 

5.            ARRL Covers ARISS

 

The American Radio Relay League (ARRL) ran a 3 page article in its November
QST about an ARISS teacher and the STEM activities she did prior to and
after her ARISS contact.  

ARRL also posted "Saturday Pacificon Snapshot" which talks about the
activities held during the Pacific Division annual convention in Santa
Clara, CA, including an ARISS contact between students and Akihiko Hoshide,
KE5DNI on ISS. See: http://www.arrl.org/news/saturday-pacificon-snapshot

 

6.            AMSAT News Service on ARISS 

 

The October 21 AMSAT (Radio Amateur Satellite Corporation) News Service
bulletin (ANS-295) posted an article on the upcoming AMSAT Symposium to be
held this week, Friday, October 26 - Sunday, October 28 in Orlando, Florida.
NASA Astronaut Samuel Durrance will be the guest speaker at the Saturday
banquet. Also included in this week's bulletin is an item covering recent
ARISS contacts. Both items can be found at:
http://amsat.org/pipermail/ans/2012/000660.html