ARISS to Conduct Simulation QSO between Astronauts and Students

Before each trip to the International Space Station (ISS), astronauts who hold Amateur Radio licenses are trained by a team of Amateur Radio on the International Space Station (ARISS) members on ARISS procedures and how to use the onboard radios. To make this training more realistic for the astronauts, ARISS has arranged for crewmembers in training at Johnson Space Center to participate in two simulated ARISS contacts with a local Houston school.

Students at Bay Area Charter Elementary in El Lago, Texas will conduct two sessions on Friday, February 8 between 1545 UTC and 1610 UTC. According to ARRL ARISS Program Manager Rosalie White, K1STO, these times may fluctuate somewhat depending on how well training is going and crewmember availability. Astronaut Mike Fincke, KE5AIT, is scheduled to participate in the first event; Koichi Wakata, KC5ZTA, will participate in the second event.

White said this is the first (and second) time a school contact simulation training session has been conducted live where students are at the other end of the session. If this proves successful, she said it might be possible to conduct a handful of these sessions each year: "If things go well, this can increase somewhat our opportunities for schools. In the past, we found that kids were equally excited when their school's QSO was done with an astronaut sitting at Johnson Space Center's Amateur Radio station W5RRR [as opposed to a contact from space]." Simulations are not as predictable as on-orbit operations, so there is a slight chance the event might be postponed.

Source: ARRL website