ARISS Ham Radio Equipment Test a Success

According to Will Marchant, KC6ROL, the International Space Station crew has completed installation of the Amateur Radio hardware in the Functional Cargo Block. With the successful execution of engineering tests today, the Amateur Radio on the International Space Station (ARISS) project has passed a significant milestone.

The initial two passes were tested at the Gagarin Cosmonaut Training Center (GCTC) ham shack R3K in Star City near Moscow. The control operators were Sergej Samburov, RV3DR, and Vladimir Zagainov, UA3DKR. Sergej is the Russian delegate to the ARISS team. Subsequent tests at the NN1SS station at the Goddard Space Flight Center (Greenbelt, MD) and the W5RRR station at Johnson Space Center (Houston, TX) were equally successful.

Engineering tests with the packet rig still need to be organized. The crew, while still very busy, expressed their interest and support of Amateur Radio activities on the ISS. It seems likely that over the next few weeks, as the crew's schedule settles out, that we may be able to look forward to more Amateur Radio activity from humanity's latest foothold in space.

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