Expedition 9 Crew Back on Earth; Expedition 10 Enjoying Short Respite

A new sheriff's in town: Expedition 10 Commander Leroy Chiao, KE5BRW, in the crew's quarters. The ARISS Phase 2 gear is barely visible just below Chiao's left arm. [NASA Photo]

NEWINGTON, CT, Oct 26, 2004--The International Space Station Expedition 9 crew of Commander Gennady Padalka, RN3DT, and NASA ISS Science Officer Mike Fincke, KE5AIT, is back on Earth after spending nearly 188 days in space and traveling more than 78 million miles through space. Padalka, Fincke and Russian Space Forces Test Cosmonaut Yuri Shargin landed safely in Kazakhstan early October 24. Shargin had traveled to the ISS with the Expedition 10 crew of Commander Leroy Chiao, KE5BRW, and Flight Engineer Salizhan Sharipov. Chiao and Sharipov now are wrapping up three days of light duty following a hectic week of crew handover activities while both crews and Shargin were aboard. Reports indicate that the Amateur Radio on the International Space Station (ARISS) stations also may be taking a break. Not even a packet signal has been heard on recent passes. Despite the busy week before departure, Fincke did manage to slip in a few casual QSOs on 2 meters, according to postings on the ISS Fan Club Web site.

Now Back on Earth: The Expedition 9 crew of Mike Fincke, KE5AIT (left), and Gennady Padalka, RN3DT, now are in Star City, Russia, for post-mission debriefings. [NASA]

Official portrait: Expedition 10 Commander Leroy Chiao, KE5BRW (left) and Flight Engineer Salizhan Sharipov. They'll remain onboard the ISS until next April 25. [NASA]

ARISS-Russia's Sergei Samburov, RV3DR, arranged for Shargin to participate in school group contacts with students in Finland and Belgium. The Expedition 10 crew is not expected to begin its own series of ARISS school group contacts until the week of November 11. Among other locations, ARISS school group contacts are penciled in for Italy, New York, Quebec, and Ontario. Specific dates for those QSOs have not yet been established, however.

ARISS Ham Radio Technical Coordinator Kenneth Ransom, N5VHO, told the ARISS International Delegates conference earlier this month that the ISS FM crossband voice repeater has been a big hit among the ham radio community. However, the noise floor in the ISS has proven to be so high that the squelch must be set at around 75 percent. As a result, some weaker stations might not make it through, although "just about everyone can hear the ISS," he said. The repeater consists of the ARISS Phase 2 station--a Kenwood TS-D700E installed in the crew's quarters and set to operate in Mode U/V. The ISS repeater uplink is 437.800 MHz (± Doppler, which can be 10 kHz). The downlink is 145.800 MHz.

Padalka and Fincke now are in Star City, Russia, for a few weeks of post-flight debriefings and medical exams. They'll return to Houston in mid-November, NASA says. Chiao and Sharipov will get down to business October 27. Before leaving the ISS, Padalka, Fincke and Shargin bid farewell to Chiao and Sharipov. Expedition 10 officially took command of the ISS Expedition 9 when the hatches between the Soyuz vehicle and the ISS closed at 1800 UTC October 23.

Expedition 9's Mike Fincke, KE5AIT, earned a reputation among the amateur community for his enthusiasm for Amateur Radio operation from space. [NASA Photo]

During their stay aboard the ISS, Padalka and Fincke performed four space walks, continued ISS science operations and maintained station systems. Shargin conducted science experiments during his eight days on the space station.

Chiao and Sharipov are expected to spend the next six months continuing ISS science operations and maintaining station systems. They will also prepare the ISS for the space shuttle's return to flight and conduct two space walks.

Back on Earth, Fincke finally got to meet his now four-month-old daughter, Tarali Paulina, born June 18 while he was still in space. The Expedition 9 crew members' families greeted them upon their arrival at Star City, Russia, a few hours after landing.

Expedition 10 is scheduled to return to Earth next April 25.--some information from NASA

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