Rescheduled Date: Students at Wick High School in Caithness will use amateur radio to ask astronaut Joshua Kutryk KJ5BFU questions about space.

The ARISS contact, using the call signs NA1SS on the International Space Station and GB4WHS at the school, will take place on Thursday, October 8, 2026, at 12:29 PM BST (11:29 GMT). You can listen in to the ISS downlink on 145.800 MHz (plus/minus 3 kHz Doppler shift) FM.

The event will be streamed live at https://live.ariss.org/

The space and ground teams will attempt to use the HamTV transmitter during this contact to send live Digital Amateur TV pictures of the astronaut on a frequency of 2395 MHz.

The HamTV downlink will be streamed at https://live.ariss.org/hamtv/

Wick High School is a comprehensive secondary school with 725 students aged 11-18. The school has 9 feeder primaries with around 800 children aged 5-11. The Caithness community is in the very far north of mainland Scotland. The area has a large employment focus on engineering, nuclear and renewable energy, with many of our students looking to careers in these industries. The High School encourages and supports pathways into these industries through our excellent Technologies departments.

The Wick High School Radio Club, GMØWHS, plays an important role in this programme by introducing students to amateur radio, satellite communications and wireless technology. Through practical activities, pupils develop technical knowledge alongside teamwork, problem-solving and communication skills while gaining an insight into careers in engineering, aerospace and technology, all while studying for their industry-recognised Foundation licence qualification.

For many young people living in this remote part of Scotland, opportunities to engage directly with the space sector are limited. A live conversation with an astronaut aboard the International Space Station would provide an unforgettable educational experience, raising aspirations and inspiring the next generation of scientists, engineers and explorers.

Young questioners with their practice cue cards – Credit: Wick High School

Questions (if the time of radio contact allows):
1. Which one thing do movies always get wrong about space?
2. What changed in your perspective on Earth after seeing it from outer space?
3. Why do you take the risk of going up into space?
4. What do you do if you have to go outside the ISS?
5. What do you find hard about living in the Space Station?
6. How does food taste in space compared to here on Earth?
7. How much do you use the phonetic alphabet in space?
8. What experiment were you most excited to work on?
9. Which part of your job, when you are in space, is your favourite?
10. How did you prepare your body and mind for going to space?
11. I dream of being an astronaut. What skills should I learn to become an astronaut?
12. I like to play games at home. Do astronauts play games in space?
13. Do astronauts get space sick like getting car sick?
14. Have you ever broke anything on ISS?
15. What other planets have you seen when up in space?
16. When you first went to space were you surprised by anything?
17. What do you do in your free time?
18. In what way is a spacesuit comfortable or uncomfortable?
19. How did you feel when you got chosen to go on the Space Station?
20. Can you get a power outage in space and what would happen?

In an article in the TES (Times Educational Supplement) magazine teacher Chris Aitken MM0WIC explained why he started an amateur radio club at Wick High School.
https://tes.com/magazine/teaching-learning/general/why-i-started-amateur-radio-club-my-school

Follow Wick High School Radio Club on X https://x.com/GM0WHS

Joshua Kutryk KJ5BFU – Credit: Canadian Space Agency

Follow astronaut Joshua Kutryk KJ5BFU on X https://x.com/Astro_Kutryk

The ARISS program is aimed at students and enthusiasts and aims to inspire them in the study of sciences with this amateur radio activity. The demonstration of amateur radio communication from space invites schools and universities to make use of these educational technical resources. We invite radio amateurs and space enthusiasts to tune in to this exciting moment.

The latest information on the ARISS operation mode can be found at
https://www.ariss.org/current-status-of-iss-stations.html

How to hear the ISS https://amsat-uk.org/beginners/how-to-hear-the-iss/

You can use the AMSAT-UK/BATC WebSDR to listen to the contact on your mobile device https://vhf-goonhilly.batc.org.uk/

What is Amateur Radio? http://www.essexham.co.uk/what-is-amateur-radio

Free UK amateur radio Online Training course https://essexham.co.uk/train/foundation-online/