International Space Station – Image Credit NASA

Adrian Lane 2E0SDR got some great publicity for the hobby in national newspapers and TV about an amateur radio contact he had with an astronaut on the International Space Station.

Many of the ISS astronauts hold amateur radio licences. In their spare time they carry out scheduled amateur  contacts with school students and occasionally talk direct to individual radio amateurs in their home.

There are two amateur radio stations on the ISS; one is located in the ESA Columbus module with the call sign NA1SS, the other is in the Russian Service module and uses the call sign RS0ISS. A description of the stations can be found at http://www.ariss.org/contact-the-iss.html

Adrian Lane 2E0SDR

Adrian’s contact took place in October 2014, he used an Icom FM transceiver running 25 watts with a VHF Eggbeater Antenna designed by Jerry K5OE. In August 2015 he contacted his local newspaper the Gloucester Citizen to place an advert for Under 11’s soccer players for the local youth team. During the conversation he happened to say he had spoken to the ISS.

The Citizen printed the ISS story, which also mentioned the Ruardean Hill Radio Club, on August 4, 2015 and it was picked up by the UK national newspapers. From there it spread to the media world-wide. The original Citizen story is at http://www.gloucestercitizen.co.uk/ground-control-Coleford-shed-international-space/story-27542896-detail/story.html

The story was published in the Thursday, August 6, 2015 edition of many UK national daily newspapers including The Sun, The Times, Telegraph, Independent, Daily Mail, Daily Express and Mirror.

The Thursday edition of the BBC Radio 4 Today show also featured the story at 8:09:46am. To hear it fast forward to 2:09:46 in this recording: http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b0643x5z#play it was also mentioned on BBC Radio 5.

During Thursday evening the story featured on the TV news station CNN.

On Friday, August 7, Adrian was interviewed about the contact on the BBC TV Victoria Derbyshire programme and was mentioned on the BBC World Service. Watch the BBC TV interview at http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-33816779

The online version of the Daily Mail story features a video interview with Adrian 2E0SDR
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-3186534/Radio-ham-contacts-International-Space-Station-GARDEN-SHED.html

Watch CNN – Ham radio and the ISS broadcast 1930 GMT Aug 6, 2015

Read the Telegraph story at
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/newstopics/howaboutthat/11786461/Radio-ham-talks-to-space-station-from-garden-shed.html

Read the Mirror newspaper story at
http://www.mirror.co.uk/news/uk-news/amateur-radio-enthusiast-dials-international-6199955

The Sun newspaper story is behind a paywall at
http://www.thesun.co.uk/sol/homepage/news/6575742/One-small-step-for-a-ham.html

The Register story: HAM IN SPAAAAAACE
http://www.theregister.co.uk/2015/08/06/radio_ham_talks_to_iss_astronaut_from_garden_shed_in_gloucestershire/

On Thursday, August 20, 2015 Onno VK6FLAB was interviewed by Gillian O’Shaughnessy for the ABC 720 breakfast show to talk about Amateur Radio as a direct result of the ISS contact by Adrian 2E0SDR.
https://amsat-uk.org/2015/08/20/amateur-radio-and-iss-on-abc-radio-show/

List of some of the astronauts who have held amateur radio licences http://www.w5rrr.org/astros.html

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

Astronaut Paolo Nespoli IZ0JPA

Italian ESA astronaut Paolo Nespoli, who holds the amateur radio callsign IZ0JPA, will be heading for space a third time, as part of Expeditions 52 and 53 to the International Space Station. He will be launched on a Soyuz vehicle in May 2017 on a five-month mission.

The new mission is part of a barter agreement between NASA and Italy’s ASI space agency involving ESA astronauts. It will be ASI’s third long-duration flight, following Luca Parmitano’s Volare in 2013 and Samantha Cristoforetti’s Futura this year.

Paolo’s first spaceflight was his two-week Esperia mission on the Space Shuttle’s STS-120 in 2007, ASI’s second short-duration flight under the barter agreement. One of his main tasks was to help install the Node-2 module on the Space Station.

He returned to the Station in 2010 for ESA’s 160-day MagISStra mission as part of Expeditions 26 and 27. In addition to his many experiments, he was involved in the dockings of two cargo craft: Europe’s second Automated Transfer Vehicle and Japan’s second HII Transfer Vehicle.

Following his second flight, Paolo worked at ESA’s ESRIN centre in Italy and at the European Astronaut Centre in Cologne. He recently began training at the Gagarin Cosmonaut Training Centre near Moscow, Russia, for his new adventure.

March 2015 Paolo Nespoli IZ0JPA at at BBC Solar Eclipse event
https://amsat-uk.org/2015/03/02/radio-hams-will-be-at-bbc-solar-eclipse-event/