In addition to the wonderful news concerning Phase 3-D, there has also

been recent forward progress in activities to establish a permanent

amateur radio presence in space aboard the International Space

Station. Training models have been prepared of the antennas that

eventually will be deployed on ISS, and pattern testing is under way on

some antenna systems.



Four flight antenna systems are being developed to support operation on

20, 15, 10, and 2-meters, plus 70-cm, L-band and S-band.



"The ARISS international team has made tremendous progress on the

design, development and flight qualification of an antenna system,"

AMSAT-NA Vice President for Human Spaceflight and ARISS

Administrative Chairman Frank Bauer, KA3HDO, said this week.



The antenna system being developed for ISS includes a dualband

VHF/UHF antenna, a multiband microwave antenna and a diplexer

mounted on a plate that attaches to an extra vehicular activity (EVA)

handrail clamping device. These four antenna systems will attach to four

bulkhead Service Module feedthroughs, made available to the ARISS

international team through the efforts of Sergei Sambourov, RV3DR.



The four antenna systems being developed for flight will be installed

around the perimeter of the Russian developed Service Module, which

will serve as an orbiting outpost for the ISS crew.



All amateur radio initial station hardware is slated for launch on the

STS-101 mission.



[ANS thanks the ARRL and AMSAT-NA Vice President for Human

Spaceflight and ARISS Administrative Chairman Frank Bauer, KA3HDO,

for this information]