Amateur Radio on the International Space Station

Since the early years of the U.S. Space Shuttle Program and the 15-year run of the Russian MIR Space Station Program, Amateur Radio has played a prominent role in bridging the distance between space travelers and those of us rockbound on our planet.  In 1983,  Mission Specialist Astronaut, Owen Garriott, W5LFL, became the first licensed Amateur Radio Operator to operate from space, orbiting Earth aboard the Space Shuttle Columbia, STS-9.  That mission marked the genesis of an official NASA program, the Shuttle Amateur Radio Experiment, SAREX.  In 1988, a permanent Amateur Radio station was installed on the Russian MIR Space Station.  In the years that followed, Amateur Radio played a part in almost every  U.S. and Russian space mission.  Dozens of U.S. Astronauts, Russian Cosmonauts and astronauts from several other countries have picked up the microphone and called CQ (seek you) from Space, initiating QSO (radio contacts) with classroom students and amateur radio operators around the world.  SAREX was replaced in 1996 by ARISS, Amateur Radio on the International Space Station, a program sponsored by NASA, AMSAT and the American Radio Relay League (ARRL.)  Crewmembers have been quite active at the microphone of the permanent Amateur Radio Station onboard the International Space Station (ISS).  When the astronauts' busy work schedules preclude live voice contacts, a packet radio mailbox and digi-peater (digital data repeater/relay) beacons from space as a constant reminder to amateur radio operators around the globe that the International Space Station is up there. 

Between 1986 and 1999, the Russian MIR Space Station orbited Earth, hosting over 125 Russian Cosmonauts and later U.S. Astronauts.  I had the opportunity to talk with several crewmembers while they were aboard MIR. One crewmember that I enjoyed regular QSO (contact) with was Russian Cosmonaut, Sergei K. Krikalev, U5MIR.  He spent over a year aboard MIR during two separate extended missions on the Russian station.  In 1991, I had the opportunity to visit an exhibit titled 'Soviet Space' assembled at the Ft. Worth Museum and Science Center.  In addition to over 60 spacecraft and a myriad of Soviet Space Program paraphernalia on display, was a full-scale Core Module, the central command module of the MIR Space Station.  It was used to train Russian Cosmonauts here on Earth before their mission in space.  I was able to walk (not float) into the Core Module and sit at the observation window positioned above the on-board Amateur Radio Station.  I immediately gained a new appreciation for how isolated and lonely Sergei must have felt, peering out at the blue Earth below, while talking with Amateur Radio operators around the world.  I was anxious to relate my experience to him during our next QSO.  Some of you may remember that it was Sergei who was stranded on MIR during the last days of the Soviet Union, unable to return to Earth until the new Russian government appropriated funds to send a replacement crew.  He left Earth a citizen of the USSR and returned a citizen of Russia.  Sergei became the first Russian Cosmonaut to fly on a U.S. Space Shuttle, acting as Mission Specialist on  STS-60 in February, 1994.  Later missions included the early construction of the International Space Station, culminating in the historic year 2000 arrival of the Expedition I crew, on which he served as Flight Engineer.  Below is a QSL (contact verification) card for one of the many packet radio contacts with the automated digital mailbox, R0MIR, aboard MIR.

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Click here to see BACK of card

In May of 2001, I had the pleasure of a brief QSO (contact) with Expedition II crewmember and U.S. Astronaut, Susan Helms, KC7NHZ, while she operated  Amateur Radio Station NA1SS, aboard the International Space Station.  She is a veteran of several Space Shuttle missions and holds the record for the longest single Extra-Vehicular Activity (EVA or Space Walk) - 8 hours and 56 minutes outside the ISS.  Pictured Below is a QSL card documenting that QSO.  

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Click here to see BACK of card

Since that time, I have had countless QSO with other amateur radio operators here on Earth via the ISS packet radio digi-peater, RS0ISS.  Below is a QSL card from Peter, W2SKY, who lives about 15-miles from me. On any given day we can easily conduct a line-of-sight radio contact between our locations.  On this particular day, we conducted a 600-mile 'long-path' QSO (Earth-->ISS-->Earth) digi-peating through packet radio station, RS0ISS,  on the International Space Station. 

No special equipment was required.  We used the same radio equipment and antennas used for normal everyday contacts. 

Peter has crossed the half-way mark toward achieving his goal of working Amateur Radio operators in all 50 states via the International Space Station digi-peater.  You can do it, too. 

Want to try it?  It's as easy as WHAT, WHEN and WHERE.

WHAT you will need: A 2-meter FM radio transceiver capable of 5-Watts to 100-Watts output and a 1/4-wave ground plane antenna or small directional beam antenna are all that's required to conduct a voice-mode QSO.  A packet Terminal Node Controller (TNC) or Sound Card Modem (SCM) and a computer are additional equipment required for digital-mode QSO.  The same equipment you use for 2-meter mobile operation from your car or for connecting to your local DX-Cluster or packet radio BBS will work just fine for QSO with the International Space Station.  

Next, you will need to know WHEN to listen for the International Space Station as it flies over your location. There are many methods to accomplish this task. The Amateur Radio Satellite Corporation, AMSAT, has an excellent website to explore.  There you will find programs, which you can download for use on your computer, that will predict satellite orbits over your location.  In addition, you will find a wealth of information and instruction for the Amateur Radio satellite enthusiast.  However, the simplest way is to click-on-over to the Heavens Above website.  Register as a user if you wish or just click on Select your location.  Find your location in the country/city database provided.  Then, once you are in the satellite orbital prediction program, click on Radio Amateur Satellites - All Passes to produce a 24-hr schedule for satellites passing over your location, including the ISS.  However you obtain the necessary orbital prediction information, you will quickly note that the window of opportunity for a QSO during each orbit overhead is approximately four to ten minutes long.  Preparation is very important. 

To see the real-time data position of the International Space Station, tracking against a map of the world, visit this informative NASA site: www.spaceflight.nasa.gov/realdata/tracking/index.html.  

Of course you will need to know WHERE to listen.  The chart below lists the current frequencies in use.  

International Space Station Amateur Radio Frequencies

Notice that the downlink frequency (where you listen) is the same for both voice and data QSO - 145.80 mHz.  However, the uplink frequency (where you transmit) is different from the downlink frequency and also differs by transmission mode, voice or data. This requires split-frequency operation of your 2-meter FM transceiver.  Most equipment sold in the last several years is capable of split-frequency operation.  Consult your operating manual for instructions on operating split-frequency with your equipment.  

O.K.  Your equipment is ready, you are listening on frequency and the International Space Station will soon be advancing above your horizon.  What to do next?  Listen.  If you are lucky, the first sounds you hear above the white-noise level will be the voice of one of the ISS crewmembers conducting a QSO with another station.  If you are really lucky, you will hear him or her calling CQ! Wait for him to clear with the other station or let-up on the microphone after calling CQ.  Key your mic and announce your callsign clearly, one time, then listen for a response.  If he does not acknowledge your station or any other station, repeat your callsign again.  Remember, listen first.  Do not transmit on top of another QSO.  Follow this procedure until you hear him calling you or another station or the ISS signal fades over the horizon.  Wait until the next orbit and try again.  Perseverance will prevail.  You will succeed. 

Congratulations! You have established voice contact.  The frequency is yours until the crewmember clears with you and calls another station.  Sometimes a QSO is cut short because of interference from impatient  or careless operators who continue to call over the top of an ongoing QSO.  That is why it is extremely important that you do not transmit or announce your callsign while another QSO is in progress - you will expect that same courtesy when your QSO is taking place.  Carry on your QSO just as you would any other first time contact with a fellow amateur radio operator.  Ask  questions or comment on recent ISS activities that you have learned of through the media.  Take the lead of the ISS crewmember.  If he senses many stations waiting for a contact, he will generally keep the QSO short and move on to the next station.  At times, especially during early morning hours at your location, there may be only a few stations looking for a contact and the crewmember may be eager for an extended QSO. 

I remember one such QSO in the early '90s when I frequently talked with Russian Cosmonaut, Sergei K. Krikalev, U5MIR.  We had enjoyed a 6 or 7 minute QSO discussing a recent world event when the signal from Space Station MIR faded over the horizon.  105 minutes later -- the time it took for MIR to complete a full orbit  around Earth back to my location -- while I was working on something in my shack, the squelch opened on my 2-meter FM rig.  In a familiar Russian accent, I heard "N2IXD, N2IXD.  Are you there, Jim?  This is U5MIR."  Shocked and in disbelief, I picked up the mic and answered Sergei back.  "So, tell me more about..." he said, as we carried on the earlier QSO.  

Keep in mind that, except for scheduled ARISS classroom contacts with school students, Amateur Radio is an off-duty activity for the ISS crew.  Some crewmembers spend more time than others on-the-air.  Chances are, when the ISS comes over the horizon, you are more likely to hear the familiar raspy digital burst of noise from the RS0ISS packet digi-peater, rather than a crewmember at the mic.  Warm-up your fingers on the computer keyboard and have fun.  Visit some of the websites listed at the end of the page for detailed information on proper packet protocol for digi-peating through the ISS.

Check the Official ARISS Website for the latest updates on the ARISS Program.  Much more detailed information than presented here in this overview can be found there.  It's a great resource. 

Those of you who successfully packet digi-peat through RS0ISS, can check the Amateur Radio Stations Heard via the International Space Station web page to find your callsign on the maps displayed or listed in the table of stations heard.  Click here to see a sample page listing my station. 

Station N2IXD heard via ISS

It's as easy as that!  Communicating with the International Space Station is an exciting aspect of Amateur Radio.  I hope you will try it and enjoy it.  However, there are many other ways to enjoy this adventurous hobby.  Visit My Amateur Radio Connection home page for a few links to other interesting Amateur Radio activities.  

Comments regarding this article can be addressed to the author at the email link here:

ã2002, N2IXD

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