On February 7th at 11:45 the Bridgerland Amateur Radio Club (BARC) located in Northern Utah, helped students from Ridgeline High School and Skyview High School to make a contact with Josh Cassada KI5CRH, who is an astronaut aboard the International Space Station.
In May of 2021, BARC received a grant from ARDC for projects focused around introducing youth to amateur radio and STEM through fun hands-on space science activities. This included the funds to purchase the equipment for a primary amateur radio station used to contact the ISS.
In May of 2022, Cache County School District received word that they were selected for a ARISS contact. Jason Peterson K7EM led the amateur radio effort for this project.
Technology behind the contact
Primary station
Radio: ICOM 9700. 2 meter, 70 centimeter, and 1.2 GHz
Rotator: Yaesu G5500 AZ/EL rotator
Antenna system: M2 14 element VHF and UHF circular polarized antenna.
Microphone Audio: Heil GM Elite
Pre-Amps:
Satellite Tracking.
How the contact worked.
The contact happened on the 2 meter Amateur Radio Band. The downlink Frequency from the International Space Station (ISS) was 145.800 MHz. In comparison, FM radio stations broadcast between 88.0 MHz and 108.0 MHz. This contact took place just up the band from the FM radio and Aircraft bands.
On board the ISS is a Kenwood D710 Amateur Radio capable of communicating on the 2 meter and 70 cm amateur radio band. Many astronauts who go to the International Space Station do study for and get their amateur radio license so they can make contacts with students through amateur radio.
