Winter 2004 Issue

Amateur Radio
on the International Space Station
Phase 2 Hardware System


The International Space Station enters a new phase of amateur radio
operation. Here the authors give the details of how this has come about.

By Frank H. Bauer,* KA3HDO; Sergej Samburov, RV3DR; Lou McFadin, W5DID;
Bob Bruninga, WB4APR; and Hiroto Watarikawa, JJ1LYU
 

The International Space Station (ISS) ham radio system has been on-orbit for over three years. Since its first use in November 2000, the first seven expedition crews and three Soyuz taxi crews have utilized the amateur radio station in the Functional Cargo Block (also referred to as the FGB, or Zarya module) to talk to thousands of students in schools, to their families on Earth, and to amateur radio operators around the world.

Early on, the amateur radio operators on the International Space Station (ARISS) international team devised a multi-phased hardware development approach for the ISS ham radio station. Three internal development phases—Initial Phase 1, Mobile Radio Phase 2, and Permanently Mounted Phase 3—plus an externally mounted system were proposed and agreed to by the ARISS team.

The Phase 1 system hardware development, which was started in 1996, has since been delivered to ISS. It is currently operational on 2 meters. The 70-cm system is expected to be operational later this year on SSTV.

Since 2001, the ARISS international team has worked to bring the second-generation ham system, called Phase 2, to flight qualification status. At this time, major portions of the Phase 2 hardware system have been delivered to ISS and will soon be installed and checked out.
This article provides an overview of the Phase 1 system for background and then describes the capabilities of the Phase 2 radio system. It will also describe the current plans to finalize the Phase 1 and Phase 2 testing in Russia and outline the plans to bring the Phase 2 hardware system to full operation.

Ham Radio Equipment Specifics

The ISS ham radio equipment will reside in two locations inside the ISS and at least one location outside the ISS. Two-meter (144-MHz) operations primarily will be conducted inside the Functional Cargo Block (FGB), named Zarya, using antennas that supported docking of the FGB with the Russian Service Module. These antennas, designed for use near the 2-meter band (see figure 1), no longer support docking and can be used permanently by the ARISS team. This is the current location of the 2-meter portion of the Phase 1 ISS ham radio station. The FGB radio system represents a minimal capability that allows the ARISS team to support school-group contacts and packet communications on one band, the 2-meter band.

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Amateur Radio on the International Space Station Phase 2 Hardware System

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FGB 2-meter antenna locations.