ISS Commander Says "Thank You!"
to the Amateur Radio Community
NEWINGTON, CT, Mar 22, 2006--International Space Station Commander Bill McArthur, KC5ACR, says that as
Expedition 12 draws to a close, "a note of gratitude is due." This week he
thanked the worldwide Amateur Radio community for its help in achieving several
ham radio milestones from space. McArthur has been more active from NA1SS than
any other astronaut or cosmonaut who's lived aboard the ISS since the first
crew arrived in 2000. Among other accomplishments, he completed DXCC and WAS
from space (the awards will be honorary). In addition, he holds the record for
handling the most Amateur Radio on the International Space Station (ARISS) school contacts of any ISS crew
member.
 ISS Expedition 12 Commander Bill McArthur, KC5ACR, has enjoyed his ham radio time from NA1SS in space. He and crewmate
Valery Tokarev will return to Earth in April. [NASA Photo] |
"I would like to express my
deep gratitude to the worldwide amateur radio community for your participation
in this great adventure. Clearly, one of the benefits for Amateur Radio is
bridging the distances between us. Through your participation, you helped
realize the potential for the human exploration of space to do exactly that. Thanks
to you, over the past six months, the International Space Station has been more
international than ever before. Together, we achieved many significant milestones
from space, DXCC, WAC, WAS, and most importantly, 35 school contacts (as of March 21).
"Special thanks go to [ISS
Ham Radio Project Engineer] Kenneth Ransom, N5VHO, without whose tireless
efforts to coordinate our activities onboard none of this could have been
achieved. Kenneth provided invaluable technical advice, as well as raising the
bar as each goal was achieved. I would also like to thank the ISS Fan Club for your enthusiastic
support of ARISS. And personal thanks to Cor, PD0RKC, in The Netherlands, Alain,
IZ6BYY, in Italy, Keith, ZS6TW, in South Africa, and Patrick, WD9EWK, in
Arizona for enlisting the participation of the stations we needed to meet the
goals for Expedition 12.
"It is with no small degree
of sadness to realize that soon I will no longer be able to float to the aft
part of the station, dial up our frequency pair and call 'CQ,' knowing that a
host of friends are waiting to talk. Good luck to you all. Thank you, again,
for your participation in this greatest of all human endeavors. I look forward
to listening as you continue your enthusiastic support of the International
Space Station and, one day, human colonies on the moon and Mars."
73 de NA1SS!
Bill McArthur, KC5ACR
Commander, Expedition 12
International Space Station
Page last modified: 08:24 AM, 22 Mar 2006 ET
Page author: awextra@arrl.org
Copyright © 2006, American Radio Relay League, Inc. All Rights Reserved.
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