Any US citizen can obtain a ham radio license by taking an examination. Information about how to do it is available from many sources such as HamStudy. org or from the American Radio Relay League (ARRL. ) The radio authorities in each country set the requirements for their citizens. You can find ham radios at your local electronics store or by ordering one online. The amateur radios on board the ISS are Ericsson MP-X handheld radios, a Kenwood TM D700, and a Kenwood D710. Choose a ham radio similar to these to contact the ISS.
Try cycling through the various frequencies whenever the ISS is in range to try to make contact.
Search online or visit a site like Google Maps to enter your address and find your longitude and latitude coordinates so you can enter them into the pass predictor. Write down the dates and times that the ISS will pass over your area so you have them for references.
The Russian call sign is RS0ISS, the call sign for the US is NA1SS, and the European call signs are DP0ISS, OR4ISS, and IR0ISS. Any other locations can try using the call signs RS0ISS and RS0ISS-1. Try multiple call signs to get in touch with a crew member. For example, you could hail the ISS by saying something like, “NA1SS, this is Jim from Boise, Idaho, my call sign is 7_, do you copy NA1SS?” Try hailing them for about 5-10 minutes. If they don’t answer, they may be busy working.
Consider writing down what you want to talk about beforehand so you don’t waste time. Ask them questions about things like what it’s like on the ISS or if they’re able to see your location on earth from the station. Because the ISS is travelling so fast, you will never have more than a minute or two to converse with an astronaut on the ISS if you are able to make contact.
You’ll need a Twitter account to post a tweet or send a message. If you don’t have one, don’t worry! You can make one in about 5 minutes. Choose the “Follow” option to be notified whenever they post a new tweet. The official handle, or tag name, of the ISS is @Space_Station.
For instance, astronaut Chris Hadfield famously documented his experience on the ISS using his Twitter page at https://twitter. com/cmdr_hadfield. Astronaut Chris Cassidy is currently on board researching the effects of microgravity. You could ask him a question about what it’s like to live without gravity on his Twitter page at https://twitter. com/astro_seal. Look online for a list of the astronauts currently on board the ISS.
For example, you could post something like, “Hey, @Space_Station, do all of the astronauts eat dinner together at the same time?” After you post your question, keep checking your notifications to see if they respond!
Using a direct message is a great way to ask a question that you want privately answered. For instance, if you’re doing a research assignment about maybe how astronauts go to the bathroom, or if you’re just embarrassed to ask in a public tweet.
