Amateur Radio on the International Space Station (ARISS) has announced that 13 schools or organizations will advance to the next phase of planning to host Amateur Radio contacts with the ISS during the second half of 2018. The new ARISS-US Education Committee selected the 13 applicants from a field of 25. ARISS anticipates that NASA will be able to provide scheduling opportunities from July to December of next year. These schools and organizations now must submit Amateur Radio equipment plans to host a scheduled contact with a member of the ISS crew.

The 13 candidates must now complete an equipment plan that demonstrates their ability to execute a ham radio contact with the ISS. Once the ARISS technical team approves their equipment plans, the finalists will be scheduled as their availability and flexibility match up with the scheduling opportunities. The schools and organizations are:

• Allen Park Elementary School, Lee County School District  Fort Myers, Florida

• Ashford School                                                                       Ashford, Connecticut

• Bishop O’Connell High School                                              Arlington, Virginia

• Delcastle Technical High School                                            Wilmington, Delaware

• Hudson Memorial School                                                       Hudson, New Hampshire

• Kopernik Observatory & Science Center                                Vestal, New York

• Mendez Fundamental Intermediate School                            Santa Ana, California

• Pathfinder Regional Vocational Technical High School        Palmer, Massachusetts

• Pearl Technology STEM Academy                                         Peoria Heights, Illinois

• Pell Elementary School                                                           Newport, Rhode Island

• St. Catherine of Bologna School                                            Ringwood, New Jersey

• Tallmadge Community Learning Center                                 Lancaster, Ohio

• Valley High School                                                                 Albuquerque, New Mexico

ARISS’s primary goal is to engage young people in science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM) activities, and to involve them in activities related to space exploration, Amateur Radio, communications, and areas of associated study and career possibilities.

ARISS is a cooperative venture of international Amateur Radio societies and the space agencies that support the International Space Station (ISS). In the United States, sponsors are ARRL, AMSAT, the Center for the Advancement of Science in Space (CASIS), and NASA.