The Murgas Amateur Radio Club (MARC), K3YTL, an ARRL-affiliated club in Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania, will present two appearances by NASA Astronaut Colonel Douglas Wheelock on April 6, 2022. The events are being held in cooperation with NASA, the University of Scranton, and Misericordia University. Colonel Wheelock, now retired, was selected by NASA in 1998 and has accumulated more than 178 days in space. He is a radio amateur, and his call sign is KF5BOC. During his time in space, Wheelock made many ham radio contacts from the space shuttle and International Space Station (ISS) with radio amateurs and student groups.

Wheelock flew on Shuttle Mission STS-120 in 2007, and in 2010, he began a long-duration stay aboard the ISS as a flight engineer for Expedition 24 and as a commander for Expedition 25. During this mission, Wheelock conducted three unplanned spacewalks to replace a faulty ammonia pump module. While on board the ISS, both Wheelock and fellow Astronaut Shannon Walker, KD5DXB, participated in the Amateur Radio on the International Space Station (ARISS) program, sponsored in part by ARRL  The National Association for Amateur Radio®. They made 22 ISS-to-school and ISS-to-camp ham radio contacts. In addition, Wheelock averaged about two dozen casual contacts with radio amateurs around the world each week while on board the ISS.

The Binghamton, New York native holds a Bachelor of Science in Applied Science and Engineering from the United States Military Academy in West Point, New York, and a Master of Science in Aerospace Engineering from Georgia Tech in Atlanta, Georgia.

Wheelock’s first appearance will be at 2 PM ET on Wednesday, April 6 at the University of Scranton DeNaples Center-Moskovitz Theater. The second appearance will be at 7 PM ET on Wednesday, April 6 at Misericordia University’s Frank M. and Dorothea Henry Science Center in Dallas, Pennsylvania. Both events are open to the public, and advance registration is required. In accordance with local COVID-19 safety measures and mandates, masking may be necessary to attend the event.

To register for either of the appearances, go to murgasarc.org.

For more information, please email MARC at murgasarc@gmail.com.