International Space Station Expedition 20 Commander Gennady Padalka and Flight Engineer Michael Barratt landed their Soyuz TMA-14 spacecraft on the steppes of Kazakhstan Sunday, wrapping up a six-month stay. Joining them was spaceflight participant Guy Laliberte, who spent 11 days in space.

Padalka, the Soyuz commander, guided the spacecraft to a parachute-assisted landing at 12:32 a.m. EDT at a site northeast of the town of Arkalyk.

Russian recovery teams were on hand within minutes of landing to help the crew exit from the Soyuz vehicle and reacclimate to gravity. The crew members will return to the Gagarin Cosmonaut Training Center in Star City, outside of Moscow, for reunions with their families.

Keeping the resupply line going to the International Space Station, the Russians have successfully launched their 35th routine but highly vital cargo-carrying spacecraft for the outpost in a magnificently beautiful ascent.

The unmanned Progress freighter was blasted into orbit atop a Soyuz booster at 9:14:37 p.m. EDT Wednesday from the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan. The launch came at local daybreak, allowing the core-stage engines to produce an indescribable dawn spectacle and its third stage to be visible all the way to the horizon.

A preliminary orbit was achieved after the nine-minute climb to space provided by the liquid-fueled rocket. Onboard commands then extended the Progress craft's two power-generating solar arrays that span 35 feet and unfurled communications and navigation antennas.

The ARISS contact between Frank De Winne, OR4ISS and IQ8BB from Istituto Comprensivo "Trifone" in Montecorvino Rovella (SA) will be streamed in Internet at

www.ik1sld.org/live

It will be only AUDIO because I will act as Telebridge Station from School "Alighieri-Trevigi" in Casale Monferrato (AL) North Italy.
AOS in Casale will be at 07:36 UTC giving 3 minutes more for IQ8BB in South Italy.

73 IK1SLD Claudio

Topics in this report:
1. Upcoming School Contacts
2. ARISS Contact Held Between De Winne and Sint-Michielscollege
3. ARISS Contact Part of Malaysia's National Space Challenge
4. ARISS Contact with Belmont Elementary School
5. ARRL Article on Columbus Antennas
6. ARRL Articles on Astronaut Frank Caldeiro
7. AMSAT Symposium Held
8. ARISS-Ops Meeting Held

1. Upcoming School Contacts
An Amateur Radio on the International Space Station (ARISS) contact has been scheduled for Boundary Beach Elementary School in Delta, British Columbia, Canada on Tuesday, October 13 at 17:10 UTC. Students have been involved in many space related activities including a trip to the McMillan Planetarium and participation in Dr. Thirsk's "Get Fit for Space" program.

The first clown in space landed safely on Earth early Sunday, capping off a mission to spread awareness about water conservation.

Guy Laliberte, a Canadian billionaire and founder of the circus troupe Cirque du Soleil, touched down on the steppes of Kazakhstan at 12:32 a.m. EDT (1632 GMT) after an 11-day space jaunt. He rode in a Russian Soyuz spacecraft along with two professional spaceflyers returning from six-month stays aboard the International Space Station.

The trio closed the hatches between their Soyuz TMA-14 and the orbiting laboratory at 6:06 p.m. EDT (2206 GMT) and undocked at 9:07 p.m. EDT (0107 GMT Sunday), after saying farewell to their crewmates still onboard the station.

International Space Station Expedition 20 Commander Gennady Padalka and Flight Engineer Michael Barratt landed their Soyuz TMA-14 spacecraft on the steppes of Kazakhstan Sunday, wrapping up a six-month stay. Joining them was spaceflight participant Guy Laliberte, who spent 11 days in space.

Padalka, the Soyuz commander, guided the spacecraft to a parachute-assisted landing at 12:32 a.m. EDT at a site northeast of the town of Arkalyk.

Russian recovery teams were on hand within minutes of landing to help the crew exit from the Soyuz vehicle and reacclimate to gravity. The crew members will return to the Gagarin Cosmonaut Training Center in Star City, outside of Moscow, for reunions with their families.

NASA Astronaut Fernando "Frank" Caldeiro, KE4RFI, passed away on October 3 after a more than two year battle with a brain tumor. He was 51. Caldeiro was a member of the Astronaut Class of 1996 and most recently was assigned to the WB-57 High Altitude Research Program within the Aircraft Operations Division at Ellington Field in Houston. In that role, he directed the integration and conducted the operation of high-altitude atmospheric research experiments carried on board the NASA WB-57 aircraft. "Frank was a valued member of the astronaut corps and the Flight Crew Operations team," said NASA's Director of Flight Crew Operations Brent Jett. "He provided a wealth of experience and made significant contributions to the success of both the WB-57 project and the space shuttle program.

An International Space Station school contact has been planned with participants at Belmont Elementary, Langley, BC, Canada on 09 Oct. The event is scheduled to begin at approximately 20:20 UTC.

The duration of the contact is approximately 9 minutes and 30 seconds.

The contact will be direct between NA1SS and VA7GAB. The contact should be audible over western Canada. Interested parties are invited to listen in on the 145.80 MHz downlink. The contact is expected to be conducted in English or French.

Ecole Belmont Elementary School is a dual track (French / English) school with approximately 530 students. We are located in Brookswood a suburb of Langley, 52 Kms east of Vancouver. As part of our back to school "Week Of Welcome", we undertook a school wide focus on "Space". Students learned about Canada's contribution to space exploration, the Canadian astronauts, the construction of the ISS as well as many other related things. Students created event patches and a myriad of other artwork in preparation for the upcoming event.

An International Space Station school contact has been planned with participants at National Planetarium Kuala Lumpur, Wilayah Persekutuan, Malaysia on 08 Oct. The event is scheduled to begin at approximately 09:34 UTC. The duration of the contact is approximately 9 minutes and 30 seconds.

The contact will be direct between NA1SS and 9M2RPN. The contact should be audible over Malaysia. Interested parties are invited to listen in on the 145.80 MHz downlink. The contact is expected to be conducted in English.

The National Space Challenge program was created to instill the talents and desire in students especially in the primary school Standard 4 level in understanding astronomy and space sciences. This program is organized annually by the National Space Agency in cooperation with Ministry of Education as a part of school curriculum.

Topics in this report:
1. Upcoming School Contacts
2. Thirsk Participates in ARISS Contact with R.T. Alderman Students
3. De Winne Speaks with Lisbon, Portugal Students via ARISS
4. ARISS Contact with University of Liege
5. Nicole Stott Participates in ARISS Contact with Italian Students
6. ARISS Contact with Boy Scouts of Canada
7. ARISS News on Amateur Radio Newsline

1. Upcoming School Contacts
An Amateur Radio on the International Space Station (ARISS) contact has been scheduled for Sint-Michielscollege Brasschaat vzw (SMCB) in Brasschaat, Belgium on Wednesday, October 7 at 10:20 UTC. Visits to space and science museums are among the science activities planned for the children. Guest speakers will include a representative from Verhaert Space Systems and Dirk Frimout, Belgium's first astronaut.