Hi!

NASA has posted 3 photos taken on Sunday (5 September) of Doug Wheelock using the ISS ham gear. It's also nice to see the captions identify the radio as a "ham radio system", instead of just a "communications system" as has been done in similar photos in the past. Here are links to the photos:

http://spaceflight.nasa.gov/gallery/images/station/crew-24/html/iss024e0...

http://spaceflight.nasa.gov/gallery/images/station/crew-24/html/iss024e0...

http://spaceflight.nasa.gov/gallery/images/station/crew-24/html/iss024e0...

73!

The launch of the ISS Progress 39 cargo craft from the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan was postponed for 48 hours Wednesday due to high winds at the launch pad. The launch of the spacecraft was rescheduled for Friday at 6:22 a.m. EDT. Docking to the aft port of the Zvezda service module has been rescheduled for Sunday at 7:58 a.m. with NASA TV coverage set to begin at 7:15 a.m.

Topics in this report:
1. Upcoming School Contact
2. Successful Contact with Konu Milky Way Observatory
3. Amateur Radio Newsline Covers ARISS
4. Astronaut Training Status

1. Upcoming School Contact

The Expedition 24 crew members are preparing for the arrival of the ISS Progress 39 cargo craft to replenish the orbiting laboratory with food, fuel, supplies and other cargo. The Progress 39 will dock to the aft end of the Zvezda service module Friday, Sept. 10. It is replacing the trash-filled Progress 38 which undocked Aug. 31 and is poised to re-enter Earth’s atmosphere Monday for a fiery destruction over the Pacific Ocean.

Update: FYI, after contact with NA1SS - Doug Wheelock and asking weather or not he and his crew have been spotting and photograghing Hurricane in the Atlantic he told me go and check out the pics on his Twitter page.
When I went there I was amazed by what I saw...what a dangerous looking hurricane...you can see what he has posted on Twitter by going to: http://twitter.com/astro_wheels

Hope this is of interest to all of us who have been listening and talking with Col. Doug Wheelock - NA1SS.

B/RGS - Derek VE1WRG/VE1WX

END OF MESSAGE

An unpiloted Russian Progress resupply craft undocked Tuesday from the International Space Station to set the stage for the arrival of a new Progress cargo vehicle on Sept. 10.

The ISS Progress 38 cargo craft, loaded with trash and other items for disposal, undocked from the aft end of the station’s Zvezda service module at 7:22 a.m. EDT. Russian flight controllers will conduct thruster tests with the Progress to gather engineering data before sending it to a fiery descent Monday over the Pacific Ocean.

The ISS Progress 38 cargo craft undocked from the aft end of the International Space Station's Zvezda service module Tuesday at 7:22 a.m. EDT. The Expedition 24 crew members had loaded Progress 38 with trash and other discarded items for disposal and burn-up over the Pacific Ocean. The cargo ship will undergo thruster firing tests to gather data for Russian flight controllers before it is deorbited Monday, Sept. 6 to burn up in the Earth’s atmosphere.

The unmanned ISS Progress 39 cargo craft will launch Sept. 8 and automatically dock and resupply the station crew Sept. 10.

Topics in this report:
1. Successful Contact with South Hobart Primary School
2. New ARISS-U.S. Delegate
3. ARISS on Facebook
4. Crew Sends Birthday Wishes to ARISS Member
5. Amateur Radio Newsline Covers ARISSat-1

The ISS Progress 38 cargo craft currently docked with the International Space Station will undock from the aft end of the Zvezda service module on Tuesday. Progress 38 will be deorbited and re-enter the Earth’s atmosphere on Sept. 6. The Expedition 24 crew members have been loading the Progress 38 with trash and other discarded items for disposal and burn up over the Pacific Ocean. The unmanned Progress 39 cargo craft will automatically dock and resupply the station crew on Sept. 10.

NASA is challenging high school teams to design software to program small satellites aboard the International Space Station. The competition centers on the Synchronized Position Hold, Engage, Reorient, Experimental Satellites, or SPHERES.

SPHERES are bowling ball-sized spherical satellites used to test maneuvers for spacecraft performing autonomous rendezvous and docking. Three of these satellites fly inside the station's cabin. Each is self-contained with power, propulsion, computing and navigation equipment.