July 3, 2025—Amateur Radio on the International Space Station (ARISS) has received schedule confirmation for an ARISS radio contact between an Axiom Mission 4 (Ax-4) astronaut aboard the International Space Station (ISS) and students at the URSC located in Bengaluru, India. ARISS conducts 60-100 of these special amateur radio contacts each year between students around the globe and crew members with ham radio licenses aboard the Space Station.
The Upagrah Amateur Radio Club (UPARC) (call sign VU2URC) is coordinating this ARISS radio contact. UPARC was established in 1982 at the U R Rao Satellite Centre in Bengaluru, named after then Centre Director, the late Prof. U R Rao. UPARC actively engages in various school outreach activities, including promotional events and training sessions to encourage amateur radio participation, emergency communication preparedness and public service operations. Students from Karnataka Public School Dommaluru, and Karnataka Public School, Jeevan Bhima Nagar, Bengaluru, will be participating in this contact.
Karnataka Public School Dommaluru teaches grades kindergarten, primary and high school and provides courses in science, and arts, and includes in the higher grade, courses in commerce. Their program includes STEM education and activities that allow students to learn the latest developments in science and technology such as satellite tracking.
The Karnataka Public School, Jeevan Bhima Nagar, Bengaluru provides as a part of its STEM education, Algo Design Lab courses in which students learn the latest developments in science and technology. The school also has Atal Tinkering labs, dedicated workspaces designed to foster innovation and creativity.
This will be a telebridge Contact via Amateur Radio allowing students to ask their questions of astronaut Shubhanshu Shukla, amateur radio call sign VU2TNI. The downlink frequency for this contact is 145.800 MHz and may be heard by listeners that are within the ISS-footprint that also encompasses the telebridge station.
The ARISS amateur radio ground station (telebridge station) for this contact is in Greenbelt, Maryland, U.S. The amateur radio volunteer team at the ground station will use the call sign K6DUE, to establish and maintain the ISS connection.
The ARISS radio contact is scheduled for July 4, 2025 at 3:47 pm IST (Karnataka, India) (10:17 UTC, 6:17 am EDT, 5:17 am CDT, 4:17 am MDT, 3:17 am PDT).
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As time allows, students will ask these questions:
1. How do you feel being first Indian-born astronaut onboard ISS?
2. How does international cooperation contribute to success of space missions?
3. What has been the most interesting experiment you’ve done up there?
4. What’s the most unique experience you’ve had in space so far?
5. What is the most difficult task in your daily schedule?
6. Have you shared Indian food with other astronauts on-board ISS?
7. Can you describe your experience during rocket launch and docking?
8. What was your first impression when you arrived at the space station?
9. How does it feel to be in a microgravity environment?
10. What kind of music do you listen to during your free time on ISS?
11. How were the previous days leading to the launch, what emotions were you experiencing during that period?
12. What was the most beautiful sight you saw from the space station?
13. What seeds have you been able to sprout on ISS so far?
14. How does it feel not to hear daily noises like traffic, horns honking and others regular sounds?
15. How has your Air Force training helped you to pursue space exploration?
16. How much quality sleep do you take during a day and is it difficult to sleep in space?
17. Can you briefly describe a typical day in ISS?
18. What kind of bonding do you share with other astronauts onboard ISS?
19. What message would you like to pass on to the younger generation?
20. What motivated you to become an astronaut?
21. Do you practice yoga (Pranayam, Breathing Exercises) for maintaining your physical health on ISS?
22. What is the difference between flying an aircraft and a rocket?