April 5, 2026
In this edition:
- 44th AMSAT Space Symposium and Annual Membership Meeting Announced
- ARISS Solicits School Contacts for 2007
- VUCC & DXCC Standings April 2026
- ARISS and AMSAT: On Track to Track Artemis 2
- GridMasterMap Satellite Top 100 Rovers April 2026 Rankings
- Changes to AMSAT TLE Distribution for April 3, 2026
- ARISS Plans SSTV Event for April
- Ambassador Events
- ARISS News
- Satellite Shorts from All Over
The AMSAT(R) News Service bulletins are a free, weekly news and information service of AMSAT, the Radio Amateur Satellite Corporation. ANS publishes news related to Amateur Radio in Space including reports on the activities of a worldwide group of Amateur Radio operators who share an active interest in designing, building, launching and communicating through analog and digital Amateur Radio satellites.
The news feed on http://www.amsat.org publishes news of Amateur Radio in Space as soon as our volunteers can post it.
Please send any amateur satellite news or reports to: ans-editor [at] amsat.org .
Sign up for free e-mail delivery of the AMSAT News Service Bulletins via the ANS List. Join this list at: https://mailman.amsat.org/postorius/lists/ans.amsat.org/
44th AMSAT Space Symposium and Annual Meeting Announced
Save the dates October 8-11, 2026 for the 44th AMSAT Space Symposium and Annual Membership Meeting. The site of the meeting will be in Jacksonville, Florida at the Crowne Plaza JAX Airport.
While an exact schedule will be available in the weeks ahead, you can tentatively plan on this Symposium and Annual Membership meeting per the customary format:
Thursday, October 8, 0800-1700: Board of Directors Meeting
Friday, October 9, 0800-1100: Board of Directors Feeing
Friday, October 9, 1300-1700: Symposium Presentations
Saturday, October 10, 0800-1500: Symposium Presentations
Saturday, October 10, 1500-1700: Annual Membership Meeting
Sunday, October, 11, 0700-0900: Membership Breakfast
Rooms will be available at a very affordable $109 per night! A link for room reservations will be available shortly. But, no need to wait! Mark your calendar now for the highlight of the AMSAT year with an opportunity to catch up with old friends and make new ones, too. Follow AMSAT News Service for updates as they happen!
[ANS thanks Drew Glasbrenner, KO4MA, AMSAT President, for the above information.]
The 2026 President’s Club Coin is Now Here!
Help Support GOLF and FoxPlus.
Annual memberships start at only $120
Join the AMSAT President’s Club today and help
Keep Amateur Radio in Space!
https://www.amsat.org/join-the-amsat-presidents-club/
ARISS Solicits School Contacts for 2007
The Amateur Radio on the International Space Station (ARISS) Program is seeking formal and informal education institutions and organizations, individually or working together, to host an Amateur Radio contact with a crew member on board the ISS. ARISS anticipates that the contact would be held between January 1, 2027 – June 30, 2027. Crew scheduling and ISS orbits will determine the exact contact dates. To maximize these radio contact opportunities, ARISS is looking for organizations that will draw large numbers of participants and integrate the contact into a well-developed education plan.
This proposal is due to ARISS by May 22, 2026 at 11:59 PM Pacific Time. Proposal information and more details such as expectations, proposal guidelines and the proposal form can be found at https://www.ariss.org. An informational webinar will be held at 8 PM ET on April 30. The zoom link for that webinar is https://us06web.zoom.us/meeting/register/3yid9dxzRkmYfVroIP0nWA .
Crew members aboard the International Space Station will participate in scheduled Amateur Radio contacts. These radio contacts are approximately 10 minutes in length and allow students to interact with the astronauts through a question-and-answer session.
An ARISS contact is a voice-only communication opportunity via Amateur Radio between astronauts and cosmonauts aboard the space station and classrooms and communities. ARISS contacts afford education audiences the opportunity to learn firsthand from astronauts what it is like to live and work in space and to learn about space research conducted on the ISS. Students also will have an opportunity to learn about satellite communication, wireless technology, and radio science. Because of the nature of human spaceflight and the complexity of scheduling activities aboard the ISS, organizations must demonstrate flexibility to accommodate changes in dates and times of the radio contact.
Please direct any questions to [email protected] .
[ANS thanks the ARISS-USA for the above information.]
AMSAT Remove Before Flight Key Tags Now Available
Yes, These are the Real Thing!
Your $20 Donation Goes to Help Fly a FoxPlus Satellite
Includes First Class Postage (Sorry – U.S. Addresses Only)
Order Today at https://www.amsat.org/product/amsat-remove-before-flight-keychain
VUCC & DXCC Standings April 2026
This is the VUCC Satellite Award/Endorsement Change Summary for March 01, 2026 to April 01, 2026.
| EA2AA | 1170 | 1206 |
| JH8FIH | 505 | 869 |
| JN1BPM | 630 | 804 |
| JI5USJ | 450 | 505 |
| OH3DP | 401 | 451 |
| JI5RPT/1 | 200 | 300 |
| IK0WRB | 213 | 242 |
| W0PR | 224 | 230 |
| WD9EWK (DM22) | 200 | 204 |
| PY3YO | 100 | 160 |
| PP5BY | New | 100 |
Congratulations to new VUCC Satellite holder PP5BY. PP5BY is first VUCC Satellite holder from GG53
No DXCC standings, DXCC-SAT nor any of the other DXCC awards have been updated since Feb 5, 2026
[ANS thanks Jon Goering, N7AZ, for the above information.]
Join AMSAT or Renew Now. . .
Download a Free ‘Getting Started with Amateur Satellites’ Book!
Get the latest edition just for doing the right thing!
Visit https://www.amsat.org/membership-specials/ for more details.
ARISS and AMSAT: On Track to Track Artemis 2
When the Artemis 2 mission with four astronauts departs for deep space sometime in April, a team of ARISS and AMSAT volunteers will be “watching” from afar. Specifically, our experts will use a multinational network of ground station receivers to capture the Orion capsule’s one-way S-band communications with mission control as a secondary means of tracking the spacecraft.
While NASA’s Space Communications and Navigation (SCaN) program will depend on the Near Space and Deep Space Network for primary tracking of the Orion during its 10-day mission around the moon and back, it has also selected 34 individuals and groups (including an ARISS and AMSAT consortium) across 14 countries to provide an independent source of tracking data using the radio waves generated by normal communications.
The concept works. For Artemis 1, an uncrewed launch into low-Earth orbit in 2022, 10 individuals successfully tracked Orion throughout its mission. Based on lessons learned from that experience, SCaN now has data standards that Artemis 2 passive trackers will use when sending the data to NASA.
Another lesson SCaN learned from Artemis 1 was that there is a lot of interest in passive tracking. SCaN in August 2025 issued an official request for information (RFI) to government agencies, companies, amateur radio organizations and enthusiasts to participate in Artemis 2 tracking. According to NASA, those chosen through the RFI will use 47 ground assets in 14 countries to help the agency “better assess the broader aerospace community’s tracking capabilities and identify ways to augment future Moon and Mars mission support.”
ARISS and AMSAT are teamed up under the auspices of the AREx (Amateur Radio Exploration) Ground Station Consortium. AREx is a joint ARISS and AMSAT international effort to develop and operate amateur radio systems for deep space, starting at the moon and later to Mars. The team will provide one-way doppler tracking of the S-band signals from space, recording the data and delivering it to SCaN in the proper format.
The AREx worldwide consortium includes teams in the United States (University of Southern California, and Dayton, Ohio); the UK (Goonhilly); Germany, and Poland. Other AREx team members who supported the Artemis I initiative are also participating separately. ARISS operations team member Daryl Young is serving as the Project Manager for the Artemis 2 tracking project.
For the latest updates on Artemis 2 and other exciting ARISS news, please follow our Facebook, X, Instagram, BlueSky, Mastodon, LinkedIn, YouTube and Discord social media channels.
[ANS thanks ARISS-USA for the above information.]
GridMasterMap Satellite Top 100 Rovers April 2026 Rankings
The April 2026 rankings for the Top 100 Rovers (Mixed LEO/MEO/GEO) in satellite operations, as determined by @GridMasterMap on Twitter, has been released as of April 3, 2026.
The ranking is determined by the number of grids and DXCC entities activated, taking into account only those grids where a minimum number of QSOs logged on the gridmaster.fr website have been validated by a third party. Grid numbers do not directly reflect the exact number of activations. Satellite operators are encouraged to upload their LoTW satellite contacts to https://gridmaster.fr in order to provide more accurate data.
| 1 | ND9M | 26 | BA1PK | 51 | K7TAB | 76 | M1DDD |
| 2 | NJ7H | 27 | KG5CCI | 52 | KE0WPA | 77 | N8RO |
| 3 | UT1FG | 28 | KX9X | 53 | KE0PBR | 78 | VA7LM |
| 4 | JA9KRO | 29 | DJ8MS | 54 | XE3DX | 79 | DL4EA |
| 5 | N5UC | 30 | N5BO | 55 | WD5GRW | 80 | SP5XSD |
| 6 | F5VMJ | 31 | K8BL | 56 | LU4JVE | 81 | N6UTC |
| 7 | DL6AP | 32 | ON4AUC | 57 | W7WGC | 82 | N4UFO |
| 8 | DP0POL | 33 | KE4AL | 58 | PR8KW | 83 | VE7PTN |
| 9 | WI7P | 34 | AC0RA | 59 | JK2XXK | 84 | PT2AP |
| 10 | K5ZM | 35 | KB5FHK | 60 | EA4NF | 85 | VE1VOX |
| 11 | OE3SEU | 36 | PA3GAN | 61 | EB1AO | 86 | AA8CH |
| 12 | WY7AA | 37 | JO2ASQ | 62 | XE1ET | 87 | KB2YSI |
| 13 | LU5ILA | 38 | F4BKV | 63 | N6DNM | 88 | KI7UXT |
| 14 | N6UA | 39 | KI0KB | 64 | W8LR | 89 | AF5CC |
| 15 | HA3FOK | 40 | KI7UNJ | 65 | W1AW | 90 | KJ7NDY |
| 16 | W5PFG | 41 | VA3VGR | 66 | SM3NRY | 91 | BI1MHK |
| 17 | OH2UDS | 42 | VE3HLS | 67 | KI7QEK | 92 | PT9BM |
| 18 | N9IP | 43 | BG7QIW | 68 | KE9AJ | 93 | FG8OJ |
| 19 | AK8CW | 44 | LA9XGA | 69 | F4DXV | 94 | BG5CZD |
| 20 | AD0DX | 45 | HJ5LVR | 70 | VE1CWJ | 95 | YU0W |
| 21 | AD0HJ | 46 | VK5DG | 71 | HB9GWJ | 96 | PU4CEB |
| 22 | DL2GRC | 47 | BA8AFK | 72 | AA5PK | 97 | W8MTB |
| 23 | N4AKV | 48 | N7AGF | 73 | PU6JBN | 98 | N4DCW |
| 24 | WD9EWK | 49 | DF2ET | 74 | AD7DB | 99 | PS8BR |
| 25 | ND0C | 50 | JL3RNZ | 75 | KM4LAO | 100 | WA9JBQ |
[ANS thanks @GridMasterMap and Mitch Ahrenstorff, AD0HJ, for the above information.]
Want to fly the colors on your own grid expedition?
Get your AMSAT car flag and other neat stuff from our Zazzle store!
25% of the purchase price of each product goes towards
Keeping Amateur Radio in Space
https://www.zazzle.com/amsat_gear
Changes to AMSAT TLE Distribution for April 3, 2026
Two Line Elements or TLEs, often referred to as Keplerian elements or keps in the amateur community, are the inputs to the SGP4 standard mathematical model of spacecraft orbits used by most amateur tracking programs. Weekly updates are completely adequate for most amateur satellites. TLE bulletin files are updated daily in the first hour of the UTC day. New bulletin files will be posted immediately after reliable elements become available for new amateur satellites. More information may be found at https://www.amsat.org/keplerian-elements-resources/.
The following satellites have been added to this week’s AMSAT TLE distribution. They have provisional object numbers that will change once official USSF/NORAD numbers are assigned
HADES-SA/SpinnyONE Provisional ID 71958
LILIUM-4 Provisional ID 71922
PARUS-6U1 Provisional ID 71919
JACK-002 Provisional ID 71927
SAL-E Provisional ID 71904
DISCO-2 Provisional ID 71908
[ANS thanks Joe Fitzgerald, KM1P, AMSAT Orbital Elements Manager for the above information.]
ARISS Plans SSTV Event for April
ARISS is planning for a 70cm (437 MHz) event for the week of April 12, 2026.
The ARISS teams are preparing a new series of SSTV transmissions for the event. The SSTV Series 31 images will pay tribute to Cosmonautics Day, the 100th anniversary of liquid-fueled rockets, the inaugural Space Shuttle launch and SuitSat.
Exact times, frequencies and modes will be announced closer to the event. Follow ARISS social media for updates.
[ANS thanks the ARISS-USA for the above information.]
ARISS NEWS
Amateurs and others around the world may listen in on contacts between amateurs operating in schools and allowing students to interact with astronauts and cosmonauts aboard the International Space Station. The downlink frequency on which to listen is 145.800 MHz worldwide.
+ Completed Contacts
Aznakaevsky District, Republic of Tatarstan, Russia, direct via RC4P.
The ISS callsign was RSØISS.
The crewmember was Andrey Fedyaev.
The ARISS mentor was A.R.C. ENERGIA, RV3DR.
Contact was successful on Monday, March 30, 2026 at 11:55 UTC.
Simon Langton Grammar School for Boys The Langton, Canterbury, United Kingdom, direct via GB4SLS.
The ISS callsign was NA1SS.
The crewmember was Jack Hathaway, KJ5NIV.
The ARISS mentor was Ciaran Morgan, MØXTD .
Contact was successful on Monday, March 30, 2026 at 13:28 UTC.
Istituto Comprensivo “Gabriele D’Annunzio” Lanciano, Chieti, Italy, direct via IQ6LN.
AND
Istituto Comprensivo “Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi”, Pontedera, Italy, telebridge via IQ6LN.
The ISS callsign was OR4ISS.
The crewmember was Sophie Adenot KJ5LTN
The ARISS mentorwas Francesco De Paolis, IKØWGF
Contact was successful on Wednesday, April 1, 2026 at 11:56:09 UTC.
Walnut Grove Elementary School, Suwanee, GA, direct via KR4HPC.
The ISS callsign was NA1SS.
The crewmember was Chris Williams, KJ5GEW.
The ARISS mentor was, Daryl Young, K4RGK.
Contact was successful on Thursday, April 2, 2026 at 15:41:23 UTC.
+ Upcoming Contacts
Emporia State University, School of Science & Mathematics, Emporia, KS, direct via KØESU.
The ISS callsign is presently scheduled to be NA1SS.
The scheduled crewmember is Sophie Adenot, KJ5LTN.
The ARISS mentor is Ryan Krenzischek, W4NTR.
Contact is go for Wednesday, April 8, 2026 at 14:10:31 UTC.
Lycée du Vimeu, Friville-Escarbotin, France, direct via F6KVJ.
The ISS callsign is presently scheduled to be OR4ISS.
The scheduled crewmember is Sophie Adenot, KJ5LTN.
The ARISS mentor is Joseph Le Moine, F6ICS.
Contact is go for Thursday, April 9, 2026 at 10:27:02 UTC.
Albert Camus Middle School, La Norville, France, telebridge via ON4ISS.
The ISS callsign is presently scheduled to be OR4ISS.
The scheduled crewmember is Jack Hathaway, KJ5NIV.
The ARISS mentor is Joseph Le Moine, F6ICS.
Contact is go for Thursday, April 9, 2026 at 12:04:25 UTC.
Memorial Complex of Soviet Pilot-Cosmonaut A.G. Nikolaev, Chuvashia, Russia.
The ISS callsign is presently scheduled to be RSØISS.
The scheduled crewmember is Sergey Mikaev.
The ARISS mentor is A.R.C. ENERGIA, RV3DR.
Contact is go for Friday, April 10, 2026 at 10 08:10 UTC.
The crossband repeater continues to be active (145.990 MHz up {PL 67} & 437.800 MHz down). If any crewmember is so inclined, all they have to do is pick up the microphone, raise the volume up, and talk on the crossband repeater. So give a listen, you just never know.
As always, if there is an EVA, a docking, or an undocking; the ARISS radios are turned off as part of the safety protocol.
Note, all times are approximate. It is recommended that you do your own orbital prediction or start listening about 10 minutes before the listed time.
The latest information on the operation mode can be found at https://www.ariss.org/current-status-of-iss-stations.html
The latest list of frequencies in use can be found at https://www.ariss.org/contact-the-iss.html
[ANS thanks Charlie Sufana, AJ9N, one of the ARISS operation team mentors for the above information.]
AMSAT Ambassador Activities
AMSAT Ambassadors provide presentations, demonstrate communicating through amateur satellites, and host information tables at club meetings, hamfests, conventions, maker faires, and other events.
April 17-19, 2026
Southeastern VHF Society Conference
Holiday Inn Macon North
3953 River Place Dr
Macon, Georgia 31201
https://svhfs.org/wp/2026-2/
W4FCL
April 11, 2026
Tucson Area Spring Hamfest
Radio Society of Tucson
Calvary Tucson Church
8711 East Speedway
Tucson, AZ 85710
https://k7rst.club/
N1UW
May 15-17, 2026
Dayton Hamvention
Greene County Fair and Expo Center
210 Fairground Road
Xenia 45385
https://hamvention.org/
October 8-11, 2026
44th AMSAT Space Symposium and Annual Membership Meeting
Crowne Plaza JAX Airport
14670 Duval Road
Jacksonville, FL 32218
Details to follow
[ANS thanks Bo Lowrey, W4FCL, Director – AMSAT Ambassador Program, for the above information.]
Satellite Shorts From All Over
The two-hour launch window of the Artemis II mission provided a practical example of the effects of space debris and satellite crowding. During the launch window, NASA was required to respect approximately 156 “cuts.” A cut is a period when the rocket could not be launched due to the risk of collision with a satellite or trackable debris in low-earth orbit. Each cut can last from one to twenty-three seconds. The NASA-TV commentator noted that it wasn’t many years earlier when the number of cuts for this type of mission was only in the forties. [ANS thanks NASA-TV for the above information.]
A new version of the Andy UZ7HO SoundModem program for HADES-SA SpinnyONE is now available, fixing several detected bugs.
You can download it at: https://www.amsat-ea.org/app/download/14224014/UZ7HO_Soundmodem_for_HADES_SA_SpinnyONE.zip.
Additionally, tools for decoding SSDV images and CODEC2 (Windows versions) are available at:
https://www.amsat-ea.org/app/download/14224021/AMSAT-EA_HADES-SA_SpinnyONE_SSDV_utilities.zip
https://www.amsat-ea.org/app/download/14224194/AMSAT-EA_HADES-SA_SpinnyONE_CODEC2_utilities.zip.
[ANS thanks Félix EA4GQS for the above information.]
Join AMSAT today at https://launch.amsat.org/
In addition to regular membership, AMSAT offers membership to:
Societies (a recognized group, clubs or organization).
Students are eligible for FREE membership up to age 25.
Memberships are available for annual and lifetime terms.
Contact info [at] amsat [dot] org for additional membership information.
73 and remember to help Keep Amateur Radio in Space!
This week’s ANS Editor, Frank Karnauskas, N1UW.
f.karnauskas [at] amsat [dot] org
ANS is a service of AMSAT, the Radio Amateur Satellite Corporation, 712 H Street NE, Suite 1653, Washington, DC 20002.
AMSAT is a registered trademark of the Radio Amateur Satellite Corporation.
