The Bromley and District Amateur Radio Society

Long-Silent SuitSat-1 Keeps Going and Going
by ARISS and AMSAT

When SuitSat-1 -- the satellite built in a surplus Russian Orlan spacesuit -- was launched during a spacewalk from the International Space Station last February 3, those familiar with orbital mechanics predicted it would stay in orbit for 120 days at best. Today, some 202 days (nearly seven months) later -- largely forgotten and its ham radio voice long since silent -- SuitSat-1 has defied the odds and remains in orbit some 164 miles above Earth.

A project of the Amateur Radio on the International Space Station (ARISS) program, SuitSat-1, identifying as RS0RS, transmitted its voice greetings on 2 meters plus an SSTV picture thousands of times. Although its signal was far weaker than it was supposed to be for reasons never determined with any certainty, SuitSat-1 remained operational for more than two weeks.

ARISS International Chairman Frank Bauer, KA3HDO, had credited ARISS-Russia's Sergei Samburov, RV3DR, and his colleagues with coming up with the SuitSat concept, called Radioskaf or Radio Sputnik in Russian.

The SuitSat-1 mission proved to be an Amateur Radio public relations bonanza. In addition to prompting dozens of news items on Web sites and in journals around the world, Reader's Digest judged SuitSat-1 "Best Empty Suit" in its "America's 100 Best: The 2006 List" Popular Science ran an article about SuitSat-1 in its June issue called "Tossed in Space."

To keep the SuitSat-1 momentum going a bit longer ARISS and AMSAT in May announced a "Chicken Little Contest," in which participants pick the date on which they believe SuitSat-1 will drop out of orbit and burn up in Earth's atmosphere. Entrants are only allowed one guess, and the winner will be the individual who picks the date closest to SuitSat-1's actual demise. Those who have not already entered may do so by filling out the online entry form on the AMSAT Web site. The odds could be in their favor.

Certificates will go to winners in each of three age groups. Winners not only earn bragging rights, but the fame and notoriety associated with successful satellite re-entry prognostication.

Even before SuitSat-1 went silent, ARISS and AMSAT already were discussing the possibility of a SuitSat-2 with contacts in Russia, although plans remain tentative at this stage. ARRL ARISS Liaison Rosalie White, K1STO, is among those named to the SuitSat-2 team, which will meet prior to the ARISS International Meeting/AMSAT Space Symposium October 5-10. Among other things, the team will look into the possibility of equipping SuitSat-2 with solar panels instead of just batteries, to extend its usable life. No formal announcements about SuitSat-2 are expected until around mid-October.

Meanwhile, the time grows nigh when Suit-Sat-1 will pick up enough additional drag from Earth's atmosphere that friction-generated heat will cause it to burn up and vaporize. Just when that will happen is still anyone's guess.