The ARISSat-1 satellite was supposed to have been turned on from inside the International Space Station at 0600 UTC today (April 12), according to AMSAT, and should be in operation until at least 1030 UTC tomorrow (April 13). As of this time, however, there is no confirmation that the satellite has been activated. The activation was scheduled to mark the 50th anniversary -- today -- of the first manned space flight on April 12, 1961, by Cosmonaut Yuri Gagarin. ARISSat-1 is currently aboard the International Space Station awaiting a hand-launch in the summer.
According to the ARISSat-1 website, once the satellite is activated, "the 145.950 MHz FM downlink will transmit messages (in) a continuous sequence, one of which is the Gagarin-to-ground station conversation, famous "Poyekhali" (Let's Go!) from Yuri Gagarin from Earth orbit. This downlink frequency will also transmit spoken telemetry, SSTV images, and pre-recorded messages of goodwill."
