First Shipment of New Ham Gear OKd for Launch to ISS

New ham radio equipment destined for the International
Space Station. Two matching units are scheduled to be
launched this year. (Courtesy ariss.org)

The International Space Station will be getting new gear for its ham station over the course of 2020, the culmination of a years-long effort called the Interop- erable Radio System, or IORS.

The AMSAT News Service reports that NASA has given its safety approval to the first shipment of gear and accepted delivery of the equipment for inclusion on board an upcoming SpaceX supply launch.

The IORS consists of higher-powered radios, an enhanced voice repeater, updated APRS packet capabilities and slow-scan TV equipment for eventual installation in both the space station's Columbus module and the Russian service module.