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| The 2014 Olympic torch aboard the International Space Station (NASA photo) |
The route from Greece to Sochi, Russia for the torch that will light the Olympic flame at next February's winter games in the Russian city included a round trip to the International Space Station … carried there and back by crew members who are nearly all hams.
The torch was taken up to the station in early November by the all-ham crew of Expedition 38 - Astronauts Richard Mastracchio, KC5ZTE and Koichi Wakata, KC5ZTA, and Cosmonaut Mikail Tyurin, RZ3FT. It was brought back several days later by returning Expedition 37 crew members, including Commander Fyodor Yurchikhin, RN3FI, and European Space Agency Astronaut Luca Parmitano, KF5KDP.
Parmitano was very active on amateur radio during his stay on the station, according to the ARRL Letter, conducting many school contacts as well as making more than 200 random contacts with hams back on Earth.
Olympic Games website: <http://www.sochi2014.com/en/>
