Education has always been part of AMSAT’s mission. Sharing our passion for amateur radio and space is an excellent way to do educational outreach for STEM (Science Technology Engineering and Math) education.
AMSAT educational outreach takes many different forms including:
- Outreach within the ham radio community and the public by AMSAT Ambassadors:
- to provide instructive presentations on space communications
- to provide demonstrations of satellite communications
- to provide static displays at events and conferences, including the display of Fox-1 series model and/or CubeSat Simulators (see below)
- Radio contacts between schools and ham radio licensed astronauts onboard the International Space Station (ISS) organized by ARISS (Amateur Radio on the International Space Station).
- Partnerships with universities and colleges to fly experiments in space, such as recent ones with Virginia Tech, Vanderbilt University, and Penn State University.
- Build a simulator to demonstrate certain functions of and the environmental effects of satellites in space. The AMSAT® CubeSat Simulator or CubeSatSim is a low cost satellite emulators that run on solar panels and rechargeable batteries, transmit UHF telemetry, have a 3D printed frame, and can be extended by additional sensors and modules. There is a production release v1.2 and a Beta release v1.3. project is currently in beta testing – see https://CubeSatSim.org for more information. Blank PCB board sets are available at the AMSAT Store. AMSAT owned CubeSat Simulators are available for loan to classrooms, events, hamfests, and for public displays. The CubeSat Simulator can be used a variety of classroom settings including grades 6-12 STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math) and undergraduate engineering and science.
For information on these or other educational outreach projects, please contact Dr Alan Johnston, KU2Y, Vice President Educational Relations by email at ku2y at arrl.net or on social media at [email protected]