Wick High School ARISS Contact a Great Success
Joshua Kutryk KJ5BFU – Credit: Canadian Space Agency
Wick High School (@GM0WHS on X) in Caithness used amateur radio to have an eight minute question and answer session with astronaut Joshua Kutryk KJ5BFU on the International Space Station (ISS).
This historic event took place at 12:29 BST on Thursday, October 8, 2026, and was the most northerly school contact with the ISS ever achieved anywhere in the world. At a latitude of 58.4° North the space station was low on the horizon making it particularly challenging.
In addition to the 150 students and dozens of parents gathered in the dance studio for the event, students and feeder primary school pupils across the region were able watch a live web stream.
The event was a great success and attracted considerable media interest. A full video of the event at the school has been made available on the ARISS Operations UK Team YouTube channel
Among the media outlets reporting on the event were:
BBC News article and video
https://www.bbc.co.uk/newsround/articles/c94g1jle86y8o
The John O’Groat Journal
https://www.johnogroat-journal.co.uk/news/the-audio-was-so-clear-caithness-school-makes-radio-cont-447025/
The Scotsman newspaper
https://www.scotsman.com/education/from-caithness-to-space-school-radio-club-contacts-astronauts-on-space-station-9275794
BBC Scotland used a phone to shoot a video of the Wick High School contact with ISS:
https://x.com/BBCScotlandNews/status/2108225654516756916
Further information on the contact and a list of all the questions asked is at
https://amsat-uk.org/2026/10/03/astronaut-to-use-amateur-radio-to-talk-to-uk-students/
The ARISS program is aimed at students and enthusiasts and aims to inspire them in the study of sciences with this amateur radio activity. The demonstration of amateur radio communication from space invites schools and universities to make use of these educational technical resources. We invite radio amateurs and space enthusiasts to tune in to this exciting moment.
What is Amateur Radio? http://www.essexham.co.uk/what-is-amateur-radio
Free UK amateur radio Online Training course https://essexham.co.uk/train/foundation-online/
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