From Harding County to the Space Station

If ever someone "bridged the gap" between yesteryear and the world of tomorrow, it could well be young  Maiden relative Brandon Tenold, whose family ranches near Reva, South Dakota.  Brandon is a great-grandson of Betty (Maiden) Love Jolovich, and a grandson of Gene and Janice (Love) Tenold.  We were delighted when we learned of Brandon's interest in amateur radio  and extremely pleased that he's continued to pursue this hobby -- with considerable success, we might add.  Our good friends at the Nation's Center News shared the following story with us.  It was written last fall and published in their September 30, 2010 edition, but it's worth sharing again!

As the International Space Station orbits the earth, ham radio operators in the United States, Canada and other countries try hard to be able to communicate with it.  With so many radio operators on the air, while it is not difficult to contact the space station, it is very difficult to be able to conduct a very long conversation with the crew, for the station is traveling at 5 miles per second.

Brandon Tenold "on the air" from Harding County

However, Brandon Tenold, the 13-year-old son of Dustin & Dana Tenold of Reva, made strong contact with Colonel Doug Wheelock on the International Space Station on Monday, September 20, 2010.  Brandon made contact as thestation was crossing the western edge of Montana and stayed in contact until it was just getting above Minnesota.

Dustin and Brandon became licensed as amateur ham radio operators in February 2010.  They studied together at home for nearly six months before taking their technician exams at South Dakota School of Mines and Technology in Rapid City.  The FCC has 35 different tests for technicians, and those taking the exam so not know until the exam starts which one will be administered. 

“The number of tests makes studying a long process,” explained Dustin.

Since that time Brandon has visited with a multitude of people all over the central states. He has participated in several weather nets and flood nets which are situations in which ham operators from all over the state report adverse weather conditions and flood conditions to the National Weather Service and other agencies. Ham radio communication is the only form of long distance communication that will work when all other forms, such as telephone, internet and satellite, have failed.

At 4:30 pm on September 20, as the international space station made a direct pass over South Dakota, Brandon, call sign KD0KMT, made contact with Colonel Doug Wheelock (call sign NA1SS) with his 75-watt 2-meter ham radio. He had a conversation about the weather, Mount Rushmore and local landmarks. With the direct overhead pass, Brandon was able to carry a good signal to space and hold that signal for a long duration, allowing them more time to visit.

The International Space Station Fan Club has its own link on the Internet which gives some more information about contacts, orbit and history of Ham radio on the space station.

If one goes to www.issfanclub.com, he can actually hear part of the conversation between Brandon and Colonel Wheelock because a record of contacts is maintained on the website.

While some people are texting their friends or visiting with them on cell phones, Brandon has taken communication to another level.  Being able to speak directly to a member of the International Space Station is quite an experience.