EIRSAT-1 Radio amateur competition winners
There’s a moment everybody waits for after a satellite has been launched: the first radio signals. Hundreds of radio amateurs from all over the world recently helped to catch the first signs of activity of EIRSAT-1, Ireland’s first satellite. Read on to find out the winners of the competition!
The Educational Irish Research Satellite, EIRSAT-1, was launched from Vandenberg Space Force Base, California, USA on Friday 1 December 2023 at 18:19 UTC (19:19 CET). Built by students at University College Dublin under guidance of the ESA’s Education Office’s Fly Your Satelitte! programme, EIRSAT-1 is a 2-unit CubeSat carrying three experiments, including a novel gamma ray detector that will study some of the most luminous explosions in the universe.
The first beacons were transmitted around 20:30 UTC (21:30 CET) after deployment of EIRSAT-1’s antennas. Enthusiastic and dedicated radio amateurs from different parts of the world were ready to catch those signals and sent the first recordings around 21:05 UTC (22:05 CET). The first confirmed entry from each continent was found.
Here are the winners of the radio amateur competition along with their call sign:
- Asia: Kasei Toshio - JA1GDE
- Africa: No entrees
- Europe: Mark Coulthurst - M1AEC
- North America: William Brady - AL9D
- South America: Roland Zurmely - PY4ZBZ
The winners will receive a QSL card along with a small prize. The other participants will also receive a QSL card as a token for their help and enthusiasm.
The Fly Your Satellite! Team and the EIRSAT-1 team would like to thank everyone for joining the competition, and hope to hear from you again for future missions!