ARISS News Release                                                                                                    No.23-40

Dave Jordan, AA4KN

ARISS PR

aa4kn@amsat.org

 

 

 

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

ARISS Contact is Scheduled with Students at

STEMforGIRLS, St. John’s, Newfoundland and Labrador, Canada

 

August 21, 2023—Amateur Radio on the International Space Station (ARISS) has received schedule confirmation for an ARISS radio contact between an astronaut aboard the International Space Station (ISS) and students in St. John’s, Newfoundland and Labrador, Canada.  ARISS conducts 60-80 of these special amateur radio contacts each year between students around the globe and crew members with ham radio licenses aboard the ISS.

 

The program, STEMforGIRLS, engages youth in hands-on learning experiences, provides opportunities to interact with role models, and instills the knowledge and confidence required to make informed career choices in STEM fields. Programming is offered virtually and in-person across the province of Newfoundland and Labrador, Canada to students in junior high and high school. STEMforGIRLS is the charitable arm of Women in Resource Development Corporation (WRDC), a provincial, non-profit organization committed to increasing women's participation in trades and technology. This ARISS contact will be the highlight of the STEMforGIRLS Summer Summit conference, the largest week-long event of the year starting August 21st. Activities and information sessions, leading up to the contact, included virtual interactive workshops with local and international female amateur radio operators and female engineering students, specializing in satellites, from Dalhousie University, Halifax, Canada. Topics included the history of Amateur Radio, an Introduction to amateur radio concepts, career information, and demonstrations. Participants also have an opportunity to pursue an amateur radio license with the help of many of the conference Elmers.

 

This will be a telebridge Contact via Amateur Radio allowing students to ask their questions of Astronaut Steve Bowen, amateur radio call sign KI5BKB. The downlink frequency for this contact is 145.800 MHz and may be heard by listeners that are within the ISS-footprint that also encompasses the telebridge station.

 

The ARISS amateur radio ground station (telebridge station) for this contact is in Greenbelt, Maryland, U.S. The amateur radio volunteer team at the ground station will use the callsign K6DUE, to establish and maintain the ISS connection.

 

The ARISS radio contact is scheduled for August 23, 2023 at 12:54 pm NDT (St John’s, CAN) (15:24:59 UTC, 11:24 am EDT, 10:24 am CDT, 9:24 am MDT, 8:24 am PDT).

 

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As time allows, students will ask these questions:

1. What was the hardest thing you had to adjust to in space?

2. Have you seen the Aurora Borealis from space? If so, what does it look like?

3. What’s your favorite part about being in the Space Station?

4. What kind of music do you listen to?

5. Did you get to try "space meals" on earth and then when you ate the same prepared space meal in orbit, it was not the same?

6. What is the best memory you will take away from your experience on the ISS?

7. What's something you'll miss about the ISS when you get home?

8. As an astronaut aboard the International Space Station, what is the most awe-inspiring or breathtaking moment you've experienced so far, and how did it make you feel?

9. What should I focus on in high school if I wanted to become an astronaut?

10. What are your favorite foods to eat while in space?

11. What is your favourite pastime on the International Space Station?

12. What are your thoughts on opening up space travel to civilians?

13. What education and training is required to be selected for this role?

14. Do you ever see light from the sun, or is it all artificial light in the space station?

15. What kind of damage can your time in space do to your body?

16. What does it feel like to be in Zero Gravity, is it very different from the training simulation?

17. Can you bring your own things to the space station? If so, was there anything specific you brought?

18. How does the international space station stay powered?

 

About ARISS:

 

Amateur Radio on the International Space Station (ARISS) is a cooperative venture of international amateur radio societies and the space agencies that support the International Space Station (ISS). In the United States, sponsors are the Radio Amateur Satellite Corporation (AMSAT), the American Radio Relay League (ARRL), the ISS National Lab-Space Station Explorers, Amateur Radio Digital Communications (ARDC) and NASA’s Space Communications and Navigation program (SCaN). The primary goal of ARISS is to promote exploration of science, technology, engineering, the arts, and mathematics topics. ARISS does this by organizing scheduled contacts via amateur radio between crew members aboard the ISS and students. Before and during these radio contacts, students, educators, parents, and communities take part in hands-on learning activities tied to space, space technologies, and amateur radio. For more information, see http://www.ariss.org

 

Media Contact:

Dave Jordan, AA4KN

ARISS PR

                                                                              

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