*ARISS News Release No.24-38*

*Dave Jordan, AA4KN *

*ARISS PR*

*aa4kn@amsat.org aa4kn@amsat.org*

*FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE*

*ARISS Contact is Scheduled with Students at *

*Houjoudu Elementary School, Imizu, Japan*

July 9, 2024—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 at the Houjoudu Elementary School located in Imizu, Japan. ARISS conducts 60-100 of these special amateur radio contacts each year between students around the globe and crew members with ham radio licenses aboard the ISS.

Imizu City Houjoudu Elementary School in Toyama Prefecture has a 150-year history, and currently has 103 students. The Shinminato Amateur Radio club is assisting with this ARISS contact. Students have been preparing for this ARISS contact by watching images of the ISS and learning about Miura folding, a variation of the ancient Japanese tradition of origami. Miura folding method is named for Koryo Miura of Tokyo University's Institute of Space and Aeronautical Science who was looking for efficient ways to fold and unfold the solar panels of spacecraft so that they can fit inside a rocket then unfurl in orbit to catch the sun’s rays. Miura folding method allows it to be easily opened and closed by applying force in one direction.

This will be a direct contact via Amateur Radio allowing students to ask their questions of astronaut Mike Barratt, amateur radio call sign KD5MIJ. 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 relay ground station.

The amateur radio ground station for this contact is in Imizu, Japan. Amateur radio operators using call sign JA9YQJ, will operate the ground station to establish and maintain the ISS connection.

The ARISS radio contact is scheduled for July 11, 2024 at 7:48 pm JST (Japan) (10:48 UTC, 6:48 am EDT, 5:48 am CDT, 4:48 am MDT, 3:48 am PDT).

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As time allows, students will ask these questions:

1. Can you use a mobile phone in the ISS?

2. Have you ever seen an alien?

3. Is it cold or hot in space?

4. Do you have trouble eating and drinking?

5. How fast does the spaceship fly?

6. How do you feel with no gravity?

7. What kind of feeling do you have watching the Earth from space?

8. Were you scared to go to space?

9. What is your favorite space food?

10. What is the first thing you want to do when you return to Earth?

11. What would you do if you got sick or had cavities on a spaceship?

12. Why did you decide to become an astronaut?

13. How much does the space suit weigh?

14. How do you sleep in zero gravity? Would you like to lie down?

15. What has been the biggest challenge you’ve faced adapting to life on the space station?

*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 ISS. In the United States, sponsors are the American Radio Relay League (ARRL), Amateur Radio Digital Communications (ARDC), Radio Amateur Satellite Corporation (AMSAT), NASA’s Space Communications and Navigation program (SCaN) and the ISS National Lab—Space Station Explorers. 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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