ARISS News Release                                                                                                    No.   21-13

Dave Jordan, AA4KN

ARISS PR

aa4kn@amsat.org

FORIMMEDIATE RELEASE

ARISSContact is Scheduled for

Students at Estes Park Elementary School, Estes Park, Colorado, USA

February23, 2021—Amateur Radio on the International Space Station (ARISS) has receivedschedule confirmation for an ARISS radio contact with astronauts. ARISS is thegroup that puts together special amateur radio contacts between students aroundthe globe and crew members with ham radio licenses on the International Space Station (ISS).

This will be a multipoint telebridge contact via amateur radio between students from the Estes ParkElementary School following Covid guidelines and Astronaut Shannon Walker, amateur radio callsign KD5DXB. Students will take turns asking theirquestions.  The downlink frequency for this contact is145.800 MHz.

Amateur radio operators, using the call sign N0FH in Estes Park, CO, will serve as the relayamateur radio station. English is the language expected to be used during thecontact.

The ARISS radio contact isscheduled for February 26, 2021 at 10:09 am MST (Estes Park, CO), 17:09 UTC, 12:09pm EST, 11:09 am CST and 9:09 am PST).

The public is invited to watch the livestream at: https://youtu.be/AnPkH2eJM-A

Estes Park Elementary School (EPES) (about 480 students,grades pre-K – 5) is a rural, public school located at the base of the RockyMountain National Park. In preparation for the ARISS contact, the school’s 5thgrade students (about 80 students) have participated in a year-long SpaceExploration unit of study. However, the opportunity to view the ARISS contactwill be a district-wide and community event, including all 1,140 students inthe public school district. The school partners with the Estes Park MemorialObservatory (EPMO), which is also part of the school’s campus. EPMO provides facilitiesfor their volunteers to conduct lectures regarding the basics of astronomy andfeatures of planets, nebula and galaxies that the students or visitors will beobserving online and when they can move to the dome for hands-on viewing. EPESimplemented a variety of STEM-based cross-curricular topics/activities thatincluded Introduction to Amateur Radio. Members of the Estes Valley Amateur Radio Club (N0FH) and retired Astronaut LorenShriver have been an integral part of these activities; allowing the studentsto follow SpaceX Expedition 64, the ISS crew members, as well as the missionprogress of the Mars Rover, Perseverance. The amateur radio club members willpartner with the observatory and the elementary school to assist with the ARISScontact.

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Astime allows, students will ask these questions:

1.What happens when it's your birthday in Space?

2.After using VR goggles to explore the ISS here in school, we wonder if you haveVR goggles up there to "visit" Earth, for example if you werehomesick?

3.Why don't they let kids in space?

4.How do capsules, satellites, or cargo "attach" to the ISS so peopleand supplies can come aboard and leave?

5.What kind of data is the ISS collecting on the sun?

6.How has COVID-19 affected you/your trip to space?

7.Have you ever had any unexplained sightings or communication while on the ISS?

8.What are your personal goals for your time in space?

9.What made you want to go to space?

10.What is your favorite research experiment that is currently being conducted onthe ISS, and what data are you hoping to obtain from it?

11.What information have you gathered from studying animals (such as ants or bees)on the ISS? Have they ever gotten out?

12.Have you made up any new game to play that only works in space?

13.How do you drive/control the ISS?

14.Can you tell us about a time that you were scared or worried while in space?

15.What happens if you get seriously sick or injured on the ISS?

16.What's the farthest away someone has gone on a spacewalk?

17.Do you have designated people to perform experiments on the ISS, or doeseveryone take part of that?

18.What is the most awesome sight that you have seen on Earth, or in space, fromthe ISS?

ARISS – Celebrating 20 Years of Continuous AmateurRadio Operations on the ISS

About ARISS:

Amateur Radio on the InternationalSpace Station (ARISS) is a cooperative venture of international amateur radiosocieties and the space agencies that support the International Space Station(ISS).  In the United States, sponsorsare the Radio Amateur Satellite Corporation (AMSAT), the American Radio RelayLeague (ARRL), the ISS National Lab-Space Station Explorers, and NASA’s SpaceCommunications and Navigation program. The primary goal of ARISS is to promoteexploration of science, technology, engineering, the arts, and mathematicstopics by organizing scheduled contacts via amateur radio between crew members aboardthe ISS and students. Before and during these radio contacts, students,educators, parents, and communities learn about space, space technologies, andamateur radio. For more information, see www.ariss.org

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MediaContact:

DaveJordan, AA4KN

ARISSPR

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