ARISS News Release                                                                                               No.24-09

DaveJordan, AA4KN

ARISS PR

aa4kn@amsat.org

FORIMMEDIATE RELEASE

ARISSContact is Scheduled with Students at

Lilburn Elementary School, Lilburn, Georgia, USA

February 6,2024—Amateur Radio on the International Space Station (ARISS) has receivedschedule confirmation for an ARISS radio contact between an astronaut aboardthe International Space Station (ISS) and students at the Lilburn ElementarySchool located in Lilburn, GA.  ARISSconducts 60-100 of these special amateur radio contacts each year betweenstudents around the globe and crew members with ham radio licenses aboard theISS.

Lilburnis a K-5, Title I, public school serving nearly 1,350 students, ages 5-11years. The school’s currentcurriculum includes relevant STEM and Computer Science topics across all gradelevels and disciplines. In advance of this ARISS contact, students have also beenlearning more about Earth’s systems, robotics, and emergency communications. InSTEM classes, students used the Design Thinking Process to solve real-worldproblems in space such as how people can one day live on the moon, designingsolutions for the spidernaut experiment, as well as how to grow food in space. Computerscience and STEM teachers that attended a Space Pioneers Amateur Radio KitInitiative (SPARKI) workshop then showed students, using lessons andactivities, how to communicate through radio. For example, fifth graders inSTEM classes built a modified telegraph to communicate between classrooms usingthe telegraph key.  In the electricityunit, students used circuit kits (like the ones provided by SPARKI) andMakey-Makey kits to create simple circuits. The school is working with members of the Gwinnett American RadioSociety (GARS), ARRL, and the North Fulton Amateur Radio League (NFARL). Membersof these local ham radio organizations (NRARL) will help with the technicalaspects of ham radio operation on the campus and with conducting the ARISScontact.

This will be adirect contact via Amateur Radio allowing students to ask theirquestions of astronaut Jasmin Moghbeli, amateur radio call sign KI5WSL. Thedownlink frequency for this contact is 145.800 MHz and may be heard bylisteners that are within the ISS-footprint that also encompasses the relayground station.

The amateur radio ground station for this contact is in Lilburn,GA. Amateur radio operators using call sign K4RGK, will operate the groundstation to establish and maintain the ISS connection.

The ARISS radiocontact is scheduled for February 7, 2024 at 9:24 am EST (GA, USA) (14:24 UTC, 8:24 amCST, 7:24 am MST, 6:24 am PST).

The public isinvited to watch the live stream at:  http://www.youtube.com/channel/UCuI4sKDBpERtEFs9bFrRMFA/live

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As time allows,students will ask these questions:

1. Our teachershelp us focus not just on academics, but on emotional health as well.  I would like to know, how are YOU doing?

2. What is thegrossest thing about living in space?

3. Our schoolhas many gardens that students help take care of. What kinds of plants are yougrowing on the ISS?

4. Have youever had a big emergency in Space?  Ifso, what was the situation?

5. What's itlike working with astronauts from other countries?

6. How long andhow often do you have to wear the space suit, and do you get tired of it?

7. Have youread the Dog Man Books?  If not, whatkinds of books do you enjoy reading most?

8. What issomething that surprised you that you didn’t expect about living in space?

9. What is yourfavorite hobby that is not space related?

10. What is themost important thing you have to do on the ISS when you wake up?

11. What areyou looking forward to the most when you return to Earth?

12. How do youentertain yourself on the ISS?

13. How didyour family react to the news that you would be going to the ISS?

14. Can youplant a flower in your area, or how do you personalize your area while you areliving on the ISS to bring you joy?

15. Besidesastronaut training with your space agency, how did you personally prepare foryour journey to the ISS?

16. Can you seeweather systems on Earth from space and if so, what have you observed?

17. How wouldkinetic sand behave in space?

18. Whatcharacter traits do you think make a great astronaut?

19. What do youget tired of while being in space?

20. What is atypical day like on the ISS?

About ARISS:

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

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Media Contact:

Dave Jordan,AA4KN

ARISS PR

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