*ARISS News Release No. 24-84*

*Dave Jordan, AA4KN *

*ARISS PR*

*dave.jordan@ariss-usa.org dave.jordan@ariss-usa.org*

*FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE*

*ARISS Contact is Scheduled with Students at *

*Giovanni Verga Middle School, Caltanissetta, Italy*

November 26, 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 Giovanni Verga Middle School located in Caltanissetta, Italy. 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.

The Giovanni Verga Middle School is sponsoring this ARISS contact for their secondary school students (11 to 13 years) who will be involved in this event. The students’ families and other students will be invited to attend the event. The school offers courses in information technology with special attention to how digital devices work and how they are made. Other topics include transmitting morse code and coding in various computer languages.

This will be a direct contact via Amateur Radio allowing students to ask their questions of astronaut Don Pettit, amateur radio call sign KD5MDT. 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 Caltanissetta, Italy. Amateur radio operators using call sign IT9AOI, will operate the ground station to establish and maintain the ISS connection.

The ARISS radio contact is scheduled for November 29, 2024 at 12:01:30 pm CET (Caltanissetta) (11:01:30 UTC, 6:01 am EST, 5:01 am CST, 4:01 am MST, 3:01 am PST).

The public is invited to watch the live stream at: *https://www.youtube.com/live/1n83_DPTlHQ https://www.youtube.com/live/1n83_DPTlHQ*

*_______________________________*

As time allows, students will ask these questions:

1. What was your favorite subject when you attended school?

2. What was the most important problem you faced in your expeditions on the ISS? Were you afraid?

3. Do you have any contacts with your family while on the ISS?

4. How do astronauts wash themselves on board the ISS?

5. What did you study to become an astronaut?

6. What emotions and sensations arise during a spacewalk?

7. Do you think there are any other life forms in our Universe?

8. Since space is always dark, how do you perceive the day/night alternation? This phenomenon causes anomalies in circadian sleep cycles. If so, what precautions do you astronauts take?

9. Which celestial bodies have you admired in space till now? Which do you like most?

10. Why does the suit you wear weigh so much?

11. What temperature is felt in the spacecraft?

12. Have you ever seen a comet, or a “shooting star”? If so, what are your feeling and sensations at seeing it?

13. What research activities are you carrying out in this new expedition to the ISS?

14. Is the Sun the only source of energy on the ISS?

15. How long does the training and preparation process to become an astronaut last?

16. What do you think of the future projects to develop a lunar spaceship?

17. What is the most uncomfortable thing about living in the ISS?

18. How long does it take to get on board the ISS and return to earth again?

19. What sensation do you feel sleeping in microgravity?

20. Is space debris a problem on ISS?

21. How do you strengthen mental health on the ISS?

22. What type of food do you eat in space?

23. What have you learned from working in space?

24. How is urine treated before being reused?

25. How did you feel the first time you went into space?

26. Is the Earth beautiful seen from space?

*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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