ARISS News Release                                                                                                    No.23-43

Dave Jordan, AA4KN

ARISS PR

aa4kn@amsat.org

FORIMMEDIATE RELEASE

ARISSContact is Scheduled with Students at

Augusta Preparatory Day School, Augusta, Georgia,USA

August28, 2023—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 Augusta PreparatoryDay School located in Augusta, Georgia. ARISS conducts 60-80 of these special amateur radio contacts each yearbetween students around the globe and crew members with ham radio licenses aboardthe ISS.

Augusta Preparatory Day School (Augusta Prep) is a non-sectarianindependent school located near the Georgia-South Carolina border for studentsin grades 2 through 12. Hosting this ARISS contact prompted the school todevelop numerous cross-curricular classes that include numerousradio and space-related activities (e.g. Future Engineers TechRise WeatherBalloon Challenge). A team of middle- and upper-school students are also developinga research proposal for the CubeSat Launch Initiative, with ongoing supportfrom an engineer and a researcher from the Savannah River National Laboratory. Theschool has also hosted Family Astronomy Night events employing the school’sfour telescopes and inviting families to bring their own.

Members of the Amateur Radio Club of Columbia County (ARCCC) aresupporting Augusta Prep with this ARISS contact and the school's space andradio-related classes/projects (high-altitude balloon launches, student antennabuilding, and hidden transmitter or "Fox hunts."). ARCCC hosted YouthTechnician Licensing Classes in 2022 and their first VE testing session withfuture classes planned. Students, as part of their STEM class, are building a hamradio ground station and the AMSAT CubeSat simulator.

This will be a direct contact via Amateur Radio allowing students to ask their questions ofAstronaut Steve Bowen, amateur radio call sign KI5BKB. The downlink frequencyfor this contact is 145.800 MHz and may be heard by listeners that are withinthe ISS-footprint that also encompasses the relay ground station.

The amateur radio ground station for this contactis in Augusta, GA. Amateur radio operators using call sign K4RGK, will operatethe ground station to establish and maintain the ISS connection.

TheARISS radio contact is scheduled for August 31, 2023 at 9:51:28 am EDT (GA) (13:51:28UTC, 8:51 am CDT, 7:51 am MDT, 6:51 am PDT).

Thepublic is invited to watch the live stream at: https://www.facebook.com/augustaprep

_______________________________

Astime allows, students will ask these questions:

1.Did your training give you an accurate idea of what the real experience ofbeing in space is like, or were there major surprises?

2.What do you think are some of the biggest misconceptions people have aboutspace?

3.When was the last time you used calculus on the station?

4.What are the emotional/mental impacts of being in space for such a long periodof time?

5.Has there ever been a moment when the ISS had a technological error or ashortage of supplies? If so, how did you and the crew solve it?

6.What do you think is the most beneficial project you have done as an astronaut?

7.What was your most prominent hesitation when coming on the International SpaceStation, and how did you overcome that?

8.How do you keep involved and stay in touch with family and friends?

9.What is the most amazing thing you have seen?

10.What personal and mission-driven goals do you hope to achieve?

11.Can you speak to the impact of space debris on future space missions?

12.How is leisure time scheduled and what are you able to do?

13.What do you do if someone has a medical issue on the ISS?

14.What is your most interesting story about space?

15.What personal items can you bring into space, and arethere any size and weight limitations?

16.An essential part of your work pertains to communication and video work. Whatkind of audio-visual training factors into your training?

17.What are your thoughts about space and have you always been interested in space?

18.How does being in outer space affect the celebration of holidays?

19.How did you feel the first time you left the atmosphere?

20.Is there a way to have food or supplies delivered to the ISS?

About ARISS:

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

MediaContact:

DaveJordan, AA4KN

ARISSPR

Findus on social media at:

Twitter:ARISS_Intl

Facebook:facebook.com/ARISSIntl

Instagram:ariss_intl

Mastodon:ariss_intl@mastodon.hams.social

Checkout ARISS on Youtube.com.