ARISS News Release                                                                                                    No.21-49

Dave Jordan, AA4KN

ARISS PR

aa4kn@amsat.org

FORIMMEDIATE RELEASE

ARISSContact is Scheduled with Students at the

Children’s National Hospital, Washington, DC, USA

September18, 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 the ISS and students fromChildren’s National Hospital. Children will take turns asking their questionsof ISS Astronaut Akihiko Hoshide, amateur radio call sign KE5DNI, during theARISS radio contact. Appropriate local Covid-19 protocols are adhered to asapplicable for each ARISS contact. Thedownlink frequency for this contact is 145.800 MHZ and may be heard bylisteners that are within the ISS-footprint that also encompasses the ARISSradio telebridge station.

The ARISS team in Casale Monferrato, Italy willuse call sign IK1SLD to serve as the ARISS relay amateur radio ground station.

TheARISS radio contact is scheduled for September 21, 2021 at 2:05 pm EDT (Washington,DC) (18:05 UTC, 1:05 pm CDT, 12:05 pm MDT, 11:05 am PDT).

Children’sNational Hospital is a nationally ranked, pediatric acute care children'shospital located in Washington D.C. Children’s Hospital is not a school,however the hospital works with school districts to coordinate home andhospital teachers to provide an educational program for their patients. In thisregard, the hospital’s purpose is to provide stimulating educationalopportunities for students who must miss school due to illness or injury. Theireducational goals include implementation of a STEAM curriculum for patientsthat encourages designing, inventing, and creating through real-worldapplications. Their educational state-of-the-art facility (Seacrest Studios)was established by the Ryan Seacrest Foundation in 2015, and provides kids(serving all children at any age level) an interactive space to explore radio,television, and social media, share their on-air talents and participate inprograms that are broadcast directly to patient rooms. Seacrest Studios atChildren’s National Hospital has been working closely with NASA and theSmithsonian Air and Space Museum while continuing to provide space and STEAMrelated programming to their patients and patients’ families. The hospital hadalso partnered with members of the local ham radio club in Alexandria, Virginia.

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Astime allows, students will ask these questions:

1.What are some of the tools that you use to help you safely breathe in space?

2.What do the Northern Lights look like in space?

3.What does your body feel like in space? How do you feel normal again?

4.Can you please describe the most beautiful thing you've ever seen in space?

5.Is the food we buy on earth the same food you eat in space?

6.How do you feel emotionally and physically during the initial takeoff? What isthe atmosphere like inside of the rocket?

7.Has there been any discovery that there is other life in this universe?

8.How much of Earth can you identify from space?

9.What happens if you get injured/hurt in space? Are there doctors on board?

10.How long does it take to get to the Moon and Mars from Earth?

11.How heavy is the spacesuit?

12.What inspired you to become an astronaut?

13.What species of animals have been to space?

14.Can you have your own pets in space?

15.Where do astronauts sleep while in the spaceship?

16.How do you clean your spacesuit while in space? Do you have laundry on board?

17.What specific devices do you use to stay active and workout while in space?

18.What was the coolest part about training to become an astronaut?

19.How does it feel to come back to earth and how does your body react?

20.What galaxy would you like to go to most and why?

21.How old were you when you first went to space?

22.Where does your trash go?

ARISS– Celebrating 20 Years of Amateur Radio Continuous 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, sponsors are the Radio Amateur SatelliteCorporation (AMSAT), the American Radio Relay League (ARRL), the ISS NationalLab-Space Station Explorers, and NASA’s Space communications and Navigation program.The primary goal of ARISS is to promote exploration of science, technology,engineering, the arts, and mathematics topics. ARISS does this by organizingscheduled contacts via amateur radio between crew members aboard the ISS andstudents. Before and during these radio contacts, students, educators, parents,and communities take part in hands-on learning activities tied to space, spacetechnologies, and amateur radio. For more information, see www.ariss.org.

MediaContact:

DaveJordan, AA4KN

ARISSPR

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