An International Space Station school contact has been planned with participants at Museum of Science & Technology - Danforth Middle School, Syracuse, NY on 23 Feb. The event is scheduled to begin at approximately 14:08 UTC. The duration of the contact is approximately 9 minutes and 30 seconds. The contact will be direct between NA1SS and K2MST. The contact should be audible over the state of New York and adjacent areas. Interested parties are invited to listen in on the 145.80 MHz downlink. The contact is expected to be conducted in English.

Central Village Boys & Girls Club of Syracuse is an after-school program for children ages five to 12 years old. Each night, Boys & Girls Club members have access to academic tutors, college mentors, as well as a hot meal for dinner. From sports and recreation to the arts, Central Village offers a variety of opportunities for children of all backgrounds to creatively flourish. With one goal in mind, staff works to challenge each member to personally grow every day, and leave the program with the skills to be a productive citizen in their neighborhoods.

The MOST and Central Village Boys & Girls Club of Syracuse students are prepared for contact with astronauts aboard the ISS. Students experienced a series of training sessions on communication, practiced with a mock ISS contact exercise, and viewed A Beautiful Planet in the MOST's domed IMAX theater, which offers insightful perspective of Earth from astronauts aboard the ISS. Students generated questions based on previous knowledge and experiences during training and while watching A Beautiful Planet.

Peter Plumley, MOST Chief Program Officer, Chris Perrine, MOST Senior Director of Facilities & Exhibits, and Jeffrey Eysaman, Unit Director at Central Village Boys & Girls Club of Syracuse, have worked diligently to provide students with background information and facilitate training for contact with astronauts aboard the ISS.

Participants will ask as many of the following questions as time allows:

1. How long can you stay outside the station?

2. What is the biggest challenge facing space exploration right now?

3. What inspired you to become an astronaut?

4. Do you think we'll live on the moon?

5. What's the scariest thing about space travel?

6. What is the most fun part about your job?

7. Have you built anything on the space station?

8. What kind of food do you eat in outer space?

9. What food do you miss the most?

10. What are your missions in space, right now?

11. How long will you stay in space?

12. How many years can you stay in the capsule without running out of

supplies?

13. What experiments are you working on?

14. What is your favorite part of being on the space station?

15. Do you think we'll live on the moon?

16. What should I do if I want to become an astronaut?

17. How do you go to the bathroom?

PLEASE CHECK THE FOLLOWING FOR MORE INFORMATION ON ARISS UPDATES:

Visit ARISS on Facebook. We can be found at Amateur Radio on the

International Space Station (ARISS).

To receive our Twitter updates, follow @ARISS_status

Next planned event(s):

1. School in Kursk, Russia, direct via TBD

The ISS callsign is presently scheduled to be RSØISS

The scheduled astronaut is TBD

Contact is a go for Sat 2018-02-24 08:45 UTC

Watch for possible time update

2. Bellefonte Area Middle School, Bellefonte, PA, direct via W3YA

The ISS callsign is presently scheduled to be NA1SS

The scheduled astronaut is Scott Tingle KG5NZA

Contact is a go for: Mon 2018-02-26 17:59 UTC

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 International Space Station (ISS). In the United States, sponsors are the Radio Amateur Satellite Corporation (AMSAT), the American Radio Relay League (ARRL), the Center for the Advancement of Science in Space (CASIS) and National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA). The primary goal of ARISS is to promote exploration of science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) topics by organizing scheduled contacts via amateur radio between crew members aboard the ISS and students in classrooms or informal education venues. With the help of experienced amateur radio volunteers, ISS crews speak directly with large audiences in a variety of public forums. Before and during these radio contacts, students, teachers, parents, and communities learn about space, space technologies, and amateur radio. For more information, see www.ariss.org, www.amsat.org, and www.arrl.org.

Thank you & 73,

David - AA4KN

--- This email has been checked for viruses by Avast antivirus software. https://www.avast.com/antivirus