An International Space Station school contact has been planned with participants at Astronomy Camp, Tucson, AZ on 08 June. The event is scheduled to begin at approximately 19:55 UTC. The duration of the contact is approximately 9 minutes and 30 seconds. The contact will be a telebridge between NA1SS and VK4KHZ. The contact should be audible over portions of Australia 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.
Astronomy Camp is a week-long residential program held at Kitt Peak National Observatory and the Catalina Observatories near Tucson, Arizona. Several thousand teenagers from 49 states and 20 countries have attended the program since 1988, participating in an informal education program involving hands-on activities in astronomy and related subjects. The camp also operates workshops for adult leaders in Girl Scouts, USA.
The ARISS contact dovetails well with the camp's projects involving radio astronomy. The students engage in experiments with electromagnetic energy, construct crystal radios, and tour the radio telescope facilities at Kitt Peak, including climbing into the antenna structure.
Participants will ask as many of the following questions as time allows:
1. Of the experiments you are working on, which is your favorite?
2. What affects do the fluctuations of sunlight have on experiments?
3. How much oxygen is used each day aboard the ISS?
4. How do your 90-minute "days" affect your "internal clock" when you return
to Earth?
5. Is re-entering Earth's atmosphere scary?
6. Are you taking any precautions about collisions with space junk?
7. How long will the ISS be in orbit?
8. We predict that a hammer and feather will move together toward the back
of the ISS during a reboost. Will you do that experiment for us?
9. How does zero gravity affect your analysis of samples?
10. What do you do for fun in space?
11. Can flowers grow in space?
12. How did your Ocean Engineering degree help in your becoming an astronaut?
13. How quickly can the space station be abandoned?
14. What is the most potentially beneficial experiment you are working on
now?
15. Have station-wide sicknesses ever been a problem?
16. How many years of school does it take to become an astronaut?
17. Do you do anything other than exercise to combat the affects of zero
gravity?
18. Have you ever seen an asteroid burn through the atmosphere from the ISS?
19. What makes learning about space so important?
20. How would a helium balloon move during a reboost?
PLEASE CHECK THE FOLLOWING FOR MORE INFORMATION ON ARISS UPDATES:
Information about the upcoming ARISS contacts can be obtained by subscribing to the SAREX maillist. To subscribe, go to http://www.amsat.org/amsat-new/tools/maillist/ and choose "How to Subscribe".
Visit ARISS on Facebook. We can be found at Amateur Radio on the
International Space Station (ARISS).
To receive our Twitter updates go to @ARISS_status
Next planned event(s):
TBD
ARISS is an international educational outreach program partnering the participating space agencies, NASA, Russian Space Agency, ESA, CNES, JAXA, and CSA, with the AMSAT and IARU organizations from participating countries.
ARISS offers an opportunity for students to experience the excitement of Amateur Radio by talking directly with crewmembers on-board the International Space Station. Teachers, parents and communities see, first hand, how Amateur Radio and crewmembers on ISS can energize youngsters' interest in science, technology, and learning. Further information on the ARISS program is available on the website http://www.ariss.org/ (graciously hosted by the Radio Amateurs of Canada).
Thank you & 73,
David - AA4KN