An International Space Station school contact has been planned with participants at Istituto Comprensivo Dedalo 2000 - Scuola secondaria di Cingia de' Botti (CR), Solarolo Rainerio, Italy, on 23 April. The event is scheduled to begin at approximately 09:13 UTC. The duration of the contact is approximately 9 minutes and 30 seconds. The contact will be a telebridge between NA1SS and W6SRJ. The contact should be audible over the west coast of the U.S. Interested parties are invited to listen in on the 145.80 MHz downlink. The contact is expected to be conducted in Italian.

We are the secondary school of Cingia de' Botti in the province of Cremona, which belongs to Istituto Comprensivo "Dedalo 2000". One of our children parent, Mrs. Antonella Pezzani, is the author of MagISStra, the name of Paolo mission. Teachers and students decided to participate actively and, as protagonists, in this adventure. We participated to "Mission X" and have been training as astronauts finishing in second place in Italy. Students of other our classes have started the experiment "A greenhouse in space." The event to connect with Paolo Nespoli will be held in the municipal gymnasium of Cingia de' Botti, with about a seventy institute students aged between 10 and 14 years with their parents and with the teachers who have organized the projects "Mission X" and "A greenhouse in space".

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

1. Why did you decide to become an astronaut?

2. How long have you been an astronaut?

3. How long have you worked to prepare yourselves to live on ISS?

4. What did you feel when the Soyuz take off?

5. What did you feel when you opened the door and entered in the ISS?

6. What's your daily routine?

7. How do you know when it is morning and when it is night?

8. Why do you like doing the astronaut?

9. Do you miss your family and your friends?

10. Have you thought of remain more time than planned on the ISS?

11. How do you feel when you see the whole space around you?

12. What is the area of solar panels which power the Space Station and how much energy they can produce?

13. Is it difficult to live on ISS?

14. Is possible to come back before the end of the mission?

15. What do you do in your free time?

16. What do you feel when you look at the Earth from the ISS?

17. Have you ever seen some unexplainable phenomena from the ISS?

18. Do you think that we are alone in the universe?

19. When you come back, if you had the opportunity would you go again in the space?

20. If you could chose, would you go to discovering a new planets or on the ISS?

Information about the upcoming ARISS contacts can be found at http://www.ariss.org/upcoming.htm#NextContact.

Next planned event(s):

1. Italian Air Force Academy, Pozzuoli, Italy, telebridge via LU1CGB

Thu, 28 Apr. 2011, 07:04 UTC

2. Ecole Primaire de Larochette (Fiels), Larochette (Fiels), Luxembourg,

telebridge via WH6PN

Fri, 29 Apr 2011, 10:12 UTC

3. Scuola Secondaria I Grado "M.Maccioni" Nuoro, Nuoro, direct via IK1SLD

Fri, 29 Apr. 2011, 15:56 UTC

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