An International Space Station school contact has been planned with participants at 1° Circolo Didattico Nicola Fornelli, Bitonto, Italy on 24 Feb. The event is scheduled to begin at approximately 14:01 UTC.

The duration of the contact is approximately 9 minutes and 30 seconds. The contact will be direct between OR4ISS and IZ7RTN. The contact should be audible over Italy and adjacent areas. Interested parties are invited to listen in on the 145.80 MHz downlink. The contact is expected to be conducted in Italian or English.

1° Circolo Didattico"N. Fornelli" Bitonto is an educational primary school, placed in the centre of the pleasant town of Bitonto, Apulia, south of Italy, the "olive town" famous all over the world. This is the oldest elementary school in bitonto, an architectural building in the centre of the city. In the primary school there are 810 students. There are 4 nursery schools with 415 pupils. The school has large open spaces, a gym, a library with about 6000 books and 4 laboratories.

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

1. What do you feel when you float weightlessly in the Space Station?

2. What is the temperature outside the ISS?

3. How can you avoid collisions with meteoroids or space debris?

4. On board the Space Station, is there a system to recycle oxygen?

5. How long is the rehabilitation to the Earth's gravity when returning on

Earth?

6. What feelings do you experience living for such a long mission

surrounded by the immensity of space, do you feel privileged?

7. What inspired you to become an astronaut?

8. What temperature are tolerable by a space suit?

9. What kind of studies did you attend to become an astronaut?

10. What is the most difficult task for the commander of the International

Space Station?

11. What kind of experiments are currently underway aboard the ISS?

12. Which part of our planet are you looking at right now?

13. During the day do you have free time?

14. Do you feel safe on board the ISS?

15. Who would you like to dedicate this experience in space?

16. How would your life change after this adventure in space?

17. Are you in contact with your family and how do you communicate with them?

18. What is the future for space exploration?

19. In your opinion is life possible in the universe?

20. Do you believe that it is possible to create a human colony on the Moon?

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

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