ARISS News Release                                                                No. 21-55

ARISS Contact is Scheduled with Students at Jean Alloitteau School, Vinça, France
 
October 16, 2021—Amateur Radio on the International Space Station (ARISS) has received schedule confirmation for an ARISS radio contact with astronauts. ARISS is the group that puts together special amateur radio contacts between students around the globe and crew members with ham radio licenses on the International Space Station (ISS).
 
This will be a direct contact via amateur radio between students in France at the Jean Alloitteau School and Astronaut Thomas Pesquet, amateur radio call sign KG5FYG. Students will take turns asking their questions. Appropriate local Covid-19 protocols are adhered to as applicable for each ARISS contact. The downlink frequency for this contact is 145.800 MHZ and may be heard by listeners who are within the ISS-footprint that also encompasses the radio relay ground station.
 
Amateur radio operators, using the call sign F1MOJ, will operate the ham radio ground station for this contact.
 
The ARISS radio contact is scheduled for October 18, 2021 at 10:06 am CEST (Vinça, France) (8:06 UTC, 4:06 am EDT, 3:06 am CDT, 2:06 am MDT, 1:06 am PDT).
 
The Jean Alloiteau is a rural school in the Pyrénées-Orientales department (66), in the south of France, at the foot of Canigou Peak.  About 150 students will be involved in this ARISS contact. The school has integrated the ARISS contact (project) as an interdisciplinary curriculum into all school subjects (French, biology, mathematics, physics, technology, visual arts, music education). Perpignan Radio Club F6KBR and REF66 are participating in the project, and assisted students with preparing for the contact.
 
View the live stream of the upcoming ARISS radio contact at  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YYXvpl5HCcA  .
_______________________________
 
As time allows, students will ask these questions (translated from French):
 
1. What was the hardest part of becoming an astronaut?
2. Is it scary when the rocket takes off?
3. Did you ever get lost in the ISS on your first expedition (2016)?
4. Is the ISS like home?
5. Are the smells on board the ISS the same as on Earth?
6. How does it feel to be weightless?
7. When you drink water, do you only drink your own recycled urine or also that of your colleagues?
8. How do you wash your clothes in the ISS?
9. Have you ever seen UFOs in space?
10. Have you ever eaten Chlorolla vulgaris, the algae that turns CO2 into oxygen?
11. How do you feel when you do spacewalks?
12. When you have a sick astronaut on the ISS, how do you treat him?
13. Why are astronaut suits always white color?
14. Can you bring animals to the ISS?
15. Did your role change since you have been assigned to ISS captain?
16. Have you noticed a lot of pollution in space?
17. Did you have to solve any serious technical problems in the ISS?
18. How do you put on your spacesuits to get out into space?
19. Is your next project going to go to the Moon or Mars?
20. Does the return to the atmosphere hurt?

ARISS News Release                                                            No.   21-54  

ARISS Contact is Scheduled for Students in France at Ecole Louis Armand, Carquefou, Institut Universitaire de Technologie, Carquefou, and Collège Les Sables D’Or, Thouare Sur Loire
 
October 10, 2021—Amateur Radio on the International Space Station (ARISS) has received schedule confirmation for an ARISS radio contact with astronauts. ARISS is the group that puts together special amateur radio contacts between students around the globe and crew members with ham radio licenses on the International Space Station (ISS).
 
This will be a direct contact via amateur radio between students in France at the Ecole Louis Armand, Institut Universitaire de Technologie (IUT), and Collège Les Sables D’Or and Astronaut Thomas Pesquet, amateur radio call sign KG5FYG. Students will take turns asking their questions. Appropriate local Covid-19 protocols are adhered to as applicable for each ARISS contact. The downlink frequency for this contact is 145.800 MHZ and may be heard by listeners that are within the ISS-footprint that also encompasses the radio relay ground station.
 
Amateur radio operators in Carquefou using the F5KEQ/P call sign will operate the ham radio ground station for this contact.
 
The ARISS radio contact is scheduled for October 13, 2021 at 3:39 pm CEST (Carquefou, France), (13:39 UTC, 9:39 am EDT, 8:39 am CDT, 7:39 am MDT and 6:39 am PDT).
 
Institut Universitaire de Technologie (IUT) is a third level educational establishment, a branch of Nantes University, and offers diplomas in seven industrial specialties to about 2,000 students. The IUT maintains close links with secondary level schools who are partners for events that promote science and technology. IUT will host this ARISS contact to bring together students from Collège Les Sables D’Or (13 year-olds), and Louis Armand (9 year-olds) as well students from IUT.  About 300 students are expected to be present during the radio contact. Members of the Association des Radioamateurs de Loire Atlantique (ARALA) will be supporting the school for this radio contact. ARALA has promoted amateur radio activity in each school by offering demonstrations and presentations that introduce students to the wide range of interests in amateur radio. Some of these radio activities included: satellite demonstrations via QO-100, radio directional finding exercises, yagi-building classes, and Morse code demonstrations.
 
The public is invited to watch the live stream at: https://youtu.be/8mam6IlA7uw
_____________________________
 
As time allows, students will ask these questions (Translated from French):
 
1.  How did you feel when you found out that you would be the ISS Commander?
2. Can we alter the martian atmosphere to make it better for human life?
3. Does the saxophone sound the same as on Earth?
4. If we couldn't live on the Earth anymore, could a part of human beings live in a spaceship?
5. Are the harmful effects on the body more powerful when one returns to space several times?
6. What are the solutions to handle food and water for a long journey in space without being supplied with food regularly?
7. Where do you touch down on Earth? Why at this specific location?
8. Do space agencies plan to build eco-friendly rockets?
9. Does playing sport in space have a different effect on the human body?
10. Have you seen changes since your last space journey on the ISS Such as deforestation, urbanization or fires?
11. What's the funniest thing in space?
12. Apart from the scientific interest, what is the point of going on another planet when we don't respect ours?
13. What are the responsibilities of the Alpha Head of Mission?
14. Do you think that man will have made Mars livable before The Earth no longer is?
15. How do you set the date and time for take-off?
16. How do you feel when you are out on an extra-vehicular mission?
17. Have you found any seed varieties that you can grow without soil in the ISS? If so, do they take the same time to grow as on Earth?
18. What is your favorite place on the ISS?
19. What's the first thing you want to do when you return to Earth?
20. Does food taste the same in space?
21. Some astronauts see flashes when the close their eyes. Could you explain why?

ARISS News Release                                                              No.   21-53   

ARISS Contact is Scheduled for Students at Mary Hare School (for the deaf), Newbury, UK
 
October 8, 2021—Amateur Radio on the International Space Station (ARISS) has received schedule confirmation for an ARISS radio contact with astronauts. ARISS is the group that puts together special amateur radio contacts between students around the globe and crew members with ham radio licenses on the International Space Station (ISS).
 
This will be a direct contact via amateur radio between students at the Mary Hare School, Newbury, UK and Astronaut Mark Vande Hei, amateur radio call sign KG5GNP. Students will take turns asking their questions. Appropriate local Covid-19 protocols are adhered to as applicable for each ARISS contact. The downlink frequency for this contact is 145.800 MHZ and may be heard by listeners that are within the ISS-footprint that also encompasses the radio relay ground station.
 
Amateur radio operators in Newbury using the GB4MHN call sign will operate the ham radio ground station for this contact.
 
The ARISS radio contact is scheduled for October 12, 2021 at 12:12 pm BST (Newbury, UK), (11:12 UTC, 7:12 am EDT, 6:12 am CDT, 5:12 am MDT and 4:12 am PDT).
 
Mary Hare School is an aural school for the deaf that teaches students to develop lip reading skills and to make use of technology. The school teaches students (Year 1 – 13, ages 5 – 19 years) that are studying towards A levels. About 250 students will be in the auditorium where the contact will take place and about 600 students in other parts of the school will be linked in via a web feed to observe the contact. Topics taught during the school year prior to this ARISS contact that were related to radio and space included studies in the fields of physics, chemistry and biology. Student activities during the week prior to the contact included designing and flying model rockets, making astronomical observations, and observing authentic space suits. After each student asks their question, the astronaut’s reply will then be transcribed into subtitles. The technical side of the contact (radio equipment) is being handled by the ARISS UK team with members of the Newbury and District Amateur Radio Society (NADARS) providing the students with the “amateur radio experience” through events and activities. This is believed to be the first ARISS contact between a school for deaf children and an astronaut on the ISS.
 
The public is invited to watch the live stream at: https://live.ariss.org
_____________________________
 
As time allows, students will ask these questions:
 
1. Do you have to learn a sign language to communicate if something goes wrong with the radios in your  suit?
2. How do you tell directions in space?
3. What do the northern lights look like from space?
4. How can you shower in zero gravity?
5. What’s your most favourite space technology?
6. If there was a fire, how would you evacuate?
7. Do mobile devices work in space? For example, a Smart Phone?
8. If you could take one thing from home into space, to make life more fun what would you take and why?
9. What is it like to wake up and see the earth from space?
10. How long have you been in space for?   

ARISS News Release                                                                   No. 21-52

ARISS Contact is Scheduled with Students at Various Schools in the Prescott Unified School District, Prescott, AZ, USA
 
October 4, 2021—Amateur Radio on the International Space Station (ARISS) has received schedule confirmation for an ARISS radio contact with astronauts. ARISS is the group that puts together special amateur radio contacts between students around the 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 from a number of schools in the Prescott Unified School District based in Prescott, AZ. Students will take turns asking their questions of ISS Astronaut Mark Vande Hei, amateur radio call sign KG5GNP, during the ARISS radio contact. Appropriate local Covid-19 protocols are adhered to as applicable for each ARISS contact. The downlink frequency for this contact is 145.800 MHZ and may be heard by listeners that are within the ISS-footprint that also encompasses the ARISS radio telebridge station.
 
ARISS team member Fred Kemmerer, using his call sign AB1OC in New Hampshire, will serve as the ARISS relay amateur radio station.
 
The ARISS radio contact is scheduled for October 5, 2021 at 11:08 am MST (Prescott, AZ) (18:08 UTC, 2:08 pm EDT, 1:08 pm CDT, 12:08 pm MDT, 11:08 am PDT).
 
The Prescott Unified School District is the host of this ARISS contact for students (about 4,500, grades K-12) in seven public schools in rural and suburban areas of the District. During the school year prior to this ARSS contact, the students studied various STEAM subjects and engaged in various learning activities that followed lesson plans developed by NASA, the ARRL, and ARISS. This year-long event, referred to as “Prescott Radio & Space Science 2021” incorporated 10 linked programs, including 8 programs in the District’s class curriculum and two special community activities.  The two activities, “Community Radio Science Day” and the “ARISS Contact Day,” were supported by many community organizations and agencies. Other supporting organizations include: World Genesis Foundation (coordinator of special activities), and the Yavapai Amateur Radio Club (YARC). Members of the YARC helped introduce amateur radio to students in addition to leading student study-groups for FCC ham license testing, and providing technical assistance in setting up an HF radio station. YARC members will also provide continued education in amateur radio to the students.
 
View the live stream of the upcoming ARISS radio contact at     https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCjieZD0zdvMt-k6Lf17dOkQ
      
_______________________________
 
As time allows, students will ask these questions:
1) What do you do in your free time?
2) Why did you choose to be an astronaut?
3) My favorite thing to read about in outer space is solar tsunamis caused by solar flares. Have you ever studied or seen them and how they affect planet Earth?
4) After being in space with no gravity, what does it feel like to return to Earth with gravity?
5) Is this your first mission? What has been the best part of it so far?
6) Is your job hard? 
7) Is it hard to sleep in space and how do you sleep? 
8) Are there any games or activities that you do for fun in space?
9) Do you think you can apply what you’ve learned from living on the ISS to living long-term on the moon or Mars?
10) Can you describe the launch process and what is the best and worst part?
11) What kind of schooling/career path prep do you have to do to become an astronaut in space?
12) Have you ever cooked for your crew in space?
13) When you went up into space, were you scared?
14) What types of problems do you have to fix on the space station?
15) What are you studying right now or what experiments are you doing on the space station?
16) Do you get viruses (flu, cold) in space and what do you do when one of you gets sick?
17) Do you think there is another life form in space?
18) How far away are you from the earth?
19) What changes do you notice in your body when you arrive on the ISS and when you return home to Earth?
20) Do you ever feel homesick, scared, or nervous in space? If so, what do you do?
21) How much living space is there in the Space Station and do you have any privacy?
22) I am wondering about the five senses. Are there unique smells? What is the temperature in the station? What does the food taste like?

ARISS News Release                                                                      No. 21-51

ARISS Contact is Scheduled with Students from France at Lycée Pierre Paul Riquet in St Orens De Gameville and CSUT University Space Center of Toulouse
 
September 30, 2021—Amateur Radio on the International Space Station (ARISS) has received schedule confirmation for an ARISS radio contact with astronauts. ARISS is the group that puts together special amateur radio contacts between students around the 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 in France at Lycée Pierre Paul Riquet in St Orens De Gameville and CSUT University Space Center of Toulouse. Students will take turns asking their questions of ISS Astronaut Thomas Pesquet, amateur radio call sign KG5FYG, during the ARISS radio contact. Appropriate local Covid-19 protocols are adhered to as applicable for each ARISS contact. The downlink frequency for this contact is 145.800 MHZ and may be heard by listeners that are within the ISS-footprint that also encompasses the ARISS radio telebridge station.
 
The ARISS team in Casale Monferrato, Italy will use call sign IK1SLD to serve as the ARISS relay amateur radio ground station.
 
The ARISS radio contact is scheduled for October 2, 2021 at 2:40 pm CEST (Toulouse, France) (12:40 UTC, 8:40 am EDT, 7:40 am CDT, 6:40 am MDT, 5:40 am PDT).
 
Lycée Pierre-Paul Riquet (1,500 students, age 15 – 18 years) is a general and technological high school providing scientific, economic, literary or technological baccalaureates. The school also provides students space-related courses that are applicable to a career in aerospace industry. Their STEM curricula have incorporated radio science, satellite orbital mechanics, and radio receiver construction in preparation for the ARISS contact, and the history of ham radio communications in space. The high school students have also been working with the University Space Center of Toulouse (CSUT) and members of the amateur radio club of the University (F4KLD) in preparation for this contact. The ham radio club members worked with students on several activities that included: radio reception using an SDR dongle; radio reception of amateur satellites or weather satellites; fox hunting; ISS-tracking visually and using APRS.
The University Space Centre of Toulouse (CSUT) was created in 2016 and its purpose is to develop collaborative small-scale (CubeSats) space system projects and bring together academic people and researchers and higher education students. More than 50 students from the University’s Master Degree of Electronic are directly involved in the ARISS contact and have worked with the 100 high school students from Lycée Pierre Paul Riquet also directly involved around this contact.
 
View the live stream of the upcoming ARISS radio contact at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Sgl8lELDcgA
 
_______________________________
 
As time allows, students will ask these questions:
1.  Si vous retourniez en enfance, qu'est-ce que vous auriez aimé voir comme mise en scè ne du spatial dans la culture pop?
2.  Concevez-vous le métier de spationaute comme plus difficile pour les femmes, dans la mesure où les femmes sont bien moins présentes que leurs homologues masculins dans la conquête spatiale?
3.  Quel est votre ressenti vis à vis des contraintes pour communiquer avec vos proches?
4.  Qu'est-ce qui vous pousse à aller dans l'espace malgré les problèmes que cela pourrait causer sur votre santé?
5.  S’il y a une catastrophe naturelle et qu’elle perturbe les communications de l’ISS avec la Terre, comment vous en sortez-vous?
6.  Nous avons entendu dire que, avant de dormir, vous voyez des flashs bleus causés par les radiations spatiales, est-ce vrai?
7.  L'expérience éducative TETRISS des étudiants de l'IUT de Toulouse doit permettre de visualiser des ondes en 3D. Avez-vous déjà réalisé une expérience comme celle-ci?
8.  Un étudiant sourd a participé au développement de l'expérience TETRIS. Quel message voudriez-vous passer aux malentendants passionnés par l’Espace?
9.  Nous aimerions savoir si, comme dans le film Sergio and Sergei, vous avez déjà capté, dans l’ISS, par erreur des signaux de radioamateurs venant de la Terre?
10.  Pour la préparation de votre mission, est ce vous avez dû mettre entre parenthèse votre vie de famille, est ce que c’est compliqué de la maintenir?
11.  Est-ce que vous avez hésité et est-ce que ça vous faisait peur de partir dans l’espace?
12.  Comment vivez-vous le fait d’être aussi loin de la Terre?
13.  Lors de vos différentes missions dans l'espace, avez-vous constaté une évolution de la déforestation sur Terre?
14.  Quelles sont les qualités qui vous ont permis d'être recruté par l'ESA et de devenir spationaute?
15.  Si un jour vous avez l’opportunité d’aller sur la Lune, quelle serait votre première pensée lors de votre premier pas sur le sol lunaire?
16.  Durant cette mission, appréhendez-vous d'être le commandant de bord de l’ISS?
17.  Au-delà du métier de spationaute, avez-vous encore des rêves?
18.  Ressentez-vous des effets du vent solaire dans l’espace?
19.  Entendez-vous les sons comme sur la Terre?
20.  Aviez vous un modèle qui vous a motivé à devenir spationaute?
 
Translation:
 
1.  If you had to go back to when you were a kid, what sorts of representations of space would you like to see in pop culture?
2.  Do you consider the job of astronaut more difficult for women, knowing that there are less women than men in the space domain?
3.  How do you feel about the constraints of communicating with your loved ones?
4.  What drives you to go to space despite the health problems it could cause?
5.  If there is a natural disaster which disturbs the communications between the ISS and the Earth, what will happen for you?
6.  We heard that before sleeping you see blue flashes because of space radiations, is that true?
7.  The TETRISS educational experiment of the students from the University Technology Institute of Toulouse should make it possible to visualize waves in 3D. Have you ever conducted an experiment like this?
8.  A deaf student has taken part in the development of the TETRIS experiment. What message would you like to deliver to hearing-impaired people who are enthusiastic about Space?
9.  We'd like to know if, as in the film Sergio and Sergei, you've already mistakenly received amateur radio signals from Earth in the ISS?
10. When preparing for your mission, did you have to put your family life on hold, and is it complicated to maintain it?
11. Did you hesitate and were you scared of going to space?
12. How do you live the fact of being so far from Earth?
13. During your missions in space, have you noticed an evolution of deforestation on Earth?
14. What are the qualities required to be an astronaut and be hired by the ESA?
15. If one day you have the opportunity to go to the Moon, what will be your first thought for your first step on the lunar soil?
16. For this mission, are you apprehensive about being the ISS captain?
17. Beyond being an astronaut, do you still have dreams
18. Do you feel the effects of solar flare in space?
19. Can you hear sounds the same as on Earth?
20. Do you have a model that inspired you for this job?

ARISS News Release                                                    No.   21-50  
Dave Jordan, AA4KN
ARISS PR
aa4kn@amsat.org
 
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
 
ARISS Contact is Scheduled for
Participants at SPDW Voortrekker Movement Camp, Oranjeville, South Africa
 
September 22, 2021—Amateur Radio on the International Space Station (ARISS) has received schedule confirmation for an ARISS radio contact with astronauts. ARISS is the group that puts together special amateur radio contacts between students around the globe and crew members with ham radio licenses on the International Space Station (ISS).
 
This will be a direct contact via amateur radio between participants at the SPDW Voortrekker Movement camp and Astronaut Akihiko Hoshide, amateur radio call sign KE5DNI. Youths will take turns asking their questions. Appropriate local Covid-19 protocols are adhered to as applicable for each ARISS contact. The downlink frequency for this contact is 145.800 MHZ and may be heard by listeners that are within the ISS-footprint that also encompasses the radio relay ground station.
 
Amateur radio operators in Oranjeville using the ZS9SPD call sign will operate the ham radio ground station for this contact.
 
The ARISS radio contact is scheduled for September 24, 2021 at 12:43 pm SAST (Oranjeville, SA), (10:43 UTC, 6:43 am EDT, 5:43 am CDT, 4:43 am MDT and 3:43 am PDT).
 
SPDW Voortrekker Movement (Voortrekkers) is an organization serving South Africa and Namibia youth ages 5 years up to 28 years. Voortrekkers offers an annual week-long camp with water activities and science-related courses and badges for Grade 1 to Grade 7. Space Observation is one of the badges/courses offered to the Grade 4s (30 children). About 260 children and 90 adults (instructors and mentors) from across 5 Provinces, are attending the camp. Youth in Grade 4 will be the most active participants in this ARISS contact; however, all of the children will be involved in many camp presentations and activities. Voortrekkers camp curriculum includes space observation, astronomy, and a simulated space habitation experience. During this camp event, youths are introduced to space & GPS technology and participate in a simulation of ISS (crew-to-ground) radio communication by making radio and CCTV communications with the “outside world”. Camp participants also can work toward their ham radio operator badge, and participate in a licensing ham radio course and badge work. Local amateur radio operators will provide radio equipment and support camp participants during the ARISS contact.
 
The public is invited to watch the live stream at: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E9qBhZBR9o0
_____________________________
 
As time allows, students will ask these questions:
 
1. I am absolutely stunned at the thought of spacewalking... Are you scared before you go out of the spaceship to do a spacewalk? How do you feel inside your heart and your mind after you have completed a spacewalk? Does your body feel different?
2. Do you have any free time and how do you spend it.
3. Do you really think human existence will be possible on Mars in the future?
4. With all the money spent on outer space, how does it make life better for people on Earth? 
5. What is the feeling you experienced while you were going up into space.
6. How do you prepare your food in space and where do you get water from to drink?
7. Where do you get the oxygen from to breath while you are up there?
8. Are there any changes to your body while you are up in space?
9. How do you navigate in space, where do you know where you are going? Do you use maps, compass or GPS?
10. What happens when any of the crew gets sick?
11. Can you take your phone into space and is there signal in space? How do you contact your family at home?
12. How do you sleep in space when you are always floating around?
13. You spend long hours/days/weeks away from earth. Do you ever feel down and depressed in space? What do you do to combat down/depressed feelings?
14. My siblings and I grow up in the same house, is taught the same set of rules, yet we seem to fight a lot. What difference do you experience with the different people on ISS? from different... Countries, Culture, Houses? Do you fight with each other?
15. How does a "very active" person on earth, adapt to a "sit in one place in a spaceship?
16. You try to grow produce on ISS. Did you taste it? Can you define the taste?
17. On the farm my dad uses cow dung to fertilize vegetables, do you use the poop in your vegetable garden?
18. In space there is a lot of stuff that was made by humans... e.g. satellites... In 2020 the planning is to add 12000 extra satellites in space...How often do you see items like these in space?
19. Do you think humans have polluted space?    

ARISS News Release                                                                           No. 21-49
 
ARISS Contact is Scheduled with Students at the Children’s National Hospital, Washington, DC, USA
 
September 18, 2021—Amateur Radio on the International Space Station (ARISS) has received schedule confirmation for an ARISS radio contact with astronauts. ARISS is the group that puts together special amateur radio contacts between students around the 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 from Children’s National Hospital. Children will take turns asking their questions of ISS Astronaut Akihiko Hoshide, amateur radio call sign KE5DNI, during the ARISS radio contact. Appropriate local Covid-19 protocols are adhered to as applicable for each ARISS contact. The downlink frequency for this contact is 145.800 MHZ and may be heard by listeners that are within the ISS-footprint that also encompasses the ARISS radio telebridge station.
 
The ARISS team in Casale Monferrato, Italy will use call sign IK1SLD to serve as the ARISS relay amateur radio ground station.
 
The ARISS 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’s National Hospital is a nationally ranked, pediatric acute care children's hospital located in Washington D.C. Children’s Hospital is not a school, however the hospital works with school districts to coordinate home and hospital teachers to provide an educational program for their patients. In this regard, the hospital’s purpose is to provide stimulating educational opportunities for students who must miss school due to illness or injury. Their educational goals include implementation of a STEAM curriculum for patients that encourages designing, inventing, and creating through real-world applications. 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 in programs that are broadcast directly to patient rooms. Seacrest Studios at Children’s National Hospital has been working closely with NASA and the Smithsonian Air and Space Museum while continuing to provide space and STEAM related programming to their patients and patients’ families. The hospital had also partnered with members of the local ham radio club in Alexandria, Virginia.

_______________________________
 
As time 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 is the 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 News Release                                                            No. 21-48       

Message to US Educators
Amateur Radio on the International Space Station Contact Opportunity
 
Call for Proposals
New Proposal Window is October 1st, 2021 to November 24th, 2021
 
Sept. 11, 2021 --- The Amateur Radio on the International Space Station (ARISS) Program is seeking formal and informal education institutions and organizations, individually or working together, to host an Amateur Radio contact with a crew member on board the ISS.  ARISS anticipates that the contact would be held between July 1, 2022 and December 31, 2022. Crew scheduling and ISS orbits will determine the exact contact dates. To maximize these radio contact opportunities, ARISS is looking for organizations that will draw large numbers of participants and integrate the contact into a well-developed education plan.
 
The deadline to submit a proposal is November 24th, 2021.  Proposal information and more details such as expectations, proposal guidelines and the proposal form can be found at https://ariss-usa.org/hosting-an-ariss-contact-in-the-usa/. An ARISS Introductory Webinar session will be held on October 7th, 2021 at 8 PM ET.  The Eventbrite link to sign up is: https://ariss-proposal-webinar-fall-2021.eventbrite.com
 
The Opportunity
Crew members aboard the International Space Station will participate in scheduled Amateur Radio contacts. These radio contacts are approximately 10 minutes in length and allow students to interact with the astronauts through a question-and-answer session.
 
An ARISS contact is a voice-only communication opportunity via Amateur Radio between astronauts and cosmonauts aboard the space station and classrooms and communities. ARISS contacts afford education audiences the opportunity to learn firsthand from astronauts what it is like to live and work in space and to learn about space research conducted on the ISS. Students also will have an opportunity to learn about satellite communication, wireless technology, and radio science. Because of the nature of human spaceflight and the complexity of scheduling activities aboard the ISS, organizations must demonstrate flexibility to accommodate changes in dates and times of the radio contact.
 
Amateur Radio organizations around the world with the support of NASA and space agencies in Russia, Canada, Japan and Europe present educational organizations with this opportunity. The ham radio organizations’ volunteer efforts provide the equipment and operational support to enable communication between crew on the ISS and students around the world using Amateur Radio. 
 
Please direct any questions to ariss.us.education@gmail.com .

ARISS News Release                                                                                No.   21-47  

Human Exploration and Operations Mission Directorate at NASA Recognizes ARISS Organization

September 3, 2021— Kathryn Lueders, Associate Administrator for Human Exploration and Operations Mission Directorate at NASA has posted a statement recognizing Amateur Radio On The International Space Station (ARISS) for its accomplishments in promoting STEM initiatives through amateur radio.
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NASA’s Space Communications and Navigation (SCaN) networks enable #NASA to inspire the next generation of scientists, engineers, and explorers – even from 350 kilometers above Earth.

In addition to connecting the science community on Earth with the groundbreaking research studies and experiments aboard the International Space Station, SCaN enables the space station to act as a unique platform for global STEM outreach and education efforts.  

For over 20 years, the Amateur Radio on the International Space Station (ARISS) program, a non-profit supported by SCaN, has connected classrooms on Earth with astronauts aboard the space station, allowing students to engage directly with astronauts in real-time. Using ham radio equipment installed on the space station and a ham radio station on the ground, students are able to establish a direct radio connection with the space station and ask the crew questions about living in space and what it takes to become an astronaut.  

In preparation for their ARISS contact, the students explore a variety of #STEM studies, including space exploration, radio communication, and wireless technologies. With tens of thousands of student participants each year, the ARISS program plays an important role in inspiring the Artemis Generation and encouraging students to pursue STEM careers.   

Learn more about the ARISS program and how you can bring space into your classroom here: www.ariss.org

ARISS News Release                                                 No.   21-46    
Dave Jordan, AA4KN
ARISS PR
aa4kn@amsat.org


ARISS Contact is Scheduled for Students at Carl Fuhlrott-Gymnasium, Wuppertal, Germany

August 19, 2021—Amateur Radio on the International Space Station (ARISS) has received schedule confirmation for an ARISS radio contact with astronauts. ARISS is the group that puts together special amateur radio contacts between students around the globe and crew members with ham radio licenses on the International Space Station (ISS).

This will be a direct contact via amateur radio between students at the Carl Fuhlrott-Gymnasium, and Astronaut Akihiko Hoshide, amateur radio call sign KE5DNI. Students will take turns asking their questions. Appropriate local Covid-19 protocols are adhered to as applicable for each ARISS contact. The downlink frequency for this contact is 145.800 MHZ and may be heard by listeners that are within the ISS-footprint that also encompasses the radio relay ground station.

Amateur radio operators, using the call sign DN1CFG will operate the ham radio ground station for this contact.

The ARISS radio contact is scheduled for August 23, 2021 at 9:54:53 am CEST (Wuppertal, DE), (7:54 UTC, 3:54 am EDT, 2:54 am CDT, 1:54 am MDT and 12:54 am PDT).

Carl-Fuhlrott-Gymnasium (CFG) (with students ages 10-19 years), provides curricula leading to the A-levels (“Abitur”), an exam which entitles their students to study any subject at any university. CFG is a certified European School and also certified as a MINT (STEM equivalent) excellence center. Their MINT/STEM curriculum includes courses in Astronomy and collaborates with Bergische Universität to provide astronomy training for students and teachers. Students’ extracurricular activities include using the school’s onsite astronomical observatory that has six telescopes (Celestron C11) and one Planewave CDK20. Amateur radio is also part of student activities with an onsite amateur radio station and planned activities that would involve studies in radio astronomy, and software defined radio. Students have participated in the launching and radio tracking of a high-altitude balloon flight and have used that experience to prepare for this ARISS contact.

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As time allows, students will ask these questions:

1.  How do you like being in space and what do you do all day?
2.  How do you brush your teeth up there? Can you take a shower?
3.  Do you live sustainably on the ISS?
4.  What do you do in your free time? I hope you have some at all.
5.  Do astronauts have privacy? How do you manage living with so many astronauts in a confined space?
6.  Does zero gravity and the remoteness of the station have any effects on your psyche?
7.  Are there any implicit rules among the astronauts and cosmonauts on the ISS?
8.  Did you take any personal items with you to remind you of your expedition?
9.  Where does the oxygen on the ISS come from? Is the photobioreactor experiment using algae still working and which usage could it have?
10.  How does an EVA-activity feel?
11. Have you ever experienced/seen anything that you could not explain scientifically?
12.  At our observatory, we have observed several exoplanets with the transition method. Do you also have experiments on sky observation on the ISS? Maybe even exoplanets?
13.  How optimistic are you while searching for black matter?
14.  How does zero gravity influence muscle building and muscle loss during and after your mission? Could you help influence this with muscle building drugs?
15.  Sufficient sleep forms the basis for an effective muscle build-up. Is it therefore necessary to prepare yourselves for sleeping in the Space station or do you need to get used to the conditions first
to get a restful sleep?
16.  What do you think of private companies building rockets for manned space flight instead of the national space agencies?
17.  Do you think it will be possible to live on Mars or on other planets until 2050, as Elon Musk plans to?
18.  Is CIMON-2 still with you on the ISS? What would you like a robot companion do for you?
19.  What are the advantages of cancer research in space? Are there already any benefits for patients on Earth?