[Boringiss] More ISS news

[Tree N6TR]

==>ARISS LOGS TWO MORE SUCCESSFUL SCHOOL CONTACTS

Astronaut Dan Bursch, KD5PNU, aboard the International Space Station this
week took time out of a busier-than-usual schedule to answer questions via
ham radio from an enthusiastic throng of elementary schoolers. The April
16 contact with Quogue School on New York's Long Island gave 10 youngsters
a chance to pose 17 questions to Bursch. On April 11, astronaut Carl Walz,
KC5TIE, was interviewed via ham radio by youngsters at Caribbean
Preparatory School in Puerto Rico. Both contacts with NA1SS were arranged
through the Amateur Radio on the International Space Station--or
ARISS--program.

"We don't get a whole lot of free time," Bursch acknowledged in response
to a question from Emily Hubbard at Quogue School. "Right now the
shuttle's docked, and we pretty much have no free time." A crowd of some
120 classmates and some 100 parents and other guests gathered in the
school's auditorium to witness the Earth-to-space ham radio interview.

Sixth grader Colleen McKennet wanted to know how the crew got streaming
video from Earth. Bursch replied that the crew used ProShare
teleconferencing software aboard the ISS. Jared Carpenter wanted to know
what DVDs the crew liked to watch. "Probably a mixture of comedy and
action films," was Bursch's reply.

Third grader Sara Garcia asked what foods would not be good in space.
Bursch explained that the worst foods were "anything that's crumbly" like
cookies, because the crumbs float around and get into everything.

Shouts and cheers erupted from the audience after signals from the ISS
faded over the North Atlantic horizon. "We did it!," coordinating teacher
Roberta Keis, N2RBU, said after the excitement died down a bit. Keis said
when the contact was over, the kids enjoyed one of the very foods not on
the ISS menu--cookies! The post-contact celebration concluded
several-months of classroom emphasis on space-related topics.

Members of the Peconic Amateur Radio Club set up the ground-station and
antennas. ARRL Hudson Division Director Frank Fallon, N2FF, was on hand
for the event. A WorldCom teleconferencing circuit carried audio to
various listeners; ARISS International Chairman Frank Bauer, KA3HDO,
listened in while from Washington, DC. Audio also went out via the IRLP
(Internet Repeater Linking Project).

On April 11, students attending the Caribbean Preparatory School in San
Juan, Puerto Rico, successfully completed Puerto Rico's first ARISS
contact. Earth-station support came from the Puerto Rico DX Club and local
amateurs, including Gladys Muņoz, NP3BY, a physics teacher at the school,
Oscar Resto, KP4RF, and Angel Padilla, WP4G.

During the contact, 10 students were able to talk with Walz. As newspaper
and TV reporters, fellow students and teachers looked on, the Caribbean
Prep students asked questions that ranged from serious inquiries about
space exploration to "What do you do with your dirty underwear?"

"Carl answered every question with great enthusiasm," said ARRL Puerto
Rico Section Manager Victor Madera, KP4PQ, who added that downlink audio
was easy to copy. "During the approximately 10-minute contact, you could
hear a pin drop in the packed auditorium." Students and visitors concluded
the event with a standing ovation, Madera said.

ARISS is an international project, with US participation by ARRL, AMSAT
and NASA.--Gene Chapline, K5YFL; Victor Madera, KP4PQ