ARISS Contact - Pinson Valley HS, Pinson, AL, direct via KN4BBD

Satellites & Observations ARISS Contacts
1

Pinson Valley HS, Pinson, AL, direct via KN4BBD
The ISS callsign is presently scheduled to be NA1SS
The scheduled astronaut is Ricky Arnold KE5DAU
Contact is a go for: Tue 2018-04-10 18:02:44 UTC 70 deg

Several stations were able to receive parts of the contact: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OpGFo-q5lzA

Congratulations and 73 to all!

Streaming video of contact: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OpGFo-q5lzA

More details about the contact from AMSAT-BB:

Click here for the details

An International Space Station school contact has been planned with participants at Pinson Valley HS, Pinson, AL on Apr. 10. The event is scheduled to begin at approximately 18:02 UTC. The duration of the contact is approximately 9 minutes and 30 seconds. The contact will be direct between NA1SS and KN4BBD. The contact should be audible over the state of Alabama 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.

Pinson Valley High School is located in Central Alabama near the city of Birmingham and is one of 57 schools in the Jefferson County School system. We are a very diverse school with approximately 1100 students in grades 9-12. At PVHS students have many options for academic programs and extracurricular involvement. We have opportunities for students to take Advanced Placement or Dual Enrollment classes, a growing career technical education academy, and a very popular fine arts academy. We hope that our participation in the ARISS contact will build an increased interest in STEAM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts, and Mathematics) course pathways. There are many sport teams for both male and female athletes. On December 8, 2017 our football team won the Alabama 6A State Championship, a first for our school. Our motto is “At Pinson Valley High School we promote achievement, respect, and success.” Go Indians!

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

  1. By having zero gravity, what type of exercises you have to do to keep your body from losing mass?

  2. What prompted your interest or love of space?

  3. Psychologically, what is the most challenging aspect of being in space?

  4. What type of research are you currently conducting on the ISS?

  5. When you receive food supplies in space can you make special request for certain foods?

  6. What can a high school student do now to prepare for a potential career in aerospace?

  7. How much education and training does an astronaut typically have?

  8. Theoretically could NASA power future rockets/spaceships via nuclear fusion, similar to the sun?

  9. What is the scariest part of space travel; the launch, living on the ISS, or re-entry?

  10. What happens if someone was to have a heart attack, get sick, or have another medical emergency in space?

  11. What is a typical day aboard the ISS like?

  12. Since the ISS hosts astronauts from different countries, what language is spoken aboard the ISS?

  13. Besides your family, what do you miss most about life on earth?

  14. What fuels the ISS?

  15. What kind of medical testing does an astronaut have to go through to be physically and mentally ready for duty?

  16. Can you easily communicate with your family members while you are aboard the ISS?

  17. What are some hazards in space?

  18. Have any organisms been born or conceived in space?

  19. What happens if a fire occurs on the ISS?

  20. Since you cannot really take a good shower in space, is the ISS smelly?

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Thank you & 73,
David - AA4KN