August 21, 2009

ARISS CONTACT PLANNED WITH URANIA OBSERVATORY, BELGIUM

An International Space Station school contact has been planned with participants at Volkssterrenwacht Urania, Hove, Antwerp, Belgium, on 24 August. The event is scheduled to begin at approximately 11:30 UTC, which is 13:30 CEST.

The contact will be a telebridge between NA1SS and VK4KHZ. The contact is expected to be conducted in Dutch.

The ARISS contact will be distributed on EchoLink *AMSAT* and *JK1ZRW* conference servers, as well as on IRLP Discovery Channel 9010.

Flanders has five public observatories involved in the discovery of the wonderful world of astronomy. Urania is one of them. During antiquity, Urania was the Astronomy Muse. Today, Urania is trying to inspire people with astronomy and side sciences such as meteorology and astronautics. You can thus choose between a whole range of activities and services: lessons for beginners and experienced, guided tours of the observatory, an extended documentation center, various publications, stargazing evenings, conferences, Urania Mobile (Flanders' first mobile observatory) and the astroshop. This "Space Talk" will boost activities at the start of the new season.  

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

1.Dries. Wat ging er in je om vlak voor je vertrek?

What was your feeling just before launch?

2.Marie. Waar ben je eigenlijk het liefst, op aarde of in de ruimte?

Where do you prefer to be, on earth or in space?

3.Emma. Slaapt jij in de ruimte ook als wij hier in België slapen?

Do you sleep in space the same way we do on earth?

4.Pieter. Kunnen jullie in de ruimte even goed ruiken en smaken als op de aarde?

Can you smell and taste in space as well as on earth?

5.Kevin. Wordt er aan boord van het ISS nog steeds gewerkt met een solid fuel oxygen generator?

Do you still use a solid fuel oxygen generator aboard ISS?

6.Ruben. Zitten er in het ISS vliegen of muggen?

Are there flies or mosquitos in the ISS?

7.Dries. Wat eten jullie allemaal in de ruimte?

What do you eat in space?

8.Eva. Heb je veel planeten gezien?

Did you see lots of planets?

9.Emma. Zie je sterren naast de zon?

Can you see stars close to the sun?

10.Delphine-Marie. Is er ooit al een glazen voorwerp gebroken in het ISS?

Has glass ever been broken aboard the ISS?

11.Dries. Waarom kan je zweven in het ruimtestation?

Why can you float abord the space station?

12.Manou. Kan je van daarboven zien of het bij ons bliksemt ? En wat zie je dan ?

Can you see from space if there are thunderstorms on earth? What do you see?

13.Andreas. Hoe kan jij je douchen in het ruimtestation als het water er gewoon gaat rondzweven?

How can you take a shower in the space station, where water will float around?

14.Jonas. Hoe kom je meningsverschillen met leden van de bemanning tegemoet?

How do you handle disagreements with other crew members?

15.Wout. Voel je de trillingen tijdens de lancering van de raket?

Did you feel vibrations during the rocket launch?

16.Yuna. Als we naar planeten kunnen reizen, naar welke zou je het liefst gaan en waarom?

If we could travel to planets, which one would you prefer to visit, why?

17.Thomas. Hoe mooi is de Aarde, wat ziet u allemaal?

How beautiful is the earth? What do you see actually?

18.Rik. Wat doe je met je afval? Neem je dat terug mee naar de aarde of gooi je dat in de ruimte?

What do you do with waste? Do you take it back to earth or do you get rid of it in space?

19. Luna. Wat gebeurd er als een astronaut zwaar gekwetst wordt en bloed?

What happens if an astronaut gets severely hurt and is bleeding?

20. Manou. Wat gebeurt er als een stuk metaal tegen het ISS botst?

What happens if a piece of metal impacts the ISS?

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 onboard 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.

73

Gaston Bertels, ON4WF

ARISS Chairman