ARISS CONTACT FOR ESA ASTRONAUT PAOLO NESPOLI,
IZ0JPA AND “MACCIONI” SCHOOL, SUCCESSFUL
Friday, 29 April, 2011 at 15:46 UTC, which is
17.46 local time, "Maccioni" middle school, Nuoro, Italy, established
a ARISS contact with Italian astronaut PAOLO NESPOLI,
IZ0JPA on board the International Space Station. Astronaut NESPOLI operated
with the special Italian callsign IR0ISS that he will use during his mission.
This was a telebridge contact by ARISS ground station IK1SLD located in
Piemonte, North Italy.
The secondary school "M.A. Maccioni"
located on the outskirts of the Nuoro, is attended by
about 500 students. The school has a big theatre, a gym, four media rooms and
three classroom with multiple blackboards. Students
and teachers are very interested in scientific and especially astronomy topics.
During the Spring Festival, in collaboration with the school, the Astronomical
Association of Nuoro organized a day devoted to sun observation. In this
context, the ARISS School Contact is an excellent opportunity for the students
to extend the activities previously undertaken by the teachers and the members
of the association for the study of astronomy and space conquest.
ARISS mentor Francesco De Paolis, IK0WGF
proposed a telebridge contact to Mr. Tommaso
Settanni ISØMRA , coordinator for this
ARISS event. The questions were read by the students at school with an audience
of more than 200 officers students, teachers, visitors
and media. The signal from the ISS was loud and clear all along the contact.
At 15:46 UTC contact with IRØISS was
established by station IK1SLD. Astronaut Paolo NESPOLI answered 17 questions
and greetings exchanged in closing of the contact.
ARISS contact was announced by web story on ESA
Portal - National News:
http://www.esa.int/esaCP/SEMDH2ZGRMG_Italy_0.html
Congratulations to ISØMRA and IK1SLD Team !
73
Francesco
De Paolis, IK0WGF
ARISS mentor