Successful
ARISS contact with School in Cesano Maderno, Italy
Monday,
October 7, 2013 at 07:48 UTC, i.e. 09:48 local time, students from Scuola Media Statale “Salvo D’Acquisto”, Cesano Maderno, Italy established ARISS contact with ESA astronaut
Luca Parmitano, KF5KDP onboard the International
Space Station. The astronaut operated with the ISS callsign
NA1SS. This was a telebridge contact performed by
Amateur radio ground station VK6MJ, located in Western Australia.
Event
was especially requested by space agencies ESA and ASI. Salvo D’Acquisto Middle School is located in the centre of Cesano Maderno, not far from Monza (Milano). There are 558
students and 59 teachers, but there is only one class (26 students) that will
be involved in the project. These students are thirteen years old and they will
be attending the third and final year of middle school.
Gianpietro
Ferrario IZ2GOJ, ARISS mentor and radio contact
coordinator, managed for a telebridge contact from
the school in Cesano Maderno,
assisted by the ARISS Lombardia Team. The questions
were read by students at school. More than 150 students, parents, visitors and
media attended the event (indirect attendance about 200 people).
The
contact with NA1SS was established by VK6MJ in Western Australia at 07.48 UTC,
09:48 local time. Telebridge station operator Martin Diggens,
introduced the contact and astronaut Luca Parmitano
answered 15 questions, before LOS at question 16. Signal from the ISS was loud
and clear until LOS.
Local
Television and newspapers covered the event. Streaming video available here:
http://youtu.be/rn8jAXsNa8s
Congratulations
to VK6MJ and ARISS Lombardia Teams!
73
Gianpietro Ferrario,
IZ2GOJ
ARISS Mentor
