ARISS contact for Astronomy Festival in France audible in Europe

An International Space Station contact is planned for Fleurance Astronomy Festival, College H. Reeves, Fleurance, France. The event is scheduled for Friday August 14 at 19:42 UTC, which is 21:42 CEST. This will be a telebridge radio contact between RS0ISS and IK1SLD.

The signals from space will be audible in Europe on 145.800MHz FM.

Fleurance is a small town located in the South-West of France near Toulouse, in the Gers department, with about 7000 inhabitants. One of the main specialties of this city is the French gastronomy, and especially everything made from duck (e.g. french foie gras, duck magret) and melon. In terms of beverages, Gers is the home region of Armagnac (french alcohol made from white wine), Floc de Gascogne (made from Armagnac and grape must) and Pousse-Rapiére (made from Armagnac and a kind of Champagne).

Since 1991, the French Astronomy Festival takes place in August in Fleurance where more than 10.000 people attend this summer event, the largest European festival on astronomy and space topics. More than 50 international researchers as well as astronauts are welcomed and give lectures to everyone coming to the festival over the week. Since 2006, Astro-jeunes, a kids festival, is organized during the same week, and welcomes more than 200 children per day to unveil them the mysteries of our Universe and the Space conquest history. A dozen of children from this festival and the Fleurance high-school "Hubert Reeves" (sponsor of the Festival) have prepared this contact both with their physics and English teachers.

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

1. Melissa (13): How are you? How do you feel today?

2. Mathilde (14): Which time zone do you use?

3. Yohan (13): Which scientific experiments are you working at the moment?

4. Typhaine (13): What's the latest big problem you have experienced?

5. Mickaela (14): What did you feel during take-off?

6. Marwan (13): How often do you go out of the station?

7. Julien (13): Do you do your own laundry, if yes, how?

8. Baptiste (13): What can you do if you have health problems?

9. Jean (14): What do you eat?

10. Elodie (14): Do you look forward to going back on Earth?

11. Zoe (13): What do you fear the most in the Station?

12. Jules (13): Is there day and night in space?

13. Mateo (14): Do you have internet access in the station?

14. Yohan (13): Do nails and hair still grow in space?

ARISS is an international educational outreach program partnering the volunteer support and leadership from AMSAT and IARU societies around the world with the ISS space agencies partners: NASA, Russian Space Agency, ESA, CNES, JAXA, and CSA.

ARISS offers an opportunity for students to experience the excitement of Amateur Radio by talking directly with crewmembers on-board 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-Europe chairman