TULSA KIDS TALK DIRECTLY TO SPACE STATION ASTRONAUTS

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Tulsa, OK - Wednesday, December 22, 2004.

QST QST QST:        Tulsa Oklahoma ISS CONTACT MADE 5x9 !!!!!!

With the help of MANY hours of work and planning from Bill Griffin NI5X
and Keith Pugh W5IU of AMSAT there was a successful contact between
students at the Tulsa Air & Space Museum and the International Space
Station, as it sailed 250 miles above Tulsa on the morning of Wednesday
Dec 22nd, 2004.

Bill began calling NA1ISS this is WA5LVT and right about 9:12 am CST
CONTACT!   The kids were able to work in all 20 questions as well as
wishing the ISS crew a Merry Christmas.  WOW!

There was lots of media on hand KTUL-ABC TV, KOTV-CBS TV, FOX23 TV, The
Tulsa World, Broken Arrow Ledger and CQ Magazine.  Job well done by
everyone who played a part in this important project.  Thanks!

73 Mark Conklin N7XYO
President Tulsa Repeater Organization,
Public Information Coordinator
ARRL Oklahoma Section
n7xyo@arrl.net

MORE:

TULSA KIDS TALK DIRECTLY TO SPACE STATION ASTRONAUTS

Tulsa, OK - Local residents are invited to watch ten students in third
through twelth grade talk directly to American Commander Leroy Chiao
KE5BRW and Russian Flight Engineer Salizhan Sharipov. Both are in space
aboard the International Space Station, 250 miles above the earth and
circling every 90 minutes.

On Wednesday, December 22 from 9:12 - 9:22 AM CDT, students from Tulsa,
Broken Arrow and Austin, Texas talked directly to these astronauts via
amateur radio from the Tulsa Air and Space Museum. The students who were
selected to ask questions attended the Tulsa Air and Space Museum's summer
aerospace camps.

With the help of Amateur Radio Clubs and ham radio operators, these youth
joined students from nineteen other countries in 156 completed space
link-ups to ask questions of the Expedition 10 astronauts for a first hand
learning experience involving science and technology. The goal was to
stimulate their imaginations as to the possibilities of space exploration
and scientific discovery.

The radio link is sponsored by an international program known as ARISS,
Amateur Radio on the International Space Station.  As one might imagine
there are many partners who make it possible to link a child in Tulsa to
an astronaut in space, the American Radio Relay League (ARRL), the Radio
Amateur Satellite Corporation (AMSAT), and the National Aeronautics and
Space Administration (NASA) take care of the space to earth transmissions.

For the local connection, the Tulsa Air and Space Museum worked in
cooperation with members of the Tulsa Repeater Organization (TRO), and
AMSAT to arrange this contact between students at the museum and the Space
Station via amateur radio. Bill Griffin N5IX with TRO of Tulsa and Keith
Pugh W5IU with AMSAT of Fort Worth, TX is responsible for the actual
installation of the required equipment at the Museum.
Kim Jones, the Museum Curator, and Mark Conklin N7XYO, TRO President and
ARRL-Oklahoma Public Information Coordinator, started making this project become
a reality over two and a half years ago.

Since many teachers will be out on break for the holiday, Katheryn
Pennington, TASM Executive Director, says she hopes to see some extra
visitors at the radio link.

According to Pennington, "Statistics prove learning and retaining
knowledge improves for children when they are personally involved.  The
questions the children ask and the answers they receive not only have the
ability to broaden their horizons but also impact those who observe the
link. With this knowledge, teachers and parents can further assist
children in their understanding of the relationship of life on
earth and how it relates to life in space, expanding this experience by
relating it to science, geography, history, and physics."

Participating students include: Lawrence Ross, William Bloomfield, Chelsie
Downie, Chase Karnstadt, Ryan Darrow, Kyler Swearingen, Lauren Olten,
Wyatt Bonicelli, and Robert Nolan.


The Tulsa Air and Space Museum is a nonprofit 501(c)(3)organization. Visit
the website at www.TulsaAirAndSpaceMuseum.com .

For more info about Tulsa Amateur Radio see www.TulsaHamRadio.org

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

Do the G-forces from leaving the earth's atmosphere cause you to have
little red spots on your face that we kids call G-measles?
How much of the International Space Station is complete and what is the
expected life?
What does one day in the space station look like?
Is it hot or cold up there?
What do you think the benefits are of civilian space travel?
Do you foresee civilians ever visiting the ISS?
Has any space junk or meteor pieces ever hit the space station?
Are there shadows in space?
How is the physical training different at NASA than from the military?
What would your advice be for an aspiring astronaut?
Can you see storms that happen on earth?
Do you have to use parachutes to slow down after going through the earth's
atmosphere to land?
What is the physical impact of a zero gravity environment on you over a
long period of time and how do you deal with this when you return to
Earth?
What is the scariest or most dangerous thing that you do?
What happens to a human body if it were put into space as a burial choice?
Is it worth all of the time, effort, etc. to become an astronaut?
What is it like working with someone from another country for a long time?
What kind of foods do you like to eat in space?
What do you do for exercise?
What has been the most interesting experiment you have gotten to work on
in the station?
Is it fun floating and how does it make your body feel?

###

Thanks to:
Bill Griffin - NI5X
Keith Pugh - W5IU
Mark Conklin - N7XYO
Kathryn Pennington - TASM Executive Director
Tulsa Air and Space Museum (TASM)
and of course all the young people of
the TASM aerospace camp.

###

Tulsa, OK - The Tulsa Air and Space Museum (TASM) aspires to inspire possibilities by stimulating imaginations while valuing knowledge. With the help of Amateur Radio Clubs and ham radio operators, area youth will be inspired on Wednesday, December 22, 2004. Students from the museum's aerospace camp will ask questions of the Expedition 10 astronauts on the International Space Station. USA astronaut Leroy Chiao KE5BRW will speak to ten students while circling the earth every 90 minutes from 250 miles above the earth. The actual audio link will last approximately ten minutes and will begin at 10:12AM CST. The museum will be open free to the public from 9:00AM to 10:00AM.

 ARISS is a program where the astronauts talk directly with large groups of the general public, showing teachers, students, parents, and communities how Amateur Radio energizes youngsters about science, technology, and learning. Previously known as SAREX, the Space Amateur Radio Experiment is now called ARISS, Amateur Radio on the International Space Station. The National Association provides sponsorship for this program for Amateur Radio, the American Radio Relay League (ARRL), the Radio Amateur Satellite Corporation (AMSAT), and the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA). Information on ARISS is available at http://www.rac.ca/ariss/oindex.htm

TASM is working in cooperation with members of the Tulsa Repeater Organization, and AMSAT to arrange this contact between students at the museum and the Space Station via amateur radio. Kim Jones, the Museum Curator, and Mark Conklin, TRO President and ARRL-Oklahoma Public Information Coordinator, have been working on this project for over two years. The ISS contact will establish a connection between the children and astronauts and stimulate their imaginations as to the possibilities of space exploration and scientific discovery. TRO website is www.TulsaHamRadio.org.

Katheryn Pennington, TASM Executive Director, said, "Statistics prove learning and retaining knowledge improve for children when they are personally involved. The audio linkup will broaden their horizons, giving them a new perspective of space living and exploration. Teachers can expand this experience by relating it to science, geography, history, and physics. Children can explore the relationship of life on earth and how it relates to life in space."

TASM is housed in one of the original Tulsa Municipal Airport hangars provided by Spartan College of Aeronautics and Technology. The museum is dedicated to preserving not just Green Country's aviation history, but Tulsa 's rich aerospace history as well. The Tulsa Air and Space Museum will relocate to a new state-of-the-art facility on 17.8 acres on the north side of the Tulsa International Airport in 2005. Included will be an electric sky planetarium theater to emphasize science and space.

The museum is open daily, but closed major holidays. For times of operation and admission fees, visit the website at www.TulsaAirAndSpaceMuseum.com for details.



Mark Conklin - N7XYO