ARRLWeb: Games Astronauts Play in Space Among ISS Ham Radio Contact Topics

Minutes before the Boulder Hill Elementary School contact with the ISS, members of the Fox River Radio League work to get the gear ready. ARISS Mentor Charlie Sufana, AJ9N (center), is in the thick of the action.

At Boulder Hill Elementary School, Rachel asks her question of Suni Williams, KD5PLB.

Members of the Boulder Hill Elementary School ham radio club listen to a playback of their contact with the ISS.

ISS Expedition 14: Suni Williams, KD5PLB; Mike Lopez-Alegria, KE5GTK, and Mikhail Tyurin, RZ3FT. [NASA Photo]

Students at Mission Viejo High School await the start of their ARISS contact with ISS Commander Mike Lopez-Alegria, KE5GTK.

Mission Viejo students shout out a "thank you" at the conclusion of their contact.

NEWINGTON, CT, Mar 14, 2007 -- ISS Expedition 14 Commander Mike Lopez-Alegria, KE5GTK, and Flight Engineer Suni Williams, KD5PLB, recently discussed their experiences in space with students at two schools. The Amateur Radio on the International Space Station (ARISS) program arranged the direct VHF contacts with Boulder Hill Elementary School in Montgomery, Illinois, March 6, and with Mission Viejo High School, in Mission Viejo, California, March 9. Williams told the youngsters at Boulder Hill that the dress code in space is strictly informal.

"People don't understand that up here it's just like being in your house," Williams explained, "so we can wear a T-shirt and shorts or a pair of pants if it gets a little bit cool." She pointed out that crew members need to wear pressure suits during launch and spacesuits when working outside the space station.

Among activities the crew engages in for recreation involves something resembling a food fight in microgravity. Williams said crew members "throw food and see how long we can throw it through one part of the module to the next without hitting anything." Throwing in microgravity is interesting, she said, because the tendency is to throw slightly upward "because you're used to gravity." As a result, she added, "you usually hit the ceiling."

As for the food itself, Williams -- after a moment's hesitation -- rated it merely as "okay," adding that the space cuisine "sort of just gets old after a while because I've been up here three months, and the menu is starting to repeat." The Boulder Hill contact was Williams' 12th ARISS event.

As NA1SS and the school's club station W9BHB established communication, Williams surprised teacher Maureen Jorgensen, greeting the soon-to-be retiree by name. W9BHB control operator John Spasojevich, K9COE, said it marked the high point in Jorgensen's 35-year career. "Our retiring teacher is still in orbit," he remarked afterward.

With between 600 and 700 parents, teachers and fellow pupils looking on, each of the 23 participating youngsters got to ask a question during the pass. At least one newspaper reported on the contact the following day. Assisting Spasojevich with Earth station duties were members of the Fox River Radio League (FRRL). Spasojevich and Greg Braun, N9CHA, mentored the youngsters in the school's ham radio club for the past year and a half.

Commented School Superintendent David Behlow in a note to Spasojevich after the event: "What a great day for our kids, Boulder Hill, the radio club, parents and the community!"

CLICK HERE to listen to the ARISS contact between ISS Flight Engineer Suni Williams, KD5PLB, and youngsters at Boulder Hill Elementary School. [10:02, MP3] ARRL thanks the Fox River Radio League for making this audio clip available.

CLICK HERE to listen to the ARISS contact between ISS Expedition 14 Commander Mike Alegria, KE5GTK, and students at Mission Viejo High School. [8:15, MP3] ARRL thanks the University of California -- Irvine Amateur Radio Club for making this audio clip available.

On March 9, Lopez-Alegria took questions from students at his alma mater, Mission Viejo High School. After an abortive attempt to complete the contact between NA1SS and K6UCI at the school a day earlier, ARISS was able to reschedule it promptly. Lopez-Alegria answered 13 questions during the approximately eight-minute pass, along the way offering some thoughts on how he became an astronaut.

"Y'know, I was a guy who was not really good at anything, but pretty good at a lot of things, and I think that's what an astronaut is . . . is a generalist," Lopez-Alegria said. "And I feel I wasn't going to make my mark in the world by inventing a cure for cancer or becoming a professional athlete or anything that took a lot of talent, but I thought I could parlay some of my talents into something good, along with having a lot of fun. So that's what kind of did it for me."

Lopez-Alegria told the high schoolers, "Space is better than I thought it would be," and he said he'd do it all over again if he had the opportunity. The contact marked his fourth ARISS event, which was mentored by Kerry Banke, N6IZW. Members of the South Orange Amateur Radio Association (SOARA) and the University of California -- Irvine Amateur Radio Club (K6UCI) handled Earth station duties for the Mission Viejo QSO. Matt Bennett, KF6RTB, was the K6UCI control operator.

A model United Nations School, Mission Viejo High School used its ARISS QSO to help teach a module on negotiation, communication and conflict resolution with others around the world.

ARISS is an international educational outreach, with US participation by ARRL, AMSAT and NASA.