Physician and astronaut Dr Ellen Baker, KB5SIX, spoke to a group of Toronto middle school students May 1 as part of International Space Day 2003. [NASA Photo]
NEWINGTON, CT, May 6, 2003--Although the contact was across an international border instead of across the frontier of space, students still experienced the thrill of talking to an astronaut via Amateur Radio May 1 during NASA's International Space Day 2003 celebration. A second terrestrial student-astronaut amateur contact is set for May 14.
Physician and astronaut Dr Ellen Baker, KB5SIX, spoke to a group of Toronto middle school students May 1 as part of International Space Day 2003. [NASA Photo] |
From Johnson Space Center's W5RRR club station in Houston, Texas, US astronaut Dr Ellen Baker, KB5SIX, completed a 30-minute contact with students at the Ontario Science Centre's club station VE3OSC in Toronto. More than 300 ninth-graders packed the center to celebrate Space Day. In addition to the ham contact with Baker, the students experienced hand-on activities, heard guest speakers and a saw variety of space-related movies and displays. Thirty students also participated in a Challenger Center lab project.
An astronaut since June 1985, Baker, 50, participated in a similar International Space Day contact two years ago. A physician and a veteran of shuttle missions in 1989, 1992 and 1995, Baker has logged nearly 700 hours in space. She now serves as lead astronaut for medical issues and the astronaut representative to the education working group at Johnson Space Center.
Listening in on the 17-meter contact were students at Richards Middle School in Lawrenceville, Georgia, one of the pilot schools of the ARRL Amateur Radio Education and Technology Program ("The Big Project"). Teacher Sharon Carter, KG4HKO, said her class was just started studying the electromagnetic spectrum last week.
"I was planning to introduce the various aspects of the spectrum and tie in Amateur Radio," she said. "Wow, did I get more than I could have hoped for, as my students had the opportunity to listen in on the conversation. The HF reception was great!" Carter said she couldn't conceive of a more dynamic way to get youngsters interested in a new topic. As a result of their experience, several of her students asked about the school's after-school radio club.
 Barbara Morgan, KD5VNP, is scheduled to speak with Canadian high school students on May 14 via Amateur Radio. Morgan is NASA's first Educator Astronaut. [Photo by NASA] |
On May 14, the Ontario Science Centre will host another group of secondary school students who have been studying microgravity and space flight for an amateur HF contact. At the other end of the circuit in Houston will be astronaut Barbara Morgan, KD5VNP, NASA's Teacher in Space designee and a mission specialist. NASA also is experimenting with audio linking over the Internet to make such contacts available to the widest possible student audience. (The NASA Quest Web site has more information.)
An elementary school teacher since 1974, Morgan, 48, was selected as the backup candidate for the NASA Teacher in Space Program in 1985. Her duties as include public speaking, educational consulting, curriculum design and serving on the National Science Foundation's Federal Task Force for Women and Minorities in Science and Engineering.
Selected as NASA's first Educator Astronaut, Morgan reported to the Johnson Space Center in August 1998. Following the completion of two years of training and evaluation, she was assigned technical duties in the Astronaut Office Space Station Operations Branch. More recently she served in the Astronaut Office CAPCOM Branch, working in Mission Control as prime communicator with on-orbit crews. Morgan is assigned to the crew of shuttle mission STS-118--slated to launch in November 2003, although it's not clear at this point if the US orbiter fleet will be back in space by then.
Established in 1997, International Space Day is observed each
year on the first Thursday in May. This year's tribute
to aerospace exploration honored the previous 100 years of
aviation accomplishments while celebrating "The Future of Flight."
Space Day seeks to inspire the next generation of inventors, aviators
and explorers. The non-profit Space Day Foundation supports the
initiative.
 Previous: Amateurs Respond in Deadly Storms' Aftermath |  Next: Amateurs Continue Tornado Relief-Recovery Support |