International Space Station Commander Bill McArthur KC5ACR. Image Credit: NASA

GB2FPS Furtherwick Park School International Space Station Contact

Students at Furtherwick Park School on Canvey Island in Essex put questions to astronaut Commander Bill McArthur KC5ACR as he passed overhead on board the International Space Station.

At precisely 17:47 GMT, as the Space Station rose above the horizon from the West, sixteen students had less than ten minutes to have the opportunity to pose their questions before the spacecraft set to the East.

Not only were the students able to listen to the astronaut's answers live, but many were able to watch the ISS in the sky as it orbited over the school at a speed of 17,500mph.

As the students talk with the astronaut, they could also see it as it passed over

Student Devon Brown asked "What is your favourite music". Bill McArthur KC5ACR replied that he enjoys a wide range of music from Bach to the Beatles to Garth Brooks:
"I'm a big Beatles fan. We're going to have live music on board the Space Station on Sunday morning from one of Sir Paul McCartney's concerts."

Photo above: Janice Ilston, who had the initial idea for the space chat, with some of the lucky students

Stevie-Anne Flynn asked the astronaut about how the astronauts would manage if communications to Earth failed.
Bill answered that not only is there a VHF backup radio, but also the amateur radio equipment can be used if the other systems failed.

In 1997, British born astronaut Mike Foale frequently used the on-board amateur radio equipment to communicate with earth and send emails to his family after a Progress supply ship collided into the Mir space station.

Despite a nail biting 30 seconds when contact was temporarily lost half way through the schedule, radio operator Dave Speechley G4UVJ used his skills to successfully fully regain communications.

ARISS is the organisation that coordinates between schools and NASA for live student talks with astronauts on board the International Space Station. Howard Long, the United Kingdom ARISS representative said: "This is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity for students to chat directly to the astronauts in their working environment. I am sure that they will never forget the experience."

Howard Long the ARISS UK Coordinator can be contacted on +44 (0)771 076 3670

Audio of the contact:
http://www.g6lvb.com/images/furtherwickcut32kbps24khz.mp3 (2.4Mb).

The ARISS (Europe) organisation:
http://www.ariss-eu.org/

The International Space Station
http://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/station/main/index.html

Astronaut Bill McArthur http://www.jsc.nasa.gov/Bios/htmlbios/mcarthur.html