[Michlib-l] Traverse Area District Library Selected to Host Amateur Radio Contact with ISS

[Matthew Wiliford]

News Release


FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Traverse Area District Library Selected to Host Amateur Radio Contact with
the International Space Station.

April 24, 2019 (Traverse City) - The Traverse Area District Library (TADL)
is pleased to announce their selection by the ARISS-US Team (Amateur Radio
on the International Space Station) to host an amateur radio contact with
International Space Station (ISS) crew members using the ARISS equipment on
the ISS. This is a once in a lifetime experience made possible by the
Amateur Radio community in cooperation with NASA.

While planning for the 2019 Summer Reading Club program last fall, TADL
staff and administrators learned about the opportunity to submit a proposal
to make radio contact with the ISS which aligned with this year’s reading
program theme: A Universe of Stories. The TADL Summer Reading Club program
is open to readers of all ages, infants to adults, and begins on June 17,
2019.

Proposals were submitted in late November 2018. A review team of teachers
from the ARISS-US Education Committee selected proposals and TADL was among
the thirteen schools or organizations, announced in early February 2019
<http://www.ariss.org/press-releases/february-5-2019>, to advance to the
next stage of planning to host amateur radio contacts from July to December
2019. The final stage of planning was approved by ARISS in late March.

TADL is preliminarily scheduled to host the radio contact at the Main
Library (Traverse City) location during the last week of June 24-30, 2019.
Considering orbital constraints and ISS crew schedules, the final date and
time of the radio contact will not be confirmed by NASA until one week
ahead of the contact week. The radio contact will be approximately 10
minutes in length due to the radio communication window permitted by the
logistics of orbital passes of the ISS. The radio contact will be supported
by TADL Information Technology staff, members of the local Cherryland
Amateur Radio Club (CARC), and ARISS mentors.

In preparation for the radio contact with the crew on the ISS, TADL is
holding an “Ask an Astronaut” contest. Children, teens, and adults are
invited to submit an entry form indicating what question they would like to
ask an astronaut and why they want to ask that question. Questions should
focus on applying science, technology, engineering and math in space
research. Submissions begin on Monday, May 6 and close on May 22. The top
questions, as selected by library staff, will be announced in late May.
Students will be selected to interact directly with astronauts and
cosmonauts during the radio communication window using a question and
answer format at the June event. Stop by any TADL location or visit
TADL.org to learn more.


About TADL
The Traverse Area District Library (TADL), a network of community
libraries, is a district library funded by a dedicated countywide millage.
Within the district there are six public library facilities supported by
the district millage. They are the Main Library (Traverse City), East Bay
Branch Library, Kingsley Branch Library, and member libraries Fife Lake
Public Library, Interlochen Public Library, and Peninsula Community
Library. The Traverse Area District Library provides dynamic resources and
innovative services to stimulate intellectual curiosity, facilitate
lifelong learning, promote literacy, and nurture personal enrichment. Learn
more at www.tadl.org .

About ARISS

Amateur Radio on the International Space Station (ARISS) is a cooperative
venture of international amateur radio societies and the space agencies
that support the International Space Station (ISS).  In the United States,
sponsors are the Radio Amateur Satellite Corporation (AMSAT), the American
Radio Relay League (ARRL), the Center for the Advancement of Science in
Space (CASIS) and National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA). The
primary goal of ARISS is to promote exploration of science, technology,
engineering, and mathematics (STEM) topics by organizing scheduled contacts
via amateur radio between crew members aboard the ISS and students in
classrooms or public forums. Before and during these radio contacts,
students, educators, parents, and communities learn about space, space
technologies, and amateur radio. For more information, see www.ariss.org.

What is Amateur Radio?

Amateur, or “Ham,” Radio, is a popular service and hobby in which federally
licensed participants operate communication equipment. There are over
700,000 licensed amateurs and nearly 2,300 ARRL-affiliated Amateur Radio
clubs in the United States. Hams talk to each other across town, around the
world, and even into space without the need for normal communications
infrastructure, such as cell phone networks or the Internet. Amateur Radio
is regularly used during natural disasters to help local emergency and
service agencies (such as the Red Cross, Salvation Army, and state and
local governments) respond when normal communication methods are disrupted.
The Amateur Radio community is a great source of electronics
experimentation, public service, and fun. Learn more about local amateur
radio with the Cherryland Amateur Radio Club http://cherrylandarc.com/

###



Matthew Wiliford

Marketing & Communications Manager

Traverse Area District Library

610 Woodmere Avenue

Traverse City, MI 49686

231.932.8501 | www.tadl.org
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