On Wednesday, March 21, students at Salem Elementary in Apex came together in the school’s multipurpose room for a once-in-a-lifetime event.

WRAL TV news reports that fourteen students, six of them winners of the school’s science fair a few weeks earlier, made their way onto the stage for their turn to ask a question of astronaut Don Pettit KD5MDT 241 miles (388 km) up and on the other side of the Earth aboard the International Space Station. Tony Hutchison VK5ZAI provided the telebridge link to the ISS amateur radio station NA1SS.

At 10:07 am EDT, the station came over the horizon of Southern Australia and ham radio volunteer Tony Huchison VK5ZAI called out to callsign NA1SS. Everyone relaxed a little bit when Pettit KD5MDT responded and students lined up to ask their questions one after another.

Watch the WRAL video

Read the full WRAL news report at http://www.wral.com/weather/blogpost/10904028/

ARISS ham radio space contact with Salem Elementary School, Apex, NC http://www.southgatearc.org/news/march2012/ariss_event_2103.htm

Amateur Radio on the International Space Station (ARISS) http://www.rac.ca/ariss/