FORT MILL, S.C. — Fort Mill’s Pleasant Knoll Middle School celebrated Earth Day on Monday by radioing into space -- to the International Space Station, to be exact.
With help from the York County Amateur Radio Society, a local ham radio operators group, the school was selected to become a direct contact school which meant Pleasant Knoll students were part of only 1% of United States schools chosen to participate in the program.
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The entire student body gathered in the gym to witness this historical event for the students. At exactly 12:10 p.m., contact was made by science teacher Allison Killowitz with International Space Station Astronaut Matthew Dominick. He is a Navy test pilot and astronaut and is on the ISS as part of the SpaceX Crew-8 mission.
As the signal was beamed from a tower outside the gym to the International Space Station, everyone got an education into what life is like 250 miles above Earth while traveling at 17,400 mph.
Dominick answered questions ranging from scientific projects to how those on board used the bathroom to what they eat while they're up there. Not surprisingly, the kids were amazed when Dominick said the astronauts have lots of varieties of food available, but nothing crunchy is allowed to avoid crumbs falling into important ISS crevices.
YCARS' goal is to promote the advancement of the art, science, public service and friendships made when involved with the organization. Amateur radio is very much a part of STEM programs, which put an emphasis on science, technology, engineering and math.
Ham radio operators are directly involved in assisting when disaster strikes, including hurricanes, tornadoes, earthquakes, forest fires, or anything else that requires fast communication across a wide area. That can be especially true when there is no power since ham radios operate off battery power.
For more information about ham radio and the YCARS, go to www.ycars.org.
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