HRH The Duchess of Edinburgh joins 100 girlguiding members in live contact with ISS
In her first official engagement as Girlguiding Patron, Her Royal Highness The Duchess of Edinburgh joined 100 excited Brownies, Guides and Rangers in making a live Amateur Radio contact with the International Space Station (ISS) at a special STEM event held on Saturday 5 October at Brooklands Museum in Weybridge, Surrey.
The event, organised by The Radio Society of Great Britain (RSGB) and Amateur Radio on the International Space Station (ARISS), in collaboration with the UK Space Agency, Girlguiding Surrey West and Brooklands Museum’s Innovation Academy programme, aimed to promote the engagement and involvement of girls and young women in science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM).
The contact
Ten chosen Girlguiding Surrey West members aged between 7 and 18 years old were given the once-in-a-lifetime opportunity of asking astronaut Sunita Williams, KD5PLB questions about her experiences in space, direct via Amateur Radio on the International Space Station (ARISS) orbiting approximately 270 miles overhead.
Curious about life on the International Space Station, the girls, joined by The Duchess of Edinburgh, asked astronaut Sunita Williams about the food they eat, where they sleep, the temperature, going on space walks, missing Earth, and what space smells like.
Amateur radio and STEM activities
Following the contact, the space activities continued long into the day as the Brownies, Guides and Rangers made stomp rockets and learned how satellites work with a demonstration of a CubeSat Simulator.
They also built their own Morse keys in the shape of a snail and then used them to send their name in Morse and play battleships. Two teenage radio amateurs showed the girls how to use BBC Micro:bits for Morse texting – a fun activity that links together the international language of Morse code with modern technology that the girls use in school.
Photo credit: the RSGB
UK reserve ESA Astronaut Meganne Christian surprised the girls with a special appearance and answered any further questions they had about space exploration.
Watch our video snapshot of the day!
The RSGB President John McCullagh MBW, GI4BWM said: “The RSGB has always supported ARISS in its exciting mission to link young people with astronauts on the International Space Station (ISS) via amateur radio, and we understand the lasting impact this can have on everyone at each contact.
“I am delighted that the Society has been able to work with ARISS to put this special event in place allowing Brownies, Guides and Rangers to make contact with the ISS in the presence of their President, HRH The Duchess of Edinburgh.”
ARISS UK Team lead Ciaran Morgan, M0XTD said: “Today’s successful contact with Astronaut Sunita Williams on the International Space Station demonstrates what can be achieved with Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics and I hope it is a huge inspiration for the young women here today to pursue these subjects as a chosen career”.
