On Tuesday night FAIS had a problem connecting to Mark on the scheduled time slot. They tried frequencies C1 and C2 with no luck.
FAIS Project managers got on the phone to ARISS in the United States to see if he could get a contact over Australia. He agreed to get it if FAIS could get a message to Mark. After a flurry of international phonecalls to TSUB in Moscow and MCC in Houston a message got through to Mark. The HAM radio operators had to get out of bed and got the ISS on track to do a contact. At one stage FAIS was on three phones to three continents, speaking to people in Australia, the United States and Russia. The learners managed to get 5 questions to Mark which was an awesome feat, all things considered. The experience was most rewarding because initially there ware a lot of disappointed faces which absolutely transformed when Mark came through load and clear!
Shuttleworth told the learners that he had adapted well to space. When asked who motivated him, he answered that it was his parents.
Many learners said after the session that it was a wonderful experience that they would never forget.
|
