Show
Date: November 16, 2005
Pam Eastlick for THE DEEP on line
GOOD DAY SUNSHINE
AND
CLIMBING THE HIGHEST MOUNTAINS
Greetings and welcome to The Deep column and the deepest radio
show on Earth. The Deep is the science talk radio program that
takes you from the depths of the ocean to the farthest reaches
of the universe. This week on The Deep, aired at 6:00 this evening
on K-57, we’ll talk about the International Space Station.
Then we’ll have some expedition calls. Tonight we’ll
talk to Christine Boskoff, one of the world’s premier mountain
climbers. We’ll also have some science news updates and
we’ll be taking your phone calls. Tune in tonight and join
host Jim Sullivan, Pam Eastlick and our expedition coordinator
Peter Melyan for the latest in scientific news! Then log on to
www.thedeepradioshow.com for more information on all the latest
and deepest news!
A ROOM WITH A VIEW
Everybody likes a lovely view. That’s why ocean view property
costs so much. There’s something inspiring about overlooking
something pleasant. Of course, for far too many of us, our view
is of the neighbor’s junk, but if we’re lucky, they
have a beautiful garden!
Earlier this month NASA celebrated an important anniversary.
It’s been five years since astronauts first inhabited the
room with the ultimate view. Humans have now lived in space for
five continuous years aboard the International Space Station.
There have been 97 visitors onboard the station from 10 countries
in the past five years. Twenty-nine have lived aboard as members
of the 12 station expedition crews. Russian cosmonaut Sergei Krikalev
is the only one to serve as a member of two resident crews, Expedition
1 in November 2000 and Expedition 11 this year.
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The current residents are Bill McArthur and
Valery Tokarev. They’ve been aboard a little over a
month and they’ve already had a space walk to examine
the neighborhood. Last week they installed a new camera that
will be used to monitor future station assembly. They also
removed an instrument called the Floating Potential Probe.
It was designed to measure the station's electrical potential
and compare it to the surrounding plasma and it had stopped
working. It was decided to jettison the FPP, but getting rid
of it was a little more complicated than just tossing it away.
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To insure that it didn’t return to haunt them later,
Bill McArthur threw the device backwards in relation to
the direction the station was moving. He aimed for a velocity
of at least half a foot per second and tried to throw
the FPP 30 degrees upward and 10 degrees to the left of
the back of the station. He came very close to his goal
and the FPP has already entered Earth’s atmosphere
and burned up.
In this picture, the FPP moves away from the station
just after Bill McArthur released it. The picture was
taken by Valery Tokarev with his helmet camera. .
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So what kind of views can you get from the world’s
highest penthouse? Well, here’s a peek at the eye of
Hurricane Wilma. |
And here’s a look at Mt. McKinley. The US’s
tallest mountain was on the horizon when the ISS passed
by and the picture was taken with an 800 mm telephoto
lens. Pretty amazing, huh?
And if that view isn’t impressive enough for you,
this hotel also features some high-powered entertainment.
Space station astronauts are traditionally awakened by
music and it’s usually related to Earth or ISS events.
Last Sunday, the Expedition 12 crew got a special treat
-- a live musical wakeup call from Sir Paul McCartney
during the first-ever concert linkup. Sir Paul played
"Good Day Sunshine" and "English Tea,"
for the astronauts. McArthur and Tokarev bobbed up and
down and sipped from squeeze pouches through the show,
getting a rousing cheer from the audience.
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"I can't believe that we're actually transmitting
to space!" McCartney said. "This is sensational.
I love it." McArthur, did a couple of zero-gravity flips,
noted McCartney's creative achievements and thanked him for
playing the songs.
"That was simply magnificent,"
McArthur said. "We consider you an explorer just as we
are."
With that kind of view and that kind of entertainment, I’ll
sign up to visit the International Space Station anytime!
Of course, I won’t be going and you probably won’t
be visiting anytime soon either, but even though you can’t
go to visit, you can certainly see them pass overhead. One
week from tonight, there will be an exceptionally bright pass
of the ISS over Guam. Here’s how to see it. |
Get an accurate time check for your watch between now and next
Wednesday 23 November. At 6:30 p.m., go outside and face west
where the Sun disappeared. The ISS will appear above the northwestern
horizon at 6:34 p.m. about seven fist-widths to the right of the
Sun’s setting position.
It will climb up and to the left and at 6:37 p.m., it will be
roughly three fist-widths above Venus. It will disappear in the
southeast at 6:40 p.m. and it will shine at –0.2. I’ll
remind you again in next week’s article, but you might want
to put this one on the fridge!
For information about the International Space Station on the
Web, visit:
http://www.nasa.gov/station
CLIMBING WITH CHRISTINE
We’ll have a very special expedition call tonight when
we talk with Christine Boskoff, one of the world’s best
mountain climbers. Fourteen mountain peaks are taller than five
miles above sea level. They are known as the 8000 meter peaks,
and climbing any one of them is a lifetime achievement. Christine
Boskoff has climbed six of them and has reached the highest peak
in four of the seven continents. She has climbed Mt. Everest twice,
and is one of the greatest mountaineers of all time. She has turned
her passion for climbing into a thriving, internationally acclaimed
business. She owns and directs the operations of Seattle based
Mountain Madness, one of the largest adventure guiding operations
in the country.
Tonight we’ll be talking to Christine about her latest
adventure. Whether we’re learning about the International
Space Station or mountain climbing with Christine Boskoff, The
Deep, hosted by Jim Sullivan with Pam Eastlick and Peter Melyan
is the place to be on K-57 tonight at 6:00 p.m. Don’t miss
it!
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