Dad's Ham Radio Hobby Leads to Daughter Calling Astronaut in Space — Hear Their Adorable Chat!

It was one small step for a NASA astronaut and one giant leap for a father-daughter duo from the U.K. with a shared interest in amateur radio.

Matt Payne, of Kent, England, got to share a special experience with his 8-year-old daughter Isabella Payne thanks to his personal passion for amateur radio, also known as ham radio, for much of the little girl’s young life.

The call went through, and on the other end of the line was Kjell Lindgren, commander of NASA SpaceX Crew-4.

“My name’s Isabella, I’m 8 years old,” Isabella says to the NASA commander, who is staying on ISS for his six-month mission.

“Isabella, it’s so great to chat with you, thank you for getting on the radio and saying hello,” Lindgren replied. The pair exchanged some thank yous before signing off.

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Later that day, Matt and Lindgren thanked each other on Twitter for the awesome exchange.

“Thank you so much,“Matt wroteto Lindgren, adding, “you have changed her world.”

In his reply, Lindgren said the conversation “may be my favorite contact so far” while using ham radio in space.

“I’ve had a lot of fun using the #ARISS amateur radio station #NA1SS on the @Space_Station to talk with ham radio operators all over the world,” the astronaut said in aquote tweetof Matt’s original message.

He later concluded, “Thanks Isabella and @m0lmk!”

Six years before this marvelous meeting, Matt brought Isabella to see local students connect with British astronaut Tim Peake via ham radio at an event he helped coordinate, according to his tweet.

“A 2 year old sat on my knee and watched the students of Wellesley House school chat with @astro_timpeake,” he said of the April 23, 2016, event on Twitter.

“Today,” he added, “she got her chance.”

source: people.com