New Mexico Students to Speak with NASA Astronaut Aboard Space Station

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Students from New Mexico will have an opportunity next week to talk with a NASA astronaut currently living and working aboard the International Space Station. The Earth-to-space call will air live on NASA Television and the agency’s website.

NASA astronaut Christina Koch will answer questions from students at the University of New Mexico and surrounding K-12 schools at 1:25 p.m. EST Tuesday, Dec. 10. The University of New Mexico Biology Department, which has plant samples on the space station for scientific research, and “The Children’s Hour” radio show are hosting the call.

The event will take place at the University of New Mexico Student Union Building, Albuquerque. Media interested in covering should contact Katie Stone at katie@childrenshour.org or 505-850-3751.

Linking students directly to astronauts aboard the space station provides unique, authentic experiences designed to enhance student learning, performance and interest in science, technology, engineering and mathematics. Astronauts living in space on the orbiting laboratory communicate with NASA’s Mission Control Center in Houston 24 hours a day through the Space Network’s Tracking and Data Relay Satellites (TDRS).

For nearly 20 years, astronauts have continuously lived and worked on the space station, testing technologies, performing science and developing the skills needed to explore farther from Earth. Through NASA’s Artemis program, the agency will send astronauts to the Moon by 2024, with eventual human exploration of Mars. Inspiring the next generation of explorers—the Artemis Generation—ensures America will continue to lead in space exploration and discovery.