Apr 20 2018
From The Space Library
MEDIA ADVISORY M18-064 NASA Astronauts on Space Station to Speak with Students from Florida, Texas
Students from Coral Gables, Florida, and the Texas Gulf Coast will talk with astronauts aboard the International Space Station next week as part of NASA’s Year of Education on Station. The 20-minute Earth-to-space calls will air live on NASA Television and the agency’s website.
The students will have the opportunity to ask questions of NASA astronauts Ricky Arnold, Drew Feustel and Scott Tingle, who are living and working aboard the International Space Station. The Expedition 55 astronauts will answer questions about life aboard the space station, NASA’s deep space exploration plans and conducting science in space.
The first event, at 10:45 a.m. EDT Wednesday, April 25, will connect Arnold and Feustel with Miami students in connection with Fairchild Tropical Botanic Garden’s Growing Beyond Earth Project and NASA’s Kennedy Space Center. The event will take place at Fairchild Tropical Botanic Gardens, 10901 Old Culter Rd., Miami. Media interested in attending should contact Jeanne Becker at jbecker@beckerpublicrelations.com or 305-215-0220.
At 10:50 a.m. Friday, April 27, students from Aransas County and Port Aransas County Independent School Districts in Texas will speak with Feustel and Tingle. The event will take place at Rockport-Fulton High School Library, 1801 Omohundro St., Rockport, Texas. To participate, media should contact Bridget Johnson at bjohnson@acisd.org or 361-790-2212.
Linking teachers 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 (STEM). This in-flight education downlink is an integral component of NASA’s Year of Education on Station, which provides extensive space station-related resources and opportunities to students and educators. Astronauts living in space on the orbiting laboratory communicate with the Mission Control Center on Earth 24 hours a day through the Space Network's Tracking and Data Relay Satellites (TDRS).
In addition to the education events, station astronauts also will participate in events with the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) and a Baltimore television station during the week.
At 8:10 a.m. Thursday, April 26, JAXA astronaut Norishige Kanai will talk with participants at the 2018 Tenku Mirai Project in Tokyo. At 9:10 a.m. Friday, April 27, Arnold and Kanai will be interviewed by WBFF-TV Fox 45 of Baltimore. Both events will air live on NASA TV and the agency’s website.
MEDIA ADVISORY M18-065 NASA Invites Media to Swearing-In of New Agency Administrator
Media are invited to see Vice President Mike Pence swear in Jim Bridenstine as NASA’s new administrator at 2:30 p.m. EDT Monday, April 23, at the agency’s headquarters in Washington. The ceremony will air live on NASA Television and the agency’s website.
Following the swearing-in, Vice President Pence and newly sworn-in NASA Administrator Bridenstine will speak live with three NASA astronauts currently living and working aboard the International Space Station. Expedition 55 crew members Scott Tingle, Drew Feustel and Ricky Arnold will offer congratulations and take questions from the Vice President and Administrator Bridenstine. The astronauts will also briefly share stories of their experiences on the orbiting outpost from 250 miles above Earth, traveling at 17,500 miles per hour.
Due to space constraints, media will be confirmed for this event on a first come, first served basis. To request to attend the event, media must send their name, media affiliation and phone number to Karen Northon at karen.northon@nasa.gov no later than 2 p.m. Sunday, April 22. NASA Headquarters is located at 300 E Street SW. Media must arrive by 1:30 p.m. Monday with one form of government-issued photo identification.
Bridenstine was confirmed by the U.S. Senate on Thursday, April 19, to serve as the agency’s 13th administrator. Prior to this position, he served in the U.S. House of Representatives for the state of Oklahoma, where he held positions on the House Armed Services Committee and the Science, Space and Technology Committee. Bridenstine also is a pilot in the U.S. Navy Reserve and the former executive director of the Tulsa Air and Space Museum and Planetarium.
