13 May 2022------------------M22-069

Students from Boulder, Colorado, will have an opportunity next week to hear from American and European astronauts aboard the International Space Station. The space-to-Earth call will air live at 12:05 p.m. EDT Monday, May 16, on NASA Television, the NASA app, and the agency’s website.

NASA astronaut and Fairview High School graduate Jessica Watkins and ESA (European Space Agency) astronaut Samantha Cristoforetti will answer prerecorded video questions. Participation in the downlink is part of an ongoing schoolwide event focusing on leadership and supports the goal of inspiring students to reach their full potentials and learn about science, technology, engineering, and mathematics opportunities.

While the downlink with Fairview High School students will be conducted virtually, students and staff will gather to watch the event in person at school. Media interested in covering the event should contact Fairview’s Randy Barber at: 720-561-5823 or randy.barber@bvsd.org.

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

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The official crew portrait of the SpaceX Crew-4 astronauts representing NASA's Commercial Crew Program. From left are, Pilot Robert Hines, Mission Specialists Samantha Cristoforetti and Jessica Watkins, and Commander Kjell Lindgren. Hines, Watkins, and Lindgren are NASA astronauts and Cristoforetti is an ESA (European Space Agency) astronaut.