New York Students Will Call Space Station Astronaut

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Jun 10, 2011, 09:18 ET

WASHINGTON, June 10, 2011 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Students in Otsego County, N.Y., will make a special call to the International Space Station and Expedition 28 Flight Engineer Ron Garan on Friday, June 17.

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The event, which includes a video link with Garan, will be broadcast live on NASA Television at 11:05 a.m. EDT. Fifth through eighth grade students from the Oneonta City School district will ask Garan questions about how the space station plays a pivotal role in expanding human understanding of the Earth and space.

The State University of New York's (SUNY) Oneonta campus, located at 108 Ravine Parkway, will host the event. To attend, journalists must contact Hal Legg at [email protected] by 3 p.m., June 16.

Garan received his undergraduate degree from SUNY Oneonta in 1982. The university expects 1,000 participants from several school districts and the Oneonta Job Corps Academy.

Garan previously spoke with many of the students in February through NASA's Digital Learning Network about the benefits of studying science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) and his first spaceflight.

The in-flight education downlink is part of a series with educational organizations in the U.S. and abroad to improve teaching and learning in STEM subjects. It is an integral component of Teaching From Space, an agency education program that promotes learning opportunities and builds partnerships with the education community using the unique environment of space and NASA's human spaceflight program.

For NASA TV information and schedules, visit:

http://www.nasa.gov/ntv

For information about NASA's education programs, visit:

http://www.nasa.gov/education

SOURCE NASA