MHS Students Awarded Direct Line to Astronauts in Space

science teacher Pamela Thompson describes herself as a "space geek," so she was understandably thrilled when she learned last week that her students will soon be talking directly to astronauts.

Thompson applied and was awarded a NASA In-Flight Education Downlink, a program that allows select schools throughout the country to link up directly to astronauts for a video conference as they orbit the Earth on the International Space Station. Out of 42 schools that applied for the opportunity, just six were chosen.

"They loved our proposal," Thompson said. "We're really, really, super excited about it because it's a really special thing."

The downlink will be hosted at the high school but elementary and middle school students will be invited to watch and submit questions as well. The event will also be broadcast to other Monrovia schools.

"It's going to involve our whole school district," Thompson said.

Thompson said she will compile a list of 20 student questions for the 20 minute downlink session.

The downlink is scheduled for March 8. In the meantime, MHS students in Thompson's class will be learning about how the downlink technology works.

"They'll go through a whole series of NASA activities," Thompson said.