Students as the Arkansas School for Mathematics, Sciences and the Arts had an opportunity to have questions answered by astronauts currently participating in a mission on the International Space Station during a special NASA Downlink on Aug. 18.
NASA astronauts Shane Kimbrough and Mark Vande Hei, who are serving as flight engineers as part of Expedition 65 on the International Space Station, answered prerecorded questions from ASMSA students. The educational downlink event aired live on NASA TV. ASMSA Director Corey Alderdice provided the opening and closing remarks for the event. To view the downlink event, visit https://asmsa.me/nasadownlinkvideo21.
ASMSA held an assembly to allow all students the opportunity to watch the downlink event live. While the students’ questions were prerecorded, the astronauts’ answers were presented live from the International Space Station. One of the highlights of the event was Vande Hei performing a triple backflip in response to a question about the most surprising physical feat they have accomplished on the space station that they couldn’t do on Earth.
“I had a moment where the reality of the astronauts talking to us really sank in, which was when Mark Vande Hei did a triple backflip in response to a question,” said Amy Brown-Westmoreland, ASMSA’s outreach coordinator who helped organized the school’s application to participate in a NASA Downlink. “Hearing the students cheer him on through his backflips and applause at the end of the event made all the hard work to get the NASA Downlink to ASMSA worthwhile. I am very grateful to everyone who made this event a success.”
Prior to live event, students participated in a space trivia challenge. There were also several activity stations provided by Mid-America Science Museum staff members including how to use a star map to find constellations, a scale model of the Milky Way, what the Big Dipper looks like from space and techniques used for discovering planets around other stars as well as how to differentiate between stars and planets.
Dr. Jack Waddell, a physics instructor at ASMSA, helped organize the event, including gathering the prerecorded questions to send to NASA. He said it was a wonderful opportunity to bring the whole school together for an inspiring event.
“It was amazing to experience this event with our whole community of learning together,” Waddell said. “When else do you get the chance to see and hear people flying through space talk directly to you, your friend, your classmate, or your teacher?
“The astronauts Mark Vande Hei and Shane Kimbrough shared some of their extensive knowledge of the station and what it was like working and living within it. They also provided guidance to students who hope to one day work at NASA. This generation of students will likely be entering their future careers just as the first humans walk on Mars; I think this experience gave them a taste of what it might be like to be a part of that mission.”
This was the second time Director Alderdice has participated in a NASA event. The first was during a NASA Social event at Johnson Space Center in 2017. Space exploration has been an inspiration to many young scientists, he said.
“For more than a half century, one of the primary points of entry to STEM disciplines for young people has been America's fascination with space,” Alderdice said. “For ASMSA students aspiring to careers in science, technology, and engineering, this was an opportunity to see the relevancy of their interests as they pertain to the work on board the International Space Station.
“ Seeing the creativity and ingenuity that goes into supporting the work of NASA and other space agencies across the globe (at the Johnson Space Center) was truly special. Being able to connect ASMSA students directly through today's experience was even more incredible.”
Kimbrough and Vande Hei are members of Expedition 65, which began in April 2021 and will end in October 2021. This expedition will include research investigations focused on biology, Earth science, human research, physical sciences and technology development, providing the foundation for continuing human spaceflight beyond low-Earth orbit to the Moon and Mars, according to NASA’s website.
Kimbrough is a retired U.S. Army colonel who served as an Army aviator during his career, including during Operation Desert Storm. He earned a Bachelor of Science degree in Aerospace Engineering from the U.S. Military Academy at West Point and Master of Science degree in Operations Research from the Georgia Institute of Technology. He also served as a professor in the Department of Mathematical Sciences at the U.S. Military Academy as well as several other military schools during his military career.
He was selected to join NASA in 2004 as an astronaut candidate, completed his astronaut candidate training in 2006, took his first space flight in 2008 and has conducted six spacewalks during his NASA career. He previously served as Commander of the International Space Station during Expedition 49/50 in 2016-17.
Vande Hei is a retired U.S. Army colonel who served as a combat engineer, including during Operation Provide Comfort in Iraq. He earned a Bachelor of Science in physics from Saint John’s University and a Master of Science in Applied Physics from Stanford University. He also served as an assistant professor in the Department of Physics at the U.S. Military Academy and an Army space support team leader in the Army’s 1st Space Battalion at Peterson Air Force Base in Colorado.
Beginning in July 2006, he served as a Capsule Communicator in NASA Mission Control Center in Houston, including for International Space Station Expeditions 15 to 20 and several Space Shuttle missions. He was selected to join NASA as a member of the 2009 astronaut class and completed astronaut candidate training in 2011. He previously served as a member of Expedition 53 and 54 and has participated in four spacewalks.