NASA Hosts Google+ Hangout with Recently Returned Space Station Astronauts

NASA will host a Google+ Hangout with the three recently returned International Space Station astronauts from 3-4 p.m. EDT on Thursday, May 23.

This event will connect the agency’s social media followers with NASA astronauts Kevin Ford and Tom Marshburn and Chris Hadfield of the Canadian Space Agency. The three are back home in Houston and undergoing rehabilitation after living and working aboard the laboratory orbiting 250 miles above Earth.

The Expedition 34 and 35 astronauts will answer questions and provide insights about life, scientific research, maintenance and spacewalks conducted during their stays on the outpost. Their life aboard the station in near-weightlessness requires different approaches to everyday activities such as eating, sleeping and exercising.

Google+ Hangouts allow as many as 10 people or groups to chat face-to-face, while thousands more can watch the conversation live on Google+ or YouTube. The hangout also will be carried live on NASA Television and the agency’s website.

NASA’s social media followers may submit questions on Google+ or Twitter in advance and during the event using the hashtag #askAstro. Before the hangout begins, NASA will open a thread on its Facebook page where questions may be posted. Unique and original questions are more likely to be selected.

The hangout can be viewed live on NASA’s Google+ page or on the NASA Television YouTube channel. To join the hangout, and for updates and opportunities to participate in upcoming hangouts, visit the NASA’s Google+ page at: http://www.google.com/+NASA

For NASA TV streaming video, schedules and downlink information, visit: http://www.nasa.gov/ntv

For more about the International Space Station, visit: http://www.nasa.gov/station

To follow Marshburn and Hadfield on Twitter, visit: http://www.twitter.com/AstroMarshburn and http://www.twitter.com/Cmdr_Hadfield