Frostburg State Students to Speak with NASA Astronaut in Space

Frostburg State University, in collaboration with its sister institutions in Frostburg, Maryland, will speak with NASA astronaut Ricky Arnold who is living, working and doing research aboard the International Space Station at 9:55 a.m. EDT Monday, April 9. The 20-minute, Earth-to-space call will air live on NASA Television and the agency’s website.

Frostburg, the University of Maryland College Park and Bowie State University all are part of the University System of Maryland, and will make the call to Arnold, a space station Expedition 55 flight engineer. They’ll ask questions about life aboard the station, NASA’s deep space exploration plans, and performing science in space.

The conversation will be streamed to Frostburg’s campus for an audience of sixth and seventh graders from Maryland’s two westernmost counties, as part of a series of educational enrichment activities focused on space travel and NASA. The twin goals are to excite pre-service teachers about their chosen profession and spark an interest in science and space among Maryland’s rural middle school students.

Arnold arrived at the space station March 23 and will return to Earth this summer. He earned a bachelor of science in 1985, and his teacher certification in 1988, both from Frostburg State. Arnold worked in the marine sciences and as a teacher in places like Morocco, Saudi Arabia and Indonesia. He is one of two teachers aboard the station this year, and is continuing NASA’s Year of Education on Station.

Media interested in attending the event should contact Liz Medcalf via email at emedcalf@frostburg.edu or phone at 301-687-4751. The event will take place at 101 Braddock Road in Frostburg.

Linking teachers directly to astronauts aboard the space station provides unique, authentic experiences designed to enhance student learning, performance and interest in science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM). This in-flight education downlink is an integral component of NASA’s Year of Education on Station, which provides extensive space station-related resources and opportunities to students and educators.

Upcoming media events for the week of April 9 are as follows.

On Monday, April 9, a Czech TV interview featuring Drew Feustel will air live at 7 a.m. on NASA TV.

Follow NASA’s astronauts on social media, at:

https://www.twitter.com/NASA_astronauts/

See videos and lesson plans highlighting research on the International Space Station at:

 https://www.nasa.gov/stemonstation/