Students to Talk With Space Station Astronauts

Elementary students from the Great Salt Bay and the Bristol Consolidated schools will have a chance Monday to chat with astronauts orbiting Earth in the International Space Station.

Sharon Eggleston, spokeswoman for the Maine Space Grant Consortium, said a live satellite downlink will give students about 30 minutes to ask questions of Expedition Cmdr. Gennady Padalka and Flight Engineer Mike Fincke.

The event, which will start at noon at the Great Salt Bay School, is part of the schools’ celebration of Space Day in Maine. Space Day was on May 6, but Eggleston said NASA could not arrange for the downlink until Monday.