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TOOELE — The sound of static filled the gym at the Community Learning Center and Blue Peak High School as Tooele County School District students gathered around, eagerly waiting to make contact with astronauts aboard the International Space Station.
"NA1SS37CDL, do you copy?" Clint Thomsen, career and technical education teacher at the Community Learning Center, asked as he attempted to contact the space station and astronaut Mike Barratt.
Spearheaded by Thomsen with technical support from the Amateur Radio on the International Space Station program, Monday's event gave students a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to ask questions to astronauts in space. And the students took advantage.
After a few minutes of trying to establish a connection, the moment everyone was waiting for arrived as students began firing off questions with looks of excitement and anticipation on each of their faces.
The questions ranged from technical and science-focused ones like, "What is the coolest piece of technology you use on the station?" and "Which diseases or disorders are you at more risk for in space?" to more personal ones like, "What happens when you cry in Zero G (zero gravity)?" and "How do you determine who gets to pick the movie on movie night?"
After around 20 students asked their carefully well-thought-out questions, the broadcast ended and all that was left was a sense of palpable wonder and accomplishment from the students, and Thomsen, who saw a dream realized after about three years of work and preparation.
"One of my students here, she told me afterward, she said, 'I'm going to remember this day for the rest of my life' and she just about was in tears," Thomsen said. "It makes it all worth it. There's nothing more fulfilling as a teacher than to see a passion that you have conveyed and received by a student."
Thomsen's passion for space is evident, integrating it into all of his curriculum as a career and technical education teacher. He got into ham radio and eventually stumbled across the Amateur Radio on the International Space Station program, securing a grant for the students to make contact. Monday's contact with the space station was a culmination of that interest.
For the students' part, they all had to get their ham radio licenses in preparation for contact.
"It's a cool experience that we can ... reflect on. The fact that we were able to talk to astronauts in space," said Colin Ruebush, a student in the Tooele County School District.
The students asking questions to an astronaut aboard the space station wasn't an isolated event, but part of a daylong STEM extravaganza at the Community Learning Center that included teachers from the center and Blue Peak High School planning relevant lessons and activities leading up to and following the contact.
All in all, students from six different schools and charters in the district were able to pose questions for Barratt.
"How many students in the world can say they talked directly with astronauts in space from their school? This is a unique chance for our students to engage with space exploration in a tangible and unforgettable way," Thomsen said.
