200 elementary students from Canada got a chance to talk to astronaut Chris Hadfield on Wednesday, January 30. The captivated crowd of 5th and 6th graders from six schools in the area watched from the the Canadian Aviation and Space Museum as Hadfield spoke to them from the International Space Station. A live video link gave the young scholars a chance to see the Canadian astronaut and ask him questions.
The children had many questions including one from a 6th grade student from the Corpus Christi school who asked, “You have been experiencing weightlessness much longer than you have in your previous trips into space. Do you find there’s a difference?” Hadfield replied, “The big difference this time is I can fly.” He added, “To just be able to float things to each other though space it’s like magic. And to be able to be here for that magic for five months is a tremendous gift. I love it.”
The astronaut also showcased how he washed his hands in zero gravity as his space station orbited the earth. Hadfield used a cleansing solution in a pouch which he squeezed out and let float around before grabbing it and rubbing his hands to clean them.
Hadfield has also used other forums to promote space travel and has built a large following on Twitter. 285,000 Twitter followers get a chance to see images of the earth from outer space that Hadfield uploads approximately daily. The astronaut has tried to keep the interest of Canadians high about his latest mission ever since he took off in a Russian Soyuz vehicle on Dec. 19, 2012.
The ISS will be the Candian astronauts residence for another four months.
Source: Metro News
Image: Metro News