It was 11 minutes they will never forget.
Eight students from Winmalee Public School talked to an astronaut on the International Space Station on Tuesday, April 20 as it orbited 430km above the earth travelling at 27,000km/h.
The space station was in radio range for just 11 minutes before it dipped below the horizon after the school was contacted by NASA's mission control in Houston, Texas at 5.40pm to prepare for the 6.30pm contact.
NASA astronaut Victor Glover shared details about the space station's mission before offering advice on becoming an astronaut. He urged the students to be resilient, life-long learners as well as to be good teammates - "and you'll achieve success no matter your dreams are".
He had one final piece of unprompted advice: "Always listen to Mrs B".
It was Mrs B - Winmalee Public's science teacher, Alison Broderick - who applied to NASA and ARISS International (Amateur Radio on the ISS) almost two years ago to be part of an amateur radio operators' program that enables students around the globe to speak to an astronaut.
The students entered the school's 'Ask an Astronaut a Question' competition, and eight were chosen to speak directly to one member of crew 64.
Principal Kate Ford said all of the students were very excited about the event.
"All of our students have been studying a unit on space this term in science, with a focus on the International Space Station, so they were in a great position to ask to some excellent questions," she said.
"It's hard to imagine anything more inspiring in science than to be able talk live to an astronaut while they're in space. I'm sure the enthusiasm this exercise has generated will stay with many of our students for a long time."
The school community packed the school hall on Tuesday for the event.
So, what did the children want to know? Here are some of their questions:
Erin DeBono (10): What is the best way to describe the feeling of microgravity?
Indiana Bartush (6): What do you do up there for fun?
Valentino di Battista (8): Have you ever seen a meteor pass through Earth's atmosphere from the ISS?
Ivy Cooper (7): What experiments do you do at the International Space Station?
Ayva Dacey (9): Has anything ever gone wrong or required you to take emergency action while you have been on board the International Space Station?
Alberto Campos-Wagner (5): What happens if space junk hits the International Space Station?
Asher Renwick (11): What personal items would you take into space if allowed ... and why?
Charlotte Webster (8): How many times a year do you get supplies delivered to the ISS?
