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Illinois Library Connects Kids with Space Station

Gail Borden Public Library in Elgin, Illinois, made interstellar history September 5 when it became the first public library to host a live conversation with an astronaut aboard the International Space Station. At 1:38 p.m. Central time, the voice of astronaut Clay Anderson traveled from 200 miles above the Earth to answer questions from students ranging in level from 2nd grade to high school.

The event, which was streamed live from and is available on the GBPL website, was conducted with the cooperation of NASA’s Amateur Radio on the International Space Station initiative and was part of programming associated with GBPL’s “Space: Dare to Dream” exhibit. Directly preceding the question-and-answer session, the library participated in a live video conference from Houston with Elgin native Hal Getzelman, who is NASA Lead CapCom for the International Space Station.

“This is a once in a lifetime event!” 10-year-old patron Matthew McKellar said prior to the chat, the Elgin Courier News reported September 1. Anticipated questions included “When do you anticipate the first ‘kid’ going into space?” and “How do you read in outer space and what books are you reading now?”

Posted September 7, 2007.

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