NASA Astronauts Set Live STEM Q&A With Missouri Students

Space will feel a little closer to Missouri this week when students hear their science questions answered from aboard the International Space Station.

NASA says astronauts Jessica Meir and Jack Hathaway will respond to prerecorded questions from students focused on science, technology, engineering, and mathematics. The Earth-to-space call is scheduled to begin at 10:50 a.m. EDT on Thursday, April 30, and viewers can watch it live on the agency’s Learn With NASA YouTube channel.

The event turns a routine school-day lesson into something more immediate: a chance for students to hear how STEM works in one of the most demanding environments humans have ever built. NASA has long used these exchanges to make spaceflight feel tangible, linking classroom curiosity to real missions, real experiments, and real people living in orbit.

For students, the most powerful part of this event may be its simplicity: ask a question on Earth, hear the answer from space.

That direct line matters because it does more than promote a livestream. It shows students where math, engineering, and scientific thinking can lead, while giving NASA a vivid way to connect its mission to the next generation. Reports indicate the format will center on student questions, keeping the focus on discovery rather than spectacle.

What happens next is straightforward but significant: the livestream begins, students tune in, and NASA gets another chance to turn attention into ambition. In a moment when STEM education often competes with constant distraction, a live conversation with astronauts offers something rare — a reason to look up and imagine a future in the work of exploration.