Students from Karachi sent questions to NASA - here's their viral interaction

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Dubai - Almost 1,000 people retweeted the letter and multiple astronauts and space experts replied.

By Zubina Ahmed

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Published: Fri 16 Oct 2020, 5:21 PM

Last updated: Fri 16 Oct 2020, 7:39 PM

Six students from Cornerstone School - Karachi are amazed that their queries to the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (Nasa) about space were replied by astronauts.
Aimun Faisal, the teacher of these fourth graders, had posted the questions on Twitter tagging Nasa, hoping to get a response. To her amazement, almost 1,000 people retweeted the letter and multiple astronauts and space experts replied to the children's questions.

Astronauts like Emily Calandrelli, Chris Hadfield, Alee Emran, European and German Space Centre responded and Aimun collected all the responses on a single Twitter thread. 

Twitter users were ecstatic over the replies and the thread went trending on the platform. Some even suggested Pakistan Federal Science Minister Fawad Chaudhry get involved to help other kids have their space-related questions answered.
zubina@khaleejtimes.com
Space queries answered

Q.Alisha: What fuel does a spaceship use?
A. Emily Calandrelli, @TheSpaceGal: All different types! Some popular rockets that you'll see will use a fuel + an oxidizer. For example, something called RP-1 and then liquid oxygen. These are combined together and then *ignited* and burned to create a big (controlled) explosion that moves the rocket!



Q.Minahil: What should I study to become a part of NASA?
A.Emily Calandrelli, @TheSpaceGal: NASA needs all types of people for their missions! Mostly scientists and engineers (so studying a STEM degree is a good idea!) but also IT people, human resources specialists, accountants, technicians, writers, etc! But remember you will probably need to be a US citizen.
Q.Haniyah: Is it true that it rains diamonds on Jupiter?
A. Emily Calandrelli, @TheSpaceGal: It's definitely possible!! The same physics and chemistry that creates diamonds here on Earth (putting Carbon under super high heat/pressure) exists on planets like Jupiter, so some scientists hypothesize that it's raining diamonds there! Wouldn't it be fun to see that?!

Q.Mahrukh: How do you feel when you get blasted off in a space shuttle?
A.Emily Calandrelli, @TheSpaceGal: I hear it's like riding a roller coaster! I rode one with Shuttle Astronaut Jon McBride who explained that the same gravitational forces you feel on a Shuttle launch can be felt by riding a roller coaster! Highest is about 3-g, which feels like 3 times your weight!

A.Chris Hadfield (@Cmdr_hadfield ): I flew in a space shuttle twice, you feel violently shaken, squished, super-focused, excited and lucky.

Q.Rayyan: Do you get scared that your space shuttle might get lost?
A.Chris Hadfield (@Cmdr_hadfield ): I wasn't scared, we'd get lost.  We had the earth nearby and had the stars to steer. I felt especially comforted when I flew over home. Here's a photo I took of Karachi, can you find your school?


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