On Monday 29 November at 10:54am local time in Temuco, Chile, history was made at Colegio Pumahue Temuco as students made the first ever radio contact with the International Space Station (ISS) from a school in Chile. This opportunity was made possible by working with amateur radio organisation, ARISS, which facilitates educational experiences around the world to support the astronauts’ wellbeing during their space travels.

Students selected 12 questions to ask the American NASA astronaut, Raja Chari, such as: ‘What happens to the rubbish that you produce? How do you preserve their food and how do they communicate with friends and family?’. The eight-minute transmission was witnessed by students at Pumahue Temuco and over 400 people who connected from around the world via live streaming.

Cristobal España, a 7th grade A student, was one of the students who spoke with Raja: “I was super excited and nervous before asking my question and now I want to see the video to know how it was, how everything looked. I thank the school for the opportunity to talk to the astronaut and that our voice was in space.”

Franklin Avila, rector of Pumahue School in Temuco, explained that: “The education of the future is now and we are living it here at Pumahue, in Cognita. Our students are living learning and significant experiences like this one, which will remain in their minds for life.”

Congratulations and thank you to ARISS, NASA and our colleagues at Pumahue Temuco for organising such an inspiring experience for our students.

To watch what happened on the day, click here.