Students will have a unique opportunity to speak with International Space Station resident and NASA astronaut Timothy Kopra during an in-flight hookup from 10:20 to 10:40 a.m. EDT on Wednesday.

Kopra is a U.S Army colonel and flight engineer on the station's Expedition 20 crew. A native of Austin, Texas, he will field questions from students in the Knowledge is Power Program and others at the city's Bob Bullock Texas State History Museum. The event is historic; it is Kopra's first spaceflight and the first live station downlink in Austin.

The museum is offering free public access starting at 8 a.m. CDT Wednesday. Complimentary museum educational activities will include on-site experiments, hands-on educational programming, an inflatable planetarium, IMAX theater film screenings and special guest speakers from 8 a.m. to 3 p.m. For museum information, contact Timothy Dillon at timothy.dillon@thestoryoftexas.com

NASA's education downlinks are an integral component of the Teaching from Space Program, which encourages students to study and pursue careers in science, technology, engineering and math.

The event is one in a series promoting learning opportunities and encouraging partnerships with U.S. and foreign educational organizations using the unique environment of human spaceflight.

The downlink will air live on NASA Television and stream on the NASA Web site at:

For information on the International Space Station, visit:

http://www.nasa.gov/station

For information about NASA's education programs, visit: