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TRENTON — Students at Edgewood Middle School paid a visit to NASA without so much as leaving the building.

On Wednesday, Nov. 19, science teacher Lori Spinelli led a distance learning forum via video conferencing between the students at the school's media center and National Aeronautic and Space Administration personnel at the NASA Glenn Research Center in Cleveland.

About 60 eighth-grade science students asked questions of Roger Storm, an educational coordinator at NASA.

Student Lynley Mainous asked Storm what students should major in if they want to be an astronaut. Storm offered three suggestions: Join the military, which has trained many astronauts; study to be a scientist or engineer; or fork over a mere $30 million to Russia to take a 10-day trip to a space station.

"So if you're not too smart, or you don't like the army, you can make a lot of money" to go into space. Storm said.

Storm also talked about how NASA planned to return to the moon in 12 years and — in 30 years — make the first manned mission to Mars; but he advised against taking a trip to other planets.

"Never ever volunteer to be the first astronaut to Pluto. It takes 52 years to get there. What will happen on the trip back? You're going to die," he said.

Storm emphasized that even if students didn't want to go into space, there is still a need for them at NASA: "We depend on people like you to get degrees in science and engineering."

Spinelli had her own brush with spaceflight in October by boarding a plane that created weightless conditions, similar to astronauts' training.

Contact this reporter at (513) 705-2836

or erobinette@coxohio.com.