* Astronomy

Astronaut Alvin Drew has touched down at a Lothian school to give pupils a taste of life in space.
The visit was the highlight of West Calder High's Blast Off to Science event, part of the Scottish Space School Programme.
P7 pupils from the school's feeder primaries received an hour-long presentation from Drew in the secondary school's resource hall, before S1 pupils attended a talk at the Howden Park Centre.

"The day was a great success. Primary school pupils from our catchment area received a talk from Alvin about the space project and how it will go in the future. S1 pupils then received a presentation, where they viewed pictures, including shots inside a space shuttle. Alvin talked about Scotland's twinning with the American space programme and NASA, and gave pupils the opportunity to ask questions. Pupils were also informed about careers and jobs within the industry - for every one astronaut there's 4000 ground crew. The pupils loved the visit." - Elaine Cook ,West Calder High School's head teacher.

Meanwhile, Astronaut Bonnie Dunbar was on a mission to meet school pupils across Dundee today. She was scheduled to visit various Dundee schools to speak about her career at Nasa.
The astronaut demonstrated how her interest in science enabled her to follow such a remarkable career path and how her enterprising spirit and drive has been the key to her success.

This visit was also part of the Careers Scotland Space School, supported by the Scottish Executive and the International Space Community.
This initiative aims to motivate more young people into participating in science and technology and to help them understand how these subjects apply to real career choices.

A team of astronauts and scientists from Nasa is visiting Scotland to support Career Scotland’s Festival of Science and Enterprise, which will see them meeting around 25,000 pupils.


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