Marcia Dunn - Associated Press, Author at America Magazine

In this photo provided the European Space Agency on Wednesday, Oct. 25, 2017, Italian astronaut Paolo Nespoli looks at the Multipurpose Transporting Plate aboard the International Space Station. Pope Francis is making his first phone call off the planet - and into space. On Thursday, Oct. 26 the pope will reach out to the six astronauts on the International Space Station. It will be only the second time a pope phones the heavens like this. Pope Benedict XVI called the space station in 2011. Nespoli was aboa

Pope Francis to call astronauts on the International Space Station

by Marcia Dunn - Associated Press October 25, 2017

Francis is known for his out-of-the-blue calls. But this one has been in the Earth-to-space pipeline for a while.