Space Station Crew Marks the 10th Anniversary of the Launching of the European Columbus Module
![Space Station Crew Marks the 10th Anniversary of the Launching of the European Columbus Module Space Station Crew Marks the 10th Anniversary of the Launching of the European Columbus Module](/pic/space_station_crew_marks_the_10th_anniversary_of_the_launching_of_the_european_columbus_module/OTdlWFFISElnNG8_.jpeg)
Station. This is Houston, are you ready for the event. Used. To missus station we are ready for the events. European. Space Agency, this is Mission Control Houston please call station for a voice check. Yes. Elizabeth we can hear you loud and clear how about us. Great. We're, very excited to have you with us today I'll turn you over to mr. voice will now who will ask you a few questions okay. Thank, you very much for talking. To you it's a great honor. And pleasure for me to, have. A little talk with you in orbit we. Discuss here and soil gravity, is. All afternoon, about 10 years of Columbus. And. ATV, and later. On we will even celebrate, 20, years of the of, the, International, Space Station so. But. Nevertheless it's. Also worthwhile to have a look into the future we heard a little bit about future. Plans, and I personally, would. Be very. Interested, to see a worldwide, exploration. Program, going back, to Moon or Mars or, whatever, I'm. Sure you have certainly, some, perspectives. From your, point of view could you share, this with us a little bit. Sure. First, of all congratulations, to the entire ISA, team on the ten-year, anniversary of, Columbus which, is where we are now and we. Do a lot of stuff in here almost every day so it's it's very impressive when. We talk about exploration. The work we're doing here I think, is super important, there's still a lot that we need to learn as we look at going back, to the moon to Mars and even, further out the, human body, there. Are so many things that we're learning about it and we need to make sure that we're in good shape when we get to those destinations and then, the technology that. We are developing here, on the space station. Those are the concepts that we're going to use when we go out and further explore, so, it's. A neat. Laboratory. We have here there's, a lot we're learning and it's, super-important, for the exploration, we're going to be doing here in the near future I. Think. My colleagues have some questions, thank. You. Nice. To see you and mr.. Phan I. First. Of all thank you very much for your other efforts and work and and, for, promoting, lung. Health in space and on earth so. You, recently. Performed. An, inside. Every. Monitoring, experiment, session. What. Most stick. To your, mind about this session. Well. First of all about the experiment, itself the fact that area. Monitoring, is, associated, both with furthering. Humans. Ability to explore and has. An immediate health, benefit, to people on the ground struck, me about the experiment, and then, being able to do the work in the airlock anytime, we get to work in the airlock is always great so I really. Enjoyed that a lot. How. Can. These help, people, on earth. My. Understanding is that they've. Already been helping with diagnostic. Tools to. Help identify, people that have asthma so, it's. It's really nice to be able to work on something that is good for our exploration future, and it, helps helps. Families. And parents. Understand. Better what type of problems their children may be having so it's, a it's, a good feeling. As. Part of the experiment of the Ahriman drink sperm is in, reduced. Ambient pressure and this, is a bit. Special. And we had to work hard to get this through and get is accepted. But how. Does this reduce, pressure part affect you and, what kind of operations do you have to do when you enter the airlock. The us are locked. Well. Quite. Honestly anytime, normally, when we're going into the airlock and depressurising the airlock it's in preparation. For doing, a spacewalk so. There's. A sense of excitement that comes along with that and of course you want to be really, good at all the preparations, that are, associated with a spacewalk so anytime we, get more experience, with that, equipment with getting, in the airlock that's a bonus as far as I'm concerned.
Physiologically. It's such a slow process it's, a safe process that there. Was nothing alarming about it at all it was. Just like working anyplace else the. Only difference was because. Myself. And Nora she gay can I were, were, in that space with a lower pressure than the rest of the station we, were just isolated, from the rest of the crew for some period of time. Oh and. On it and feel very privileged, having the chance to ask you today two questions. About, the ISA and the other are sponsored, experiment circadian rhythms. Timing. Is, everything on earth and on the space station in. December, 2017. The Nobel Prize of medicine was awarded for. Understanding. The biological clocks. Of our body. Drive. The circadian rhythm, and synchronize. It using daylight and darkness. On. The ISS you, don't follow a 24-hour, day night cycle my, first question is how, does this, affect your life on the space station and your circadian rhythm, for instance your well-being and, your, performing. Certainly. Getting a good night's sleep depends. A lot on maintaining, that rhythm a, good. Night's sleep has, a huge, impact, on our. Performance. I. Jokingly. Say, that sometimes, living on the space station where. Typically. The lighting, that you see is all artificial lighting it's. Kind of like working in a basement in a beautiful place in the Alps where, there's a little window someplace and you can get to it and the view is amazing when you're looking out the window but otherwise you. Know your body clock is, determined. By the lighting we have the. Nice thing for us here is that we've actually got special. Lighting that allows us to change the, frequency of the lights we're seeing so, that we get our bodies in that natural, rhythm, to prepare for sleep and sleep, well when it's time. This. Leads. To my second question right, away you just mentioned sleep and it's very clear we are very well aware that's. Acadian. Rhythm also. Tightly. Controls your sleep, what, do you do to improve and maintain your sleep quality and sleep duration, on both the station.
Well. Because I tend to go to bed, fairly early as soon as we finish our workday I changed, all the lighting to what we call the pre sleep mode so it's kind of like a sunset inside, the station or we, jokingly call it mood lighting I, also, try, to maintain a. Set. Schedule because, I find if I stick. To the same schedule my body adapts to it and everything works fine and then, lastly I like to kind of wind down. Having. Some time to wind down and read a book especially if it's a book that isn't glowing, brightly. That. Helps me fall asleep very easily. I'm. Sorry I missed that one can you say again. When. We signed the, intergovernmental. Agreement, in. 98, I think. It was in 2008. It was the. Intention, to operate, the space station, for 10 years so. Actually, in this. Year even earlier, the, lifetime. Should have expired of the space station but, now we are celebrating, 10 years Columbus. And ATV, and, as. I mentioned already in, November this year 20. Years of Saria what. Is the, technical. Shape of in operational, shape of the international space station or your content and we expect, that, you can live much, longer than, originally expected. Yeah. Like you mentioned, we have well, surpassed, all of the expectations in, terms of the lifespan of the international space station and it's. Amazing, in how, great, of a condition, the space station is I was, here five, years ago and I, come back now and things. Are even better we're. Improving, the space station so it's not in a state. Of degradation, again. Here in Columbus, you, know just in the short time that mark and I have been here we, have operated, almost all of the racks that we have here with, new science, experiments. You, can look throughout the space station, and we are, bringing up new supplies we're trying out new technologies. So it's it's. Very interesting on how you can have something that while the shell might. Be very very old the, inside just keeps getting improved and so I expect. It to keep to continue, and I, think we'll be surprised at how much longer, it can go. It. May be another question. There. Is a lot of space day breeze around the. World in low-earth orbit, and in other orbits, how. How. Frequently, do you have impacts. Or escape maneuvers, from such. Perturbations. That's. A great question I know the, space station is certainly designed with that environment in mind and there are. Places. Outside the space station that have sharp, edges because, they have been struck by items but, again the space, station was designed very well and was. Designed to resist, those so we haven't had a puncture in the pressurized. Shell. As. Far. As and we because we do have the ability to track a larger, objects when. We know that there is a, a. Range. That those objects will pass within. Range. Of the space station. There's. Decision-making. Whether or not to. Change the space stations orbit and I think that happens about those debris avoidance maneuvers.
Two. Or three times a year but I really can't say with any certainty about, how often that happens. Maybe. Some questions from the audience to, the astronauts. And cosmonauts. Yes. The. Question was from, Professor, Werner the director-general, of ISA where, do you want to go next time. The. First place I want to go next is my home get back to the earth but, then as far as the next trip into space I am, really, hoping, that we. Create. A moon base so another. Place like we have established, in low-earth orbit where we have a permanent, human presence, but. This time on the moon to go there not just to visit for a short time but to go there and stay there's, tremendous research, benefits. For, the science of understanding the moon for the science of understanding how, to survive someplace else and it's, a wonderful, testbed, for developing. Technologies, to help people survive on. Mars. Someday with. A much, easier. Way, to get people back if things don't go well. Other. Questions. What. Did you say, I. Have. Have you seen Tess loggers flying by. No. We haven't seen Tesla flying by but I was kind of fantasizing, about how neat it would be to have, it dock with the space station, and it. Would probably be a good PR thing for them to have less floating around their car and. Being. Very impressed by how neat it looks but I don't think we're to get that opportunity. Else. Any, other question. Yes. Yes so. We. Can clearly see that things. Float around and that's also true for particles, and dust. And. What about the air quality now. Since you have the lack of gravity what about the dust and the, larger, particles do you inhale them you, can you notice that. Yes. So things do float around we, have a larger particle, here that, you can see. So. If, it's, a larger particle, we can we, can see it we can grab them but in all of the modules we have a really good air. Circulation, or, air circulation, system we. Have vents coming out here we, have an intake and at least in Columbus in one location, and so, things tend to migrate in those areas, it's. Funny when we eat if we're eating something that we know produces. A lot of crumbs we, can get closer to the inlet so that it can get captured and not float around and.
After. Being here for a while you get pretty smart about the airflow and so. When you're working and you forget to attach a tool somewhere, and, you, lose it you. Know the different places you can go to try to find that so it it, really is impressive with, all. Of the stuff that we have up here but the amount of food the. Skin that may come off of your body that the. Circulation, system and the filtration system is, really really good and keeps the air quality really nice and, we, test the air quality on a regular basis I know mark, was doing a study just the other day where. He was collecting samples so it's a it's very very nice. Thank. You very much Mark for your looping. It. Is very helpful because my, grandchildren. They always, say they are not really in space it's all organized. In NASA, olliewood. So. They are proof the proof is done but. We have seen astronauts, in our room are there questions. From your site on your colleagues in orbit I. Think. You were asking if we have any questions, for the audience there so. Maybe you can answer for someone, you. Know what expectations do, you have of the space program and where do you see us being in the next five. To twenty years. I'm. Not sure whether, I'm. The right one to answer. Yeah or, more qualified, to answers, to. Answer this question but I tell. You about my dream I think the. Decisions, which we are still. Celebrating. The results, office, have. Been taken, in 95. So, it's 22, years ago so. I would, dream in my H in my young age of 78, years I would, dream of a worldwide. Exploration. Program, taking. Following. Exploration. Of low Earth orbit, in the in the future because, I think it's a need to to. Do something also improving. Technologies. And, and. Expect. Equipments. And so on and then. To go back to moon and later. On to, start exploiting. Our. Planetary. System be, it going, to asteroids. Or or. Tomas. Or or, to other missions. That. Bring. The. Worldwide, unity, together. Because. I think that one. Of the biggest value, apart from science, and technology, of the. International, Space Station was the international, cooperation itself. That. Is versatile all all, efforts. And all money which, we have governments. I put in this in the, enterprise. So. I think you were the the perfect person to ask and answer that question I couldn't have said it any better. If. You would look out of the window in a few minutes you would fly right over north like so that would be great to wave to us and maybe we have time to wave back. All. Right we'll be looking for you so yes. Please please, wave to us and it. Is, it's. Very cool to be going around the earth and to see how beautiful, it is and to, see all the different the, locations, these geographies, the landscape, and so, we'll be looking for you in just a few minutes.
Okay. So, we are coming to the end of our session I hope. We will have vice, versa our interview, session, once again at. One of your next missions but, we. We. Wish you all the best continuation. Of your present mission and, hopefully. See you again at one or the other mission in the future thank you very much for your time. Station. This is Houston ACR that, concludes the event. Thank. You to all the participants from, European, Space Agency, station, we are now resuming, operational. Audio communication. You.
2018-02-10 10:33