Yeah!  So If You Want To Be An Astronaut, My Best Piece Of Advice Is Definitely To Study Something In

Yeah, we had to troubleshoot problems pretty much every day.  So, we have our tasks that we’re doing every day: a science experiment or some maintenance, but things don’t always go as planned.  So that’s one of the really interesting things about science experiments is that sometimes you observe things that are different and that’s how science gets done.

One of the experiments I worked on was actually doing a chemical reaction with some small little pockets of–they’re plastic kind of tubes that contain pockets of water.  And we heated the reaction and we noticed that there were bubbles being formed.  When we did this reaction on Earth we didn’t have the same thing, so we had no idea was to expect when we did this on board.  So we documented this and actually found it to be a really interesting phenomenon.  The scientists took that back and that ended up being part of our analysis of the experiment.  

Sometimes you’re just troubleshooting equipment because things aren’t working.  So I was working on one of the vacuum furnaces one day, and it has these quick disconnects that you can use to supply power or water to the vacuum furnace.  And I tried to do one of the quick disconnects and all of a sudden the connection–the valve–stayed full open and there was water spreading everywhere.  

So that was some really quick troubleshooting, I had water going in my face and I wasn’t really sure what to do so I closed the thing as quickly as possible, backed off, got the water out of my eyes, and then I called the ground and we did a lot of troubleshooting that day.

Have you ever had to troubleshoot a problem in space?

I think some of the greatest things that we can take a look at what we're currently doing in space and see that future generations are really going to appreciate is all of the science that we're doing on board the International Space Station. So I was lucky enough to participate in just a few of those science experiments.  We did about a hundred different science experiments that I actively participated in on board, two hundred total.  

And I think that's just adding to the knowledge about how the human body works in microgravity, and also how we're going to explore, both in lower orbit and then beyond deep space exploration.  So all of these little bits of scientific inquiry add up to really a big body of knowledge, and I hope that's the legacy of the International Space Station and NASA's work in space.

Hii! I'm unsure if you've been asked this before, but I'd like to give it a shot anyway. What's the greatest legacy you hope to leave to the future generations? Whether it's one of the things you've accomplished already or are hoping to accomplish yet. Thank you very much!

"So, one of the really cool things about black holes that I've been working on recently is using black holes to study another aspect of astrophysics which we don't really understand called dark matter.  Dark matter pervades the entire universe. It's probably five, six times more populous than regular matter, and yet we still have no idea what this stuff is.

The only thing we know about dark matter is that it reacts to gravity.  And if you really want to push gravity to the extreme, of course the way to do it is with a black hole.  So we're trying to understand how dark matter and black holes interact together."

What is the most fascinating thing about black hole research for you, personally?

So a lot of the research that we do on board the International Space Station has a relationship to an Earth-based disease.  For example, we worry about bone loss; that's got a relationship to things like osteoporosis on the ground.  All of the things we need to do to keep the human body healthy in a confined environment in the long term we're learning about on the International Space Station.

The things that we do on our six-month missions would build into year-long missions, would build into even longer term missions, for example going to Mars.  So we need to know about things like radiation and the effect on the human body, bone loss, how people are going to be able to work and live together in a confined isolated system for so long.  How we're going to get enough nutrition and getting the right balance of nutrients in a really long duration mission.  And then also, how are we going to keep people healthy?  What kinds of medicines can survive that long in space and how do you treat any illness or injury that occurs?  

So all of these things are actively being researched on board the International Space Station and a lot of them have a component to human health on Earth as well.

How could your research in diseases help missions to the Moon, Mars and other places in our solar system?

“Black holes are just...pure gravity.”

Whats the best metaphor/ explanation of blackholes youve ever heard?

Mission Control is a unique environment.  The people who work there are the cream of the crop.  The tops in their graduating classes, the high performers in industry.  And so working in Mission control, my favorite thing is that I get to work with such uniquely talented people, and of all ages.  So it's a place where we can all come together, everybody with their own skill set, and solve the day's problems.

What was your favorite thing about working in Mission Control? (Also, you are the best

Human space flight is very stressful, and particularly as a flight director with the responsibility for the safety of the crew and the integrity of the vehicle and the execution of the mission, I was very stressed during those years.

One of the things I love to do to de-stress is to run.  So during the Expedition 14 mission, which was seven months long, I was very stressed.  And I figured, hey, why not train for a marathon?  So after training for several months, I actually ran a marathon.  

And this is a picture of me [shows laptop screen] talking to the commander of the International Space Station, Mike E.L.A.  He called my friend while I was at mile 23.  Mile 23!  I'm supposed to be focused!  But she hands me the phone and he says, "Hey, I've had people posting at all the different mile markers and you are looking great out there, so..."

And I said, "Well, can I-can you call me back in like--mmm--thirty minutes because I might be across the finish line by then, and right now I'm kind of busy." ________________

Transciber note: She pronounces name of the commander of the ISS as “Mike Elay”, but a quick google shows that Michael E. Lopez-Alegria was the commander of Expedition 14.  In case you were wondering about the three initials.

What do you do to relax in stressing situations?

"Theoretical?  Yeah, I think so, I think we could do it.  Uh, technically there are still a lot of details that need to be worked out."

Could you theoretically time travel through a black hole or other object with such intense mass?

So when I was inside the space station, one of my favorite things to do was go in the Cupola, which is an area that has a whole bunch of windows.  You can actually get your whole body into the Cupola and just see the Milky Way and the universe from the Cupola.  And that was amazing.  

It was, um–you know terrifying is almost a good word because it was so awe-inspiring to just be in the universe and see the stars–but it was one of the most interesting things to do because it was always changing.  Your view was changing as you go around the planet; even at nighttime you can see different aspects of the planet at night as well. 

And so whenever I could, I would spend a few minutes when we were in a dark orbit and just try to poke my head into the Cupola and see the stars. It never got old.

What is like to be surrounded by the stars and darkness? Is it terrifying or calming?

After serving 25 years in the Air Force, as a pilot flying a variety of different airplanes, the more and more I got into different types of missions this just became a fascinating thing looking at everything NASA does with aircraft flying in and out of the earth's atmosphere.  So the opportunity to just make flight research and earth research flying a variety of science platforms was really what attracted me to the job.

What made you want to become a pilot for NASA? What’s your favorite part of this job?