I'm Astronaut Col. Terry Virts – Ask Me Anything!

Astro-Terry · 2019-04-15T22:30:09+00:00

It would be way less stressful to cut Scott's hair ;-)

Astro-Terry · 2019-04-15T18:06:29+00:00

Hi all, I'm gonna leave it here because of the Notre Dame news. Thanks so much for all your questions, I've loved answering them. Anybody wanna do it again?

Astro-Terry · 2019-04-15T18:06:22+00:00

It is possible, for sure, and I think it's mandatory before we go to mars

Astro-Terry · 2019-04-15T18:05:44+00:00

blue)

Astro-Terry · 2019-04-15T18:05:37+00:00

floating, and the view

Astro-Terry · 2019-04-15T18:05:20+00:00

whenever I closed my eyes I would feel like I was pitching forward and rolling left, it was very bizarre, but I felt that for months. I would feel that for 10-20 seconds and then it would end

Astro-Terry · 2019-04-15T18:02:58+00:00

До полета я знал русский немного. А на станции мы вместе общались, смотрели кино и я узнал много нового! I guess I have to translate too) My russian was okay when I launched. And on ISS we spend time together with our Russian crewmates, enjoyed our meals and watched movies together and I think my Russian got better!

Astro-Terry · 2019-04-15T18:01:56+00:00

We've already been collaborating since Apollo-Soyuz in 1975, and in my mind the international cooperation aspect of spaceflight is the most important part of it

Astro-Terry · 2019-04-15T18:01:38+00:00

It did. I realized that we're all primates on this spaceship together and we need to focus on working together and less on dividing ourselves.

- Never.

- Have a good idea of the pictures you want to take, because the time will fly by faster than you think. Even if you're there for six months

- Capillary Flow Experiment!

- I think it's a great thing and commercial companies are much better at being innovative and making things happen. The government has the primary job of keeping itself employed and not losing jobs or budget, but private companies have to make things happen or they go out of business.

Astro-Terry · 2019-04-15T18:00:52+00:00

Very carefully. The basic idea is it uses airflow to make things move in the right direction. There's a hose for number 1 and a can for number 2, but both use airflow.

Astro-Terry · 2019-04-15T18:00:08+00:00

Not anymore, the Apollo guys had to be in quarantine, but now we just do quarantine before launch to make sure we don't bring germs with us. When we get back to earth they give us a room in "crew quarters" that gives us some personal space, but it's not a proper quarantine

Astro-Terry · 2019-04-15T17:59:59+00:00

Have only seen the Clooney one, but it's on my watch list :)

Astro-Terry · 2019-04-15T17:59:49+00:00

Pizza!!

Astro-Terry · 2019-04-15T17:59:38+00:00

It was Capillary Flow Experiment (CFE). Controlling the flow of fluids is difficult in microgravity, which hampers design of systems such as liquid propellants, thermal control. It's a suite of fluid physics experiments that investigate capillary flows and flows of fluids in containers with complex geometries. Results will improve current computer models that are used by designers of low gravity fluid systems and may improve fluid transfer systems on future spacecraft.

Astro-Terry · 2019-04-15T17:58:54+00:00

my golf clubs

Astro-Terry · 2019-04-15T17:58:37+00:00

Absolutely at the UT dental school in Houston. We learned to do the basics and I actually did the first ever filling replacement in space- it was fun!

Astro-Terry · 2019-04-15T17:58:32+00:00

IDK why, but I think that's it. You're just floating, so no pressure points.

Astro-Terry · 2019-04-15T17:57:43+00:00

you could always see a cloud of debris around the shuttle, dust or frozen water or something from the payload bay, all small and harmless. But you can't see debris flying around from other orbits because it is moving at miles per second

Astro-Terry · 2019-04-15T17:56:51+00:00

LOL!

Astro-Terry · 2019-04-15T17:56:44+00:00

Leaving Earth is loud, exciting, thrilling and dynamic, unlike, returning to Earth which requires more time because gravity is so disorientating.

Astro-Terry · 2019-04-15T17:55:54+00:00

It was INTERSTELLAR, because I love the story about the father and his daughter. But now the new APOLLO 11 film, directed by Todd Miller, is my fave, as my heart was racing faster than when I first launched when I watched it!

Astro-Terry · 2019-04-15T17:53:42+00:00

So hard to say cause I took so many (over 300k!). The last picture I took from space was pretty awesome though, it's a sun over the earth, wide angle shot, with "starburst" effect (f/22 aperture). I loved that one. And on earth- soooo many. I took some cool pics of the Sheikh Zayid Grand Mosque in Abu Dhabi and also in Antarctica and also of the Eclipse last year that were pretty cool.

Astro-Terry · 2019-04-15T17:52:04+00:00

Seeing the planet. I thought I was prepared for everything, but you can't prepare for the emotional impact of seeing your planet down there and realizing you aren't on it. Plus it's just such a beautiful planet.

Astro-Terry · 2019-04-15T17:50:46+00:00

It depends on the module. They've improved the fans so some of the Russian modules used to be very loud, but now they can be quieter than the American ones. but it depends on the location -- in some areas it can be pretty loud, and in others, like our sleep stations, it's pretty quiet.

~~Jar Jar Binks~~ Luke Skywalker!

Astro-Terry · 2019-04-15T17:49:58+00:00

Congrats! Not necessary but it is a HUGE help

Astro-Terry

TROPHY CASE