Here I am, wrapping up my first “regular” day on the International Space Station! In a way, it feels like I arrived here a long time ago: when you discover new things every minute and your mind is absorbing so many experiences and information, it feels like time expands. It’ s hard to believe that we only arrived yesterday morning, launch feels already so far away.
On the other hand, every time I bump into something because of my beginner’s flying skills, or every time I need to ask Butch a question (which is every few minutes), I am reminded that I have only just arrived and I have so much to learn!
Butch, of course, is our veteran crewmember on the non-Russian side of the Station, he’s been up here since September. And, thankfully, he is the paragon of patience. He made it clear from the start that the number 1 rule is: don’t hesitate to ask a question, even if you know you’re asking it for the 15th time!
I’m thankful that I have had the luxury of a rather light schedule for this first day. Mostly, I have done preparation work for upcoming experiments. Later this week Sasha, Elena and I will install the experiment Plasma Kristall 4 (PK4) in Columbus, and for that I had to do some cleanup and stowage reconfiguration. In itself an easy task, but quite challenging when you just got to space and you’re not yet in perfect control of your body, let alone of five big bags you have to somehow manage while accessing a particular locker. Finding a particular item in a bag, then, can also be challenging, if that bag is also full of other small items you’re not interested in, but who simply refuse to stay inside.
In addition to the PK4-related tasks, I was also scheduled to do preparation work for the Italian Space Agency Experiment “ Blind & Imagined”: I gathered all the necessary equipment and temp-stowed in the Japanese Laboratory JEM, where the experiment will take place, and I routed some cables.
I also got to do some self-study (we call it onboard training) to operate the 3D printer demonstrator that is onboard; since this study session was on my schedule, I expect I will get to work with the 3D printer soon!
As for flying: it’s a lot of fun, but not so easy! Especially the US Lab (Destiny) is challenging, because the rack fronts are full of equipments that a clumsy flyer like me could potentially damage.
But hey, this evening I already felt a lot more confident than this morning, so hopefully soon I’ll be a proficient flyer. One thing it’s sure: it’s a great feeling!
Futura mission website (Italian): Avamposto42
avamposto42.esa.int
(Trad IT) Traduzione in italiano a cura di +AstronautiCAST qui:
https://www.astronautinews.it/tag/logbook
(Trad FR) Traduction en français par +Anne Cpamoa ici:
https://spacetux.org/cpamoa/category/traductions/logbook-samantha
(Trad ES – Currently not updated) Tradducción en español aquí:
https://www.intervidia.com/category/bitacora
28/11/2014