NASA astronaut Don Pettit is about to embark on his fourth space mission — one sure to be filled with chances to tinker with things in orbit.
The 69-year-old Pettit will spend six months in space on the coming mission, adding to his 370-day orbital tally.
He told Space.com he misses the final frontier when he’s not up there: “Some people are born to be cowboys and ride a horse.
Pettit likes to MacGyver things in space.
Related: Weightlessness and its effect on astronauts The astronaut also knows how to repurpose everyday materials, such as knitting needles.
Pettit also enjoys playing with camera exposures and angles to create unique views of Earth, particularly focusing on light trails across the planet’s surface at night.
He plans on doing more of this spare-time shutterbug activity using the upgraded equipment available on ISS, he said.
I’m really looking forward to getting back on station and taking nighttime imagery to a new level, Pettit said.
Pettit added that he has been keeping his skills sharp since his last space mission in 2013.
“NASA has … training camera equipment that we could check out and use, and we’ve got pretty sophisticated, professional-level cameras.
Don Pettit, a NASA astronaut, is scheduled to leave for his fourth space mission, which will undoubtedly involve many opportunities to make adjustments while in orbit.
In a Russian Soyuz spacecraft that is set to take off on a Soyuz rocket from Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan on Wednesday (Sept. 23), Pettit will travel with Roscosmos cosmonauts Alexey Ovchinin and Ivan Vagner. 111) at 12:23 p.m. me. 1623 GMT; 9:23 p.m. EDT. me. Baikonur time locally.
To add to his already impressive 370 days in orbit, the 69-year-old Pettit will spend six months in space on the upcoming mission. Space . com quoted him as saying, “Some people are born to be cowboys and ride a horse. They miss the final frontier when they’re not up there.”. My destiny is to launch into space on a rocket. Consequently, I’m eager to return. ****.
Pettit enjoys improvising in space. According to NASA, the Capillary Beverage, also known as the Space Cup, “uses surface tension, wetting, and container shape to mimic the role of gravity in drinking on Earth,” making it arguably his most well-known invention. The gadget enables crews to drink from a slightly altered vessel as opposed to the straw that astronauts primarily have to use.
Related: Astronauts’ experiences with weightlessness.
Additionally, the astronaut is skilled at repurposing commonplace items like knitting needles. Pettit created an electrical charge by rubbing the needles with paper. After that, he emitted charged water close to the needle using a Teflon syringe, a kind of liquid transfer device.
The knitting needle’s water droplets displayed electrostatic orbits, or movements driven by electrical attraction, just as science had predicted.
According to NASA officials, “these observations could prove useful in designing future spacecraft systems and be analogous to the behavior of charged particles in Earth’s magnetic field.”.
In addition, Pettit takes pleasure in experimenting with camera angles and exposures to produce original views of Earth, with a particular emphasis on the nighttime light trails that traverse the planet’s surface. With the improved equipment on the ISS, he intends to continue his hobby of taking pictures in his free time.
“We have several new lenses in orbit that are designed to capture images at night. Pettit expressed his excitement at returning to the station and elevating the nighttime imagery to a new level.
Since his final space mission in 2013, Pettit continued, “I’ve been maintaining my skills.”.
He remarked, “The way you do that is, you’re always taking photographs.”. “NASA owns dot. We have fairly advanced, professional-grade cameras that we can use and check out as well as training camera equipment. You cannot pick up a camera two years later and be an expert user after only one or two hours of training. You must use it once a week, for me at least. “. .
