NASA Astronaut Discusses Life In Space With WTAE-TV - Pittsburgh

0:02 Speaker 1: Houston, this is Houston. Are you ready for the event?

0:08 Speaker 2: Houston, this is the International Space Station. We are very ready.

0:12 Speaker 1: For the event.

0:15 Speaker 2: WTAE-TV, this is Mission Control Houston.

0:18 Speaker 1: Please call station for a voice check. This is Kelly Sasso with WTAE for voice check.

0:31 Speaker 3: Kelly, this is the International Space Station, and hello to Channel 4, Pittsburgh, WTAE.

0:37 Speaker 2: This is Mike Fink aboard the space station. How do you read me?

0:42 Speaker 1: Loud and clear, Mike. We could not be more excited to be talking to you today. This is probably the most special interview that we've ever done.

0:55 Speaker 2: We're really glad to have you here.

0:57 Speaker 3: And it was fortuitous that I stopped by the studio, I guess, about six months ago before I knew I was going to be on this flight.

1:04 Speaker 2: And then here we are. Maybe it was a year ago.

1:10 Speaker 1: Mike, I just want to start by something that will be able to air on the news tonight. Your story and your career has been highlighted recently as we've been reporting on the launch that is just over two weeks ago now. Tell everybody what this has been like for you, how you've adjusted so far, and exactly what your mission is while you're on the ISS.

1:38 Speaker 3: This is astronaut Mike Fink aboard the International Space Station. I'm back after 14 years. I get to be aboard the space station again. We just got here about two weeks ago, and it's great. I remember the space station when it was a very small space station on my first mission. It's huge now, and we have seven people aboard the space station. And what we're here for is a couple things. First, we're trying to make life better on planet Earth. We're doing all kinds of really important science, all the way from stem cells and material science.

2:09 Speaker 3: But we're also paving the way for the future. How do you live on the moon? How do you live on Mars? That's the goal of our expedition. I'm here for Expedition 73, the second part, and Expedition 74.

2:20 Speaker 2: And I'm glad to be back. I might be up here for like six, seven, eight months.

2:23 Speaker 3: Boy, when I'm done, though, I'm coming back to Pittsburgh.

2:28 Speaker 1: Mike, I got to ask, I know you've done this before. This is not your first rodeo. What is that adjustment like? Every time, is there an adjustment period for you where it just takes some getting used to non-gravity?

2:44 Speaker 3: Yeah, it's really strange being up in space. And when we first get here, our bodies are adjusting. We don't know what's going on. We feel a little bit sick. I was a little bit nauseous for a day or two. And then my body said, oh, dude, you've been here before. And so all of a sudden I felt good again. And we all adapted really quickly. And we got to work about the space station as soon as we could.

3:10 Speaker 1: And Mike, I'm not sure if anyone told you, you've had a lot on your plate lately, but we are, we're producing an hour long special about Pittsburgh's underappreciated role in the space industry. And so I wanted to ask you a question to be part of that documentary. You know, most people think of Houston or Cape Canaveral when they think about the space industry, but did you ever imagine Pittsburgh quietly building its own command center in the space industry?

3:40 Speaker 3: You know, Pittsburgh has really grown a lot in the space industry. And it's, on one hand, hard to imagine. Yeah, how about that? But on the other hand, not surprising. We have a lot of smart people in Pittsburgh. We've got great colleges. We've got a great education system. We've got hard workers. We know how to make things, right? That's what Pittsburgh's all about. So with our new economy and everything, of course we're part of the space program. Not just astronauts like me, but But a lot of people working on all the different, from satellite companies to people sending.

4:14 Speaker 2: Landers on the moon. How cool is that?

4:17 Speaker 3: And I'm really proud of Pittsburgh, and I just think that's great because that means new jobs, more jobs, really high-tech jobs, and really fun jobs, things that are meaningful.

4:27 Speaker 1: Yes. Obviously, you're very much the face of Pittsburgh's role in the space industry right now, but just a few miles from where you grew up, Astrobotic is working to put a lander. They're making another go to get this lander on the moon. What does it mean for you to see a Pittsburgh company really joining the global space race?

4:54 Speaker 3: I am so proud of Astrobotic and the other companies in Pittsburgh for the space race. And on my last trip to Pittsburgh, before I got assigned to this mission, I was really lucky.

5:06 Speaker 2: I had a chance to tour the facilities.

5:09 Speaker 3: And if anybody can do it well and land on the moon, it's this team. I could just see that they were doing all the right things with testing, a lot of really smart people. And right there, right outside the stadiums and right there across from the Carnegie Science Center. What a great location. What a great company. And I wish them the best of luck. We need people to be able to land on the moon with our unmanned lunars and, or excuse me, our uncrewed landers and our future landers too.

5:36 Speaker 2: This is great technology. And of course, Pittsburgh is leading the way.

5:41 Speaker 1: And on that note too, obviously, you know, it was a very public, you hate to even use the word failure. Are you doing a front flip? There he goes. Tell us why you're doing that.

6:08 Speaker 2: I'm sorry about that.

6:09 Speaker 3: You were asking a very serious question and I did a clip because I can. It is just really great to be here in space and I just wanted to share that and maybe it's inspirational but I know it's really fun.

6:21 Speaker 1: Yes, that is awesome. Um, I was going to ask you, um, you know, we saw this sort of public, some people use the word failure. I don't think that's the right word of when, uh, astrobotic tried to make it to the moon. Uh, they didn't, they feel very confident this go around. How important is it to come back from what happened to them and try again for another landing? Yeah.

6:49 Speaker 3: So, uh, you know, it's a failure when things don't work the way you want them, right?

6:54 Speaker 2: And that's life sometimes.

6:56 Speaker 3: But what I learned, you know, the Air Force sent me to test pilot school and I got to learn about testing and sometimes things don't work, but it's what you do about it with the data that you gathered. The astrobotic team has really done a good job in understanding what went wrong and taking corrective actions to fix it. They got smarter and they learned from their things. And that's just like, I don't know, when the Steelers, you know, the They, you know, they, they go to, you know, they do four downs and then they're out.

7:24 Speaker 2: Then the next time they said what went wrong and they fix it.

7:26 Speaker 3: Right. That's just, you just pick yourself up and keep moving forward and that's how you win the game.

7:32 Speaker 2: Okay.

7:33 Speaker 1: And you know, I'll be off topic for a second only because you brought them up. Uh, you're going to miss the Steelers season this year. How's that going to go for you?

7:44 Speaker 3: Well, um, my, uh, And the next cargo ship up, they have a set of personal gear for me, so I got my terrible towel. And in the meantime, I am wearing a Joey Porter T-shirt that my parents sent up on the SpaceX with me as a surprise. And I think they got it from Giant Eagle. So how much more Pittsburgh can you get? But, yeah, I'm going to miss the games a little bit. We're working with our team on the ground so that they can beam up a few of the games to me so I can watch them.

8:14 Speaker 2: I know they're going to do well this season.

8:15 Speaker 3: It's going to be an exciting season, and I'll be one of the many people watching. And, of course, it's a great thing to have a piece of your hometown with you to get us through these long months. And I'm just really glad to be a Steelers fan and have.

8:31 Speaker 2: My terrible towel.

8:34 Speaker 1: The fact that you're wearing a giant Eagle Steelers t-shirt is the greatest thing ever on the international space station. I think all of Pittsburgh would applaud you for that. Mike, I wanted to ask you, you know, I think you kind of touched on it a little bit before. What sort of parallels do you see with Pittsburgh's, you know, history and its industrial roots now transferring to the work in the space industry?

9:04 Speaker 3: Yeah, Pittsburgh is really uniquely positioned to be really a strong and even stronger player in the space industry. And it comes from our heritage. I mean, when we were a steel town, we still are. But when we were really a steel town, in every sense of the word, we were making things. We were building things. We were helping America expand. And the same kind of thing as we go to the moon and Mars and beyond, We need the expertise of people that aren't afraid to get their hands dirty, people who aren't afraid to use their minds, and people who aren't afraid to work and make things.

9:42 Speaker 3: I mean, isn't it great to be constructive? And that's what Pittsburgh's all about. We're a very constructive, positive, forward-looking city. And we have the talent, and we have the industry, and we're just really poised to do super well in space.

9:58 Speaker 2: And I'm very excited about that. I'm very proud of it. my fellow Pittsburghers.

10:03 Speaker 1: And I want to ask you, too, you know, for people like really taking a step back here, for people who maybe don't understand Pittsburgh. why there's such an emphasis on going to space and doing the research and figuring out how to make power on the moon. Kind of, if you can, give people the why. Why is this important for humanity's future?

10:27 Speaker 3: What an investment the space program has been for our country and what an investment it is for our future. We have a super high-tech economy right now, And that's directly traceable back to the early space program with Apollo and going to the moon and how it motivated our country.

10:46 Speaker 2: It's the same thing.

10:47 Speaker 3: We are aboard the International Space Station to make life better on planet Earth. And we're also working at NASA to industrialize low Earth orbit and explore the moon and beyond. And there's other countries that are working on this also. Some of them are in collaboration and some are in competition. And I think it's really important for the United States of America to continue with its leadership in space and to go to moon and to the Mars and go to the moon and go to Mars and beyond. And there's a role for the kids of Pittsburgh today to actually get a chance to walk on the moon.

11:22 Speaker 2: When I was a kid, I wanted to. Doesn't look like it's going to happen in my career. Who knows? But I bet you there's going to be a lot.

11:28 Speaker 3: More Pittsburghers walking on the moon in the next 25 years. And then using the lunar resources, to relieve the burden of industrialization here on planet Earth. It's just a win-win situation and a great investment and great high-tech jobs.

11:45 Speaker 1: And you brought up the kids. I mean, I have to imagine whenever you come back from this mission and your other missions, the kid just flocks to you because you're like a superhero. You're a real life superhero getting to do what you do. How fulfilling is that to get to know that you're inspiring people by literally being physical proof of that this is possible?

12:10 Speaker 3: Well, I think we were all kids at one time and we do realize the power of having a good example. And that's how I pay for my ticket to come up to space. is that it's paid for by the taxpayers. I'm a civil servant and I have to pay back to society.

12:26 Speaker 2: And that's how I do it is by inspiring the next generation.

12:30 Speaker 3: Because, you know, one look at me and say, well, if that guy could be an astronaut, I could be an astronaut, too. But along the way, I'm happy to share like how how some of the life lessons that I've learned to help inspire them and get them through some tough times, because we always don't win every day. And just to have that grit and keep on going. And so it's a real honor to inspire the next generation of explorers. I take it very seriously. And it makes me so happy, too. I just love kids. They're my people.

13:00 Speaker 1: What will a successful mission look like for you whenever you set foot back here on Earth? What do you want to feel like you've accomplished physically, mentally, all of it?

13:17 Speaker 3: Yeah, that's a great question. That's a philosophical question, too. I'm coming up on my 400th day in space. How lucky am I? So what more is there to prove?

13:27 Speaker 2: Not much more. But really, I think my crewmates and I, we've talked it over.

13:31 Speaker 3: We'd like to leave the space station better shaped than we found it to help space station prepare for its eventual retirement, as well as to do our very best every day with a great attitude and get our program done, get our science done. and get the best data we can for the researchers on the ground, and be good examples for everyone else.

13:53 Speaker 2: As best we can.

13:55 Speaker 3: And one of our goals is to remain friends throughout the whole mission, because we're going to be here for a long time, and we're just figuring out how to really get along together, and it's going great so far. This is going to be a great mission, and I'm looking forward to sharing it with my hometown as we move forward through time.

14:16 Speaker 1: I think I have time for maybe one more question. So I want to ask you, you know, does the entire space station look like what we're seeing behind you? Because there are 8,000 wires in the shot. And do you know what they all do? Yes.

14:35 Speaker 3: Welcome aboard the Columbus module, European Space Agency's contribution to the International Space Station. It is a little bit untidy, but it is very representative of the space station. I did not have time to read it up today, but I did want to share it with you because, yes, there are.

14:56 Speaker 2: Wires here everywhere.

14:57 Speaker 3: There's cargo containers down here that are just under some bungee cords.

15:03 Speaker 2: And this is the state of the space station.

15:07 Speaker 3: When we first designed it, In the 1990s, we didn't imagine that we're going to have Ethernet and Ethernet cables everywhere and power cords and laptops. This wasn't quite designed for it. So everything comes on the exterior. And there's no reason for a cable to lie down straight like it would back home on planet Earth. They just go the way that the wire wants to bend. So it looks a little untidy, but boy, everything is efficient. We do know where every cable goes, what its name is, what its serial number is, and where it's supposed to go.

15:36 Speaker 3: We're able to keep track of everything. We just have to be careful when we're flying around that we don't snag it. But that's part of being being an astronaut is learning how to fly around the space station.

15:50 Speaker 1: OK, and just because no one's cut me off yet, I'll ask you to. I know you did a flip earlier, which was really crazy to see. Like, do you have a favorite move in space that you can share with us?

16:04 Speaker 3: Yeah, we have a move that we can only do in a different module, and it's called the Iron Man Maneuver. And I can't quite do it here just because we don't have too much room above, but I'll do our best, very best that we can. I'll go all the way down on the floor. I'm going to lift my arm, and I'm just going to rise right up. It's not quite the Ascension. It's Iron Man.

16:26 Speaker 2: So hold on.

16:37 Speaker 1: Impressive.

16:44 Speaker 2: Yeah, Tony Stark can't even do that.

16:51 Speaker 1: That is very good. Mike, is there anything else that you want to add that we didn't talk about either about, you know, for the documentary purposes, which I'm so excited to highlight Pittsburgh's role in the space industry for our audience. Anything else you want to add about that or just your current mission for our audience that's going to be seeing a clip of this tonight?

17:13 Speaker 3: I can't really think of anything. You really hit all the questions really nicely on the head. I think I answered them okay, but if there's a repeat or another way we want to do something, I think we might have a minute or two. But it's been a real honor to have a chance to talk with you in WTAE Channel 4, Pittsburgh.

17:30 Speaker 2: I know exactly where you are.

17:32 Speaker 3: And as we were talking here, we started out our conversation, we were over Newfoundland, Canada, And now we're coasting the tip of Africa. We went across the Atlantic and all the way, not just across east to west, but north to south. And I think an airplane ride would have taken about 17 hours.

17:52 Speaker 2: And we did it in about 17 minutes.

17:55 Speaker 1: That is wild. Do you look down sometimes and look for Pittsburgh specifically for home? Oh, yeah.

18:05 Speaker 2: There is no place like home.

18:06 Speaker 3: Pittsburgh's not easy to find, but the three rivers point straight to the point and the stadiums. And then from there, I can just kind of go up the Ohio River, see Neville Island, go across, see the bridge, I-79 bridge over the Ohio River there near Sewickley. And then I can almost see my parents' house from there. I told my parents to get a bigger house, but they said, no, they like the one they have. But I can almost see it from space. And yeah, there's no place like home.

18:34 Speaker 1: Wow. You know, I don't know. I'm sure we'd have to talk to NASA, but I sure hope at some point throughout your mission we can connect again. I would love to chat with you again a few more weeks and months into this if you would be up for it.

18:50 Speaker 2: Oh, I'm up. I'm always up.

18:52 Speaker 3: We're up in space, but I would be up for another interview and really appreciate taking the time and helping me share the story of the International Space Station and spaceflight and being an astronaut. with my friends and family. And that means like everybody in the city of Pittsburgh and the boroughs around the greater Pittsburgh area.

19:11 Speaker 2: As we say.

19:13 Speaker 1: Thank you so much, Mike. This was the highlight of my career, honestly, getting to talk to you up there. I really appreciate it. And I hope we can catch up again soon. We're wishing you the best. We are cheering you on so hard.

19:29 Speaker 2: Well, thank you so much. Thank you for the interview. And yeah, let's do it again sometime.

19:34 Speaker 1: All right. Take care, Mike. Thank you. Station, this is Houston ACR. Thank you.

19:45 Speaker 3: That concludes our event.

19:50 Speaker 1: Thank you to all participants.

19:51 Speaker 2: Station, we are now resuming operational audio communications.