Pete’s Answers Girl Scouts’ Questions for Astronauts

How does learning water and wilderness survival techniques help you in your space training? (Savina, age 14; Nigeria)

Uh, that’s a damn good question.  Why DID I learn that crap?  There’s no wilderness in space.  If there was, it wouldn’t be space.  It would be wilderness.  For all I know, there isn’t any water, either.  They probably should have taught me stuff about making food into gels or something.

When you’re in space looking down at the Earth, what does it make you feel? (Sarah, age 11; California)

I think about how we’re all ants.  Well, not me.  YOU mostly.  I’m above the ants.  Better than.  I may be turning into a god of some sort out here.  Or losing perspective.  It’s hard to tell, but I’m going with the god one for now.

What’s it like to be outside the Space Station? (Canyea, age 9; Georgia)

What do you think it’s like?  It eats nuts.  It’s freezing, it’s dark, it’s boring.  Why do you think we built a space station?  At least that way we can be in space and have flatscreens and stuff.

Does your appetite change (in space)? (Natalie; Virginia)

Well, I’ll tell you a secret.  Ol’ Pete managed to install a gyros spindle in one of the storage closets before we took off.  I’ve been slow roasting an entire lamb for the last six hours.  I highly doubt that we’ll need any of the shit that was originally in that closet.  But even if we do, a belly full of lamb ca cure anything, that’s what I always say.

Do you need math in college to become an astronaut? (Te’Amber; Georgia)

Haha, you mean the “Dark Arts?”  Hell, no.  You can either take math, or you can beat the shit out of the NASA hiring guy in the alley until he decides you don’t need math to be in space.  I mean, seriously.  There’s no farmer who needs a complicated way to tell when some trains are going to collide up here.

Is it noisy on the space station? (Rochana, age 15; Georgia)

Sort of.  But I hear and see things you wouldn’t believe every time I close my eyes, so really it’s kind of a relief!

http://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/station/expeditions/expedition15/girl_scout_questions.html