On episode 301, hear from the Crew-7 cadre ahead of their launch to the International Space Station. This episode was recorded on June 12, 2023.

Transcript

Gary Jordan (Host): Houston we have a podcast! Welcome to the official podcast of the NASA Johnson Space Center, Episode 301, Crew-7. I’m Gary Jordan, I’ll be your host today. On this podcast, we bring in the experts, scientists, engineers, and astronauts… and cosmonauts, all to let you know what’s going on in the world of human spaceflight and more. NASA’s Commercial Crew Program continues, launching a crew of four for the first time from four different space agencies; NASA, ESA, or the European Space Agency, JAXA or the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency and Roscosmos the Russian State Space Corporation on a U.S commercial spacecraft on the seventh crew rotation mission to the International Space Station. Each of these four crew members are incredible, high-achieving individuals and I was fortunate enough to spend a few minutes with each of them before their launch. On this episode, we’ll hear from each of the crew. Commander Jasmin Moghbeli of NASA, Pilot Andreas Mogensen of ESA, and Mission Specialist Satoshi Furukawa of JAXA and Konstantin Borisov of Roscosmos, and hear them reflect on their lives, training, and anticipation of their upcoming long-duration mission in space. So let’s get right into it. Enjoy.

[Music]

Host: First up is NASA astronaut Jasmin Moghbeli, commander of Crew-7. Moghbeli is responsible for all phases of flight, from launch to re-entry. Once on-board station, she’ll serve as an Expedition-69 and 70 in-flight engineer. Though she was born in Germany, she considers Baldwin, New York home. The now lieutenant colonel of the U.S Marine Corps received a Bachelor of Aerospace Engineering from MIT and a masters in aerospace engineering from the Naval postgraduate school. Prior to joining NASA as an astronaut candidate in 2017, she was a helicopter pilot, flying a number of operational missions as well as a test pilot. She accumulated more than 150 combat missions and 2,000 hours of flight time in more than 25 different aircraft. Crew-7 will be her first spaceflight. A fully capable leader. Here’s a little more about Jasmin Moghbeli.

Host: Jasmin Moghbeli, thank you so much for coming on Houston We Have a Podcast today.

Jasmin Moghbeli: Yeah. Thanks for having me.

Host: How you feeling? This is your first spaceflight, you’re going to space, what are you feeling right now?

Jasmin Moghbeli: I’m incredibly excited, obviously. It’s one of those things where yeah, I’ve been training at this point for six years as an astronaut and now, we’re just a couple months prior to launch and it’s one of those things that doesn’t feel real and I keep just trying to tell myself, OK, just focus on what you have to do that day. Focus on your training, don’t get too overwhelmed with the fact that you’re actually going to launch to space.

Host: See, the thing is you’ve been training for six years but the thought of– your dream of being in space goes back to your childhood. This is something you’ve always wanted.

Jasmin Moghbeli: Yes. I’ve wanted to become an astronaut since elementary school. I did a book report on Valentina Tereshkova. I don’t remember why I chose Valentina Tereshkova for my book report. So I wonder if it started even before then. But I know definitely from that point on this was something I wanted to do.

Host: Did you have a lot of encouragement throughout your childhood that kind of supported that idea? Because I think, you know, someone says they want– a kid says they want to be an astronaut you just say, “OK.”

Jasmin Moghbeli: “OK,” yeah.

Host:…you could be a superhero, too, but like, you must have had a lot of encouragement to actually help you to realize this was a real, actual possibility.

Jasmin Moghbeli: I did. I had a lot of support from both my family, my immediate family, and also the teachers and mentors I grew up with. You know, I went to school from kindergarten through high school in Baldwin– the Baldwin School District in Long Island and I was really lucky. It’s something I didn’t realize till afterwards when I traveled all over the country. But the teachers I had, even from such a young age in elementary school, you know, two of them are coming to my launch, so I think that says something about how big a role they’ve played in my life and how important they were in making me believe I could do this.

Host: That’s awesome. Now, I mean, yeah, so you had, even at elementary school, you had people who were encouraging you to pursue this dream. And there’s, you know, we’ve talked to a lot of astronauts here and there’s a lot of different ways that you could pursue to become an astronaut, but you chose aerospace engineering. Why?

Jasmin Moghbeli: I was always drawn to math and science, especially physics. And I remember from a young age, we would do different things at school, learning about the stars and the constellations. They would bring this dome into the gym and show us the different constellations in the night sky, and you know, I grew up in New York, so when you looked up at the sky you actually couldn’t see that many stars.

Host: Light pollution.

Jasmin Moghbeli: Right! And so, I remember even the first time, I looked at the sky on NVGs on; night vision goggles and being like, wow, they’re really out there. These stars that they told us about are really out there. But I just had this fascination with space at a young age. And also, engineering just appealed to me from the design aspect and bringing in that math and science that I loved.

Host: And I know you had role models because, you know, you had this theme of astronaut throughout your life and you thought OK, what does it take to become an astronaut? And so, you started looking at the Marines, the military as a possible path to get there. And so, why’d you end up choosing that and flying helicopters?

Host: The military in general was something I was drawn to at such a young age. I loved being a part of teams. I played team sports from a very young age, and you know, the military is very big on that camaraderie and your brothers and sisters in arms. The adventure aspect of it, of exploring, you know, getting to see different parts of the world was something that really appealed to me and then, service. You know, my parents, they left their country, and we ended up here in the states and the only reason I’m able to be an astronaut is the opportunities that were afforded to me being in this country and that I have such an appreciation for that. And so, you know, paying something back to this country was something that was important to me. And so, for those reasons I was drawn to the military. And the Marine Corps was actually something that came a little later, when I was older in late high school and in college I learned about the Marine Corps. And I love that the Marine Corps takes kind of every aspect of it. We have this air-ground task force that supports itself and the expeditionary mindset of going in and living and working in these hard environments is really integral to being a marine.

Host: Very interesting. You talked about your parents. Your parents immigrated Iran, right? And they ended up in Germany. Germany is where you were born when you moved to the states.

Jasmin Moghbeli: Yes.

Host: What values, what Iranian values did your parents take with you through all of these things that kind of instilled into you? That kind of helped you to get what you where you are?

Jasmin Moghbeli: Both my parents and my brother, my older brother, I think were very influential in shaping my values and my character. My parents, they led very good lives and had their families around them in Iran and they left all that, but I saw them working hard every single day. But not just working hard, even while they were struggling themselves, I saw them reach out to help others around them and build a sense of community and help the refugees that came after them. Long after, my father still works helping refugees. And so, that, I think is something that was really instilled in me from a young age and my brother, you know, he’s an older brother and he just, he always pushed me, and he taught me it was cool to be smart and hardworking. Not to be lazy. Not to pretend you weren’t intelligent or didn’t know something. And that I think, was really influential, as well.

Host: That’s right. Yeah, because you could — it sort of is all of what you surround yourself with. And it’s perfect. This is leading us to all the hard work that got you to where you are. We talked about your time in the military, but you’ve always had this dream, you’ve always had this idea of becoming an astronaut. And then you finally decided to pursue it and you got it in 2017. Tell me about the call.

Jasmin Moghbeli: Oh, boy. So that, the call is like one of the most memorable things, I’m sure for everyone, but I know for me. As you said, this was something I’ve wanted from as long as I can basically remember. And to actually find out it had come true, I was checking into a hotel after a red-eye flight and I saw the call from a Houston number on my cell phone and immediately, I just kind of dropped my things outside the door, rushed to open the door and get in there and I answered the phone and you know, Chris Cassidy was the chief of the office at the time, so it was him and Brian Kelly is the head of the flight operations directorate and they start making small talk. And all you want to do is say, “can you just please tell me did I make it or not?” And finally they asked, you know, “would you like to join the 22nd group of astronaut candidates?” And I immediately said, “of course.” I didn’t play it cool at all. And then I called my parents, but my hands were just shaking trying to call my parents because I was just in shock that I had actually received this call.

Host: Everything you had been dreaming up to– it all was, in this moment, it’s like, oh my gosh, I’m actually going to be an astronaut.

Jasmin Moghbeli: Right? And I think something that’s also indicative is my parents response, you know, my mother told me afterwards they were out having pizza and my dad couldn’t even drive home because he was crying tears of joy and so, she had to drive them home. So they knew this was something I’d wanted for a long time.

Host: Wow. I want to jump ahead to your crew. Now, you became an astronaut, you trained to become an astronaut. And now, you not only are going to fly to space as an astronaut but as a commander of a crew. A multinational crew for the first time…

Jasmin Moghbeli: Yes.

Host:…you have — every seat is occupied by a different space agency, and so you are going to be flying with these people who you’ve gotten to know pretty recently. Tell me about who you’re going to be flying with?

Jasmin Moghbeli: Yeah. So I’ll be flying with Andy Mogensen from Denmark in the European Space Agency as the pilot. And then, Satoshi Furukawa from Japan, and Konstantin Borisov from Russia. So as you said, it is the first time every seat is occupied by a different nation, different space agency and it’s something we’re so proud of just what that represents. You know, we explore out in space as humans, and we do it for humanity, and we hope is something that represents going beyond the borders of our different nations and combines the strengths of our different cultures and our different viewpoints and the experiences we have.

Host: Awesome. First time, you know, that every seat is occupied. This is for a U.S Mission this is for a CCP (Commercial Crew Program) mission, you’re going to be fulfilling this scientific mission on station. Of conducting science, you have maintenance goals. There’s a lot that is, you know, the purpose of this flight, of actually going to the station for a while. But what are your personal objectives? While you’re there, what do you want to make sure you check off your bucket list of flying to space?

Jasmin Moghbeli: I think like, probably everyone else who’s ever wanted to fly in space looking back at Earth is something that I’ve just heard so many people say it changes your perspective to see this fragile but beautiful Earth, that holds everyone you know and love on it. And also, just thinking about the fact that you know, we go out into space, and we explore, but we do it all for the benefit of the people back here on Earth is something that’s really important to me.

Host: And just absorbing that in that moment of sitting in the cupola, is that what you’re going to do? You’re just going to rush right out of Dragon and go right to the cupola?

Jasmin Moghbeli: Probably, I mean, I remember the first time I even saw the Grand Canyon. You hear a lot about it, I’d seen pictures and I thought is this really going to be that incredible and spectacular when I see it? And it was. I remember just seeing the Grand Canyon and being like, wow, it is really grand! It’s just this magnificent thing and so, I can’t imagine how that’ll feel looking back at Earth.

Host: I cannot wait to hear your experience when you actually get to live it. Jasmin Moghbeli, thank you so much for coming on Houston We have a Podcast.

Jasmin Moghbeli: Yeah. Thanks for having me.

Host: Next, is ESA astronaut Andreas Mogensen, who goes by Andy, and he’s the pilot of the Dragon spacecraft and the second in command for the mission. He is responsible for spacecraft systems and performance. Once on board station, he’ll serve as an Expedition 69 flight engineer and assume the role of space station commander for Expedition 70. Born in Copenhagen, Denmark, Mogensen’s journey takes him quite literally around the world. He received an International Baccalaureate from the Copenhagen International School in Denmark, then went to the United Kingdom for a masters in aeronautical engineering from Imperial College, London, during which he spent a semester abroad in Lisbon, Portugal at the Instituto Superior Tecnico. Mogensen was then stationed in Africa in the Republic of Congo and the Republic of Angola working on offshore oil rigs. He then went back to Denmark to work on wind turbines. He then came to the States for a doctorate in aerospace engineering from the University of Texas – Austin. Mogensen then went across the pond again. This time to Germany to work on ESA’s Swarm mission that studied the Earth’s magnetic field. Before being selected by ESA as an astronaut candidate in 2009, he was stationed at the Surrey Space Center at the University of Surrey in the UK. Mogensen is a private pilot, a cavenaut, an aquanaut, and an experienced astronaut. In 2010, he was trained and certified as a private pilot by the Lufthansa flight school. In 2012, he participated in an ESA CAVES training course, living underground for a week exploring a cave system in Sardinia, a Mediterranean island. He also lived in an underwater habitat off the coast of Florida for two NEEMO (NASA Extreme Environment Mission Operations) missions, in 2013 and 2014. And he flew to the space station in 2015 for a 10-day mission aboard the International Space Station. Really a great guy to talk to. Here’s Andy Mogensen.

Host: Andy Mogensen, thank you so much for coming on Houston We Have a Podcast.

Andreas Mogensen: It’s my pleasure.

Host: Awesome. Hey, you are launching to the International Space Station, this time for a long-duration Expedition. That’s got to feel pretty good. Are you excited?

Andreas Mogensen: I’m very excited. Yeah. I get, hopefully a chance to do all the things I didn’t have time to do in 2015 on my short 10-day mission.

Host: That’s right. Now, I love your biography, Andy because, you know, when I think about an astronaut, you think about an adventurer, you think about someone who has, you know, seen the world; done it all, and your background takes you quite literally around the world. Even as a child, you know, you were born in Denmark, but you were popping all over.

Andreas Mogensen: Yeah. And I don’t think you can overestimate the effect that it has had on me. I mean in the same way that going to school is a fundamental part of forming your character. Moving from country to country as a child, I think has had just as big of an effect on shaping who I am and my outlook on life. I mean, it’s also the reason why when I had to choose where to study for college that, to me studying in Denmark or studying in the UK or in Texas, there was really no difference. It didn’t frighten me. The thought of going abroad for a university to education, it was almost a natural thing to do.

Host: Well, see, as a kid it’s more passive, right? What was taking you from place to place as a kid? What was the reason you were making all these moves?

Andreas Mogensen: Well, it was my dad’s job.

Host: OK.

Andreas Mogensen: Yeah. He was moved, you know, every two, three to four years, we would, he would be stationed somewhere new and that was what caused us to move.

Host: Yes. So, I don’t have quite the same history, right? I moved quite a bit, but almost exclusively around Pennsylvania. So it’s not like around the world, but it was this idea that, you know, like every couple of years, especially in the formative years of being, you know, like developing a personality and an identity and wanting to be social especially, some of those moves later, like when I moved in sixth grade or something like that, those were formative in a way because all these friends that I made, yeah, I had to start over almost. I wonder if you had something similar? But maybe a little different because you were doing it in different countries.

Andreas Mogensen: Yeah. A lot of people who hear the story think that it must have been extremely difficult to pick up and start over again, but for me, it was always a moment of excitement. This idea of going to a new place and not just learning about new cultures and new languages and new countries but also, in some ways starting fresh, right? It was an opportunity to present yourself from your best side to new people to get to know them and to let them get to know you.

Host: That’s awesome. And it explains so well what you described in the beginning was, you know, as a kid it was more passive. You were moving because of your dad’s job. But then you sought it out, you wanted to try different things. And, I think maybe there was something, you know, there was all these different influences throughout your life that where you could have been; but astronaut, I believe was something that is something that was a part of you as a kid. Where, where did that come from? When you were moving around this, this idea of becoming an astronaut?

Andreas Mogensen: Well, I think the idea started, you know, without me even being aware or before I even knew there was such a thing as an astronaut but this, you know, this idea of being an explorer and of traveling the world, and making, getting new experiences, you know, that came with my childhood. But specifically, you know, when I learned about NASA and especially the Apollo astronauts that went to the Moon, that was when my dream started, you know? That, to me, the Apollo missions especially, they were the ultimate adventure. You know, the ultimate journey of exploration and I, even to this day, I can’t imagine anything more incredible than flying to the Moon and landing on the Moon and opening the hatch and stepping out into this unknown world and just… just exploring the unknown. You know, what we do on board the space station is really, really exciting but still there’s another level to it, I think when you land on an unknown world and you actually, physically go out there and explore and I’m so excited that we’re going back in the next few years with the Artemis missions.

Host: Absolutely. I’m looking through your biography and your history and I’m trying to think about a moment that, to me, best captures what you were just saying about this idea of exploration and the closest thing I think that I see, and maybe you have something different, is your experience for ESA CAVES. I mean, as you’re describing this, you talked about the Moon as like this brand new environment, ESA CAVES is something entirely different, right? You’re in an underground, like, cave system and exploring it and figuring things out. Am I close? Is that a pretty good analog?

Andreas Mogensen: Yeah, definitely. ESA caves is an incredible experience and I’m really glad I had an opportunity to participate in it. It’s, in many ways, it’s almost surreal. You know, there are places on the Earth where the ground isn’t as solid as we think, but there are, you know, miles and miles of underground passageways below our feet and getting down there, it’s like entering a new world and it really is an adventure because you know, one minute you’re on your stomach crawling on all fours trying to squeeze through this tiny little passageway, you know, where your shoulders barely fit through and the next minute, you’re in a gigantic chamber where there’s, you know, 50 feet to the ceiling and you’ve got this sheer rock wall in front of you that you’re trying to climb to get to the next passageway and it’s almost like mountain climbing underneath the ground. Below the ground. And then, other parts of the cave, you know, suddenly, there’s a river flowing through it, with clear water, and you put on a wetsuit and you’re canyoning all of a sudden underneath the ground. You’re, you know, you’re jumping into pools of water, swimming, climbing up out again, jumping into the next pool, and then swimming again through another part of the river. It’s just, it’s a different world and it’s so exciting, and just a huge experience to be part of that.

Host: And you got to be– and that experience just sounds absolutely incredible. Scary but incredible because you also got to live underwater as an aquanaut and experience that. And then you got to fly in space for the first time. You know, you talked about this inspiration of being an astronaut and then actually getting to experience it and I know they were long days. I know they were– it was a short-duration, it was very intense, but what was that like, your first flight experience?

Andreas Mogensen: I mean, it’s hard to summarize in a few words. You know, the International Space Station is such a unique place and I’m so looking forward to getting back up there. You know, it hit me as we were approaching the space station in the Soyuz, you know, first you see the space station as this little dot of light, it almost looks like a star and then it grows bigger and bigger and suddenly you can see the solar arrays and the different modules. But when you’re, you know, when you’re 10, 20, 30 yards away from docking and you look out the window and you see these gigantic solar arrays stretching out in space next to you, that’s when you, at least for me, that’s when I, you know, for the first time realized how big the space station is, and just what a marvel it is that we’ve constructed this incredible machine in space. And then getting on board and having a chance to live there with my colleagues, you know, it’s almost like a high-tech camping trip, you know. We’re working, we’re doing science during the day and then in the evenings, we’re eating together. And then, you know, we get into our sleeping bags and sleep and get to repeat the next day. It’s a lot of fun being up there.

Host: And maybe, that’s why you’re looking forward to this mission so much. You know, I guess the short-duration mission there are pros and cons. It’s a sprint, you’re working really hard, but you get to go home in, like, a reasonable amount of time. This time, it seems like you’re really excited for the long-duration mission. What are you looking forward to most?

Andreas Mogensen: I mean, first of all, I’m looking forward just to getting back to the space station because it really is a unique place and it’s fun to be up there with my colleagues. We have a good time together. The work that we do every day is fascinating. You know, this is in many ways, cutting-edge research that we do. Interesting technologies that we’re developing and testing. So, just getting back to the space station is probably what I’m looking forward to most, but also just sitting by the window, you know, sitting in cupola looking out at the Earth again. I had a chance on my first mission, to do an experiment to study giant lightning strikes that shoot upwards towards space rather than down towards the Earth. And I was really lucky to capture what’s called a “blue jet” on film, which is the first time that that’s been done. And so, I’m looking forward to getting back up there and trying it again to see if I was just incredibly lucky or if that is something that I can do more regularly now that I have six months to try and do it.

Host: Very awesome. You mentioned your colleagues, right? You get to, I think this is important, is the International Space Station, you get to experience it together and you get to experience it with a wonderful international crew, Crew-7. If you try to capture, you know, the question: who is Crew-7? How you guys all gelled together as a crew? Jasmin, Satoshi, Konstantin, how you guys all work? How would you describe it?

Andreas Mogensen: Well, first of all, you know, as you said, we are an international crew, we represent really four very different countries, four different parts of the world, and in that sense, you could say, we represent humanity. On top of that, we are four, you know, it sounds weird when maybe when you talk about astronauts that way, but we are four completely normal human beings that have worked hard to get where we are, and with a little bit of luck, have become astronauts and we’re all very well aware of how fortunate we are and, you know, I think you see that in our personalities. We are all, I think humble and respectful of the responsibilities that we’ve been given and eager, you know, to get the mission done, which also means that we find it very easy to work together with each other. We’re all very relaxed, easy going, and happy to assume whatever role is necessary under the given conditions, which also means that we switch or swap roles often and take on different roles depending on the situation and it just makes it very easy to work together.

Host: And I think that’s so important. You hear this a lot, this theme of what it takes, you know, to be a good astronaut and it’s all those qualities that you talked about. It’s to be, you know, to have the knowledge, but to also be a good team member, and a supportive team member, to take on those roles like you’re talking about. Crew-7, Expedition 69 and 70, you have these mission objectives, focusing on ESA specifically, you guys typically label your mission, brand your mission and yours is called Huginn.

Andreas Mogensen: Yeah.

Host: What’s the history behind that?

Andreas Mogensen: Well, so, Huginn is the name of my ESA mission and it’s a name that derives from old Norse mythology. Huginn is the name of one of Odin’s two ravens. Odin, as according to legend, had two ravens: Huginn and Muninn. Huginn represents knowledge and thought, while Muninn represents memory and tradition. And according to legend, every morning Odin would send his two ravens out into the world to gather information on the state of the world and the two ravens, they would fly around the world and return in the evenings and share the knowledge that they had gathered during the day with Odin and that’s how Odin got his information about the world. And so, I think, you know, when I heard that name, I thought it was a very appropriate name for my mission because I think that’s what astronauts do. We travel into space to gather knowledge, to expand our understanding of the world and the universe that we’re part of, and to bring that information, that knowledge back to the Earth to share with the rest of humanity for the benefit of us all.

Host:I love that. I love that. And to end on a more fun note, right, there’s very critical parts of this continued operations on the International Space Station. You got the science, you got the continued learning and discovery and things, but you get to, like you said, return to the International Space Station and I’m sure you have a bucket list, right? Maybe capturing some more of those, like, super rare lightning storms, or something like that. When you return to the station, you have a lot more time to do all the things that you only wish you had the time to do on your first mission, what are some of those personal objectives for you?

Andreas Mogensen: I’d like to do a lot of photography from the cupola. When I look back at the photos that I took during my first mission, it’s not a lot. So, there’s a lot of things I’d like to photograph, especially some of the wild areas that are left on the Earth, and to combine those pictures with photos taken of wildlife in those areas. So I’m actually hoping to collaborate with a Danish charity called Wild Nature Foundation and to highlight some of the few true wilderness spots left on the Earth, because the Earth is a very unique place in the universe, or even just within our own solar system. And it’s important that we take good care of our planet and so, I hope to, you know, through some of the pictures that I take to be able to put a spotlight on some of the few wilderness areas that we have left, and the wildlife that inhabits those areas because I think it’s important that we protect some of that true wilderness.

Host: That’s awesome. What an awesome objective and I’ll definitely be following along. Andy Mogensen, thank you so much for coming on Houston We Have a Podcast, this was a…

Andreas Mogensen: My pleasure.

Host:…pleasure. Thank you.

Host: Next, we have JAXA astronaut Satoshi Furukawa, a mission specialist for Crew-7. As a mission specialist, he’ll work closely with the commander and the pilot to monitor the spacecraft during the dynamic launch and re-entry phases of flight. Once on board the station, he’ll become a flight engineer for Expedition 69 and 70 on his second trip to space. Furukawa was born in Kanagawa, Japan just south of Tokyo. Furukawa pursued medicine, receiving an MD from the University of Tokyo and a Ph.D. in medical science from the same university a few years later. He worked at the University of Tokyo hospital for about ten years in the surgery department engaged in clinical medicine and research of gastrointestinal surgery. Furukawa was selected as a Japanese astronaut candidate by the National Space Development Agency of Japan or NASDA, which is now JAXA. Out of the Crew-7 cadre, Furakawa has the most time in space, logging 167 days in 2011 during Expeditions 28 and 29 during which he supported the final space shuttle mission, STS-135 while aboard. He launched and returned aboard the Russian Soyuz TMA-02M spacecraft. Excited for his return to station, here’s Satoshi Furukawa.

Host: Satoshi Furukawa, thank you so much for coming on Houston We Have a Podcast.

Satoshi Furuwaka: Thank you, I’d be happy to be here.

Host: You are so close to your mission. You’re going to be launching very soon to the International Space Station once again, returning to the orbiting laboratory after, is it 12 years?

Satoshi Furuwaka: Yes, 12 years.

Host: Wow, how does it feel?

Satoshi Furuwaka: Well, feels good. Yeah, it feels good. Yeah excited. [Laughter]

Host: You, let’s see, you grew up just south of Tokyo in a place called Kanagawa.

Satoshi Furuwaka: Right.

Host: Tell me about life there, what was life like in Kanagawa?

Satoshi Furuwaka: Well, I was born in Yokohama, Kanagawa, which is the second biggest city in Japan, which has a population more than three million and it’s a big city there, but there are very many mountains, wild mountains around the area I grew up, so I played a lot there during my elementary school days.

Host: You liked exploring, you liked the outdoors.

Satoshi Furuwaka: Yeah, yeah. As a child, yes.

Host: Very good. Was there any inspiration earlier in your childhood or at some point where space became something that was of interest to you?

Satoshi Furuwaka: OK. Two points. One is TV show hero “Ultraseven,” the original program was broadcasted when I was three or four years old. That I don’t remember but the program was rebroadcasted when I was a elementary school student. So during the summer vacation, every day, so I watched the TV program every day and the hero protects the Earth from aliens. So actually, as a child, I actually, I wanted to be an Ultraseven, but then I realized that it’s not, it’s not possible. So I got interested in space.

Host: But you wanted to be a defender of Earth. That’s very cool, yeah.

Satoshi Furuwaka: And the other is the Apollo 11, the first human landing on the Moon, which happened when I was five years old and on that specific day, my family was supposed to go to the ocean, go to travel to the ocean that then my parents suddenly said they would postpone it by one day because there would be a historical moment for humankind, so we needed to watch it live on TV. So I, as a child, I watched it on TV and something great was happening, I felt and I got interested in space.

Host: Very cool. Now, you could have pursued a lot of different things. If you really wanted to get interested in space, there’s a lot of different ways that you can go, but you decided on medicine, why was that?

Satoshi Furuwaka: That’s a good question. Actually, I wanted to be an engineer or an astronomer until my high school days and when I was 17 years old during the summer vacation, I had a chance to talk with my uncle who is a medical doctor. He talked about attractives of his work, and he said it is my best moment or happiest moment when a patient gets better and discharges. And so, I thought it is the work as a medical doctor is worthwhile because I would be able to positively influence the other people’s lives. So I changed my future path and became a doctor after studying very hard.

Host: I bet. But you got to experience that moment, right? You became a surgeon, you have, patients came in and you got to make them feel better and you got to– that feeling that your uncle told you about.

Satoshi Furuwaka: Yeah. It was my happiest moment, too, when the patients got better, and I discharged.

Host: [laughter] That’s great. But of course, you know, I think — it’s so great you got to experience those happy moments because it just seems like you got to keep experiencing those because, next thing, at some point, when you were at the University of Tokyo, I believe it was when you were conducting research, you decided to apply to become a Japanese astronaut.

Satoshi Furuwaka: Yeah.

Host: And it was quite a competitive experience, can you tell me about it?

Satoshi Furuwaka: Yeah, it was. It was February in 1998, when I was working in a night shift in a hospital, when I was watching a TV, TV newscaster mentioned that there would be a new Japanese astronaut candidate recruitment. Those selected would be spent, staying on board the space station for six months and conducting many scientific experiments. So I, the news galvanized me and I wanted, I want to do this. That’s what I strongly felt. So I applied the audition and fortunately I was selected as one of the three astronaut candidates in 1999.

Host: There were, I think, you mentioned 900 applicants.

Satoshi Furuwaka: Yes. About 900 applicants.

Host: Wow. That’s, I mean, it must have been so rigorous. I mean they, you just had to, it was like step after step of just whittling it down because that’s tough, if there’s 900 people to get down to just three.

Satoshi Furuwaka: Yeah.

Host: The competition was stiff. How did you feel when you actually got selected, did you feel…

Satoshi Furuwaka: Yeah. Well, it was kind of literally, was the happiest moment in my life.

Host: Which is that, see this is what I mean, it’s just like, when you say that you got to experience the happiest moment, of working with a patient and successfully helping them to recover, and then discharging them and having that happiest moment, followed by the happiest moment. [laughter] It’s a bunch of happy moments in your life so far. This is incredible. And then you got to go to space, you got to experience the thrill of launch. And not only that, it was not a short-duration mission, you got to go for a six-month mission. What was that whole experience like?

Satoshi Furuwaka: Well, the life on board the space station was super, especially the view from the space station and the long-lasting microgravity. The former I felt that the Earth exists in a perfect balance and I felt that we human beings are part of the big system as planet Earth, that was my instinct. And I really realized that I should preserve our mother planet Earth. And also, regarding the long-lasting microgravity, using that special environment that we cannot obtain on Earth, we can conduct many researches that make our life on Earth better.

Host: I think one thing that I love about this particular crew is, you talk about, you know, making life better for those on Earth and what I love about Crew-7 is each seat is occupied by a different space agency. You have cultures around the world. So, and what’s funny is that your crewmates say the same thing and they want to look down on the Earth. They want to make the world a better place and that is almost a unified goal of Crew-7. And it’s a wonderful mission that represents a lot of the world. A group of humans from around the world trying to make the world a better place. It must feel good to be a part of this particular crew, Crew-7. You’re flying with some great people, Jasmin and Andy and Konstantin, tell me about them?

Satoshi Furuwaka: Well, we’re a great team. I mean that. Jasmin or “Jaws,” she’s a great leader. She’s from U.S Marine Corps, helo pilot. She’s super.

Host: Good leader.

Satoshi Furuwaka: A good leader and she has a good sense of humor, too. And Andy is an engineer, he has kind of, very get it done mentality. Like a military pilot. And Kosta (Konstantin), he’s also a pilot and he frequently laughs — makes us happy. [Laughter]

Host: [laughter] That’s so good that you guys just seem to gel very well, and I love that, right? So all these, these different cultures around the world, you guys, even though you come up with from different backgrounds, you’re from all over the Earth, you come together and you guys can make each other laugh.

Satoshi Furuwaka: That’s true. Yeah.

Host: That’s good. I love that. Satoshi, any personal goals for this mission? You’ve gotten to go to the International Space Station once before, spend six months, you may have checked a lot of things off of your bucket list of things you wanted to accomplish, but is there anything else you want to make sure that during your six months, of course, you have to maintain the station, you have to conduct a lot of science; you’re going to be a busy person, but is there something else maybe personal that you want to accomplish while you’re up there?

Satoshi Furuwaka: Well, crew safety is the first priority, of course, and the space vehicle and space station safety is the second. And then, accomplishing the mission also, next priority. And then, my goal is everybody not only the crew members but our friends and families and co-workers on the ground, all over the world are smiling after the mission. That’s my goal.

Host: You want to make the whole team proud because it is quite a large team. And so, if they’re smiling, you’re smiling.

Satoshi Furuwaka: Yeah. [Laughter]

Host: [laughter] And you have a contagious smile, Satoshi. This is, it’s awesome. It’s been great to talk with you and spend this time with you doing this and then also, doing the interviews before. So thank you very much for spending this time.

Satoshi Furuwaka: Thank you.

Host: Last, but not least, we have Roscosmos cosmonaut, Konstantin Borisov. Also, a mission specialist of Crew-7, working with the commander and pilot to monitor the spacecraft during the dynamic launch and re-entry phases of flight. He also will become a long-duration crew member aboard the space station for expeditions 69 and 70. Born in Smolensk, Russia, but considers Zhukovsky his home, he had an interesting path to becoming a cosmonaut. After finishing an in-depth study of the English language at a magnet school, Zhukovsky Number Three, he then pursued a bachelor’s degree in economics from the Russian Academy of Economics. He then went to the University of Warwick in the United Kingdom to pursue a master’s in operations research and system analysis. Borisov is an avid free diver and swimmer, he spent time as a judge and an instructor at IADA or the International Association for the Development of Apnea an international freediving organization. In 2018, Borisov swam across the Strait of Gibraltar, 15 kilometers or just over nine miles from Spain to Morocco in three hours and 45 minutes. Selected as a cosmonaut candidate in 2018, this will be Borisov’s first spaceflight. A very interesting and inspiring person to talk to, here’s Konstantin Borisov.

Host: Konstantin Borisov, thank you so much for coming on Houston We Have a Podcast.

Konstantin Borisov: Yeah. Thanks a lot for inviting us.

Host: This is good. You have a very interesting path that got you to become a cosmonaut and join this crew, Crew-7. With, you know, almost a gap of when you thought, you know, the idea of cosmonaut was no longer a reality and then it just came back. But I want to start by understanding just sort of your upbringing and how you grew up? Tell us about your childhood and sort of what led you to your initial inspiring moment of thinking, oh my gosh, I want to become a cosmonaut.

Konstantin Borisov: Yeah. The initial moment was like, it wasn’t the moment, it was the whole childhood. If you imagine there is one house in which all test pilots live, and my father is one of those. And my friends’ fathers also test pilots and it’s a small city, it’s closed because it was Soviet times. Not many outsiders can travel into and come to us. So that’s what’s happening. You hear jet engines all the time. You smell the fuel, your father would took you to your job site and see how big aircraft, like do all those beautiful flights and you don’t picture any other future for yourself as like, you grow up and you become one of your fathers. You don’t have other examples. You don’t see drivers or people who work in the office. You see only test pilots, so that’s what was happening around me since I was two years old like and to the moment when I start remembering myself, so I still think that everyone wants to become a cosmonaut or a pilot. I know that it’s not true, but that’s how it felt.

Host: Just because that’s what you were surrounded by.

Konstantin Borisov: Yeah.

Host: And it was not Smolensk, right? You were born there but you actually grew up in another town and that’s sort of your hometown.

Konstantin Borisov: Yeah. Exactly. I was born in Smolensk because my mother is from Smolensk, it was natural and comfortable for her to go and give birth there in her hometown. So, but I don’t remember that, of course. We moved to Zhukovsky right when I was one and a half years old.

Host: OK. And that’s where you grew up.

Konstantin Borisov: Yeah.

Host: Now, you’re inspiration to become, you talked about, it was really just ingrained in you, this idea of maybe a cosmonaut, but I know you took sort of a break from this dream in a way and I think it was your dad who maybe put you on a different path, but then it became a reality. Can you talk about, you know, where you started to move away from the dream of a cosmonaut and then all of a sudden it became a reality?

Konstantin Borisov: Yeah. So he kind of, my dad kind of talked me off joining military, because he said that, if you want to become a good test pilot, or test cosmonaut, you have to have experience of over 1,000 hours of jet flights. By the age of 13, he said that it did not going to happen because of like, the current situation in the pilot schools. That were the 90s at the time, when everything was unstable in Soviet, so after the Soviet times. So, it was his advice and also, some of my older friends who joined pilot schools, they said the same. So, I chose not to do that. And I chose completely different career path. But the thing which my father did, that he taught me to fly, actually. So, during summers, we went to small flight clubs, and he would teach me how to fly small airplanes. And then, later, helicopters and it was kind of a hobby, but also looked at into it, and thought maybe, I go and study for private license in the U.S. Or maybe I go to France and certify myself as a helicopter pilot for at Eurocopter. And I was saving money to do that. Until in 2012, it suddenly started without any prior notice that anyone with any background can apply to become a cosmonaut in our country. And that was like, it just like said, it clicked.

Host: The dream came back. [Laughter]

Konstantin Borisov: The dream came back. And I remember, like, you know, like as if you can picture itself as the world starts, you know, in movies, that’s how they show the person, like “whoa!” and like it starts to expand and you can focus on what you’re doing and you’re only thinking about this.

Host: Wow. That’s got to be awesome. So, you only had a couple of years, right? You only had a short amount of time where you were eligible because I think for, in Russia, the cosmonaut cut-off ages, I think 35, right? And you were 28 at the time.

Konstantin Borisov: You could, you should be younger than 35 when you apply, but before that, they said 33. Then they, like changed it to 35. And they’re not really open, and they don’t tell you when the next selection process starts. So, I kind of thought that it might start, within four to six years, like 2016, 2018. And I started to get ready when I was 30, in 2014 and I spent three years out of — doing a lot of different things to increase my chances.

Host: That’s awesome. I know swimming and the water is something that is really important to you and, you know, we just came from the interview and the on-camera portion, and you had this wonderful description of free-diving, and just this mental state that you have to go into. It’s something that, it seems, you spoke so passionately about. It’s free-diving, it’s such an interesting, I guess, I hate to call it a hobby because it seems like almost a lifestyle, the way you described it.

Konstantin Borisov: Yeah. It is. I cannot– You know, when you grow up, there are some things in which you cannot help doing. And that’s how you explain yourself that this is what you want to do. Like, you’re not comfortable if you don’t do that. And free-diving is one of those things. It’s an integral part of me, because I know that it gives me the way to relax. It gives me ways to work with my stress. It makes me happy. It makes me comfortable. It’s the anti, kind of sport, which you achieve more if you relax. It’s also a good way for spending time with your friends, like going to nice places and being comfortable at the sea. Joining the turtles, the dolphins, and like, watching the underwater world. Being part of it. That, it’s amazing.

Host: And you swam across the Mediterranean, too. I mean, you talked about, you know, this, almost an anti-sport with free-diving and, you know, to relax. This is, to me, it’s like the opposite. You’re using every muscle for a very long period of time. And you train for a while to get to be able to do something like this. What was that experience like for you?

Konstantin Borisov: It is, that’s, that was crazy. You know, like, it’s interesting because one of the motivations was to get ready for selection process because some of the tests are swimming tests and obviously, if you are a good swimmer, you are better at those tests. And secondly, like you know, I first learned how to free-dive, so I was comfortable in the water with a mask on and fins on. But I wasn’t a good swimmer and I made myself train for something very hard. So that I really learned to swim. And that’s when I proved myself that I can swim. It’s almost, can you swim? Yeah, if you can swim from Spain to Africa, then you are a good swimmer, that’s how I prove myself because I didn’t, I have a chance to learn the swimming skills when I was small.

That’s interesting, like, it’s not exactly true to say that you’re using every possible muscle to swim because if you don’t have the technique and if you are not able to stretch and glide and relax in between strokes, you will never make it happen. So, actually, if you want to be able to do long swims like that, you will have to learn swimming with the four different speeds and that would be speed two, it will never be speed three or speed four. So, it’s kind of slow swimming and gliding, otherwise, you get tired so quickly. So, it’s a lot of strokes, but you have to rest in between.

Host: Wow. What, yeah. Unbelievable. [Laughter] I mean, I can’t even imagine, like to me, if I can swim ten laps without stopping and taking a sip of water, that to me says, hey you’re a good swimmer.

Konstantin Borisov: Yeah. I know, but like, I wasn’t like that. Even one year before doing the swim, I was hardly being able to swim like one hour without stopping. It was like taking my breath and then like, maybe, half a year before the swim, I was able to tell myself, all right, now you can swim as if you’re jogging, you know, without getting tired, you can do it for an hour or two. It’s very interesting, changing your understanding of your skill set.

Host: Unbelievable. Now, you’re going to be flying to space.

Konstantin Borisov: Yes.

Host: This, you’ve talked about this dream of becoming a cosmonaut. You were selected and now, you’re actually going, what’s something you’re really looking forward to?

Konstantin Borisov: That’s amazing. Like, that’s the most common question, which people ask. My friends ask me that. And, you know, all the excitement, I think from one side has passed, because we have been preparing for so long, that you stop believing that this is real. But I know this is real. And there’ll be a moment soon where we’ll sit in our ship, and the rocket will start accelerating. I think I will honestly believe that everything happened, and we are flying, when we actually open the hatch, and we see our friends from increment 69. But if you ask me what I want to see and to feel, I want to see and feel everything. I want to share that with people. I’m doing that already with my social media to tell the stories about how I feel. I think it’s very valuable, especially for the first flight to explain what it is like all the details of that. Then there are two things, which I have always dreamt of since I was a kid like, I want to feel weightlessness. Not for 20 seconds like we do in the aircraft, but like for, I mean, it’s an hour, a day, a week, and that’s amazing! Like, you float all the time. I know there was some pros and cons and there are some changes to your, to the way you feel, but I hope that I will enjoy it and it’s very similar to being in the water because it’s also 3D environment and you also don’t feel any weight and you can push and glide. I want to see the ground, the Earth. I want to see the Earth from above because it’s beautiful. Those are the two things which I have dreamed of, but there was also a third thing, which I think is a part of your profession and like in any profession, you want to be good at your job. And this profession which we’re talking about is very unique because, you know, we have been preparing me and Jaws for our first flights for six years, but we will know if we are good at our jobs only when we arrive there. And when you go through all the months and all the adaptation and like, you really prove yourself that you could do that, I think this is a very interesting new thing, which was brought by a profession like you want to professionally succeed in what you are doing. So that’s the third thing, which I want to do. Like to implement all the things which we have been trained for. To do it well without mistakes and like learn to do it efficiently.

Host: And you have quite a crew that you’re going to be doing that with, right? And you can learn from Satoshi and from Andreas who have been to space before and kind of get their feedback. You said you and Jasmin have been kind of working about the same time to get ready for both of your first spaceflights, but you’re all going to be doing it together and get to share this moment and what’s nice about this crew, every seat is occupied by a different space agency. This is truly an international thing, and you all are going to experience it together. Are you, what are you looking forward to most about doing this with your crew?

Konstantin Borisov: I’m very proud to be part of the most international spaceflight, which SpaceX has been doing so far. So it’s kind of a record, which we’re all proud of and I want this to be an example of how different countries working together in cooperation actually achieving more than any single country could do without this cooperation. That’s my dream and that’s what I really want to now, this flight to be a symbol of.

Host: Wonderful. And I’m looking forward to seeing your flight and seeing your crewmates flight and really experiencing that and hearing, you know, you talked about sharing your journey and really just following along on yours, every step of the way to see what it’s like. Konstantin Borisov, thank you so much for coming on Houston We Have a Podcast and sharing your, your experience.

Konstantin Borisov: Yeah. Thanks, thanks a lot for that.

Host: Very good.

[Music]

Host: Hey, thanks for sticking around. Hope you learned something today. Very excited to see this crew launch to the International Space Station. Check out NASA’s website for the latest schedule and how to find out how you can watch these four astronauts and cosmonauts live on NASA TV and on different streaming services. If you want to check out more podcasts we have at NASA, you can go to NASA.gov/podcasts. Our full collection is there, and you can listen to any of our episodes in no particular order. You can also check out the many other shows we have across the whole agency. If you want to talk to us specifically, we’re on social media. On the NASA Johnson Space Center pages of Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram. Use the hashtag #AskNASA on your favorite platform to submit an idea for the show or ask us a question, just make sure to mention it’s for us at Houston We Have a Podcast. These interviews were recorded on June 12, 2023. Thanks to Will Flato, Pat Ryan, Justin Herring, Dane Turner, Heidi Lavelle, Abby Graf, Belinda Pulido, and Jaden Jennings for their work on the podcast as always. And to the astronaut schedulers for helping us to secure this chat. And, of course, thanks to Crew-7, Jasmin Moghbeli, Andy Mogensen, Satoshi Furukawa, and Konstantin Borisov for their precious time to come and chat with us. Give us a rating and feedback on whatever platform you’re listening to us on and tell us what you think of our podcast. We’ll be back next week.