This past Friday, the Columbia Space Initiative and Professor Michael Massimino hosted a conversation with astronaut Don Pettit live from Expedition 72.

On October 25, 2024, the Columbia Space Initiative (CSI) hosted a live downlink in the Davis Auditorium with astronaut Don Pettit. More than 400 people gathered for the live conversation, including high school students from Carey High School in Long Island. Currently aboard the International Space Station (ISS) in Low Earth orbit, Pettit is an American astronaut and chemical engineer on Expedition 72. As the oldest astronaut on an active mission in space—he will turn 70 next spring—Petit brings a passion for both his scientific pursuits and astrophotography.

The event began with a detailed introduction by Columbia Mechanical Engineering Professor, CSI faculty advisor and former astronaut Michael Massimino. After earning his Bachelor’s degree in Industrial Engineering from Columbia and his PhD from MIT, he was selected to fly on both Columbia and Atlantis missions to serve the Hubble Telescope. Massimino began by describing his relationship with Pettit, a fellow member of his 1996 NASA (National Aeronautics and Space Administration) graduating class. The two started an educational video series called ISS Science Garage and generally spent a lot of their time together. “He looks at the world with just childlike curiosity,” said Massimino, highlighting Pettit’s inquisitive nature.

Massimino then spoke about NASA’s opinion on private space initiatives and enterprises looking to commercialize space discovery. Contrary to the belief of many, he claimed that NASA has a very favorable view of these companies. In the 80s and 90s, while he was studying to become an astronaut, NASA was actually converting spaceship manuals so that commercial airline pilots could fly them. This and other commercialization programs were shut down, but this ambition has rekindled recently. A NASA crew recently landed a SpaceX vehicle back on earth after a mission, and they are also looking at commercial crew programs with cargo in addition to astronauts. 

If NASA’s current economic goals are to increase efficiency through partial privatization, their scientific goals over the next ten to fifteen years should focus on greater research of the Moon and Mars. “With our current technology,” said Massimino, “the propulsion isn’t there to go much farther than Mars.” This narrows NASA’s focus to completing an orbital flight of the Moon. Achieving a moon landing is also a significant objective, as this has not been accomplished in around 50 years. Achieving both of these goals would allow NASA to shift focus to Mars and collaborate with other nations to achieve the necessary technology.

Transitioning into Massimino’s personal experience as an astronaut, a high school student asked him about his first mission. He described going into space for the first time as an inspiring experience as he was surrounded by a crew of people all equally dedicated to one objective: accomplishing the mission. Seeing the Earth from space felt like looking “at absolute paradise,” and the thinness of the atmosphere reminded him of the fragility of life. While he felt like a New Yorker at Columbia and an American at NASA, being in space completely shifted his perspective, and he felt like the “whole Earth” was his home.

After Massimino’s introduction, CSI connected with NASA’s control center in Houston and with Don Pettit in the ISS. The view behind the astronaut was picturesque, with seven window panes arranged into a hemisphere above his head. We were witnessing him on a daytime pass over Earth, the planet rotating as he spoke. To his left, another spacecraft passed by, intercepting the circular solar panel visible at the top of the screen. 

Pettit is no stranger to a picturesque view of outer space. As an avid astrophotographer, he is fascinated by the beauty of capturing moments in still images. According to Massimino, Pettit invented the technology to make sequential stills and long-exposure photographs of space. When asked about balancing this passion with his scientific pursuits, Pettit responded that the two go hand in hand. Photography serves as both a creative outlet and a useful measure for documenting his investigations. 

Another question focused on Pettit’s current investigations and scientific projects. Pettit responded that working on science experiments under Space Station principal investigators has somewhat resembled “graduate students under the wing of a major professor.” Since he lives in an orbiting laboratory, he can do smaller educational demonstrations as part of his Saturday Morning Science Project Series in his off-duty time. Pettit showed the audience a photo of one of these projects which focused on the freezing front of ice. As he has access to -95 ˚C freezers in the space station, he can produce highly complex crystals under polarized light.

Pettit then shifted the conversation to his broader experience on the International Space Station and his thoughts about its future. He expressed that his favorite part of being in the station is experiencing the feeling of zero gravity, a feeling he so enjoys that he even patented a zero-gravity coffee mug. Although the ISS is facing decommissioning at the end of the decade, Pettit feels optimistic about the future of space exploration and the prospect of private startups commercializing the sector. Pettit hopes that we as a nation “continue to support and maintain” these space endeavors.

To check out CSI’s current initiatives and look into their future programming, you can visit their instagram page or their website. 

Image via Bwarchives