Michael L-A

As we build the new space station we're being mindful to build in adaptability so we can continue innovating while we utilize and maintain the Axiom Station.

At NASA you work hard to train and understand everything, but the whole time you're surrounded by people in that same world and it becomes just part of your day to day life. The opportunity to go back to space with Axiom was a second chance that was a mulligan of a lifetime.

Alexei Leonov famously took man's first spacewalk today in 1965.

There is a hands-on training session about a month before launch called 'Sounds of Dragon.' It takes place inside of a crew's actual Dragon launch vehicle and demonstrates some of the sounds you haven't been exposed to in the simulator like valves moving, different alarms and even audio recordings from previous flights. You generally don't want surprises during spaceflight, so it's helpful to familiarize the crew with the sounds they can expect to hear.

It's been 14 years since I retired from NASA. This is just one of the many out-of-this-world experiences I will always be grateful for!

As humans it's important to have a routine. I found that living in space made it feel more like a home when I applied what I could from my daily routine. Whether it's having coffee before breakfast, or reading a novel before bed, implementing what is normal for you on the ground helps you adapt to life in space.

@iinangelo Right? 💪

New World Baseball Classic Logo just dropped

The Axiom Station is designed with a high degree of modularity, which provides flexibility in the scenario of a module being deorbited or rearranged. The current space station is also of modular design, but was not built with the same level of flexibility. The 1990’s-era-communications bus architecture can now be replaced by much a simpler and lighter ethernet network. It will be relatively easy for uture modules to adopt the same technology, making adding to the Axiom Station much simpler than it would be to build a new ISS module.

There are many restrictions in place on the International Space Station because it relies on government funding; purely commercial activities are restricted. This would include activities like filming a movie or product placement, in fact, without a special exception astronauts are not even allowed to bring coins or stamps on the ISS, and M&M's have to be labeled 'candy coated chocolates.' However, when the Axiom Station launches as a commercial space station these holes can be filled and I think we will see all types of new and creative ways a space station can be utilized.

When the International Space Station was under construction most people believed its greatest legacy would be the groundbreaking research it delivered back to Earth. But you could make the case that even the amazing science might be eclipsed by the unprecedented cooperation of nations that have often sat on opposite sides of the geopolitical divide.

The current medical standards are the same for any ISS mission, regardless if it's private or government sponsored. The standards are very high, and rightfully so - if an agency is going to invest into years of astronaut training, they want to ensure that person is very healthy and can fly for a long time. But private missions, thus far, are a single flight opportunity that shouldn't require such strict medical standards. It makes sense to gradually and thoughtfully ease those standards to allow more and more people to fly.

The most important question to ask when a potential astronaut is being interviewed for the job is 'Do I want to fly in space with that person?' It can be tough just living with family and friends sometimes, so you want to be certain to be compatible with the stranger you might be assigned to live with for months in a closed, high stress environment.

Until this point all suits used for spacewalking have been a single operating pressure, generally about 1/3 of an atmosphere, but the AxEMU will operate at more than one pressure. The benefit to a higher pressure suit is the ability to cut down on the “pre-breathe" time – required to purge nitrogen from one’s tissues to reduce the risk of decompression sickness. Starting at a higher pressure also allows you to slowly lower the pressure during the spacewalk with the benefit of a higher mobility. I can tell you first hand- anytime you can increase mobility it's extremely helpful!!

Today in 2007 I was prepping for my very last spacewalk. Thank you to NASA; it still remains one of the most amazing experiences of my life.

Congratulations to #TeamAxiom on securing @Axiom_Space's fifth human spaceflight mission to the @Space_Station! Go #Ax5!

"Space is only 80 miles from every person on Earth - far closer than most people are to their own national capitals."- Daniel Deudney

The famous Pale Blue Dot photo was taken this week in 1990 by NASA's Voyager 1 on its way out of our solar system. That little dot is our planet - home to every human story, every joy, every conflict, and every dream we've ever had.

Building the Space Station required more than 40 dedicated assembly flights. I had a seat on 2 of them!

Peanut butter is an astronaut favorite and an ideal space food. It doesn't have to be freeze dried and it's sticky enough to stay on a spoon!

This famous photograph of Bruce McCandless II was taken today in '84 when he performed the first untethered spacewalk!

#OTD in 2007 I took this photo of my spacewalking partner, @Astro_Suni, during an unforgettable day outside of the @Space_Station!