Fieldstone Day students meet first Canadian astronaut to walk in space

These were some of the questions fielded by Col. Chris Hadfield during a visit with Fieldstone Day School students Tuesday, Oct. 20.

The retired colonel with the Canadian Air Force and the first Canadian to walk in space was addressing the students as part of the Fieldstone Upper School Speaker Series.

Hadfield touched on everything from custom built shuttle seats to what it takes to become an astronaut.

"To be an astronaut you need three things," he said. "You need to be healthy. We have the toughest physicals in the world. You need to have at least a masters degree or doctorate in a technical field. You have to be able to learn really complicated things at a high rate. And you need to be out doing things where your actions matter, such as a doctor or pilot."

In June 1992, Hadfield was selected as one of four Canadian astronauts from a field of 5,330 applicants. He was assigned by the Canadian Space Agency (CSA) to the NASA Johnson Space Center in Houston, Texas.

From 1992 to 2000, Hadfield was designated as chief astronaut for the CSA and co-ordinated their projects.

In 2001, Hadfield became the first Canadian to walk in space when he flew as a mission specialist on STS-100 which delivered and installed the Canadarm 2, a Canadian built robotic arm, to the International Space Station.

From 2001 to 2003, Hadfield was the director of operations for NASA at the Yuri Gagarin Cosmonaut Training Centre (GCTC) in Star City, Russia.

His work included co-ordination and direction of all International Space Station crew activities in Russia, oversight of training and crew support staff, as well as policy negotiation with the Russian Space Program and other international partners. He also trained and became fully qualified to be a flight engineer cosmonaut in the Soyuz TMA spacecraft, and to perform space walks in the Russian Orlan spacesuit.

After 25 years of military service, Hadfield retired from the Canadian Air Force in 2003.

He was chief of robotics for the NASA Astronaut Office at the Johnson Space Center in Houston, Texas from 2003 to 2006 and is now chief of international space station operations.

Hadfield, who has flown over 70 types of aircraft, is currently working on NASA's constellation program, specifically on the development of the new Orion vehicle.

Students at the Dufferin Street and Lawrence Avenue school asked if Hadfield saw aliens while in space, and while he admitted looking for them, he came up empty-handed.

"People think we are keeping a secret," he said. "But all we are doing is looking for life in space."

Hadfield said the "coolest" thing he saw on his space walk happened when he wanted to look at Australia in the dark.

"I turned off the light in my suit, everything was in the dark, and I saw the southern lights instead," he said. "It looked like lasers were coming out of the planet. It looked like the whole world was on fire. It was one of the coolest things I've ever saw."

He compared food in space to camping food, with no refrigeration system and meals eaten from cans. Sleeping is also done a little differently in a shuttle, Hadfield said.

"You are going around the world every 90 minutes so you have to cover the windows," he said, adding astronauts follow England time. "You find your sleeping bag, float into it, Velcro it to a wall and fall asleep. It's really comfortable."

Hadfield, who hasn't ruled out another space mission, told the students they needed to choose what they want to become in life.

"You are all going to become something," he said. "I really recommend you choose what you become. Don't let life randomly choose for you. Become something that really gets your heart going."

Grade 9 student Arkady Silverman thought Hadfield's talk was "awesome".

"It was nice to see he found a passion in life," she said. "I thought he was very motivating. Going to space is cool and at the same time very serious."