In this new episode of space emission, questions are put to Thomas Pesquet by students at the school in Saint-Martin-du-Vivier (Seine-Maritime). Children who already have “green” fiber and lots of questions to ask about it on the ISS.
@astro_Megan takes care of the effluent recycling system… a task that requires protective equipment, no need to draw a drawing for you
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Megan dealing with and recycling urine… better be protected when dealing with these systems. #MissionAlpha pic.twitter.com/Agx0ps3xOK– Thomas Pesquet (@Thom_astro) August 11, 2021
The show starts with the question of Clémentine, 8 and a half years old and “super green” : “What material is your food packaging made of? Is it recycled?” Thomas Pesquet explains to him that experiments are being carried out to find more ecological packaging… and even edible ones!
Next Nato, 10 years old, asks Thomas Pesquet if he creates a lot of garbage on the ISS and if vehicles come to collect it. “We produce waste. We are already trying to produce as little as possible”, explains the astronaut. To evacuate them, astronauts “recycle” the supply vehicles:
“We fill them with our waste. When they are full of our waste, they turn into garbage vehicles. They’ll burn up in the atmosphere when they get back. We burn our waste, it looks like a shooting star: it’s our garbage to us, that’s how we get rid of it. “
Around Maxime, 8 years old : “How do you go to the bathroom and how is garbage disposal?” he asks Thomas Pesquet. The opportunity for the astronaut to explain the suction and evacuation system on board the ISS.
Here’s one of Crew Dragon’s most secret pieces of equipment, but it’s one of the most useful: the bathroom! A simple curtain for privacy, and the rest is mostly technical details. But the Bravo view is breathtaking for the designer of @SpaceX ! #MissionAlpha pic.twitter.com/2PIdx5ZaZe
– Thomas Pesquet (@Thom_astro) April 25, 2021
In the end, Tess, 10 years old, says: she wants to know if the astronaut sees “things that cannot be seen” necessarily from the Earth, such as deforestation or pollution.
The astronaut answers in the affirmative: “We really see the pollution of rivers, the air (…) deforestation, in the Amazon forest, but not only that, we see the glaciers that are melting”. He also explains that this allows us to gain height and become aware of the climate changes that are affecting our planet.
On this page you can listen to this new episode of space emission, in which astronaut Thomas Pesquet answers children’s questions about life aboard the ISS. An event not to be missed every Saturday on franceinfo radio and find in podcast.