Network Science It is an event for journalists, researchers, communicators, museographers and institutions and companies dedicated to science and R & D & I. It was held on May 8, 2014 and one of the keynote speakers was Paolo Néspoli, astronaut of the ESA (European space agency) and that among many other missions I think he was one of the drivers of a new way of communicating and disseminating Science harnessing the power of social networks. For example, in his Flickr gallery you can find hundreds of images obtained during his six-month mission at the ISS (international space station).
Although I could not attend the Science in Networks session, its organizers, along with The House On, have been kind enough to organize a new conference of Paolo Nespoli in which we could see this in action fantastic astronaut whose ability to disseminate is extraordinary. For more than two hours he has kept us all sitting in the armchair explaining details of his life, his experience, space missions and what happens in space. He also told us about the future and also let us ask him so it was impossible to resist.
Although I told my daughter to accompany me, because the fondness for this type of subject is acquired when you are young, she did not want to come. In the end I was glad because I do not think I could have endured the more than three hours of lively presentation. Among all the things he commented he spoke for example, of why you have to send astronauts to space and commented as some objectives, knowing what happens in the absence of gravity, responding to the need for exploration and curiosity of the human being and why traveling to space generates extraordinary impacts on society.
Among the features of the European Space Station (ISS) I was left with orbiting the Earth at a distance of 400 kilometers, a very small distance, although sufficient to work in the absence of gravity, traveling at 28,000 kilometers per hour that Although it seems a lot, the most important thing is the effect it produces when looking at Earth. And it is that at that speed and orbiting at that distance in the ISS it dawns and dusk six times every 24 hours, he also commented that with each change between seeing the sun and not seeing it outside the station the temperature varies about 300ºC (degrees Celsius), from + 200 ° C when you see to -100 ° C when you do not see. In addition the solar panels rotate in the station looking for the sun and ensuring that the energy in the station is never missing. Among the anecdotes he told, he explained that astronauts like to take space walks and that although going out to do one was because there was a problem, in the end an exit from the station is a reason for joy.
Paolo commented several times that It is very important to have a dream, think about it, fight to achieve it and maybe it can come true. He explained that since he was very young he wanted to go to space and that although he had nothing clear, he is Italian and the astronauts he saw on television were Americans, however one day someone encouraged him, and much, to fight for his I dream and in the end he got it.
The abilities necessary to get travel to the spaceAlthough knowledge is also important, they need to know how to respond to problems, make decisions, organize tasks, share efforts, manage time, work hard and always want to learn new things. It is also essential to have a good physical condition. Paolo explained that in space it is essential to work as a team, for example, the ISS robotic arm needs a one-year training and still it is always necessary to work in a group with him. He also commented that the intellectual quotient in space is limited, because it is impossible to have everything under control, so it is necessary to collaborate, work as a team and join forces.
Paolo also explained to us how perception changes in space and how the body adapts to it. For example, we must adapt to see what happens when things are thrown, when it moves through the ISS, when it eats and also how they communicate with each other because perceptions change, so he said that astronauts who are floating, do not always keep their heads in the same plane and it is usual to break that usual structure on Earth. Among the physical requirements he talked about how calcium is lost in the bones in space and it is that the body determines that it does not need a skeleton to hold on, so it decides to dilute the skeleton producing osteoporosis. All astronauts are subject to permanent check-ups and also do physical work, also encouraging, as we discussed in Peques and Más, children to work in Mission X (train like a astronaut!) Of ESA to prevent childhood obesity.
Of the future Paolo Nespoli also spoke and the things he said reminded me of what I had heard when I was much younger, huge distances in space, travel times become years and the speed of spacecraft is very limited to travel the enormous distances there. Still, Paolo said the The future is ours and we just have to dare to dream! Nor did he rule out that there was extraterrestrial life out there and that he was already an extraterrestrial because he had come from outer space.
And I asked I dared to tell him that if traveling in space wakes up or recovers childhood, and he commented that in space they experiment, try things and develop ideas imaginatively. For example, he commented that the food table modified it to adapt it to the needs of the astronauts that float in the ISS and that the design that he proposed is still valid. So yes, it can be said that traveling to space helps to recover the desire to discover and create that we have in childhood. Paolo also believes that space travel with zero gravity they will have great success because they arouse the imagination and curiosity among the crew and it also makes them have a great time.
And finally, he greatly appreciated the work of the ISS and all the space agencies in the world that collaborate in the space projects. Thus, he commented that if you want to do a large work on Earth, it could be done working in the same way that results are achieved in the space station. He also indicated that sometimes politicians put him in a bad mood because they can put the space race at risk although he placed a lot of emphasis on how agencies collaborate over wars and conflicts on Earth.
Finally I want to thank the THAT, to The House On and to the organization of Network Science, the opportunity to meet and enjoy with Paolo Néspoli live. In my opinion I think it is one of the astronauts that has changed the way of communicating science and astronomy making a great use of social networks and marking a path that the following astronauts have been able to improve and enrich. In Peques y Más, it is a pleasure to publish many contents generated by ESA to disseminate science among children and I think it is a great way to encourage the little restless to develop professional careers in the future.
UPGRADE: The video of La Casa Encendida is included with the complete presentation.
