A Day In The Life Of An
Astronaut

Becoming an astronaut is hard work.  There are hours of training, test and practices. Living in an antigravity environment can be a bit different from life on Earth.  Here are some of the things an astronaut living on the Space Station might encounter.

Space Suits - In the past space suits were tailor-made for each astronaut, now the suits are made in small, medium, and large sizes and can be worn by both men and women. The suit comes in two pieces, top and bottom, and each piece snaps together with sealing rings.  A life-support system is built into the top part.

 
 
Space Food - The food that NASA's astronauts eat in space in the early stages of space flight was limited to freeze-dried foods.  Today the Space Shuttle astronauts eat foods that are familiar to them back on Earth.  The astronauts use knives, forks and spoons and also use a serving tray which helps keep the food from floating away, (they are cleaned with wet wipes)  Hot water is available and an oven (not like the one in your kitchen and there is no refrigerator) is also available for warming food.  Three meals a day is scheduled for each crew member and each meal is well balanced giving them all the vitamins and nutrients needed for their daily requirements.  They can choose from a variety of foods and they even are able to have a snack.  (micro gravity does not effect the ability to swallow)   Here is a partial list of what an astronaut can choose from for their mission. The foods are either:

                    Natural Form (NF)-foods that ready to eat like nuts, cookies, and granola bars.
                    Rehydratable (R) - water is added to these foods before they are eaten, like, soups,
                                                dry milk, cereal, and scrambled eggs.
                    Thermostabalized (T) - food that can be eaten right out of the cans, like tuna, salmon
                                                    and puddings.
                    Intermediate Moisture (IM) - foods like dried peaches, dried beef and dried pears
                    Irradiated (I) - Beef is the only food that is Irradiated.  It is cooked, and packaged
                                          in a foil pouch and sterilized.
                    Condiments - (C) - packets like you would get at Burger King for you burger.  Ketchup,
                                                mustard and mayonnaise.
                    Shelf Stable Tortillas - Tortillas are a favorite bread for astronauts.  They also do don't
                                                     produce crumbs which can be a problem in space.  A special
                                                     tortilla is made for astronauts so they will last longer in space.
 
Going to the Bathroom - Astronauts use a toilet close to the ones we use on Earth.  Air directs waste to the bottom of the toilet and goes into a sealed container where it is processed and stored and brought back to Earth for disposable.

Taking a bath - Astronauts take sponge baths while in space and will be able to take a shower on the ISS

Sleeping - The crew have bunks that they sleep in.  Astronauts strap themselves in to keep from floating around while they sleep

Recreation - Astronauts must exercise - They may lose muscle and bone loss so they must exercise daily if they are on a long mission.  Exercise also helps them readjust more quickly to Earth's gravity when they return
 
Work - The Astronauts have a schedule of work they must do.  The different payloads (experiments) are part of the work that they must do during a space flight

DOES THIS ALL SOUND GREAT TO YOU?  YOU TOO CAN BECOME AN ASTRONAUT
HERE'S HOW.
1.  You have to be in good physical health
2.  Meet the requirements for astronaut training.
3.  Have a college degree in engineering, science or mathematics (for pilots and mission specialties)
4.  If you want to be a pilot you have to have good vision, and 1,000 hours of flight time in a jet.
5.   Train for 1-2 years

A lot of people try to become astronauts but there are only 20 jobs every two years and most can't make
it through the tough training.

If you think you've got the right stuff, write for an application:

                  Astronaut Selection Office,
                            Mail Code AHX
            Johnson Space Center,
            Houston, TX 77058-3696
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