Op-Eds and Articles

I was an astronaut - and we need a Space Force. Space has been a hotly contested domain for decades. I can personally attest to this: While I was commander of the International Space Station in 2015, we had to maneuver our spaceship to avoid debris left over from a 2007 Chinese anti-satellite missile demonstration.

The Deep Space Gateway would shackle human exploration, not enable it. Former ISS Commander Terry Virts argues NASA does not need another space station.

The International Space Station (ISS) partnership has survived trying times over the years. During my last spaceflight in 2014 to 2015, Russia annexed Crimea, started a civil war in Ukraine, shot down a civilian airliner, and the West imposed sanctions. The ISS was the sole bright spot while relations between the West and Russia sank to their lowest levels since the Cold War — until now.

Alongside many countless civilian, military, and aerospace actors of the last six decades, the Omega Speedmaster has played its own uniquely influential role in that continued legacy of outer space exploration

Recently presented with a list of potential subjects, I jumped at the chance to write about Colonel Terry W. Virts for two reasons. First, in my opinion, there is no more uniquely courageous, even heroic, career choice than the life of an astronaut. Second, the most famous person I’ve ever been lucky enough to call my friend was an astronaut.

Ride shotgun on a trip to space with astronaut Terry Virts. A born storyteller with a gift for the surprising turn of phrase and eye for the perfect you-are-there details, he captures all the highs, lows, humour, and wonder of an experience few will ever know first-hand

After being in space for five months, my crew was ready to return to Earth, when a Progress cargo ship was destroyed during a launch accident. The implications were immediate – the ISS was suddenly short of supplies (this was the second cargo explosion in a few months) and Mission Control told us that our return to Earth was put on hold – indefinitely – until they cleared the rocket to launch our replacement crew. Here are ten tips I learned during that sudden, unplanned isolation with limited supplies.

One thing astronauts who are not actually in space at the moment have on the rest of us is that, given their experience with quarantine and isolation, they're far less likely than we are to go stir-crazy while stuck at home during the corona crisis. As a result, they have a lot to teach us. One thing we share with them is that staying occupied always helps.

You don’t get to meet true American heroes like Colonel Terry Virts every day.
The retired NASA astronaut flew the space shuttle Endeavour, was commander of the ISS International Space Station, has flown over 40 different planes in his career (mostly F-16s and T-38s), and been awarded the prestigious Meritorious Service Medal and Air Medal, among others.
Virts also published a book of his space photography, A View From Above, and helped film the A Beautiful Planet IMAX movie. It’s fair to say the man has accomplished a lot in his 51 years.