On episode 354, NASA astronaut Nick Hague and Roscosmos cosmonaut Aleksandr Gorbunov of discuss their mission, personal life, and preparation ahead of their launch to the station.
Houston, we have a podcast.
Welcome to the official podcast of the NASA Johnson Space center.
Episode 354 crew nine.
I'm Dane Turner, and I'll be your host.
Today on this podcast, we bring in the experts, scientists, engineers, astronauts, and cosmonauts, all to let you know what's going on in the world of human spaceflight and more.
We're getting ready for the next mission in NASA's commercial crew program, sending one NASA astronaut and one Roscosmos cosmonaut to the International Space Station on the 9th crew rotation mission following NASA's decision to return Boeing Starliner's crew flight test, or CFT, uncrewed crew nine will launch with two empty seats.
NASA astronaut and crew nine commander Nick Haig and Roscosmos cosmonaut and mission specialist Alexander Gorbanov will fly to station aboard SpaceX Dragon Freedom.
There, they will join the crew of expedition 72, bringing the station's population up to seven to conduct their mission of executing science investigations and technology demonstrations until early next year when they will return with NASA astronauts Butch Wilmore and Sonny Williams.
We sat down with Nick Haig and Alexander Gorbanov, learning about their backgrounds, the mission, and plans once they get to station.
Let's hear what crew nine had to say ahead of their flight.
We have a podcast.
First up is crew nine commander Nick Haig.
Nick was born in Belleville, Kansas, but considers Hoxie, Kansas his hometown.
He earned his Bachelor of Science in astronautical engineering from the Air Force Academy and his Master of Science in aeronautical and astronautical engineering from MIT.
His military career includes test pilot school, a deployment in Iraq, supporting Operation iraqi freedom, and teaching introductory astronautics, linear control system analysis and design for the Department of Astronomy Astronautics at the Air Force Academy.
Prior to his selection as an astronaut candidate, Nick was assigned to the Joint improvised Explosive device defeat organization as the deputy division chief for research and development, and in 2021, he transferred from the Air Force to the US Space Force.
This will be Nick's third spaceflight and second long duration stay on the ISS following his mission with expeditions 59 and 60 in 2019.
While on station, he conducted three spacewalks totaling 19 hours and 56 minutes and spent a total of 203 days in space.
I got to talk to crew nine commander Nick Haig a few months ago, and here's what he had to say.
Nick Haig, thank you for coming on.