Astronaut Training in Russia: Space Underwear and More June 16, 2009

Favorite:

Complete video at: http://fora.tv/2009/05/30/Esther_Dyson_Tales_of_Cosmonaut_Training

Esther Dyson describes the five months she spent training to be a cosmonaut and details her experiences training in the wilderness, using the shuttle's ancient operating system, and wearing a massive and uncomfortable spacesuit.

-----

What's a nice lady like you doing in (a) space like this?

Esther Dyson tells tales of her cosmonaut training. Recently returned from five months at the Yuri Gagarain Cosmonaut Training Center outside Moscow, she comes equipped with photos and stories - and a willingness to answer questions.

Following on President Obama's call to "begin again the work of remaking America," Maker Faire 2009 was organized around the theme of Re-Make America. Held in the San Francisco Bay Area, Maker Faire celebrates what President Obama called "the risk takers, the doers, and the makers of things." - Maker Faire 2009

Esther Dyson has just returned from a five-month stint training as a cosmonaut in Russia's Star City. She graduated from Harvard in 1972 with a Bachelor's degree in economics. Her air- and space-related investments include Airship Ventures, Icon Aircraft (a new light-sport aircraft), Space Adventures (which organized her cosmonaut training and also runs Zero-G flights), and XCOR Aerospace (maker of the Lynx). She has flown weightless six times and plans to take one of the Lynx's last test flights before it goes into commercial service.