Roberto Vittori's diary from space: An outpost for humankind

Roberto Vittori's diary from space: An outpost for humankind

21 April 2005

Finally we open the hatch. John goes through first. I wait to see if Sergei
has anything else for me to do. Then I follow John. The hatch opening is
surprisingly narrow. It's an effort to get through.

Then, looking up, I see two smiling faces, the Expedition 10 crew, Leroy and
Sasha, give us a warm welcome. After two days in the small Soyuz spacecraft
and after almost 8 months of preparation we are on board of the
International Space Station.
I visited the Station three years ago, so for me it is not something new.
Still, it is immediately noticeable how many items and spare parts are
stored on board now. Life on board the Station was not easy three years ago,
and it is not easy now.

It is definitely not a place for a holiday. It is an outpost for humankind.
Only people with unwavering motivation would be able to put up with the
difficulties and challenges of daily life.

There's not much time to look around. First an in-flight call with Moscow
Control Centre, to celebrate the successful docking, and then immediately
back to work. The Station Commander, Leroy Chiao, gives us the safety
briefing and we start to unload and unpack in preparation for the full week
of experiments, starting with those that are time critical.

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Jacques :-)

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