Thomas D. Jones: What were the highlights of your stay aboard the International Space Station?



Col. Timothy J. Creamer: The arrival of three shuttle crews; two Progresses [Russian freighters]; the MRM-1 [Russian-built Rassvet, or Mini Research Module-1]; Node 3, or Tranquility [ESA-built berthing module]; and the Cupola [European Space Agency-built observation module]. Perhaps the greatest highlight was the arrival of the Cupola. When I opened the shutters for visiting crews to reveal the Earth, and the full breadth of the view hit them, I saw tears in their eyes. Each shuttle mission included three spacewalks at ISS. It was a busy expedition, and during my crew's stay, we finished assembling the Russian segment with the Rassvet. It was a privilege and blessing to serve on the ISS on the cusp of its career. During my tenure, construction was nearly complete, and ISS was shifting from its assembly phase to its utilization, or science, phase.

How did the handover go from the off-going expedition to your crew?



We had an extended handover period compared to the old protocol, which used to last about 10 days as one expedition arrived and the other departed for home. The departing crew simply did not have enough time to cover every aspect of the station. The lack of continuity resulted in the ground team suffering through a painful period of rebuilding Mission Control and crew processes as they trained the new crew on what had long been second nature to the off-going expedition. Because my split six-person crew allowed us to serve a three-month apprenticeship aboard before taking over, we had a much more effective handover. Now, we have a much more consistent protocol, which reduces a lot of the "overhead" that ate up the new expedition's time every day. It produces a new, much more capable expedition that can get on with utilization (research).

How has the ISS mission evolved since permanent habitation began 10 years ago?



We must extend this platform's original purpose and turn it into a testbed that will help us understand how we can take on the challenges of deep-space explorationdealing with communication delays, realizing onboard autonomy in systems and operations, and proving new technologies like life support. We're now looking ahead to using the ISS as a platform for teaching us how to get to Mars. The ISS is a great analog for the Mars transit phase.

How can the ISS help us prepare for voyages to Mars?



Studying crews returning to Earth from the ISS gives us a chance to explore ways of getting a [Mars-bound] crew to work efficiently when they arrive on the surface of a new planet and re-enter a g-field, where they will have to deal with readapting the inner ear, muscle tone and mass, and strength and coordination. It took me about five days [after returning to Earth from the ISS] to be able to walk a straight line. And it was two to three weeks before I considered myself fully competent to drive a car. And on the front end, how can we help new people adapt to free fall?

Is the ISS helping us deal with the hazards of deep-space voyages? Radiation, for example?



Good questioncan we test radiation countermeasures on the ISS? There is less radiation shielding built into certain areas of the station. We added shielding into the port and deck sleep stations in Harmony Node 2, using water and lead bricks to cut down radiation and nighttime "light flashes" [flashes seen inside the closed eye from charged particle strikes]. We noticed a big improvement. My exposure [to radiation] was not career-limiting compared to current worker standards. Under those ground rules, I'm still eligible to fly a second expedition. But radiation is a big concern beyond low Earth orbit [LEO]. Perhaps the solution in deep space is to fly older astronauts [who are statistically less susceptible to long-term, radiation-induced cancers]. Other solutions may be to immediately go subsurface on Mars or the Moon for protection. In space, we might use water shielding, or perhaps electromagnetic shielding, if a practical technology can be found. I understand the latter is being looked into.

What were some of the pleasures of life aboard ISS?



I really enjoyed the camaraderie shared with Expedition 22 crewmates Jeff Williams and Maxim Suraev. I liked being able to live while floating and, of course, there was that blessed view from the cupola, a true gift.

How about the downsides?



At times the pace was extremely hectic, and we worked long hours and days to meet our goals. I was the USOS [U.S. Orbital Segment] lead for Expedition 23, and the work was demanding. But we balanced work and downtime. For example, twice we had to "fess up" to each other and to the ground that I was tired, and to back off on the pace. The ground responded to our admission by adjusting the work scheduled in the flight plan. It's always a race to stay ahead of the timeline, and you do that just in case something unexpected comes up. You want to give yourself margin. I felt responsible when the shuttle crews arrived, helping them so they could do their mission effectively in their brief time aboard. That was a time commitment I hadn't expected, but I thought it was the right thing to do.

What other surprises did you find during your stay?



Logistics were a big factor in our workday, meaning the overhead in setting up for research or maintenance. Finding tools and equipment for setup can take a significant amount of time, as can moving openly stowed items to gain access to work areas. And that overhead must be recognized. The ground now takes that into account much more realistically.

How would you sum up your experiences on the station?



My goal was to enable the team to succeed, both the crew inflight, and the ground team operating the station. The mantra I espoused before launch and during the mission was: "I want to help you to help us help you." I've spent nearly 30 years in the U.S. Army, serving for much of that time as an aero scout, getting out on the frontiers to serve as the eyes and ears of the commander and fellow soldiers. On the ISS I was an aero scout for the ground experimenters and operators. I saw many similarities between my aero scout experience and working as an astronaut on the LEO frontier.

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