Former NASA astronaut Mike Massimino discusses NASA’s intent to collaborate with ISRO, recognizing its success in Mars and lunar missions.
New Delhi: Former National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) astronaut Dr Mike Massimino had a tête-à-tête with The Sunday Guardian on the sidelines of the NXT Conclave, held at Bharat Mandapam in the national capital. In the interview, he shared his thoughts on various topics but primarily discussed NASA’s plans to collaborate with the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) on a larger scale.
As ISRO has been doing exemplary work in space, particularly with its consecutive successes in Mars and Lunar expeditions, NASA would like to collaborate with its Indian counterpart.
The American space agency has already decided to partner with ISRO on the NISAR mission (NASA-ISRO Synthetic Aperture Radar), which will be rolled out within this year. The upcoming U.S.-India NISAR mission will provide unprecedented insights into Earth’s dynamic surface, offering critical data on changes caused by earthquakes, landslides, and volcanoes. As a first-of-its-kind dual-band radar satellite, NISAR will measure land deformation, monitor glaciers and ice sheets, and track forest and wetland changes to enhance our understanding of the global carbon cycle. The mission’s journey to launch, set for later this year, has been equally remarkable.
Dr Massimino is currently a professor of mechanical engineering at Columbia University and the senior advisor for space programs at the Intrepid Sea, Air & Space Museum. He was selected as an astronaut by NASA in 1996 and is a veteran of two spaceflights: the fourth and fifth Hubble Space Telescope servicing missions in 2002 and 2009. Mike holds the team record for the most spacewalk hours in a single space shuttle mission and was also the first person to tweet from space.
Talking about the safe return of American astronauts Butch Wilmore and Indian-origin Sunita Williams, who have been stranded at the International Space Station (ISS) since June 2024, he said they will most likely return to Earth in March, although their mission was initially scheduled for just 10 days.
Williams, a veteran astronaut, first flew to space aboard the Space Shuttle Discovery in December 2006 for her mission STS-116. She later traveled to the ISS as part of long-duration missions. In 2024, she returned to the ISS on the Boeing Crew Flight Test, the first crewed mission of the Boeing Starliner. Williams and fellow astronaut Butch Wilmore are conducting scientific experiments and maintenance tasks aboard the ISS.
Here are some edited excerpts from the interview:
Q: Is any new collaboration between NASA and ISRO expected after ISRO’s extraordinary performance in space exploration?
A: Yes, certainly. I don’t rule out the possibility of further collaboration on a bigger scale. Dialogues are underway between the two agencies, and this could result in a bigger partnership, possibly in the lunar field. However, it would be premature to comment on specifics at this stage. ISRO is doing amazing work, and some projects could be in the pipeline. We want to take these efforts to the next level, with mutual growth and cooperation. We are all banking on the NISAR mission, where NASA and ISRO are working together. This mission aims to develop and launch an Earth observation satellite equipped with a dual-frequency synthetic aperture radar.
Q: What is the progress on the safe return of stranded astronauts Butch Wilmore and Sunita Williams?
A: We are making efforts to send the capsule in March to bring them back safely within that month. The process is underway. The astronauts will return home safely within six days after the capsule reaches the ISS. Initially, they were supposed to return via the Boeing Starliner capsule, but due to technical issues, NASA will use the SpaceX Crew Dragon spacecraft instead. This change was announced in mid-February, and it has advanced their return to mid-March, reducing their stay at the ISS by at least two weeks.
Q: On Friday, you visited some school children working in the Atal Tinkering Lab. Do you think these children have a knack for science and a promising future?
A: It was a wonderful experience. Activities like these at the school level showcase the students’ flair for the subject, and they undoubtedly have immense potential. The students demonstrated several innovative projects developed within the lab. It encourages a culture of problem-solving and critical thinking among young minds. I also visited the students involved in the AzaadiSat satellite launch, a joint initiative by ISRO and Spacekidz. They should be encouraged to dream big and explore the fields of science, technology, engineering, and mathematics with passion.
Q: We’ve seen you in the American sitcom ‘The Big Bang Theory’. You have a passion for acting as well. Would you consider acting in a similar genre drama in India?
A: That was a great show, and I would love to act in something similar. Interestingly, I played myself in six episodes of ‘The Big Bang Theory’. India is famous for Bollywood, and if an opportunity arose to be part of a show with a similar vibe, I would be hard-pressed to turn it down. Shows and movies based on science and space can spark interest in younger generations. But the real question is, will there be an Indian version of ‘The Big Bang Theory’?