Watch: Exclusive interview with NASA astronaut Raja Chari

Hyderabad: Living his childhood dream and floating in space is Raja Jon Vurputoor ‘Grinder’ Chari, the Commander of SpaceX Crew-3 (Expedition 66), who is currently docked at the International Space Station (ISS), and gets to watch a sunrise every 45 minutes! Travelling at 17,500 mph and orbiting Earth every 90 minutes, in an exclusive interaction […]

Hyderabad: Living his childhood dream and floating in space is Raja Jon Vurputoor ‘Grinder’ Chari, the Commander of SpaceX Crew-3 (Expedition 66), who is currently docked at the International Space Station (ISS), and gets to watch a sunrise every 45 minutes!
Travelling at 17,500 mph and orbiting Earth every 90 minutes, in an exclusive interaction with Telangana Today from the space station, Raja Chari, whose family hailed from Hyderabad, describes the view as just amazing. “We see numerous sunrises and sunsets in a day. The atmosphere is beautifully illuminated and I love watching that the most.”
For him, the most incredible thing to see is how thin the layer of atmosphere is.

“Everything we know, understand and love on Earth is just a razor thin layer or air,” he says.Docked at the ISS for six months, Raja Chari, narrates his journey from Earth to the International Space Station as a dream come true. “It is an honour being up here and working on various experiments for the people down on earth.”

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The astronauts work on several experiments in the station.” Personally, I have been working on a lot of plant science here at ISS. We are looking at different methods of watering and irrigating the plants. We are also researching the stem cells of the cotton plants. In total, we have about 300 experiments taking place up here.”

The Commander shares that the crew also works on maintaining the vehicles and fixes any issues that occur at the station.

However, working and living in zero gravity has surely had an impact on their bodies. Raja Chari says, “Zero gravity affects the body both physically and mentally. But, what I found the most difficult was to multitask. It takes a while for your brain to adapt to this environment. You also have to get used to walking on every surface in the space, including the ceiling and walls. It takes a while but you get used to it.”

Although enjoying himself, the astronaut misses his family. “However, NASA is doing a great job keeping us connected. We speak on the calls every now and then.” Father of three children, he shares that the kids are quite excited about his mission.

Adds Raja Chari, “If you are passionate about something just go for it. ISRO is planning on a launch in 2023, so I feel that the youth of India has several opportunities in the future to be excited about.”

Hyderabad Connection:

Raja’s grandfather, a native of Mahabubnagar, was a Mathematics professor at Osmania University. Raja’s father, Sreenivas Chari, who had an engineering degree from OU, moved to America.

The astronaut has visited Hyderabad thrice, where many of his close relatives live. In an earlier interaction, he had shared, “I remember going to the Tank Bund. That was one of the most memorable summer vacations I ever had — I played a lot with my cousins, ate some delicious food and even tried to learn some Telugu, which unfortunately I don’t remember now.”

Watch: 

 

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