Topics: International Space Station, Science, Social Media, Space, Technology, Twitter, NASA, Elon Musk
An astronaut has answered people's calls and performed a bizarre (yet entertaining) experiment.
While NASA astronauts will be conducting very important research when living on the International Space Station (ISS), they'll, of course, want to have fun while they're up there too.
One thing people constantly wonder about astronauts in space is how they sleep, baring in mind there's no gravity.
With the space fans' ongoing questions on this topic in mind, Sunita Williams — who is currently residing at the ISS having been stuck there since June — previously demonstrated how astronauts get a good night's sleep.
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Now, fellow astronaut Don Pettit has also given people on Earth some insight into life in space, and proved how they can get dressed without using their hands.
Doing this down on Earth is pretty much impossible (unless you have the flexibility of Simone Biles), but the lack of gravity at the ISS makes it much easier.
In a video shared to Twitter in recent days, Don blew people's minds as he casually floated into a pair of trousers that were already stood waiting for him to slide on into.
While he had to use his hands to zip them up, the whole thing is still quite impressive.
Once he had his pants on, Don proudly shouted 'ta da!'.
See it here:
He captioned the social media clip shared on February 21: "OK; you all asked if this was possible….."
The video has garnered almost a million views since it was shared earlier this week, and people were quick to share their thoughts on the comical clip.
"After being trapped in space for months the real research has started," one person joked.
Someone else chuckled: "Good work! Just remember to point your toes."
"Haha awesome! That’s what I wanted to see," wrote a third.
"New skill unlocked," added a different person.
Others pointed out that Don proved the age-old phrase of 'putting on pants one leg at a time' wrong.
"So astronauts are not like anyone else. They put their pants on two legs at a time," someone said of this.
Astronauts like Don's time on the ISS is limited as the floating research center will soon be destroyed.
While it's currently set to be retired in 2023, SpaceX founder Elon Musk thinks it should be de-orbited 'as soon as possible' and suggested that it be done in just two years time.
The multibillionaire tweeted on February 20: "It is time to begin preparations for deorbiting the @Space_Station. It has served its purpose. There is very little incremental utility. Let’s go to Mars."
He added in a follow-up post when asked about a timeframe for the ISS' retirement: "The decision is up to the President, but my recommendation is as soon as possible. I recommend 2 years from now."
