Nanaimo Astronomy Society members will hear \u2018the Good, the Bad, and the Ugly\u2019 of space station life<\/p>\n
Published 5:30 am Wednesday, February 25, 2026<\/p>\n
Anyone who\u2019s ever wondered what it\u2019s like to live without gravity, in a bubble of air trapped inside a tin can will have some musings answered when David Prud\u2019homme presents, The International Space Station: The Good, The Bad, and the Ugly at Nanaimo Astronomy Society\u2019s upcoming monthly meeting<\/p>\n
The ISS, started in 1998, has been operational for 25 years now and, so far, has hosted about 300 visitors. Look up at the right time on a clear night and one can see the station glow brilliantly in the sun\u2019s light as it orbits Earth, but what life is like within its confines will make for an entertaining and informative look into the \u201cgood, bad, and ugly\u201d of ISS life.<\/p>\n
Prud\u2019homme, former president of the Edmonton Centre of the Royal Astronomical Society of Canada, has been a volunteer instructor with Elder College since 2011 \u2013 where he offers two courses, Introduction to the Night Skies and Space Race: Quest for the Moon. Prud\u2019homme has a keen interest in astronomy and the history of space exploration, especially in researching space flight, from the earliest manned missions to long-duration stays aboard space stations.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s [the] basics of everyday life that I\u2019ll actually be talking about and one of the biggest ones is space sickness, which is really the opposite of seasickness on Earth,\u201d he told the News Bulletin.<\/p>\n
\u201cWith seasickness on Earth you are seeing a fixed frame of reference, but it\u2019s moving, so your vestibular system says there\u2019s something off here, but in space it\u2019s actually the reverse because you\u2019re holding still and it feels like everything\u2019s moving around you, but it\u2019s the same result. You get sick.\u201d<\/p>\n
Prud\u2019homme noted another difficulty for humans who evolved in gravity is going to the washroom. Elaborate toilet facilities have been developed for the ISS and space shuttles that can support them, but options remain limited for space suits.<\/p>\n
Running low on supplies on space stations can be bad, but getting resupplied can also be dangerous.<\/p>\n
\u201cOne of the \u2018uglies\u2019 of the space program is supply missions don\u2019t always make it to the space station,\u201d Prud\u2019homme said. \u201cAt times they\u2019ve had situations where they\u2019ve run a little low on the necessities.\u201d<\/p>\n
Prud\u2019homme noted a Russian Progress supply ship collided with the Russian Mir space station in 1997. The collision caused serious damage to Mir that included a smashed solar array, that knocked out power to a section of the station, and a punctured hull. The crew was able to seal the leak and fortunately no one was injured.<\/p>\n
\u201cThat space station also had a fire on board,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
One of the good things about the ISS program is international cooperation. The ISS has been an international endeavor since its inception and, despite whatever is going on the planet\u2019s surface, astronauts and cosmonauts from multiple nations continue working together in orbit.<\/p>\n
\u201cThis was a major international event,\u201d Prud\u2019homme said. \u201cA lot of those modules were manufactured in different countries and never met before they met in space and then they managed to get together \u2026 That\u2019s a technological success.\u201d<\/p>\n
But, Prud\u2019homme said, astronauts often work in their countries\u2019 modules and can go for extended periods without seeing one another, but do get together about once a week for a community meal.<\/p>\n
\u201cAt one point there were only three of them on the space station, the two Russians in their module and he was all alone in the American module,\u201d Prud\u2019homme said. \u201cSo you\u2019re completely on your own. I mean, you know they\u2019re there \u2026 Talk about extreme isolation, because you don\u2019t even have on a regular basis, even a window to look out. There\u2019s an observation deck, but you don\u2019t go there all the time. You have work to do.\u201d<\/p>\n
The atmospheric conditions can also be lacking as well as the social atmosphere. Prud\u2019homme said the levels of carbon dioxide inside the ISS is about twice as high as that allowed on U.S. Navy submarines, \u201cso headaches and difficulty functioning are one of the \u2018bads\u2019 of the space station.\u201d<\/p>\n
There\u2019s no way to step outside for a breath of fresh air, but astronauts that do go out for extra-vehicular activity missions also face hazards from space junk and micrometeorites.<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019ve got a nice little graphic that talks about the magnitudes of those dangers,\u201d Prud\u2019homme said. \u201cThere\u2019s a lot of little damage on the outsides [of the ISS]. Some of the astronauts have referred to that when they go out and the hand bars and stuff have little holes in them.\u201d<\/p>\n
Following Prud\u2019homme\u2019s presentation, NAS past president Chris Boar will give a quick introduction to stacking and editing raw astrophotography files.<\/p>\n
Nanaimo Astronomy Society\u2019s next meeting happens Thursday, Feb. 26, 7 p.m. at Beban Park Social Centre, 2300 Bowen Rd., Rooms 2 and 3.<\/p>\n