Weekly “Arguments and Facts” No. 42. Supernumber: 152 questions answered 10/20/2021
Before returning from orbit, all of the cosmonauts do culinary orders. And after landing they hungrily breathe the steppe air.
The very first space “film crew” is back on Earth. & ndash; director Klim Shipenko and actress Yulia Peresild … The commander of the Soyuz MS-18 spacecraft that landed in Kazakhstan was cosmonaut Oleg Novitsky . He has been in orbit since April, and during this flight, which became for him the third, his wife, the journalist Julia Novitskaya & nbsp; edited the blog 'Diary of the Astronaut & # 39; s Wife & # 39; & # 39 ;, which was published on the Roscosmos website. & nbsp;
The very first space “camera crew” after landing: actress Yulia Peresild, cosmonaut Oleg Novitsky and director Klim Shipenko. Kazakhstan, October 17, 2021. Photo: RIA Novosti
How did you meet?
& ndash; Julia, how long have you been married to Oleg?
& ndash; 26 years already.
& ndash; Have you dreamed of marrying an astronaut?
& ndash; Of course not. So we didn't know yet that he would become one. I married a military pilot, but mostly & ndash; for the person she fell in love with. The profession was secondary.
I then studied at the Philology Faculty of the Borisoglebsk Pedagogical Institute, and he was retraining at the Flight Personnel Retraining Center, also in Borisoglebsk. And I went to the library in the Officers' Room, because we were asked to read a lot of books. Oleg was interested in a girl running around with a huge stack of books: does she have time to read them? Plus, as he says, he loved & shy; He found my phone number and we met.
Now I joke all the time that through the love of reading you can find yourself a husband. I advise all young girls to love to read and go to the library. & Nbsp;
& ndash; Nonetheless, many girls dream of marrying footballers who earn exorbitant salaries.
& ndash; For the love of God. But we're probably old school folks, and we have slightly different values.
After marriage, Oleg served for 10 years in the North Caucasus, then entered the Air Force Academy. And when I finished it, I was lucky enough to qualify for the Cosmonaut Corps. That's right, he said, 'Where am I, and where is astronautics. But let's try to tell my grandchildren in old age that, they say, your grandfather was so lucky. And we were very surprised when he managed to qualify. After all, astronautics was kind of a history textbook for us. It was like a fairy tale about Cinderella: a simple guy from a small Belarusian town suddenly managed to get into the body of cosmonauts! & Nbsp;
& ndash; Did you try to dissuade? Yet the job is risky, more long & timid; absences & hellip;
& ndash; It seems to me that there is no point in dissuading a man of character (and others are not accepted into the body of cosmonauts). Besides, a smart woman and a loving wife will never do that. How can you be discouraged by your favorite job, what a person likes? Flying through space has become Oleg's dream. And I'm glad he did it pretty quickly – less than 6 years after enlisting in the detachment. Usually guys wait longer. & Nbsp;
Who is calling who?
& ndash; Emergencies and even emergencies regularly occur on the ISS. How do you treat them when your husband is at the station?
& ndash; Like any woman when her husband has an emergency at work. I am aware of what he is responsible for. I'm worried I can't take my eyes off the screen. At the same time, I have confidence in his strength and professionalism, but anything can happen in life.
Much to our regret, today not a single flight is complete without emergencies. They can't be predicted, you can't make them so they don't exist at all. On the third flight, which has just ended, there were difficulties with the reception of the Science module. There was a serious problem on the eve of undocking, when the Soyuz engines deployed the ISS orientation.
You know I tried a little on myself what it means to be an astronaut. I am a space journalist and it interests me from a professional point of view. On Oleg's second flight, I flew through a wind tunnel, although I felt dizzy. And just as he was about to go to space, she visited Zvezda's research and production company. and I tried (or rather, I got into it – that's right) a spacesuit. They put on a little boost, ventilation, comm, they closed that spacesuit, and I tried to move the halyards. It didn't take long, but my hands quickly got tired so I couldn't even get off the costume on my own. Three specialists helped me out. Sure, that's a ten thousandth of what they experience there, but after that I wrote Oleg that now I'm going to watch his way out into space with eyes completely different. & Nbsp;
& ndash; Have you written? And how is the connection between cosmonauts and their relatives? Can you call him at the station?
& ndash; I can't call, only he can call. Sometimes this happens several times a day, sometimes & ndash; once a day. But he calls every day, for the three flights there was only one pass, when there were communication issues on the ISS.
The call goes straight to the mobile. When Oleg's first flight took place, I wrote this number on my phone as a space call. On the second flight the number changed, I named it “Call from space”; 2 & # 39; & # 39 ;. And in the third & shy; eat, extreme flight & ndash; “ Call from space & ndash; 3 & # 39; & # 39 ;. When my husband calls, I always tell him jokingly, 'Hello, my favorite call from space!'
I can't call there, but I can write by email and I do it all the time. Oleg really needs it. After all, you can attach photos and videos to letters. There hasn't been a day since I sent something to her. A few earthly moments: here it rains abundantly, here is a leaf, a very beautiful autumn. Here is the youngest sleeping girl. My daughter made a drawing & ndash; we send photo or video. Every morning I send a letter that I call & ndash; Hello. If a friend of mine has a birthday, I will definitely remind you. And if he has time, Oleg can call him. But the time spent on the ISS is worth its weight in gold. & Nbsp;
What's in the culinary order?
& ndash; After landing, your husband admitted that he wanted Belarusian food first and foremost & ndash; potato pie & shy; koy, Narochansky bread and a glass of birch sap. Did you make him happy with this set?
& ndash; Six months of 'space' the food is boring. There is a lack of fresh vegetables and fruits. Therefore, before returning to Earth, astronauts must make culinary orders, it is such a tradition. And we laugh: the order was received from space, we must obey!
Oleg placed his order in advance. By tradition he includes a Belarusian potato pie, fried pork ribs (this is a must), and now he has also requested a salad with fresh onions & ndash; my youngest daughter and I raised her at home on the windowsill. All of this was taken to the clinic, where he will undergo post-theft rehabilitation, and left in the refrigerator.
Especially for Oleg, they gave us lard and a loaf of Belarusian Narochan black bread. It is very difficult to find it in Min & shy; sk, but it is considered the most delicious of them. And they handed over a few little bags of birch sap. I sent them to Baikonur & ndash; while on TV after landing he was seen to be drinking this juice. & nbsp;
I also saw with what pleasure he breathed the air of the steppe. All the guys do. In any show you can watch & ndash; after landing they breathe fresh air with great pleasure, even in summer, even in winter. This is not the man-made atmosphere they find themselves in on the ISS. Of course, the air in the station is constantly being purified, but there is no smell on Earth.
& ndash; Your husband spent more than 530 days in orbit in total. What do you think after three of his flights: is it hard to be the wife of a & # 39; shy astronaut?
& ndash; It seems to me that it's hard to be a wife, but a good wife is – even harder. Just like being a good husband. Family & ndash; it is colossal work and daily work. You cannot work carelessly here. Why are there so many divorces in our country? Because not everyone is ready for it, not everyone wants to complete their tasks.
Long business trips & ndash; It's tough, but it's not just astronauts who have it. And the submariners? And other military personnel too? Of course, the life of astronaut wives is largely subordinate to the lives of their husbands, but at the same time, it's very cool when they manage to live their own lives. Do not completely dissolve in your spouse, do not completely stay in his shadow, but try, for example, to realize yourself in the profession.
When Maxim Galkin invited me to his program, he joked, introducing me like this: “ Yulia Novitskaya, journalist, and in my free time & ndash; the astronaut's wife. & # 39; & # 39; I really liked this joke, it reflects my inner attitude in this regard.
