Canadian astronaut Joshua Kutryk beamed into an educational science centre in St. John’s, Newfoundland and Labrador, to speak with children and adults about his experiences living aboard the International Space Station, according to CP24.
Kutryk, a 44-year-old colonel in the Royal Canadian Air Force and native of Fort Saskatchewan, Alberta, has been living in orbit for more than a month as part of a planned six-month mission.
Life Aboard the International Space Station
During the video call, Kutryk addressed the daily realities of orbital life, noting that routine tasks such as sleeping and brushing one’s teeth present unique challenges in microgravity. He also described adjusting to space food, which is largely liquid and frequently consumed from a pouch, making it difficult to draw the same satisfaction from meals as one would on Earth, as reported by Canadafrancais.
“You end up, in many cases, almost drinking it out of a bag,” Kutryk said.
“The work is challenging, sometimes it's tedious, but it is a lot of fun being in microgravity,” Canadian astronaut Joshua Kutryk said.
To maintain his physical fitness during the long-duration mission, Kutryk exercises using a stationary bicycle and a treadmill equipped with restraining harnesses, and he reads books on a digital e-reader during his personal time.
Spacewalks and Perspectives on Earth
Before his recent public outreach event, Kutryk completed two spacewalks outside the orbital laboratory to perform maintenance work on the station’s structure, including the installation of solar panels, according to reporting from Numerama and CP24. Operating roughly 400 kilometers above the planet, he shared striking imagery and reflections on viewing Earth from space.
Kutryk Launched Toward the Space Station as Part of Crew-13
Kutryk launched toward the space station on October 1, 2026, aboard a SpaceX Crew Dragon spacecraft as part of NASA’s Crew-13 mission alongside commander Jessica Watkins, pilot Luke Delaney, and mission specialist Sergey Tetiatnikov. The launch had been delayed slightly from mid-September due to a detected spacecraft leak, but the eventual flight achieved the fastest journey by an American vessel to the station, docking after a trip of nearly eight hours.
Selected by the Canadian Space Agency in 2017, Kutryk prepared for his first spaceflight by training to live and work in extreme environments, including underwater simulations. His current mission schedule spans half a year, during which he will conduct maintenance, support international scientific studies focusing on human health, and help prepare for future exploration missions toward the Moon and Mars.
