00:00What kind of job training are you currently doing?
00:05I have just finished basic training for the European Space Agency's astronaut reserve.
00:12so I'm basically waiting for a mission.
00:15We are ready to be assigned to a mission, it can happen at any time.
00:19Of course, I hope, it can happen as soon as possible
00:21and in the meantime I continue to be a pilot in the Air Force, a test pilot
00:26and so I continue to do that activity as well.
00:28Have you always dreamed of becoming an astronaut one day?
00:32Contrary to what you might think, I didn't always dream of being an astronaut.
00:36When I was little I wanted to be an airplane pilot, which is what I did in the Air Force.
00:41During my journey I was lucky enough to meet some astronauts, first and foremost Luca Parmitano
00:46who is also a pilot in the Air Force, who made me understand that astronauts exist,
00:51I am flesh and blood, something actually reachable and so I approached that world
00:56and then when the last selection for ESA astronauts came out I applied without thinking.
01:02The most difficult aspect of this job?
01:05On the ground, momentarily.
01:08I wouldn't say there are any difficult aspects of this job.
01:11The strange thing is that one might expect astronauts to always be in space, floating, flying.
01:16In reality there is a lot of training, a lot of preparation and there is also a lot of sharing what we do rightly.
01:22because doing science, doing research, exploring space and then not sharing it with others would be a sin.
