--- title: "French ISS Astronaut Says Everything Is Totally Fine Up There" description: "French astronaut Thomas Pesquet isn't worried about Russia's invasion of Ukraine effecting operations on board the International Space Station." date: "2022-03-18" modified: "2022-03-18" authors: - name: "Victor Tangermann" job_title: "Senior Editor" link: "https://futurism.com/authors/victor" url: "https://futurism.com/the-byte/french-iss-astronaut-everything-fine" categories: - "International Space Station" - "NASA" - "Off-World" - "Space" tags: - "international space station" - "NASA" - "Russia" - "the digest" --- # French ISS Astronaut Says Everything Is Totally Fine Up There ![French astronaut Thomas Pesquet isn't worried about Russia's invasion of Ukraine effecting operations on board the International Space Station.]() *\Image: NASA\* ## No Tensions French astronaut Thomas Pesquet, who traveled to the International Space Station in a SpaceX Crew Dragon spacecraft late last year, isn't worried about Russia's invasion of Ukraine and the subsequent breakdown of international cooperation effecting operations in orbit. "We are all on the same boat on board the space station," he said during this year's Expo 2020 \[sic\] in Dubai today, as [quoted by local news outlet *The National*](). "We’re working and there are no tensions or divisions." While Pesquet isn't currently on board the orbital outpost, he is an active astronaut, meaning that he could one day make his return there. That makes him one of the first active Western astronauts to publicly comment on the situation unfolding in Ukraine, as *Ars Technica* senior space reporter Eric Berger [points out](). ## Dragon Ride Pesquet also said that "you'll mostly see European astronauts on the Crew Dragon in the future." But that's not because of the situation unfolding in Ukraine. "It’s kind of a consequence of NASA having this new capacity to send people up to the space station," he said at the event. "We were going to fly on the Crew Dragon anyway, and it’s unrelated to the current events." The comments come on the same day a [crew of three cosmonauts]() are traveling to the ISS on board a Soyuz spacecraft. ## Business as Usual Both [NASA]() and the [European Space Agency]() (ESA) have reassured that operations on board the ISS remain "nominal" despite new sanctions being aimed at Russia. As a result of those sanctions, the country's space program now finds itself largely cut off from the rest of the world, with several rocket launches involving Russian rockets [being postponed](). Over two decades of peaceful US-Russian collaboration on board the ISS are at stake. But given Pesquet's comments, there may be hope that business will go on as usual for the time being — despite a growing geopolitical crisis unfolding back on the surface. **READ MORE:** [Space station crew rise above geopolitical tensions on ground, says French astronaut]() \[*The National*\] **More on the ISS:** *[NASA Explains What Would Happen If Russia Abandoned the Space Station]()* ## Author I've been at Futurism since 2017, where my role has evolved to encompass design, writing, and increasingly editing. I've always been fascinated by space exploration and advanced transportation, which I've leaned into by interviewing luminaries in those fields while closely following the dimensions of policy and regulation that allow next-generation projects to succeed -- or, sometimes, to fail. I'm also keenly interested in the effects of generative AI on society, policies, and democratic institutions, as well as clean energy, physics and biology, and the vagaries of tech leadership. My work for Futurism has been cited by publications including Ars Technica, Gizmodo, PC Magazine, Jalopnik, Fox News, and the New York Post. I spent my childhood living in locations including Manila, the Philippines, and Geneva, Switzerland, attended McGill University, and now live in Toronto, Canada. Before Futurism I worked at AskMen and a small photography studio. In my free time, I'm an avid gardener, foodie, and craft beer lover, as well as a maker of artisanal hot pepper sauces. I have a magnificent dog named Freida. ### Author social links [Bluesky]()