The opportunities to become an astronaut in Canada were far and few. Julie Payette More Quotes by Julie Payette More Quotes From Julie Payette You're always under the microscope, and you don't know which mission you're going to get. It's a surprise. Julie Payette missions microscopes surprise When you're a little different than others, it takes a little more time to fit in. If you really want to be there, there are no ingredients you need other than effort, perseverance and teamwork. Julie Payette perseverance effort teamwork If anything, when you're up in space and you're inside a space ship, which is your home, and without which you would not survive, you know that Earth is your home. This is the only place you can return. In fact we're very meticulous. Part of our job is to maintain the spaceship. If we apply the same kind of model to Earth maybe we'd have a different outlook. Julie Payette different earth home Some people will always be volunteers to explore, and it is, in my mind, a privilege. Julie Payette volunteer mind people A lot of people, I think, would love to see the earth from above, wear a spacesuit. Certainly, when I was a kid, I wanted to wear a spacesuit. Julie Payette kids people thinking On the day a country decides not to invest a cent in innovation, discovery or exploration, that country decides to be a tributary to others. Julie Payette exploration innovation country I really believe that, in 500 years, we will still remember the International Space Station, because it will have been the first time, really and truly, that nations put a lot of money, brains, resources, and effort together to build something peacefully, and to work together for the sole and unique purpose of furthering our knowledge and bringing it back to Earth for our mutual good. Julie Payette effort unique believe Definitely you don't become famous by doing something bad; that's a professional death sentence. You remember that whatever you do, someone will be watching, and you study all the time. It sounds terrible, but you get used to it. I'm 45, and I'm still at school, essentially. Julie Payette study remember school Will we go explore? Absolutely. That's what humans have been doing since we left the caves in Ethiopia. Why? Because this is part of our nature. We're curious. We want to push the envelope. That will never stop. We will see people on Mars, hopefully in our lifetime. My hope is that the endeavour is so large, so complex, so technically challenging, so demanding and so uplifting, that it will be done with a consortium of nations. I hope the people who do set foot on Mars will do so for all mankind, and not just one nation in particular. Julie Payette uplifting challenges people Definitely you don't become famous by doing something bad; that's a professional death sentence. Julie Payette death-sentence sentences Most astronauts are very down-to-earth people. Many of us, three-quarters, have an engineering degree, and we have a very Cartesian, rational approach to things. You don't go and get swept off your feet. That's not your job and that's not why you're hired. So if you get so mesmerized that you forget to do what you're supposed to do, whether it's to open the cargo door of the space shuttle or configure something inside, then you should not be there as a professional operator. Julie Payette astronaut forget people Most people here don't have a wide emotional range. It's just the type of people astronauts are, they're required to be level. Julie Payette levels emotional people When I saw the Earth from above, personally, as a spacecraft operator, it certainly reinforced and drove home the fact that there's one place where we can live right now. The seven billion of us are sharing a wonderful planet, and it's an absolute privilege to see it from above. Julie Payette earth home wonderful Nobody is going anywhere in 10 years. Julie Payette years You're less apprehensive when you know what to expect. Also, the first flight is very important in this performance-driven culture I work in; it establishes your reputation. If you don't do well, it's probably your last flight. Julie Payette reputation important culture My husband and I don't worry about each other the way we might if we didn't have similar jobs. I sometimes get an email where he tells me he's heading off on a mission to do terrain avoidance 50 feet above the ground at 500 knots. And I just say, "Okay, have a good flight." Julie Payette husband feet jobs I'm 45, and I'm still at school, essentially. Even after being assigned to the mission, I had to write a number of exams, with people commenting on my performance. Julie Payette writing numbers school You're always under the microscope, you don't know which mission you're going to get. It's a surprise. Julie Payette surprise Almost everything I do when I approach an operational problem comes from the time I've been in space. It's a way of organizing your thoughts. We use problem-solving; what we call "what-if-ing." What if this happened? What would we do? We go over plan B, C, D, E, F, and whatever else, depending on the criticality of what we're doing. This kind of thing can be applied almost everywhere, even at home. Julie Payette what-if kind home I think it's the entire privilege I had to represent my country. It's not the going to space alone; it's to be part of that endeavour and to contribute a very small part to a very important step toward pushing the frontier. Julie Payette important country thinking
