[ Silence ]
>> Joining us today, Expedition 41/42 Flight Engineer
Elena Serova.
Elena, thank you very much for your time.
It's a busy time for you.
You're in the home stretch of your training for your launch
in September on the Soyuz to the International Space Station.
How excited are you at this point
and what are you looking forward to the most once you arrive
on the International Space Station for your time up there?
[background foreign language]
>> Elena Serova: Well most of all I am expecting
to perform my work with great quality
and I'm a little concerned that I really want to stand
up for those people who helped me to prepare for this mission
and helped me perform my work in a good manner.
[background foreign language]
>> Tell us a little bit about yourself, Elena.
What got you interested in human space flight,
becoming a cosmonaut?
What are some of your hobbies as well, when you have free time?
[background foreign language]
>> Elena Serova: I'd like to start with the first part
of your question, why I became interested in flying into space,
since I was a child I was very interested in space,
the entire topic of space,
everything that was related to space exploration.
And the great part in my decision was played by my school
and my first teacher who often told us
about different events related to space exploration.
So it was the first part in my conscious decision.
After that I went to study
in the [foreign language] Institute,
the Space Exploration Department.
It was a very purposeful choice on my part.
I was very much interested in everything that was related
to cosmonauts and astronauts.
After that I joined the [foreign language] as an engineer.
And when I had an opportunity to apply to become a cosmonaut,
actually a cosmonaut candidate, I did that.
And now I'm here talking to you.
As to the second part of your question,
I have different interests
and they are not only space related, as you might imagine.
I love archeology and history and I like it so much
because I think that a human person who knows his
or her history has their roots.
They have their outlook for the future.
>> Let's talk a little bit about history for a moment.
When we interview cosmonauts we ask them what got you inspired?
What was your motivation to want to fly in space?
Did you have a hero when you were young?
And they all say, of course, Yuri Gagarin.
For you, was it Yuri Gagarin
or might it have been Valentina Tereshkova that enabled you
to look up at the sky and say I can do that one of these days?
[silence] [background foreign language]
>> Elena Serova: Let me answer in this way,
of course the big part in my decision was made
by all the cosmonauts who were flying first,
both men and obviously women.
And Valentina Tereshkova was the woman.
She was a great example
that impacted my decision in the future.
A lot of people played part in my decision
and there were American astronauts,
both female and male.
>> Elena, you will become only the fourth Russian woman to fly
in space when you launch and the first since Elena Kondakova flew
on the Space Shuttle back on her second flight
into space some 14 years ago.
How significant is this for you personally
and what is the importance of you flight opening
up the door perhaps for more Russian women
to become cosmonauts in the future?
[silence] [background foreign language]
>> Elena Serova: Let me answer this question like this.
The door to space was opened to all women
by Valentina Tereshkova.
We only do our work.
I don't think I'm doing anything extraordinary.
I'm just doing something that was started
by our female astronaut's cosmonauts.
I think that both cosmonauts and astronauts first
of all should be professionals in their area in order
to perform their work in exemplary manner.
>> Has your training been more complex
than you had anticipated?
So many things to learn, Russian segment, U.S. segment,
all of the scientific work
that you will be conducting during your six months on orbit?
How complex has all of this preparation been
for the opportunity to fly in space?
[silence] [background foreign language]
>> Elena Serova: Usually
when I'm asked this question I answer it like this,
no work is easy, especially training and learning is hard.
It is a very hard job to do.
And my path up to this moment has been very difficult.
And I think that my work
in the future will be very tense and very challenging.
Whenever you are faced
with these challenges you have to make decisions.
And it's very interesting, I love learning.
I really like it and enjoy it.
It's not difficult to learn but no work is easy, as I said.
>> Have you spent any free time thinking about what the view
of earth is going to be once you get up on the Space Station?
How magnificent this whole experience is going to be
for you to have the opportunity to look back at earth?
To look at your home country?
To experience weightlessness for six months?
[silence] [background foreign language]
>> Elena Serova: Yes of course.
I have been thinking about that and I was trying
to imagine what it will be like.
But as my Russian colleagues and U.S. colleagues told us,
whatever you see from out there is unforgettable.
And I'm hopeful to get this experience in my life
and I will enjoy the earth views.
My homeland is our planet and I hope to get this experience.
>> Elena, in the wake
of becoming only the fourth Russian woman to fly
in space later this year, do you see yourself as a role model?
You mentioned Valentina Tereshkova of course
as a role model for women, but do you see yourself
in the future as a role model for other Russian women
to have also an opportunity to mark their place in history?
[silence] [background foreign language]
>> Elena Serova: I hope so and I hope
that I will be a role model not only for women, girls,
young girls, but also for men.
That I will be a good example to follow because like I said,
it's a huge responsibility.
>> The International Space Station just passed the 15th
anniversary of the launching of the Zarya module,
first component of the Space Station
and it has just now been extended,
its lifetime has been extended, to at least 2024.
How have you viewed the Space Stations maturation,
how it's grown in size, grown in research capability?
What does it represent for you in terms
of a place to live and work?
[silence] [background foreign language]
>> Elena Serova: From the very first launch the station has
grown and the station is big now.
We have a lot of science hardware there in order
to perform all kinds
of scientific experiments and research.
And I hope that in the future that hardware will be growing
in amount and we'll be able to perform a lot
of different functions.
And obviously experienced people will be using
that hardware for research.
So I just want to say that I really hope that it will be so.
>> How has the International Space Station made it possible
for various nations, various cultures, languages,
backgrounds, astronauts, cosmonauts from all
over the world, that it has become sort of a global village
if you will, it almost is like the Olympics in its own right,
bringing all these nations together,
how significant is all of that?
[background foreign language]
>> Elena Serova: It is undoubtedly very important
that we have all kinds of people working
on the International Space Station,
people from different countries, people of different professions.
Because the International Space Station is the beginning
of something tremendous, something outstanding,
especially in the light of further exploration
when people will be exploring other planets and other worlds.
And people like exploring,
people are natural travelers and explorers.
I think the International Space Station is a very important step
in the history of mankind.
>> Elena Serova, thank you so much for your time,
Expedition 41/42, Flight Engineer, Elena Serova,
and good luck with your training as you prepare for your launch.
Thank you.
[silence] [background foreign language]
>> Elena Serova: Thank you very much.
[silence]
[ Noise and inaudible background talking ]
[background beeping]
>> We'll have somebody go to the nearest,
right here in the lab, PCS.
Go ahead and hit in the alarm in the PCS.
[inaudible]
One overhead 1 triple A.
[ Noise ]
>> Very good.
Very good.
Thank you.
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