MIAMI – Local 10 News reporter Gio Insignares got the chance this week to chat with an astronaut from Miami who is currently on the International Space Station.
Frank Rubio is part of a crew conducting experiments and research that helps with the future of space travel.
Insignares was able to connect with him and another fellow astronaut, Josh Cassada, who are both flight engineers.
They are part of “Expedition 68″ aboard the International Space Station, referring to the crew currently occupying the spacecraft.
The expedition, according to NASA, will include research investigations focused on biology, earth science, human research, physical sciences and technology development.
The number of expeditions has now extended past 20 years, starting in 2000.
It’s an expansive effort, stretching beyond just the astronauts who get to take in the experience of outer space.
“Nobody does this alone,” Cassada said. “This can only happen with the efforts of tens of thousands of people, and we just happen to be the people up here executing it. It is not possible without all the effort that happens on the ground.”
From space walks to maintenance on the station itself, to earth observations -- even something as simple as growing tomatoes -- the scientists have no shortage of responsibilities, all of which help prepare for long-duration missions to the moon and Mars while also improving life on Earth.
“The bottom line is every day is different and that’s what makes it really cool,” Rubio said.
For Rubio, there’s a special connection to our neck of the woods here in South Florida.
Rubio was born in Los Angeles, but considers Miami his hometown and he graduated from Miami Sunset Senior High School.
With a bachelor’s degree from the U.S. military academy at West Point, and later a doctorate of medicine, his experiences have taken him across the country, and now have him defying gravity.
But even with his out-of-this-world perspective, he says one thing keeps him grounded.
“What I always take with me no matter where I’ve been in the world is the family that we are down in Miami,” he said. “We’re all from different nations and different cultures, and yet we come together and form a Miami vibe that’s different than anywhere else. You kind of take that with you wherever you go.”
From the Sunshine State to the stars above, Rubio says the joy comes from the journey.
Ultimately, the message Rubio and others have to anyone looking to achieve their ambition is to keep pushing, keep trying, but never lose sight of the path along the way.
“It’s awesome to be a dreamer – to have big dreams and big goals,” he said. “But it’s also great to be a doer. At some point, you got to have a plan toward achieving those goals and you just have to take it a day and a step at a time. I think sometimes we get lost thinking about the end goal when the reality is you have to attack each day and do your best to make that day a success.”
The expedition is expected to last a couple more months before “Expedition 69″ is planned to take over in April.