How an astronaut learns to fly a spacecraft in a swimming pool

Space · Published 9 October 2026 Swipe more like this →

In short: Space travel requires more than just courage; it demands a level of muscle memory that borders on the instinctive. To ensure safety, astronauts like Luca Parmitano must master complex machinery through thousands of hours of repetitive simulation, ranging from high-tech cockpits to massive aquatic mockups.

Training for a mission like Artemis III is a global logistical feat. Luca Parmitano spent nearly three years traveling to five different international training sites to prepare for his role. Locations visited during this journey encompassed Montreal, Canada; the European Astronaut Centre in Cologne, Germany; Tsukuba near Tokyo, Japan; Star City near Moscow, Russia; and Houston, USA. This geographic spread ensures that astronauts are proficient with the specific hardware and protocols of every international partner involved in space exploration.

The core of this preparation is the mastery of 'flying hours.' As a Soyuz flight engineer, Parmitano underwent rigorous training in Russian spacecraft simulators. The goal is to reach a state where the pilot can operate the Soyuz flawlessly in any situation, feeling 'at home' in the cockpit. This involves wearing the Russian Sokol flight suit and physically manipulating the controls during high-stakes simulations to build the necessary reflexive responses for emergency scenarios.

Beyond the cockpit, astronauts must learn the layout of the destination. Parmitano utilized full-size mockups of the International Space Station to familiarize himself with every system and experiment operation. This included extensive time in the Columbus laboratory, where many of his specific mission experiments occur. For the most physically demanding tasks, such as spacewalks, training moves to water. Parmitano practiced these maneuvers in one of the world's largest swimming pools, using realistic mockups of the station to simulate the weightlessness and complexity of extravehicular activity.

This intensive preparation is vital because the upcoming Artemis III mission is described as one of the most complex in history. While the final goal is returning humans to the lunar surface, the crew must first demonstrate critical systems in low-Earth orbit. This includes testing rendezvous and docking capabilities between the Orion spacecraft and commercial human landing systems, a process that relies entirely on the thousands of hours of simulated experience gained on Earth.

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