Jeremy Hansen discusses the impact of being an astronaut on his family life

Uploaded on July 22, 2016

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Jeremy Hansen discusses the impact of being an astronaut on his family life

2016-07-22 – Having an astronaut in the family can be very challenging. Canadian astronaut Jeremy Hansen talks about some of the pros and cons of the job with respect to family life. One benefit is that his three children can participate. His twin daughters are even the ones filming the video! (Credit: Canadian Space Agency)

Jeremy Hansen: I thought I'd touch a little bit more on lifestyle with respect to family for those that are considering the job as an astronaut with the Canadian Space Agency right now. It definitely takes a toll. There are pros and cons of course. Like any job that requires a lot of travel, it's very demanding on a family to have one of the parents gone a lot of the time.

I'd say on average I'm gone at least one week a month, but one of the pluses I think has been the fact that we can forecast the travel. We're able to plan and prepare for it, and that definitely eases some of the burden of the travel demands. There are also some great benefits to the family that come along from time to time--great opportunities--and you can involve your family. In fact my girls are filming this right now. Say hi, girls.

Girls: Hi.

Jeremy Hansen: So it's definitely something to consider, but overall I haven't had any regrets. It's very challenging for the family but a very positive experience overall. 



 

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