Become an astronaut for a week with Samantha Cristoforetti

Join ESA astronaut Samantha Cristoforetti for a week in her life on board the International Space Station (ISS). Compare her daily tasks to yours. Observe your everyday routine and discover if you could be an astronaut!

In this logbook activity set, you will learn about a typical week in the life of an astronaut. Analyse and compare your daily exercise and nutrition, assess the choices you make in clothing and hobbies, and discuss the skills you need to work in a team.

Day 1: Food - Join

Food is very important for astronauts to stay healthy in space, and they usually have three meals a day: breakfast, lunch, and dinner. They must get all their nutrients in these meals, whilst ensuring they have enough food to last them throughout their mission. Learn more by completing the activity.

Day 2: Exercise - Join

Keeping fit and doing daily exercise is very important for astronauts on board the ISS and on Earth. Check out Samantha’s video describing the exercise she did in space today.

Day 3: Hobbies - Join

Samantha’s day onboard the ISS usually starts at around 7am. During a typical day, she will need to perform experiments and essential maintenance for around 10 hours, exercise for 2 hours, and participate in daily task meetings as well as weekly health checks. Once all the work is done, she gets free time to relax before going to sleep and starting it all again the next day. Learn more about what she does in free time.

Day 4: Clothing - Join

Clothes are very important to keep us warm, comfortable, and looking stylish! But for astronauts they have an extra role: to keep them safe in space. What do astronauts wear on board the ISS?

Day 5: Team Work - Join

Samantha loves working on the International Space Station alongside the other astronauts, because she thinks her crewmates are fantastic people! Learn more about teamwork on the ISS.

Find the complete activity here

Download the astronaut logbook in PDF: English

Age range: 8-12 years old

Keywords: Astronaut, Exercise, Food, Health, Hobbies, Primary, Science, Social Studies, Teamwork