Terry Virts appears in an impressive selfie, taken outside the International Space Station.
Terry Virts, a celebrated NASA astronaut and National Geographic author, presents “View from Above” at 7:30 p.m. Friday, Jan. 28 at the Alberta Bair Theater in Billings. Virts will share his unique stories and stunning photographs taken from a place most of us will never visit – space.
As a NASA astronaut, pilot of the space shuttle Endeavour, flight engineer on the Russian Soyuz spacecraft, and International Space Station commander, Virts spent more than seven months in space, including one of the longest continuous space missions of any NASA astronaut.
“My mentality was ‘I’m going to enjoy space while I’m here,’” he told the Huffington Post. “’I’m going to have the rest of my life on Earth to do what I want to do. But while I’m here I’m going to enjoy it.’”
More recently, Virts directed his first film, “One More Orbit” (2020). He also appeared in the 2016 IMAX film “A Beautiful Planet,” a breathtaking portrait of Earth from space that features stunning footage – much of it shot by Virts while aboard (and outside) the International Space Station – of our magnificent blue planet and humanity’s impact on it.
While in space he took more than 300,000 photos – more than on any other space mission. His photography, which provides incredible aerial views of Earth and the vast space that surrounds it, is featured in the National Geographic book, View from Above: An Astronaut Photographs the World (2017). His most recent book, How to Astronaut (2020), takes the reader through all aspects of space travel, both expected and unexpected.
The three-part National Geographic Live series wraps up with “Untamed” by Filipe DeAndrade on March 18. This year’s series is sponsored locally by KULR 8.
Tickets are $37 adult and $20 student and available from the ABT Box Office, 9 a.m.-5 p.m. weekdays and 10 a.m.-2 p.m. Saturdays, by calling 406-256-6052 or online at albertabairtheater.org. For educators, this event qualifies for ABT’s Ten for Ten program, which makes tickets available for $10 each when a minimum of 10 tickets are purchased in one transaction.