Austronaut Performance Fundamentals Workshop

Saturday November 5th
12:00pm to 6:00pm
UTS Faculty of Engineering and IT (Building 11), Ultimo, Sydney

This workshop is inspired by the interdisciplinary requirements placed on astronauts during selection and on missions. To be selected as an astronaut, individuals must achieve a high level of success across multiple areas such as academics, physical fitness, operational and technical skills, in addition to very strong interpersonal skills such as leadership, teamwork and communication. Achieving this can take a long time and someone with the ambition of becoming an astronaut must begin developing positive habits years in advance of applying.

The goal of the Austronaut Performance Fundamentals Workshop is to teach participants about the elements that support on-going success, through the lens of becoming an astronaut. During this workshop we will engage in lessons that support a holistic approach to mental and physical performance, from both a practical and theoretical perspective. Even if you are not planning to become an astronaut, we believe that this knowledge and the techniques used to apply them can help you perform better in various aspects of your life.

Instructors for this workshop have experience in fields of human performance such as psychology, neuroscience, exercise physiology, flight, yoga, music and more. Learn from these people how to think more like an astronaut and about forming healthy peak performance habits. See below for more information about the workshop and the instructors.

Special Instructor: Paul Scully-Power

Former Astronaut and Oceanographer

Paul Desmond Scully-Power is an Australian-American oceanographer, technology expert and business executive. In 1984, while a civilian employee of the United States Naval Undersea Warfare Center, he flew aboard NASA Space Shuttle mission STS-41-G as a Payload Specialist. He was the first Australian-born person to journey into space, and the first astronaut with a beard.

Special Instructor: Nicola Winter

ESA Reserve Astronaut and German Air Force Pilot

Nicola Winter joined the German Air Force in 2004 and qualified as Germany’s second female fighter pilot in 2007. In total, she has accumulated more than 2350 flying hours and holds commercial pilot, military pilot, helicopter and aerobatic licenses, is a certified flight instructor and trained in hang-gliding. In November 2022, Nicola was selected as a member of the ESA astronaut reserve. 

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Schedule (tentative)

  • There are many fundamental skills from acting that can be transferred to astronaut training. Learning how to think quickly, knowing how to improvise and build off other people, being creative and also following instructions.

    Instructor: Taine Conway

  • In this session, Joanne Fisher will guide us through discovering what our values are, why they are important and tapping into what really matters to define our goals. Then using a "Whole-Brain" goal setting model, we will envision a future where we are achieving these goals.

    Instructor: Joanne Fisher

  • Precipitated by the Challenger, Columbia and other mission failures, the NASA 4-D program has been utilised by over 1,500 NASA teams to create the conditions for high-performance.

    Join this session to extract learnings from the NASA analogs in Antarctica and other mind-bending elements of the program initially developed by former Director of Astrophysics and author of How NASA Builds Teams, Charlie Pellerin.

    Instructor: Paul Hawkins

  • Yoga has proven ability to calm and quiet our minds, it helps with focus and mindfulness. It also helps us to mobilise our entire bodies, which can come in handy if you have to use your wrong hand on a spacewalk.

    Instructor TBC

  • What are the 5 hazards of human spaceflight? How does the space environment effect our physiological systems? What does it take to be a healthy astronaut?

    Instructor: Dr Rowena Christiansen

  • Team selections, positions, formation. Soft skills vs Hard Skills/Performance

    Instructor: Chris Rackl

  • Learning to manage expectations and feelings of hope when trying to accomplish difficult and long tasks is important for potential astronauts.

    Instructor: Mandy Scotney

  • Nicola Winter

Instructors

  • Chris Rackl

    Chris is a former Luftwaffe fighter pilot with 20 years in the German Air Force including 15 years of flying and 2 years in Combat Survival and Search & Rescue. He is experienced in Human Factors Training, Crew Resource Management training and Single pilot resource management with expertise in mental preparation, building up situational awareness, leadership and teamwork. He now works is aviation quality and risk management and as a flying instructor. Visit The Confidence for more.

  • Mandy Scotney

    Mandy is the founder of Third Collective who offer counselling and mental-wellbeing education for organisations and individuals. She’s passionate about the work she does and has been researching Hope & Wicked Problems as part of her Masters of Research. Mandy also has 25 years of commercial leadership experience (including Executive General Management and CEO roles) across the travel, health & well-being, and recruitment industries.

  • Paul Hawkins

    Paul is the Chief Combobulator at Crazy Might Work, an award-winning, for-purpose innovation agency, launched in Antarctica. He works with leaders to create high-performing teams, transform culture and innovate for impact, in spaces ranging from intensive care to space itself. He has trained in innovation and neuroscience through Stanford University and the Neuro-Leadership Institute and is a facilitator of the 4-D program used by NASA.

  • Dr Rowena Christiansen

    Australian physician Dr Rowena Christiansen is a long-term educator within the University of Melbourne Medical School, and in 2022 developed a new ‘Discovery Subject’ “Human health in the space environment”. She also lectures on ‘humans in space’ for Swinburne University and is a member of the Australian Space Agency Space Medicine Technical Advisory Group. She is a creative founder of the International Humans in Space Summit and was also selected for the 2021 ESA Space Physician Training Course.

  • Joanne Fisher

    Joanne Fisher founded Fisher People in Culture to bring the latest expertise from the fields of neuro-leadership, executive coaching, emotional intelligence and organisational culture, to busy business and HR leaders of SMEs. Her mission is help SMEs create accelerated growth, via the power of optimal cultural foundations underpinned by the neuroscience of leadership, culture and performance.

  • Taine Conway

    Taine recently completed a Bachelor of Science in Psychology and Criminology at Victoria University of Wellington, New Zealand and has moved to Sydney to pursue a career in acting through the school Screenwise. He also has a passion for fitness and is translating his experience as a personal trainer into working at Fitness Playground in Sydney.

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