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For Everyday Astronaut, what was once a joke is now a job

Emre Kelly

FLORIDA TODAY

When searching through registers of iconic astronauts past and present, Tim Dodd doesn't show up on the list – but he just might be the most socially savvy Earth-bound one to date.

Dodd, a 32-year-old photographer from Cedar Falls, Iowa, is quick to point out that his 2013 decision to purchase a Russian high-altitude flight suit for $330 during an online auction was a joke. Four years later, Dodd's antic has evolved into a full-time effort to bring passion for space to others as the Everyday Astronaut online persona.

Tim Dodd, a photographer from Iowa, purchased a Russian high-altitude flight suit in 2013 as a joke. But since then, his persona as Everyday Astronaut has taken on a life of its own.

Dodd photographs and records himself in the bright orange, sweat-inducing Russian suit in ordinary and exotic locales to convey the feeling of an astronaut strapped to Earth, waiting for the reemergence of a space program. He’s attracted thousands of followers on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and YouTube.

[Historic SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket returns home to Port Canaveral]

The suit is likely more well-traveled than many humans. Scrolling through the Everyday Astronaut Instagram page, the character is seen against the fjords of Norway, abandoned factories in Germany, archipelagos of Vietnam and the citadel at Machu Picchu, to name a few. In the United States, it's accompanied Dodd for coast-to-coast trips and has, of course, stopped at Kennedy Space Center.

The purchase may have been without a master plan, but a visit to the Space Coast in April 2014 to watch a SpaceX Falcon 9 blast off on a mission to the International Space Station was a turning point. That's when Dodd, who brought the suit and took photos of himself at KSC, realized it was more than just a relic – it was a statement.

"Everyone thought this was funny," Dodd told FLORIDA TODAY. "My parents, my parents' friends, my friends – people that had no interest in space."

That spark kicked off Everyday Astronaut and its first series of photos, “A Day In the Life of Everyday Astronaut,” which told the story of an adventurer stranded on Earth after the end of the space shuttle program.

"For one of them, I found a toy space shuttle that was at a playground," Dodd said. "And the title was 'It's Just Not The Same,' because to me, that's just how I felt."

The feeling of sadness faded into excitement as he became obsessed with the project and gained a new appreciation for NASA, commercial launch activities and science.

"You can probably see the tone change in the images from almost sad to celebrating now and trying to get other people excited," he said.

Dodd proposed to his wife well into the Everyday Astronaut project. A popular Instagram photo shows him proposing at Machu Picchu while wearing the suit, but don't worry – that was after the first proposal.

"In real life, I had just proposed to her five minutes before this picture, because she literally would’ve killed me had I proposed in the spacesuit," the photo description reads.

Dodd is using 2017 as a year "to see what sticks" and has dedicated himself to the Everyday Astronaut project full-time. His online presence now focuses on a wider effort to "bring space down to Earth for everyday people."

"Anyone can be excited about this stuff," Dodd said. "There's a lot to learn, there's a lot to be excited about and I'm really hoping to catalyze that and be a voice in that for the everyday person."

SpaceX added to his excitement on March 30 when the company successfully launched and landed a previously flown Falcon 9 rocket from KSC. Dodd drove 21 hours – flight suit and photography equipment in tow – to photograph the launch from pad 39A. The historic first stage arrived back at Port Canaveral early Tuesday on SpaceX's "Of Course I Still Love You" drone ship.

The now full-time nature of Dodd's work has many paths outside the initial photo project – his YouTube channel, for example, hosts educational videos and he's led public speaking events, including one at SpaceX's headquarters in Hawthorne, California.

"I'm happy," he said. "I'm going to keep doing this until I either run out of ideas or run out of energy, and so far, I'm still going."

Follow Everyday Astronaut on Facebook, Instagram and YouTube at @EverydayAstronaut. Follow him on Twitter at @ErdayAstronaut. See his Patreon page here.

Contact Emre Kelly at aekelly@floridatoday.com or 321-242-3715. Follow him on Twitter and Facebook at @EmreKelly.