RATHDRUM - Retired astronaut John Phillips landed at the North Idaho STEM Charter Academy on Tuesday and took students in and around the International Space Station via his experiences and memorabilia.

Phillips, who lives in Sandpoint, had missions in the habitable artificial satellite in 2001, 2005 and 2009 before retiring in 2011.

"Becoming an astronaut was my goal since age 10," Phillips said, adding that there's a lot of job opportunities at NASA for students interested in such a career. "But I took the scenic route to the launching pad. I was a Navy pilot and physicist first."

The ISS, which can be seen with the naked eye from Earth at certain times, serves as a research lab in space. It was first launched in 1998 and is funded until 2020. It completes 15 orbits per day.

Eighth-grader Chance Foss said it was an honor to meet Phillips.

"I never thought I'd meet an astronaut this early in life," Foss said, adding that he previously met an astronaut trainer.

Sixth-grader Bailey Brodwater tried on an astronaut glove Phillips wore during one of the missions.

"It was cool to feel the rubber inside of it," Brodwater said.

Phillips described his 15 years as an astronaut as a "great experience."

"I got to do a lot of cool things and meet great people," he said.

From 240 miles above the Earth, Phillips showed the jaw-dropping view he had when Hurricane Rita struck the Gulf of Mexico.

"I saw eight hurricanes in five continents," he said. "One of the fun things to do is simply look out the window."

Other shots included the South Georgia Island in the southern Atlantic Ocean, an area known for polar exploration, and the aurora australis (southern lights).

"Sometimes we'd fly through (the lights), but we usually flew above them," Phillips said.

Phillips and other astronauts' missions included installing a robot arm and four solar panels on the ISS to bring it to full power.

"Our crew of three was able to grow to a crew of six because we had more power," Phillips said.

At the time, the additional panels gave the ISS 12. It now has 16.

During his second mission, Phillips spent six months on the ISS.

"I got to do my first and only space walk," he said of his second mission.

One of Phillips' jobs was to drive the robot arm, putting the solar panels in place so space walkers could finishing attaching them to the ISS.

Phillips said being an astronaut requires you being physically fit because of the constraints of wearing the stiff suits. They train for months in water before the expeditions.

And moving items on the ISS can be tricky.

"You can move big things with a finger, but you've also got to be careful because they can float across the room," he said. "One mistake can cause you hours of makeup time."

He said the astronauts aboard the ISS have to learn the English and Russian languages because the United States and Russia are the lead countries on the project.

Foss said Phillips' appearance fueled him with a rejuvenated energy toward science.

"This will get me into studying the International Space Station more," he said.