CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. » The astronaut whose helmet flooded during a spacewalk says he now knows what it feels like to be a goldfish in a fishbowl.

Italian Luca Parmitano said in a TV interview today that he used his memory to make his way back inside the International Space Station. He said the water was around his eyes and ears, making it hard to see and hear.

Tuesday’s spacewalk was aborted after water leaked into his helmet and the rest of his spacesuit. NASA is still trying to figure out the source but the main suspect is the suit’s cooling system.

NASA officials have said that Parmitano could have choked or drowned.

The 36-year-old astronaut said he was lucky to get back inside the space station so quickly.