Col. Virts currently inspires global audiences with stories and photography from space and his insights into life on earth. He brings his unique perspective to businesses, covering diverse topics such as: the importance of feedback and debriefing, the environment, intercultural leadership, crisis and risk management, innovation, strategy & vision, and decision making. He has directed several films, including One More Orbit, a feature-length documentary about a Guinness World Record-breaking mission circumnavigating Earth in an airplane, Cosmic Perspective, a short film about how space exploration has changed our perspective about everything, and The Night After, a scripted short film about the Space Shuttle Columbia accident. He was also very involved in shooting and narrating the IMAX film A Beautiful Planet.

Virts has also authored several books, including View From Above (2017), a National Geographic photography book, How to Astronaut: An Insider’s Guide to Leaving Planet Earth (2020), a collection of 51 short essays about spaceflight, and The Astronaut’s to Leaving the Planet (2023), an illustrated children’s book. He also authored Apo11o: To the Moon and Back, a collector’s limited-edition reproduction of the original flight plan Neil Armstrong, Buzz Aldrin, Mike Collins, and mission control in Houston used to plan and execute man’s first mission to land on the moon.

He currently works in the energy industry part-time developing energy transition business strategy for a major energy company. Virts also provides coaching for business executives, drawing on his experience as an Air Force officer, International Space Station commander, and Harvard Business School ambassador and guest-lecturer to help them meet the many challenges 21^st century business leaders face.