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June 21 - July 9, 2017
Consider that NASA invests tens of millions of dollars to train a single astronaut. And these days, until we have an alternative, the United States pays Russia at least $80 million for each seat on a Soyuz rocket to taxi astronauts to the International Space Station.
To walk on the beach was the most incredible thing. When you look at the horizon it helps regauge your gyros and your inner ear. It helps you know exactly what’s up and down and what’s right and left.
When you look at the Earth from the vantage point of space, our planet looks like a little blue marble. Seeing our world from that vantage point cognitively changes you. My orbital shift happened after breaking bread with my space station crewmates and my shuttle crewmates. It showed me how close we are as countries, as races, as a species. I marveled that on Earth we have all these distances and separations and geographic boundaries, but they vanish quickly in the weightless interior of the space station.
“No matter what happens in our lives, we have to keep moving forward,” I told them. “We have to keep doing our best, no matter what the circumstances. It is about your heart, dedication, and spirit.”
As astronauts we’re trained not to be alarmed by things. We’re trained to ask, “How will I fix this? How will I do all the steps required to make sure that we come home safely?”
Seeing the world without geographic boundaries really puts things in perspective and makes one wonder why there is so much division, hatred, and malice.
