Sunday Scribblings: Out of This World

As a child, I was always fascinated by astronomy, as well as a a huge fan of the Star Wars and Star Trek movies. That’s as far as my attraction to outer space went. But recently I heard a feature story on public radio's This American Life about astronauts, which made me think about the people who choose to travel into space. Here are a few reflections from the interview.

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In the U.S., there are roughly 100 astronauts but only half have been in space. And after the last shuttle flight in 2009, the Space Shuttle will not return to space until around 2020. Imagine training to go into space but not having the opportunity.

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There are very few few space missions scheduled annualy, so astronauts end up doing a lot of paperwork in the office.

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Astronauts actually have “astronaut” on their business cards. How cool is that?

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If you’re an astronaut sitting around with other astronauts, you can make jokes like, “Hey, it’s not rocket science!”, and everyone will laugh because it really is rocket science.

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Ever notice how in TV shows and movies, everyone walks around their spaceships without any difficulty while news actual footage on astronauts shows them floating in front of the camera? Well actors may have no trouble with gravity, but in reality gravity is a real challenge inside the hull walls.

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And while space ships have noses and wings, there’s really no need for that once in space. No atmosphere. No wind.

Fascinating.

For more space talk, visit Sunday Scribblings.

Comments

Anonymous said…
I like this post. It made me laugh and is informative too!
amy said…
Fantastic facts, especially the part about the business cards! I really enjoyed reading this. Makes me want to do a whole new post...
Tumblewords: said…
Nice post! Lots of information and I have to say I'm tempted to put 'astronaut' on my cards, just for the fun...!
Lucy said…
That's It! I'm becoming an astronaut, just for the business card! Loved this- it was fun and informative! :)
Patois42 said…
How fun. I'm with you on the disappointment one must feel when realizing they'll never get to space.
Anonymous said…
thought provoking...

WDS
Granny Smith said…
Interesting indeed. I liked your comment about how astronauts could say "Hey, it's not rocket science," and get a laugh out of it. It reminded me of a quote I read recently of Albert Einstein, who, when stumped by a question, replied, "I'm no Einstein!"
wendy said…
The part about the business cards made me laugh too...

Reminds me of the movie Down with Love....

Catcher Block..Ladies man, man's man, man about town.. pretends to be an astronaut...

Somehow, that you are into space doesn't surprise me at all.
Prats said…
Hey...this was a very good one....learnt a lot...never knew there was an astronaut being written about on cards...mmm....

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