Outer space again?

Do you remember Alan Shepard’s first ride into space? John Glenn orbiting the earth? If you are a boomer or beyond, chances are the answer is yes.

Did you used to wonder how these guys squeezed into that tiny spacecraft and went that high into space?

And what about that monkey on the cover of Life magazine?

If you did, you might be like me and also remember the rush you got when you watched all this. Astronauts were the ultimate thrill-seekers. It was so cool to imaging a human being in the heavens zipping past the stars and looking down at earth. Splashdowns were tense and exciting. Spacewalks filled me with awe. It looked so beautiful up there, the sunlight reflecting off their helmets and the panoramic shots of earth.

And when the first men man it to the moon…I was riveted to every detail. Was it really possible?

Would a giant one-eyed monster walk over the crater and eat the camera?

Even now, I can see footage of it all, and still be filled with awe. I love watching NOVA, StarTalk and any other program about space. It’s never going to be old-hat for me. I actually feel sorry for those below boomer age who just take it for granted.

I remember when the first Space Shuttle landed. I was working in a university and walked over to the student center where the televisions were so I could see it live. I just couldn’t get over how something that had gone that high was going to come down and land on a landing strip. The room was crowded, mainly with college-age students. When the Shuttle landed, they didn’t really react. Some weren’t even watching.

But those of us of a certain age were shaking our heads in wonder, holding our breaths through the whole experience. Wow! They made it! I looked around and realized it was a thrill that younger people could appreciate, but not really “get”. Too bad.

These days we (or at least the scientists) know so much more about the universe. We put a giant telescope up there, then went up and repaired it so that it could send amazing photographs back to us. We demoted Pluto but discovered so many more bodies up there. Black holes were the thing. Then negative energy. It’s still so incredible to me. I love listening to Neil deGrasse Tyson talk about the cosmos.

Yet I think it’s kind of deflating that our space program is so stagnant, and that our astronauts and scientists have to “hitch a ride” with the Soviet space station if they want to get up there.

It’s a loss of challenge, achievement, and excitement for us all in so many ways. So many amazing things came from those years of early space exploration.

Satellite TV.

Velcro.

Smoke detectors.

Ear thermometers.

Scratch-resistant glasses.

Home blood pressure kits.

Who knows what new wonders could be discovered if we decided to once again, set a goal in the heavens?

I miss it. I want to think that before I leave this planet, I’ll get to see an amazing expedition to another one. I’m not ready to be a passenger in a rocket…I’ll leave that to someone with better equilibrium. But I think the Starship Enterprise was on to something…