Everyone in the astronaut program has a degree in a science field. The crew are the ones who do the experiments, help to design some of the experiments that come from other primary researchers. So it becomes very important that you have a science background.
I thought the attractions of being an astronaut were actually, not so much the Moon, but flying in a completely new medium.
It took me a long time to get selected as an astronaut. In fact, I applied for 20 years before I was selected.
I can’t think of anything specific growing up that pointed me toward NASA at all. I was interested in the Moon landings just about the same as everyone else of my generation. But I never really thought about being an astronaut or working in space myself.
Tell your daughters and their daughters that if they want to be a firewoman, they can be a firewoman. If they want to be an astronaut, they can be an astronaut. If they want to run their own business or run for president, they can do whatever they put their mind to.
I was a graduate student in 1984 when President Ronald Reagan called for the construction of a new space station. I knew then that I wanted to apply for the astronaut program, and this was an exciting development.
I had always wanted to pursue music. It was always a dream, but it was always a dream in the sense of, when you’re young, ‘I want to be president’ or ‘I want to be an astronaut and fly to Mars.’ That’s what it was to me.
I think Dawn has done an amazing job showing that asteroids aren’t just hunks of rock. They’re worlds – they’re places an astronaut can explore. I think the Rosetta mission also did an amazing job of that.
When I became an astronaut, I knew I wanted to pursue long-duration flight aboard the station. I knew it would be a just a tremendous personal challenge, and I looked forward to it.
Astronauts cannot pick their nicknames and can only get their nicknames from other astronauts. Any astronaut who tries to give himself a cool nickname will regret it by getting just the opposite from his astronaut friends.
There was a small window when I wanted to be an astronaut. It may have coincided with not getting cast in a high school play.
