Shuttle commander on 'America in Space'
Astronaut Eileen Collins described her first time seeing a sunrise from a space shuttle. It may have looked something like this image - the morning sun reflects off the Gulf of Mexico and the Atlantic Ocean as seen from the Apollo 7 spacecraft. (Credit: NASA JSC)
October of 2007 marks a half century of space exploration by the U.S. agency, NASA.
Earth & Sky spoke with astronaut Eileen Collins, the first woman to pilot and command the Space Shuttle. Commander Collins talked about a new book called America in Space: NASA’s first 50 years. She reflected on her first sunrise from space, back in 1995.
Eileen Collins: As I looked out the window, and I saw the sun coming up and the curvature of the Earth, I thought, “Wow. The Earth is round.” But when I saw it with my own eyes, it meant something different to me. And looking at the Earth’s atmosphere and seeing how thin it is, you realize the Earth is a very fragile planet.
Collins’ hope for space tourism springs from these experiences, such as floating in microgravity and looking at the Earth from space. She added that NASA plans to return to the moon by 2020, and to one day set foot on the planet Mars.
Eileen Collins: The people in the space program believe in this mission, and they know that the long term survival of people on this planet will depend on our ability to leave the planet and explore the world around us.
Our thanks to:
Eileen Collins
Colonel, U.S. Air Force, Retired
serving on the
NASA Advisory Council
