{"id":34,"date":"2012-05-13T03:24:52","date_gmt":"2012-05-13T07:24:52","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/marsmmo.com\/?p=34"},"modified":"2024-03-24T08:44:09","modified_gmt":"2024-03-24T12:44:09","slug":"i-love-space-exploration","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.spaceexplorationforall.com\/?p=34","title":{"rendered":"I Love Space Exploration!!!"},"content":{"rendered":"
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Apollo\/Saturn V Launch<\/p><\/div>\n

Since this is my first post, please let me introduce myself \u2013 I am a \u201crocket scientist\u201d whose fingerprints are on the moon in 6 locations.\u00a0 How did that happen?<\/p>\n

As a young engineer just out of college, I was employed by NASA at the Kennedy Space Center just 7 months before Frank Borman, Jim Lovell, and William Anders in Apollo 8 circled the moon on Christmas Eve and safely returned to earth. Part of my duties as an engineer on the Saturn V, S-IVB third-stage was to participate in the Launch Countdown Closeout Walk-Around approximately 24 hours before launch inside the stage inspecting the area for anything out of place.<\/p>\n

The Lunar Module sat on top of the S-IVB stage with its four landing legs folded against the top of the stage, and during the walk-around I would purposely touch the ladder attached to one of the Lunar Module legs.\u00a0 Therefore my fingerprints are on all 6 successful Apollo moon landings!\u00a0 Even if the vacuum of space obliterates fingerprints; touching each of those six ladders still remains a high, lifetime experience for me.<\/p>\n

I love space exploration!\u00a0 Initially, I wanted to be an Astronomer. When Sputnik was launched in 1957, my love changed to \u201crockets\u201d like the Redstone, Jupiter, and Atlas.\u00a0 I wanted to help launch rockets for space exploration and to go to the moon!\u00a0 I got my engineering degree and worked at the Kennedy Space Center for 26 years on Apollo, Skylab, Apollo-Soyuz, and Space Shuttle programs.<\/p>\n

Some people, who are not familiar with Astronomy, may think of it as \u201cscience\u201d and \u201cboring;\u201d however, discovering and interpreting new data that exposes the fact the original \u201cBig Bang Theory\u201d is wrong without a period of \u201cInflation\u201d being added.\u00a0 This addition, which is necessary for the theory to be a possible explanation for creation of the known universe, is \u201cexciting\u201d Astronomy.<\/p>\n

Also some people may think of Space Exploration as \u201cexciting\u201d, thanks to Star Trek; however, developing, creating, and placing special greenhouses on Mars to grow food for colonies is awesome also!\u00a0 I think of both Astronomy and Space Exploration as \u201cGreat Adventures\u201d for us to engage for continued discovering!!!<\/p>\n

Four areas that really intrigue me are:<\/p>\n