The Nasa Space Program And The Individuals — страница 3

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first mission was Gemini 8. The Gemini held Armstrong and fellow astronaut Dave Scott. Their mission was to perform the first link-up in space with the satellite Agena. The task was a success, however the mission was not. Shortly after linking up, the space craft started to spin out of control. Armstrong and Scott disengaged. The mission was cut short by mission control. Scott s space walk was cancelled and Gemini 8 returned to earth. For Armstrong the mission was a first, but not the mission he is most remembered by. (www.astro) Apollo 11 was the United States chariot for claiming the moon. Neil Armstrong received his most fame from this mission. The words the Eagle has landed (Collins pg. 8) solidified NASA as the leading space program. The Apollo mission was the first time

that NASA had used a lunar module. The lunar module delicately placed the Apollo 11 crew of three on the surface of the moon. From the lunar module emerged Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin. After placing their footsteps on the moon they unveiled a plaque that commiserated there accomplishments. Landing on the moon put the U.S. ahead of Russia in the space race. Now that the United States conquered the moon it was time to move on to bigger and better things like the quest for Mars, studies in space, and the arrival of different types of individuals to space. Individuals like Sally Ride, the first American women in space, and the return of John Glenn. Until Sally Ride, the game of space was always seen as a man s role, depicting astronaut visions of Neil Armstrong and Alan Shepard

dancing in your imagination. Sally Ride broke the mold and set a precedence for women by becoming the first American women to experience outer space, proving that both man and women alike could conquer the heavens. Sally ride was at Stanford when she first read about NASA s call for Astronauts. That year NASA interviewed 8,000 men and women. Only 35 were accepted, 29 were men and six were women. One of the six was Sally Ride. By 1983 she was assigned her first mission. (www2.lucidc) Sally Ride was to travel upon the space shuttle Challenger. On June 18, 1983, Sally Ride made history as she blasted-off into space as the first American women to do so. The mission was considered a success for NASA, both with research and with the public. The mission accomplished many objectives

successfully. Sally Ride and crew deployed two communications satellites, one for Canada and one for Indonesia. They tested out a robotic arm for retrieval purposes and photographed the earth. When Sally Ride returned she was instantly succumbed by the news and reporters. Sally Ride simply stated I didn t come into this program to be the first women in space. I came in to get a chance to fly in space. (Bond pg. 409) Despite her attempts to drown out the media, her fame was enormous. For the NASA space program it did wonders. After her career with NASA, Sally Ride wrote many childrens books, educating kids about space. She also took position as director of the California Space Institute. Today she is a professor of physics at the University of California, San Diego. Recently John

Glenn has given a rebirth of interest to the Space Program. He brought the publicity back to NASA as the oldest man in space. Seventy-seven year old John Glenn made a triumphant return to space. He proposed a mission to study the effects of aging in space. Who better for the job, but himself. John Glenn s first mission was taken when the space program was still in its infancy. John Glenn was the first American to orbit the earth. After his first mission Glenn left the space program. A year later he retired from the Marines. Soon after, Glenn went into business. He became president of Royal Crown International and achieved a political status. Then in November of 1974 John Glenn won a landslide victory and became a senator for his home state Ohio. (Newcott National Geographic) John

Glenn s quest for space was not over. Glenn went to NASA and proposed a study of the aging affects of the elderly in space. John Glenn was now going to be the oldest person to return to space. At 77 Glenn had no trouble passing the rigorous Astronauts physical. Then, on October 29, 1998, John Glenn made his return to space aboard the space shuttle Discovery. From this mission valuable information was gained and history was made. (Newcott, National Geog) John Glenn is quoted saying Nothing is one hundred percent risk free nothing. But the gain to be made is worth that risk. John Glenn s words best summarize the personality of every one of the individuals that were talked about. Each pushing the risk factor to a maximum, only to yield triumphant gains. All of them clearing the path