The Spirituality of the Infinate Abyss

Here are some words from Gene Cernan, the last man on the moon, from his personal reflection on the way to the moon.

There was more than enough time for me to become contemplative and again ask myself that question I pondered so often in space: Is it possible that this was really happening to me? Obviously it was, but the power of the situation was simply overwhelming. One result of space travel was that I had become much more philosophical, at times unable even to focus on minor problems back on Earth because they just seemed so small in comparison to what I had experienced and the places I had been. My fellow astronauts who went to the moon encountered varying degrees of the same disease; we broke the familiar matrix of life and couldn't repair it.

For instance, looking back at Earth, I saw only a distant blue-and-white star. There were oceans down there, deep and wide, but I could see completely across them now and they seemed so small. However deep, however wide, the sea has a shore and a bottom. Out where I was dashing through space, I was wrapped in infinity. Even the word "infinity" lost meaning, because I couldn't measure it, and without sunsets and sunrises, time meant nothing more than performing some checklist function at a specific point in the mission. Beyond that star over there, Alpheratz, is another and another. And over there, beyond Nunki, the same thing. Behind Formalhaut, even more stars, stretching beyong my imagination. Stars and eternal distant blackness everywhere. There is no end.

I'm not an overly religious person, but I certainly am a believer, and when I looked around, I saw beauty, not emptiness. No one in their right mind can see such a sight and deny the spirituality of the experience, nor the existence of a Supreme Being, whether their God be Buddha or Jesus Christ or Whoever. The name is less important than the acceptance of a Creator. Someone, some being, some power placed our little world, our sun, and our moon where they are in the dark void, and the scheme defies any attempt at logic. It is just too perfect and beautiful to have happened by accident. I can't tell you how or why it exists in this special way, only that it does, and I know that for certain because I have been out there and I have seen the endlessness of space and time with my own eyes.

This is what I want to experience, above all else. The desire to go to space and travel between the planets (or stars) has never been greater in me. I truly wish to dedicate my life to making that happen, whether it be by becoming a NASA astronaut, or developing a way to make space travel a common every day occurance. As Cernan said after stepping off the moon for the last time, "We leave as we came and, God willing, as we shall return, with peace and hope for all mankind." I will return.

If the argument "Fix the problems here before you go out traveling to the stars" were a valid argument, no one would have ever left Europe or moved away from Africa, or crossed the Bering Land Bridge, or gone out of the cave, or left the sea. There will always be problems in this life, and the only thing that saves us is the hope that we can create a better life elsewhere. To stay is to be defeated. It is in our genetic make up to leave our mothers womb and set forth upon the world and, God willing, my generation will continue the journey outwards...

Finally, back in Orbit

Well, I'm glad it's back in service. Even the President took some time out to watch the launch, but check out the TV! It blows my mind that he has something so small and crappy, although I'm sure that if he had a huge plasma screen HDTV, some kooks with nothing better to do would start complaining about government waste. Oh well.

The Space Ambassador

One of the ideas I have been developing is the need for a "space ambassador" or "Emissary to the stars" as I like to call him. The idea is that we need someone that understands the best way to go about exploring space and will enthusiastically incite Congress and the public to support the vision of space exploration. America needs a hero, it is in our culture, and I think we have found a hero in Michael Griffen.

Griffen has proven, in his short time as NASA administrator, that he is technically compitent as well as politically informed. He knows the politics of space exploration as well as the technical side of it. His leadership, I believe, is just what we need to get humans to the moon, Mars, and beyond.

An intersting read is his House Committee on Science hearing where he steadfastly explains his plans, no bullshit. It appears that there is bipartisan support for his as well, which also is a great help to our needs. I look forward to big things from Dr. Griffen.