BREVARD COUNTY, Fla. – Note: This story is originally a special episode of the News 6 podcast “Your Florida Daily.” Tap the player above to listen.
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I grew up on the Space Coast and my whole life I have been watching rocket launches from my hometown of Merritt Island.
It should come as no surprise that when I landed the opportunity to sit in the same room as two NASA astronauts, I was prepared with a list of questions about their stories and opinions about this unique job that plays such an important role in Brevard County.
Below are excerpts of my conversation with retired astronauts Nicole Stott and Chris Ferguson.
We sat down together at Kennedy Space Center Visitor Complex last Friday where a special late-night event called “Kennedy Under the Stars” was happening.
Q: Chris, have you seen your picture in the Astronaut Hall of Fame here?
Ferguson: Well, there’s a little sense of I really don’t feel like I belong with these other people here because you’ve got John Young, you’ve got Gus Grissom, you know, it’s almost a little embarrassing to be hanging out in the same room as those legends that we read about in history books growing up and aspired to be one day and I thought, ‘No, that’ll never happen,’ and then one thing leads to another and there you are. So, I’d have to sum it up in one word, I’d say I’m humbled.
Q: Tell me a little bit about your expectations and hopes for the future of private space companies working with NASA and astronauts.
Ferguson: SpaceX has been enormously successful reliably launching people to the space station. Boeing has been delayed, however, they will be equally successful when they begin. I think we’re eagerly anticipating their journey in April, which I think is looking pretty good. So you know, for the first time in like a long time, we’ll have several ways to get people back and forth to the International Space Station. I’m very optimistic. I do think that NASA and the exploration goals that we hold as a nation are beginning to unfold to the point that NASA will become the pointy end of the spear, right? It’s the, ‘I’m going to Mars, I’m going to the moon,’ and we’ve now got commercial infrastructure that will build a low-Earth orbit space station and we’ll build a transportation capability to get cargo and crew back and forth to low-Earth orbit destinations so that NASA can focus on this exploration mission.
Q: Nicole, for someone like you who is known for combining themes of art and space, what is the connection between science and artistic expression?
Stott: I think just the biggest thing to me about this whole intersection between science and art is that I think we really need to be encouraging people — especially our kids — to be using their whole brains and by bringing all of your talents to bear. There is some beautiful charcoal chalk art out there tonight that really complements the storytelling that goes on here and I think that inspires people to want to learn more. But to me, ultimately, it’s about using your whole brain and becoming the best problem solver you can be.
Q: I think art opens us up in a way where we can think outside of what already exists.
Stott: Absolutely and it’s been built into the science world forever. Science is not independent of art. Think about the things that seem to catch the public’s eye like the Webb telescope and the imagery that’s coming back. The reason it looks that way is because somebody decided for us to understand all of these ones and zeros that are coming back that we need to make this gas look this color, or this distance these colors, and so our brains process that and in a much clearer fashion. By using art, I could engage with audiences that may have never ever otherwise known that there even was a space station or that we’ve been off the planet orbiting the Earth for over 20 years peacefully, successfully, as an international community. Whether they like my art or not, that’s the conversation they’re gonna end up having with me and it’s pretty cool to be able to engage that way. I would just say, someday, I hope I could see my picture next to Chris in the (Astronaut) Hall of Fame. *laughs*
Q: How did your career working in space change the way you live here on Earth?
Stott: I look back to my days as an engineer here at Kennedy Space Center, which is where it all started for me in the Space Shuttle Program. And some of the lessons that I learned as an engineer on the space shuttle and the space station program carried through with what I was doing, as an engineer. Things like going into a problem believing there’s a solution to that problem. That was just the way we worked here at KSC. Believing in this whole approach, like, here’s how we can not why we can’t. And that, to me, just opens up opportunities and solutions. So you have to believe the solutions exist to them and bring — again, bring all of those talents to bear to make it a reality — and then ultimately, for me, the lessons in life on Earth that came from that, the opportunity to fly in space, I always thought they would be more of the complex ones that had to do with the science. In the end, it was the simple ones like, ‘Oh my gosh, we live on a planet.’ We’re all earthlings and the only border that matters is that thin blue line of atmosphere. I hope we can all accept our role as crewmates and not passengers because we have the power to create a future for all life on Earth that’s as beautiful as it looks from space. So every morning I wake up — like I hope all of you guys do — your feet hit the floor and you’re like, ‘I’m on a planet in space.’
Q: Looking back at your career, Chris, is there anything that you wish you’d done differently or that you feel like you’re missing out on?
Ferguson: Wow, you know we’re getting a little older and I wish we were 40 again because I’d love to go back and sort of start over.
Stott: Older’s better, Chris.
Ferguson: I’d love to start over the space part of my career again because I look upon all of the younglings that were just showing up in the astronaut office when we were getting ready to retire and they’re all now happily working in space — and some of them have the potential to go to the moon — and they walked the same halls that we did. So there’s a little part of me that almost wants to go back and, you know, I’m a little envious of those youngsters and I want to go back and steal their jobs.
Q: Oh yeah?
Ferguson: But at the same time, I wouldn’t trade my experiences for anything in the world. Not just my NASA experience, but my Navy experience, you know, my time at Boeing, I’ve lived in my opinion a dream life. I have had a wonderful time and I wouldn’t trade it for anything. I would just want to steal someone else’s opportunity to go to the moon or something — but I’ve been blessed in a lot of ways.
Q: They’re launching people to the edge of the atmosphere these days. Would you guys be interested in doing something like that?
Ferguson: I would give it a try, yeah. It’s like an awesome amusement ride. Yeah, I’d love to go do that but only because I love roller coasters.
Stott: Why would you turn that opportunity down? Oh my gosh, I just would love to go to the moon. When I’m talking to kids, I’m like, ‘Dude, call me if they’re taking you to the moon, call me. Take me with you.’ I find myself living vicariously and loving seeing those those young people that came in as we were retiring, seeing them on a space station doing amazing work like we knew they would when we picked them and just wishing we were there with them.
Your Florida Daily is produced by News 6 WKMG in Orlando.