The Final Frontier

If space is the final frontier, there are no frontiers because not only have we been to space, we visit quite frequently.

My inner nerd has always been fascinated with space. This interest is a trait passed down from my father's side. His father was a mechanical engineer, and my father has been a member of the Space Society and other such things. My dad has this print of a close up shot of Saturn---I remember it from when I was still sleeping in a crib. It has hung in every house we occupied.

Every time there is a shuttle launch, I get a feeling of dread until it is safely back home. I almost can't help it. This may sound rather horrible, but partly it's because I want to make sure the machine is preserved. (Don't take this to mean I don't care if astronauts die---of course I do.) My interest in space does not lie only in the wonder of what is out there, but also in the means of getting there. There are so few shuttles; they are so expensive and important---each is almost personified/anthropomorphized because of its abilities to protect and communicate. Also they are a temporary home; astronauts, I'm sure, feel a connection to the vessel.

Ultimately, though, my reverence for the shuttle is nothing less than that for skyscrapers, oceanic vessels, cars...successes of the mind. Man's greatest achievements.

Pictured is Atlantis, currently en route to rendezvous with the space station.