You have a huge amount of experience in the Space Shuttle programme. Like the Apollo programme, that was an iconic NASA milestone. The way working and travelling are researched and the machines involved are tested: how has it changed during the course of your career?
Dr Don Thomas While it has been over 20 years since I flew on my last mission, I am always impressed with the fast turnaround times to conceptualise and create a rocket. Companies like Elon Musk’s SpaceX have large budgets to use the latest technologies to design and create reusable rockets. In the early days, great care was taken to test every rocket to ensure that risk was managed. Computer systems have improved, 3D printing has increased, systems are easier to manage, and the combined efforts between NASA and private companies offer better facilities and testing than ever before. Think of how the safety features in cars have changed over the past two decades alone!
What’s happening now that you wish you could have been a part of?
I would love an opportunity to travel to the moon if it were still available.
Many observers will think that being an astronaut is largely down to particular physical capacity – and obviously that is important, particularly in microgravity situations and on longer missions – but you worked in many other areas (safety, operations development, payloads), where other qualifications and experience are desirable. Looking back, how important would you say the various aspects of what you were responsible for were relative to each other?
This story is from the January/February 2020 edition of Very Interesting.
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This story is from the January/February 2020 edition of Very Interesting.
Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 8,500+ magazines and newspapers.
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