Why Space, Why Explore?
Space is a Frontier, how can we increase Understanding?
Your thoughts on Reality?
What are your Thoughts on Aging?
What is your Interest in Literature and the Humanities?
What are the Surroundings in Orbit?
In what ways do you Love Space?
What causes Space Sickness?
How important is it to maintain a Kinesthetic Balance?
Is Astronaut Training Difficult?
If you had the opportunity to stay with
Extra Terrestrials would you Go?
What is it like to be Back on Earth?
Why is it important for you to express Space?
In your bio, one degree is literature. Do you think NASA will
open to writers or artists who record the experience of space in the passion of artistry?
Since you have spent time fixing the Hubble Telescope,
can you tell us why, when you look at a picture taken from Earth orbit, you can't see any stars
in the background of the pictures?
I was watching a NASA Channel program that discussed bone
mass loss for astronauts while in space. Their studies concluded that, on average, an astronaut
looses 1% of their bone mass, per month while in space. They didn't mention if that loss was recovered
or regenerated, once the astronaut was back on earth? Ron Schenk, Alexandria, LA
Why does the space shuttle never fly over the North or South poles?
Steve Kiecker
What advice can you give a tool maker preparing tools for
work in microgravity? Were there any tools, restraints, or accessories you wish were available
during the Hubble Telescope Repair?
I have heard that astronauts in the early years of
spaceflight were very close friends; e.g. the seven Mercury astronauts, Gemini astronauts, etc.
Is this still true of the astronauts today?
What advice and guidance would you give to young people today
wishing to become astronauts?
As a result of your mission, what psychological,
physiological, or physical changes did you go through?
Have you seen/do you believe in the existence
of UFOs or other signs of intelligent extraterrestrial life?
How did you go to the bathroom during any of your missions?
Was there a point in your missions that you would
classify the most: a) scary? b) humorous? c) magnificent? d) exciting?
Could you select the best characteristic or
opportunity about being an astronaut?
Since you are scheduled to undertake another mission on
October 31st, could you give us an idea of what your training is like right now?
Could you tell me where you were on January 28, 1986, at
11:38 am and and what you were doing?
Why did you decide to get a degree in literature after
all you had accomplished in your life?
What criteria are used to pick crews for missions? Do
astronauts just wait their turns or do they get picked on merit?
Astronauts receive state-of-the-art physical training to
go into space, but we never hear specifically what astronauts experience in the way of physical
symptoms such as nausea, vision problems, disorientation, headaches, imbalance, and the like?
What is your opinion on the new shuttle-like spacecraft that
was unveiled just the other day? (Referring to the X-33)
I have often wondered if sleeping in zero-g changes the
nature of REM sleep. Are dreams different or more intense in free fall?
Having been in the astronaut program since 1967, do you feel
the space program has become just another job (as opposed to the barn storming days)?
Do career astronauts earn on the order of sports stars,
actors, actresses, and the like?
On your next mission you are going to break at least five
records: the first to fly on all five shuttles, the most flight time on the shuttles, the most
flights, the oldest astronaut to fly. Does the fact that you are accomplishing these records
bring more meaning to this flight?
In Buzz Aldrin's new novel Encounter With Tiber you
are thanked in the acknowledgments for providing an example of astronaut dedication. What keeps
you so dedicated to the program?
While in between missions and training for the
next mission, what responsibilities do you hold at NASA?
Is STS-80 your last mission?
