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Related: Editorials & Other Articles, Issue Forums, Alliance Forums, Region ForumsMark Kelly gives an astronaut’s view of ‘Gravity’
http://www.washingtonpost.com/lifestyle/style/mark-kelly-gives-an-astronauts-view-of-gravity/2013/10/11/2b4e5e6c-3286-11e3-9c68-1cf643210300_story.html?hpid=z14Last weekend, my wife, Gabby, and I went to see the movie Gravity at our neighborhood theater in Tucson. Im a retired astronaut who has been to space four times, so Im usually a bit skeptical of films that take place in space. For me, watching movies about space is like a congresswoman watching House of Cards. Its entertaining, but its obviously not the real thing.
(. . .)
But the truth is, most of this doesnt matter. Cuarón has given us a glimpse of the awe that is the universe beyond our atmosphere. And physics aside, he does it remarkably well.
My only hope is that we continue our exploration of space in real life, too. The majority of NASA employees have been furloughed as a result of the government shutdown. If Sandra Bullocks Dr. Ryan were a real person, shed still be waiting on the beach somewhere on planet Earth.
So, do me a favor. After you see Gravity, tell your member of Congress. Perhaps it will inspire them to put NASA employees back to work.
Read the rest of the piece at the link.
Hekate
(90,978 posts)Brewinblue
(392 posts)The movie is a stunning and incomparable piece of cinematic art.
It's terribly expensive, but manned space exploration is vital to the human quest for knowledge and understanding of our universe and existence.
uriel1972
(4,261 posts)The USDoD spent about as much on air-conditioning in the middle east bases as the US spent on NASA during the same time period.
Priorities... Priorities...
ps. I do not begrudge the service-people getting air-conditioning. I do not think they should have been there at all.
pps. Just wanted to show that space exploration is not as expensive as you might think.
CTyankee
(63,926 posts)Satellite technology has been incredibly valuable to us in our modern lives. NASA was key in its development. The pay-off has been huge...
MichaelKelley
(55 posts)Thanks for the real view of the space, we know that in what they show is not real, but still we get tempted by this and love to watch them. Thanks for your support.
Bluenorthwest
(45,319 posts)The last person I want to hear speak about a film is the person who 'does that in real life'. The only thing I remember Kelly doing is promoting gun ownership in the media by among other things posing with a Glock and his wife who was shot by a Glock. Kelly should be happy life is not a movie, because in a movie a guy who sill loves the gun that shot his wife would be seen as a bad guy, not a good guy.
Not a big fan of Mark 'I love religion and guns' Kelly. Sorry.
Spitfire of ATJ
(32,723 posts)Half-Century Man
(5,279 posts)a manga (Japanese comic) series I read years ago, "Planetes" by Yukimura Makoto. I checked it out from my local library. I highly recommend it to everyone.
A story about humans in space. Orbital garbagemen.