Yesterday, I thought it was just a normal day at the airport as I prepared to fly to California:
 |
| I rode through the space-age underground tunnel system to find terminal B (...and I was assured by Christine that the shark buses DO, in fact, still exist...) |
 |
| I had my usual pre-flight 6 mile jog |
And I may or may not have consumed some Skyy Vodka...because you may remember from this post that I get nervous before flying.
And everything seemed to be as per usual, until I looked out the window of the plane before takeoff and saw the Space Shuttle Discovery, just chillin' on top of another airplane!
 |
| Peepin' out the airplane window at the Space Shuttle Discovery at Dulles Airport |
Incredible.
We were parked next the Space Shuttle Discovery, one of the newly retired orbiters from NASA's fleet.
Check out how cool the Discovery is:
- It had been in operation for almost as long as I've been alive-- started flying in 1984 and just retired in 2011.
- It completed over 39 successful missions in over 27 years of work.
- During its career, the discovery flew over 149 million miles. Think about that next time you think about how high your car mileage is.
The Space Shuttle Discovery is not to be confused with the Space Shuttle Columbia, which tragically exploded in 2003. I remember watching the news coverage of the accident in my 2nd year apartment at UVa.
Anyway, the Discovery shuttle is now on display at the Steven F. Udvar-Hazy Center, an annex of the Smithsonian Institution's National Air and Space Museum. Go check it out if you're in the DC area!
Did you ever dream about being a NASA astronaut when you were a kid? If not, what did you dream about doing when you "grew up"?
I always loved science and math, so I do remember dreaming about becoming an astronaut when I was in elementary school. But I left that path behind when I decided to do something more along the lines of health care or some other sort of science, on the earth. If flying on an airplane made me uncomfortable, it's common sense that I should probably avoid outer space.
Now that NASA is on it's way out, what are the math/science/engineering kids going to dream about now?
Now that NASA is on it's way out, what are the math/science/engineering kids going to dream about now?
So cool! I used to live very close to Dulles Airport and visited the Udvar-Hazy Center. Fun place! Perfect for nerdy engineers like me :)
ReplyDeleteThat is so cool!! I always thought it would be so cool to go up in space :) Isn't there something where if you have a million thousand dollars you can pay to go up?
ReplyDeleteHow cool is that!?! Awesome! I always thought it'd be cool to fly fighter jets and I seriously looked into it for about a day ...until I remembered I get severe motion sickness. Opps.
ReplyDeletethat is the coolest airplane view EVER!
ReplyDeleteThat is awesome that you saw that! I saw that on the news about it landing somewhere, didn't know it was right there!
ReplyDeleteSo have you decided on OC yet?
ReplyDeleteOk I am almost 100% certain that I want to do it!!! Are you going to do it? I'll pop on over to your blog to see if you're written any updates about it recently.
DeleteI'm going to try to find somewhere to stay the night before, any recommendations? I'm in San Diego and I think it may be too far to drive up there on race day? It starts at 5:30!
My parents took us to Space Camp when we were little! We had the best time and got to see so much! That was probably one of the best vacations we had as children. :)
ReplyDeleteI was (am) a HUGE science and math nerd growing up. I always dreamt of going to space camp!
ReplyDeleteThat's awesome! I wanted to be an astronaut when I was little...first grade-ish. I went to Space Camp in sixth grade, and it was AMAZING. One of my good friends is applying to be an astronaut. I'd apply, but the application specifically said that nursing as a degree doesn't count...although I did have another degree. And they like teachers, so I don't know why they wouldn't like nurses...we work well under stress!
ReplyDeleteVery cool!!! love sciences...I have a degree in chemical engineering and another one in food sciences...I dreamt of being a psychiatrist!
ReplyDeletedang, that's so cool!! i loved space when i was younger and thought it was so exciting to go to the NASA place in TX and do all their fun little demo's...but u beat that times a million. :)
ReplyDeleteI wanted to be an astronaut, but I am not sure I ever really thought through what going into space exactly meant. I now share your sentiments on flying. I wasn't quite as scared as a kid though so maybe I could have handled it. Unclear.
ReplyDeleteThat is so awesome!!! Thanks for the e-mail back... I figured you were too nice to be mad :)
ReplyDeleteHow cool is that? I would have been totally geeked out! I never wanted to be an astronaut, I wanted to be a doctor, but I've always loved space!
ReplyDeleteAwesome! I saw that on the news and was in awe, but I bet it was a million times cooler in real life.
ReplyDeleteI also saw that when I was at Dulles on the 23rd! We were riding that tram thing that takes you from the main airport over to the gates, and i was like "ZOMGGGGG LOOOKKKK!!!!!" So cool!
ReplyDeleteI never dreamed of being an astronaut, sounds to scary for me. When I was a kid I wanted to be a Marine Biologist, then I wanted to be a Game Warden (soley so I could ride around on the boat all day), then i found out they don't make any money and I wouldn't be guaranteed a coastal town..so here I am in healthcare, still not making any money, but at least I live at the beach.