Houston and Moonwalking

Saturn V that was intended for Apollo 19 that never launched. Just MASSIVE.

From Austin, we zipped down to Houston to see the NASA Space Center. Our first visit was to Mission Control, which brought back so many memories from my childhood and youth when I was nuts about the Space Program. It’s amazing to see the Stone Age technology (by today’s standards) with which America –at its best – proudly put a man on the moon, and captured the attention of the world.

Walking around a 365 foot tall Saturn V rocket that was mothballed when the Apollo program was suspended really brought home the immense power it takes to put a person into space. Other highlights included walking through a retired space shuttle and a mockup of the ISS, and looking at moon rocks being studied in a laboratory.

Artemis Program (next generation man in space) mockups being tested.

I recognize the environmental impact and that the space program is expensive and debates exist over whether it’s a good use of all our money. But I can’t help but love man’s striving to explore outer space; looking at the Artemis program mockups of space capsules and habitats that are being tested for our next moon landing scheduled for 2028 really makes me proud to be human. And Elon, with your upcoming $1.5T IPO of Space X, remember that your company was paid for on the back of public money, sweat, and research which continues to this day. I wish that for one second, you would acknowledge that.