Astronaut Believes There's Life Beyond Earth Source: Cosmiverse April 12, 2000
A NASA astronaut who is the veteran of four space shuttle missions says his explorations of space have contributed to his belief that there is extraterrestrial life in the universe.
Guion S. Bluford, who holds a doctorate degree in aerospace engineering, was selected for the first space shuttle astronaut class in 1978 and was the first African American to fly in space, aboard the Challenger in 1983. Bluford flew on the shuttle as mission specialist and payload commander for STS 8 in 1983 (the shuttle's first nighttime launch), STS 61A in 1985, STS 39 in 1991, and STS 53 in 1992.
Logging more than 700 hours in space and 5,000 hours as an Air Force tactical jet pilot, Bluford currently is vice president of the science and engineering group for Federal Data Corp. He spoke to educators, information technology
professionals, and labor force development professionals Tuesday, during the Information Technology Association of America's IT Third Workforce Convocation in Chicago.
"When you're in orbit mire than 200 miles above the Earth, you realize how delicate and thin the layer that is our atmosphere really is," he said. "And you realize how insignificant Earth is in the universe. You see no national
boundaries upon the land, and you realize that all six billion of us must live and survive together."
Responding to questions after his keynote address, Bluford said he thinks it's likely that other life exists beyond Earth. "We're so infinitesimal," he said, "that it's hard not to imagine other life being created beyond our planet and galaxy. I don't know what form this life might take, but even on Earth, life forms are created in many different environments--undersea, on land, and in the atmosphere."
Had he ever seen what could be a UFO in his many hours in space? "No," he said without elaboration. Bluford was payload commander for the STS 61A shuttle mission, the multi-national Spacelab flight that conducted more than 70 experiments in seven days. "That was a very busy mission," he said. "We
worked in 12 hour shifts, doing scientific experiments on everything from fruit flies to growing crystals in a weightless environment."
On his third flight, STS 39, shuttle astronauts studied the aurora phenomenon over the magnetic South Polar region, where "flying through the aurora was an experience I will never forget." His fourth shuttle mission, STS 53 in 1992,
remains classified; "I could tell you about it, but then I'd have to shoot you all," he quipped.
NASA's future in space, he said, is the International Space Station now under construction, the size of three football fields with one million pounds of hardware when completed. A cooperative program with the U.S., Canada, Russia,
Japan, Europe, and Brazil, the station "will enable us to research and develop new technologies in earth resources, crystal-growing and other disciplines," he said.
The station will require 43 shuttle missions to complete, with four of the construction/supply flights scheduled for this year. He said the first crew on orbit will likely arrive later this year, with 170-180 astronauts and cosmonauts from Europe, Russia, the U.S., and Japan training aboard the
station.
Bluford told the audience he had no desire to return to space as John Glenn did; "I left the program to open opportunities for other, younger astronauts," he said. Even so, orbiting the Earth at 18,000 miles per hour, circling the planet every 90 minutes, and watching a sunrise or sunset every 45 minutes, "it was hard to bring the shuttle back--we'd have a breathtaking view of space 1,000 miles in every direction," he said. "But NASA always had a very persuasive way to get us back to Earth. If you don't bring the vehicle home, you're going to run out of air."
by Sally Suddock
Staff Writer
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