STS-132 Tweetup Wrap Up

Being selected for the NASA STS-132 Tweetup was an incredible experience.  I hope that someday each person that reads this blog has a chance to live out their dreams and meet heroes in their lives the way I did on May 13-14, 2010.  One week later, I am sitting here at my desk with visions of how many once-in-a-lifetime opportunities were afforded me by chance.  I hope to be able to repay NASA and all of the great people who worked tireless hours to makes this event possible.

Let's start off with meeting astronauts.  We were lucky enough to get to meet Janet Voss and David Wolf.  How many times in life do you get to ask questions and learn from people who have lived somewhere other than Earth for a period of time?  The thing that both astronauts left me feeling was that these are real people.  They are not "cape-wearing" super-heroes like I perceived them to be most of my life.  They are ordinary people with extraordinary drive and talent that never stopped reaching for their dreams.  They are inspirational.  They are true national treasures.  I hope that my students will follow the example set by these wonderful astronauts - just get out there and give everything you can.  Tear the word "impossible" from your dictionary - there is no such word.

Then we got to spend some time with Chris Meinert, the Closeout Crew Leader.   What an inspiration this gentleman was!  We always hear about being a team-player in life, and this man is the ultimate example of who you want on your team.  He talked about being friends with the STS-107 Columbia astronauts, and had to pause for a bit while talking about the last time he saw them.  He has passion.  He cares.  He is not just doing a job; he is as much a vital part of the mission as the Commander of the shuttle.  Again, inspired beyond words.

We also got to spend time with other outstanding individuals such as a Deputy Director of NASA, NASA's Chief Technologist, the Flow Manager for Discovery, a gentleman who has worked on NASA Spacesuits since the Apollo Program - do you get where I am going?  These are people who each and everyday do the jobs that I dream about.  They routinely do things that let us, as humans, leave our planet.  When you stop to think about this, it is just amazing.  Real people.  Regular people.  Extraordinary drive, passion, and talent.

Then there was the opportunity to see OV-104, otherwise known as the Orbiter Atlantis, up close and personal.  We could walk right up to the fence as the Rotating Service Stucture, which protects the shuttle from the weather until about 18 hours before launch, was slowly retracted.  I was standing there in awe once again.  I was literally about 300 yards from this awesome machine that has traveled millions of miles and carried dozens of astronauts and countless dreams to space.  I have watched this on TV for as long as I have been alive, and now I am standing so close I felt I could touch it.  It was in a word - awesome!

Finally, we got to watch the amazing Space Shuttle Atlantis launch from the Press Area from Pad 39A.  The anticipation of the morning was crazy.  We would sit and Tweet to our friends, family, and students back home.  We would get a weather briefing from the Cape Canaveral Weather Station officer. We would gaze at the shuttle over the water.   We would watch the Countdown Clock, *THE* famous Countdown Clock that has been there since the Apollo Program, tick down towards the T - 9:00 Hold.   Finally, it was time.  We walked about to the Countdown Clock and watched those last few minutes tick away.  Personally, I felt pride, gratitude, nervousness, and anxiety all at the same time.  I knew this was something I would never get to do again, yet it was something that I had wanted to do my whole life.  It was amazing!  Finally, when the Space Shuttle Main Engines roared to life at T - 0:06, and the steam and smoke started to rise at T - 0:00, I didn't know what to think.  Silently, Atlantis started to rise off the pad every so slowly, and it was trailed by the brightest light I had ever seen other than the sun during the day.  The crowd roared, and tears were in my eyes.  I was living out my dream.; so were these astronauts.  They were carrying my dreams right with them into orbit.  The crowd roared with excitement and pride, and then the sound came!  An engineer named Jon Cowart from NASA told us the day before what the shuttle would sound like, and he was right.  However, I could not have expected the magnitude of the roar.  The percussion shook me to the bone, and we were 2.5 miles away.  The sound energy just kept coming at you, and at that point you realized the power that is in the Space Shuttle.  It was truly amazing.

As I sit here and wrap up my thoughts on this experience, I am left with this huge feeling of gratitude for being given this opportunity.  I am not a VIP, rather just a person who loves the task of doing the impossible that NASA is given everyday.  I want to thank each and every person at NASA and especially the NASATweetup Crew of Stephanie, Jon, and Beth for letting "regular" folks like us feel like vital parts of the NASA Team for two days.  This is one of the best experiences I have ever had in my life, and for that, I will forever be grateful!