Matt Blaze17h ago

An early, but still vivid, formative memory of mine was watching the noisy, black & white video of the Apollo 11 mission. It was partly responsible for my enduring sense of awe and possibility, and probably the moment I knew I had to be a scientist or engineer.

Our world is going to hell in many ways, to be sure, but we're going to the moon again today, and I can't help but get excited about that.

Show threadMatt Blaze17h ago
We had a pretty crappy president then, too.
Show threadMatt Blaze16h ago

The space program was inseparable from the cold war that gave birth to it, but it also transcended it. It was, by design or not, about far more than rockets or space. It was about inspiration and imagination.

For a generation of a certain kind of nerdy kid, there was *nothing* cooler than space, rockets, exploration. For many of us, the feeling stuck.

Show threadSpace Catitude 🚀16h ago
@mattblaze
I wish I could get back in that spirit. It is very cool. I've gotten very cynical about space politics, though.
Show threadCarolyn
@TerryHancock @mattblaze Politics and tech bros. Venture capitalists.
Apr 1 at 7:37pmWeb
Show threadNorman Wilson13h ago
@CStamp @TerryHancock @mattblaze I feel a great deal of cynicism and skepticism, but I still got quite a kick out of watching the launch (via stream, not in Florida). First one I've watched since the 1980s.
Show threadCarolyn13h ago
@oclsc @TerryHancock @mattblaze Me, too. As long as it’s still a NASA brand. They haven’t fired everyone yet.