ROCKET TOMORROW.
ENGINE TROUBLES DELAYED THE
ORIGINAL LIFTOFF EARLIER THIS
WEEK.
LET’S BRING IN ANDY ALLEN,
FORMER ASTRONAUT JOINING YOU
NOW, GREAT TO HAVE YOU.
WHAT IS SO IMPORTANT ABOUT
GOING TO THE MOON AGAIN.
WHY’S THIS IMPORTANT?
>> GOOD MORNING.
GOING TO THE MOON, WHAT NASA
DOES IS ABOUT LEADERSHIP, TECHNOLOGY DEVELOPMENT AND IT
TECHNOLOGY DEVELOPMENT AND IT
IS ABOUT A RETURN ON INVESTMENT
SO FROM A LEADERSHIP
PERSPECTIVE, WE ARE THE COUNTRY
THAT MAKES THE IMPOSSIBLE
POSSIBLE, THE ONES THAT TURN
FICTION INTO REALITY, THE ONES
THAT ADVANCED CIVILIZATION
THROUGH SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY
IMPROVEMENTS AND COMING OUT OF
THE PANDEMIC IT IS NEAT IT IS
NEED TO HAVE SOMETHING TO BE
VERY PROUD OF.
AND ACCOMPLISHMENT.
SPACE IS LIKE THE HUMAN BODY.
THE MORE YOU THINK YOU KNOW
ABOUT IT THE MORE YOU REALIZE
YOU DON’T KNOW ABOUT IT.
ASHLEY: IS THIS THE
STEPPINGSTONE TO START LOOKING
FURTHER ON, MAYBE ESTABLISH A
BASE ON THE MOON SO THAT THAT
WILL BE A STOPPING POINT ONTO
MARS PERHAPS?
>> ABSOLUTELY.
WE TAKE BABY STEPS AND THAT IS
WHAT THIS IS IF YOU LOOK AT
WHAT IS GOING TO HAPPEN, WHAT
MAY HAPPEN FROM WHAT HAPPENED
YEARS AGO, THIS WILL BE A
PRETTY SIGNIFICANT, WE ARE
SINGLE SPECIES ON A SINGLE
PLANET TO THE TIME WILL COME
THAT WE MOVE ON.
ASHLEY: ARE WE ALONE IN THE
GRAND UNIVERSE?
I DON’T THINK WE CAN BE BUT
WHAT SAY YOU?
>> IN SPITE OF WHAT SOME NEWS
PUBLICATIONS ROAD ABOUT ME
HAVING CONTACT WITH ALIENS ON
OR WHAT I DIDN’T.
I DON’T BELIEVE -- I DON’T
BELIEVE THEY ARE PICKING PEOPLE
UP IN KANSAS AND DOING
EXPERIMENTS BUT THE STATISTICS,
THE JAMES WEBB TELESCOPE WE
JUST SAW A WHILE AGO, THINK OF
THE STATISTICS, HOW CAN WE BE
ALONE? ASHLEY: I AGREE.
ASHLEY: I AGREE.
I WANT TO ASK THIS QUICKLY,
NASA JUST ANNOUNCED AN
EXTENSION TO SPACE X THAT WILL
ALLOW 5 ADDITIONAL ASTRONAUT
MISSIONS.
HOW DO YOU FEEL ABOUT PRIVATE
SPACE COMPANIES IN THIS
CONTEXT?
>> GOOD QUESTION AND I THINK IT
IS GREAT, JUST LIKE BACK WHEN
WE DID DEVELOP AND ON AIRPLANES
COMING INTO THE AIRLINE
BUSINESS, IT IS GOOD TO TURN
THINGS OVER TO THE COMMERCIAL
SIDE, TO THE PRIVATE SIDE OF
THE PRIVATE-SECTOR.
EVENTUALLY LOW EARTH ORBIT WILL
BE RUN BY HOTEL CHAINS AND
SPACE LABS AND A LOT OF OTHER
THINGS.
ASHLEY: DO YOU MISS SPACE?
WOULD YOU GO BACK IF YOU HAD
THE OPPORTUNITY?
>> ONE THING I WISH I COULD
HAVE DONE MORE THAN ANYTHING
ELSE IS TAKE A FEW STEPS ON THE
MOON.
ASHLEY: IT IS GOING TO HAPPEN
AGAIN SOON MAYBE BY 2024 IF
THIS ARTEMIS PROJECT GOES THE
WAY THEY WANTED TO.
THIS IS A HUGE ROCKET, THE
WORLD’S BIGGEST ROCKET.
IT WILL MAKE QUITE A NOISE WHEN
IT FINALLY TAKES OFF.
>> YES IT IS.
RIGHT NOW IN THIS FIRST STAGE
IT IS 30, 40 FEET SMALLER THAN
THE APOLLO ROCKET BUT A LOT
MORE POWERFUL, SPEND A LOT MORE
DAYS IN ORBIT AND HAS MUCH MORE
CAPABILITY OF TAKING A LOT MORE
TO THE MOON THAN WE DID IN
APOLLO INSTEAD OF MAKING SHORT
TRIPS.
IT IS A GREAT ACHIEVEMENT.
THE 5 EVER GO TO THESE
LAUNCHES?
THERE ARE SO MANY IN THE COURSE
OF A WEEK AFTER CANAVERAL?
DO YOU EVER GO BY AND WATCH
THESE TAKE OFF?
>> I DO.
I WILL BE OUT AT THE LAUNCH
SITE TOMORROW.
I WAS OUT THERE MONDAY.
WE HAVE SPACE X LAUNCH, ATLAS
LAUNCHES, I CAN WATCH IT FROM
MY HOUSE.
ASHLEY: THAT’S VERY HANDY
INDEED.
WE ARE OUT OF TIME.
THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR TAKING
TIME.
I WAS LOOKING FORWARD TO