I REMEMBER LOOKING AT THE EARTH FOR THE
FIRST TIME JUST SHORTLY AFTER WE HAD LAUNCHED.
WE HAD A NIGHTTIME LAUNCH, AND WITHIN NINE
MINUTES OR SO, WERE IN ORBIT.
AND I REMEMBER SEEING “THE TERMINATOR,”
WHERE THE LIGHT MEETS THE DARK ON THE
SURFACE OF THE EARTH.
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THERE'S AN OVERWHELMING SENSE OF GRATITUDE FOR
THE EXPERIENCE THAT SO FEW HUMANS HAVE HAD TO
BE OFF THE PLANET AND LOOK DOWN AT IT AND,
LOOK DOWN AND APPRECIATE HOW BEAUTIFUL IT IS,
AND HOW PERFECT IT IS. WE'RE SO FORTUNATE TO LIVE
ON SUCH A PERFECT PLANET POSITIONED WHERE IT IS
IN THE SOLAR SYSTEM AND THAT WE
KNOW OF NOTHING QUITE LIKE IT.
WHEN YOU'RE OUT ON A SPACEWALK, WHEN YOU'RE
OUTSIDE, YOUR HELMET GIVES YOU ESSENTIALLY A
180-DEGREE VIEW OF EVERYTHING AROUND YOU.
IN MY LAST SPACEWALK, IN JANUARY OF 2020
I WAS RIDING ON THE ROBOTIC ARM OUT TO THE AMS
WORKSITE. AND, WE WERE WAITING FOR ONE OF
THOSE LEAK CHECKS IN BETWEEN AND THERE WAS A
PERIOD OF TIME WHEN THERE WAS THERE WAS LITERALLY
NOTHING THAT WE COULD DO AND SO THEY PARKED ME ON
THE ARM ABOVE, YOU KNOW, ABOUT 50 YARDS ABOVE THE
ISS DURING A NIGHT PASS AND THEY WERE LIKE "OKAY,
YOU'RE GONNA JUST HAVE TO SIT HERE FOR 20 MINUTES."
WITHOUT THE OBSTRUCTION OF THE ATMOSPHERE, WITHOUT
LIGHT BEING REFRACTED, STARS ARE MUCH MORE DISTINCT,
THEY DON'T HAVE THAT TWINKLE ANYMORE, EVERYTHING IS
VERY CRISP, AND NATURALLY YOU SEE INFINITELY MORE
STARS, AND PLANETS MIXED IN THERE, THAT ARE
SOMETIMES HARD TO DISTINGUISH, BUT INFINITELY
MORE. NO ATMOSPHERE BETWEEN YOU AND IT. AND I
WAS OUT THERE ABOVE THE ISS, NOTHING BETWEEN ME
AND ETERNITY.
YOU CAN'T HAVE THIS EXPERIENCE AND
NOT BE CHANGED.
IT DOES AFFECT YOU, BUT I THINK,
BY AND LARGE IS WHAT YOU FIND THAT IT REINFORCES
BELIEFS THAT YOU ALREADY HAD, BECAUSE THAT IS OUR
FUNDAMENTAL TENDENCY TO LOOK FOR EVIDENCE THAT
SUPPORTS WHAT WE ALREADY BELIEVE. IT REINFORCED
THE IMPORTANCE OF STEWARDSHIP OF OUR PLANET AND
CARRYING THOSE RESPONSIBLE PRACTICES WITH US, AS
WE GO OUT AND EXPLORE, RETURN TO THE MOON,
GO ON TO MARS, TO UNDERSTAND THE ORIGINS OF OUR OWN PLANET.
IT WAS AN INTERESTING TIME, IN THOSE
FINAL WEEKS BEFORE WE LANDED IN APRIL.
WE WERE WATCHING THIS GLOBAL PANDEMIC OCCUR, THE
MAGNITUDE OF WHAT WAS OCCURRING ON THE GROUND WAS
STARTING TO BECOME MORE AND MORE APPARENT AS
THE WEEKS WORE ON, AND WE KNEW IT WAS GOING TO
AFFECT HOW WE ARRIVED ON THE EARTH THAT THEY
WERE GOING TO HAVE TO TAKE DIFFERENT MEASURES TO
BRING US HOME. WE WERE ASKED TO MAKE A VIDEO THAT
ASKED, "WHAT ARE YOUR IMPRESSIONS OF RETURNING TO
THE EARTH DURING A GLOBAL PANDEMIC?"
AND ONE OF THE THINGS THAT
JESSICA, AND CHRIS AND I DID
WAS WE TOOK SOME IMAGES OUT THE WINDOW OF THE CUPOLA
AND I JUST SPONTANEOUSLY, WHILE PANNING THE CAMERA
AROUND AND TAKING SOME SHOTS OF MY CREWMATES
LOOKING OUT THE WINDOW I PANNED ALONG THE EARTH
AND I SAID, "AN EARTH IN CRISIS IS STILL AN EARTH
WORTH RETURNING TO." JUST SPONTANEOUSLY I DON'T
KNOW WHAT MADE ME SAY IT I THINK IT WAS A-A
GOOD REFLECTION OF HOW WE WERE FEELING ABOUT
YOU KNOW, OUR TIME UP THERE, WE APPRECIATED IT
AND WE HAD A NEW SENSE OF THE EARTH BELOW US,
AND SAW THAT THE ENTIRE PLANET WAS EXPERIENCING
THIS EVENT THAT, IN MANY WAYS, UNIFIED US ALL.
IN MUCH THE SAME WAY THAT THE INTERNATIONAL SPACE
STATION UNIFIES US ALL. AND THAT WE STILL DESIRE TO
RETURN TO OUR EARTH. IN ALL OF ITS GREATNESS
AND ALL OF ITS PROBLEMS, IT'S STILL OUR HOME.
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