Space Ace: Do Astronauts Ever Get Scared?
ASK A SPACE SCIENTIST
Our universe is full of mysteries, and some of the most mind-boggling are in space. Curious kids asked questions, and we sent them to scientists who work for the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA). Send your questions (with your name and age) to brilliant@usbnc.org or use our Contact form.
Commander Eileen Collins (front right) waves with the crew of the STS-114 mission as they head to the launch pad in 2005. James M. Kelly, pilot, is at front left. Crew members Wendy Lawrence, Andrew Thomas, Stephen Robinson, Charles Camarda, and JAXA astronaut Soichi Noguchi follow.
Do the astronauts ever get scared to go to space?
—Christopher, age 14
Hi, Christopher,
Not really! In my case, I trained so much for each of my flights that I was extremely well prepared. I felt I was ready to handle anything! My confidence was soaring! But I will admit that I get scared when I watch a launch. This is probably because when I watch a launch I am not doing anything, just watching. When you are inside the rocket, an astronaut is very busy running checklists, moving switches, checking systems, and making radio calls. It helps to be busy!
One way to ease potential fears is to work together as a group. This is something astronauts must do to successfully complete a mission. We support each other and provide each other with a source of strength. As the mission commander, I want my crew to be 100% prepared for the launch. I want them to be focused on their duties, not worried about the launch. Therefore, I assure them of my confidence in them, as well as my confidence that our spacecraft was prepared by the best engineers and technicians in the world!
—Eileen
Artist's concept of our Milky Way galaxy, which has two major arms extending from the ends of a central bar of stars. Between them are minor arms.
How was our galaxy formed in a spiral shape?
—Hugo, age 9
Hi, Hugo,
Scientists don’t fully know how the Milky Way galaxy was formed. But they know a lot about its structure from years of study. It has a disk shape with a bulging center and spiral arms. The bulging center contains the oldest stars in the galaxy. These stars were formed because gravity collapsed clouds of gas in the early universe. The spiral arms which orbit the center of the galaxy have younger stars. Our Sun is one of these younger stars.
But the origin of the spiral arms is less certain. They could be from smaller galaxies that merged with the Milky Way. They might be from near collisions with other galaxies. Scientists now use computers to better understand how galaxies form. Computers can simulate the universe evolving from soon after the Big Bang until the present day. Spiral galaxies develop in these simulations over billions of years, through gravity and collisions.
—Steve
Dr. Steve Scotti is Brilliant Star’s STEM Education Advisor and a Distinguished Research Associate at NASA Langley Research Center in Virginia, U.S. His background is in developing lighter, stronger materials and structures for aircraft and spacecraft. Watching the first astronaut launched into space inspired his interest in space exploration, and he enjoys sharing his enthusiasm about science and space with kids.
Eileen Collins is a retired Air Force officer, pilot, test pilot, and astronaut. She flew in space four times, including the first mission to rendezvous with the Russian space station Mir (1995), the sixth docking flight with Mir (1997), the deployment of the Chandra X-Ray Observatory (1999), and the “Return to Flight” mission, which tested tools and techniques to keep the shuttle safely flying (2005). She is currently a consultant in the aerospace industry.
Images: NASA, NASA/JPL-Caltech/R. Hurt (SSC/Caltech), NASA/KSC
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