As I write this, I’m watching NASA TV live coverage of the astronauts trying to free the stuck solar panels on the ISS. The broadcast is switching back and forth between the helmet-mounted cameras on the astronauts’ suits and the station’s cameras. I’m trying to imagine what it would be like to be perched on the end of the robotic arm extended from the space station, trying to concentrate on freeing a stuck piece of lord-knows-how-expensive hardware while cruising along in space miles above the Earth. I’ve decided that I can’t really imagine it.
These folks amaze me every time I watch. The precision, the communication, the overall level of engineering is just unparalleled. Sure, NASA has made some very serious mistakes, but when they’re on the ball, they’re so on the ball it’s scary.
