006 | Being Scolded by the Royal Air Force
On October 5, 1984, after much preparation, I launched for the first time. Only two of the training preparations had run smoothly, so I was nervous.
Today, I talk about that flight. I share the experience of taking off and of seeing the earth from above. I also tell the funny story of how, when flying over London, we accidentally barged in on the Royal Air Force’s frequency, but were over Africa by the time we came up with a good response for the man who angrily scolded us.
“The first two and a half minutes of the shuttle launch were more like being in an earthquake than anything smooth: a lot of shake, rattle, and roll, the very turbulent burning of the solid rock that’s pushing you off the planet.”
- Kathy Sullivan
“We had started eight and a half minutes earlier bolted to the ground in Florida, and we were now essentially over England.”
- Kathy Sullivan
This week on Kathy Sullivan Explores:
The experience of taking off
Looking down on the earth
A humorous story
Spaceship Not Required
I’m Kathy Sullivan, the only person to have walked in space and gone to the deepest point in the ocean.
I’m an explorer, and that doesn’t always have to involve going to some remote or exotic place. It simply requires a commitment to put curiosity into action.
In this podcast, you can explore, reflecting on lessons learned from life so far and from my brilliant and ever-inquisitive guests. We explore together in this very moment from right where you are… spaceship not required.
Welcome to Kathy Sullivan Explores.