Sunday, November 4, 2007

Parazynski To The Rescue

STS-120 astronaut Scott Parazynski successfully completed repair of a solar array of ISS, opening the way for the completion of the station.

Had Parazynski failed in what NASA called one of the most dangerous and difficult spacewalks ever attempted, the future of the station would've been in serious doubt because of a lack of sufficient power. Had Parazynski lost his life in the attempt, the future of the shuttle program-- and possibly of the manned spaceflight effort-- would have been seriously questioned.

NASA accepted those risks, went ahead with the spacewalk, and seems to have prevailed,. Unfortunately, in today's media climate, NASA will likely fail to get attention and credit for a bold move expertly executed even while it would've been hammered if something had gone wrong.

Even beyond Earth, life is not fair.

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