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Reaching for the Stars
Aired January 14, 2004 - 13:51 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
MILES O'BRIEN, CNN ANCHOR: Let's get back to our top story. President Bush plans to put people on the moon and eventually Mars, and do it in a very sustained way. Let's bring in someone who's got plenty of frequent flyer miles in space. If you add it all up, former astronaut Norm Thaggard has logged some 3 1/2 months in orbit, including a stint -- he was the first U.S. astronaut to fly aboard the space station Mir, several shuttle missions.
Norm Thaggard, always a pleasure to see you, sir.
DR. NORM THAGGARD, FMR. ASTRONAUT: Good to see you, Miles.
O'BRIEN: Basically, you've been reading it in the press, you've been hearing CNN. We've been reporting the basic details of what the president is proposing. I assume you're a supporter of the idea?
THAGGARD: I'm absolutely a supporter. In fact, when I was a kid, I always hoped I'd be the first person on Mars, but I guess, at my age, I've got to concede that probably won't happen.
O'BRIEN: But, Norm, you're in such good shape.
THAGGARD: And I jogged 4 1/2 miles today.
O'BRIEN: You know what, I wouldn't give up just yet.
But seriously, you make it tongue in cheek, but the point is made here. Why has it taken so long for NASA to come to the conclusion that just traveling in circles in low-Earth orbit is really not enough?
THAGGARD: I'm sure there are many, many, if not most of the people at NASA, that have wanted to do something like this for a long, long time. But as you know, it takes a huge commitment in terms of time, and energy and money to do something like this, so it's a bold step.
O'BRIEN: It is a bold step. And as you point out, an expensive step. And one of these kinds of things that takes many administrations, no matter how you do it, because of the time involved. Are you optimist that this -- that you'll see this through to reality?
THAGGARD: I think we'll know in the next few months and couple of years, because how well it start and how energetically starts will probably point the way to the ultimate outcome. O'BRIEN: Now back in 1989, the senior George Bush made a similar pronouncement. You were in the astronaut corps then. He said, let's go to Mars, and NASA came back with something called the 90-day study, which was -- really read like a science fiction novel. It was a $400 billion boondoggle, and it died right then and there. That must have been a very disappointing time.
THAGGARD: I don't -- I didn't have the sense at that time that there was the same seriousness that there is now, so I think we need to give this a chance. I think this may well be the start of a big step.
O'BRIEN: What makes you say that, before we go?
THAGGARD: Well, of course, I was in the office at the time, so I do remember the reaction, and it just didn't seem to have the same impetus that the current one does.
O'BRIEN: But the current one feels more real to you?
THAGGARD: It does feel more real to me.
O'BRIEN: All right, Norm Thaggard, who has spent quite a bit of time in space, is now in Florida, at Florida State University, and also heavily involved in the Challenger Centers for Space Education.
Thanks very much for being with us. We appreciate you always joining us.
THAGGARD: My pleasure, Miles.
O'BRIEN: OK.
TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com
Aired January 14, 2004 - 13:51 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
MILES O'BRIEN, CNN ANCHOR: Let's get back to our top story. President Bush plans to put people on the moon and eventually Mars, and do it in a very sustained way. Let's bring in someone who's got plenty of frequent flyer miles in space. If you add it all up, former astronaut Norm Thaggard has logged some 3 1/2 months in orbit, including a stint -- he was the first U.S. astronaut to fly aboard the space station Mir, several shuttle missions.
Norm Thaggard, always a pleasure to see you, sir.
DR. NORM THAGGARD, FMR. ASTRONAUT: Good to see you, Miles.
O'BRIEN: Basically, you've been reading it in the press, you've been hearing CNN. We've been reporting the basic details of what the president is proposing. I assume you're a supporter of the idea?
THAGGARD: I'm absolutely a supporter. In fact, when I was a kid, I always hoped I'd be the first person on Mars, but I guess, at my age, I've got to concede that probably won't happen.
O'BRIEN: But, Norm, you're in such good shape.
THAGGARD: And I jogged 4 1/2 miles today.
O'BRIEN: You know what, I wouldn't give up just yet.
But seriously, you make it tongue in cheek, but the point is made here. Why has it taken so long for NASA to come to the conclusion that just traveling in circles in low-Earth orbit is really not enough?
THAGGARD: I'm sure there are many, many, if not most of the people at NASA, that have wanted to do something like this for a long, long time. But as you know, it takes a huge commitment in terms of time, and energy and money to do something like this, so it's a bold step.
O'BRIEN: It is a bold step. And as you point out, an expensive step. And one of these kinds of things that takes many administrations, no matter how you do it, because of the time involved. Are you optimist that this -- that you'll see this through to reality?
THAGGARD: I think we'll know in the next few months and couple of years, because how well it start and how energetically starts will probably point the way to the ultimate outcome. O'BRIEN: Now back in 1989, the senior George Bush made a similar pronouncement. You were in the astronaut corps then. He said, let's go to Mars, and NASA came back with something called the 90-day study, which was -- really read like a science fiction novel. It was a $400 billion boondoggle, and it died right then and there. That must have been a very disappointing time.
THAGGARD: I don't -- I didn't have the sense at that time that there was the same seriousness that there is now, so I think we need to give this a chance. I think this may well be the start of a big step.
O'BRIEN: What makes you say that, before we go?
THAGGARD: Well, of course, I was in the office at the time, so I do remember the reaction, and it just didn't seem to have the same impetus that the current one does.
O'BRIEN: But the current one feels more real to you?
THAGGARD: It does feel more real to me.
O'BRIEN: All right, Norm Thaggard, who has spent quite a bit of time in space, is now in Florida, at Florida State University, and also heavily involved in the Challenger Centers for Space Education.
Thanks very much for being with us. We appreciate you always joining us.
THAGGARD: My pleasure, Miles.
O'BRIEN: OK.
TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com
