Wally Schirra died yesterday.Schirra was one of my boyhood heroes, an astronaut in the Mercury, Gemini, and Apollo programs. In a career that included combat missions in Korea, test piloting, and being among the first Americans in space, he demonstrated daring, intelligence, and a joker's wit.
His later work alongside CBS anchor Walter Cronkite in covering the US space program made the experience of America's space pioneers accessible.
In later years, Schirra emphasized the importance of taking care of the planet from which he was projected three different times:
In 1981, he was quoted as saying about space: "Mostly it's lousy out there. It's a hostile environment, and it's trying to kill you. The outside temperature goes from a minus 450 degrees to a plus 300 degrees. You sit in a flying Thermos bottle."I never want to engage in hero worship, though I always will have heroes. Wally Schirra was a hero.
In an interview with the Associated Press last month for Earth Day, he said that when looking at the globe from orbit, he was struck by its fragility and its lack of borders. "I left Earth three times, and found no other place to go," he said. "Please take care of Spaceship Earth."
Thanks for recognizing Wally Schirra's passing, Mark. Those Mercury 7 really were heroes to us. As all explorers had before them (and since), the astronauts accepted unnecessary risks and great personal sacrifices to advance human understanding. They were ordinary men accepting extraordinary challenges. I am still amazed at all they accomplished.
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