Here is the gripping account of one American's adventure in space and an inspiring call for the nation to recapture
the lead in space exploration. Only sixteen days prior to the ill-fated Challenger blast-off in 1986, Florida's Congressman Bill Nelson was himself hurled into outer space. Nelson's story of his experience as an astronaut on the Columbia mission is a fascinating chronicle of manned flight. And it is more. Nelson, whose grandparents homesteaded 160 acres of land that now comprise the Kennedy Space Center and part of the district he represented in Congress, is keenly aware of the U.S. space
program's prodigious spinoff benefits. As a result, this book combines Nelson's own extraordinary experience with probing insights into the long-range economic and sociologic impacts of space exploration on commerce, research, technology, education, and politics. Written in vivid and engaging prose, Mission provides an insider's look at the arduous training for space travel, at the individuals who represent "the right stuff", and at the marvel of flight itself. More than just the
journal of an unforgettable voyage, Mission is a clear, aggressive plan of action for America's role in space. |
