jlhaslip 4 Report post Posted May 4, 2007 Wally Schirra Jr passes at age 84. Recognized as a pioneer of the US Space program, he actively participated in the Mercury, Gemini and the Apolla programs. More details found here. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Plenoptic 0 Report post Posted May 4, 2007 Wow, it's sad to see someone that played a major role in the NASA program pass away. I hope he passed on his knowledge to future astronauts. He came before Armstrong's trip to the moon in '69. "Mostly it's lousy out there," Schirra said in 1981 on the occasion of the first space shuttle flight. "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."This statement he said amazed me. It's really harsh out there because there is nothing to hold heat. And he still lived into his 80s to die at natural causes, you think those types of temperature changes would hurt your body. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
