I attended a big human space flight conference in Beijing and I was going as myself. And really, there weren't any NASA astronauts there, I was the only so-called American Astronaut there. We had astronauts from most of the other countries, certainly from Russia, from France, from Japan, several other countries, but it was a little bit odd because here we are at an international gathering of a lot of astronauts and I'm talking about somewhere upwards of 30 or so astronauts, and I'm the only American. And I wasn't even there in an official capacity.
Space is very unforgiving business - Leroy Chiao
Space is very unforgiving business
- Leroy Chiao
I had done everything I could do as an astronaut, and we have a long line of inexperienced astronauts waiting for their first missions, and so my rol… - Leroy Chiao
I had done everything I could do as an astronaut, and we have a long line of inexperienced astronauts waiting for their first missions, and so my rol…
Qian Xuesen, the father of the Chinese Space Program, studied in the United States, and he was a protégé of Theodore Von Carmen's at Cal Tech and hel… - Leroy Chiao
Qian Xuesen, the father of the Chinese Space Program, studied in the United States, and he was a protégé of Theodore Von Carmen's at Cal Tech and hel…
One of my challenges was to try to photograph the Great Wall of China. And I did actually take some photos, but it was hard to discern the wall with … - Leroy Chiao
One of my challenges was to try to photograph the Great Wall of China. And I did actually take some photos, but it was hard to discern the wall with …
I remember getting advice like, "Oh, do what interests you. Don't worry about tomorrow, live for today," kind of thing. And to a degree, you've got t… - Leroy Chiao
I remember getting advice like, "Oh, do what interests you. Don't worry about tomorrow, live for today," kind of thing. And to a degree, you've got t…
Tinkering is something we need to know how to do in order to keep something like the space station running. I am a tinkerer by nature. - Leroy Chiao
Tinkering is something we need to know how to do in order to keep something like the space station running. I am a tinkerer by nature.
I think it's good to have competition. Now we have a third country that can launch astronauts, so it's good for all of us. It makes us a little bit m… - Leroy Chiao
I think it's good to have competition. Now we have a third country that can launch astronauts, so it's good for all of us. It makes us a little bit m…
There is no one area of chemical engineering that specifically helped me in my career as an astronaut, it was more the general education in engineeri… - Leroy Chiao
There is no one area of chemical engineering that specifically helped me in my career as an astronaut, it was more the general education in engineeri…
As commander I was responsible for the overall success of the mission, and so I had to know at least a little bit about everything. - Leroy Chiao
As commander I was responsible for the overall success of the mission, and so I had to know at least a little bit about everything.
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