New Delhi, June 14 (IANS). Astronaut and Air Force officer Shubhanshu Shukla often shares experiences and information related to his space journey and training on social media. In this episode, he shared his experience of visiting Launch Complex 39A of NASA’s Kennedy Space Center. He described this place as a very important part of his training and mission journey.
Posting on Instagram, Shubhanshu Shukla wrote that during his training, he got the opportunity to visit many places which could become an important part of his mission in the future. These also include Kennedy Space Center’s historic Launch Pad 39A. He told that he got a different feeling after reaching there, because this is the same place from where many historical space missions have started.
Recalling his experience, he said that while standing below the launch tower and looking up, he remembered the historic moment when Neil Armstrong and his companions had left for the moon from here. According to him, even though this launch pad has been modified with modern technology over time, its historical identity is still clearly felt.
Shubhanshu Shukla also told that there is a special lift, which has only two buttons – ‘Earth’ i.e. Earth and ‘Space’ i.e. space. He said that even this simple looking design gives a deep meaning and emotional experience on the day of launch.
In his post, he also mentioned the upper part of the launch pad, from where the Falcon 9 rocket is seen before launch. He said that the rocket is first brought to a horizontal position and then made vertical before launch. Standing at that place and imagining future missions was a very exciting experience for him.
Shukla also wrote that the events that were happening at the same time last year now feel both distant and very close to him. According to him, this experience makes him realize both the seriousness and thrill of space journey.
–IANS
MT/DKP
