Star Trek actor William Shatner has said everything he expected to see during his trip to space on a Blue Origin flight “was wrong” and that the experience “felt like a funeral”.
Aged 90, Mr Shatner became the oldest person to travel to space when he blasted off to the edge of space on a Blue Origin rocket on October 13, 2021.
Now, he has reflected on his voyage in his new book called Boldly Go: Reflections on a Life of Awe and Wonder. An excerpt of it was published in Variety last week.
“It was among the strongest feelings of grief I have ever encountered,” he said.
“The contrast between the vicious coldness of space and the warm nurturing of Earth below filled me with overwhelming sadness.
“Every day, we are confronted with the knowledge of further destruction of Earth at our hands: the extinction of animal species, of flora and fauna … things that took five billion years to evolve, and suddenly we will never see them again because of the interference of mankind.
“It filled me with dread. My trip to space was supposed to be a celebration; instead, it felt like a funeral.”
Mr Shatner flew to the edge of space on the NS-18 mission — the second space tourism flight by Jeff Bezos’s Blue Origin — with three other passengers.
The entire experience, from launch to landing, lasted about 10 minutes.
A fully reusable suborbital vehicle lifts off from a remote desert in west Texas, carrying passengers 106 kilometres above the ground, bringing them a few minutes of weightlessness as well as stunning views of Earth against the darkness of space.
The capsule then descends towards the Texas desert under three parachutes and retro engines, bringing the passengers safely back to the ground.
Mr Shatner’s experience in space is what many astronauts and psychologists call the “Overview Effect”.
It is often described by astronauts as a powerful shift in how a person views the planet and life.
“I learned later that I was not alone in this feeling. It is called the 'Overview Effect' and is not uncommon among astronauts,” Mr Shatner said in his book.
“Essentially, when someone travels to space and views Earth from orbit, a sense of the planet’s fragility takes hold in an ineffable, instinctive manner.
“It can change the way we look at the planet but also other things like countries, ethnicities, and religions; it can prompt an instant re-evaluation of our shared harmony and a shift in focus to all the wonderful things we have in common instead of what makes us different.”
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
Sole survivors
- Cecelia Crocker was on board Northwest Airlines Flight 255 in 1987 when it crashed in Detroit, killing 154 people, including her parents and brother. The plane had hit a light pole on take off
- George Lamson Jr, from Minnesota, was on a Galaxy Airlines flight that crashed in Reno in 1985, killing 68 people. His entire seat was launched out of the plane
- Bahia Bakari, then 12, survived when a Yemenia Airways flight crashed near the Comoros in 2009, killing 152. She was found clinging to wreckage after floating in the ocean for 13 hours.
- Jim Polehinke was the co-pilot and sole survivor of a 2006 Comair flight that crashed in Lexington, Kentucky, killing 49.
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
Terror attacks in Paris, November 13, 2015
- At 9.16pm, three suicide attackers killed one person outside the Atade de France during a foootball match between France and Germany
- At 9.25pm, three attackers opened fire on restaurants and cafes over 20 minutes, killing 39 people
- Shortly after 9.40pm, three other attackers launched a three-hour raid on the Bataclan, in which 1,500 people had gathered to watch a rock concert. In total, 90 people were killed
- Salah Abdeslam, the only survivor of the terrorists, did not directly participate in the attacks, thought to be due to a technical glitch in his suicide vest
- He fled to Belgium and was involved in attacks on Brussels in March 2016. He is serving a life sentence in France
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UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
German intelligence warnings
- 2002: "Hezbollah supporters feared becoming a target of security services because of the effects of [9/11] ... discussions on Hezbollah policy moved from mosques into smaller circles in private homes." Supporters in Germany: 800
- 2013: "Financial and logistical support from Germany for Hezbollah in Lebanon supports the armed struggle against Israel ... Hezbollah supporters in Germany hold back from actions that would gain publicity." Supporters in Germany: 950
- 2023: "It must be reckoned with that Hezbollah will continue to plan terrorist actions outside the Middle East against Israel or Israeli interests." Supporters in Germany: 1,250
Source: Federal Office for the Protection of the Constitution
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KYLIAN MBAPPE 2016/17 STATS
Ligue 1: Appearances - 29, Goals - 15, Assists - 8
UCL: Appearances - 9, Goals - 6
French Cup: Appearances - 3, Goals - 3
France U19: Appearances - 5, Goals - 5, Assists - 1
Islamophobia definition
A widely accepted definition was made by the All Party Parliamentary Group on British Muslims in 2019: “Islamophobia is rooted in racism and is a type of racism that targets expressions of Muslimness or perceived Muslimness.” It further defines it as “inciting hatred or violence against Muslims”.
UPI facts
More than 2.2 million Indian tourists arrived in UAE in 2023
More than 3.5 million Indians reside in UAE
Indian tourists can make purchases in UAE using rupee accounts in India through QR-code-based UPI real-time payment systems
Indian residents in UAE can use their non-resident NRO and NRE accounts held in Indian banks linked to a UAE mobile number for UPI transactions
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