The Crewed SpaceX Launch Rekindled Wonder and Excitement

June 30, 2020 / in Personal / by Jason Terry

On June 1st, SpaceX Launched the Crew Demo 2 mission to take Bob Behnken and Doug Hurley to the International Space Station. Trista and I watched the live stream during the launch as well as the following morning during docking procedures.

I’ve wanted to go to space since I was a kid. (I blame the Star Wars movies for that.) As I got older, I watched the Space Shuttle launches. I even got to watch a live launch in Florida with my family. And I remember being in class in high school on January 28, 1986 when the Challenger explosion happened. That was terrible.

Watching the SpaceX launch really moved me.

For some reason, the SpaceX launch really moved me. I’ve always said that I will be going to space before I die. I think the biggest thing this launch did for me is cement that my dream is actually starting to become possible. When you combine SpaceX, Blue Origin and Virgin Galactic’s efforts, I think we will see commercial space flight accessible to the general public within the next decade, even if it’s just a quick hop to low orbit.

If you missed it, here is the YouTube video of the launch. This link will skip to a minute before launch so you don’t have to fast forward through the four hours leading up to the launch.

The Crew Demo 2 Weightless Indicator – A Toy Dinosaur

Traditionally, the crew of a launch takes a small toy on board. Why? So that when they become weightless, you can see it floating around the cabin. It’s their zero gravity indicator. When you watch the launch, you will see the dinosaur multiple times in the video feed bouncing around the cabin.

As I was watching the live event, I went to the SpaceX store to see if I could buy one of the dinosaurs, and I was shocked to see it was available. BUY! Yes, I bought it, and sent a link to friends and family if they were interested in grabbing one as well. Literally five minutes later they were sold out. Crazy.

The dinosaur has become part of the background of my home office that will be seen when I am doing video calls or creating YouTube videos. It’s important to me as a reminder of my goal to get to space… and that the opportunity is getting closer.

In spite of the pandemic, Are you finding joy?

I shared this story for a few reasons:

• We all need to have something that we’re passionate about. Better yet, multiple somethings.
• In spite of current major issues, there are amazing things happening in this country.
• It’s okay to remember the hopes and dreams of your childhood. As an adult, you have even more means to make those dreams happen.

How are you finding joy in 2020? I would love to hear from you. And as always, thanks for reading!