View from the top

The subject of my latest series of interviews have climbed to the summit of Mount Everest,but that isn't his primary claim to fame. Scott Parazynski is best known as a veteran NASA astronaut who has travelled 23 million miles aboard five space shuttle missions. He has been on numerous spacewalks totalling 47 hours outside the spacecraft. He was also instrumental in the development of a heat tile repair system to prevent future accidents like the one that claimed Columbia and it's crew.

It was a fun interview, and I was able to cover a lot of groun: from Mount Everest to Mars, so to speak. The first one covers what it's liek to look down from the top of Everest and to look down on the Earth from space. It really changes one's global perspective, Parazynski says. Read more about his feelings about the fragility of Earth at this link.

The second part of the interview dealt with the end of the Space Shuttle program. Parazynski disagrees with the decision to retire the space shuttles before a new crew launch vehicle is available. Read more about this and why he resolved to fly one more time to honor the crew lost in the Columbia accident here.

The third part of the interview is more or less a catch all for everything else that we discussed. What's next for the future of NASA? How does the human body change in the absence of gravity? What are the medical risks of space travel? What do Space Station resident do when a potentially harmful burst of solar flare radiation is heading their way? How does Russian Cosmonaut training differ from NASA astronaut training? If these questions intrigue you, or you're curious about what else I asked, read the third part of  my interview with astronaut Scott Parazynski here.

MTV Anniversary Interviews

A fellow writer, Kimberly Morgan, managed two great interviews on the 30th anniversary of the first MTV broadcast. They used to play music videos and the initials used to stand for Music Television... Those were the good old days. For those like me who remember what MTV was supposed to be or those who don't remember, but are interested, thsese two interviews are highly recommended reading:
Martha Quinn, Voice of the 80's
Nina Blackwood, Still Rocking
Kim did  agreat job securig these interviews in conjunction with the anniversay date. In interviews, like everything else, timing can be very important. Celebrity interviews are great, but when you can wrap them around a piece of timely news like the MTV anniversary, they can be more than just entertainment.