On the wall of my office (and I mean the entire wall) is a mural of Earthrise, the iconic image taken on the historic Apollo 8 mission of Christmas 1968. This actual image, and the greater frame of the entire lunar effort that produced the image, for me captures the essence of that moment in time when all the nations of the earth truly were as one. We are exquisitely fortunate to live in any historical proximity at all to this defining achievement of the era, while detailed records and direct participants are still clear and available.

It's common knowledge that much of the difficulty was not only in the “small step for a man” but also his safe return to the earth. Inbound at breakneck speed an otherwise tedious trip home was furiously arrested by a thick, fiery atmosphere. This rapid reentry shock has to be done just right, and this is so not only as a physical but also as a psychological effect. The transition of humanity from a single- to multi-planet species represented a unprecedented shock level in perception. This goes beyond memorizing minutiae of the missions, this goes to the core of who we are and why we are here.

The shock of Kennedy's sudden removal from office also dealt a blow to the psyche of a generation. However no bullet has sufficient magic to extinguish hope and determination. Hope for all on the good earth grew from his challenge to make good things happen. (To whatever extent prayers and belly rubbings helped count me in, though I've never had good luck counting on lucky numbers.)

One of the supreme accomplishments of science is that peaceful image of earth as seen from space. Our planet is revealed as one body in that image, undivided except by natural features on grand scales. The sensitive network of the biosphere may interpret toxic disturbance as damage and route accordingly. Then there's the cost. Our species immaturely focuses resources (surplus and otherwise) on fruitless self-destruction instead of attempts at replication.

Human lives are punctuated by shocks, sometimes pleasant, often not so. I suspect the same thing may happen to species as well. Destiny long anticipated that step and now that it had happened, what was next? Back in 1968 the world was on a brink of almost literal national and international meltdown. In some ways the threat remains real we may yet succumb. So what to do next, to get over the slump? Let's examine that next week.


Back to Dr.TOS
Back to top