Endurance: A Year in Space, A Lifetime of Discovery
Scott Kelly, 2017
Knopf Doubleday
384 pp.
ISBN-13: 9781524731595
Summary
A stunning memoir from the astronaut who spent a record-breaking year aboard the International Space Station—a candid account of his remarkable voyage, of the journeys off the planet that preceded it, and of his colorful formative years.
The veteran of four space flights and the American record holder for consecutive days spent in space, Scott Kelly has experienced things very few have.
Now, he takes us inside a sphere utterly inimical to human life. He describes navigating the extreme challenge of long-term spaceflight, both existential and banal:
♦ the devastating effects on the body;
♦ the isolation from everyone he loves and the comforts of Earth;
♦ the pressures of constant close cohabitation;
♦ the catastrophic risks of depressurization or colliding with space junk;
♦ the still more haunting threat of being unable to help should tragedy strike at home — an agonizing situation Kelly faced when, on another mission, his twin brother's wife, Gabrielle Giffords, was shot while he still had two months in space.
Kelly's humanity, compassion, humor, and passion resonate throughout, as he recalls his rough-and-tumble New Jersey childhood and the youthful inspiration that sparked his astounding career, and as he makes clear his belief that Mars will be the next, ultimately challenging step in American spaceflight.
A natural storyteller and modern-day hero, Kelly has a message of hope for the future that will inspire for generations to come. Here, in his personal story, we see the triumph of the human imagination, the strength of the human will, and the boundless wonder of the galaxy. (From the publisher.)
Author Bio
• Birth—February 21, 1964
• Where—Orange, New Jersey, USA
• Education—B.S., State University of New York Maritime College; M.S., University of Tennessee
• Currently—lives in
Scott Joseph Kelly is an engineer, retired American astronaut, and a retired U.S. Navy Captain. A veteran of four space flights, Kelly commanded the International Space Station (ISS) on Expeditions 26, 45, and 46.
Personal life
He was born in Orange, New Jersey, to Patricia and Richard Kelly, and raised in the nearby community of West Orange. He attended Mountain High School along with his identical twin brother Mark. While in high school, Kelly worked as an emergency medical technician.
Following high school, Kelly attended the State University of New York Maritime College, where he received a B.S. degree in Electrical Engineering. He went on to earn an M.S. degree in Aviation Systems from the University of Tennessee, Knoxville, in 1996.
Kelly He was married to Leslie S. Yandell and has two daughters, Samantha and Charlotte. The couple is now divorced. Kelly's sister-in-law is Gabrielle Giffords, the former congresswoman from Arizona.
Naval career
Scott Kelly received his commission via the Navy Reserve Officer Training Corps (NROTC) following graduation from the State University of New York Maritime College in May 1987. He was designated a Naval Aviator in July 1989 at Naval Air Station Chase Field in Beeville, Texas.
He reported to Fighter Squadron 101 (VF-101) at Naval Air Station Oceana, Virginia, for initial F-14 Tomcat training. Upon completion of this training, he was assigned to Fighter Squadron 143 (VF-143) and made overseas deployments to the North Atlantic, Mediterranean Sea, Red Sea and Persian Gulf aboard the aircraft carrier USS Dwight D. Eisenhower.
Scott Kelly was selected to attend the U.S. Naval Test Pilot School at Naval Air Station Patuxent River, Maryland in January 1993 and completed training in June 1994. After graduation, he worked as a test pilot at the Strike Aircraft Test Squadron, Naval Air Warfare Center, Aircraft Division, at Patuxent River, flying the F-14A/B/D, F/A-18A/B/C/D and KC-130F.
Kelly was the first pilot to fly an F-14 with an experimental digital flight control system installed and performed subsequent high angle of attack and departure testing.
He has logged more than 8,000 flight-hours in more than 40 different aircraft and spacecraft. Kelly has more than 250 carrier landings.
After attaining the rank of Captain in the U.S. Navy, Kelly retired from active duty on June 1, 2012 after 25 years of Naval service and continued to serve as an astronaut and civil servant until his second retirement in April 2016.
NASA career
Selected by NASA in April 1996, Kelly reported to the Johnson Space Center in August 1996. On completion of training, he was assigned to technical duties in the Astronaut Office Spacecraft Systems/Operations Branch.
Kelly's first spaceflight was as pilot of Space Shuttle Discovery, during STS-103 in December 1999. This was the third servicing mission to the Hubble Space Telescope, and lasted for just under eight days.
His second spaceflight was as mission commander of STS-118, a 12-day Space Shuttle mission to the International Space Station in August 2007.
The third spaceflight was as commander of Expedition 26 on the ISS. He arrived 9 October 2010, on a Russian Soyuz spacecraft, during Expedition 25, and served as a flight engineer until it ended. He took over command of the station on 25 November 2010, at the start of Expedition 26 which began officially when the spacecraft Soyuz TMA-19 undocked, carrying the previous commander of the station, Douglas H. Wheelock. Expedition 26 ended on 16 March 2011 with the departure of Soyuz TMA-01M. This was Kelly's first long-duration spaceflight.
In November 2012, Kelly was selected, along with Mikhail Korniyenko, for a special 340 day so called year-long mission to the International Space Station. Their year in space commenced 27 March 2015 with the start of Expedition 43, continued through the entirety of Expeditions 44, and 45, both of which Kelly commanded. He passed command to Timothy Kopra[8] on 29 February 2016, when the ISS 11 month mission ended. He returned to Earth aboard Soyuz TMA-18M on 1 March 2016.
In October 2015, he set the record for the total accumulated number of days spent in space by an American astronaut, 520. This record was broken in 2016 by astronaut Jeff Williams.
For the ISS year long mission, Kelly spent 340 consecutive days (11 months, 3 days) in space. Kelly's identical twin brother, Mark Kelly, is a former astronaut. The Kelly brothers are the only siblings to have traveled in space. On March 12, 2016, Kelly announced his retirement for April 2016. (Adapted from Wikipedia. Retrieved 10/12/2017.)
Book Reviews
It’s fascinating stuff, a tale of aches and pains, of boredom punctuated by terror and worries about what’s happening in the dark and back down on Earth. A worthy read for space buffs, to say nothing of anyone contemplating a voyage to the stars.
Kirkus Reviews
Discussion Questions
Use our LitLovers Book Club Resources; they can help with discussions for any book:
• How to Discuss a Book (helpful discussion tips)
• Generic Discussion Questions—Fiction and Nonfiction
• Read-Think-Talk (a guided reading chart)
(We'll add publisher questions if and when they're available.)