Synopsis
Astronaut Tom Jones had trained for years for one climactic moment: his first step through an airlock into the vast nothingness of space. What neither he nor anyone else had counted on was a door that refused to open. But that is the nature of spaceflight-anything can, and sometimes does, go wrong. Ultimately, Jones spent fifty-two days orbiting Earth, including more than nineteen hours outside during extravehicular activity-that is, sky walking.
Publishers Weekly
With humanity and passion (and less swagger than Mike Mullane), Jones powerfully brings to life the world of the modern NASA astronaut. Confined to low Earth orbit, no longer tasked with high-profile trips to the Moon, a small corps of dedicated professional space travelers work on serious science and dream of the day they will fly into space. Countless on-the-ground training hours prepare the astronauts for the rigors of space travel-practicing an extravehicular space walk in a 10-million-gallon tank or being flung around in a 100,000-horsepower centrifuge to acclimate to the eight g's of force experienced on lift-off. A tested B-52 bomber pilot and planetary scientist, Jones still feels and expresses wonder at space flight: "I was thirty-nine when I stepped out on the pad [in 1994] with the rest of the crew, but I gazed up at Endeavor with a child's amazement.... I shivered with excitement at the sight of my now-ready spaceship." While the twin tragedies of Challenger and Columbia hang over the story like a pall, Jones still manages to fire the spirit and invite the reader to imagine a place for humankind beyond planet Earth. (Feb.) Copyright 2005 Reed Business Information.