Synopses & Reviews
Synopsis
Inside the helmet of a NASA legend.
Astronaut Dr. Scott Parazynski was raised in the shadow of the Apollo Program, where his father, a rocket scientist and engineer, worked. In The Sky Below, his intimate memoir, he offers a rare portrait of NASA from the inside. As an era of moon missions transitioned to the era of the space shuttle, space station, and Mars research, Parazynski flew five missions to outer space and conducted seven spacewalks in his seventeen-year career. Mission highlights include a global ozone mapping mission on STS-66, leading the first joint US-Russian spacewalk during STS-86 while docked to the Russian space station Mir, and serving as Senator John Glenn's crewmate and personal physician during STS-95.
In October 2007, Parazynski famously led the spacewalking team on STS-120, a highly complex space station assembly flight. His spacewalk was regarded by many as one of the most challenging and dangerous ever performed. He is the only astronaut to have climbed Mount Everest, which he achieved in 2009 after a near-death injury on his first attempt the year before.
The Sky Below is an unparalleled opportunity to viscerally feel what it s like to train for and deploy to a home in zero gravity, while also portraying a passionate astronaut s engagement with the challenges of Earth and the destiny of love.
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Synopsis
"Scott Parazynski's drive, curiosity, inventiveness, and great humor shine through the pages of The Sky Below and will certainly inspire future generations to pursue their dreams with every fiber in their being." --John Glenn, NASA astronaut
An epic memoir from a man whose life is defined by exploration and innovation, The Sky Below re-creates some of the most unforgettable adventures of our time. From dramatic, high-risk spacewalks to author Scott Parazynski's death-defying quest to summit Mount Everest--his body ravaged by a career in space--readers will experience the life of an elite athlete, physician, and explorer.
This intimate, compelling account offers a rare portrait of space exploration from the inside. A global nomad raised in the shadow of NASA's Apollo missions, Parazynski never lost sight of his childhood dream to one day don a spacesuit and float outside the airlock. With deep passion, unbridled creativity, resilience, humility, and self-deprecation, Parazynski chases his dream of the ultimate adventure experience, again and again and again. In an era that transitioned from moon shots to the Space Shuttle, space station, and Mars research, Parazynski flies with John Glenn, tests jet packs, trains in Russia to become a cosmonaut, and flies five missions to outer space (including seven spacewalks) in his seventeen-year NASA career.
An unparalleled, visceral opportunity to understand what it's like to train for--and deploy to--a home in zero gravity, The Sky Below also portrays an astronaut's engagement with the challenges of his life on Earth, including raising a beautiful autistic daughter and finding true love.