It’s well-known that a change of scenery broadens your perspective, but have you ever considered how space travel affects your mind?
After years of long and hard training, most astronaut You’re probably pretty desensitized to the idea of looking at the Earth from hundreds of miles away.
But apparently nothing can prepare you for the experience. See the universe with your own eyes first time.
The experience is so strange and difficult to comprehend that some astronauts report that their outlook on life has changed completely upon returning to Earth.
For astronaut Mike Massimino, world The view from a space perspective not only left an overwhelming impression on him, but also made him feel like he was seeing something that people “shouldn’t see.”
Massimino, who first visited space in 2002, spoke to Brut magazine alongside fellow astronaut Nicole Stott, saying: I remembered Exactly why Earth feels wrong when viewed from a distance.
“My first reaction was, this is too beautiful for people to see,” he explained, adding:[It felt like] We’re not going to see this, [that] It’s like a secret.”
Mike Massimo has logged more than 500 hours in space. (NASA)
Massimino went on to explain that the emotion was so overwhelming that he turned away from the window for a moment, then looked back after gathering his thoughts.
“Then I got a little emotional and started to tear up a little at the beauty of this planet.”
Looking at the Earth from above also gives a new perspective on the issue of climate change, he said, because widespread changes can be seen from afar.
“If there are drying lake beds, disappearing rainforests or signs of pollution, you can see them from space,” he said.
The former astronaut added that while there is still time to make positive changes to our environment, “we need to give the Earth a chance to heal.”
Massimo is one of many astronauts who have experienced this phenomenon, commonly known as “Summary Effects‘ – Several testimonials by astronauts are available online.
It seems like no photo of Earth beats seeing it in person. (NASA/via Getty Images)
he, interview Astronaut Ron Gallant on Big Think Seeing the Earth for the first time It made me realise how interconnected we all are.
“From space, it’s clear we are living a lie. We need to move from an economy, society, planet mindset to a planet, society, economy mindset,” he said.
“When they realize how interconnected and interdependent we all are, it starts to have an epiphany.”
