Hee! Just saw this story on Space.com, and I figured it would amuse you all:
Astronauts Would Live in Space Module ‘Colbert’
By Tariq Malik
posted: 07 April 2009
09:57 am ETAstronauts aboard the International Space Station say they would welcome the arrival of the outpost’s new orbital room, even if it is named after comedian Stephen Colbert.
NASA astronaut Michael Barratt currently living aboard the space station said he is confident the right name will be chosen for the outpost’s new Node 3, which is slated to be delivered early next year.
“I’m sure that the right people will make the right decision,” Barratt told reporters via a video link last week. “We’ll be happy to live in the node whatever it’s called.”
. . .
Barratt said he missed much of the excitement surrounding Node 3′s naming poll because he spent the last few months in Russia training for his March 26 launch to the station. It was only after he arrived at the outpost, that the station’s crew filled him in.
. . .
There’s more, too. Read the full article to see what delivery astronaut Kay Hire has to say about it. Very cool stuff!
[Of course, I can't read about Node 3 without thinking of a story I saw on Rachel Maddow a while back. It seems that the "water recovery system" was broken, and one of the astronauts had been tasked to fix it, which Rachel thought sounded like the worst job in the world. That may be true, but I still think the person who discovered that ths WRS was broken deserves a little sympathy, too. Eek!]
Kay Hire said she was going to cast her own vote before the polls closed, but they’ve already closed! Is the voting still open to NASA employees?
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International Space Station Astronauts = It-Getters! I think Garrett Reisman needs to step in here and throw his weight around. Hehe… C’mon, NASA! Do the right thing!
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Go Stephen! This is the most interesting thing to happen to NASA since NERAC!
I believe Democracy will win out! It would be a major faux pas for NASA to disregard Colbert Nation.
This is the attention they crave. Let’s give it to them!
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“‘I’m sure that the right people will make the right decision,’ Barratt told reporters via a video link last week. ‘We’ll be happy to live in the node whatever it’s called.’”
Way to be non-committal Barratt..pick a side, we’re at war! ;)
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What do they mean “even if” it’s named after Stephen? Lol. Why are they making such a big deal out of it? :P
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For those of you who read the full post (including some of the replies), what do you think of NASA’s idea of possibly naming the space station’s toilet after Stephen?
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I don’t think much of it. He brought the attention and interest of thousands of people to NASA and their missions – people who otherwise would have never known about the node, or cared. Stephen’s doing them a service in even mentioning the space station on air, let alone directing people to their website. Because he convinced enough people to vote that he won the competition (by a wide margin), he deserves thanks and recognition from NASA. It seems to me that they’re being a little bit unappreciative of his efforts. But if naming a toilet after him is the best they can do, so be it.
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