John M. Grunsfeld Quotes

John M. Grunsfeld

Profession : Astronaut

Birth : October 10, 1958

Absolutely the most fun thing to do in space and rewarding thing, in many ways, is to look back at planet Earth.

John M. Grunsfeld

It's pretty amazing to me that we have had a space shuttle program that's lasted for 30 years - for one space shuttle. That's quite an achievement.

John M. Grunsfeld

The truth is, every single rocket launch off of planet Earth is risky.

John M. Grunsfeld

Being an astronaut, there are not a lot of things that have really shocked me in my life.

John M. Grunsfeld

The moon's a nice place to visit, but you wouldn't want to live there.

John M. Grunsfeld

Here on Earth, we're exposed to asteroids hitting the Earth, eventual changes in the Sun, changes in the Earth's climate, things we're doing to the Earth's climate. If we want to survive, we need to become a multi-planet species. That's further down the road, but the first wave is going to be the explorers.

John M. Grunsfeld

I'm absolutely compelled for NASA to send international astronauts to Mars to find out if Mars ever harbored life.

John M. Grunsfeld

Science at NASA is all about exploring the endless frontier of the Earth and space.

John M. Grunsfeld

The best would be to fly in space with family and friends.

John M. Grunsfeld

Because of Hubble and other telescopes, we've now discovered that there are probably planets around every star, or virtually every star. There are solar systems around most stars. And the fact that we're here on a planet, Earth, means that it's likely there's lots of other Earths out there.

John M. Grunsfeld

Regardless of what dreams you have, work very hard, play very hard, and have fun.

John M. Grunsfeld

I see no difference between scientific exploration and human exploration.

John M. Grunsfeld

Growing up in Highland Park, in high school, I had some very influential teachers: I had a math teacher who taught calculus that helped me learn to be in love with mathematics; I had a chemistry teacher who inspired us to work what was in the class and to go beyond.

John M. Grunsfeld

I'm an incurable romantic. But I'm not an adrenaline junkie.

John M. Grunsfeld

Asteroid detection, tracking, and defense of our planet is something that NASA, its interagency partners, and the global community take very seriously.

John M. Grunsfeld

I think that space exploration as a broad activity is the most important things that humans can do. I've always found it fascinating, interesting, compelling, and I have a drive to go out into space.

John M. Grunsfeld

At the age of six, I declared that I wanted to be an astronaut. My mother thought that was just fine, as it would encourage me to learn science, and besides, there really was no chance I would ever actually become an astronaut.

John M. Grunsfeld

I don't particularly want to jump out of an airplane with a parachute if I don't have to. I don't want to go bungee jumping. I like adventure with a real purpose that I can buy into.

John M. Grunsfeld

When I grew up on the south side of Chicago, it was kind of a rough neighborhood, and when my parents saw the prospect of my older sister going to middle school, high school, they decided that we would move to the north side of Chicago, Highland Park, and for me, that was a whole new ballgame.

John M. Grunsfeld

If I could live in space, I would definitely do that.

John M. Grunsfeld