NASA just sent four astronauts the furthest humans have ever been from Earth, 252,756 miles away. I watched it live streaming with my kids. At first they didn’t care. Then they got sucked in. Then the whole thing was mesmerizing. The photos of the moon, the closest, highest definition ever taken, are spectacular, as is the compressed video of the moon approach. That humans are so far away, while we’re here walking around on the planet is incredible to comprehend.
I’ve read a ton of books on the Apollo missions, the space race and space travel in general (I’m fascinated by it). My favorite book on the subject is Rocket Men: The Daring Odyssey of Apollo 8 and the Astronauts Who Made Man’s First Journey to the Moon by Robert Kurson.
My favorite parts about this book, and all the other ones about space travel, are the stories of the astronauts themselves. And of all those stories, my favorite astronaut is a guy you likely don’t remember, but I promise, after reading this short column, you will.
Twenty-five schools have been named after him. Planetariums, parks and playgrounds live on in his memory. He was a 5th degree karate black belt, a saxophonist, earned a PhD from MIT and was an astronaut, brother, husband and father of two.
Get ready for the true story of the remarkable Dr. Ronald McNair:
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We begin in Lake City, South Carolina. It’s 1959. McNair was born in a home with no indoor plumbing in a segregated, rural, then all-black section of Lake City, South Carolina. He picked tobacco and cotton in middle school when he wasn’t in class. Twelve hour days in the searing sun.
But when he was in school, Ron was a bona fide prodigy. Brilliant in science, chemistry and math. A vicious tackler on the football team and ace in the classroom. And he’s loaded with grit.
When he was only nine-years-old, McNair walked alone through his town to check out books from the local library. He goes in, finds a bunch of titles he wants to take home, heads to the checkout desk and…is told he’s not allowed to take out the books.
Because he’s a kid? No. Because he’s black.
The library’s in a segregated part of town and the white librarian won’t give him the books. She asks him to leave. Young Ronald says, “Not without the books.”
The librarian takes the stack of books and puts them on her side of the counter. Then she calls the police – on a nine-year-old who wants to read more.
Ronald doesn’t budge. The police arrive and so does his mother. Ronald is unfazed. The kid has grit. He wants to learn. He doesn’t back down and neither does his mom and they win. He’s allowed to check out the books and Ronald leaves with a stack of stories piled high in his hands and a smile on his face.
Cut to a few decades later and guess what?
That municipal building that houses the library is now named after him:
The Ronald McNair Life History Center
But we’ll get to how that happened in a minute…
As a teen, McNair is obsessed with reading and learning and it helps that he’s a legitimate genius. He graduates high school as class valedictorian. Then graduates magna cum laude with an engineering physics degree from North Carolina A&T. Next, he enrolls in the most prestigious technical school in the country: MIT
But McNair is more than just book smart. He loves sports. Loves competing. In particular, he excels at karate, taking home an AAU gold medal and 5 regional black belt championships at his competitive peak. Over time he works his way up to a 5th degree black belt and even inspires a kid named Neil DeGrasse Tyson to be well-rounded.
Physics. Sports. Karate… This still barely scratches the surface of McNair’s gifts.
He loves music. Takes up the jazz saxophone and becomes highly skilled. Even composing his own pieces and studying from historical and contemporary masters in college -all while becoming a renowned expert on lasers at MIT, of course.
World-famous MIT physics professor Michael Feld takes Ron under his wing. In turn, McNair begins teaching Feld karate. McNair graduates MIT with honors and earns his PhD.
Then, his life takes off.
In 1978, NASA opens enrollment for their next group of astronauts. They receive 8,000 of the highest qualified applicants for any job ever. Over the course of a few months they cut the 8,000 down to 35. One of the 35 is McNair. He makes the program and becomes a Mission Specialist.
In 1984, aboard the Space Shuttle Challenger, he becomes the 2nd Black man to fly in space. He logs 191 hours on the 8-day mission. Even performs the first space sax solo.
Upon returning to earth, McNair is one of the stars of the space program. He’s planning on creating the first original piece of music not composed on earth during his next shuttle mission. He’s mentoring younger scientists. And he’s also a proud and dedicated dad, with two young kids…
McNair is named one of the crew members for the Challenger’s 1986 flight. He’s ecstatic. A chance to go back to space. To learn. To play music. To grow… Then… 73 seconds into its flight on January 28th, 1986, the Challenger explodes.
It’s a national tragedy…
Ron McNair is one of seven Challenger crew members to lose their life that day.
If you were in school at the time, there’s a chance you watched the Challenger explosion in your classroom. Millions of kids did. It was awful. As time has passed, we remember the loss of the astronauts as a whole, but rarely remember the individuals on board. Exceptional individuals like Dr. McNair.
Like I said, I’ve always been intrigued by him. He embodies so much about what a man can accomplish physically, mentally and as a father and husband. He lived a remarkable, accomplished, exciting life. I’d guess just about everyone reading Midlife Male aims for the same thing and after watching the Artemis II footage yesterday, I thought I’d share the story of a truly incredible guy.
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Jon Finkel
Editor-in-Chief, Midlife Male
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