As kids, many dream of journeying to space.
But most people grow up and end up in other careers and fields. What if you had kept that dream alive and kept trying over and over again until you finally made it come true?
Clay Anderson is living proof in the power of persistence.
He grew up in Nebraska remembers the exact day he decided he wanted to be an astronaut. His parents woke him one night in 1968 to watch on TV as the Apollo 8 astronauts traveled around the back side of the moon.
From that moment on, he had one mission in life — getting to space himself. As he grew up, he kept working to reach his goal.
Clay applied — and failed — 14 times to make it into the Astronaut Corps. Finally, on his 15th try, he was accepted.
And in 2007, the 48-year-old not only made it into space, he stayed there. He spent five months at the International Space Station. Clay explains what those five months were like and how it felt to view the Earth on his spacewalks as he was tethered by just a small wire from the ISS.
Plus, find out how spending so much time floating above the Earth changed his perspective about life here and beyond.
Clay returned to space in 2010, at the age of 52, aboard space shuttle Discovery.
He discusses what he sees as the future of the U.S. space program and whether he thinks he’ll make it back to space for a third trip.
Plus, find out what new challenges — and new career path — he may be seeking next. Here’s a hint: he’d be returning to his beloved Midwest to make a difference.