General Space Quotes

[Vargr Breath]

Oh! I have slipped the surly bonds of Earth
And danced the skies on laughter-silvered wings;
Sunward I’ve climbed, and joined the tumbling mirth
Of sun-split clouds, – and done a hundred things
You have not dreamed of – wheeled and soared and swung
High in the sunlit silence. Hov’ring there,
I’ve chased the shouting wind along, and flung
My eager craft through footless halls of air…

Up, up the long, delirious burning blue
I’ve topped the wind-swept heights with easy grace
Where never lark, or ever eagle flew –
And, while with silent, lifting mind I’ve trod
The high untrespassed sanctity of space,
Put out my hand, and touched the face of God

John G. Magee

One of his wingmen lived in Southern Illinois about 10 miles from where my mom lives. I wish I had known about him when he was still alive.

 

[Dragoner]

One of his wingmen lived in Southern Illinois about 10 miles from where my mom lives. I wish I had known about him when he was still alive.

I was noticing that it seems all the best war poets, die in the war, weird.

 

[Condottiere]

Lost in thought.

 

[Ekofisk]

“I’ve been thinking about laws on Mars. There’s an international treaty saying that no country can lay claim to anything that’s not on Earth. By another treaty if you’re not in any country’s territory, maritime law applies. So Mars is international waters. Now, NASA is an American non-military organization, it owns the Hab. But the second I walk outside I’m in international waters. So Here’s the cool part. I’m about to leave for the Schiaparelli Crater where I’m going to commandeer the Ares IV lander. Nobody explicitly gave me permission to do this, and they can’t until on board the Ares IV. So I’m going to be taking a craft over in international waters without permission, which by definition… makes me a pirate. Mark Watney: Space Pirate.”

 

[Vargr Breath]

“I’ve been thinking about laws on Mars. There’s an international treaty saying that no country can lay claim to anything that’s not on Earth. By another treaty if you’re not in any country’s territory, maritime law applies. So Mars is international waters. Now, NASA is an American non-military organization, it owns the Hab. But the second I walk outside I’m in international waters. So Here’s the cool part. I’m about to leave for the Schiaparelli Crater where I’m going to commandeer the Ares IV lander. Nobody explicitly gave me permission to do this, and they can’t until on board the Ares IV. So I’m going to be taking a craft over in international waters without permission, which by definition… makes me a pirate. Mark Watney: Space Pirate.”

 

[Timerover51]

Oh! I have slipped the surly bonds of Earth
And danced the skies on laughter-silvered wings;
Sunward I’ve climbed, and joined the tumbling mirth
Of sun-split clouds, – and done a hundred things
You have not dreamed of – wheeled and soared and swung
High in the sunlit silence. Hov’ring there,
I’ve chased the shouting wind along, and flung
My eager craft through footless halls of air…

Up, up the long, delirious burning blue
I’ve topped the wind-swept heights with easy grace
Where never lark, or ever eagle flew –
And, while with silent, lifting mind I’ve trod
The high untrespassed sanctity of space,
Put out my hand, and touched the face of God

John G. Magee

I can remember when TV stations used that for their sign off at night. I love that poem.

 

[Dragoner]

I can remember when TV stations used that for their sign off at night. I love that poem.

It's great, I can imagine him soaring through the wild blue in a spitfire.

 

[Timerover51]

I finally decided to try and find this. It is on archive.org. They made a Twilight Zone episode about it. From Damon Knight.

"And the book?" I demanded, annoyed. "What about that — 'How to Serve Man'? That wasn't put there for you to read. They mean it. How do you explain that?"

"I've read the first' paragraph of that book," he said. "Why do you suppose I haven't slept for a week?"

I said, "Well?" and he smiled that curious, twisted smile, as if he really wanted to cry instead. "It's a cookbook," he said.

 

[Spinward Scout]

"I’m sure the universe is full of intelligent life. It’s just been too intelligent to come here."
- Arthur C. Clarke, 2001: A Space Odyssey