When veteran actor, William Shatner, made an October 2021 trip to outer space on Bezos' Blue Origin space shuttle - he didn't realize that it would leave him with mixed emotions.
The former Star Trek actor, 91, became the oldest living person to go into outer space during that voyage - and wrote about the spectacular experience in his new memoirs Boldy Go: Reflections on a Life of Awe and Wonder. And this week, a few excerpts were published exclusively by Variety.
Shatner's excerpt began by describing the crew, which included "tech mogul Glen de Vries, Blue Origin Vice President and former NASA International Space Station flight controller Audrey Powers, and former NASA engineer Dr. Chris Boshuizen."
"During our preparation, we had gone up eleven flights of the gantry to see what it would be like when the rocket was there. We were then escorted to a thick cement room with oxygen tanks," he added, later revealing that this was a safe room in case the rocket should explode.
The father-of-three continued his anecdote, noting the feeling of the air pressure as he ascended into space: "As we ascended, I was at once aware of pressure. Gravitational forces pulling at me. The g's. There was an instrument that told us how many g's we were experiencing. At two g's, I tried to raise my arm, and could barely do so. At three g's, I felt my face being pushed down into my seat."
"And then, suddenly, relief. No g's. Zero. Weightlessness. We were floating," Shatner continued.
Perhaps most fascinating was the actor's description of his experience. At first, he notes that he had initially anticipated that his space voyage would be "the next beautiful step" to fully understanding the universe.
However, Shatner surprised himself with the intense feelings he felt on that trip. He explained: "I had a different experience, because I discovered that the beauty isn't out there, it's down here, with all of us. Leaving that behind made my connection to our tiny planet even more profound. It was among the strongest feelings of grief I have ever encountered."
"The contrast between the vicious coldness of space and the warm nurturing of Earth below filled me with overwhelming sadness. Every day, we are confronted with the knowledge of further destruction of Earth at our hands: the extinction of animal species, of flora and fauna... things that took five billion years to evolve, and suddenly we will never see them again because of the interference of mankind," he wrote.
"It filled me with dread. My trip to space was supposed to be a celebration; instead, it felt like a funeral."
Shatner mentioned that he was not alone in his feelings, as many astronauts often experience this "Overview Effect," per People. It was first described by space author, Frank White, who wrote that seeing planet Earth from space can change a person's perspective on the world and on life.
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