Welcome home, Sandy. An exciting adventure for you (and for all of us on the ground)!

I remember you said, when we were students at Rolla, you were thinking about the idea of going into space. After all, if Sally Ride did it, you thought you could to.

And you did it; even surpassing your role model.

In the same way, those growing up today will look at you as a role model, and someday will even surpass what you have done.

As Sir Isaac Newton said, "If I have been able to see further than others, it is because I have stood on the shoulders of giants."

After your post flight activities, go take some well deserved R&R. Congratulations!

Bob Stevens
Mo S&T 76-81 84-85

Welcome home Sandy. You did the astronaut program proud. Get some rest and tell us all about how it was to be up there!

Hello! The blog says, "so ends a long adventure". I was wondering whether it really does end there. I imagine that part of going to space is the return - the adjustment to earth, getting to see one's family again, getting used to gravity, and recovering physically. This is a great blog, and I hope we can hear about your re-entry process.

Congrats Sandy and welcome home. I was glued to nasa tv these past few weeks watching everything that was going on with your team and the space station.
Amazing things are going on up there because of you!

I'm really glad you made a safe trip back to earth =) Hope you are adjusting well to earth aswell!

Job well done =)

Jeff

Dr. Magnus, please know that I believe you are an incredibly brave human being. I wish you were my next-door neighbor, so that when the spotlight dims, my wife and I could have you over for dinner and then ask you the three million questions we have for you. I can remember being in school watching Grissom and Glenn in the classroom make their historic flights, and for years being an ardent "fan" of our space program. But somewhere along the line my focus turned elsewhere. By pure coincidence, my wife and I had just visited the Kennedy Space Center this past Saturday when we learned the Discovery would be landing in mid-afternoon. We went over to the refuge to find the "right spot" to see Discovery land. This was our first Shuttle landing, and we had no idea there would be a sonic boom ahead of seeing the shuttle. What a thrill it was to hear that big "boom", and then to look back and forth across the cloud-filled sky to see Discovery the second she appeared. I must tell you, it was a very emotional moment for me, realizing one again, as I had in those early years, how special our astronauts are, and how very happy I was to know you had come back safely. In summary, I am a fan of the Program, always have been. I was "away" for a while. Thank you very much for bringing me back.

What did you miss the most on Earth while being in space? What was it like to be in space and see all the amazing sights? I've always wanted to be a astronaut or rocket scientist, so I really look up to you.

Hello, just wanted to say I have enjoyed reading through your posts.

You allowed me to sense what it would be like and can only say that I envy you. You are a very lucky person. Thank you for sharing your experience.

Terry