Astronaut gives other-Earthly perspective at prayer breakfast

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  • By Chrissy Cuttita
EGLIN AIR FORCE BASE, Fla. --  After a 15 day journey logging 362 flight hours around Earth and a can of gummy worms, an Air Force astronaut was able to step back from ordinary life to capture the big picture.

During Eglin's annual National Prayer Breakfast, Col. James Dutton shared a PowerPoint presentation of pictures of his expedition aboard Discovery in April 2010, from a sunrise launch to sharing a sweet snack with his toddler to express the sense of awe that only God can give.

"Colonel Dutton, you gave us a feel for what it is like to touch the heavens," said Maj. Gen. Kenneth Merchant, the Air Armament Center commander, after the event held here March 1. "Days like today give us the opportunity to consider what we think about faith and what gets us through the tough days, especially during the challenging times we have today. What better way to deflect our stress with war, budget and fiscal responsibilities here than to go back to that faith and give others hope by offering them something to lean on."

Having the opportunity to step away from the world as he knew it, Dutton discovered a new reflection as he began to explain his experience to audiences at speaking engagements on the Discovery mission.

"The world around us is really amazing," he said. "Our sense of wonder we had as a kid is often lost when we become adults."

The astronaut realized this simple truth while watching his toddler get excited about eating gummy worms and repeating words he knew being spoken on television. It made Dutton remember all of the things that gave him a sense of awe in space.

"Being in orbit was like being a two-year old and being a fighter pilot is like being a six-year-old again," he joked.

Dutton's listed his top three awe factors as the technical aspects behind the Discovery's engine, life working in space and the perspective he got after returning home.

"It's an amazing experience to feel the power behind you," he said about the thrust that pushed his vessel out of Earth's envelope. "You could convince yourself you are on the best amusement park ride ever, unless you look out the window."

Adapting to zero gravity was a feat to get over once he was afloat above our planet, a place he first dreamed of being when he was his youngest of four son's age.

"You eventually learn some things are easy, some things are hard," Dutton said. "Everything is more fun up there. After five days it becomes normal to have a conversation with people who are upside down."

Flying mash potatoes across the dinner table to share with friends aboard the International Space Station, walking with hands and staring at water droplets are among the items the astronaut had to acclimate to while living in space.

"We'd bounce back and forth from working serious 'life at stake' missions to figuring out how to pass an M&M," said Dutton.

But overall, he said during his 15-day mission, he focused solely on data taking and didn't have moments of revelation until he was reunited with this family.

"We spent a lot of time with our noses pressed to the window figuring out where we were in line with Earth below," said Dutton. "It all looked so different than we know."

From the "glass bowl" his astronaut team would cram in to look out at the universe around them with a 360 degree view through seven windows surrounding them. Days and nights would appear approximately 10 times within their work hours.

"There is something out there worthy of our awe," said Dutton who believes it is tremendously evident there is a God of the universe to be seen not only from the stars, but here in our daily life looking out at the nature and people around us.