WORDS FROM SPACE

November 5, 1998

A brief excerpt from the news conference in space by John Glenn aboard the "Discovery."

JIM LEHRER: Finally tonight, the "Discovery" mission, which is scheduled to return on Saturday. We begin with a brief excerpt from today's news conference in space. REPORTER: Senator Glenn, I'm wondering, as NASA decides who will staff the international space station in the coming years, what are your thoughts of a person your age spending three to four months at a time in space? SEN. JOHN GLENN: Well, I think that could eventually occur, and I think though probably before they did something like that, they'd want to send more people my age up on a flight like this, where you get more experience. I'll be a data point of one when I get back. And obviously for it to be more meaningful, to set a database, you need more people. I don't see any reason why in the future, though, you couldn't look forward to people - elderly people - being sent on a longer mission on the international space station, as well as on shorter missions I'm on right now. I think you need more people, though, before you want to make that next step. REPORTER: Your wife, Annie, told us this morning that in your e-mails you sound "like a little kid." And I wonder if you might elaborate on that for us, as well as share some of the thoughts that your family has expressed to you while you're in space. SEN. JOHN GLENN: Well, I hope I never grow up to where something new like this is not really - doesn't leave me like a little kid on new experiences, because, you know, I think too many old folks - well, you know, old folks can have dreams too, as well as young folks, and then work toward them, and to have a dream like this come true for me is just a terrific experience, but the main reason is not my personal experience; the main reason, of course, is to do the science, and try and learn more about what happens to my aged body compared to my colleagues, here, and so that's what we're up here after. So as far as the messages we send back and forth here on the e-mail, why, that'll have to remain confidential, I think. Obviously, we're sharing some of the views here, and if I sound a little happy on those, why it's a true expression of how I really feel.