Fire in the Sky

February 3, 2003 9:32 PM

Fire in the Sky.
Perhaps you saw moonwalk veteran astronaut Buzz Aldrin attempt on NBC to read a poem he received in e-mail Saturday, and falter in tears. It was actually lyrics to the Jordin Kare song "Fire in the Sky," a tribute to manned space exploration:
Prometheus, they say, brought God's fire down to man.
And we've caught it, tamed it, trained it since our history began.
Now we're going back to heaven just to look him in the eye,
and there's a thunder 'cross the land, and a fire in the sky
[via Space.com]
posted by Tubes (7 comments total)

Jordin Kare is also, by trade, a Rocket Scientist, specializing in sensors and propulsion -- which is how he met Buzz, and most likely, handed Buzz a tape, which is why Buzz had those lyrics.

He is also a punster of infamous skills, has T-Shirts reading "Nerd" and "Yes, I am a Rocket Scientist", and sold me my laser printer. He's also one of the world truly good people, and I'm honored to know him.
posted by eriko at 10:35 PM on February 3, 2003

Prometheus? I couldn't help but think Icarus.
posted by muckster at 11:27 PM on February 3, 2003

Icarus is mentioned in the next verse.
posted by hattifattener at 12:31 AM on February 4, 2003

Fire in the sky is a track from the eventually-to-be-released National Space Society CD. You can listen to more of it at the Prometheus Music web site, as well as the virtual filksing containing more wonderful(?) music.
posted by CrunchyFrog at 6:16 AM on February 4, 2003

Actually Buzz said on air that he got it via email earlier that day.
posted by konolia at 8:55 AM on February 4, 2003

The Prometheus Project is also the name given to the project that GWBush signed off on just a week before the Columbia Tragedy. The Project intends to use nuclear powered propulsion in future spaceship configuration, in hopes of using nuclear energy to propel manned spaceflights to Mars and beyond. Those opponents of nuclear technology, of which Buzz may be one, would certainly cry at the mention of that word.
posted by ZachsMind at 12:34 PM on February 4, 2003

Though a nation watched her falling, yet a world could only cry.
As they passed from us to glory, riding fire in the sky.

I believe this is the portion he quoted. I heard it in realtime.
posted by konolia at 3:09 PM on February 4, 2003