‘A Million Miles Away’ arrives on Prime Video on Friday, Sept. 15
, then 10, remembers as the point when his unlikely dream of becoming a NASA astronaut began. This new biopic about Hernández’s extraordinary life next shows the young José with holding an ear of corn like an imaginary spaceship outside his family’s Stockton home.The reality, as Hernández describes it in a recent interview with director and co-writer Alejandra Márquez Abella, is more earthbound, though perfect for a 10-year-old boy in that era.
Hernández ultimately made it to space with NASA on a 2009 flight of the Space Shuttle Discovery to the International Space Station. We see the frustrations – Hernández applied 11 times to NASA before he was accepted on the 12th try – and fears. Early in his career at NASA, Hernández saw friends and colleagues perish when the Space Shuttle Columbia broke up in 2003 during reentry to the Earth’s atmosphere.
As soon as I got selected, I noticed a lot of attention was given to me because I was a former migrant farmworker that turned astronaut, and I guess it was a feel-good story. And I noticed I became an instant role model. I embraced it because I took it like a superpower. I said, ‘Hey, I can use this for good and inspire kids to reach their maximum potential. To dream big.
Q: The night of the Apollo 17 launch, and watching that on TV as a boy – that really planted the seed for you?Absolutely. The dream was conceived on that evening. Seeing that launch, every kid during that time wanted to be an astronaut, because it was all over the news. And I was just lucky that that desire, that burning feeling of, ‘Hey, you’ve got to do this!’ never went away. I just kept driving toward that goal and driving toward that goal.
South Africa Latest News, South Africa Headlines
Similar News:You can also read news stories similar to this one that we have collected from other news sources.
Astronaut Frank Rubio breaks US record on way to spending a year in spaceRubio will build upon today's record by becoming the first American to spend a full year in space.
Read more »
NASA astronaut to spend over a year in space, setting new USA recordNASA astronaut Frank Rubio is about to set a new record for the longest space mission in U.S. history.
Read more »
ESA astronaut aboard ISS to document lightning from spaceAstronaut Andreas Mogensen will carry out a series of experiments using a high-tech camera system to film thunderstorms and lightning from space.
Read more »
NASA astronaut Frank Rubio due to break the single spaceflight recordWhen Rubio finally touches down Sept. 27 in a replacement capsule, he will have spent 371 days in space.
Read more »
Astronaut Breaks NASA Record as New Trio Preps for Launch to Space StationThe seven Expedition 69 crew members enjoyed an off-duty day on Monday, September 11, aboard the International Space Station (ISS). They will be welcoming three new crewmates at the end of the week when they launch and dock to the orbital outpost. Upcoming Launch and New Crew Arrival Three future
Read more »
NASA space station astronaut Frank Rubio sets new single-flight endurance recordFrank Rubio moved past NASA astronaut Mark Vande Hei's 355-day record on the way to spending more than a full year in space.
Read more »