Who's your favorite Astronaut/Cosmonaut? (and why)

[3_bit]

This thread is dedicated to all of those astronauts that don't get a memorial just for themselves.

My 2 favorite astronauts would have to be:

Virgil Grissom (The Gemini capsule was nicknamed the Gusmobile due to his large involvement in it's design)

Michael Collins (Apollo 11 CSM Pilot)

[Uncle Mort]

Buzz Aldrin ~ coz he's the only one I've actually met.

[Flixxbeatz]

Jebediah Kerman. No need to explain why.

[Nikolai]

Charles "Pete" Conrad, Jr. He was famous for saying, "It's better to be colorful than to be right", and he lived like he meant it.

[Pyotor Gagarin]

Neil Armstrong. He always seemed to keep his cool and focus on the job at hand.

[chobit-389]

I find this thread's lack of Gagarin disturbing.

[AmpsterMan]

Gagarin and Armstrong.

Because they are the ones the masses are most familiar (as in, they know their names) with and I am one of the masses

[Flymetothemun]

I've got 3:

Neil Armstrong; First on moon and made of awesome

Chris Hadfield; Shares the ISS with us

Buzz Aldrin; Awesome name and because he said “Beautiful, beautiful. Magnificent desolation.â€Â

[The Destroyer]

Neil and Buzz.

[ajshell1]

Jim Lovell.

I've actually seen him in person.

(Hint: "Houston, we've had a problem")

[The Destroyer]

Jim Lovell.

I've actually seen him in person.

(Hint: "Houston, we've had a problem")

Aha! Apollo 13.

[chobit-389]

Oh, I almost forgot about Liu Yang! And Alexey Leonov... and basically EVERY SINGLE ASTRONAUT/COSMONAUT EVER.

Seriously people, how that #$*( can you pic a single favourite?!

Edited April 25, 2013 by chobit-389

[Nikolai]

Seriously people, how that #$*( can you pic a single favourite?!

I think it has something to do with what Freud called the Tyranny of the Small.

Once you really get interested in something, you start to learn a lot of details. And then you develop passionate opinions about things (because the root subject matter is something that interests you), and the depth of that passion completely bewilders people outside who don't see the point of all the bickering.

For example, in Real Life Rocketry, there's active and ongoing debate among some about whether we should call the thing that makes the rocket go an "engine" or a "motor". It has salient characteristics of both, and ways in which it resembles neither. And some people care a whole awful lot that their preferred nomenclature be used. (My personal favorite take was someone who suggested that the whole traditional naming system ought to be ditched, and we should call it something completely different, like "whoosh generator".)

Besides, in picking favorites, no one's implying that other astronauts/cosmonauts are second-best... just that there's something about their personality or career or some other random detail that intrigues us.

[bsalis]

Any person who boards a rocket to head to space is legend in my books.

It's like rolling a dice. With advancing science or dying the only outcomes.

[Jones-250]

"ßþõхðûø!!" (Poyekhali!, Lets go!). Usually I´m not very fond of russians, however Yuri Gagarin (awesome name btw) carries a curious type of charisma. He was quite short as well, which was one of the requirements for a cosmonaut as the capsules were quite tiny at the time. Both of these aspects makes me consider him the Jebediah Kerman IRL.

Oh yeah, everyone who has contributed to develop our common future is awesome. Especially the astro-/cosmonauts.

[flyin_ruski]

Chris Hadfield because of his use of twitter (which I only have to see his posts) and facebook to bring the station and life aboard to a younger generation.

Yuri Gagarin because....well no explanation is necessary. He led the way! Him and the countless technicians, engineers, and scientists who made it possible of course....

[Fredonia]

Neil and Buzz... They were the first two to walk on the Moon. Neil stabilized Gemini 8. Buzz punched a conspiracy theorist right in the jaw. Armstrong had the tip of one of his fingers cut off and he just packed it on ice and had them reattach it. Badasses, I tell ya, badasses.

Jim Lovell... The man has an awesome personality.

[Nikolai]

It's like rolling a dice. With advancing science or dying the only outcomes.

A two-sided die? Like a coin?

Sometimes, though, the two aren't mutually exclusive. Which is why I have fierce admiration for people who do this, and the people who try to make things that allow them to do it and survive.

[Custard Donut (In Space)]

I'm going to go with Michael Collins, the reason being because i've always been a little scared of the dark side of the moon and i could really visualise his time in the dark there, his radio would cut off when he lost sight of Earth and he'd be all alone even though he said he never felt any fear, it always left an impression on me, i was also impressed with his humility.

[hugix]

I wish I could say CHuck Yeager, but because the Mercury program required pilots with an education Chuck could not join.

I am really fond of the Mercury 7 astronauts, especially during that period.

[nothke]

When I started following space missions, Mike Fincke was my favorite, but now it's gotta be Chris Hadfield.. I mean, they named a street and a high school by his name!