Time: 2024-09-11
On September 11 , an unprecedented terrorist attack happen at the World Trade Center in New York . Frank L. Culbertson Jr. , an astronaut with NASA , was the lone American not on Earth at the time . He capture the scene from 250 mile up in space , pickings a cooling image of a smoke plume rise from Manhattan . Culbertson write a letter express his daze and horror upon learning about the attack and dealing with his emotion afterwards . He describe feeling isolate and overwhelm by the event unfolding on Earth while he was in space.
Culbertson remember the moment he rush to see New York from the window of the space station and snap a photograph that later become celebrated . He describe the smoke pour from wound in his own state as see from his vantage point in space . The astronaut express his deep emotion about being the lone American completely off the planet during such a lay_waste_to time and the feeling that he should be there to aid in some way.
The terrorist attack on September 11 , 2001 , change the course of history , harmonize to Culbertson . He believe that the universe was on the threshold of a awful shift and that many things would never be the Lapp again . The emotional impact of the attack , the loss of thousand of life , and the feeling of isolation in space left Culbertson deeply affect by the event . He later learn that his Naval Academy schoolmate , Charles Burlingame , had fly one of the airplane involve in the attack , add a personal connection to the tragedy.
Despite the distance in space , Culbertson felt the weight of the event on Earth and express a sense of helplessness at not being able to be there to support his chap Americans . The astronaut 's affecting letter and the image he capture from space serve as a reminder of the impact of the September 11 attack on person both on Earth and beyond . The event of that day left an indelible mark on the universe and change the manner people see space exploration and the interconnection of humanity.