Letters from MIR: An Astronaut's Letters to His Son (Hardcover)

by Jerry Linenger (Author) "The last glimpse that I had of my then fourteen-month-old son John before my five-month mission in space was through the rear window of our..." (more)
Key Phrases: cosmonaut crewmates, isolation mount, space walk, Star City, Mission Control-Moscow, Grandma Linenger (more...)

Editorial Reviews

Product Description
An inspiring, deeply moving testament to the timelessness of paternal love

Dr. Jerry Linenger's 132 days aboard the decaying Russian space station Mir were beset by power outages that left the crew in total darkness and tumbling out of control, poisonous chemical leaks, and near collisions with space debris. Most terrifying of all was a raging fire that, in a matter of minutes, nearly destroyed the station and all on board.

It was with that last event, when, with the crew cut off from the world below and locked in a battle for survival, Linenger's letters to his son changed from a routine chronicle of daily events into the eloquent, deeply moving serial narrative presented in Letters from Mir. Combining wise meditations on life, destiny, and the future of space exploration with wryly playful observations on everyday life, this openended conversation between a father and his beloved son is as contemporary as the latest Mars Explorer mission, yet as timeless as the paternal sentiments they express.

From the Back Cover
Inspiring letters of an embattled astronaut in space to his young son on Earth.

In January 1997, astronaut Dr. Jerry Linenger embarked on a "routine" five-month mission to the Russian space station Mir, leaving behind his pregnant wife and 14-month-old son, and the everyday pleasures of planet Earth. Before he left, he promised to write. Though his mission did not go as planned, he kept his word.

Linenger's 132 days aboard the decaying space station were beset by near-fatal glitches that at times left the crew in total darkness, tumbling out of control. Most terrifying was a raging fire that nearly destroyed the station and all on board. It was with this last event, when, with the crew cut off from the world below and locked in a battle for survival, Linenger's letters to his son changed from a routine chronicle of daily events to the heart-felt, deeply moving story shared here.

At the end of each difficult day, Jerry Linenger would fly over to his ceiling-mounted laptop and write to his boy, expressing the thoughts and feelings that any father has for his child--but that too many fail to communicate. In extreme isolation and constant danger, knowing he might never see his family again, Linenger was able to "speak from the heart," sharing meditations on life and destiny, adventure and courage, love and family; and passing on wryly playful pearls of wisdom, from "Never get on a teeter-totter with someone bigger than you" to "Don't give a kiss on impulse."

An inspirational and charming book, Letters from Mir is at once a chronicle of time spent in space and a touching example of how one man's experience off the planet brought him closer to the son he loves.

Dear John,

I decided before this flight that I was going to be a good father and write to you every day....I realize that you are only one year old, and although I exaggerate your talents like any proud father would, I don't think that you can quite read this yet. No problem. When you can, you will feel good knowing that your father loves you...

After circling the planet 2,000 times over the course of 132 days, after battling raging fires, power outages, and a near collision with an incoming spacecraft, astronaut Dr. Jerry Linenger returned to Earth from his stay aboard the failing Russian space station, Mir. Waiting to embrace him were his wife and young son. For five months, he watched over them from his solitary, and often perilous, post among the stars--uncertain he would ever see his family again.

He stayed connected by writing down-linked letters to his son, speaking from the heart to express the thoughts and feelings of a loving father to his child. Now, gathered together in this emotional and charming book, these Letters from Mir share one father's inspiring meditations on life and destiny, and the wryly playful pearls of wisdom he sent to his son from a long and lonely "business trip" in space.

...Good night, son. Sleep tight. I'll be watching over you as usual. Give Mommy a smile for me.

Love, Dad

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 224 pages
• Publisher: McGraw-Hill; 1 edition (August 19, 2002)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0071400095
• ISBN-13: 978-0071400091
• Product Dimensions: 7.2 x 5 x 1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 12 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars See all reviews (2 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #510,209 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

6 of 13 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars A Bit Odd in Places, November 3, 2002

By	John R. Keller (Houston, TX United States) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

Jerry Linenger was the fourth NASA astronaut of a total of seven who served aboard the Russian space station Mir. His mission lasted from January 12, 1997, till May 24, 1997 giving him a total of 132 days in space. At the time, this was the longest duration flight of an American male. During his stay, Jerry Linenger became the first American to conduct a space walk from a foreign space station and in a non-American made spacesuit. He and his two Russian colleagues also performed a "fly around" in the Soyuz spacecraft, undocking from one docking port of the station, manually flying to and redocking at a different location. While living Mir, Linenger and his two Russian crewmembers faced numerous difficulties, the most severe fire ever aboard an orbiting spacecraft, failures of onboard systems and a near collision with a resupply cargo ship during a manual docking system test. These tales and many others are recounted in his other book, "Off the Planet: Surviving Five Perilous Months Aboard the Space Station Mir."

In his latest offering, Dr. Linenger recounts these events as well as many others, using personal letters sent, via e-mail, to his 14 month old son and a few to his wife and mission control. It is quite clear from these letters that he was very proud of his young son, missed him and his wife a great deal and that he felt extremely isolated and alone. Several of the letters I found very refreshing, such as the need to honest (especially in this day and age); however, I also found many of the letters to be rather strange. Dr. Linenger goes into a great amount of detail about the equipment on the Mir, such as heat rejection system and the carbon dioxide removal system. I doubt most high school students could understand what he was trying to say. Maybe it's me, but if I were going to write letters to my toddler son, I would keep the technical descriptions simple. I would want him to be able to read my letter say by the time he was ten. The very technical sections within the book also take away from the general tone of the book of his isolation, missing his son, wife and the planet Earth. One letter to mission details his concern about safety, almost a foreboding of things to come on the next mission with Michael Foale.

I also found two glaring errors in the book. First, the liftoff thrust of the shuttle is not 7 million lbs, but 6.6 million lbs. Second, his description of the orbital mechanics is described incorrectly. He states, "We go faster in order to get up higher. As we slow down, our orbit lowers." The exact opposite is true. The lower the orbit the higher the velocity and the higher the orbit the slower the velocity. For example, communication satellites that are essentially stationary over the Earth (one orbit per day) are at an altitude of 23,000 miles. The space station, which orbits the Earth every 90 minutes, is at an altitude of 250 miles. As an astronaut, he should know better.

In conclusion, if you want to know what happen to Jerry Linenger aboard Mir, read his other book, "Off the Planet: Surviving Five Perilous Months Aboard the Space Station Mir." If you want to know how he felt orbiting the Earth and his feelings of isolation, get this book.

11 of 24 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars ...to Mr. Keller., December 8, 2002

By	"charlie3045" (Monterey, CA United States) - See all my reviews

As a friend of Jerry's, I feel I should correct something. (Not that he or his record need defending.) We do in fact speed up to reach higher orbits. This puts energy into the orbit, resulting in a higher/larger orbit. The resulting average velocity is lower, but we got there by increasing velocity from a lower orbit. Conversely, to decrease altitude, we slow down. Again, average velocity is higher, but we got there by slowing down (taking energy out of our orbit).

Also, if the detail in Jerry's letters is too much, it seems inconsistent to then say it is a "glaring error" to use 7 million pounds of liftoff thrust instead of 6.6...