ISS Commander Discusses Arizona Shooting Tragedy

By Nancy Atkinson - January 18, 2011 at 9:26 AM UTC | Space Exploration

ISS Commander Scott Kelly, twin brother of astronaut Mark Kelly, spoke with various news agencies this morning about the shooting of his sister in-law, Rep. Gabrielle Giffords. Kelly was asked several times about the emotional trauma, etc., of the shooting and how he is coping. Scott Kelly confirmed he talks to his brother a couple of times a day, but that is not unusual. Asked about what words the two brothers share about Giffords' current condition, the ISS Commander said, "We're not touchy, feely kind of people, ... we just talk about her condition, but we normally talk about things like we do regularly." And later, Kelly was asked if he would like to be there at his brother's side. "I'm kind of a realist," he said. "I understand this is the situation I'm in. I would prefer to be there to support everyone, but the fact is that I can't, even if it was a tragedy worse than this, there is no way I'm coming back to Earth before March 18. We know that going into a flight like this. I just continue to do my job and support my brother and family through the means we have through the station."

Nancy Atkinson

Nancy Atkinson

Nancy Atkinson is a space journalist and author with a passion for telling the stories of people involved in space exploration and astronomy. She is currently retired from daily writing, but worked at Universe Today for 20 years as a writer and editor. She also contributed articles to The Planetary Society, Ad Astra (National Space Society), New Scientist and many other online outlets.

Her 2019 book, "Eight Years to the Moon: The History of the Apollo Missions,” shares the untold stories of engineers and scientists who worked behind the scenes to make the Apollo program so successful, despite the daunting odds against it. Her first book “Incredible Stories From Space: A Behind-the-Scenes Look at the Missions Changing Our View of the Cosmos” (2016) tells the stories of 37 scientists and engineers that work on several current NASA robotic missions to explore the solar system and beyond.

Nancy is also a NASA/JPL Solar System Ambassador, and through this program, she has the opportunity to share her passion of space and astronomy with children and adults through presentations and programs. Nancy's personal website is nancyatkinson.com