The shuttle Endeavour and space station crews gathered on Saturday for an unprecedented conversation with Pope Benedict, who asked how the space program can promote peace and if the astronauts pray while in orbit. "I think it must be obvious to you how we all live together on one Earth and how absurd it is that we fight and kill each one," the pope said.
"When you are contemplating the Earth from up there, do you ever wonder about the way nations and people live together down here, about how science can contribute to the cause of peace?" he asked," he continued, via a televised link from the Vatican. The pope added his personal wish for the recovery of Endeavour commander Mark Kelly's wife, US Representative Gabrielle Giffords, who was shot in an January 8 assassination attempt that killed six and injured 12 others.
"Thank you for mentioning my wife, Gabby," said Kelly. "We fly over most of the world and you don't see borders, but at the same time we realise that people fight with each other and there's a lot of violence in this world and it's really an unfortunate thing." The shuttle commander agreed that people fight for many things, such as the ongoing struggle for democracy in the Middle East and for resources such as energy.
"The science and the technology that we put into the space station to develop a solar power capability, pretty much gives us an unlimited amount of energy and if those technologies could be adapted more on Earth, we could possibly reduce some of that violence," Kelly said. The pope also had a personal message for space station flight engineer Paolo Nespoli, whose mother died on May 2.
"How have you been living through this time of pain on the International Space Station? Do you feel isolated and alone, or do you feel united amongst ourselves in a community that follows you with attention and affection?" the pope asked, speaking in Nespoli's native Italian.