Space News
space history and artifacts articles

Messages
space history discussion forums

Sightings
worldwide astronaut appearances

Resources
selected space history documents

  collectSPACE: Messages
  Space Explorers & Workers
  Astronaut Chris Hadfield's mission to Ireland

Post New Topic  Post A Reply
profile | register | preferences | faq | search

next newest topic | next oldest topic
Author Topic:   Astronaut Chris Hadfield's mission to Ireland
SpaceAholic
Member

Posts: 4437
From: Sierra Vista, Arizona
Registered: Nov 1999

posted 03-28-2014 09:00 PM     Click Here to See the Profile for SpaceAholic   Click Here to Email SpaceAholic     Edit/Delete Message   Reply w/Quote
Tourism Ireland release
Chris Hadfield's Mission to the Island of Ireland

He's been in space, he's seen the final frontier and he's sung David Bowie while floating in zero gravity. Commander Chris Hadfield has experienced sensations, scenery and sights that are literally out of this world.

How exactly could he ever top that? Simple, with his most adventurous mission yet…

An Astronaut's Mission to the island of Ireland.

A Spaceman Came Travelling

During his travels, the David Bowie-singing spaceman explored, tasted, tested and experienced the best of Ireland. And we were on hand to capture the Commander's adventures.

First stop, the Wild Atlantic Way.

An Astronaut's Guide to the island of Ireland: The Wild Atlantic Way

When Commander Hadfield tweeted a shot of Ireland from space with the message "Tá Éire fíorálainn" (Ireland is very beautiful) he was on to something. But what would he think of the landscape and the Wild Atlantic Way when he's standing right in the middle of it? And could he learn a few words of Gaeilge to describe it?

Let's find out.

An Astronaut's Guide to the island of Ireland: Titanic

Next stop, it's Belfast and the epic Titanic Belfast. Commander Hadfield uncovers the back story to the world's most famous ship and finds out why, in Belfast, they say "She was all right when she left here".

An Astronaut's Guide to the island of Ireland: The Guinness Storehouse

And so to the Guinness Storehouse, Dublin to discover the science behind the perfect pint of Guinness (for purely scientific reasons of course!) as well as the perfect way to drink one. Remember to lift that elbow, Commander.

An Astronaut's Guide to the island of Ireland: Hurling

What is hurling? Think baseball meets soccer meets rugby. Confused? So was Commander Hadfield. But a few tips from Irish hurling legend 'Sambo' sorted him out. But can he score a point in the fastest field game on earth?

Watch and see.

Mission status: Complete

So there you have it, An Astronaut's Guide to the island of Ireland. So what are you waiting for? Start planning your own mission to the island of Ireland right now and discover the thrill of a new adventure.

YankeeClipper
Member

Posts: 617
From: Dublin, Ireland
Registered: Mar 2011

posted 03-29-2014 09:51 PM     Click Here to See the Profile for YankeeClipper   Click Here to Email YankeeClipper     Edit/Delete Message   Reply w/Quote
Astronauta!

Definitely the cutest addition to Irish in a long time. The Irish for 'Astronaut' is actually Spásaire and réaltach is the word for starlit/starlike/beautiful.

The game of hurling (the Clash of the Ash) that Chris was promoting is the fastest team field sport in the world and dates back over 3000 years. It was played by ancient Celtic warriors and has been picked up in recent years by units of the US military. Some describe it as Hockey + Murder, or Athletic Manslaughter! Here is a link to how it should be played.

Chris is a great ambassador - masterstroke of marketing!

COR482932
Member

Posts: 212
From: Cork, Ireland
Registered: Mar 2012

posted 03-31-2014 05:42 PM     Click Here to See the Profile for COR482932   Click Here to Email COR482932     Edit/Delete Message   Reply w/Quote
Ireland isn't traditionally known as a country of space buffs, but once Hadfield started tweeting pictures of Ireland during his tenure as Expedition 35 commander, everyone started to become interested in space exploration.

For those of you in the USA, you may find it a bit strange that an astronaut tweeting from space makes the news. However, just for some reason, when the whole country got the opportunity to view our island nation from the orbital perspective, suddenly, everyone knew who Chris Hadfield was. I thought this was pretty cool!

His "Ta Eire fioralainn" tweet was front page news over here.

When he landed back on Earth, it wasn't long before he visited Ireland. His daughter studies in Dublin, so he has a very slight link to Ireland.

During his first book signing in Easons, and I'm telling not exaggerating this one, he sold out every copy of "An Astronaut's Guide to Life of Earth" in IRELAND. Yes that's right, every single copy of his book in the country sold out, leaving many thousands of people who queued in line to get a signed copy disappointed. I didn't get the chance to meet him, but I do have a signed copy due to the kindness of a few of my friends who met him.

During his visit he was on the Late Late Show, the longest running chat show in the world, and he was interviewed and sang a few songs. Here's a video of him singing "Space Oddity."

Hadfield was singing on radio stations and there was just a buzz about everyone when the topic of space or astronomy came up. Now, everyone in Ireland knows who Chris Hadfield is, and hopefully might help get people interested in the subject.

I only stumbled across these videos when he posted them on Twitter, but I had heard that he was going to do something like this for quite some time. It really is a great marketing ploy and I hope it encourages some much needed tourism in the most beautiful part of the country.

If it's good enough for a guy who's been around the world a few thousand times, then I guess it's good enough for me!!

I hope you all enjoyed it!

(Yes, hurling is a mixture between hockey and murder, but when played by two good teams, there's no better sport to watch in the world!! I encourage you all to have a look if you're interested.)

hinkler
Member

Posts: 573
From: Melbourne, Victoria, AUSTRALIA
Registered: Jan 2000

posted 04-01-2014 03:00 AM     Click Here to See the Profile for hinkler   Click Here to Email hinkler     Edit/Delete Message   Reply w/Quote
Well said. Watching the clips certainly shows Ireland is a beautiful country and the Irish people are truly wonderful. You could see that Chris Hadfield enjoyed Ireland as much as the Irish enjoyed having him visit.

YankeeClipper
Member

Posts: 617
From: Dublin, Ireland
Registered: Mar 2011

posted 04-01-2014 06:36 AM     Click Here to See the Profile for YankeeClipper   Click Here to Email YankeeClipper     Edit/Delete Message   Reply w/Quote
Another reason to visit is the Kerry International Dark-Sky Reserve.

The Reserve received it's official Gold Standard status from the International Dark Sky Association in 2014. This is the first Gold Tier reserve in the Northern Hemisphere.

The Kerry International Dark-Sky Reserve covers an area of approximately 700km sq that includes most of the Iveragh Peninsula taking in Cahersiveen, Valentia Island, Waterville, Portmagee, Caherdaniel and Ballinskelligs in the South-West of Ireland.

Only two other places in the world, in Namibia and New Zealand, have received such a designation for their pristine skies.

(On the Hurling front, 2013 was a spectacular year in the eyes of most experts of the game, so the 2014 Championship is something to watch out for! Any games involving Cork, Clare, Limerick, Tipperary, Galway, Kilkenny, Waterford, Wexford, or Dublin are going to provide the best action.)

YankeeClipper
Member

Posts: 617
From: Dublin, Ireland
Registered: Mar 2011

posted 09-27-2014 11:06 AM     Click Here to See the Profile for YankeeClipper   Click Here to Email YankeeClipper     Edit/Delete Message   Reply w/Quote
The 2014 All-Ireland Hurling Final Replay between Kilkenny and Tipperary can be seen live here. Definitely worth watching!

All times are CT (US)

next newest topic | next oldest topic

Administrative Options: Close Topic | Archive/Move | Delete Topic
Post New Topic  Post A Reply
Hop to:

Contact Us | The Source for Space History & Artifacts

Copyright 2020 collectSPACE.com All rights reserved.


Ultimate Bulletin Board 5.47a





advertisement