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Bill Atwood: I grew-up during the age of Sputnik. I remember my Dad taking me out when I was—I was ten years old. We got-up at 4:00 in the morning, and it was late spring as I remember—but it could have been late fall—and I remember going outside and being so excited as this little point of light went whizzing across the sky.

Dave Thompson: And everybody else was going out and looking up at the sky, and trying to look for these satellites going overhead. I went out and looked and said �you know, that sky is fascinating out there. There are lots of other things. There are planets, there are comets, there are stars, there are nebulae.� And I started learning about those on my own, and always it was fascinating.

Julie McEnery: I always really cared and was curious about how the world works, and how it worked fundamentally. So, I don�t just want to know how a car drives down the street, I want to know fundamentally how energy is formed, why the world is here, how the universe works.

Steve Ritz: What I remember really loving in science classes is when there was a lecture demonstration. And I remember very well when there was a surprise. And I remember that wonderful feeling of excitement, almost disorientation for a minute, wonder that we could find out new things about the world, surprising things about the world through scientific investigation.

Neil Gehrels: I grew-up in a family that was—my father is an astronomer. When I got to college, I thought �well I really want to do something else just to be different.� But I realized after awhile that this was really my passion and my biggest interest. So, I came back to studying physics and astronomy, and it�s been a delight ever since that.

Peter Michelson: I�ve always been interested in physics. It�s really a hobby. I like—I�m one of the luckiest people in the world, because I�m doing what I like to do. I don�t think of it as a job. It�s fun. It�s interesting, and you know, you learn something new every day.

Kevin Grady: I think for me personally, we want to get a telescope up there that they can do great things with. And at that point, I�ll be extremely pleased.

Chip Meegan: The past few decades have been a golden age for astronomy, and so I�m delighted that I continue to be a part of that.

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