DAYTON — After spending more than two weeks in outer space, Dayton-area businessman Larry Connor is back on Earth.
Connor, the founder and managing partner of The Connor Group, was part of Axiom Space’s Ax-1 mission to the International Space Station (ISS). It was the first ever entirely private mission to fly to the ISS. What was meant to be a 10-day mission extended due to weather conditions here on Earth.
He described the launch up to the ISS as dynamic and smooth, but he said it was the “ballistic dynamic reentry” that was a highlight for him.
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“We went from 100 miles above earth to the splashdown in like five or six minutes,” Connor said.
He told News Center 7′s Molly Koweek that the extended, 17-day trip gave him some extra time to work on his research for both the Cleveland and Mayo clinics. He described to ISS as “essentially a flying lab with a very wide range of experiments.”
It also gave him some extra time to enjoy the views from 250 miles above earth.
“The views are literally, no pun intended, out of this world,” Connor said. “And they really, you can’t verbalize it and really do it justice. It’s one of those rare things that you really have to be there to experience.”
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Despite being part of a historic mission, Connor said he doesn’t think about how he’ll go down in aviation history.
“I think it’s about us, not about me. I never did it because of me. I just hope that we did some worthwhile things,” he said.
You can watch our full interview with Larry Connor below:
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