Under Pressure
The more I know about Michael Collins, the more I think he was under more pressure than anyone in history.Michael Collins was an Apollo 11 astronaut, but he didn't go down to the surface of the moon. He was the command module pilot, so he orbited the moon while Aldrin and Armstrong descended to the surface in the lunar module.
There were plenty of scenarios where the lunar module wouldn't be able to re-dock with the command module, usually involving some kind of equipment failure. But it was also possible that it could happen because Michael Collins made some kind of mistake that couldn't be corrected.
If that had happened, Aldrin and Armstrong would have died, and Michael Collins would have flown back to Earth, alone, knowing that it had been his fault.
Can you imagine living the rest of your life after that? I can't.
There's pressure, and then there's that kind of pressure.
If you can think of anyone who might have been under more pressure, shoot me an e-mail.
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