I’ve gotten some messages over the last few weeks concerning people who think I personally know some of the astronauts I fangirl over/write about here.

For the record, I don’t personally know anyone I write about.

I’ve been lucky to have had brushes with some of them, but that’s about it. I’ve also been blessed to meet and know some amazing people who are in the spaceflight community, who are awesome – and they know who they are. But I respect their privacy.

Also, if I was blessed enough to be personal chums with any of the great men and women who have flown for NASA/Roskosmos/ESA/other, I wouldn’t share any of their phone numbers, addresses, or email addresses with anyone due to me respecting peoples’ privacy. Yes, I’ve gotten messages from people – not people in the spaceflight community, but random fans – asking me for personal information.

I would never give out anyone’s personal information, regardless of their level of fame/infamy/whatever.

Thank you. I hope this note didn’t sound too snarky, but I just wanted to clear this up. I merely live vicariously through space travelers, but I don’t personally know any of them. If I did, I wouldn’t share their personal information, because they probably would have the respect not to share mine or anyone else’s.

Emily Carney is a writer, space enthusiast, and creator of the This Space Available space blog, published since 2010. In January 2019, Emily’s This Space Available blog was incorporated into the National Space Society’s blog. The content of Emily’s blog can be accessed via the This Space Available blog category.

Note: The views expressed in This Space Available are those of the author and should not be considered as representing the positions or views of the National Space Society.