We went to the moon; it took us about three days at the speed we went there. To go to the sun, I keep kidding about it: At the speed of light, it takes eight minutes, but you have to go at night.

[1981 interview about the first space shuttle] Mostly it's lousy out there. It's a hostile environment, and it's trying to kill you. The outside temperature goes from -450 degrees to +300 degrees. You sit in a flying Thermos bottle.

Somebody said ... when you come to within three miles, you've rendezvoused. If anybody thinks they've pulled a rendezvous off at three miles, have fun! This is when we started doing our work. I don't think rendezvous is over until you are stopped - completely stopped - with no relative motion between the two vehicles, at a range of approximately 120 feet. That's rendezvous! From there on, it's station- keeping. That's when you can go back and play the game of driving a car or driving an airplane or pushing a skateboard - it's about that simple.

[Associated Press interview in April 2007] I left Earth three times. I found no place else to go. Please take care of Spaceship Earth.