Homer Hickam
Click here for Homer's interview!
¨ Do you still keep in touch with the rocket boys?
¨ What can I do to make my dreams come true and how did you
get through all the math?
¨ Where did Homer Hickam earn his degree as an industrial engineer?
¨ Did Auk XXXI break the sound barrier?
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QUESTION:
Do you keep in touch with the rocket boys?
ANSWER from Michelle Mock
on 12 January 2006:
I assume that this question was intended for Homer Hickam. When you write
to us, please don't make us quess who you are writing about or to. Yes,
Homer Hickam is still very good friends with the other "rocket boys". He
sees them every year at the October Sky Festival in his hometown of Coalwood. Homer
has answered this and many other questions that people ask him all the time
in the FAQ section of his website. He is a very interesting man. He
even may have discovered a new species of T-Rex dinosaur!!! Check out
his website at http://www.homerhickam.com/ . Enjoy!!
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QUESTION:
I am twelve years old and I have just seen October Sky. That movie made
me believe that I can do any thing if I believe in myself. I myself was
never good at math I guess because I never thought I would need it because I
want to be a foriegn correspondent but after seeing that movie I started to think
that maybe I could be a NASA engineer. I have always wondered what Space
beholds that just maybe I could build a rocket that would allow the astronauts
to stay in space longer or a new way to ensure that the spaceships wouldn't have
any problems. My mom has always said that whatever I want to do she will
support me, but I'm not sure everyone else will support me. They'll say
I'm a geek and I'll never make it because I'm not good at math. It's not
that I'm not good at math, I just didn't think I would need it. I can do
it but you know what? I don't care if they think I'm a geek. Why
should they care!? My question is what should I do to make my dream come
true and just tell me how you got through all the math? I just want to
make something of my life and prove to everyone that I can do it! You are
my hero!
ANSWER from Alexandria
Terry on 19 October 2005:
I'm afraid Mr. Hickam is out of town today, researching his next novel. But
I think what would answer your questions, and help you set your course for
the future, is to read his book titled "We Are Not Afraid." It
is so motivational and will give you all the informational tools you will need
to succeed. I would also suggest you read his memoir "Rocket Boys" which
is so much better than even the movie.
See http://www.homerhickam.com/ for
more on Mr. Hickam and his books. Mr. Hickam will read your
message when he returns and I'm sure he'll agree with my suggestions.
Best wishes,
Alexandria Terry
Mr. Hickam's assistant
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QUESTION:
The movie 'October Sky' was based on the life of Homer Hickam, who took up rocketry
as a teenager in Coalwood, West Virginia. Where did the real Homer
Hickam earn his degree in industrial engineering?
ANSWER from Roger Herzler
on 7 October 2005:
You can find the answer by visiting the Imagiverse interview of Homer Hickam
and his own biography on his website:
http://www.imagiverse.org/interviews/homerhickam/homer_hickam_10_09_03.htm
http://www.homerhickam.com/about/bio.shtml
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QUESTION:
This afternoon I just finished Rocket Boys. I love it! I think it is amazing
that you got all that help from residents of Coalwood. I'm just curious,
did Auk XXXI break through the sound barrier? I'm also amazed that
you could make such a powerful propellent out of zinc dust and pure alcohol.
ANSWER from Homer Hickam
on 25 September 2003:
Thank you for your note. If you liked Rocket Boys, you're in luck. There
are two more books in what I call the Coalwood Trilogy. The Coalwood
Way is another story of the Rocket Boys, a Christmas story, that I left out
of the first memoir. Sky of Stone is the true sequel to the book. It
is being developed into a Hallmark Hall of Fame television movie but I recommend
reading the book. Books are always better than movies. As to your
question on the last Auk, it did indeed go supersonic less than a second after
launch. Zinc dust and sulfur with an alcohol binder is a very powerful
propellant if you know how to handle and pack it. The secret to our success
in rocketry, however, were the finely machined DeLaval nozzles produced by
the mine machine shop experts that were then lined with a ceramic coating. As
for a career path, I like to say I wanted to be an engineer but I HAD to be
a writer. Thank goodness, I got the chance to follow both passions. For
more information on all this, check out http://www.homerhickam.com/
Homer Hickam
Retired Aerospace Engineer
Writer
Alabama, USA
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