--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Viewing our planet was so compelling…" description: "\"Viewing our planet was so compelling. Words like beautiful and awesome just don't do it justice. I felt that I was looking at a paradise. I was looking..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c84/michael-j-massimino-29904_beautiful_viewing-our-planet-was-so-compelling-wor_1751504.jpg" --- # Viewing our planet was so compelling. Words like beautiful… ![“Viewing our planet was so compelling. Words like beautiful and awesome just don't do it justice. I felt that I was looking at a paradise. I was looking at heaven. I can't imagine any place being more beautiful than our planet and how lucky we are to be able to live here.” quote by Michael J. Massimino](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c84/michael-j-massimino-29904_beautiful_viewing-our-planet-was-so-compelling-wor_1751504.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c84/michael-j-massimino-29904_beautiful_viewing-our-planet-was-so-compelling-wor_1751504.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c84/michael-j-massimino-29904_beautiful_viewing-our-planet-was-so-compelling-wor_1751504.jpg) > “Viewing our planet was so compelling. Words like beautiful and awesome just don't do it justice. I felt that I was looking at a paradise. I was looking at heaven. I can't imagine any place being more beautiful than our planet and how lucky we are to be able to live here.” [Michael J. Massimino](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-j-massimino/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Seeing Earth from space reveals its extraordinary beauty, surpassing ordinary adjectives and evoking a sense of awe and gratitude. **In simple terms:** Space view shows Earth’s unmatched beauty and makes us feel lucky to live here. Key Takeaway Appreciate and protect our planet. Themes awe gratitude environment perspective Mood wonderful inspired reflective Type inspirational environmental When to use this quote - Space missions - environmental education - policy advocacy - personal reflection Key Concepts Cosmic perspective environmental stewardship humility Questions to Reflect On - How does seeing Earth from space change your daily choices? - What actions can you take to honor this planet? A Different Perspective The feeling may be fleeting without ongoing exposure to such views. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Beautiful](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/beautiful/) [Heaven](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/heaven/) [Justice](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/justice/) [Lucky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/lucky/) ## Related quotes > [“...for a piece of famous fluffiness that doesn't just pretend about what real lives can be like, but moves on into one of the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/francis-spufford/for-a-piece-of-famous-fluffiness-that-doesn-t-just-pretend-about-what/) [Francis Spufford](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/francis-spufford/) > [Those who are looking for paradise on Earth should come and see Dubrovnik.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-bernard-shaw/those-who-are-looking-for-paradise-on-earth-should-come-and-see/) [George Bernard Shaw](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-bernard-shaw/) > [The Earth - from our altitude at Hubble, we're 350 miles up. We can see the curvature. We can see the roundness of our…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-j-massimino/the-earth-from-our-altitude-at-hubble-we-re-350-miles-up-we-can-see/) [Michael J. Massimino](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-j-massimino/) > [“It was like looking at heaven from the ferry to hell.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sabrina-jeffries/it-was-like-looking-at-heaven-from-the-ferry-to-hell/) [Sabrina Jeffries](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sabrina-jeffries/) > [When the eyes of the soul looking out meet the eyes of God looking in, heaven has begun right here on earth.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aiden-wilson-tozer/when-the-eyes-of-the-soul-looking-out-meet-the-eyes-of-god-looking-in/) [Aiden Wilson Tozer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aiden-wilson-tozer/) > [“No matter how difficult the trail … we can take comfort in knowing that others before us have borne life’s most grievous trials and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/m-russell-ballard/no-matter-how-difficult-the-trail-we-can-take-comfort-in-knowing-that/) [M. Russell Ballard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/m-russell-ballard/) > [And looking to the Heaven, that bends above you, How oft! I bless the Lot, that made me love you.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-taylor-coleridge/and-looking-to-the-heaven-that-bends-above-you-how-oft-i-bless-the/) [Samuel Taylor Coleridge](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-taylor-coleridge/) > [But I would rather be with you, somewhere in San Francisco on a back porch in July, just looking up to Heaven, at this…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-hunter/but-i-would-rather-be-with-you-somewhere-in-san-francisco-on-a-back/) [Robert Hunter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-hunter/) > [The man who spends all his time looking up to heaven is not always the best; in fact, he is usually the worst.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jos-bergam-n/the-man-who-spends-all-his-time-looking-up-to-heaven-is-not-always/) [Jose Bergamin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jos-bergam-n/) > [“Many of us have had it so good that we have started looking for heaven on earth. We have lost any sort of pilgrim…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kevin-deyoung/many-of-us-have-had-it-so-good-that-we-have-started-looking-for/) [Kevin DeYoung](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kevin-deyoung/) > [Damn it all, you have been given a life on this beautiful planet! Get off your ass and do something!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nick-offerman/damn-it-all-you-have-been-given-a-life-on-this-beautiful-planet-get/) [Nick Offerman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nick-offerman/) > [In his eyes shone the reflection of the most beautiful planet in the Universe---a planet that is not too hot and not too cold;…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-hawking/in-his-eyes-shone-the-reflection-of-the-most-beautiful-planet-in-the/) [Stephen Hawking](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-hawking/) > [When we look down at the Earth from space we see this amazing, indescribably beautiful planet; it looks like a living, breathing organism. But…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ronald-j-garan-jr/when-we-look-down-at-the-earth-from-space-we-see-this-amazing/) Ronald J. Garan, Jr > [We really have the most beautiful planet in our solar system. None other can sustain life like we know it. None other has blue…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sunita-williams/we-really-have-the-most-beautiful-planet-in-our-solar-system-none/) [Sunita Williams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sunita-williams/) > [I can't imagine anything more beautiful on this planet than looking up at the stars and seeing a kind of artificial star moving through…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/trevor-paglen/i-can-t-imagine-anything-more-beautiful-on-this-planet-than-looking/) [Trevor Paglen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/trevor-paglen/) ## More by Michael J. Massimino > [I think the astronaut job is the best job in the world. I realized when I was older and started applying for it that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-j-massimino/i-think-the-astronaut-job-is-the-best-job-in-the-world-i-realized/) [Michael J. Massimino](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-j-massimino/) > [At every step of the way, when I had trouble, there were people that came in, in my life that helped me. It's important…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-j-massimino/at-every-step-of-the-way-when-i-had-trouble-there-were-people-that/) [Michael J. Massimino](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-j-massimino/) > [My odyssey to become an astronaut kind of started in grad school, and I was working, up at MIT, in space robotics-related work; human…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-j-massimino/my-odyssey-to-become-an-astronaut-kind-of-started-in-grad-school-and/) [Michael J. Massimino](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-j-massimino/) > [In New York, the Mets are winning the World Series in 1969; that was pretty big, but I would say the moon landing was…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-j-massimino/in-new-york-the-mets-are-winning-the-world-series-in-1969-that-was/) [Michael J. Massimino](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-j-massimino/) > [The reason we have the stars twinkle at night is because the light is being kind of blurred by the atmosphere around the Earth.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-j-massimino/the-reason-we-have-the-stars-twinkle-at-night-is-because-the-light-is/) [Michael J. Massimino](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-j-massimino/) > [For me, the Earth had always been a kind of a safe haven, you know, where I could go to work or be in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-j-massimino/for-me-the-earth-had-always-been-a-kind-of-a-safe-haven-you-know/) [Michael J. Massimino](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-j-massimino/) > [I applied to be an astronaut four times. I was rejected three times before I was accepted. So, it's about that, not - following…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-j-massimino/i-applied-to-be-an-astronaut-four-times-i-was-rejected-three-times/) [Michael J. Massimino](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-j-massimino/) > [The thing I remember most about space is the view from the spacewalk. When I was inside the space shuttle and looking through the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-j-massimino/the-thing-i-remember-most-about-space-is-the-view-from-the-spacewalk/) [Michael J. Massimino](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-j-massimino/) > [I was the first person to tweet from space, but now every astronaut tweets from space and does Instagram and Snapchat and Face -…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-j-massimino/i-was-the-first-person-to-tweet-from-space-but-now-every-astronaut/) [Michael J. Massimino](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-j-massimino/) > [I had always been interested in the space program, and I didn't know if I could be an astronaut like I'd dreamt about when…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-j-massimino/i-had-always-been-interested-in-the-space-program-and-i-didn-t-know/) [Michael J. Massimino](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-j-massimino/) > [Being outside during the space walk, the view of the Earth is just spectacular, and getting a chance to do that is just unbelievable,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-j-massimino/being-outside-during-the-space-walk-the-view-of-the-earth-is-just/) [Michael J. Massimino](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-j-massimino/) > [To become an astronaut is not a question of being the best at something or things coming easy to you, but it's being a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-j-massimino/to-become-an-astronaut-is-not-a-question-of-being-the-best-at/) [Michael J. Massimino](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-j-massimino/) > [I saw this movie 'The Right Stuff' when I was in college, and it really rekindled my interest in being an astronaut. I started…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-j-massimino/i-saw-this-movie-the-right-stuff-when-i-was-in-college-and-it-really/) [Michael J. Massimino](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-j-massimino/) > [I think most astronauts are not risk takers. We take calculated risks for something that we think is worthwhile.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-j-massimino/i-think-most-astronauts-are-not-risk-takers-we-take-calculated-risks/) [Michael J. Massimino](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-j-massimino/) > [The Earth - from our altitude at Hubble, we're 350 miles up. We can see the curvature. We can see the roundness of our…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-j-massimino/the-earth-from-our-altitude-at-hubble-we-re-350-miles-up-we-can-see/) [Michael J. Massimino](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-j-massimino/) [Explore all 18 Michael J. Massimino quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-j-massimino/) ## More Beautiful quotes > [I received a beautiful welcome to the world of music. I want to give something back to the younger generation.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/luciano-pavarotti/i-received-a-beautiful-welcome-to-the-world-of-music-i-want-to-give/) [Luciano Pavarotti](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/luciano-pavarotti/) > [Being beautiful comes naturally!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/being-beautiful-comes-naturally/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [My school was one of the most beautiful places a child can grow up in. You are surrounded by nature - cats, dogs, birds…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amala-akkineni/my-school-was-one-of-the-most-beautiful-places-a-child-can-grow-up-in/) [Amala Akkineni](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/amala-akkineni/) > [“do not misunderstand person by beauty You really do not know its real or Mask on dirty thoughts”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mohammed-zaki-ansari/do-not-misunderstand-person-by-beauty-you-really-do-not-know-its-real/) [Mohammed Zaki Ansari](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mohammed-zaki-ansari/) > [In the hearing world, I'm constantly having to lip-read and trying to understand what's going on. Sign language is so beautiful. It gives you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rose-ayling-ellis/in-the-hearing-world-i-m-constantly-having-to-lip-read-and-trying-to/) [Rose Ayling-Ellis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rose-ayling-ellis/) > [The more perfect the sight is the more delightful the beautiful object. The more perfect the appetite, the sweeter the food. The more musical…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-baxter/the-more-perfect-the-sight-is-the-more-delightful-the-beautiful/) [Richard Baxter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-baxter/) > [Call her beautiful a million times and she won't believe you. Call her ugly once, and she will never forget it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tumblr/call-her-beautiful-a-million-times-and-she-won-t-believe-you-call-her/) Tumblr > [You will never know just how beautiful you are to me.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/you-will-never-know-just-how-beautiful-you-are-to-me/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [You felt a deep sorrow, the kind of melancholy you feel when you're in a beautiful place and the sun is going down](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thrity-umrigar/you-felt-a-deep-sorrow-the-kind-of-melancholy-you-feel-when-you-re-in/) [Thrity Umrigar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thrity-umrigar/) > [ Teaching might even be the greatest of the arts since the medium is the human mind and spirit. My three \[great teachers\] did not… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-steinbeck/teaching-might-even-be-the-greatest-of-the-arts-since-the-medium-is/) [John Steinbeck](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-steinbeck/) > [You're beautiful, cute, pretty, gorgeous, and fuck.. I ran out of words.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/raghib-clitso/you-re-beautiful-cute-pretty-gorgeous-and-fuck-i-ran-out-of-words/) [Raghib Clitso](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/raghib-clitso/) > [Growing up in Iceland, it was very beautiful, very safe, but quite isolated. There was something about jazz music that had a way of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laufey/growing-up-in-iceland-it-was-very-beautiful-very-safe-but-quite/) [Laufey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laufey/) > [How could you feel worthless when God has honoured you by creating you and choosing you to be with Him, in this life and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/yasmin-mogahed/how-could-you-feel-worthless-when-god-has-honoured-you-by-creating/) [Yasmin Mogahed](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/yasmin-mogahed/) > [Sometimes it's about less is more. It's about the seed. Thinking about this gigantic tree that you think is so beautiful but it started…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fred-durst/sometimes-it-s-about-less-is-more-it-s-about-the-seed-thinking-about/) [Fred Durst](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fred-durst/) > [God's Word does provide life lessons to teach us how to live. And it gives us beautiful poetry that gives voice to our human…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jennifer-rothschild/god-s-word-does-provide-life-lessons-to-teach-us-how-to-live-and-it/) [Jennifer Rothschild](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jennifer-rothschild/) [Browse all 17,976 Beautiful quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/beautiful/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "Viewing our planet was so compelling. Words like beautiful and awesome just don't do it justice. I felt that I was looking at a paradise. I was looking at heaven. I can't imagine any place being more beautiful than our planet and how lucky we are to be able to live here.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Michael J. Massimino" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-j-massimino/viewing-our-planet-was-so-compelling-words-like-beautiful-and-awesome/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Beautiful" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-j-massimino/viewing-our-planet-was-so-compelling-words-like-beautiful-and-awesome/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c84/michael-j-massimino-29904_beautiful_viewing-our-planet-was-so-compelling-wor_1751504.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c84/michael-j-massimino-29904_beautiful_viewing-our-planet-was-so-compelling-wor_1751504.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c84/michael-j-massimino-29904_beautiful_viewing-our-planet-was-so-compelling-wor_1751504.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“Viewing our planet was so compelling. Words like beautiful and awesome just don't do it justice. I felt that…” — Michael J. Massimino", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } }, { "@type": "BreadcrumbList", "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "name": "Home", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "name": "Quotes", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 3, "name": "Michael J. Massimino", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-j-massimino/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "Viewing our planet was so compelling....", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-j-massimino/viewing-our-planet-was-so-compelling-words-like-beautiful-and-awesome/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-j-massimino/viewing-our-planet-was-so-compelling-words-like-beautiful-and-awesome/#breadcrumb" }, { "@type": "WebSite", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "publisher": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } }, { "@type": "Organization", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "logo": { "@type": "ImageObject", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png", "width": 512, "height": 512 } } ] } ```