Ahead of Earth 2.0, the two-day STEM programme taking place on 22 and 23 November at Expo City Dubai, former NASA astronaut Colonel Charles Donald “Sam” Gemar offers a rare glimpse into what it truly means to leave Earth behind. Warm, thoughtful, and quietly humorous, he speaks with the ease of someone who has spent years both above the world and deeply grounded within it. Over three Space Shuttle missions, he completed 385 orbits of Earth and logged more than 581 hours in space, yet he carries those achievements with striking humility.
As Earth 2.0 prepares to welcome young explorers aged eight to twelve for a weekend of rockets, robotics, satellite communication, and planetary design, Gemar brings something less tangible but just as essential: a sense of wonder.
Seeing Earth for the First Time
When asked what it felt like to witness Earth from space, Gemar’s answer arrives with a softness that comes only from someone who has seen something indescribable.
“Nothing prepares you for seeing it for the first time with your own eyes,” he reflects.
Growing up in the era of Mercury, Gemini, and Apollo, he had spent a lifetime looking at images of Earth from space. Yet the reality was different. More profound. More intimate. The vastness of the view, the fragility of the thin blue atmosphere, and the quiet knowledge that he had reached a long-held dream combined into a moment that altered the way he would see the world forever.
Surprises in Zero Gravity
Despite decades of training and expectation, space still held surprises. Not the technical kind, but the human ones.
He explains that astronauts train meticulously for every imaginable scenario, but nothing can fully predict how the body and mind will respond to life in microgravity. He describes the shift in physical sensation, the reorientation of balance, and the unexpected emotional response to the sheer strangeness of floating. These, he says, were the true revelations.
“You go into space with very little understanding of how you personally will adapt,” he says.
And yet, adaptability is precisely what defines a successful mission.
Mars and the Pull of the Unknown
When asked which planet he would choose if given the chance to embark on an interplanetary mission, his answer is immediate.
Mars.
Not out of fantasy, but out of pragmatism.
“Based on our understanding today, Mars may be the most hospitable,” he says, though he admits this may simply reflect the limits of current knowledge.
The choice speaks to the human instinct for exploration. A reminder that our understanding of the cosmos is evolving, just as our understanding of Earth once did.
The Only Constant: Preparation
What does it mean to face the possibility of emergencies when help is several hundred kilometres below?
For Gemar, the answer lies in preparation so thorough it becomes instinct.
Astronauts train together for years. They rehearse every scenario. The ground teams rehearse too.
It is an ecosystem of precision, commitment, and trust.
“We train for every imaginable failure,” he says, emphasising that smooth missions are built on hard work long before launch.
Teamwork: The Skill That Matters Most
For young people hoping to work in science or space, Gemar’s advice is both simple and profound.
Teamwork.
He speaks openly about arriving in his early career as a competitive young engineer convinced of his own ideas. What he learned, slowly and sometimes painfully, was that collaboration is the backbone of discovery.
“Healthy competition should be directed against the challenges, not each other,” he explains.
It is a lesson he hopes the next generation will embrace sooner than he did.
Lessons from Earth Seen Far Above
Perhaps the most poetic part of the conversation is his reflection on how Earth looked from space. Across his three missions, he saw a planet that changed dramatically: a normal atmosphere, then a severely degraded one following the eruption of Mount Pinatubo, and then, thirty months later, one of the clearest atmospheres in decades.
“What I learned is that the Earth has the ability to cleanse itself,” he says.
A humbling reminder of planetary resilience, yet also a call to stewardship.
Will Humans Live Beyond Earth?
He believes they will. Not immediately, and not without extraordinary effort, but eventually. And, he adds, perhaps the more important question is this:
Should we?
In that single question lies the heart of space exploration. Curiosity balanced with responsibility. Ambition paired with reflection.
The Making of an Astronaut
Gemar’s path to space began in a farming community in South Dakota, population 1,000. He never told anyone he wanted to be an astronaut. It felt too big, too distant.
But he worked hard. He listened to mentors. He held on to his childhood aspiration even when it seemed out of reach.
Education, integrity, dedication.
These, he says, mattered more than imagination alone.
Advice for Future Explorers
His message to young participants in Earth 2.0 is clear.
“Go for it. But have a plan.”
Dreams, he says, require structure. Preparation. Commitment. A dream without a plan is simply hope. A dream with a plan is possibility.
As Earth 2.0 opens its doors at Expo City Dubai, children will learn the mechanics of rockets and robotics. But through Sam Gemar, they will learn something far more powerful.
That the sky is not the limit.
It is just the beginning.
