Contrary to what you might think, the International Space Station is not very far away ("Marine-turned-astronaut tours bases in Japan," article, Oct. 16, Pacific editions).

The article began: "From a physical standpoint, no human has been farther from today’s battlefields than astronaut and Marine Col. Doug Hurley." In fact, ISS orbits between 199 and 216 miles from Earth. Your lede paragraph is way off the mark.

Doug WhiteWaipahu, Hawaii