It was seven months, 300 million miles.

But as the mission control room erupted in cheers, Evanston resident Syd Lieberman knew the successful landing of Mars Exploration Rover Spirit was not just about the numbers.

“(One scientist) threw his hands over his head like he had just kicked a field goal, and then he dropped to his knees and started crying,” Lieberman said.

And with that “amazing moment,” Lieberman — NASA’s first professional storyteller — had found what he was looking for.

“Twelve Wheels on Mars: The 2004 Mars Exploration Rover Mission” is a 55-minute narration chronicling the journey of Spirit and fellow robot Opportunity, launched in the summer of 2003 to search Mars for clues of an environment once hospitable to life.

Written and told by storytelling veteran Lieberman, the story soon will debut in museums nationwide. Some exhibits will feature a videotape of Lieberman delivering the story, and he will visit others personally in a yet-to-be-planned national tour.

At age 60, Lieberman has told tales about everything from floods to fighter pilots in the past 22 years. He has captivated thousands of listeners at the annual National Storytelling Festival in Jonesborough, Tenn.

But Lieberman — who taught English at Evanston Township High School for 27 years — admitted he was a bit “overwhelmed” to enter the world of outer space.

“I didn’t know what to expect,” he said.

a storyteller takes flight with his tale

When an outreach coordinator from the NASA-affiliated Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, Calif., called the International Storytelling Center three years ago, she was looking for a way to show the emotional side of a space mission.

And when the organization finalized the project last October, International Storytelling Center President Jimmy Neil Smith knew Lieberman would be the perfect man for the job.

“I asked Syd if this was something he was interested in,” Smith said. “And he said, ‘You better believe it.'”

In December Lieberman received a warm welcome to the California laboratory. He conducted interviews with some of the mission’s top figures for a month.

In January he sat with a group of eager engineers and scientists to watch Spirit touch down on Mars. But trouble hit when mission control lost Spirit’s signal.

Recounting the story at an Evanston cafe, Lieberman leaned across the table as if he were about to share a secret. His voice dropped, and his speech slowed.

“Two minutes. Nothing. Four minutes. Nothing,” he said.

But 17 minutes later “pandemonium broke out.” The signal was back up.

The finished piece features that scene prominently.

His secret to storytelling, he said, is finding what moves him.

“And I haven’t been disappointed yet,” he said. “Every time I sit and do one of these things, I come away shaking my head and saying, ‘That’s the greatest story ever.'”

fearlessly exploring unknown territory

As he spent seven months writing and revising the piece, Lieberman relied on friends and family to give him honest advice.

“I’m blessed with a wife who is a great writer, a great editor and brutally honest,” he said of Adrienne, his wife of 37 years.

In July Lieberman performed his story for a group of scientists at the Jet Propulsion Laboratory.

Smith, who saw the next day’s encore performance, described Lieberman’s tale as “flawless and powerful.”

“(NASA’s) world is composed of statistics and analytical information, science and data,” he said. “When they heard Syd tell the story from the emotional side they were, I think, awe struck.

“They knew — I knew — we were seeing something for the very first time.”

But he hopes it will not be the last, Lieberman said. There are more stories about NASA to be shared and tributes to be paid to scientists who are filled with passion and pride.

And, they’re pretty down-to-earth.

“The one word I kept hearing from almost everyone I interviewed was ‘cool,'” he said. “‘This is a cool job. Building a rover is cool. Going to Mars? That’s really cool.'”

Reach Marissa Conrad at [email protected].

Quick facts:

 The Mars Exploration Rovers launched on June 10 and July 7, 2003, in search of answers about the history of water on Mars.

 The mission’s goal is to search for and characterize a wide range of rocks and soils that hold clues to past water activity.

 Preliminary findings from the rover Opportunity suggest that Mars was once hospitable to life.

Where are they now?

 The NASA engineering team is trying to fix a brake problem on Spirit.

 Opportunity’s continues to explore “Endurance Crater” on the surface of Mars.

Source: NASA