Remarkable lives. Unlikely beginnings.

Improbable Greats

Remarkable lives. Unlikely beginnings.

Articles — Page 2

Rocket Boy: How a Coal Miner's Son Refused to Stay Underground
Science & Innovation

Rocket Boy: How a Coal Miner's Son Refused to Stay Underground

In a West Virginia town built to produce coal miners, Homer Hickam had the audacity to look up. What followed was a decade-long battle against poverty, expectation, and gravity itself — and somehow, he won all three.

Mar 13, 2026