14 DAY TRIAL // George Aldrich, the man featured in the photo above, has been working with NASA for several decades now. However, he's never helped build a spacecraft, and it will be a cryogenic day in hell before he gets to travel into outer space.
Still, word has it that, if it were not for this man, NASA would have a much more difficult time sticking to its space exploration agenda. This is because, using just his nose, George Alrich has until now helped protect hundreds of astronauts.
Thus, media reports tell us that this man gets paid to spend his days smelling things that NASA brainiacs are thinking about sending into outer space. Simply put, Goerge Alrich is a professional sniffer, and has been one for almost 40 years.
This might come as a bit as a surprise but, as it turns out, NASA gives very special consideration to how things smells before deciding whether or not they can be used to build a spacecraft. This is because, in space, foul odors can sicken astronauts.
To help put things into perspective, it need be said that, back in 1976, Russia had to cancel one of its space missions due to the fact that the shuttle the astronauts were supposed to travel in smelled so bad that it made them sick.
Otherwise put, George Alrich's work is not a complete waste of time or money. On the contrary, this man and his extraordinarily gifted and perceptive nose are among the reasons NASA's space exploration program is as successful as it is.
“What makes me really important to NASA is that I actually use my sense of smell to help protect the astronauts from obnoxious odors in space. I feel like I’m a bodyguard for the astronauts,” says George Alrich, who became a professional sniffer for NASA 38 years ago.
George Aldrich's NASA-worthy nose sports about 400 nasal receptors, which help the man pin down and distinguish among roughly 10,000 different smells. The NASA employee admits that, to keep his nose sharp, he must forever train it.
“I try to keep my sense of smell in tune. So I play games with odors, where other people might smell something and just move on. My friends and family think I’m a little crazy,” the NASA employee explains, as cited by Oddity Central.
Before making a name for himself at NASA, George Aldrich worked as a firefighter. At first, he came to work for the United States' National Aeronautics and Space Administration as a volunteer. However, his talent was soon recognized, and he was offered a full-time job.