On July 16, 1969, when Apollo 11 launches into space for its historic mission, millions of people will watch it unfold on television screens worldwide and document it via various forms of filming. The onboard lunar camera recorded in an unconventional format that required conversion for broadcast TV broadcast. Image quality varied depending on which…
In 1969, planetary science was still relatively young. One of its most famous moments occurred on July 20, when Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin left Columbia and entered their lunar module, Eagle. Armstrong used Eagle’s reaction control system to guide their landing site in the Sea of Tranquility. Mission Overview Nasa embarked on its most…
On 21 July 1969, Neil Armstrong took one small step for man and one giant leap for humanity by landing on the Moon and declaring: “That’s one small step for man, one giant leap for mankind”. It marked the completion of 8 years’ hard work by some of history’s finest astronauts. Book Arts LLC is…
On December 24th, Borman, Anders and Lovell fired the third stage’s engines to align for a lunar flyby and make preparations for translunar injection. Capcom Michael Collins gave approval and declared: ‘All clear for translunar injection!” Houston trajectory specialists and computer wizards were overjoyed, knowing their calculations had come out correctly for once! What an…
During the Apollo program, astronauts spent a third of their training time using hardware simulators for training purposes. Simulators allowed crewmembers to not only rehearse and master their mission but also build resilience by understanding where things could potentially go wrong. Flight Director Gene Kranz quickly assumed that when his guidance computer displayed 1201 code,…
Food not only keeps astronauts healthy but it plays a critical role in morale as well. Dehydrated meals had to be lightweight and easily transported, while still tasting good. Early space food was bland and unappetizing, but advances during Mercury and Gemini led to greater variety, improved taste, and streamlined preparation processes. Hot Water NASA…
At Cape Canaveral, a test of a command module meant to be the exit route for astronauts was marred by tragedy when it caught fire during operation. Three people perished. The fire was started by chafed wires and flammable materials ignited by pure oxygen and further exasperated by pressurization in the cabin. It served as…
Apollo 9 had two primary objectives. First was to test command module and lunar module rendezvous, docking and reentry functions in Earth orbit. To this end, several SPS engine firings took place along with tracking landmarks, experiments and photography tasks performed by its crew. Armstrong kept a cloth bag of LM parts hidden for decades…
The Apollo program was an initiative of NASA that saw humans land on the Moon for the first time. Twelve astronauts made this historic journey; six walked its surface. President John F. Kennedy issued a challenge in 1961 for the nation to put a man on the Moon by the end of this decade. Through…
