Monday 16 November 2009
Thursday 5 November 2009
Coming Soon - Apollo 12
or, 'When Three Navy Pilots Got Hold of a Spaceship'
Apollo 12 Saturn V rolls out from the Vehicle Assembly Building (VAB), en route to Launch Pad Complex 39A. Launch date is set for November 14th, 1969.
Apollo 12 Saturn V rolls out from the Vehicle Assembly Building (VAB), en route to Launch Pad Complex 39A. Launch date is set for November 14th, 1969.
Friday 24 July 2009
Tuesday 21 July 2009
Apollo 11 - Part 4 - The Landing & Moonwalk
And so, at last, it had happened.
"Tranquility Base here. The 'Haystack' has landed."
Not quite as evocative as the actual words, but the early NASA internal planning name for the 'Eagle' was indeed 'Haystack'. The Command Module, named 'Columbia' was referred to as 'Snowcone'. Good move to choose better names before announcing the mission to the world.
Saturday 18 July 2009
Thursday 16 July 2009
Apollo 11 - Part 2 - LAUNCH DAY
Yes, we now know it happened, and it was of course totally successful.
But forty years later I find the lift-off as exciting, moving and, yes, tense as the child of six years old did.
What about you?
No one knew for sure that all would go well - but they believed that it would. I think that belief counted for a lot, and still does.
This slow motion coverage of the lift off, featuring the various pad systems as they automatically disconnect from the Saturn V just as it starts to move, is really fascinating.
Stay with it and towards the end of the film there are a great few seconds of the Saturn V stack disappearing into the blue sky...en route to the Moon...at last!
Labels:
Aldrin,
Apollo 11,
Armstrong,
Cape Kennedy,
Collins,
Columbia,
Eagle,
July 16 1969
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