The Apollo Missions to the Moon

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• The Apollo Saturn Reference Page This page was developed to provide photo-reference and technical information on the Saturn V, Saturn Ib, Apollo Spacecraft and Launch Complex 39.

• Apollo 30th Anniversary On July 20, 1969, the human race accomplished its single greatest technological achievement of all time when a human first set foot on another celestial body.

• Apollo Expeditions to the Moon No nation ever demonstrated its aspirations and abilities as dramatically as did the United States when it landed the first men on the Moon, or as much in public: More people on Earth watched that first small step on a foreign planet than had witnessed any prior event in the ascent of man. While it is still too early to assess the full significance of that remarkable undertaking, I think it is a good time to look back on the total enterprise, while the images are still sharp, and while those concerned are available to give testimony. Historians have observed that ventures into uncharted waters are often illuminated most vividly in the words of those who were there; one thinks of Caesar's Commentaries, Bradford's History of Plymouth Plantation, Darwin's Voyage of the Beagle. An interesting parallel exists between the voyages of H.M.S. Beagle and the missions of Apollo: One changed the course of the biological sciences, and the others are reshaping planetary and Earth sciences. In this volume you will find the personal accounts of eighteen men who, like Darwin, were much involved in long and influential voyages.

• Apollo Lunar Surface Journal Sending humans to the Moon was arguably the most difficult technological undertaking in all of history. For sure, the best of America's scientists and engineers were taxed to the limit in order to accomplish nine manned flights to the Moon, six of which involved landing on the crater-filled lunar surface. The scientific results of the Apollo program were staggering. Much that was learned during Apollo required scientists to revise their basic understanding and theories about the Moon's formation and history. And the samples and data collected during Apollo will keep those scientists busy for decades to come.

• The Apollo Program "THAT'S ONE SMALL STEP FOR A MAN, ONE GIANT LEAP FOR MANKIND." The national effort that enabled Astronaut Neil Armstrong to speak those words as he stepped onto the lunar surface, fulfilled a dream as old as humanity. But Project Apollo's goals went beyond landing Americans on the Moon and returning them safely to Earth.

• The Apollo Society The Apollo Society is named in honor of all those who contributed to the success of the Apollo space program and proved that humans could walk upon the Moon. In the Spirit of Apollo, we shall return.

• Apollo-Soyuz Test Project Apollo-Soyuz was the first international manned spaceflight. It was designed to test the compatibility of rendezvous and docking systems for American and Soviet spacecraft, to open the way for international space rescue as well as future joint manned flights.

• Project Skylab America's first experimental space station. Designed for long duration mission, Skylab program objectives were twofold: To prove that humans could live and work in space for extended periods, and to expand our knowledge of solar astronomy well beyond Earth-based observations. Successful in all respects despite early mechanical difficulties, three three-man crews occupied the Skylab workshop for a total of 171 days, 13 hours. It was the site of nearly 300 scientific and technical experiments: medical experiments on humans' adaptability to zero gravity, solar observations, and detailed Earth resources experiments. The empty Skylab spacecraft returned to Earth July 11, 1979 scattering debris over the Indian Ocean and the sparsely settled region of Western Australia.

• Smithsonian information on the Apollo Space Program Apollo Spacecraft, Apollo Astronauts, Saturn V, Launches, Landing Sites, Mission Patches, Lunar Roving, Vehicle Press Release, Figures, Top 10 Apollo Results, Post-Apollo Exploration, and detailed information about each mission.

• Where No Man Has Gone Before: A History of the Apollo Lunar Exploration Missions "The Hammer and the Feather" (48" x 37 1/2", Acrylic on Masonite) by Astronaut Alan Bean. Apollo 15 commander David R. Scott confirms Galileo's hypothesis that in the absense of air resistance all objects fall with the same velocity. A geologic hammer in Scott's right hand and a falcon feather in his left hand reached the surface of the moon at the same time (see chapter 13). The demonstration was performed before the television camera on the lunar roving vehicle, and no photographs were made.