Operation Moonglow

Author: Teasel Muir-Harmony
Publisher: Hachette UK
ISBN: 1541699866
Category : Science
Languages : en
Pages : 336

Book Description
The moon landing was an important moment in history, but many forget what was happening behind the scenes -- discover the groundbreaking political history of the Apollo program in this riveting exploration of America's space missions. Since July 1969, Neil Armstrong's first step on the Moon has represented the pinnacle of American space exploration and a grand scientific achievement. Yet, as Smithsonian curator Teasel Muir-Harmony argues in Operation Moonglow, its primary purpose wasn't advancing science. Rather, it was part of a political strategy to build a global coalition. Starting with President John F. Kennedy's 1961 decision to send astronauts to the Moon to promote American "freedom" over Soviet "tyranny," Project Apollo was central to American foreign relations. From that perspective, the critical event did not just take place on the lunar surface, it took place in homes, public squares, palaces, and schools around the world, as Apollo captured global attention like never before. After the Moon landing, the Apollo astronauts and President Richard Nixon traveled the world to amplify the sense of participation and global unity shared by billions of people who followed the flight. Drawing on a rich array of untapped archives and firsthand interviews with Apollo astronauts, Operation Moonglow paints a riveting picture of the intersection of spaceflight, geopolitics, propaganda, and diplomacy during the Cold War.

The Decision to Go to the Moon

Author: John M. Logsdon
Publisher:
ISBN:
Category : Science
Languages : en
Pages : 210

Book Description
The decision announced by John F. Kennedy on May 25, 1961, initiating the expedition to the moon, is now documented in full for future students of history. To John Logsdon, whose approach is that of a political scientist examining the influence of men and events on the decision-making process, the decision to land a man on the moon "before this decade is out" was wholly political rather than military, although overtones of implied defense were useful in obtaining congressional support. Moreover, he notes it was made without the support of the scientific community, although their previous research efforts were expected partially to offset this deterrent.Although the success of the Russian manned orbit and the fiasco of the Bay of Pigs invasion certainly influenced the timing, in the author's interpretation the Kennedy decision manages to escape the narrow definition of a public relations exhibition. In Kennedy's view, he emphasizes, the security of the country itself was inseparably linked to a position of prestige in world opinion. Nor was he a particular enthusiast of space exploration for its own rewards. As he remarked to one of his advisors, "If you had a scientific spectacular on this earth that would be more useful--say desalting the ocean--or something just as dramatic and convincing as space, then we would do "that.""The thoroughness of this book as a historical record is evident throughout. NASA historical records and government documents not previously released, including several Presidential papers, are used in the analysis, and the author weaves these records together with subtleties of opinion from interviews with NASA officials and such Kennedy advisors as Theodore Sorenson, McGeorge Bundy, David Bell, and Jerome Wiesner.

The Partnership: A History of the Apollo-Soyuz Test Project

Author: Edward Clinton Ezell
Publisher:
ISBN:
Category : Apollo Soyuz Test Project
Languages : en
Pages : 588

Book Description

Apollo Remastered

Author: Andy Saunders
Publisher: Penguin UK
ISBN: 0141996358
Category : Photography
Languages : en
Pages : 520

Book Description
AN INSTANT SUNDAY TIMES BESTSELLER Discover space as you've never seen it before, with these awe-inspiring, breathtakingly restored images of our first missions to the Moon 'The next best thing to being there' Charlie Duke, Apollo 16 astronaut 'One of the best records of Apollo history ever produced' David R. Scott, Apollo 15 Commander In a frozen vault in Houston sits the original NASA photographic film of the Apollo missions. For half a century, almost every image of the Moon landings publicly available was produced from a lower-quality copy of these originals. Now we can view them as never before. Expert image restorer Andy Saunders has taken newly available digital scans and, applying pain-staking care and cutting-edge enhancement techniques, he has created the highest quality Apollo photographs ever produced. Never-before-seen spacewalks and crystal-clear portraits of astronauts in their spacecraft, along with startling new visions of the Earth and the Moon, offer astounding new insight into one of our greatest endeavours. This is the definitive record of the Apollo missions and a mesmerizing, high definition journey into the unknown.

Chariots for Apollo

Author: Courtney G. Brooks
Publisher: Courier Corporation
ISBN: 0486140938
Category : Science
Languages : en
Pages : 578

Book Description
This illustrated history by a trio of experts is the definitive reference on the Apollo spacecraft and lunar modules. It traces the vehicles' design, development, and operation in space. More than 100 photographs and illustrations.

Apollo's Fire

Author: Jay Inslee
Publisher: Island Press
ISBN: 1597266493
Category : Business & Economics
Languages : en
Pages : 411

Book Description
In this book the authors make the case for renewable energy and renewable energy policy. Each chapter begins with an inspiring story by someone working in renewable energy or a related field.

The Apollo Chronicles

Author: Brandon R. Brown
Publisher:
ISBN: 0190681349
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 289

Book Description
A uniquely earthbound story of space travel, The Apollo Chronicles immerses readers in the obsessive lives and work of NASA's engineers from the starting gun of the space race through the triumphant Moon landings. Filled with new interviews, scrubbed of technical jargon, and infused with the turbulent backdrop of the 1960's, the narrative follows a handful of main characters through their longest days, tightest deadlines, and most confounding challenges. In the end, the surviving engineers reflect: How exactly did we do it, and what did we learn?

How Apollo Flew to the Moon

Author: W. David Woods
Publisher: Springer Science & Business Media
ISBN: 1441971793
Category : Science
Languages : en
Pages : 582

Book Description
Stung by the pioneering space successes of the Soviet Union - in particular, Gagarin being the first man in space, the United States gathered the best of its engineers and set itself the goal of reaching the Moon within a decade. In an expanding 2nd edition of How Apollo Flew to the Moon, David Woods tells the exciting story of how the resulting Apollo flights were conducted by following a virtual flight to the Moon and its exploration of the surface. From launch to splashdown, he hitches a ride in the incredible spaceships that took men to another world, exploring each step of the journey and detailing the enormous range of disciplines, techniques, and procedures the Apollo crews had to master. While describing the tremendous technological accomplishment involved, he adds the human dimension by calling on the testimony of the people who were there at the time. He provides a wealth of fascinating and accessible material: the role of the powerful Saturn V, the reasoning behind trajectories, the day-to-day concerns of human and spacecraft health between two worlds, the exploration of the lunar surface and the sheer daring involved in traveling to the Moon and the mid-twentieth century. Given the tremendous success of the original edition of How Apollo Flew to the Moon, the second edition will have a new chapter on surface activities, inspired by reader's comment on Amazon.com. There will also be additional detail in the existing chapters to incorporate all the feedback from the original edition, and will include larger illustrations.

Return to Earth

Author: Buzz Aldrin
Publisher: Open Road Media
ISBN: 1504026446
Category : Biography & Autobiography
Languages : en
Pages : 300

Book Description
Apollo 11 astronaut Buzz Aldrin’s courageous, candid memoir of his return to Earth after the historic moon landing and his personal struggle with fame and depression. “We landed with all the grace of a freight elevator,” Buzz Aldrin relates in the opening passages of Return to Earth, remembering Command Module Columbia’s abrupt descent into the gravity of the blue planet. With that splash, Aldrin takes readers on a journey through the human side of the space program, as one of the first two men to land on the moon learns to cope with the pressures of his new public persona. In honest and compelling prose, Aldrin reveals a side of instant fame for which West Point and NASA could never have prepared him. One day a fighter pilot and engineer, the next a cultural hero burdened with the adoration of thousands, Aldrin gives a poignant account of the affair that threatened his marriage, as well as his descent into alcoholism and depression that resulted from trying to be too many things to too many people. He didn’t realize that when he landed on his home planet his odyssey had just begun. As Aldrin puts it, “I traveled to the moon, but the most significant voyage of my life began when I returned from where no man had been before.” Return to Earth is a powerful and moving memoir that exposes the stresses suffered by those in the Apollo program and the price Buzz Aldrin paid when he became an American icon.

Project Apollo

Author: Eugen Reichl
Publisher: Schiffer Publishing
ISBN: 9780764351747
Category : Science
Languages : en
Pages : 144

Book Description
In May 1961, American president John F. Kennedy committed the nation to carrying out a manned landing on the moon before the end of the decade. This volume covers the early years of the Apollo program (1960-1967), still the most significant space effort in the history of mankind. In a very short time, NASA developed the mighty Saturn rockets, the Apollo spacecraft, and the lunar lander. This breathtaking development came at a cost, however, as in 1967 astronauts Virgil Grissom, Roger Chaffee, and Edward White lost their lives during a test. Ten months after the catastrophe, however, the Saturn V, America s moon rocket, made its triumphal unmanned maiden flight. After that, just twenty more months would pass before man set foot on another celestial body for the first time."