by Jay Barbree
ABOUT THE AUTHORS
ALAN SHEPARD was the first American in space. After serving as chief of the Astronaut Office, he was handed the command of the Apollo 14 mission during which he became the fifth person to walk on the moon. He retired in 1974 from both NASA and the Navy where he held the rank of rear admiral.
DEKE SLAYTON, who was to have followed John Glenn into orbit, was grounded by an irregular heartbeat. He was named head of the astronaut office and a decade later restored to flight duty. Slayton caught the last Apollo out as a member of the historic Cold War meeting of Russians and Americans in orbit.
JAY BARBREE is a New York Times bestselling author, a finalist to be the first journalist in space, and the only reporter to cover all astronaut flights before the 2011 hiatus. His space team received an Emmy Award for its work broadcasting America’s first moon landings. Barbree is the recipient of NASA’s highest medal for public service, and he broke the cause of the Challenger disaster on Tom Brokaw’s Nightly News. He lives in Florida.
INDEX
A
ACE Control Room, 181
Agena satellites, 168-69, 171, 174, 175
Air Force. See Soviet Air Force; U.S. Air Force
Aldrin, Buzz, 365
Apollo 11 mission, 225-26, 233-47, 233-47, 233-47, 374-76
Gemini 12 mission, 175-76
ALSEP, 316
America (Apollo 17 command module), 338, 339
American Eagle. See Gemini 4
American-Soviet joint mission. See Apollo-Soyuz Test Project
AMU (Astronaut Maneuvering Unit), 172-74
Anders, Bill: Apollo 8 mission, 212, 217, 219, 220
Antares (Apollo 14 lunar module), 284, 286, 289-91, 292, 293, 295-96, 297-313, 310-13, 314-16, 379
Apollo 1 mission (Grissom, White, and Chaffee), 177-92, 252
cabin fire and death of crew, 185-92, 194-97, 252, 372-73
effect on NASA and Apollo program, 201-2, 201-3, 207
redesign of craft, 201-2
Review Board investigation, 198-99, 201, 202
Apollo 7 mission (Schirra, Cunningham, and Eisele), 207-9, 216, 216-17
Apollo 8 mission (Borman, Lovell, and Anders), 207-9, 214-16, 219-20, 268, 272
Apollo 9 mission (McDivitt, Scott, and Schweickart), 216, 227-32
Apollo 10 mission (Stafford, Young, Cernan), 12, 229-32, 268, 337, 345
Apollo 11 mission (Armstrong, Aldrin, and Collins), 12, 225-32, 233-47, 233-47, 268, 274, 374-76
moonwalk, 233-47, 248-50
Apollo 12 mission (Conrad, Bean, and Gordon), 258, 260, 268, 283, 317
Apollo 13 mission, 377
Apollo 13 mission (Lovell, Swigert, and Haise), 258-59, 262, 264-81, 283, 285, 317
Apollo 14 mission (Shepard, Roosa, and Mitchell), 12, 258-59, 280, 282-96, 289-91, 297-313, 378, 379
docking problem, 292
lunar descent phase, 304-13
moonwalks, 314-28
Apollo 15 mission (Scott, Irwin, and Worden), 332
Apollo 16 mission (Young, Duke, and Mattingly), 333, 334
Apollo 17 mission (Cernan, Schmitt, and Evans), 338
Apollo 18 mission, 286
See also Apollo-Soyuz Test Program
Apollo 19 and 20 missions, 286
Apollo program (Project Apollo), 125, 164, 177
aftermath of Apollo 1 fire, 195-96, 201-3, 372-73
cancelled missions, 286, 340-41
end of, 339
first circumlunar flight. see Apollo 10
first lunar landing. see Apollo 11
first manned flight. see Apollo 7
funding and contracting of, 124, 130
and Gemini program, 146, 157, 167, 171
launch area (moonport), 151, 156
lunar scientific studies, 259-62, 313-14, 317, 333, 338
new Manned Spacecraft Center for, 151
number of lunar voyages and landings, 7
pressure to advance schedule, 178
public disenchantment with, 198-99, 281, 286
See also and entries for specific Apollo missions, above; Apollo spacecraft
Apollo spacecraft, 164, 344, 380
boosters. see Saturn 1B; Saturn V
compared to Soyuz, 346
design and mechanical problems of first craft (Spacecraft 012), 177-78, 180
docking with Soyuz. see Apollo-Soyuz Test Project
last, 353-54, 355
redesign after Apollo 1 fire, 201-2
size, 207, 341
for Skylab missions, 341-42
See also lunar module
Apollo-Soyuz Test Project (ASTP) proving mission (Stafford, Slayton, and Brand; Leonov and Kubasov), 380
agreement on, 335-36, 346
crew selection and training, 336-37, 341-42, 344-46
rendezvous and docking activities, 346
Slayton’s impressions from space, 356-61, 380
Stafford and, 12
Appenine Mountains, Moon, 332
Aquarius (Apollo 13 lunar module), 266, 269-78
Arlington National Cemetery, 197
Armstrong, Neil, 9-11, 146, 363, 365
Apollo 11 mission, 233-47, 374-76
Gemini 8 mission, 168-71
lunar landing phase, 225-26, 233-47
moonwalk, 233-47, 248-50
Army. See U.S. Army
Associated Press, 24, 90
ASTP
astronaut corps: criteria for selection, 36, 48
introduction of Mercury Seven, 48-51
pins given to, 196, 211, 247, 252
search for first group, 35-36, 48
second group, 143-50
selection of first American in space, 62-68, 75-76
training of, 56-61
See also Apollo-Soyuz Test Project; Mercury Seven
Astronaut Maneuvering Unit (AMU), 172-74
Astronaut Office, Houston, 191
under Shepard, 10, 254, 329-30, 342-43
under Slayton, 145-46
Astronaut Office, Kennedy Space Center, 191
Atlas rocket
as Agena booster, 168
as ICBM, 19, 56-58, 125, 130-31, 152-53
test launch problems, 58, 89-90, 125, 130-31
atomic energy, 10
Atwood, Lee, 194-95
Aurora Seven mission (Carpenter), 144-45
A-26 Invader bombers, 37
B
Babbitt, Donald, 188
Baikonur Cosmodrome, Soviet Union, 22-23, 155, 203, 223, 224, 346, 347, 351
Bales, Steve, 237-38, 239
ballistic missile, first, 19
See also intercontinental range missiles
Banshee jet fighter, 43-47
Barbree, Jay, 10, 75, 361, 382
Baron, Thomas, 184
Bay of Pigs fiasco, 88-89, 117
BBC radio, 27
Bean, Alan: Apollo 12 mission, 259, 261, 365
Beatty, Morgan, 25
Belyaev, Pavel I., Voshkod 2 mission, 160-64
Benedict, Howard, 361
Berry, Dr. Charles (Chuck), 167, 262-63, 329, 330-31, 332
Boeing Aircraft, 37-38
Bonney, Walt, 50
Borman, Frank, 146, 365
Apollo 8 mission, 210, 216, 217, 218, 219, 220
Gemini 7 mission, 167-68, 198
Brand, Vance: Apollo-Soyuz Test Project mission, 12, 337, 343, 346, 347, 348, 350, 351, 355, 357, 380
Braun, Wernher von, 182
and Apollo-Saturn program, 123, 156, 164, 193, 195, 199, 206, 207, 213
and Juno 1 (Explorer 1) launch, 32-33
and Redstone/Jupiter-C program, 17-22, 26-27, 33
and Redstone-Mercury program, 77-78, 95
Brezhnev, Leonid, 336, 346
Brown & Root, 154-55
Brucker, Wilber, 32, 33
Bykovsky, Valery F., 155, 217
Byrd, Harry, 151
B-25 bombers, 37, 283
B-26 Invader bombers, 88
C
Caidin, Martin, 361
Cape Canaveral, Florida, 57
Atlas testing, 57-58, 126
candidate for new Manned Spacecraft Center, 152-53
crew quarters, 72-73
lighthouse, 69
preparations for first manned flight, 57-58, 69-78
Redstone testing, 31, 58
Vanguard explosion, 30-31
Carpenter, Malcolm Scott, 50, 65, 133, 285, 365, 367, 368
Aurora Seven mission, 144-45, 146
Carr, Jerry, 219
carrier pilots, 42-47
Casper (Apollo 16 command module), 334
Castro, Fidel, 86, 88
“celestial fireflies,” 135-36, 144
centrifuge training, 58-59, 60
Cernan, Gene, 365
Apollo 10 mission, 12, 229, 231, 345
Apollo 17 mission, 338, 339
Gemini 9 mission, 12, 172-74
Chaffee, Martha, 191, 196
Chaffee, Roger, 197, 365
Apollo 1 mission, 177, 179, 186, 188, 190, 192, 196, 197, 201, 372-73
Apollo 1 mission and death of, 185-92, 194-97, 252
Challenger (Apollo 17 lunar module), 338
Charlie Brown (Apollo 10 command module), 229, 229-32
Chauvin, Skip, 181, 182-83, 186
chimpanzees, 72, 73, 76-77, 132
CIA, 87, 213-14, 223
circumlunar missions
Apollo 8 possibility, 215, 217, 218
Soviet plans for, 164, 213-14, 345
Clark, Sumner, 55
Clear Lake, Texas, 154
Cocoa Beach, Florida, 73, 101
cold war, 335, 340, 344, 344-45
See also U.S.-Soviet competition
Cold war, 12, 335, 340, 344, 344-45, 346-47
Collins, Michael, 212
Apollo 11 mission, 233-47, 374-76
Gemini 10 mission, 174
Columbia (Apollo 11 command module), 234, 239, 243, 253, 375
“common docking device,” 336, 346
See also Apollo-Soyuz Test Project
communications satellite system, 123
computers, 7, 9
lunar descent problems, 192, 224, 305-6
Concert of the Spacecraft, 105
Cone Crater, Moon, 311, 313, 322
Connelly, Phil, 38
Conrad, Charles (“Pete”), 146, 365
Apollo 12 mission, 226, 258, 260-61, 262
Gemini 5 mission, 217
Convair, 56, 131-32
Cooper, Leroy Gordon, Jr. (Gordo), 50, 65, 70-71, 73, 122-23, 147, 285, 365, 367, 368
Apollo-Soyuz Test Project crew selection, 156, 259
casualties, 333
cosmonauts, 79-84, 155
Faith Seven mission, 146-50, 155
prelaunch communicator with Freedom Seven, 95-96
Corsair 106-B jet, 367
Cuba, 86, 88-89
Cunningham, Walt: Apollo 7 mission, 207, 208
D
Dana, Bill (Jose Jiminez), 75, 92
Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA), 123
Descartes Mountains, Moon, 334
Diamond. See Voshkod
Discovery (space shuttle), 13-14
Dobrovolsky, Georgi, 333
Dobrynin, Anatoly, 193, 194-95
docking
Apollo 14 problems, 292
Gemini program, 157, 165-76
Soyuz 1 and 2 mission, 194, 203
of U.S. and Soviet craft, 344, 346
dog in space (Laika), 30
Dolly Madison House, Washington, D.C., press conference, 48-51
Donlon, Charles, 154
Douglas, Dr. William (Bill), 59-60, 91, 92, 93, 95, 129, 142
Draper Labs, 306
Duke, Charles (Charlie), 233, 233-34, 237, 240, 241, 243-46, 334, 365
E
Eagle (Apollo 11 lunar module), 225-32, 233-47, 274, 375
Eagle (Vostok II). See Vostok II
earth, 364
geological history, 339
moon landing contamination protection, 376
as seen from orbit, 134-35, 166, 356-61
as seen from the moon, 211, 220-21, 252, 318-20
Edwards Air Force Base, 29, 35, 36, 38, 41, 49-51
Eisele, Donn: Apollo 7 mission, 207
Eisenhower administration, 28, 30, 87
Eisenhower, Dwight D., 21, 26, 28, 31, 33-34, 87
Endeavor (Apollo 15 command module), 332
Enos (space chimpanzee), 132
equigravisphere, 212
escape hatch. See hatch design
escape tower, 77, 104, 283-84
Evans, Ron: Apollo 17 mission, 338
Explorer 1 (Juno 1) launch, 31-33
Extra-Vehicular Activity (EVA)
first, 161
moon shot requirement. see also moonwalks; space walks
Eyles, Donald, 306
F
F11F Tiger, 41-42
Faith Seven mission (Cooper), 146-50, 155
Falcon (Apollo 15 lunar module), 332
Federation Aeronautique Internationale, 353
fighter pilots, 29-30, 37, 43-47, 50-51, 70, 344, 345
Fighter Test Group, Edwards AFB, 29
“firsts” in space, 10
docking in orbit, 183-84
emergency, 169-71
fatal reentry, 203-6
manned lunar landing. see Apollo 11
manned lunar orbit. see Apollo 8
manned orbital flight, 79-84
moonwalk, 233-47, 248-50, 375
satellite in orbit, 25-31
space walk, 160-61
woman in space, 155
Fitzgerald, Bill, 24-25
flight simulators. See simulators
Ford, Gerald, 352
Fort Bliss, Texas, 19
Fra Mauro, Moon, 300, 302, 303, 309, 312, 315, 317, 318, 320, 321, 323-24, 327, 379
free return trajectory, 218, 268, 269, 271
Freedom Seven mission (Shepard), 90-96, 97-114, 129, 258-59, 283-84, 286, 369
selection of astronaut for, 62-68, 75-76
White House reception and Washington celebration following, 115-21
Friedlander, Chuck, 192
Friendship Seven mission (Glenn), 66, 132-41, 146, 183
F-105 Thunderchief, 36-37, 38-41
F-106, 147
G
Gagarin, Yuri A., Vostok I mission, 79-84, 86, 107, 118, 130, 143, 365
Garman, Jack, 237-38, 239
Gemini 1 and 2 missions (unmanned), 157, 165-66
Gemini 3 (Molly Brown) mission (Grissom and Young), 157, 165, 228
Gemini 4 (American Eagle) mission (McDivitt and White), 171-72, 171-72
Gemini 5 mission (Cooper and Conrad), 167-68, 217
Gemini 6 mission, 12
Gemini 6 mission (Schirra and Stafford), 168, 345
Gemini 7 mission (Borman and Lovell), 167-68, 198
Gemini 8 mission (Armstrong and Scott), 168-71
Gemini 9 mission, 12
Gemini 9 mission (Stafford and Cernan), 147, 172-74, 345
Gemini 10 mission (Young and Collins), 171, 174
Gemini 11 mission (Conrad and Gordon), 171, 174, 217
Gemini 12 mission (Lovell and Aldrin), 171, 175-76
Gemini Nine, 147, 157
Gemini program (Project Gemini), 165-76, 371
and Apollo program, 147, 157, 164
preparation for first manned flight, 157
Slayton grounded during, 146-47
success of, 176, 178-79, 193-94
See also Gemini spacecraft and entries for specific Gemini missions, above
Gemini spacecraft, 165-66
boosters (Titan II), 147, 157
compared to other craft, 194, 207, 341
oxygen pressurization, 184
General Dynamics, Convair division, 56, 131-32
German rocket program, 17-18
Gilruth, Robert (Bob), 62-63, 64-65, 76, 143, 151, 193, 195, 199-200, 215, 286, 294-95<
br />
Gleaves, James, 188
Glenn, John, 50, 85, 120, 123, 144, 285, 363, 365, 367, 368
as backup for first manned Mercury flights, 65, 72, 75-76, 128, 132
Friendship Seven mission, 66, 132-41, 139-40, 146, 183
peers’ evaluation of, 64
and Shepard’s Freedom Seven mission, 90, 93, 94
Glennan, T. Keith, 50-51
g-loads, 39, 58-59, 60, 104, 111
global weather forecasting, 50
Gordon, Dick
Apollo 12 mission, 259, 260-61
Gemini 11 mission, 174, 175, 217
Grand Bahama Island (GBI), 108, 110, 111-14
gravity. See g-loads; weightlessness
Griffin, Jerry, 306
Grissom, Betty, 52, 191, 196
Grissom, Mark, 52
Grissom, Scott, 52
Grissom, Virgil (“Gus”), 50, 63, 70-71, 72, 75-76, 122-23, 126-29, 155, 166-67, 196, 283, 285, 365, 367, 368
Apollo 1 mission, 177-82, 184, 186, 187-88, 190, 192, 196, 201, 372-73
Apollo 1 mission and death of, 185-92, 194-97, 252
Gemini 3 (Molly Brown) mission, 157, 165-66, 228
Liberty Bell Seven mission, 64-65, 66, 125
and Shepard’s Freedom Seven mission, 90, 92, 112
Grumman Aircraft Company, 202, 227, 280
Grumman F11F Tiger, 41-42
Grumman Gulfstream, 199
Gumdrop (Apollo 9 command module), 228
H
Hadley Rille, Moon, 332
Haise, Fred: Apollo 13 mission, 265, 270, 271, 272, 274, 277, 377
Ham (space chimpanzee), 77
Handler, Dr. Philip, 336
Harris, Gordon, 27
Harter, Alan, 190
hatch design
Apollo, 180, 187, 201-2
Mercury, 130, 180
Hawk (Vostok V), 155
Hitler, Adolf, 16-17, 73
Holiday Inn, Cocoa Beach, 73-74, 147-48, 191
House, Dr. William, 255, 257
House Independent Office Appropriations Committee, 152
Houston space center. See Manned Spacecraft Center
Humble Oil, 154
