Wernher von Braun, often hailed as the "Father of Rocket Science," had a multifaceted career that spanned continents and political systems. His deep fascination with the cosmos was ignited early in life, and he pursued extensive education in mechanical engineering and physics, culminating in a pivotal doctorate in physics focused on rocket engines.

This work, significant enough to be initially classified by the German army, laid foundational knowledge in rocket technology. His leadership in Germany's V-2 rocket program during WWII, followed by his pivotal role in the U.S. space program, including the development of the Saturn V rocket for the Apollo missions, showcases his unmatched expertise. Von Braun's foresight in space exploration, illustrated by his detailed plans for a manned Mars mission in "The Mars Project," continues to influence space exploration. How did one man know so much?

This property tag is on the bottom of a chair I recently acquired. I am hoping someone can maybe identify if this could legitimately be a chair from the GE Apollo Support Dept created to assist NASA. Any info or ideas is greatly appreciated. Thanks in advance!

Gnomon Tripod on the Moon (Apollo 15, I think)

Photo metric Chart (On pole)

Photo metric Chart panel (On tripod leg)

I'm really interested in everyone's views on the Apollo 12 mission, especially regarding the iconic AS12-46-6848 photo. With astronauts Pete Conrad, Alan Bean, and Richard Gordon on this mission, and Bean capturing most of the lunar surface images. What are your impressions or thoughts about this specific photo and its context in the mission? Apollo 12 Mission

Been reading through the Apollo 12 mission transcripts and came across this gem (about 7 hours before CSM-LM separation and later descent to the surface):

101:08:44 Conrad (onboard): You've got to shit, huh? That figures [laughter].
101:08:49 Bean (onboard): [Garble]
101:09:03 Conrad (onboard): I wish I could shit; I'd feel a lot better about it. I don't - have the slightest inclination, but I just know what's going to happen. It's going to be the first shit on the lunar surface.

We can infer that in the Apollo 11 debrief, which certainly would have been read by the Apollo 12 crew, Armstrong and Aldrin confirmed they never took a dump on the surface. Considering the low residue diet and the fact they were there for <22 hours, this seems plausible.

So far there's no reference in the transcript (I'm at end of EVA 1) whether Conrad (or Bean) followed through on this threat...but I read somewhere there's a rumor Bean made it through the whole mission without going #2 (simultaneously concerning and impressive).

Based on the salty language, you can also tell this was when they were in orbit on the far side and wouldn't be live broadcast (as alluded to about 2 min later in the transcript).

Hi,

Just joined the sub so apologies if this had been posted before.

I was on a work trip to Fort Lauderdale from the UK and booked a few extra days to fulfil a childhood dream and visit KSC yesterday and it absolutely blew my mind.

I’m an ex merchant navy officer and navigator so I’m fascinated by the technical details particularly of the navigation and calculations involved (e.g how on earth did the lander module accurately rendezvous with the command module on return??)

Any book/documentary recommendations would be highly appreciated.

Thanks

In 2019, the movie "Apollo 11" was released. It utilized newly scanned 65 film from the national archives. Around the release date, filmmakers said that the footage would basically be donated back to the national archives and released to the public. But now, it's 2024 and I haven't seen any of that footage released anywhere else so... Where is it? Anyone has any information?

They were cheated by a technical failure. Did NASA not want to jeopardize their lives again, or was this decision up to the individuals? Was this decision fair?

Personally, I find Apollo 15-17 the most interesting with the introduction of the rover. I also quite liked the Galileo experiment on Apollo 15. (Side note: I feel the Apollo 15 crew’s treatment was way too harsh over the silly stamp thing). Honorable mention to Apollo 13, those poor men went through hell and never got to set foot on the moon 🥺