Ebook: On the Moon: The Apollo Journals

Public interest in the first lunar landing transcended political, economic and social borders – the world was briefly united by the courage of the crew, and the wonder of the accomplishment. Prompted by the rivalry of the Cold War, Apollo 11 and the five missions that subsequently landed on the Moon were arguably the finest feats of exploration in human history.

But these were more than exercises in ‘flags and footprints’, because the missions involved the crews making geological field trips on a low gravity site while wearing pressure suits, carrying life-support systems on their backs and working against an unforgiving time line. The missions delivered not only samples of moonrock, but also hard-learned lessons for how to work on the surface of another planet, and this experience will be crucial to planning the resumption of the human exploration of the Moon and going on to Mars.

This book explains how the Apollo crews learned to work on the lunar surface. Its lively and informative text draws heavily on transcripts and photographs to illustrate points. It puts the reader on the lunar surface with the astronauts, sharing their observations, excitement, and frustrations.

Many people who are interested in space exploration are too young to remember much about the events that led to the Apollo Program and the global excitement that accompanied the missions. Interest in the first lunar landing transcended all political, economic, and social borders. It is vitally important to revisit the roots of mankind’s boldest exploration, examining the astronauts’ observations, tallying the accuracy of our assumptions, and gaining new perspective for this century’s missions.