Would you like to inspect the original subtitles? These are the user uploaded subtitles that are being translated:
1
00:00:14,519 --> 00:00:16,398
[John F. Kennedy]
We choose to go to the moon.
2
00:00:17,119 --> 00:00:18,878
We choose to go to the moon.
3
00:00:23,238 --> 00:00:27,478
We choose to go to the moon
in this decade and do the other things,
4
00:00:27,559 --> 00:00:30,758
not because they are easy,
but because they are hard.
5
00:01:41,998 --> 00:01:43,198
[Gene Cernan] Look at that.
6
00:01:43,279 --> 00:01:44,318
That's beautiful.
7
00:01:44,398 --> 00:01:47,878
It's got to be one of the most proud
moments of my life. I guarantee you.
8
00:01:59,199 --> 00:02:00,959
[man]
Before painting the Sistine Chapel,
9
00:02:01,038 --> 00:02:03,999
Michelangelo had to first construct
a massive scaffolding
10
00:02:04,078 --> 00:02:05,958
to allow him access to the ceiling
11
00:02:06,039 --> 00:02:08,359
without interfering
with the chapel's daily use.
12
00:02:08,998 --> 00:02:10,719
He had to develop special wax models
13
00:02:10,798 --> 00:02:14,239
so he could study the lighting effects
to be duplicated in the frescoes,
14
00:02:14,318 --> 00:02:16,918
and come up
with a special slow-drying plaster.
15
00:02:17,719 --> 00:02:21,279
He suffered constant deadline pressure
from frustrated church officials
16
00:02:21,358 --> 00:02:23,798
and the pope,
who just wanted the ceiling finished.
17
00:02:24,439 --> 00:02:27,039
The work itself
was uncomfortable and unending,
18
00:02:27,118 --> 00:02:29,798
with wet paint and plaster
dripping in the face of the man,
19
00:02:29,879 --> 00:02:32,958
who was not after all a painter
but a sculptor.
20
00:02:33,999 --> 00:02:38,478
Such challenges arise in all
the great works of human imagination,
21
00:02:39,038 --> 00:02:43,158
be they the creation of our world
rendered upon the ceiling of a church,
22
00:02:43,879 --> 00:02:46,919
or the view of our world,
evident by making the voyage
23
00:02:46,998 --> 00:02:48,478
from the Earth to the moon.
24
00:02:50,199 --> 00:02:52,638
[rocket engines]
25
00:02:56,678 --> 00:03:01,118
[takeoff roar]
26
00:03:03,479 --> 00:03:05,638
["I Wish I Was A Spaceman"
by Barry Gray plays]
27
00:03:08,678 --> 00:03:11,439
♪ I wish I was a spaceman
28
00:03:11,798 --> 00:03:14,359
♪ The fastest guy alive
29
00:03:14,438 --> 00:03:19,998
♪ I'd fly you round the universe
In Fireball XL5
30
00:03:20,079 --> 00:03:26,318
♪ Way out in space together
Conquerors of the sky
31
00:03:26,399 --> 00:03:32,358
♪ My heart would be a fireball
A fireball
32
00:03:32,999 --> 00:03:37,359
♪ Every time I gazed
Into your starry eyes
33
00:03:38,918 --> 00:03:44,519
♪ We'd take the path to Jupiter
And maybe very soon
34
00:03:44,598 --> 00:03:47,558
♪ We'd cruise along the Milky Way
35
00:03:47,638 --> 00:03:50,679
♪ And land upon the moon
36
00:03:50,758 --> 00:03:56,839
♪ A wonderland of stardust
We'd zoom away to Mars
37
00:03:56,918 --> 00:04:03,278
♪ My heart would be a fireball
A fireball
38
00:04:03,638 --> 00:04:08,799
♪ And you would be
My Venus of the stars...
39
00:04:16,958 --> 00:04:19,336
[narrator] For a long time, the only
people who gave much thought
40
00:04:19,359 --> 00:04:21,799
to the idea of going to the moon
were science-fiction writers.
41
00:04:26,718 --> 00:04:30,838
In October 1957, the Soviets launched
Sputnik, and everything changed.
42
00:04:36,558 --> 00:04:38,798
Suddenly, going to the moon
was a possibility.
43
00:04:39,158 --> 00:04:41,279
The question was, "How do you do it?"
44
00:04:42,918 --> 00:04:45,238
Four months after Sputnik,
Wernher Von Braun
45
00:04:45,318 --> 00:04:47,999
briefed the head of the National
Advisory Committee on Aeronautics.
46
00:04:48,318 --> 00:04:50,838
He presented the two best options
for going to the moon.
47
00:04:51,518 --> 00:04:52,838
Well, there are two methods.
48
00:04:53,318 --> 00:04:56,198
The first method
we call "direct ascent."
49
00:04:56,278 --> 00:04:58,999
You build an enormous rocket,
put a capsule on top...
50
00:04:59,598 --> 00:05:01,319
Boom, you go straight to the moon.
51
00:05:02,959 --> 00:05:05,678
The other method,
we call "Earth-orbit rendezvous."
52
00:05:05,758 --> 00:05:07,479
Instead of using one huge rocket,
53
00:05:07,558 --> 00:05:10,478
we perform several launches
with somewhat smaller rockets,
54
00:05:10,558 --> 00:05:14,318
each carrying a component
of the spacecraft.
55
00:05:15,078 --> 00:05:18,278
We put the pieces together in orbit.
56
00:05:19,878 --> 00:05:20,838
And off we go.
57
00:05:21,438 --> 00:05:24,678
And these two methods, these are
the only ways of getting to the moon?
58
00:05:25,438 --> 00:05:26,398
Yes.
59
00:05:26,998 --> 00:05:28,838
[narrator]
Actually, there were other ideas.
60
00:05:28,918 --> 00:05:32,158
So, we started thinking,
"What can we do right now?"
61
00:05:32,238 --> 00:05:33,358
And then it hit us.
62
00:05:36,038 --> 00:05:41,158
The moon! You rendezvous
on the surface of the moon.
63
00:05:41,478 --> 00:05:43,438
The problem isn't getting
a man to the moon.
64
00:05:43,518 --> 00:05:44,655
- That's easy.
- It's not easy.
65
00:05:44,678 --> 00:05:46,039
- Relatively easy.
- Pretty easy.
66
00:05:46,118 --> 00:05:48,558
- The problem is getting him back.
- So we say...
67
00:05:48,639 --> 00:05:50,398
You send up some ships to the moon
68
00:05:50,478 --> 00:05:53,198
with all the extra fuel and supplies
you need to get back.
69
00:05:53,278 --> 00:05:54,958
That way, when the astronauts arrive,
70
00:05:55,438 --> 00:05:58,398
everything they need to get home
is already there.
71
00:05:59,358 --> 00:06:01,838
We put a man on the moon
as soon as possible.
72
00:06:01,918 --> 00:06:04,638
- Just get him there.
- We can keep sending him supply ships.
73
00:06:04,718 --> 00:06:07,078
Until we figure a way to get him back.
74
00:06:08,478 --> 00:06:11,438
Well, that's... Hmm. That's...
75
00:06:14,758 --> 00:06:17,719
No. No, I am sorry, gentlemen.
76
00:06:18,358 --> 00:06:20,518
I'm sorry, but there is no way
on God's green earth
77
00:06:20,599 --> 00:06:24,198
we would ever, ever
do anything like that.
78
00:06:24,718 --> 00:06:25,878
I'm sorry.
79
00:06:31,598 --> 00:06:34,558
[narrator] it looked like either
Earth-orbit rendezvous or direct ascent
80
00:06:34,638 --> 00:06:35,718
would be the way to go.
81
00:06:35,798 --> 00:06:39,078
And either way we go,
the spacecraft that lands on the moon
82
00:06:39,158 --> 00:06:40,318
is going to look like that?
83
00:06:41,078 --> 00:06:42,038
Yes.
84
00:06:42,119 --> 00:06:44,678
- Just like that.
- [man] No.
85
00:06:45,798 --> 00:06:47,278
It doesn't have to look like this.
86
00:06:47,358 --> 00:06:49,318
[narrator]
At Chance Vought Industries in Texas,
87
00:06:49,399 --> 00:06:52,518
an engineer named Tom Dolan
hit upon an interesting idea.
88
00:06:52,878 --> 00:06:56,358
You ever hear of a Russian rocket guy
named Yuri Kondratyuk?
89
00:06:56,799 --> 00:06:57,759
- No.
- No?
90
00:06:59,078 --> 00:07:02,279
Back in 1916, he realized something
that we seem to have forgotten today.
91
00:07:02,518 --> 00:07:05,278
Getting to the moon
is going to be all about weight.
92
00:07:06,478 --> 00:07:07,918
Look at the size of this thing.
93
00:07:08,398 --> 00:07:10,278
It's got to be 60, 70 feet tall.
94
00:07:10,638 --> 00:07:12,198
A couple hundred tons at least.
95
00:07:12,518 --> 00:07:15,039
Do you really need to take
all that to the surface? No.
96
00:07:15,638 --> 00:07:17,158
What Kondratyuk wondered...
97
00:07:17,919 --> 00:07:18,879
What I wonder is...
98
00:07:21,079 --> 00:07:24,158
what if you took along
a smaller vehicle, lightweight,
99
00:07:24,958 --> 00:07:28,158
that you just used to land.
100
00:07:29,439 --> 00:07:30,518
Something...
101
00:07:32,319 --> 00:07:33,318
like this.
102
00:07:34,558 --> 00:07:36,798
Tom, you couldn't reenter
the Earth atmosphere in that.
103
00:07:37,038 --> 00:07:40,279
I know. You come back
on the spacecraft you took from Earth.
104
00:07:40,358 --> 00:07:43,358
But that means you'd have to have
a rendezvous between the two of them
105
00:07:43,438 --> 00:07:45,158
- in lunar orbit.
- Exactly.
106
00:07:46,039 --> 00:07:48,478
Von Braun calls his method
"Earth-orbit rendezvous."
107
00:07:48,558 --> 00:07:50,318
I call this "lunar-orbit rendezvous."
108
00:07:50,398 --> 00:07:53,118
We don't even know if rendezvous
is possible in Earth orbit.
109
00:07:53,198 --> 00:07:57,598
And you want to do it around the moon?
Wouldn't that be kind of dangerous?
110
00:07:58,398 --> 00:07:59,438
I don't know.
111
00:08:00,478 --> 00:08:01,558
Would it?
112
00:08:02,438 --> 00:08:06,118
Well, Mr. Dolan, this is certainly
a very interesting idea.
113
00:08:06,678 --> 00:08:08,478
Why don't you let us think about it?
114
00:08:09,878 --> 00:08:11,198
Well, I've prepared a report.
115
00:08:11,278 --> 00:08:13,118
I have everything I need right here,
Mr. Dolan.
116
00:08:14,558 --> 00:08:15,638
Thank you for your time.
117
00:08:19,278 --> 00:08:22,598
[narrator] Chances are, lunar-orbit
rendezvous would probably have ended up
118
00:08:22,678 --> 00:08:25,958
as nothing more than a footnote
in the history of space exploration,
119
00:08:26,038 --> 00:08:29,598
if a report on the idea hadn't landed
on the desk of a NASA engineer
120
00:08:29,678 --> 00:08:31,198
by the name of John Houboult.
121
00:08:31,838 --> 00:08:33,558
When he first started reading
the report,
122
00:08:33,638 --> 00:08:35,678
Houboult had
the same reaction others did.
123
00:08:35,758 --> 00:08:38,998
Lunar-orbit rendezvous seemed like
just another far-fetched scheme.
124
00:08:39,678 --> 00:08:42,918
But the more he read,
the more the idea made sense.
125
00:08:43,318 --> 00:08:46,478
By the time John Houboult
finished the report, he knew.
126
00:08:46,958 --> 00:08:50,278
This was it.
This was how you get to the moon.
127
00:08:53,838 --> 00:08:55,278
Now, over the past few weeks,
128
00:08:55,358 --> 00:08:58,878
I've been able to prepare this report
on lunar-orbit rendezvous.
129
00:08:59,358 --> 00:09:00,798
I think you'll find it interesting.
130
00:09:02,198 --> 00:09:03,358
Look at Houboult.
131
00:09:03,438 --> 00:09:06,438
He reads a report, and he's Moses
come down from the mountain.
132
00:09:07,158 --> 00:09:08,518
So he's a little enthusiastic.
133
00:09:08,598 --> 00:09:11,118
A little enthusiastic?
He's making a fool of himself.
134
00:09:11,198 --> 00:09:13,598
Did you hear what happened
in the Heaton committee?
135
00:09:13,678 --> 00:09:16,358
And he wasn't even allowed
into the technical conference.
136
00:09:16,798 --> 00:09:18,918
Well, he'll get the hint
and he'll give it up.
137
00:09:19,878 --> 00:09:22,078
I hear he's going to write to Seamans.
138
00:09:22,158 --> 00:09:24,278
- He doesn't report to Seamans.
- I know.
139
00:09:24,798 --> 00:09:26,838
- He could get canned.
- I know.
140
00:09:28,598 --> 00:09:29,798
[no audible dialogue]
141
00:09:29,878 --> 00:09:31,398
[Houboult's voice] Dear Dr. Seamans,
142
00:09:31,478 --> 00:09:34,958
Somewhat as a voice in the wilderness,
I would like to pass on a few thoughts
143
00:09:35,038 --> 00:09:38,558
on matters that have been of a deep
concern to me over the recent months.
144
00:09:38,638 --> 00:09:42,118
- I have tried on numerous occasions... ''
-"...to draw attention throughout NASA
145
00:09:42,198 --> 00:09:45,238
to the concept
of lunar-orbit rendezvous.
146
00:09:45,318 --> 00:09:47,878
Regrettably, there has been
little interest shown.
147
00:09:47,958 --> 00:09:50,238
"Now, do we want to get
to the moon or not?"
148
00:09:50,638 --> 00:09:52,358
Yes, sir. Right away, sir.
149
00:09:52,838 --> 00:09:55,038
It goes on like this on
for another eight pages,
150
00:09:55,118 --> 00:09:58,038
and then there's
a 40-page report. Good Lord.
151
00:09:58,118 --> 00:10:00,198
I can make a call. He won't do it again.
152
00:10:00,958 --> 00:10:03,478
No, hold on. I'll tell you what.
Draft a reply.
153
00:10:03,838 --> 00:10:07,398
Say that his idea has merit and
I'm going to send it along to Brainerd.
154
00:10:07,798 --> 00:10:12,118
And then see if this Mr. Houboult
isn't due a vacation sometime soon,
155
00:10:12,198 --> 00:10:14,078
because, dear God, he needs one.
156
00:10:14,678 --> 00:10:17,158
"Somewhat as a voice in the wilderness."
157
00:10:17,918 --> 00:10:19,158
Okay.
158
00:10:19,678 --> 00:10:20,877
Does it have merit?
159
00:10:22,158 --> 00:10:24,318
Well, actually,
it's an intriguing notion.
160
00:10:24,798 --> 00:10:27,558
It's a little risky,
but it could save a lot of weight.
161
00:10:27,638 --> 00:10:30,638
Now, I don't think there's a chance
in hell that lunar-orbit rendezvous
162
00:10:30,718 --> 00:10:33,158
is the way we're gonna go,
but it is interesting.
163
00:10:33,838 --> 00:10:35,038
I'll see you at 3:00.
164
00:10:36,318 --> 00:10:37,678
[narrator] In July 1962,
165
00:10:37,758 --> 00:10:40,278
the idea that didn't have a chance
in hell of succeeding...
166
00:10:40,358 --> 00:10:41,317
succeeded.
167
00:10:41,638 --> 00:10:45,318
NASA selected lunar-orbit rendezvous
as the way to go to the moon.
168
00:10:45,758 --> 00:10:48,558
Now the question became,
who would build the lander?
169
00:10:49,918 --> 00:10:50,958
My name is Tom Kelly.
170
00:10:51,038 --> 00:10:53,398
On the day after election day, 1962,
171
00:10:53,478 --> 00:10:55,758
I waited with the rest
of the Grumman lander team
172
00:10:55,838 --> 00:10:57,998
for a call from my boss, Joe Gavin.
173
00:10:58,078 --> 00:10:59,078
[urgent tapping]
174
00:10:59,158 --> 00:11:02,318
Whoever's tapping the pencil,
if you value your life, please stop.
175
00:11:02,958 --> 00:11:03,958
[man] Sorry.
176
00:11:05,358 --> 00:11:06,758
[sighs]
177
00:11:10,078 --> 00:11:11,438
Any word?
178
00:11:11,518 --> 00:11:13,677
Yeah, Frank. We got the contract.
179
00:11:13,758 --> 00:11:17,078
We're just observing a moment of
silence for the companies that didn't.
180
00:11:17,158 --> 00:11:18,198
[laughter]
181
00:11:24,718 --> 00:11:27,078
Okay, look. This is crazy. Let's...
182
00:11:27,158 --> 00:11:29,558
I mean, this might not happen
for an hour or more.
183
00:11:29,638 --> 00:11:32,118
Let's go back to work
and I'll let you know, okay?
184
00:11:33,998 --> 00:11:35,638
[sighing]
185
00:11:46,398 --> 00:11:47,718
[phone rings]
186
00:12:00,438 --> 00:12:01,518
Tom Kelly.
187
00:12:02,998 --> 00:12:03,957
Hi, Joe.
188
00:12:06,318 --> 00:12:07,317
We've been...
189
00:12:08,677 --> 00:12:09,798
I see.
190
00:12:10,678 --> 00:12:11,837
Uh-huh.
191
00:12:14,118 --> 00:12:15,278
Okay.
192
00:12:15,878 --> 00:12:16,838
Thanks, Joe.
193
00:12:17,638 --> 00:12:18,598
Bye.
194
00:12:25,718 --> 00:12:29,117
I'm afraid you'll have to tell your
wives and kids the bad news, fellas.
195
00:12:32,878 --> 00:12:35,678
Looks like you won't be seeing
much of them for the next couple years,
196
00:12:35,758 --> 00:12:37,278
because we got the contract.
197
00:12:37,358 --> 00:12:39,397
[cheering]
198
00:12:51,838 --> 00:12:55,238
- You did it, Tom.
- No, I'm trying to hit the flashing.
199
00:12:56,557 --> 00:12:58,638
The contract? You did it.
200
00:12:58,718 --> 00:13:02,078
Oh, well, we did it. We all did it.
201
00:13:03,078 --> 00:13:04,118
There we go.
202
00:13:04,198 --> 00:13:05,678
Quite a story, really.
203
00:13:05,758 --> 00:13:08,438
- Local Long Island boy makes good.
- Yeah, yeah.
204
00:13:08,518 --> 00:13:10,558
Local Long Island boy
convinces government
205
00:13:10,638 --> 00:13:13,198
to give local Long Island company
half a billion dollars.
206
00:13:16,557 --> 00:13:18,678
The rubber balls
you'll have to pay for yourself.
207
00:13:21,398 --> 00:13:23,118
[no audible dialogue]
208
00:13:24,038 --> 00:13:27,638
You know, if weight wasn't a factor,
we'd have this thing done in a year.
209
00:13:27,918 --> 00:13:31,117
Hmm. True enough. But weight's
gonna be the most important factor.
210
00:13:34,438 --> 00:13:36,678
Of course, if we could find
some teeny-tiny astronauts,
211
00:13:36,758 --> 00:13:37,758
we'd be done in a month.
212
00:13:37,837 --> 00:13:38,718
[laughter]
213
00:13:38,797 --> 00:13:40,997
They've given us seven years.
We might as well use them.
214
00:13:41,797 --> 00:13:42,998
Seven years.
215
00:13:43,678 --> 00:13:45,278
Well, let's get started.
216
00:13:49,238 --> 00:13:52,398
Okay, specs call for five legs.
I think four would be better.
217
00:13:52,917 --> 00:13:53,877
It'll be as stable.
218
00:13:53,958 --> 00:13:57,037
We won't have to worry about
interference with the thruster quads.
219
00:14:05,358 --> 00:14:07,478
Let's go with
an octagonal descent stage.
220
00:14:07,558 --> 00:14:10,278
I think a round one will be
more trouble than it's worth.
221
00:14:19,158 --> 00:14:20,877
Bob, how much do these windows weigh?
222
00:14:22,277 --> 00:14:24,037
- I don't know. A couple ounces.
- Bob...
223
00:14:24,118 --> 00:14:25,557
- The real ones?
- Yeah.
224
00:14:25,638 --> 00:14:27,798
Five, six hundred pounds, at least.
225
00:14:28,437 --> 00:14:29,957
- Really?
- Yeah.
226
00:14:32,677 --> 00:14:33,678
Do we need them?
227
00:14:33,758 --> 00:14:36,278
I think the astronauts
might want to see where they're going.
228
00:14:37,718 --> 00:14:39,358
Do they need windows this big?
229
00:14:43,158 --> 00:14:45,157
No. Of course they do.
230
00:14:45,638 --> 00:14:47,797
Otherwise, they wouldn't be able
to see from their seats.
231
00:14:56,677 --> 00:14:59,678
- What?
- What if they don't need seats?
232
00:15:01,798 --> 00:15:03,078
They have to have seats, John.
233
00:15:03,557 --> 00:15:05,597
Why? They can fly standing up.
234
00:15:05,678 --> 00:15:08,477
- Yes, but they have to land.
- In one-sixths gravity.
235
00:15:09,118 --> 00:15:10,758
And legs are great shock absorbers.
236
00:15:12,918 --> 00:15:15,518
If they were standing, they'd be
a lot closer to the window,
237
00:15:15,877 --> 00:15:17,412
which would increase
their field of view.
238
00:15:17,438 --> 00:15:20,085
Which would mean we wouldn't need
such big windows in the first place.
239
00:15:21,117 --> 00:15:23,758
- What do you think?
- I think it's interesting.
240
00:15:24,598 --> 00:15:26,638
But I don't really see it. Sorry.
241
00:15:28,397 --> 00:15:29,518
Good try, though.
242
00:15:35,357 --> 00:15:37,758
Hey. Let's help him see it.
243
00:15:50,398 --> 00:15:51,358
What the heck is that?
244
00:15:52,357 --> 00:15:53,798
What we did instead of sleep.
245
00:16:06,678 --> 00:16:08,638
Well, John, I can certainly see it now.
246
00:16:18,398 --> 00:16:19,478
Okay, beautiful.
247
00:16:20,637 --> 00:16:22,918
Gotta call Joe Gavin about the budget.
One more thing.
248
00:16:22,998 --> 00:16:26,517
Thermal shields. Costing us
too much weight in the descent stage.
249
00:16:29,837 --> 00:16:32,878
You know, I don't think we need shields.
250
00:16:32,957 --> 00:16:33,917
Oh, right, Frank.
251
00:16:33,998 --> 00:16:37,398
It's gonna be 250 degrees in the
sunlight and minus 250 in the shade.
252
00:16:37,477 --> 00:16:39,238
But we don't need thermal shields.
253
00:16:39,598 --> 00:16:41,637
Sarcasm's really helpful, Jim.
254
00:16:42,078 --> 00:16:44,197
I just mean, maybe we can do the job
255
00:16:44,278 --> 00:16:46,694
with something other than the shielding
that's been used before.
256
00:16:54,958 --> 00:16:56,095
It would look kinda like that.
257
00:16:56,118 --> 00:16:59,478
Mylar film between layers of Kapton
with an outer layer of nickel foil.
258
00:17:00,598 --> 00:17:03,677
- How thin is the Mylar?
- One eight-thousandth of an inch.
259
00:17:03,758 --> 00:17:06,317
Well, well,
as long as it's good and sturdy.
260
00:17:06,957 --> 00:17:08,958
We'll use a couple dozen layers
all around.
261
00:17:09,037 --> 00:17:11,158
More where we need it, by the thrusters.
262
00:17:12,037 --> 00:17:13,358
It'll do the job, Tom.
263
00:17:16,037 --> 00:17:18,278
Okay, well, we'll see
how it goes in testing.
264
00:17:18,757 --> 00:17:20,078
Now, hatches.
265
00:17:20,397 --> 00:17:22,597
As it stands,
we have two docking hatches.
266
00:17:23,597 --> 00:17:24,638
We can't afford the weight.
267
00:17:25,038 --> 00:17:26,798
I've been on the phone with Owen
over at NASA
268
00:17:26,877 --> 00:17:29,158
and John Healey at North American,
and we all agree.
269
00:17:29,237 --> 00:17:31,358
We're going
with just one docking hatch up top
270
00:17:31,438 --> 00:17:33,197
and use a forward hatch for egress.
271
00:17:33,798 --> 00:17:34,997
That means when they come back,
272
00:17:35,077 --> 00:17:36,917
we'll have to rendezvous and dock blind.
273
00:17:36,997 --> 00:17:39,998
I know. We're gonna put a window up top
so the pilot can look up as he docks.
274
00:17:40,078 --> 00:17:42,637
Another window? Jeez.
How much is that going to weigh?
275
00:17:42,718 --> 00:17:45,117
It's got to be less than
a second docking hatch, right?
276
00:17:45,478 --> 00:17:48,837
Uh, Tom, that will require
the astronaut flying the LEM
277
00:17:48,918 --> 00:17:51,117
to make a 90-degree change in axis.
278
00:17:51,198 --> 00:17:54,557
Uh... left roll becomes left yaw,
279
00:17:54,638 --> 00:17:57,278
- but left yaw becomes right roll...
- Arnold. Arnold.
280
00:17:58,918 --> 00:18:00,558
Astronauts are smart.
281
00:18:00,637 --> 00:18:01,597
They'll figure it out.
282
00:18:09,038 --> 00:18:11,398
Okay, apparently we're not done
with the hatches.
283
00:18:11,477 --> 00:18:13,318
I just got off the phone
with Pete Conrad.
284
00:18:13,797 --> 00:18:16,998
Because of the square backpacks, we're
gonna have to put in a square hatch.
285
00:18:24,558 --> 00:18:27,117
Did you like Ed swinging around
like Tarzan yesterday?
286
00:18:30,038 --> 00:18:32,557
Yeah. A rope ladder's not going to fly.
287
00:18:32,638 --> 00:18:35,437
No. I'll call the configuration
control board.
288
00:18:36,318 --> 00:18:38,197
Put some rungs right on the forward leg.
289
00:18:42,717 --> 00:18:46,597
Okay, one more thing. It's no longer
the lunar excursion module anymore.
290
00:18:46,677 --> 00:18:48,037
Everybody feels that "excursion"
291
00:18:48,118 --> 00:18:49,877
sounds like
it's going out on a school trip.
292
00:18:49,957 --> 00:18:50,797
[snickering]
293
00:18:50,878 --> 00:18:52,798
From now on, it's just the lunar module.
294
00:18:53,317 --> 00:18:55,518
Well, I'm still going to call it
the LEM for short.
295
00:18:55,597 --> 00:18:57,397
John, you do whatever makes you happy.
296
00:19:04,158 --> 00:19:05,118
Well...
297
00:19:06,477 --> 00:19:08,038
I guess we better start building them.
298
00:19:19,717 --> 00:19:21,557
Let's make sure
we film everything we do.
299
00:19:23,757 --> 00:19:25,957
You want to show NASA
where its 500 million is going?
300
00:19:26,558 --> 00:19:30,678
Yeah. And I want to show my kids
where I was while they were growing up.
301
00:19:44,078 --> 00:19:46,278
[Tom narrating]
Every LEM would have to be handmade.
302
00:19:46,357 --> 00:19:48,837
There was no supplier
to order LEM parts from.
303
00:19:48,918 --> 00:19:52,397
And because everything on a LEM was new,
everything had to be tested
304
00:19:52,478 --> 00:19:54,277
and tested and tested again.
305
00:19:54,597 --> 00:19:56,117
The thrusters...
306
00:19:57,317 --> 00:19:58,437
the engines...
307
00:19:59,998 --> 00:20:01,837
the deployment of the landing gear.
308
00:20:03,438 --> 00:20:05,117
We had to know how a LEM would react
309
00:20:05,198 --> 00:20:08,078
when exposed to intense sunlight
or when pelted with dust.
310
00:20:10,637 --> 00:20:12,918
We had to know
how the landing gear would perform
311
00:20:12,997 --> 00:20:14,757
if a LEM came down on a slope.
312
00:20:15,918 --> 00:20:19,878
Thousands of tests,
day after day, for years.
313
00:20:24,158 --> 00:20:25,597
Some of the tests went well.
314
00:20:28,678 --> 00:20:30,557
And some did not.
315
00:21:00,277 --> 00:21:01,236
[sighs]
316
00:21:11,038 --> 00:21:12,558
Is this why the leg snapped?
317
00:21:15,838 --> 00:21:18,438
Apparently, I made the initial
miscalculation a few months ago.
318
00:21:21,837 --> 00:21:23,837
Everything's been based
on that since then.
319
00:21:28,677 --> 00:21:29,917
Mr. Kelly, I'm sorry.
320
00:21:30,757 --> 00:21:31,837
Uh-huh.
321
00:21:36,558 --> 00:21:38,997
- When did you find this out?
- Last night.
322
00:21:39,917 --> 00:21:42,198
After the test, I decided
to go over my figures.
323
00:21:46,558 --> 00:21:47,798
I understand if you...
324
00:21:50,717 --> 00:21:51,798
You know.
325
00:21:53,637 --> 00:21:54,597
Go home.
326
00:22:00,317 --> 00:22:01,277
And get some rest.
327
00:22:03,277 --> 00:22:04,237
Look...
328
00:22:05,957 --> 00:22:08,118
Did you come to me
when you found out about this,
329
00:22:08,197 --> 00:22:09,717
or did you try to cover your ass?
330
00:22:10,237 --> 00:22:12,638
You did a good thing. Not this.
331
00:22:14,037 --> 00:22:15,037
This is bad.
332
00:22:16,598 --> 00:22:20,277
But as long as people speak up
about their mistakes, we've got a shot.
333
00:22:21,278 --> 00:22:23,757
Okay? They try to sweep it
under the rug,
334
00:22:24,357 --> 00:22:26,797
and we're not gonna go
to New Jersey, let alone the moon.
335
00:22:30,357 --> 00:22:31,597
Get some rest.
336
00:22:41,158 --> 00:22:44,038
[Tom narrating] Truth be told, we were
behind schedule from the beginning.
337
00:22:44,117 --> 00:22:47,037
But mistakes and miscalculations
were only a small part of it.
338
00:22:47,317 --> 00:22:51,477
The real problem is that a LEM
isn't one spacecraft but two.
339
00:22:51,998 --> 00:22:54,157
The lower half of the LEM,
the descent stage,
340
00:22:54,237 --> 00:22:57,957
contains the engine that the astronauts
will use to control their landing.
341
00:22:58,038 --> 00:22:59,157
After the moonwalks,
342
00:22:59,237 --> 00:23:02,917
the descent stage will serve as
a launch platform for the ascent stage,
343
00:23:02,997 --> 00:23:04,198
the cockpit of the LEM,
344
00:23:04,277 --> 00:23:07,517
which the astronauts will fly
into lunar orbit for their rendezvous
345
00:23:07,597 --> 00:23:08,837
with the command module.
346
00:23:09,678 --> 00:23:12,397
Now, this particular ascent stage
belonged to LEM-3.
347
00:23:12,838 --> 00:23:16,517
LEM-1 and LEM-2 were designed
and built for unmanned test flights.
348
00:23:16,917 --> 00:23:20,677
LEM-3 would be the first to be flown
in space by astronauts.
349
00:23:22,438 --> 00:23:25,878
We worked with the astronauts
from the beginning of the LEM program.
350
00:23:28,157 --> 00:23:29,997
They showed us
what we were doing right...
351
00:23:31,837 --> 00:23:33,637
and what we were doing wrong.
352
00:23:35,557 --> 00:23:38,358
From early on, much of their attention
was given to LEM-3,
353
00:23:38,437 --> 00:23:41,638
but it wasn't until a day
in November 1966
354
00:23:41,717 --> 00:23:45,157
that NASA decided which crew
would be the one to actually fly her.
355
00:23:45,637 --> 00:23:47,877
I just got off the phone
with Deke Slayton.
356
00:23:48,197 --> 00:23:51,397
The crew assigned to take
the LEM-3 into space
357
00:23:51,477 --> 00:23:54,837
on the first manned flight
of a lunar module is as follows.
358
00:23:55,437 --> 00:24:00,677
Commander, Jim McDivitt, a Gemini vet.
One of the best pilots in the program.
359
00:24:00,757 --> 00:24:04,397
Command module pilot, Dave Scott,
another Gemini vet.
360
00:24:04,837 --> 00:24:09,837
And flying right beside McDivitt,
as his LMP, Rusty Schweickart, a rookie.
361
00:24:10,237 --> 00:24:14,597
Now, any crew is a good crew,
but these guys...
362
00:24:15,037 --> 00:24:16,758
Well, I think we're pretty fortunate.
363
00:24:16,837 --> 00:24:19,638
Because, gentlemen,
this won't be an easy mission.
364
00:24:19,717 --> 00:24:22,437
We're off the lake, Jim.
Can we talk business now?
365
00:24:22,518 --> 00:24:24,877
Well, if you insist.
366
00:24:26,197 --> 00:24:29,517
I've been going over the mission plan,
and it looks a little rough.
367
00:24:29,957 --> 00:24:31,557
It is kind of ambitious, Jim.
368
00:24:31,637 --> 00:24:34,757
Heck, it's not ambitious.
It's impossible.
369
00:24:36,397 --> 00:24:38,637
Look, everyone's focusing
on us flying the LEM.
370
00:24:38,717 --> 00:24:40,037
It's only a small part of it.
371
00:24:40,758 --> 00:24:42,877
Every mission's got a few things
never been done before.
372
00:24:42,957 --> 00:24:44,357
This one's got about ten.
373
00:24:45,157 --> 00:24:48,317
First manned launch of a LEM,
first docking extraction of a LEM,
374
00:24:48,397 --> 00:24:50,437
first men in a LEM in space.
375
00:24:51,157 --> 00:24:52,797
We just go out and fly the LEM, right?
376
00:24:53,837 --> 00:24:55,037
Wrong.
377
00:24:55,997 --> 00:24:58,757
Before we can even undock
the LEM from the command module,
378
00:24:58,837 --> 00:25:00,837
we gotta make sure
we can do an emergency transfer
379
00:25:00,918 --> 00:25:02,277
outside the spacecraft.
380
00:25:02,917 --> 00:25:04,477
Which means, Rusty,
381
00:25:05,117 --> 00:25:08,797
you're gonna have to do an EVA on
the PLSS backpack, first use of that.
382
00:25:08,877 --> 00:25:11,157
Dave, we're gonna leave you alone
in the command module.
383
00:25:11,797 --> 00:25:15,517
First time that'll happen.
Then the real fun begins.
384
00:25:16,317 --> 00:25:18,477
First, I pop the thrusters,
see if the LEM can fly.
385
00:25:18,557 --> 00:25:20,637
If it can, Rusty and I fire
the descent engine,
386
00:25:20,717 --> 00:25:22,397
take the thing on its maiden voyage.
387
00:25:22,957 --> 00:25:24,757
We go out 100 miles or so.
388
00:25:25,077 --> 00:25:28,757
God willing, the ascent engine lights,
first firing of that in space.
389
00:25:29,157 --> 00:25:30,637
Then Rusty and I head back to you
390
00:25:30,717 --> 00:25:32,837
for the first docking
of a two-man spacecraft.
391
00:25:36,477 --> 00:25:38,702
So, it's only nine things
that have never been done before.
392
00:25:41,397 --> 00:25:43,276
Come on. Give me a hand
with the trailer, will ya?
393
00:25:43,317 --> 00:25:45,437
[chuckling]
394
00:25:45,517 --> 00:25:48,797
You guys are right. It's a lot
for one mission. Maybe too much.
395
00:25:49,437 --> 00:25:52,197
We get even half of it done,
we can call it a success.
396
00:25:53,797 --> 00:25:55,157
I can't wait!
397
00:25:57,357 --> 00:26:00,014
[Tom narrating] While Scott went to
Downey to work on the command module,
398
00:26:00,037 --> 00:26:02,557
McDivitt and Schweickart
joined us on Long Island.
399
00:26:05,877 --> 00:26:08,294
So, gentlemen, do you want to go see
the vehicle and take it for a spin?
400
00:26:08,317 --> 00:26:10,197
- Gee, Dad, can we?
- Sure.
401
00:26:10,517 --> 00:26:12,157
As long as you don't
bring her back empty.
402
00:26:14,997 --> 00:26:17,334
[Tom narrating] The hardest part
of getting the first LEMs to fly
403
00:26:17,357 --> 00:26:20,597
was getting the thousands of systems
and subsystems to work together.
404
00:26:21,197 --> 00:26:24,037
Most of the time, it was like having
a ballroom full of dancers
405
00:26:24,117 --> 00:26:27,317
dancing different steps to music
that wasn't quite right for any of them.
406
00:26:31,877 --> 00:26:34,957
[system powering up]
407
00:26:35,037 --> 00:26:36,993
[man on radio] -Bring that to yellow.
- - Roger, TC.
408
00:26:38,757 --> 00:26:41,957
And TTCA, four jets down.
409
00:26:42,037 --> 00:26:43,277
Copy, TC.
410
00:26:44,037 --> 00:26:45,997
TTCA, four jets down.
411
00:26:46,757 --> 00:26:48,517
[system powering down]
412
00:26:50,917 --> 00:26:52,997
Well, that can't be good. [sighs]
413
00:26:59,357 --> 00:27:02,557
- Now, let's cycle that one more time.
- Yep. Roger, TC.
414
00:27:05,677 --> 00:27:06,757
Oh, for the...
415
00:27:16,397 --> 00:27:17,557
[metallic clang]
416
00:27:19,477 --> 00:27:22,557
You know, you look more and more like
Steve McQueen in The Great Escape.
417
00:27:23,037 --> 00:27:24,236
Funny you should say that.
418
00:27:24,317 --> 00:27:27,116
I got some guys digging a tunnel
out under the east fence.
419
00:27:27,197 --> 00:27:28,957
Should reach the trees by Sunday.
420
00:27:29,757 --> 00:27:31,197
Ready to start up again.
421
00:27:31,797 --> 00:27:33,037
I think we've got it.
422
00:27:34,677 --> 00:27:35,877
Let's do it.
423
00:27:35,957 --> 00:27:38,397
[whistling "The Great Escape Theme"]
424
00:27:49,437 --> 00:27:52,197
[man on radio] -DFI 23 cal off.
- - Copy, TC.
425
00:27:53,597 --> 00:27:55,997
- DFI power off.
- Roger, TC.
426
00:27:57,597 --> 00:27:59,997
- RNDA off.
- Copy that, TC.
427
00:28:01,276 --> 00:28:04,156
Oh, God bless it.
Tom, what's up with the radar?
428
00:28:06,756 --> 00:28:08,277
[phone rings]
429
00:28:09,837 --> 00:28:10,837
Tom Kelly.
430
00:28:12,157 --> 00:28:13,237
Hi, Lou.
431
00:28:14,837 --> 00:28:17,117
Yeah, no, I know. We'll...
432
00:28:19,037 --> 00:28:20,077
Yeah.
433
00:28:20,837 --> 00:28:22,477
I know what we're up against, Lou.
434
00:28:23,437 --> 00:28:24,757
We will make the date.
435
00:28:25,637 --> 00:28:27,357
I need to know if we can make the date.
436
00:28:28,397 --> 00:28:30,677
If we can't, I'm gonna
have to take cash from the safe
437
00:28:30,756 --> 00:28:31,957
and move to South America.
438
00:28:32,597 --> 00:28:35,717
[laughter]
439
00:28:39,116 --> 00:28:41,596
Okay. Bob?
440
00:28:42,117 --> 00:28:43,117
Yep.
441
00:28:43,757 --> 00:28:45,317
- Arnie?
- Sure.
442
00:28:46,317 --> 00:28:47,717
- John?
- Yes, sir.
443
00:28:48,437 --> 00:28:49,397
The other John.
444
00:28:55,157 --> 00:28:56,116
Sorry, Tom.
445
00:28:57,397 --> 00:28:59,357
The cockpit's gonna take
another three weeks.
446
00:29:00,236 --> 00:29:02,557
We could use a few weeks ourselves.
447
00:29:02,637 --> 00:29:04,076
[murmurs of agreement]
448
00:29:04,157 --> 00:29:06,157
If we had a week or two,
we could use it, you know?
449
00:29:06,997 --> 00:29:11,517
You know, Tom, I hear Bolivia
is really nice this time of year.
450
00:29:12,357 --> 00:29:14,437
[laughter]
451
00:29:19,517 --> 00:29:21,877
You know, this is so bad,
I can't even joke about it.
452
00:29:30,917 --> 00:29:33,574
[Tom narrating] Perhaps the main reason
we were behind schedule and over budget
453
00:29:33,597 --> 00:29:36,716
was because budgets and schedules
are based on previous experience
454
00:29:36,797 --> 00:29:38,117
with similar projects.
455
00:29:38,197 --> 00:29:40,494
We really didn't know how much
it would cost to build the LEMs
456
00:29:40,517 --> 00:29:41,997
or how long it would take.
457
00:29:42,076 --> 00:29:44,877
All we really knew was how much time
we'd been given,
458
00:29:44,956 --> 00:29:46,517
and that was running out.
459
00:29:46,917 --> 00:29:50,237
LEM-3 was scheduled to be launched
in the fall of 1968.
460
00:29:50,316 --> 00:29:53,517
To make the launch, NASA needed delivery
sometime that spring.
461
00:29:53,797 --> 00:29:57,036
We were working as fast as we could,
24 hours a day, seven days a week,
462
00:29:57,117 --> 00:29:58,796
and it wasn't enough.
463
00:29:59,037 --> 00:30:04,036
In June 1968, it was decided that we
would ship LEM-3 to NASA as she was
464
00:30:04,117 --> 00:30:05,637
and finish the work at the Cape.
465
00:30:09,997 --> 00:30:11,397
[ball bounces]
466
00:30:11,957 --> 00:30:14,156
I don't know
what I'm so worked up about.
467
00:30:14,237 --> 00:30:15,797
What's the worst that could happen?
468
00:30:16,597 --> 00:30:21,357
Well, we ship the LEM to NASA.
We never get it to fly.
469
00:30:21,957 --> 00:30:23,557
The Russians beat us to the moon.
470
00:30:23,636 --> 00:30:26,997
And within ten years, we're all living
under the iron thumb of communism.
471
00:30:27,637 --> 00:30:28,757
Exactly.
472
00:30:34,397 --> 00:30:35,357
Hey...
473
00:30:35,797 --> 00:30:38,117
Remember when seven years
seemed like a long time?
474
00:30:38,197 --> 00:30:39,437
[Tom] Hmm.
475
00:30:40,597 --> 00:30:43,717
You remember when this whole thing
was only gonna cost 500 million?
476
00:30:44,076 --> 00:30:47,157
No, I can't even remember when it
was going to cost a billion.
477
00:30:47,236 --> 00:30:48,437
[laughter]
478
00:30:51,237 --> 00:30:53,516
[Tom narrating]
Unfortunately, moving LEM-3 to the Cape
479
00:30:53,597 --> 00:30:55,436
didn't ease the pressure we were under.
480
00:30:56,637 --> 00:30:58,876
Tom, there's still at least
a hundred things wrong with it.
481
00:30:58,957 --> 00:31:00,956
- We'll get it fixed in time.
- No, you won't.
482
00:31:01,997 --> 00:31:05,117
There is no way that in three months
that thing is gonna be ready to fly.
483
00:31:06,997 --> 00:31:08,237
[quietly] Look, Jim, it's...
484
00:31:08,997 --> 00:31:10,357
It's a good machine.
485
00:31:11,236 --> 00:31:13,517
It just needs a little fine-tuning,
that's all.
486
00:31:13,597 --> 00:31:15,797
You don't have to whisper, Tom.
It can't hear you.
487
00:31:17,357 --> 00:31:19,716
Look, I want it to go up
as much as you do.
488
00:31:20,077 --> 00:31:21,557
I know we're running out of time.
489
00:31:21,636 --> 00:31:23,477
It's 18 months
till the end of the decade,
490
00:31:23,556 --> 00:31:26,077
and we still haven't had
a single manned Apollo flight.
491
00:31:26,156 --> 00:31:27,116
I know that.
492
00:31:27,477 --> 00:31:31,116
But that doesn't change the facts.
LEM-3 is not ready to fly.
493
00:31:31,997 --> 00:31:33,637
And it won't be anytime soon.
494
00:31:35,076 --> 00:31:37,477
That's gonna have to be
my recommendation to headquarters.
495
00:31:44,317 --> 00:31:47,077
With LEM-3 not ready to fly,
496
00:31:47,757 --> 00:31:50,757
after Wally and the 7 crew
go up with the CSM in October,
497
00:31:50,837 --> 00:31:54,117
that means there won't be another
Apollo flight until the spring, right?
498
00:31:54,197 --> 00:31:55,157
Right.
499
00:31:55,236 --> 00:31:56,557
Well, maybe not.
500
00:31:57,596 --> 00:32:00,117
George has come up
with a rather wild idea.
501
00:32:01,517 --> 00:32:02,956
How wild?
502
00:32:04,156 --> 00:32:06,157
Well, Frank's mission is being scrubbed.
503
00:32:07,077 --> 00:32:11,156
We've created a new C-prime mission,
which will precede your mission.
504
00:32:12,477 --> 00:32:13,957
What's the mission?
505
00:32:15,116 --> 00:32:19,837
Well, we're gonna send the command
and service module, no lunar module...
506
00:32:21,036 --> 00:32:23,677
on a flight around the moon in December.
507
00:32:25,156 --> 00:32:26,516
[scoffs]
508
00:32:27,756 --> 00:32:28,757
Really?
509
00:32:31,157 --> 00:32:32,576
And what does Frank think about that?
510
00:32:34,076 --> 00:32:35,477
I haven't talked to Frank yet.
511
00:32:35,556 --> 00:32:37,636
[sighs] I'm talking to you first.
512
00:32:39,517 --> 00:32:42,156
I don't want to lose your crew's
experience with LEM-3.
513
00:32:43,077 --> 00:32:45,996
That's why we decided to send Frank
on this mission ahead of you.
514
00:32:47,197 --> 00:32:51,037
But I wanted to see what you had
to say about it before I told Frank.
515
00:32:53,796 --> 00:32:55,996
I told him we'd stick
with the mission we got.
516
00:32:57,356 --> 00:32:58,557
Good.
517
00:32:59,716 --> 00:33:01,453
Going around the moon
sounds like a blast and all,
518
00:33:01,476 --> 00:33:03,637
but I really want to fly the LEM.
519
00:33:04,317 --> 00:33:06,596
Well, that's pretty much what Dave said.
520
00:33:06,677 --> 00:33:08,076
I called him in Downey.
521
00:33:08,157 --> 00:33:11,076
He said he really wanted to fly
the command module solo,
522
00:33:11,157 --> 00:33:13,237
get us out of his hair for a few hours.
523
00:33:17,516 --> 00:33:20,237
I don't know, though. Maybe
we're making a mistake. Maybe...
524
00:33:20,316 --> 00:33:24,116
Maybe we're missing out
on some historical voyage.
525
00:33:26,476 --> 00:33:27,637
I don't know, Jim, maybe.
526
00:33:28,557 --> 00:33:30,836
It sounds like
they're just gonna be sightseeing.
527
00:33:30,917 --> 00:33:34,237
With all the things we got to do,
our mission's fun.
528
00:33:37,436 --> 00:33:38,837
Yeah, we got a great mission.
529
00:33:39,516 --> 00:33:41,156
Providing that thing will fly.
530
00:33:45,877 --> 00:33:49,356
[Tom narrating] In the fall of 1968,
while work continued on LEM-3,
531
00:33:49,437 --> 00:33:51,716
the Apollo program
finally got off the ground.
532
00:33:52,197 --> 00:33:55,877
On October 11th, just a few miles
from where LEM-3 was being fine-tuned,
533
00:33:55,956 --> 00:33:57,957
Apollo 7 was launched.
534
00:33:58,956 --> 00:34:01,876
Two months later, Frank Borman,
Jim Lovell, and Bill Anders
535
00:34:01,956 --> 00:34:04,716
took Apollo 8 on its historic flight
around the moon.
536
00:34:06,116 --> 00:34:09,396
All that time, LEM-3 was being
worked on around the clock.
537
00:34:10,876 --> 00:34:14,356
By February 1969, George Skurla
and the rest of the Grumman crew
538
00:34:14,436 --> 00:34:17,036
had tested every circuit
and tightened every bolt.
539
00:34:18,797 --> 00:34:20,157
LEM-3 was ready.
540
00:34:25,357 --> 00:34:29,676
[no audible dialogue]
541
00:34:58,837 --> 00:35:01,236
- [Tom] I like the call sign.
- [Jim] Spider?
542
00:35:02,036 --> 00:35:04,636
- It seemed appropriate.
- How about the command module?
543
00:35:04,717 --> 00:35:05,677
Gumdrop.
544
00:35:06,237 --> 00:35:09,316
When it came from North American,
it was wrapped up in blue plastic, so...
545
00:35:09,397 --> 00:35:10,796
Sort of what it looked like.
546
00:35:11,597 --> 00:35:14,276
Maybe you should go up with us, Tom,
make sure everything's okay.
547
00:35:15,437 --> 00:35:16,876
[Tom] I'd love to go up with you.
548
00:35:19,677 --> 00:35:20,917
She's ready.
549
00:35:22,157 --> 00:35:23,357
I know.
550
00:35:25,196 --> 00:35:26,476
We better get back to the sim.
551
00:35:29,837 --> 00:35:32,236
- It's a beautiful machine, Tom.
- Isn't she?
552
00:35:32,317 --> 00:35:34,156
- You really think it's beautiful?
- God, no.
553
00:35:34,237 --> 00:35:36,876
Looks like a toaster oven with legs,
but I'm not telling him that.
554
00:35:39,437 --> 00:35:42,997
- Whoa! Hold on there a minute, Billy.
- I got to get him to the airport.
555
00:35:43,756 --> 00:35:47,316
Look, he spent the last seven years
of his life building that thing.
556
00:35:48,956 --> 00:35:50,476
Let's give him a moment to say goodbye.
557
00:35:52,356 --> 00:35:53,837
It stays up there, remember?
558
00:36:09,757 --> 00:36:13,516
Now, as far as LEM-3 was concerned,
that should have been it for me.
559
00:36:13,877 --> 00:36:16,717
I should have been able to sit back
in the SPAN room in Houston
560
00:36:16,796 --> 00:36:17,796
and watch the show.
561
00:36:19,637 --> 00:36:21,876
But in the early hours of launch day,
562
00:36:21,957 --> 00:36:24,316
the pressure in one of LEM-3's
descent-stage fuel tanks
563
00:36:24,397 --> 00:36:25,956
was reading disturbingly high.
564
00:36:35,716 --> 00:36:37,076
It's the helium tank?
565
00:36:37,956 --> 00:36:40,037
Well, actually, sir,
the supercritical helium.
566
00:36:41,476 --> 00:36:42,677
How's it reading now?
567
00:36:43,116 --> 00:36:44,356
We're still on the edge.
568
00:36:45,196 --> 00:36:46,276
Meaning?
569
00:36:47,556 --> 00:36:50,796
Meaning we'd like to be down the middle
of the tolerance band, but we're not.
570
00:36:51,796 --> 00:36:52,916
Give me the worst-case.
571
00:36:54,157 --> 00:36:56,396
When the LEM's heading away
from the command module
572
00:36:56,476 --> 00:36:57,757
and they're throttling up,
573
00:36:57,836 --> 00:37:00,836
the tank could over-pressurize
and the burst disc could blow.
574
00:37:00,917 --> 00:37:03,156
And then we would lose the helium
on the descent stage.
575
00:37:03,237 --> 00:37:06,397
Now, they would not be stranded,
they'd still have the ascent engine,
576
00:37:06,836 --> 00:37:09,316
but it would... kill the mission.
577
00:37:13,436 --> 00:37:15,997
Tom, I'll need the official
Grumman position on this.
578
00:37:18,916 --> 00:37:20,156
We're still within the limits.
579
00:37:22,157 --> 00:37:23,356
It'll fly.
580
00:37:26,716 --> 00:37:28,836
In the last few minutes before launch,
581
00:37:28,916 --> 00:37:31,516
I actually managed to put the tank
pressure problem out of my mind
582
00:37:31,596 --> 00:37:32,676
for a few moments.
583
00:37:33,677 --> 00:37:36,396
I tried to imagine what it was like
in LEM-3 just then.
584
00:37:37,196 --> 00:37:39,596
Astronauts have said that sitting
in the command module
585
00:37:39,676 --> 00:37:42,437
during the last part of a countdown
can be almost peaceful.
586
00:37:43,516 --> 00:37:45,716
Must have been
even more peaceful in LEM-3.
587
00:37:46,636 --> 00:37:47,797
At least until...
588
00:37:47,876 --> 00:37:50,476
[rocket engines firing]
589
00:37:52,916 --> 00:37:54,716
[intense rattling]
590
00:37:57,596 --> 00:37:59,893
[Tom narrating] For the next ten
minutes, it must have been like LEM-3
591
00:37:59,916 --> 00:38:02,036
was stuck in a paint mixer
in a hardware store.
592
00:38:02,836 --> 00:38:05,276
And when it must have seemed like
the shaking would never stop,
593
00:38:06,436 --> 00:38:07,396
it did.
594
00:38:24,957 --> 00:38:26,836
On the second day of the mission,
595
00:38:26,916 --> 00:38:29,917
Rusty became the first person
to enter a LEM in space.
596
00:39:31,476 --> 00:39:35,036
Later that day, shortly after Rusty
and Jim extended the landing gear,
597
00:39:35,116 --> 00:39:38,036
something happened which brought
the mission to a grinding halt.
598
00:39:38,436 --> 00:39:40,316
Okay, I got gear out in front of me now.
599
00:39:40,957 --> 00:39:44,076
Okay, landing gear deploy, uh, safe.
600
00:39:45,116 --> 00:39:46,276
Roger, safe.
601
00:39:46,796 --> 00:39:48,556
Sequence camera off.
602
00:39:49,396 --> 00:39:52,436
GET is 45: 11:35.
603
00:39:52,516 --> 00:39:53,996
DFI telemetry cal off.
604
00:39:54,636 --> 00:39:55,916
DFI power off.
605
00:39:57,596 --> 00:39:58,996
DFI off.
606
00:39:59,436 --> 00:40:01,397
RNDA off.
607
00:40:01,476 --> 00:40:04,316
DFI power off.
RND instrumentation A off.
608
00:40:10,756 --> 00:40:12,396
RND instrumentation A off?
609
00:40:14,596 --> 00:40:15,636
[gasping]
610
00:40:19,676 --> 00:40:21,436
[retches]
611
00:40:26,236 --> 00:40:27,196
Okay, Deke.
612
00:40:27,916 --> 00:40:30,236
I'm going to have to recommend
we scrub the EVA tomorrow.
613
00:40:30,996 --> 00:40:32,276
[man on radio] We got you, Jim.
614
00:40:33,236 --> 00:40:34,316
Jim?
615
00:40:35,476 --> 00:40:37,196
If Rusty doesn't do the EVA...
616
00:40:38,956 --> 00:40:40,956
I understand the ramifications, Dave.
617
00:40:43,596 --> 00:40:45,557
I don't think it's safe
for you to do it, Rusty.
618
00:40:46,036 --> 00:40:48,173
I don't think we can put you
in a pressurized suit and helmet
619
00:40:48,196 --> 00:40:49,756
if it looks like you're gonna throw up.
620
00:40:51,037 --> 00:40:52,716
We'll proceed with checklists tomorrow.
621
00:40:52,796 --> 00:40:55,556
We'll check out as many systems
as we can without undocking.
622
00:40:57,436 --> 00:40:58,796
That's just gonna have to be it.
623
00:40:59,636 --> 00:41:01,756
[Tom narrating] If Rusty
were to throw up in his suit,
624
00:41:01,836 --> 00:41:03,396
he would likely asphyxiate and die
625
00:41:03,476 --> 00:41:06,316
before Jim could get him back
into the LEM and re-pressurize.
626
00:41:06,677 --> 00:41:08,476
But if Rusty didn't test the backpack,
627
00:41:08,556 --> 00:41:10,956
the LEM couldn't undock
from the command module.
628
00:41:11,036 --> 00:41:15,196
When Jim canceled the EVA, we all
understood, but we were devastated.
629
00:41:16,596 --> 00:41:17,716
LEM-3 would not fly.
630
00:41:27,476 --> 00:41:30,116
The next day, as Rusty and Jim
went through their checklists,
631
00:41:30,196 --> 00:41:31,996
the mood around NASA was pretty grim.
632
00:41:39,196 --> 00:41:41,836
The mood lifted when one of Jim's
air-to-ground transmissions
633
00:41:41,916 --> 00:41:43,196
made everyone smile.
634
00:41:43,876 --> 00:41:45,676
Well, almost everyone.
635
00:41:45,756 --> 00:41:47,156
Hey, Houston. This is Apollo 9.
636
00:41:47,836 --> 00:41:49,140
[man on radio] Go ahead, Apollo 9.
637
00:41:49,436 --> 00:41:52,556
Uh, Houston, if some of our friends
from Grumman are listening in,
638
00:41:52,636 --> 00:41:55,876
I suggest on the next LEM, they give
an extra go with a vacuum cleaner.
639
00:41:55,956 --> 00:41:57,996
We got a few odds and ends
floating around in here.
640
00:41:58,876 --> 00:42:01,356
Roger, Apollo 9. We'll pass that along.
641
00:42:01,996 --> 00:42:05,436
[Tom narrating] Oh, well. In a few
minutes, even I would be smiling.
642
00:42:07,356 --> 00:42:09,236
You look like you're feeling better.
643
00:42:10,956 --> 00:42:12,636
Yeah, I am. I feel good.
644
00:42:13,636 --> 00:42:14,596
How good?
645
00:42:16,476 --> 00:42:17,436
Real good.
646
00:42:18,836 --> 00:42:20,516
Then what do you say you go outside?
647
00:42:22,516 --> 00:42:23,956
I think that's a good idea.
648
00:42:26,196 --> 00:42:28,036
Yeah, Gumdrop, this is Spider.
649
00:42:28,596 --> 00:42:30,596
- [Dave on radio] Roger, Spider.
- Yeah, Dave.
650
00:42:30,676 --> 00:42:33,276
Rusty says he's feeling a lot better
and he looks better, too.
651
00:42:33,596 --> 00:42:37,036
I thought maybe we should let him go
out on the porch and get some fresh air.
652
00:42:37,876 --> 00:42:40,956
Hey, man. I like the sound of that.
653
00:42:41,196 --> 00:42:42,596
[laughter]
654
00:42:46,996 --> 00:42:48,236
[Tom narrating] For 45 minutes,
655
00:42:48,316 --> 00:42:50,756
every available camera
on Apollo 9 was put to use
656
00:42:50,836 --> 00:42:53,396
filming the first two-man space walk
in history.
657
00:42:54,956 --> 00:42:57,276
While Rusty stood on LEM-3's porch,
658
00:42:57,356 --> 00:42:59,716
Dave stood in the open hatch
of the command module
659
00:42:59,796 --> 00:43:01,596
to film Rusty's test of the backpack.
660
00:43:11,796 --> 00:43:15,876
When one of Dave's camera's broke,
he went back inside to fix it.
661
00:43:19,876 --> 00:43:22,716
That gave Rusty
something unheard of on an EVA.
662
00:43:23,356 --> 00:43:24,436
Free time.
663
00:43:25,316 --> 00:43:30,196
For three minutes, there was nothing
for him to do but look at the Earth.
664
00:43:59,436 --> 00:44:03,276
With the backpack tested,
it was time to see if LEM-3 could fly.
665
00:44:08,156 --> 00:44:09,115
[thruster fires]
666
00:44:25,836 --> 00:44:27,562
[Dave on radio]
That's a nice-looking machine.
667
00:44:28,916 --> 00:44:30,836
It's not like an F-86,
I'll tell you that.
668
00:44:32,116 --> 00:44:33,716
It's an ungainly beast.
669
00:44:35,116 --> 00:44:36,556
But it really flies.
670
00:44:57,915 --> 00:44:59,156
[Jim on radio] Houston, Spider.
671
00:44:59,236 --> 00:45:01,516
We are preparing to
throttle up the descent engine.
672
00:45:02,076 --> 00:45:03,356
[Houston radio] Roger, Spider.
673
00:45:03,436 --> 00:45:05,796
[Tom narrating] It was time
to see if the decision I'd made
674
00:45:05,876 --> 00:45:07,876
just before the launch
was the right one.
675
00:45:14,836 --> 00:45:16,276
The tank will be fine.
676
00:45:16,876 --> 00:45:17,996
It'll hold.
677
00:45:22,716 --> 00:45:24,276
[Jim on radio] Throttle to 20%.
678
00:45:25,755 --> 00:45:27,236
[engine firing]
679
00:45:31,676 --> 00:45:32,796
It's a little rough there.
680
00:45:34,236 --> 00:45:37,236
[Rusty on radio] Yeah, wasn't it?
I think we swallowed a little helium.
681
00:45:38,036 --> 00:45:39,570
[Jim on radio] Yeah, let's try it again.
682
00:45:42,755 --> 00:45:44,316
Throttle to 40%.
683
00:45:50,196 --> 00:45:51,476
Houston, Spider.
684
00:45:52,836 --> 00:45:54,316
Everything looks good here.
685
00:45:55,196 --> 00:45:56,436
It was a good burn.
686
00:46:05,356 --> 00:46:07,466
[Rusty on radio]
Hey, keep track of us, will you, Davey?
687
00:46:07,916 --> 00:46:10,076
[Dave on radio]
Roger that. See you in a while.
688
00:46:10,836 --> 00:46:14,676
[Tom narrating] Jim and Rusty took LEM-3
out 1 10 miles from the command module.
689
00:46:15,236 --> 00:46:18,116
To get back to Dave, they had
to separate from the descent stage,
690
00:46:19,276 --> 00:46:20,596
then fire the ascent engine.
691
00:46:20,676 --> 00:46:21,876
[engine firing]
692
00:46:21,956 --> 00:46:24,315
[engine whooshing]
693
00:46:28,435 --> 00:46:29,675
Thirteen feet per second.
694
00:46:30,156 --> 00:46:32,955
At nine feet per second,
I have the interconnects.
695
00:46:33,316 --> 00:46:38,636
Five, four, three, two, one.
We have shutdown.
696
00:46:38,715 --> 00:46:41,556
Roger, we have a good burn.
No residuals.
697
00:46:44,316 --> 00:46:45,916
And there goes half our spacecraft.
698
00:47:08,796 --> 00:47:10,215
[Tom narrating] A short time later...
699
00:47:11,276 --> 00:47:13,275
LEM-3 redocked with the command module.
700
00:47:14,476 --> 00:47:15,436
[thudding]
701
00:47:15,516 --> 00:47:16,715
Her mission was over.
702
00:47:16,796 --> 00:47:18,516
[repetitive banging]
703
00:47:18,596 --> 00:47:20,916
Well, that's a song I haven't heard
in a long time.
704
00:47:22,356 --> 00:47:23,435
[laughs]
705
00:47:29,716 --> 00:47:31,795
- You all set, Rusty?
- Yeah, Jim.
706
00:47:32,036 --> 00:47:33,835
All right, I'll see you up in the CSM.
707
00:47:34,955 --> 00:47:35,796
I don't suppose
708
00:47:35,876 --> 00:47:38,676
they're gonna let anybody back up
they think's gonna get sick, huh?
709
00:47:43,356 --> 00:47:44,756
Well, I don't know, Rusty.
710
00:47:48,316 --> 00:47:49,276
I tell you...
711
00:47:50,595 --> 00:47:53,315
Those few minutes I had outside
while Dave was working on the camera...
712
00:47:55,235 --> 00:47:56,436
[laughs] Yeah.
713
00:47:58,236 --> 00:47:59,515
That was something special.
714
00:48:02,876 --> 00:48:04,676
I just wanted to say thanks.
715
00:48:05,076 --> 00:48:06,687
Hey, the only reason
it was even a question
716
00:48:06,716 --> 00:48:08,749
was I didn't want you to go outside
and kill yourself.
717
00:48:09,235 --> 00:48:10,075
[chuckles]
718
00:48:10,156 --> 00:48:12,036
And I'll try not to
for the rest of the mission.
719
00:48:12,716 --> 00:48:14,356
All right. I'll see you inside.
720
00:48:16,795 --> 00:48:18,035
Yep.
721
00:48:40,196 --> 00:48:42,236
[Tom narrating]
LEM-3 would fly one last time,
722
00:48:42,876 --> 00:48:44,436
but this time, she would fly alone.
723
00:48:48,436 --> 00:48:51,276
Okay, the tunnel's closed out,
the pyros are armed.
724
00:48:52,356 --> 00:48:53,675
We're all set.
725
00:48:59,756 --> 00:49:00,916
All right.
726
00:49:06,315 --> 00:49:07,596
So long, Spider.
727
00:49:16,476 --> 00:49:17,812
Hope I didn't leave anything in there.
728
00:49:17,835 --> 00:49:18,795
Yeah...
729
00:49:19,836 --> 00:49:22,276
When I first saw the LEM, I thought,
"You got to be kidding."
730
00:49:23,796 --> 00:49:25,156
It kind of grows on you.
731
00:49:27,196 --> 00:49:28,996
It really is a beautiful machine.
732
00:49:31,156 --> 00:49:33,155
Listen to me. I sound like Tom Kelly.
733
00:49:34,435 --> 00:49:35,596
[applause]
734
00:49:37,275 --> 00:49:39,577
[Jim's voice] You guys are right.It's a lot for one mission.
735
00:49:40,356 --> 00:49:41,675
Maybe too much.
736
00:49:42,876 --> 00:49:45,635
We get even half of it done,
we can call it a success.
737
00:49:48,716 --> 00:49:49,755
I can't wait!
738
00:49:54,155 --> 00:49:57,195
[Tom narrating] Apollo 9 had shown
that a LEM could fly,
739
00:49:57,276 --> 00:49:58,516
at least in Earth orbit.
740
00:49:59,755 --> 00:50:01,155
Two months later on Apollo 10,
741
00:50:01,236 --> 00:50:05,155
Tom Stafford and Gene Cernan
took LEM-4 down to within 50,000 feet
742
00:50:05,236 --> 00:50:06,596
of the lunar surface.
743
00:50:06,676 --> 00:50:10,716
Look at that. There's enough boulders
down there to fill up Galveston Bay.
744
00:50:11,636 --> 00:50:15,756
Houston, we is going, and we is
down among them, Charlie.
745
00:50:17,796 --> 00:50:22,076
[Tom narrating] Only one question about
the LEM remains, the biggest question,
746
00:50:22,155 --> 00:50:24,516
and it will be up
to the next LEM to answer it.
747
00:50:28,756 --> 00:50:30,276
When I said good-bye to LEM-3,
748
00:50:30,355 --> 00:50:33,756
I felt like a proud parent
watching a child go off to college.
749
00:50:36,835 --> 00:50:40,115
As I say goodbye to this LEM,
I feel like a parent of centuries past
750
00:50:40,196 --> 00:50:43,555
saying farewell as his child embarks
for the New World.
751
00:50:45,035 --> 00:50:47,596
To some people, that might sound
like I'm stretching the point.
752
00:50:48,156 --> 00:50:52,116
A LEM is not a child, it's a machine,
and a machine doesn't have a soul.
753
00:50:52,555 --> 00:50:55,236
We may yell at our toasters
and give names to our cars,
754
00:50:55,315 --> 00:50:58,915
but in the end, even a LEM is just
a collection of wires and circuits
755
00:50:58,996 --> 00:51:00,316
and nuts and bolts.
756
00:51:00,996 --> 00:51:04,355
I don't know.
I think each LEM does have a soul.
757
00:51:05,035 --> 00:51:06,916
It's a soul of all the people
who built her,
758
00:51:07,515 --> 00:51:10,555
designed her, first dreamed of her.
759
00:51:12,075 --> 00:51:13,236
What number is this one?
760
00:51:13,995 --> 00:51:15,075
This one is LEM-5.
761
00:51:17,636 --> 00:51:21,036
- Thank you for inviting us here today.
- You're welcome, Mr. Houboult.
762
00:51:21,115 --> 00:51:23,315
Without you guys, there might not
be anybody here today.
763
00:51:24,155 --> 00:51:26,556
- Someone would have thought of it.
- Maybe.
764
00:51:27,595 --> 00:51:29,875
This is the actual machine
that's gonna land on the moon?
765
00:51:30,715 --> 00:51:31,915
Yep.
766
00:51:32,795 --> 00:51:35,196
- What are they calling this one?
- This one...
767
00:51:36,396 --> 00:51:37,835
This one is the Eagle.
59835
Can't find what you're looking for?
Get subtitles in any language from opensubtitles.com, and translate them here.