Original subtitles

Narrator: SPACE EXPLORATION IS NEVER EASY.

IT NEVER WAS,

AND IT NEVER WILL BE.

Man: RISK IS THE PRICE OF PROGRESS.

Narrator: 60 YEARS OF RISKY TRIAL AND ERROR

HAVE LEFT A CLEAR TRAJECTORY OF OUR PROGRESS,

EACH NEW MISSION BUILDING ON THE LAST.

Man: THOSE EARLY PIONEERS REALLY HAD TO BE GUTSY.

WE DIDN'T REALLY UNDERSTAND WHAT SPACE WAS.

Narrator: WE'VE HAD TO FORGE NEW TOOLS,

BLAZE NEW TRAILS,

AND PERFECT NEW TECHNIQUES.

Man: THEY INVENTED IT,

AND WE'VE BEEN USING IT EVER SINCE.

Narrator: THE TECHNOLOGY EVOLVES,

BUT OUR DESIRE TO EXPLORE NEVER WAVERS.

Man: IT'S ESSENTIAL TO HUMAN NATURE.

WE ALWAYS WANT TO KNOW WHAT IS BEYOND THAT HILL.

Narrator: WITH THE SPACE AGE ONLY DECADES OLD,

WE'VE CREATED A ROBOT

THAT IS UNLOCKING THE MYSTERIES OF A DISTANT WORLD.

Man: IF EVERYTHING HOLDS TOGETHER,

YOU'RE GOING TO SEE SOME AMAZING THINGS.

Narrator: AS CURIOSITY SHINES A LIGHT ON MARS,

IT REPRESENTS THE SUM OF OUR HALF CENTURY IN SPACE

AND HINTS TO POSSIBILITIES FOR THE FUTURE.

Man: WHEN THE FIRST HUMAN BEINGS SET FOOT ON MARS

THEY ARE STANDING ON THE SHOULDERS OF REAL GIANTS.

Man: T MINUS TEN,

NINE, EIGHT, SEVEN,

SIX, FIVE, FOUR,

THREE, TWO, ONE...

MAIN ENGINE START.

ZERO.

AND LIFT OFF OF THE ATLAS FIVE WITH CURIOSITY.

Narrator: CAPE CANAVERAL HAS LAUNCHED HUNDREDS OF ROCKETS.

BUT THIS ONE IS ON AN EPIC QUEST,

THE SPECIAL DELIVERY OF A UNIQUE ROBOT CALLED CURIOSITY.

NINE MONTHS AND 352 MILLION MILES LATER,

CURIOSITY BEGINS A DO-OR-DIE LANDING ON MARS.

[MISSION CONTROL CHATTER]

Man: WE ARE DECELERATING.

DESCENDING, WE ARE AT 150 METERS PER SECOND.

Narrator: DECADES OF WORK AND MILLIONS OF DOLLARS

NOW HANG BY A FEW TETHERS.

Man: DOWN RANGE.

Man: TOUCHDOWN CONFIRMED.

[CHEERING]

Adam Steltzner: HAVING CURIOSITY SAFELY DOWN

FEELS FANTASTIC,

BETTER THAN I EVER THOUGHT IT WOULD.

I COULDN'T REALLY DREAM OR ALLOW MYSELF TO IMAGINE

WHAT IT WOULD BE LIKE,

BUT IT'S FANTASTIC, TRULY FANTASTIC.

Narrator: NOW CURIOSITY'S 17 CAMERAS,

10 SCIENTIFIC INSTRUMENTS, AND TWO COMPUTERS

ARE READY TO TAKE US PLACES WE'VE NEVER BEEN.

Dave Beaty: IT'S ABLE TO ACQUIRE SAMPLES,

PREPARE THEM PROPERLY,

AND THEN DELIVER THEM INTO A LABORATORY

THAT IS INTERNAL TO THE BODY OF THE ROVER.

THAT'S A SIGNIFICANT TECHNICAL BREAKTHROUGH.

Narrator: CURIOSITY IS A REMARKABLE 21st CENTURY MACHINE.

BUT IT NEVER COULD HAVE HAPPENED IF NOT FOR HARD-WON LESSONS

LEARNED THROUGH 20th CENTURY TRIAL AND ERROR.

SPACE PIONEERS HAD TO SOLVE

THE EXPLOSIVE RISKS OF LAUNCH...

THE TRICKY BUSINESS OF NAVIGATING THROUGH DEEP SPACE...

AND THE HOLD-YOUR-BREATH DRAMA

OF LANDING SAFELY ON UNKNOWN WORLDS.

EACH BREAKTHROUGH AND MANY OTHERS

MADE CURIOSITY POSSIBLE.

THEY ALSO MADE THIS POSSIBLE:

A GEOLOGIST EXPLORING MARS

FROM A PARK BENCH.

JOHN GRANT IS A LEADING GEOLOGIST

ON THE CURIOSITY TEAM.

EVERY DAY, CURIOSITY SENDS REAMS OF DATA FROM MARS,

AND JOHN AND HIS COLLEAGUES

DETERMINE THE ROVER'S NEXT SET OF INSTRUCTIONS.

John Grant: IT'S KIND OF A DREAM COME TRUE

TO BE ABLE TO LOOK AT THE SURFACE,

SEE INTERESTING ROCKS, SEE INTERESTING PLACES,

AND DRIVE OVER TO THEM,

AND THEN EVALUATE, INTERROGATE THOSE ROCKS

TO FIND OUT WHAT THE SURFACE IS, HOW IT'S EVOLVED OVER TIME.

Narrator: THE ROCKS ON MARS HAVE EVOLVED OVER BILLIONS OF YEARS.

THE REVOLUTION IN SPACE TECHNOLOGY

THAT BROUGHT US CURIOSITY IS ONLY DECADES OLD.

Grant: FOR THE MARS SCIENCE LABORATORY

TO SET DOWN ON THE SURFACE AND UNDERTAKE THIS INVESTIGATION

HAS BEEN THE CULMINATION OF MANY YEARS,

MANY PAST MISSIONS.

Narrator: JUST 55 YEARS EARLIER,

CURIOSITY WAS THE STUFF OF SCIENCE FICTION.

FORGET ABOUT TRAVELING

HUNDREDS OF MILLIONS OF MILES TO MARS.

IN 1957, WE HADN'T EVEN GOTTEN INTO SPACE YET.

THAT ALL CHANGED ON OCTOBER 4...

[MUSIC PLAYS]

...AS MILLIONS OF AMERICANS TUNED IN

FOR THE PREMIERE OF "LEAVE IT TO BEAVER."

WHILE THE NEW TV SHOW RAISED LAUGHTER NATIONWIDE,

A VERY DIFFERENT DEBUT BROADCAST

WAS ALSO ABOUT TO MAKE HISTORY.

SPUTNIK.

THE SOVIET UNION HAD LAUNCHED THE FIRST EVER

MAN-MADE SATELLITE.

Paul Ceruzzi: IT WAS KIND OF A BEACH-BALL SIZED OBJECT

WITH FOUR ANTENNAS COMING OUT,

AND VERY PRIMITIVE.

IT HAD A RADIO ONBOARD, AND THAT WAS ABOUT IT

BUT IT DID THE JOB. IT GOT INTO ORBIT.

Narrator: SPUTNIK'S ONE-NOTE SIGNAL FROM THE HEAVENS

CAUGHT THE U.S. OFF-GUARD.

Glynn Lunney: IT WAS A VERY BIG SHOCK

TO ALL THE PEOPLE IN OUR COUNTRY.

IT WAS NOT EXPECTED, IT CAME OUT OF THE BLUE.

WE HAD NO IDEA THAT THEY WERE GETTING READY TO DO THAT.

Narrator: SPUTNIK LAUNCHED IN THE MIDST OF A BITTER COLD WAR

BETWEEN THE U.S. AND THE SOVIET UNION.

Cathleen Lewis: BOTH SIDES WERE TRYING TO INFLUENCE

THE REST OF THE WORLD TOWARDS THEIR SIDE,

THEIR VISION OF THE FUTURE,

AND HERE THE SOVIET UNION

MIGHT POSSIBLY BE MORE TECHNOLOGICALLY ADVANCED

AND MAY DEMONSTRATE THAT THEY HAD A BETTER PATH

TOWARDS THE FUTURE.

Lunney: IT WAS THE START OF WHAT BECAME KNOWN IN THE '60s

AND IS STILL KNOWN TODAY AS THE SPACE RACE.

Narrator: JUST TWO MONTHS LATER,

THE U.S. RUSHED TO ANSWER SPUTNIK

WITH AN EXPERIMENTAL ROCKET CALLED VANGUARD.

IT ACHIEVED AN ALTITUDE OF EXACTLY 4 FEET

BEFORE DISSOLVING IN A FIREBALL.

Roger Launius: IT WAS THE MOST BEAUTIFUL EXPLOSION

YOU'VE EVER SEEN.

AND IF YOU WERE A LITTLE KID, YOU MIGHT BE EXCITED BY THE FACT

THAT THERE'S A REALLY NICE FIREWORKS SHOW.

BUT IT WASN'T SUPPOSED TO EXPLODE.

Narrator: THE NATION WAS HUMILIATED.

Chris Kraft: VANGUARD WAS A TOTAL DISASTER.

Launius: THE MEDIA RESPONSE TO THIS

WAS THEY LABELED IT "KAPUTNIK," "FLOPNIK"...

VARIOUS THINGS LIKE THAT.

AND MADE FUN OF IT.

AND AT THAT POINT PEOPLE REALLY ARE STARTING TO GET CONCERNED.

Narrator: TO REACH ORBIT,

A ROCKET MUST ACCELERATE TO OVER 17,000 MILES PER HOUR,

REQUIRING IMMENSE THRUST AND HIGH PRESSURE FUEL SYSTEMS.

VANGUARD'S ACHILLES HEEL WAS LOW FUEL PRESSURE.

THIS ALLOWED HOT GASES IN THE COMBUSTION CHAMBER

TO ENTER THE FUEL LINE, IGNITE THE FUEL SUPPLY,

AND TURN THE FUEL TANK INTO A BOMB.

IN A FLASH,

VANGUARD TAUGHT US A FUNDAMENTAL LESSON IN ROCKET SCIENCE:

CORRECT FUEL PRESSURE IS MISSION CRITICAL.

AMERICA'S TOP ROCKET ENGINEER, WERNHER VON BRAUN,

HAD BEEN WORKING ON A DIFFERENT MISSILE,

THE JUPITER-C.

Man: MATRIX PANEL CHECK.

Narrator: JUST FOUR MONTHS LATER,

A MODIFIED JUPITER-C ROARED INTO SPACE.

ONBOARD IT CARRIED AMERICA'S FIRST SATELLITE,

EXPLORER.

Steltzner: THAT WAS A HUGE ACHIEVEMENT,

AND IT WAS OUR ANTE INTO THE GAME OF SPACE EXPLORATION.

Narrator: SINCE EXPLORER,

WE'VE SENT THOUSANDS OF SATELLITES INTO ORBIT.

MOST HAVE QUIETLY CIRCLED THE EARTH,

ADVANCING SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY

FROM JUST ABOUT EVERY PERSPECTIVE.

BUT ONCE IN A WHILE, WE SEND ONE MUCH FARTHER.

MAVEN IS A NEW SATELLITE DESTINED FOR MARS.

Bruce Jakosky: THE MOST FUNDAMENTAL QUESTION

WE'RE ASKING TODAY ABOUT MARS

IS WHETHER THERE EVER WAS LIFE ON THE PLANET

OR WHETHER THERE MIGHT BE SOME TODAY.

Narrator: WHILE CURIOSITY CRAWLS AROUND MARS

SNIFFING FOR CLUES,

MAVEN WILL PEER DOWN FROM ABOVE

AND, HOPEFULLY, HELP US SEE BACK IN TIME.

Guy Beutelschies: WE HAVEN'T REALLY EXAMINED

THE ATMOSPHERE OF MARS,

AND SO IF WE CAN UNDERSTAND THE ATMOSPHERE,

WE CAN MAKE MODELS THAT CAN, IN A SENSE,

TAKE US BACK IN TIME

AND SEE WHEN MARS MIGHT HAVE BEEN WARM ENOUGH AND WET ENOUGH

TO SUPPORT OCEANS ON THE SURFACE,

AND OF COURSE EVERYBODY THEN ASKS THE QUESTION,

IF THERE WAS WATER THERE FOR LONG ENOUGH,

COULD LIFE HAVE EVER EVOLVED THERE?

Narrator: THE MARTIAN ATMOSPHERE USED TO BE THICKER,

SOME SAY PERHAPS SIMILAR TO EARTH'S.

THIS ATMOSPHERIC BLANKET PROTECTED THE SURFACE,

ALLOWING WATER TO FLOW FREELY.

BUT SOMEHOW 99% OF THE ATMOSPHERE DISAPPEARED,

AND MARS' SURFACE WATER EVAPORATED.

Jakosky: SO WE'RE TRYING TO UNDERSTAND

WHERE DID THE WATER GO?

WHERE DID THE CO-2 GO?

WHERE DID THE ATMOSPHERE GO?

Narrator: FIGURING OUT WHAT HAPPENED TO MARS

MAY GIVE US CLUES TO THE FUTURE OF EARTH'S ATMOSPHERE.

BUT TO GET THE RIGHT ANSWERS, MAVEN CAN'T BRING

EVEN THE SLIGHTEST TRACE OF EARTH WITH IT.

Beutelschies: THE CLEAN ROOM IS WHERE WE DO ALL OF OUR ASSEMBLY.

WE'RE VERY CONCERNED ABOUT BRINGING EARTH CONTAMINANTS,

ORGANIC CONTAMINANTS TO MARS

AND MESSING UP FUTURE SCIENCE INVESTIGATIONS.

Narrator: MAVEN IS ABOUT 60 TIMES

THE SIZE AND COMPLEXITY OF EXPLORER.

BUT A LOT OF ITS TECHNOLOGY TRACES BACK TO THE DAYS

OF OUR VERY FIRST SATELLITES.

Jeff Coyne: A GREAT DEAL OF THE ITEMS ON HERE

HAVE A LOT OF HERITAGE,

THEY'RE SIMILAR TO WHAT WE'VE USED BEFORE,

SO EACH MISSION BUILDS ON THAT.

IT'S A DIFFERENT VERSION OF WHAT WE'VE DONE BEFORE,

BUT IT ALL BREATHES THE SAME AIR.

Narrator: AND WHILE THE HARDWARE HAS EVOLVED,

THE PRINCIPLES OF LAUNCHING MAVEN

AND GUIDING IT THROUGH SPACE HAVEN'T CHANGED MUCH.

IN FACT, IT WILL LIFT OFF FROM THE SAME LAUNCH SITE,

USING SIMILAR ROCKET TECHNOLOGY AS EXPLORER DID IN 1958.

AND THE TEAM WILL FOLLOW IT WITH THE SAME ENTHUSIASM.

Coyne: I WAS A BIG "STAR TREK" FAN AS A KID,

AND NOW I'M BUILDING SPACECRAFT TO GO TO OTHER PLANETS,

SO IT DOESN'T GET A WHOLE LOT BETTER THAN THAT,

AT LEAST NOT UNTIL WE CAN TAKE THE RIDE WITH THEM

AND GO OURSELVES.

Narrator: GOING INTO SPACE OURSELVES

IS FAR RISKIER THAN SENDING MACHINES.

BUT IN 1958, JUST NINE MONTHS AFTER EXPLORER,

WE UPPED THE ANTE.

Keith Glennan: WE HAVE ONE OF THE MOST CHALLENGING ASSIGNMENTS

THAT HAS EVER BEEN GIVEN MODERN MAN.

WE WILL BE PREPARING FOR THE DAY

WHEN MANNED FLIGHT GOES INTO SPACE.

Narrator: NASA, AT THAT TIME A BRAND-NEW AGENCY,

NAMED THIS MONUMENTAL TASK "PROJECT MERCURY."

Kraft: WE WEREN'T ABLE TO FATHOM THE SIZE OF THE JOB

WHEN WE STARTED MERCURY.

Kranz: MISSION CONTROL HAD TO LITERALLY INVENT

EVERYTHING THEY NEEDED IN THE BUSINESS OF SPACEFLIGHT.

SO IT WAS A QUESTION OF TAKING THIS PUZZLE THAT WE HAD

AND ASSEMBLING THE PIECES.

WELL, OUR FIRST LAUNCHES DIDN'T COME OFF VERY WELL.

Lunney: THE LAUNCH VEHICLES THAT WE HAD,

WHEN WE WENT INTO THE MERCURY PROJECT,

HAD A RELIABILITY OF ABOUT 50%.

IN OTHER WORDS, IT BLEW UP EVERY OTHER TIME.

Kranz: THE THING THAT WAS DISTURBING

WAS THE AMERICAN MEDIA

BECAUSE THEY WERE ALWAYS HOUNDING US,

WHY WERE WE SO FAR BEHIND, WHY WERE WE BEHIND?

BUT YOU WERE PUTTING A HUMAN ON BOARD

LITERALLY TONS OF HIGH EXPLOSIVE.

ERROR WAS NOT ACCEPTABLE.

Narrator: BUT ERROR WAS POSSIBLE.

NOT ONLY DID THE ENGINEERS NEED TO BE ON TOP OF THEIR GAME;

THE PILOTS DID, TOO.

Lunney: CLIMBING ON TOP OF ONE OF THESE THINGS,

YOU HAD TO BE ON TOP OF YOUR TECHNICAL GAME.

SO THE GUYS THAT FLEW THE HIGH PERFORMANCE AIRPLANES,

THEY HAD THAT KIND OF EXPERIENCE.

Narrator: THE NEW JOB TITLE OF "ASTRONAUT"

FEATURED HIGH RISK AT LOW PAY.

MORE THAN 500 MILITARY TEST PILOTS APPLIED.

Launius: THE SELECTION PROCESS FOR THE MERCURY ASTRONAUTS

WAS PRETTY INVOLVED.

NOBODY REALLY KNEW WHAT SPACE WAS LIKE.

THERE WERE SCIENTISTS WHO SPECULATED

THAT WE WOULD BE ABLE TO EXPECT CERTAIN TYPES OF THINGS.

BUT MOSTLY WE DIDN'T KNOW.

Narrator: NASA CHOSE THE TOP 69 APPLICANTS,

WHO ENDURED A WILD ARRAY OF PHYSICAL AND MENTAL TESTS.

Launius: THE PHYSICAL TESTS HAD TO BE SORT OF DESIGNED.

THEY HAD SOME KNOWLEDGE OF UPPER ALTITUDE FLIGHT

AND HIGH SPEED FLIGHT

AND WHAT THE BODY MIGHT BE SUBJECTED TO IN THAT CONTEXT.

AND SO THERE WERE CENTRIFUGE TESTS

AND A VARIETY OF THINGS LIKE THAT.

Narrator: HOW WOULD HUMANS REACT TO ACCELERATION, VIBRATION,

ATMOSPHERIC FORCES, AND WEIGHTLESSNESS?

MANY DOUBTED AN ASTRONAUT COULD WITHSTAND

THE THREATS OF SPACE TRAVEL.

Kraft: THE MEDICAL COMMUNITY, PROBABLY 95 PERCENT,

THOUGHT THAT MAN COULD NOT PERFORM A TASK IN ZERO GRAVITY,

HE PROBABLY COULDN'T SEE, HE PROBABLY COULDN'T THINK,

IT PROBABLY HAD ALL KINDS OF EFFECTS ON HIS INNER EAR.

ALL OF THOSE PROBLEMS

WERE MAJOR ISSUES WITH THE DOCTORS

AND THAT WE HAD SERIOUS PROBLEMS OVERCOMING.

Narrator: FINALLY, AFTER MONTHS OF TESTING,

ON APRIL 10, 1959,

A HANDFUL OF AMERICA'S FINEST FACED THE MEDIA.

Man: THESE, LADIES AND GENTLEMEN,

ARE THE NATION'S MERCURY ASTRONAUTS.

John Glenn: MY FEELINGS ARE

THAT THIS WHOLE PROJECT WITH REGARD TO SPACE

SORT OF STANDS WITH US NOW AS... IF YOU WANT TO LOOK AT ONE WAY...

LIKE THE WRIGHT BROTHERS STOOD AT KITTY HAWK

ABOUT FIFTY YEARS AGO.

Ceruzzi: "LIFE" MAGAZINE

HAD A CONTRACT WITH THE MERCURY ASTRONAUTS AND THEIR FAMILIES

TO DO KIND OF BIOGRAPHICAL PIECES ABOUT THEM.

AT THE TIME, THE MAGAZINE WAS JUST WILDLY SUCCESSFUL.

EVERYBODY HAD IT.

YOU COULD FOLLOW THE ASTRONAUTS LIVES

AND THE WORK THEY WERE DOING, THE PREPARATIONS.

THERE WAS THE GREATEST ADULATION.

Narrator: FOR NEARLY TWO YEARS,

AS THE MERCURY SEVEN TRAINED FOR THE UNKNOWN,

EVERYONE FOLLOWED THEIR PROGRESS WITH ONE BURNING QUESTION:

WHO WOULD FLY FIRST?

IN JANUARY 1961,

NASA TAPPED ALAN SHEPARD FOR THE JOB.

Lunney: IT SEEMS LIKE WE HAVE ALWAYS MANAGED

TO SELECT THE RIGHT PERSON

TO BE THE GUY WHO TAKES THE STICK AND THE THROTTLE

AND PUTS HIMSELF IN HARM'S WAY.

AL SHEPARD WAS ONE OF THOSE KIND OF GUYS.

Narrator: BUT THE MONTHS OF TESTING AND PREPARATION

COST THE U.S. SPACE PROGRAM VALUABLE TIME.

ON APRIL 12, 1961,

SOVIET COSMONAUT YURI GAGARIN BECAME THE FIRST MAN IN SPACE

AND THE FIRST TO ORBIT THE EARTH.

Lewis: THE DISAPPOINTMENT OF GAGARIN BEING THE FIRST

HAMMERED HOME AGAIN THIS QUESTIONING

OF WHETHER THE SOVIET UNION WAS MORE ADVANCED.

Man: SEVEN LOUD AND CLEAR, STONEY.

Man: ALRIGHT, WE'RE LOUD AND CLEAR ALSO.

Narrator: A FEW WEEKS LATER,

SHEPARD CLIMBED INTO A TINY CAPSULE

ON TOP OF A ROCKET PACKED WITH EXPLOSIVE FUEL.

Man: OK, STONEY, TAKE IT OVER.

Man: TWO, ONE, ZERO...

Shepard: ROGER, LIFTOFF AND THE CLOCK HAS STARTED.

Narrator: AT LONG LAST, 78,000 POUNDS OF THRUST

CATAPULTED SHEPARD

116 MILES STRAIGHT UP THROUGH THE FLORIDA SKY,

TO THE EDGE OF SPACE.

Kraft: HAVING SHEPARD ON TOP OF THAT ROCKET

I THINK WAS A FANTASTIC THING TO DO,

BUT IT SURE WAS SCARY.

Kranz: YOU JUST ADMIRE A PERSON

THAT IS CAPABLE OF ASSUMING THE RISKS

THAT THAT FIRST MISSION ENTAILED.

Narrator: FIFTEEN MINUTES LATER,

SHEPARD SPLASHED DOWN IN THE ATLANTIC OCEAN,

AN AMERICAN HERO.

Kraft: IT WAS A FANTASTIC DAY FROM THE STANDPOINT

OF WE HAD BEEN TRYING SO HARD FOR THREE YEARS

TO GET TO THAT POINT,

AND IT WORKED EXTREMELY WELL, ALMOST PERFECTLY.

Kranz: WE HAD NOW BROKEN THE BARRIER.

WE HAD HAD A MAN IN SPACE, AND WE GOT HIM BACK SAFELY,

AND THAT WAS THE BEGINNING OF THE PROCESS

THAT OVER THE NEXT SEVERAL YEARS WOULD MATURE.

Narrator: SHEPARD'S SUCCESS

GALVANIZED THE NATION'S CONFIDENCE.

BUT JUST 20 DAYS LATER,

AT NASA'S FEET.

President Kennedy: I BELIEVE THAT THIS NATION

SHOULD COMMIT ITSELF TO ACHIEVING THE GOAL

BEFORE THIS DECADE IS OUT

OF LANDING A MAN ON THE MOON

AND RETURNING HIM SAFELY TO THE EARTH.

Narrator: KENNEDY'S EXTRAORDINARY ANNOUNCEMENT

ELECTRIFIED THE PUBLIC

AND SHOCKED NASA'S RANK AND FILE.

Kraft: I THOUGHT HE WAS CRAZY.

HONESTLY, I THOUGHT HE WAS CRAZY.

HIS SAYING WE'RE GOING TO GO TO THE MOON

AT THAT POINT IN TIME

WAS ALMOST LAUGHABLE, IF YOU WILL.

I DIDN'T LAUGH ABOUT IT

BECAUSE TWO DAYS LATER I HAD THE JOB OF DOING IT.

Narrator: ALAN SHEPARD HAD CATAPULTED INTO SPACE

AND DROPPED BACK TO EARTH

WITHOUT EVEN HAVING TO STEER A PATH.

GETTING TO THE MOON WOULD REQUIRE FAR MORE CONTROL.

Ceruzzi: HITTING THE MOON IS NOT EASY.

IT'S A MOVING TARGET,

IT'S A QUARTER MILLION MILES AWAY.

WE'RE MOVING, WE'RE SPINNING, EVERYTHING IS MOVING.

Narrator: PROJECT RANGER WAS THE FIRST STEP

TOWARDS KENNEDY'S UNPRECEDENTED GOAL.

THE OBJECTIVE SOUNDED SIMPLE:

JUST SEND A PROBE TO THE MOON,

HAVE IT TRANSMIT PHOTOS BACK TO EARTH,

AND THEN CRASH INTO THE LUNAR SURFACE.

James Burke: IT WAS REASONABLE TO ASK,

BUT QUITE DIFFICULT TO ACHIEVE BACK THEN.

John Casani: NOBODY HAD A CLUE ABOUT WHAT WAS NEEDED.

I MEAN, WE SORT OF WENT THROUGH IT ALL.

I REMEMBER SITTING DOWN

AND DRAWING THE FIRST BLOCK DIAGRAM OF A SPACE CRAFT,

BUT NONE OF THAT STUFF HAD BEEN BUILT BEFORE.

WE WERE JUST MAKING IT UP AS WE WENT ALONG BASICALLY.

THAN JUST A NEW SPACECRAFT.

IT HAD TO INVENT A WAY TO GUIDE IT ALL THE WAY TO THE MOON.

THE SOLUTION WAS THE DEEP SPACE NETWORK.

THREE LARGE RADIO TRANSCEIVERS WERE SPREAD AROUND THE WORLD,

SO THAT AT ANY GIVEN MOMENT,

AT LEAST ONE OF THEM COULD COMMUNICATE WITH RANGER.

BUT FIRST, RANGER NEEDED ROCKETS THAT COULD GET IT TO THE MOON.

RANGERS 1 AND 2 FELL SHORT.

THEIR ROCKETS FAILED TO PROPEL THEM OUT OF LOW EARTH ORBIT.

RANGER 3 SUCCESSFULLY LEFT ORBIT,

BUT FAULTY COMMAND SIGNALS

PITCHED IT IN THE WRONG DIRECTION.

IT MISSED THE MOON BY SOME 23,000 MILES.

THINGS WEREN'T GOING SO WELL.

Chad Edwards: NAVIGATION IS A CHALLENGING PART OF PLANETARY EXPLORATION.

WE'RE TRAVELING INCREDIBLY LONG DISTANCES,

AND TO BE ABLE TO GET TO THE TARGET,

YOU NEED TO BE ABLE TO NAVIGATE WELL ACROSS THE SOLAR SYSTEM.

Narrator: RANGER 4 DID FINALLY REACH THE MOON,

BUT AN ONBOARD COMPUTER FAILED,

AND IT CRASHED WITHOUT RETURNING ANY PICTURES.

RANGER 5 MISSED THE MOON COMPLETELY...

AGAIN.

AS THE MONTHS TICKED BY,

NASA CONTINUED TO TEST, REFINE, AND TROUBLESHOOT.

Casani: AS WE GOT BETTER, AS OUR TECHNOLOGY GOT BETTER,

AS THE ABILITY TO CALCULATE THE TRAJECTORY THAT WE WERE ON,

BASED ON RADIO NAVIGATION, IMPROVED,

THAT AREA GOT SMALLER AND SMALLER.

Narrator: JANUARY 1964.

RANGER 6.

Burke: DURING ITS ASCENT, WE WERE WATCHING IT.

ALL OF A SUDDEN THE SPACECRAFT TELEMETRY CAME ON.

WHAT IN THE WORLD IS THAT?

Man: ROGER 8, READING YOU LOUD AND CLEAR.

I HAVE SOME INFORMATION FOR YOU.

Narrator: THE SPACECRAFT HAD PREMATURELY AND MYSTERIOUSLY

POWERED UP ELECTRICAL SYSTEMS AND THEN TURNED THEM OFF.

AFTER SHEDDING ITS BOOSTER STAGE,

RANGER 6 APPROACHED THE MOON,

WITH SIX TV CAMERAS EXPECTED TO FILM THE HISTORIC IMPACT.

Man: NO VIDEO.

Man: ROGER.

Man: STILL NO VIDEO.

Man: ROGER.

Rob Manning: THE ROOM WAS FULL OF REPORTERS

WANTING TO SEE THE MOON CLOSE UP IN REAL TIME.

SO HERE ARE THESE GUYS SENDING THESE VEHICLES TO THE MOON,

AND SUDDENLY NO PICTURES.

THE THING CRASHES, AND THEY GO, "OH, NO. NOT AGAIN."

Narrator: IT TOOK MONTHS TO FIGURE OUT WHAT HAPPENED.

Burke: WHEN THE ATLAS BOOSTER ENGINES STAGED OFF,

A HOT PLASMA CLOUD

WENT UP THE WHOLE VEHICLE AND BACK DOWN, LIKE THAT,

AND BURNED OUT BOTH TRANSMITTERS.

Narrator: RANGER'S MISSION APPEARED BEYOND THE CAPACITIES

OF NASA'S BEST BRAINS.

THREE LONG YEARS.

SIX SPACECRAFT.

ZERO SUCCESS.

JULY 1964,

RANGER 7 LAUNCHED,

UNDER TREMENDOUS PRESSURE TO SUCCEED.

RANGER 7 SENT BACK THE FIRST CLOSE-UPS

OF AN ALIEN LANDSCAPE.

NASA'S PAINFUL AND EXPENSIVE QUEST

WAS FINALLY PAYING OFF.

Steltzner: I KIND OF WISH THAT I'D BEEN BACK THERE

IN THOSE TIMES

BECAUSE THEY WERE THE WILD WEST OF SPACE EXPLORATION.

WE DIDN'T REALLY UNDERSTAND WHAT SPACE WAS,

AND SO THOSE EARLY PIONEERS REALLY HAD TO BE GUTSY

BECAUSE THEY HAD TO TRY AND FAIL,

AND LEARN FROM THE FAILURE AND CONTINUE TO PERSEVERE.

Narrator: PERSEVERANCE HELPED CREATE MODERN TECHNOLOGY

WE NOW TAKE FOR GRANTED.

RANGER 7 SENT VIDEO IMAGES HOME 240,000 MILES

BY ENCODING THEM TO NUMERIC INFORMATION,

WHICH WAS DECODED BACK ON EARTH.

THIS IMAGE PROCESSING BREAKTHROUGH

IS AT THE CORE OF TODAY'S DIGITAL IMAGING TECHNOLOGY.

AND MOST IMPORTANTLY, RANGER TAUGHT US

HOW TO LAUNCH SOMETHING THROUGH THE VASTNESS OF SPACE

AND HIT A MOVING TARGET.

WE'RE ONLY GETTING BETTER AT IT.

Steltzner: WE USE RADIO TELESCOPES

TO TELL US WHERE THE SPACECRAFT IS,

AND THEN FROM EARTH OBSERVATION

WE TUNE ITS TRAJECTORY TO GET IT JUST RIGHT.

Edwards: MARS IS 400 MILLION KILOMETERS FROM EARTH,

YET WE'RE ABLE TO MAKE MEASUREMENTS PRECISE ENOUGH

THAT WHEN WE ARRIVE AT MARS

WE KNOW WHERE WE ARE ON A SCALE OF A COUPLE OF KILOMETERS.

Narrator: AT THE TIME OF RANGER'S SUCCESS,

NASA'S ULTIMATE GOAL

WAS TO GUIDE A MANNED SPACECRAFT TO THE MOON,

ONE STEP AT A TIME.

IN FEBRUARY 1962,

JOHN GLENN BOARDED A TINY CAPSULE

FOR THE THIRD MERCURY SPACE LAUNCH.

HIS MISSION: TO ORBIT THE EARTH.

Man: GODSPEED, JOHN GLENN.

TEN, NINE, EIGHT, SEVEN,

SIX, FIVE, FOUR, THREE, TWO, ONE, ZERO...

Man: ROGER, THE CLOCK IS OPERATING.

WE'RE UNDERWAY.

Jay Barbree: EVERYBODY WAS ECSTATIC.

WE HAD CAMPERS OUT THERE, EVERYBODY CAME DOWN.

THE WHOLE NATION STOPPED, REALLY,

BECAUSE IT WAS ON LIVE TELEVISION.

Barbree: JOHN GLENN GETTING INTO ORBIT

WAS A GIANT STEP FOR US GETTING TO THE MOON,

AND HE WAS A VERY, VERY BRAVE MAN.

Narrator: GLENN RETURNED TO EARTH A HERO,

AND A HUMAN TRIP TO THE MOON SUDDENLY SEEMED POSSIBLE.

OTHERS WERE ALREADY LOOKING TO THE NEXT DESTINATION.

AUGUST 1962.

A NEW PROBE, MARINER 2, ROCKETS TOWARD VENUS.

Ceruzzi: BEFORE MARINER 2 FLEW TO VENUS,

THERE WAS A LOT OF SPECULATION ABOUT THE PLANET.

IT'S ROUGHLY THE SAME SIZE AS EARTH,

IT HAS AN ATMOSPHERE... WE KNEW THAT...

IT'S CLOSER TO THE SUN,

BUT IT ISN'T THAT MUCH CLOSER TO THE SUN,

AND THERE WAS A LOT OF FEELINGS THAT IT WAS PROBABLY LIKE EARTH,

MAYBE HAVE OCEANS AND WATER AND MAYBE EVEN LIFE.

Narrator: MARINER 2 DEMONSTRATED

THAT WE COULD GUIDE AND COMMUNICATE

WITH A SPACECRAFT TENS OF MILLIONS OF MILES AWAY.

BUT IT ALSO BLEW APART

PRECONCEPTIONS OF OUR NEAREST PLANETARY NEIGHBOR.

Launius: THE IDEA WAS

THAT PERHAPS VENUS IS SEVERAL MILLION YEARS BEHIND EARTH

AND THAT THERE MAY BE DINOSAURS AND AQUATIC CREATURES

AND TROPICAL TERRAIN ON VENUS.

ALL OF THAT WAS SMASHED TO BITS

WITH THE FIRST PLANETARY PROBES.

Narrator: THE NEWS MARINER SENT BACK

WAS SHOCKING AND BLEAK.

Ceruzzi: IT FOUND A HOSTILE ENVIRONMENT,

VERY HOT.

VENUS IS NOT A PLEASANT PLACE.

Narrator: VENUS'S SURFACE IS 890 DEGREES FAHRENHEIT:

A SCORCHED, WATERLESS WORLD.

DISAPPOINTING NEWS FOR MANY,

BUT THE MISSION WAS A SUCCESS.

Ceruzzi: MARINER 2 HAD A TREMENDOUS SCIENTIFIC IMPACT

OF GIVING US DATA THAT WE REALLY COULDN'T GET

FROM THE GROUND OBSERVATIONS.

Narrator: AFTER THE STARK REVELATIONS OF MARINER 2,

HOPE FOR SIGNS OF LIFE IN OUR SOLAR SYSTEM

SHIFTED TO THE PLANET EVERYONE LOVED TO FANTASIZE ABOUT.

Film narrator: FOR CENTURIES SCIENCE HAS STUDIED MARS,

THE ONLY PLANET WHERE LIFE MAY EXIST.

NOW THE SCREEN CREATES FOR YOU

THE FASCINATING, FRIGHTENING SPECTACLE

OF THE FIRST FLIGHT TO MARS.

Martian: WE HAVE BEEN EXPECTING YOU.

Ceruzzi: MARS IS SIMILAR TO EARTH.

IT'S SMALLER, BUT NOT TOO MUCH SMALLER.

AND IT'S FARTHER AWAY FROM THE SUN

BUT NOT REALLY FAR AWAY LIKE SATURN OR JUPITER,

SO THERE WAS A LOT OF FEELINGS

THAT PERHAPS MARS MIGHT HAVE LIFE OR SUPPORT LIFE.

Narrator: ONLY ONE WAY TO FIND OUT.

IN 1964, MARINER 4 TOOK OFF FOR MARS,

A 325-MILLION-MILE TOURIST TRIP

FOR A SPACECRAFT ARMED WITH FIELD SENSORS,

PARTICLE DETECTORS, AND A CAMERA.

THIS WAS OUR FIRST CHANCE TO SEE MARS UP CLOSE.

CENTURIES OF SPECULATION WERE ABOUT TO MEET COLD REALITY.

Launius: ONE OF THE THINGS THAT IT SHOWED VERY PLAINLY

WAS THAT MARS LOOKS A LOT LIKE THE MOON.

THERE ARE CRATERS,

AND THERE WERE THESE DEVASTATING STORIES IN THE MEDIA

IN WHICH THE HEADLINES READ "MARS IS DEAD,"

AND THAT WAS A REAL SURPRISE TO A LOT OF PEOPLE.

Narrator: BUT MARINER'S PICTURES

INDICATED THAT LIQUID WATER HAD ETCHED THE SOIL.

PERHAPS WHEN WATER WAS PRESENT, MARS HOSTED BASIC FORMS OF LIFE.

John Grant: THE FIRST LOOK AT MARS

PROVIDED BY THE MARINER SPACECRAFT

KIND OF CAUSED US TO PAUSE

AND THINK A LITTLE BIT MORE ABOUT WHAT WE WERE SEEING

AND HOW BEST TO EXPLORE MARS AS A PLANET,

TO UNDERSTAND HOW IT'S EVOLVED OVER TIME.

Narrator: THESE FIRST TWO PLANETARY PROBES

UPENDED OUR EXPECTATIONS,

BUT THEY ALSO PROVED WE COULD EXPLORE FARAWAY WORLDS.

Bobak Ferdowsi: WHAT'S, I THINK, REALLY AMAZING

ABOUT THOSE KINDS OF EARLY MISSIONS

IS THEY WERE ENCOUNTERING ENVIRONMENTS

THAT HAD NEVER REALLY BEEN DOCUMENTED BEFORE.

SO YOU CAN IMAGINE THAT THESE ENGINEERS

HAVE THESE EXTRAORDINARY CHALLENGES

OF KIND OF DESIGNING A SYSTEM THAT COULD WORK

IN SORT OF UNKNOWN ENVIRONMENTS.

CURIOSITY ARRIVED READY TO ROLL IN THE HARSH MARTIAN ENVIRONMENT

WITH BETTER TRANSPORT, TOOLS, AND EYESIGHT.

Launius: THE IMAGERY THAT WE WERE ABLE TO OBTAIN

FROM MARINER 4 WAS VERY RUDIMENTARY.

THE IMAGERY THAT IS AVAILABLE TODAY

IS ORDERS OF MAGNITUDE MORE SOPHISTICATED

THAN WHAT WE WERE ABLE TO DO

DURING THOSE FIRST YEARS OF PLANETARY EXPLORATION.

Steltzner: MY FAVORITE THING ABOUT CURIOSITY

IS ALL OF THE FANTASTIC CAMERAS.

SHE'S GOT THE MAHLI,

A HAND LENS WHICH COMES UP CLOSE

AND GETS INCREDIBLE RESOLUTION IMAGES OF THE SURFACE.

SHE HAD THE MARDI, THE MARS DESCENT IMAGER,

WHICH GAVE US THOSE GREAT VIDEOS OF THE HEAT SHIELD SEPARATION.

LOVE THAT.

AND HE'S GOT THAT GREAT M100 LENS ON THE MAST CAM

THAT ALLOWS HIM TO TAKE THOSE SUPER-ZOOMED-IN IMAGES

OF THE FAR FIELD,

AND THOSE PAINT A PICTURE OF MARS

THAT MAKES ME WANNA GO THERE.

Grant: THOSE IMAGES ARE STUNNING NOT ONLY IN THEIR CLARITY,

BUT ALSO IN THE ADDITIONAL INFORMATION THAT THEY TELL US

ABOUT HOW DIFFERENT LIGHT IS REFLECTED

FOR DIFFERENT WAVELENGTHS FROM THE SURFACE,

TELLS US SOMETHING ABOUT THE COMPOSITION.

Edwards: IT'S ABLE TO LOOK AT INDIVIDUAL ROCKS,

CORE INTO ROCKS,

ACQUIRE SAMPLES FROM THOSE ROCKS,

AND ANALYZE THEM IN AN ANALYTICAL LABORATORY

THAT'S BUILT INTO THE ROVER,

AND SO YOU'RE ABLE TO DO MUCH MORE IN-DEPTH INVESTIGATIONS

OF WHAT'S THERE ON THE SURFACE.

Grant: SO THERE'S A LOT OF INFORMATION

THAT WE'RE GETTING FROM THE SCIENCE INSTRUMENTS

ON MARS SCIENCE LABORATORY

THAT CAN ALSO BE USED TO UNDERSTAND MARS

AND ITS IMPLICATIONS FOR FUTURE HUMAN EXPLORATION.

Narrator: BUT BEFORE CURIOSITY COULD EXPLORE MARS,

ALL OF THOSE GREAT INSTRUMENTS HAD TO SURVIVE QUITE A VOYAGE:

LAUNCH;

9 MONTHS OF SPACE FLIGHT;

AND THEN, SLOW DOWN FROM 13,000 MILES AN HOUR

TO A PILLOW-SOFT LANDING,

COMPLETELY ON ITS OWN.

TO ACHIEVE THIS,

CURIOSITY MADE UNUSUAL USE OF SMALL CONTROL ROCKETS

TO ADJUST ITS DIRECTION AND VELOCITY.

Ferdowsi: CURIOSITY USED A DESIGN THAT IS COMPLETELY NEW

IN THE SENSE THAT IT IS THIS KIND OF ROCKET HELICOPTER

LANDING SYSTEM.

Narrator: THIS DESIGN LITERALLY FLIPS CONVENTIONAL LANDING LOGIC.

RATHER THAN RIDING ATOP ITS THRUSTERS

LIKE LANDERS BEFORE IT,

CURIOSITY DANGLED BELOW THE THRUSTERS,

ITS FATE HANGING IN THE BALANCE.

Ferdowsi: SO THE IDEA OF ACTUALLY INVERTING IT

AND HAVING THE ROCKETS ON TOP

WITH THE HEAVY OBJECT ON THE BOTTOM

MAKES IT MUCH MORE STABLE.

IT MAKES PERFECT SENSE.

Man: TOUCHDOWN CONFIRMED.

[CHEERING]

Narrator: CURIOSITY'S SUCCESSFUL TOUCHDOWN

BUILT ON THRUSTER TECHNOLOGY DEVELOPED BY NASA IN THE 1960s

DURING THE RACE TO THE MOON.

TODAY'S SUCCESSFUL LANDINGS

SPOIL US INTO THINKING THAT IT'S EASY.

IT'S NOT.

AND IN THE EARLY 1960s, IT HAD NEVER BEEN DONE BEFORE.

WE COULDN'T SEND MEN TO THE MOON

WITHOUT A WAY TO SLOW THEM DOWN AND LAND THEM SAFELY.

BUT NASA HAD A PLAN.

PROJECT GEMINI.

Kranz: GEMINI WAS DESIGNED TO DEVELOP AND PROVE

THE TECHNOLOGIES THAT WE NEEDED IN ORDER TO GO TO THE MOON.

Kraft: IT WAS A BRIDGE BETWEEN NOVICE

WE HAD A GUIDED RE-ENTRY, WE HAD FUEL CELLS,

WE HAD TO DO EVA, EXTRA VEHICLE ACTIVITY,

ON AND ON AND ON.

Man: FIVE, FOUR, THREE, TWO,

ONE, ZERO...

IGNITION.

Man: ENGINES START, WE HAVE A LIFTOFF...

Narrator: GEMINI FLEW TEN MANNED ORBITAL FLIGHTS IN 1965 AND '66.

ITS BREAKTHROUGHS WERE IMPRESSIVE.

Ceruzzi: ONE OF THE BIG MISSIONS OF THE GEMINI PROGRAM

WAS NOT ONLY TO MANEUVER IN SPACE,

BUT TO RENDEZVOUS IN SPACE.

Narrator: EASIER SAID THAN DONE.

IN SPACE, THE SPEED YOU FLY AFFECTS THE ALTITUDE YOU FLY.

WELCOME TO ORBITAL MECHANICS.

Kranz: MANY OF THE TECHNIQUES THAT WE USED

IN FLYING FORMATION IN A FIGHTER AIRCRAFT

JUST DID NOT APPLY HERE.

WHEN YOU WANT TO RENDEZVOUS WITH A SPACECRAFT THAT'S UP IN ORBIT,

YOU PUT THE VEHICLE YOU'RE LAUNCHING INTO A LOWER ORBIT

AND THEREFORE THE PERIOD OF THE ORBIT IS MUCH SHORTER,

SO OVER A PERIOD OF TIME,

IT STARTS CATCHING UP TO THAT SPACECRAFT IN THE HIGHER ORBIT.

IT'S VERY SIMPLE TO DESCRIBE, BUT VERY DIFFICULT TO DO.

Man: FIVE, FOUR, THREE, TWO, ONE, ZERO...

IGNITION.

Narrator: ON DECEMBER 4, 1965,

ASTRONAUTS FRANK BORMAN AND JAMES LOVELL

REACHED ORBIT ABOARD GEMINI 7.

ELEVEN DAYS LATER, WALLY SCHIRRA AND TOM STAFFORD FOLLOWED

IN GEMINI 6.

Man: WE'VE GOT A REAL LIFTOFF.

Narrator: THEIR MISSION: MEET UP IN SPACE.

Man: 27 SECONDS AFTER THE HOUR.

Narrator: JUST THREE HOURS AFTER LEAVING THE EARTH,

GEMINI 6 CREPT UP ON LOVELL AND BORMAN.

James Lovell: GEMINI 6 WAS COMING UP UNDERNEATH

FOR THE FINAL PHASE,

AND WE COULD SEE, AGAIN, THE THRUSTERS FIRING

AND COMING UP SLOWLY

AS THE RADAR SHOWED THEIR RANGE RATE.

THEY CAME UP SLOWLY, AND THEN STOPPED.

WE FLEW FORMATION FOR A COUPLE OF HOURS BACK AND FORTH

TO SEE HOW EASY IT WAS TO GET TOGETHER AND MOVE APART

AND TURN AROUND AND THINGS OF THIS NATURE.

Narrator: FOR TWO SPACECRAFT TO DANCE AROUND EACH OTHER IN ORBIT

REQUIRED FINE-TUNED DIRECTION

AND VELOCITY CONTROL FOR EACH CRAFT.

GEMINI CAPSULES FEATURED SMALL THRUSTER ROCKETS

WHICH, AFTER MONTHS OF PRACTICE ON THE GROUND,

ENABLED THIS CONTROL.

MARKING THE BIRTH OF SPACECRAFT PILOTRY,

GEMINI SIX AND SEVEN CAME WITHIN ONE FOOT OF EACH OTHER.

Lunney: THEY WERE RIGHT NEXT TO THE OTHER SPACECRAFT.

THEY WERE TAKING PICTURES OF THE OTHER CREW.

AND IT WAS CLEAR THAT WE'D GOTTEN TO THE POINT

WHERE HAD WE HAD A DOCKING SYSTEM ON THOSE TWO SHIPS,

WHICH THEY DIDN'T HAVE,

WE COULD HAVE PUT THEM TOGETHER AND DOCKED 'EM.

Narrator: THE RENDEZVOUS WAS A SUCCESS,

BUT BORMAN AND LOVELL STILL HAD ANOTHER TASK:

SURVIVE A TOTAL OF TWO WEEKS IN ORBIT.

SIX DAYS MORE THAN ANYONE EVER HAD.

Lovell: THERE WERE A LOT OF MEDICAL PEOPLE AT THAT TIME

WHO SAID THAT WE DON'T THINK THAT PEOPLE CAN STAY

IN ZERO GRAVITY FOR TWO WEEKS.

Kraft: WE DIDN'T HAVE ANY EXPERIENCE WITH HUMAN BEINGS

UNDER THAT SET OF ENVIRONMENTS FOR FOURTEEN DAYS.

Narrator: IT TURNED OUT THAT WEIGHTLESSNESS

WASN'T THE KEY PROBLEM.

BEING PACKED INTO A TINY CAPSULE FOR DAYS ON END

WAS FAR MORE TAXING.

Ceruzzi: WELL, THE GEMINI CAPSULE WAS VERY, VERY CRAMPED.

IT WAS TIGHT.

IT WAS SORT OF LIKE BEING IN A VOLKSWAGEN BEETLE.

AND YOU'RE WEIGHTLESS

SO YOU DON'T HAVE THE SAME KIND OF SENSE

OF SITTING IN AN AIRPLANE FOR A LONG TIME,

BUT OTHER THAN THAT, YOU CAN'T REALLY MOVE AROUND.

THEY ARGUED... WELL, THEY DIDN'T ARGUE.

THEY KIND OF HAD A DISCUSSION WITH MISSION CONTROL IN HOUSTON

OVER WHETHER THEY COULD TAKE THEIR SPACE SUITS OFF

AND FLY IN THEIR SKIVVIES,

AND EVENTUALLY NASA REALIZED

THAT THAT WAS PROBABLY A SMART THING TO DO.

Kraft: JIM LOVELL DESCRIBED IT BEST.

HE SAID IT WAS LIKE 14 DAYS IN A MEN'S ROOM.

Narrator: A SUCCESSFUL RENDEZVOUS

AND TWO WEEKS IN ORBIT

MADE BORMAN AND LOVELL TRIUMPHANT,

EVEN IF WALKING SEEMED A LITTLE AWKWARD AFTER SO LONG IN ZERO G.

Lunney: IT ACTUALLY WENT

EXACTLY AS PEOPLE HAD THOUGHT IT THROUGH.

IT WORKED JUST LIKE WE PLANNED.

Narrator: BORMAN AND LOVELL

PROVED WE HAD MASTERED ORBITAL CONTROL

AND LONG DURATION SPACE FLIGHT.

WE WOULD NEED THOSE SKILLS TO REACH THE MOON.

BUT ANOTHER HUGE CHALLENGE LAY AHEAD:

DOCKING.

OUR MOON LANDING STRATEGY CALLED FOR A COMMAND CAPSULE

WITH A SEPARATE SMALL LANDER.

ONCE IN LUNAR ORBIT, THEY WOULD SEPARATE.

TWO CREWMEN WOULD FLY THE LANDER TO THE SURFACE,

WHILE A THIRD ASTRONAUT REMAINED IN ORBIT.

TO RETURN,

THE LANDING PARTY WOULD RE-DOCK WITH THEIR ORBITING CRAFT

FOR THE LONG VOYAGE HOME.

IT WORKED ON PAPER.

BUT WOULD IT WORK IN SPACE?

GEMINI 8'S MARCH 1966 MISSION

IS TO DOCK WITH A DEVICE CALLED AGENA,

PUT INTO ORBIT SPECIFICALLY FOR THE EXERCISE.

Kraft: THE OPERATIONAL MANEUVERING

REQUIRED TO BRING TWO VEHICLES TOGETHER

AND THEN DOCK THEM SO YOU CAN TRANSFER CREWS

WAS NOT SOMETHING SIMPLY DONE.

Man: IGNITION.

Narrator: THE UNMANNED AGENA LAUNCHED FIRST.

GEMINI 8 WOULD FOLLOW IT INTO ORBIT.

MISSION COMMANDER WAS NAVY PILOT AND KOREAN WAR VETERAN

NEIL ARMSTRONG,

ACCOMPANIED BY AIR FORCE TEST PILOT DAVID SCOTT,

BOTH MAKING THEIR FIRST-EVER SPACE FLIGHTS.

Kranz: NEIL ARMSTRONG AND DAVE SCOTT,

THEY WERE BOTH PILOTS, THEY WERE BOTH TEST PILOTS,

AND I BELIEVE THAT THEY WERE TRULY WELL PREPARED

FOR THAT MISSION.

Man: TWO, ONE...

IGNITION.

LIFTOFF.

Narrator: FIVE HOURS AFTER LAUNCH,

GEMINI 8 FOUND THE ORBITING AGENA.

ARMSTRONG AND SCOTT MOVED IN TO DOCK.

Neil Armstrong: HELLO, HOUSTON, THIS IS GEMINI 8.

WE'RE STATIONED KEEPING ON THE AGENA

AT ABOUT 150 FEET.

Kraft: IT REQUIRED A GREAT DEAL OF ACCURACY,

A GREAT DEAL OF COMPUTER POWER ON THE GROUND,

AND A LOT OF SLIDE RULE WORKING ON BOARD THE SPACECRAFT

IN CASE THAT DIDN'T WORK.

Man: OKAY, GEMINI 8, YOU'RE LOOKING GOOD ON THE GROUND,

GO AHEAD AND DOCK.

Kranz: IT WAS A VERY SUCCESSFUL DOCKING.

BUT SHORTLY AFTER DOCKING,

THE SPACECRAFT STARTED TO... TO SPIN UP.

Man: THE ENGINE CONTROL SYSTEM OF THE AGENA...

Kranz: THINGS STARTED TO GET A LITTLE SCARY.

THE CREW IMMEDIATELY THOUGHT

THAT WE HAD A PROBLEM WITH THE AGENA.

Narrator: THE TWO SPACECRAFT WERE REVOLVING TOGETHER

IN AN ACCELERATING DEATH SPIN.

Kraft: UNFORTUNATELY WE DIDN'T KNOW WHAT WAS HAPPENING

IN MISSION CONTROL.

THAT HAPPENED ON A PART OF THE NETWORK

WHERE WE HAD VERY SPARSE COMMUNICATIONS WITH THE CREW.

Man: GEMINI 8, COMM CHECK, HOW DO YOU READ?

Narrator: ARMSTRONG UNDOCKED FROM THE AGENA,

BUT THAT ONLY MADE MATTERS WORSE.

THE SPIN ACCELERATED.

Man: DID HE SAY HE COULD NOT TURN THE AGENA OFF?

Man: NO, HE SAYS HE HAS SEPARATED FROM THE AGENA

AND HE'S IN A ROLL AND HE CAN'T STOP IT.

Kraft: SO, THERE'S THIS THING

GOING TO 400 REVOLUTIONS PER MINUTE.

NORMALLY THE BRAIN, THE MIND, STOPS FUNCTIONING AT AROUND 350.

Narrator: THE CREW WERE ON BORROWED TIME.

THEIR LIVES DEPENDED ON IMMEDIATE, DECISIVE ACTION.

ON THE BRINK OF BLACKOUT,

ARMSTRONG INITIATED THE CAPSULE'S

RETURN TO EARTH SEQUENCE,

HOPING THAT WOULD STOP THE SPIN.

MISSION CONTROL HELD ITS BREATH.

IT WORKED.

Lunney: IT WAS A TREMENDOUS RESPONSE TO A PROBLEM

THAT NEIL PERFORMED ON THAT FLIGHT.

EVERYBODY KNEW NEIL WAS A GREAT PILOT,

BUT IT UNDERLINED IT.

Narrator: DESPITE ITS PROBLEMS,

GEMINI 8 PROVED THAT DOCKING WAS POSSIBLE IN SPACE.

NEIL ARMSTRONG'S CALM RESOLUTION OF A RUNAWAY CRISIS

PUT HIM ON THE SHORT LIST TO COMMAND A FIRST LUNAR LANDING.

Kraft: THE GUY WAS PRETTY GOOD.

PRETTY DAMN GOOD.

WE WERE VERY FORTUNATE THAT WE HAD NEIL ARMSTRONG THERE

TO MAKE ALL THAT HAPPEN.

Narrator: THE STEERING, DOCKING, AND RELEASING MANEUVERS

PIONEERED ON THE GEMINI PROGRAM WERE CRUCIAL MILESTONES

ON THE ROUTE TO LANDING PEOPLE AND MACHINES

ON OTHER PLANETS.

Lunney: OVER THE COURSE OF THE GEMINI PROGRAM,

WE DID RENDEZVOUS FROM ALL KINDS OF DIRECTIONS

AND ALL KIND OF WAYS,

AND WE GOT VERY COMFORTABLE WITH IT.

Kraft: AT EVERY TURN OF THE ROAD,

YOU COULD SAY GEMINI WAS THE THING

THAT OPENED THE DOOR FOR US, ALMOST EVERY TIME.

Narrator: BUT AFTER THE BREAKTHROUGHS OF THE GEMINI PROGRAM,

ONE QUESTION REMAINED

THAT EARTH ORBIT MISSIONS COULD NOT ADDRESS.

WAS THE SURFACE OF THE MOON SAFE TO LAND ON?

Launius: THE SURVEYOR PROGRAM WAS BUILT UPON THE NECESSITY

OF LEARNING MORE ABOUT THE LUNAR SURFACE.

THERE WAS ONE SCIENTIST

WHO BELIEVED THAT THE LUNAR DUST WAS SO THICK

FROM EONS OF BUILD-UP

AND WITHOUT ANY ACTIVITY OF ANY SIGNIFICANCE

THAT IT WOULD SIMPLY SWALLOW UP

WHATEVER SPACECRAFT HAPPENED TO LAND THERE.

Narrator: WOULD A SPACECRAFT STAND OR SINK?

NASA SENT SURVEYOR TO SETTLE THE ARGUMENT.

IT HAD TO LAND SOFTLY AND AUTONOMOUSLY.

Burke: SURVEYOR HAD TO HAVE A CLOSED-LOOP CONTROL SYSTEM

THAT BEGINS WITH A RADAR

THAT CAN TELL HOW HIGH YOU ARE AND HOW FAST YOU'RE DESCENDING.

SO THAT HAS TO BE A RADAR THAT REALLY PUTS OUT A SIGNAL

WITH WHICH YOU CONTROL THE ROCKET ENGINES.

Narrator: AFTER INTENSIVE TESTING AND REFINEMENT,

THIS ROCKET SYSTEM

AND ITS LANDING IMPACT SHOCK ABSORPTION SYSTEM

WERE READY TO LAUNCH.

ON MAY 30, 1966, SURVEYOR LEFT EARTH.

THE TEAM AT JPL DUG IN FOR ITS THREE DAY TRIP TO THE MOON.

AFTER ITS 240,000-MILE JOURNEY,

SURVEYOR'S MOMENT OF TRUTH ARRIVED.

NASA TRIUMPHED.

SURVEYOR PROVED THAT THE MOON WOULD SUPPORT A SPACECRAFT.

Burke: IF SURVEYOR HAD SUNK IN OUT OF SIGHT,

THEN OF COURSE THERE WOULD HAVE BEEN

A DIFFERENT COURSE OF EVENTS.

Narrator: IT ALSO PROVED THAT WE COULD SAFELY LAND A VEHICLE

ON ANOTHER WORLD.

Launius: SURVEYOR SET THE STANDARD

FOR HOW YOU LAND ON ANOTHER BODY IN THE SOLAR SYSTEM.

Narrator: SURVEYOR COMPLETED A THIRD KEY TASK.

OVER SIX WEEKS OF BATTERY LIFE,

IT SENT BACK 11,000 PHOTOS OF THE LUNAR SURFACE,

A DETAILED LEVEL OF INTERPLANETARY MAPPING

THAT WE NOW TAKE FOR GRANTED.

Burke: TECHNOLOGY HAS EVOLVED.

SOME OF IT HAS REMAINED PRETTY MUCH THE SAME,

BUT SOME OF IT HAS QUALITATIVELY CHANGED,

AND WE ARE EXTREMELY PLEASED,

ME AND MY COLLEAGUES FROM THOSE DAYS,

TO HAVE LAID SOME FOUNDATIONS.

Narrator: WITHOUT THOSE FOUNDATIONS,

AN AMBITIOUS PROJECT LIKE CURIOSITY

WOULD NEVER HAVE GOTTEN OFF THE GROUND.

Steltzner: THE SURVEYORS WITH THAT POWERED TOUCHDOWN

REALLY REPRESENT THE TRUNK OF THE FAMILY TREE

FOR OUR ENTRY DESCENT AND LANDING SYSTEMS

IS WHAT WE CALL THEM TODAY.

Narrator: WITH CURIOSITY'S PINPOINT LANDING,

THE STAGE IS SET FOR NEW DISCOVERIES

IF THE ROVER CAN GET

TO THE TANTALIZING TARGET IN ITS SIGHTS.

Grant: SO THE MARS SCIENCE LABORATORY

HAS LANDED IN GALE CRATER,

AND THE REASON WE WENT TO GALE

IS BECAUSE THERE'S THIS 5-KILOMETER HIGH, 3-MILE HIGH

STACK OF LAYERED MATERIALS, SEDIMENTS,

IN THE CENTER OF THE CRATER.

Narrator: TO REACH THIS EXPOSED ROCK,

ITS EARTHBOUND CLONE IS TEST-DRIVING

ON JUST SUCH A LANDSCAPE.

ALRIGHT, THIS IS THE CURIOSITY TEST ROVER

HERE IN THE MARS YARD AT JPL.

TODAY WE'RE DOING SOME AUTO-NAV TESTING,

WHICH IS THE AUTONOMOUS DRIVING CAPABILITY OF CURIOSITY.

IT USES THE CAMERAS DOWN ON THE LOWER FRONT OF THE BODY

AND ALSO UP ON THE MAST,

WHICH ARE STEREO CAMERAS THAT TAKE IMAGES

AND THEN GIVE THE ROVER DEPTH PERCEPTION

AND ALLOW IT TO MEASURE THE DISTANCE

TO ALL OF THE HAZARDS AND OBSTACLES

THAT IT SEES IN FRONT OF IT.

Narrator: STEERING ACTUATORS ON EACH CORNER WHEEL

GIVE CURIOSITY EXCEPTIONAL MANEUVERABILITY.

AND THE WHEELS ARE SPECIFICALLY DESIGNED

FOR THE MARTIAN ENVIRONMENT.

Baker: THEY'RE ACTUALLY METAL WHEELS WITH TREADS ON THEM

THAT ALLOW US TO GRIP INTO ALL OF THE DIFFERENT TERRAINS

THAT WE HAVE TO DRIVE OVER...

SLOPES, SAND, OVER ROCKS...

AND THEY'RE VERY DURABLE.

IT GOES ABOUT 1.4 CENTIMETERS PER SECOND

WHICH BASICALLY WORKS OUT TO ABOUT 50 METERS PER HOUR.

AND IT TAKES THAT LONG

NOT BECAUSE THAT'S AS FAST AS IT CAN GO.

IT ACTUALLY HAS TO TAKE IMAGES EVERY THREE FEET OR SO

TO DETECT THE HAZARDS THAT ARE IN FRONT OF IT

AND PICK A PATH, PICK A SAFE PATH.

Narrator: NASA HOPES ALL THIS TEST-DRIVING PAYS OFF

WITH A SUCCESSFUL TRIP ACROSS GALE CRATER.

BECAUSE BACK ON MARS, ROCKS AREN'T JUST ROADBLOCKS.

THEY COULD BE WINDOWS INTO MARTIAN HISTORY.

Grant: WE HOPE THAT WE CAN READ THE PAGES OF THOSE LAYERS

AND UNDERSTAND SOMETHING ABOUT CHANGING CONDITIONS ON MARS

OVER TIME.

Narrator: IF ALL GOES ACCORDING TO PLAN,

CURIOSITY WILL WORK AROUND THE CLOCK

FOR YEARS TO COME,

COVERING NEW GROUND AND SOLVING SCIENTIFIC RIDDLES.

Burke: WHEN I SEE WHAT CURIOSITY IS DOING,

I FEEL THAT I WAS LUCKY TO BE HERE FOR IT.

IT'S A WONDERFUL MISSION,

AND IT'S ONLY STARTING.

IF EVERYTHING HOLDS TOGETHER,

YOU'RE GOING TO SEE SOME AMAZING THINGS.

Man: TOUCHDOWN CONFIRMED.

Narrator: CURIOSITY EMBODIES MUCH THAT NASA HAS ACHIEVED

IN MORE THAN 50 YEARS OF EXPLORATION...

A FIERY LAUNCH WATCHED WITH UNBLINKING HOPE,

SAFE PASSAGE THROUGH THE DARK, COLD CORRIDORS OF SPACE,

AND SOFT LANDING ON A SURFACE WE BARELY UNDERSTAND.

OUR NEXT VOYAGE IS ALMOST TOO DARING TO DREAM.

Grant: THE IDEA THAT SOMEDAY THAT WE COULD GO THERE

AND ACTUALLY PICK UP THE ROCKS AND DO THE WORK,

THE EXPLORATION OURSELVES,

IS VERY INTRIGUING,

AND IF THERE WAS ANY POSSIBILITY THAT I COULD EVER DO THAT,

I WOULD CERTAINLY RAISE MY HAND AND SAY, "PICK ME, PICK ME."

Manning: I HAVE NO DOUBT

THAT WHEN THE FIRST HUMAN BEINGS SET FOOT ON MARS

THEY WILL KNOW ENOUGH

ABOUT THE HISTORY OF HOW THEY GOT THERE

TO APPRECIATE JUST HOW MUCH HARD WORK IT WAS

AND JUST HOW MUCH THAT THEY ARE STANDING ON THE SHOULDERS

OF REAL GIANTS.