Original subtitles

30 SECONDS.

♪

Narrator: IN 1969, NEIL ARMSTRONG

STEPPED ON THE LUNAR SURFACE AND INTO THE HISTORY BOOKS

AS THE FIRST OF ONLY 12 MEN TO WALK ON THE MOON.

Armstrong: THAT'S ONE SMALL STEP FOR MAN, ONE GIANT LEAP FOR MANKIND.

Narrator: BUT IN 1961,

WHEN KENNEDY PLEDGED TO PUT A MAN ON THE MOON,

NASA HAD BARELY PUT A MAN INTO ORBIT.

Baker: SUDDENLY, WE WERE LEAP-FROGGING

FROM ONE MAN IN EARTH ORBIT

TO THREE MEN GOING A QUARTER OF A MILLION MILES

TO THE MOON AND BACK.

Narrator: NASA HAD LESS THAN 10 YEARS

TO TRAIN A TEAM OF ASTRONAUTS TO OVERCOME

THE UNKNOWN CHALLENGES OF A MISSION TO THE MOON.

Ojha: COULD A HUMAN BEING SURVIVE

IN THIS INCREDIBLY HARSH ENVIRONMENT?

NOBODY KNEW WHAT THESE PHYSICAL AND PSYCHOLOGICAL EFFECTS

FOR SPACE FLIGHT WOULD BE.

Narrator: BUT FOR NASA, PLANTING FLAGS AND FOOTPRINTS WAS NOT ENOUGH.

Joy: IT'S REALLY IMPORTANT FOR ALL THE ASTRONAUTS

THAT WERE GONNA WALK ON THE LUNAR SURFACE

TO DO FULL MISSION SIMULATIONS --

LEARNING HOW TO COLLECT LUNAR SAMPLES,

HOW TO RUN THE EXPERIMENTS, HOW TO TAKE A GOOD PHOTOGRAPH.

Ojha: ULTIMATELY, THEY BECAME THE ONLY HUMAN BEINGS

TO HAVE EXPLORED ANOTHER WORLD.

-- Captions by VITAC -- www.vitac.com

CAPTIONS PAID FOR BY DISCOVERY COMMUNICATIONS

♪

Narrator: 1958.

THE COLD WAR GATHERS MOMENTUM, AND THE U.S. ARMY

CONTINUES TO PIONEER MISSILE TECHNOLOGY.

BUT NASA'S FOCUS IS ON A DIFFERENT GOAL.

JUST ONE YEAR AFTER SPUTNIK GOES INTO ORBIT,

AMERICA'S NEWLY CREATED SPACE AGENCY PUBLICLY ANNOUNCES

THEIR SPACE PROGRAM, PROJECT MERCURY.

THE GOAL?

TO PUT A MAN INTO EARTH'S ORBIT BEFORE THE SOVIETS.

THE GLOBAL LANDSCAPE WAS DOMINATED

BY THIS GEOPOLITICAL BATTLE

BETWEEN TWO COMPETING IDEOLOGIES.

WE HAVE THE SOVIET UNION AND COMMUNISM,

WE HAVE THE UNITED STATES AND CAPITALISM.

AND MERCURY WAS THE AMERICAN PROGRAM

TO PUSH THE AMERICANS AHEAD, TO REACH THIS MILESTONE.

Narrator: THE SEARCH FOR ASTRONAUTS BEGINS

NASA NEEDS PILOTS CAPABLE OF MEETING

THE UNKNOWN CHALLENGES OF MANNED SPACE FLIGHT,

SO THEY TURN TO AMERICA'S BEST.

♪

Ojha: THE MILITARY HAD DONE A LOT OF TESTING

ON HIGH-ALTITUDE, HIGH-RISK STRATOSPHERIC RESEARCH.

NOBODY KNEW WHAT THE PHYSICAL

AND PSYCHOLOGICAL EFFECTS OF SPACE FLIGHT WOULD BE.

THERE WAS NO PRECEDENT FOR IT, SO THEY WENT FOR THE MAX --

MILITARY PERSONNEL OF SUPREME PHYSICAL FITNESS.

♪

Ojha: SO, FOR THE FIRST SELECTION OF ASTRONAUTS,

THEY WERE EXCLUSIVELY DRAWN FROM THE U.S. TEST-PILOT COMMUNITY,

SOME FROM THE NAVY, SOME FROM THE AIR FORCE,

FROM THE MARINES,

BUT IT WAS TEST PILOTS REALLY BEING THE PRIME FOCUS

FOR AMERICA'S FIRST CLASS OF ASTRONAUT CANDIDATES.

Announcer: THE SERVICE RECORDS OF 473 TEST PILOTS WERE SELECTED FOR REVIEW.

110 MET THE BASIC QUALIFICATIONS.

EACH MUST BE A GRADUATE OF A NAVY OR AIR FORCE

TEST-PILOT SCHOOL, 1,500 HOURS OF FLIGHT TIME,

QUALIFIED IN JET AIRCRAFT, AN ENGINEERING BACKGROUND,

YOUNGER THAN 40 AT THE TIME OF SELECTION,

AND 5'11" OR LESS.

Narrator: NASA WHITTLES 110 CANDIDATES DOWN TO A FINAL 32.

THOSE 32 WENT THROUGH EVERY IMAGINABLE MEDICAL TEST

YOU CAN THINK OF.

Baker: NOBODY REALLY KNEW WHAT THESE GUYS WOULD ENCOUNTER.

NOBODY KNEW IF YOU COULD SWALLOW FOOD IN SPACE.

THEY DIDN'T KNOW IF THE HEART WOULD OPERATE NORMALLY,

IF BLOOD COULD BE PUMPED AROUND.

PILOTS WERE VERY MUCH A PART OF THE PHYSICAL EXPLORATION

OF WHAT HUMANS WERE CAPABLE OF.

THEY LITERALLY WERE GUINEA PIGS,

AND SO EVERY CONCEIVABLE TEST HAD TO BE IMPOSED

BEFORE THE FIRST CREWS WENT INTO SPACE.

Stevenson: THEY WERE LOOKING FOR PEOPLE

IN THE PEAK OF THEIR FITNESS,

AND HOW THEY WOULD RESPOND PHYSICALLY

TO THE MARGINAL ENVIRONMENTS

THAT MANNED SPACE FLIGHT WOULD PROVIDE THEM WITH.

♪

Narrator: ON APRIL 10th, 1959,

NASA ANNOUNCES THE NAMES OF THE MEN

CHOSEN TO FLY AMERICA'S FIRST MANNED SPACE PROGRAM.

ALAN SHEPHARD, GUS GRISSOM, JOHN GLENN, SCOTT CARPENTER,

WALLY SCHIRRA, GORDON COOPER, AND DEKE SLAYTON

BECOME KNOWN AS "THE MERCURY SEVEN."

THEY INSTANTLY SHOOT TO FAME AS NATIONAL HEROES

SET TO CONQUER THE NEW FRONTIER OF SPACE.

[ BEEPING ]

SIX SOLO MANNED SPACE FLIGHTS ARE SCHEDULED.

AND THE MERCURY SEVEN ARE SUBJECT

TO A GRUELING TRAINING PROGRAM,

WHERE THEY LEARN THE BASIC SKILLS

REQUIRED TO MAKE SCIENTIFIC OBSERVATIONS

AND STUDY THE PHYSIOLOGY OF ORBITAL FLIGHT.

FINALLY, IN MAY 1961, NASA SELECTS ASTRONAUT ALAN SHEPHARD

TO BE AMERICA'S FIRST MAN IN SPACE.

Announcer: THE COUNTDOWN BEGINS AT CAPE CANAVERAL, FLORIDA,

FOR ONE OF MAN'S GREATEST ADVENTURES.

Man #1: 8...7...

6...5...

4...3...

2...1...

LIFTOFF.

Shepard: AH, ROGER! LIFTOFF! AND THE CLOCK HAS STARTED.

THIS IS FREEDOM 7, READING YOU LOUD AND CLEAR.

ALL SYSTEMS ARE GO.

WHAT A BEAUTIFUL VIEW.

Narrator: AFTER SHEPHARD'S SUCCESS, ASTRONAUT JOHN GLENN

BECOMES THE FIRST AMERICAN TO ORBIT THE EARTH.

Man #2: ALL PRE-START DIAL LIGHTS ARE CORRECT.

THE RED LIGHT IS ON, THE UMBILICAL CLEAR.

-STATUS CHECK -- PRESSURIZATION. -GO.

LOCKS TAKING? YOU ARE GO.

-OTHER SYSTEMS? -GO.

-MERCURY CAPSULE. -GO.

IT IS TIME.

...0...

Glenn: ROGER. THE CLOCK IS OPERATING.

WE'RE UNDERWAY.

Man #3: GODSPEED, JOHN GLENN.

ROGER, ZERO G's. I FEEL FINE.

CAPSULE IS TURNING AROUND.

OH, THAT VIEW IS TREMENDOUS!

Shayler: THE ACHIEVEMENTS OF MERCURY PROVE

THAT MAN COULD STAY IN SPACE, SURVIVE, AND COME HOME.

BUT MERCURY COULD ONLY STAY UP FOR A FEW HOURS, REALLY.

THEY COULDN'T RENDEZVOUS AND DOCK WITH ANOTHER SPACECRAFT.

SPACE-WALKING WASN'T POSSIBLE.

IT WAS JUST A MAN IN A CAN.

SO, YES, WE CAN DO THIS -- WHAT CAN WE DO NEXT?

Narrator: THE SIX MERCURY MISSIONS

ARE A RESOUNDING SUCCESS,

PIONEERING PROCEDURES IN ORBITAL SCIENCE AND TRAINING.

BUT AMERICA IS ALREADY LOOKING TO THE FUTURE.

INSPIRED BY MERCURY'S ACHIEVEMENTS,

PRESIDENT KENNEDY MAKES A BOLD DECLARATION TO THE WORLD.

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.

♪

Baker: THE SPACE AGE WAS BARELY FOUR-YEARS OLD.

THE AMERICANS WERE BEHIND THE SOVIET UNION

IN WHAT THEY WERE TRYING TO ACHIEVE,

AND, SUDDENLY, THEY'RE BEING TOLD THAT WITHIN 10 YEARS,

THEY'VE GOT TO ACHIEVE WHAT TO MANY PEOPLE SEEMED IMPOSSIBLE.

SUDDENLY, WE WERE LEAP-FROGGING FROM ONE MAN IN EARTH ORBIT

FOR NO MORE THAN A DAY AND A HALF

TO THREE MEN GOING A QUARTER OF A MILLION MILES

ON A TWO-WEEK MISSION TO THE MOON AND BACK.

THAT WAS A PRETTY, PRETTY HEFTY SHOCK.

WHAT SEEMED TO BE PUSHING THE ENGINEERING BOUNDARIES

VERY QUICKLY BECAME REALITY

IN THIS MAGICAL PERIOD OF SPACE EXPLORATION.

Narrator: IF NASA IS TO MEET KENNEDY'S AMBITIOUS TARGET

BY THE END OF THE DECADE,

THEY NEED A MORE ADVANCED SPACE PROGRAM

THAT WILL PAVE A FLIGHT PATH TO THE MOON.

THE APOLLO PROGRAM IS BORN.

BUT WITH SPACE FLIGHT STILL IN ITS INFANCY,

A MISSION TO THE MOON PRESENTS MAJOR CHALLENGES.

APART FROM DESIGNING AND BUILDING

THE NEW APOLLO MISSION HARDWARE,

NASA WILL REQUIRE A NEW BREED OF ASTRONAUT

TO MEET THE UNPRECEDENTED COMPLEXITY OF A LUNAR MISSION.

BEFORE TAKING EVEN A SINGLE STEP ON THE MOON'S SURFACE,

THESE APOLLO ASTRONAUTS WILL NEED TO FLY

WITH PINPOINT PRECISION

OVER 250,000 MILES THROUGH DEEP SPACE,

EXECUTE CRITICAL DOCKING AND NAVIGATION MANEUVERS,

AND GENTLY TOUCH DOWN AT AN UNFAMILIAR

AND HOSTILE LANDING SITE,

BEFORE RETURNING SAFELY TO THE EARTH --

QUITE LITERALLY ONE GIANT LEAP FOR NASA

AFTER JUST SIX SOLO EARTH ORBITS.

TO BRIDGE THE TECHNOLOGICAL VOID

BETWEEN PROJECT MERCURY AND THE APOLLO PROGRAM,

NASA ANNOUNCES PROJECT GEMINI, A MORE ADVANCED,

TWO-MAN SPACE PROGRAM.

10 GEMINI FLIGHTS BETWEEN 1965 AND 1966

WILL PROVIDE THE FIRST REAL STEPS

TOWARDS TRAINING APOLLO ASTRONAUTS FOR A MOON MISSION.

♪

Narrator: FOLLOWING THE SUCCESS OF PROJECT MERCURY,

NASA MOVES FULL SPEED AHEAD IN THEIR MISSION

TO PUT A MAN ON THE MOON, BUT THEY STILL HAVE A LONG WAY

TO GO AND A LOT TO LEARN BEFORE THEY CAN GET THERE.

THE NEXT PHASE OF THEIR PLAN?

A MORE ADVANCED, TWO-MAN SPACE PROGRAM CALLED PROJECT GEMINI.

Ojha: EVERY ASPECT OF THE METHODOLOGY

THAT WAS NEEDED TO GET TO THE MOON

HAD TO BE REHEARSED IN A LOW-EARTH ORBIT.

AND THOSE CHALLENGES WERE CONSIDERABLE.

COULD A HUMAN BEING SURVIVE TWO WEEKS

IN THIS MICROGRAVITY ENVIRONMENT?

HOW DO YOU GET TWO SPACECRAFT TO RENDEZVOUS AND DOCK IN ORBIT

WHILE THEY'RE TRAVELING THOUSANDS OF MILES AN HOUR?

HOW DO YOU REHEARSE THE TECHNIQUES THAT WOULD ENABLE

A HUMAN BEING TO SURVIVE OUTSIDE OF THEIR SPACECRAFT

IN THIS INCREDIBLY HARSH ENVIRONMENT?

Narrator: 16 GEMINI ASTRONAUTS ARE CHOSEN FOR ADVANCED TRAINING.

GUS GRISSOM, WALL SCHIRRA,

AND GORDON COOPER GRADUATE FROM THE MERCURY PROJECT

WHILE 13 NEWLY SELECTED ASTRONAUTS

WILL JOIN THE PROGRAM,

ALL MILITARY TEST PILOTS WITH ADVANCED ENGINEERING DEGREES,

WITH THE EXCEPTION OF NEIL ARMSTRONG,

A CIVILIAN TEST PILOT ALREADY WORKING FOR NASA.

THE TWO-MAN GEMINI SPACECRAFT WILL BE MORE COMPLEX

THAN THE MERCURY CAPSULE.

USING FAMILIAR AIRCRAFT INSTRUMENTATION

AND ADVANCED FLIGHT CONTROLS, GEMINI ASTRONAUTS

WILL BE ABLE TO MANUALLY FLY THIS SPACECRAFT IN ORBIT.

Ojha: WHEN THE GEMINI SPACECRAFT WAS DESIGNED FOR TWO ASTRONAUTS,

IT HAD AN INCREDIBLE AMOUNT OF CAPABILITY

IN TERMS OF MANEUVERABILITY, BUT ALSO IN TERMS OF LONGEVITY.

AND THAT'S WHERE GEMINI CAN REALLY BE REGARDED

AS THE PILOT'S SPACECRAFT.

AND THE ASTRONAUTS AT THE TIME WERE INTIMATELY INVOLVED

IN DESIGNED IN DESIGNING THE SYSTEMS

AS WELL AS SOME OF THE FUTURE CAPABILITIES,

NOT ONLY OF APOLLO, BUT OF GEMINI, AS WELL.

Narrator: ONE OF THE MAIN OBJECTIVES OF THE GEMINI PROJECT

IS TO PERFECT THE ART OF SPACE-WALKING.

IN ORDER FOR A MAN TO WALK ON THE MOON,

HE MUST FIRST LEAVE THE SAFETY OF HIS SPACECRAFT.

GEMINI ASTRONAUTS ARE THE FIRST TO TRAIN

FOR THESE SPECIALIZED SPACE-WALKS KNOWN AS E.V.A.s.,

EXTRAVEHICULAR ACTIVITIES.

LEARNING TO SURVIVE AND WORK OUTSIDE THE CAPSULE

IS NASA'S TOP PRIORITY.

Shayler: TRAINING FOR SPACE-WALKING IS COMPLICATED

WHEN YOU'RE ON EARTH, IN A GRAVITY ENVIRONMENT.

INITIALLY, THE ASTRONAUTS WOULD GO THROUGH TRAINING

CALLED AIR-BEARING FLOORS,

WHERE THEY'RE ON A PLATFORM THAT'S ON A SHINY SURFACE,

BASICALLY A BIG TABLE,

AND AIR IS PUMPED UNDERNEATH THE PLATFORM

AND YOU GLIDE ACROSS THE TABLE.

Narrator: ASTRONAUTS PRACTICE USING

A HANDHELD MANEUVERING UNIT KNOWN AS THE ZIP GUN,

A DEVICE THAT ALLOWS AN ASTRONAUT TO FIRE

PRESSURIZED OXYGEN FROM SMALL JETS

TO CONTROL HIS SPEED AND DIRECTION IN SPACE.

♪

NASA ALSO INCREASES ITS ZERO-G TRAINING

TO SIMULATE THE WEIGHTLESSNESS OF SPACE.

Shayler: THE BEST WAY TO PRACTICE IN ZERO GRAVITY

IS IN WHAT WAS KNOWN AS "THE VOMIT COMET,"

WHICH WAS AN AIRPLANE, THE KC-135,

WITH ALL THE SEATS STRIPPED OUT,

AND THEY WOULD PERFORM A PARABOLIC CURVE.

AFTER A PULL-UP AT 2 1/2 G,

A 35° CLIMB RESULTS IN 15 SECONDS AT ZERO G.

THE MANEUVER ENDS WITH A 35° DIVE

AND PULL-OUT AT 10,500 FEET.

Narrator: EVERY GEMINI MISSION IS DESIGNED

TO RE-ENTER THE EARTH'S ATMOSPHERE

ABOVE THE PACIFIC OCEAN, AND HAVE THE CAPSULE SPLASH DOWN

WITHIN RECOVERY DISTANCE OF A U.S. NAVY AIRCRAFT CARRIER.

THEREFORE, PROFICIENCY IN WATER SURVIVAL IS ESSENTIAL.

WATER-BASED EXERCISES INCLUDE PRACTICING EMERGENCY EVACUATION

OF THE CAPSULE AFTER SPLASH-DOWN,

AND HELICOPTER RECOVERY FROM THE WATER'S SURFACE.

Shayler: NOT ONLY DID THE ASTRONAUTS HAVE TO LEARN

HOW TO FLY IN SPACE AND OPERATE ALL THE EQUIPMENT,

THEY NEEDED TO LEARN WHAT TO DO IF THINGS WENT WRONG.

♪

Narrator: IN THE EVENT OF AN EMERGENCY REENTRY TO THE EARTH,

THE GEMINI CAPSULE MAY LAND IN A DESERT OR A REMOTE JUNGLE

INSTEAD OF THE DESIRED WATER LANDING.

AS AN ADDED SAFETY PRECAUTION, NASA PUTS THE ASTRONAUTS

THROUGH RIGOROUS WILDERNESS-SURVIVAL TRAINING.

Shayler: REMEMBERING THAT THESE ASTRONAUTS

WERE ALSO FORMER TEST PILOTS AND MILITARY MEN

WHO'D GONE THROUGH SURVIVAL TRAINING,

THIS WAS JUST AN APPLICATION OF A SKILL THEY ALREADY HAD.

LEARNING TO WORK AS A TEAM BECAUSE YOUR LIFE DEPENDS ON IT

IS VERY SIMILAR TO THE MILITARY.

YOUR TEAM BECOMES YOUR FAMILY.

AND IF YOU'RE DOING SURVIVAL

TRAINING IN THE MIDDLE OF THE DESERT,

YOU NEED TO RELY ON YOUR COLLEAGUES,

SO IT IS A MATTER OF TEAMWORK, TO ENSURE THAT YOU SURVIVE.

♪

Narrator: ON MARCH 23, 1965, MERCURY VETERAN GUS GRISSOM

AND JOHN YOUNG PREPARE TO FLY

THE FIRST TWO-MANNED GEMINI MISSION.

Man #1: THIS IS GEMINI CONTROL.

THE COUNT -- T-MINUS ONE MINUTE.

T-MINUS 60 SECONDS AND COUNTING.

Narrator: ITS MAIN OBJECTIVE -- TO TEST FLY

THE NEW FULLY MANEUVERABLE GEMINI SPACECRAFT.

Man #2: 30 SECONDS.

10...9...

8...7...

6...5...

4...3...

2...1...

Man: ROGER.

Narrator: DURING THEIR FIVE-HOUR MISSION,

THEY CONTROL THRUSTERS TO ADJUST THE SHAPE

AND ALTITUDE OF THEIR ORBIT.

♪

GEMINI 3 IS A SUCCESS

AND BEGINS THE REFINEMENT OF THE FLIGHT TECHNIQUES

THAT WILL BE VITAL TO A LUNAR MISSION.

[ CHEERS AND APPLAUSE ]

♪

♪

IN JUNE 1965, ASTRONAUTS ED WHITE

AND JIM McDIVITT FLY GEMINI 4.

♪

THEY COMPLETE 66 EARTH ORBITS

IN NASA'S FIRST MULTI-DAY MISSION.

ASTRONAUT ED WHITE COMPLETES AMERICA'S FIRST SPACE-WALK.

OKAY, I'M OUT.

OKAY, I PUT A LITTLE ROLL IN.

TOOK IT RIGHT OUT.

I'M UNDER MY OWN CONTROL.

I FEEL LIKE A MILLION DOLLARS.

Narrator: TETHERED TO THE SPACECRAFT,

HE SPACE-WALKS FOR OVER 20 MINUTES.

NOW, I'VE COME ABOVE THE SPACECRAFT.

THIS IS THE GREATEST EXPERIENCE. IT'S JUST TREMENDOUS.

Ojha: GEMINI 4'S E.V.A. SHOWED THAT SPACE SUITS WORK,

THAT HUMAN BEINGS CAN OPERATE IN A VACUUM.

THE NEXT CHALLENGE WAS TO SHOW

WHETHER OR NOT AN ASTRONAUT CAN DO WORK,

AND THIS IS WHERE THE DIFFICULTIES CAME IN.

GEMINI 9 -- WHAT NASA LEARNS IS THAT

DOING A SPACE-WALK IS HARD WORK.

GEMINI 10, GEMINI 11, ALL OF THOSE MISSIONS,

AS SOON AS THE ASTRONAUTS HAD TO PERFORM TASKS,

THEIR SPACE SUITS WERE OVERHEATING.

THEY'RE REALIZING IT REQUIRED

AN INCREDIBLE AMOUNT OF MUSCULAR EFFORT,

AND THOSE CHALLENGES WERE REALLY ACCUMULATING.

Narrator: ALTHOUGH NASA IS MAKING GOOD PROGRESS

ON THEIR PATH TO A LUNAR LANDING,

THEY WILL HAVE TO COME UP WITH A SOLUTION TO THESE PROBLEMS

IF THEY EVER WANT TO PUT A MAN ON THE MOON.

♪

Narrator: AS NASA APPROACHES THE END OF THE GEMINI PROGRAM,

THERE ARE STILL SEVERAL CHALLENGES

THAT NEED TO BE SORTED OUT IF THEY HOPE TO REACH THEIR GOAL

OF PUTTING A MAN ON THE MOON BY THE END OF THE DECADE.

THE FINAL GEMINI SPACE-WALK FALLS ON THE SHOULDERS

OF ROOKIE ASTRONAUT BUZZ ALDRIN.

AN EXPERIENCED SCUBA DIVER,

ALDRIN SPEARHEADS A NEW UNDERWATER TRAINING PROGRAM

KNOWN AS NEUTRAL BUOYANCY.

Announcer: IN AN INFLATED PRESSURE SUIT,

ASTRONAUT EDWIN ALDRIN, PILOT GEMINI 12,

IS WEIGHTED WITH 60 POUNDS OF LEAD.

HE IS POSITIONED AT THE PREPARED WORK STATION

BY TRAINED SCUBA DIVERS.

THE NEUTRAL-BUOYANCY TANK IS THE BEST SIMULATION

YOU CAN GET ON EARTH OF MICROGRAVITY, AS WE CALL IT.

IN OTHER WORDS, ESSENTIALLY A WEIGHTLESS ENVIRONMENT.

YOU IMMERSE THE CREW MEMBER

AND THE THINGS THEY HAVE TO WORK WITH IN A TANK OF WATER

SO THAT YOU CAN THEN ADJUST THEIR BUOYANCY

SO THAT THEY FLOAT IN ONE PLACE.

AND THEY CAN ORIENT THEMSELVES VERY, VERY FREELY.

Announcer: UNDERWATER SIMULATION CREATES A CONDITION OF NEUTRAL BUOYANCY.

IT GIVES THE PILOT AN EFFECT QUITE SIMILAR

TO THAT OF ZERO GRAVITY.

IT'S ABSOLUTELY KEY TO WORKING OUT, IN PARTICULAR,

HOW LONG THINGS TAKE,

AND OF COURSE, HOW EASY THINGS ARE IN WEIGHTLESSNESS.

Announcer: THE JOBS NOW PERFORMED UNDERWATER

BY PILOT ALDRIN ARE THOSE WHICH WILL BE DONE ON GEMINI 12.

Ojha: A LOT OF THE PROBLEMS

THAT HAD MANIFESTED THEMSELVES PREVIOUSLY DISAPPEARED.

PART OF THAT IS TESTIMONY TO BUZZ'S CAPABILITIES,

BUT A LOT OF IT WAS ALSO DUE TO WHAT WAS LEARNED

ON THOSE HARROWING EARLIER SPACE-WALKS THAT HAD HAPPENED.

IF THOSE TEST PILOTS INVOLVED HADN'T UNDERGONE

THOSE TRAVAILS THAT THEY DID, THEN WE WOULDN'T HAVE REACHED

THE LEVEL OF MATURITY THAT WE REACHED

BY THE TIME GEMINI 12 FLEW IN NOVEMBER 1966.

♪

Narrator: NASA HAS ONE LAST CHANCE TO PERFORM

THE PERFECT E.V.A.

THANKS TO NEUTRAL-BUOYANCY TRAINING,

BUZZ ALDRIN SUCCESSFULLY SPACE-WALKS

FOR MORE THAN FIVE HOURS.

-HEY, CONGRATULATIONS. -[ CHUCKLES ]

Narrator: IN DECEMBER 1965,

NASA LAUNCHES ASTRONAUTS FRANK BORMAN AND JIM LOVELL

ON A 14-DAY MISSION TO INVESTIGATE

THE LONG TERM EFFECTS OF SPACE FLIGHT ON THE HUMAN BODY.

♪

11 DAYS INTO THEIR MISSION, GEMINI 7 IS JOINED IN ORBIT

BY GEMINI 6A.

Man #1: GEMINI 7, ARE YOU ABLE TO SEE IN THE WINDOWS OF 6 VERY EASILY?

Man #2: ROGER, WE'RE JUST FLYING NOSE TO NOSE.

Man #1: ROGER.

Narrator: WORKING TOGETHER, THE FOUR ASTRONAUTS PERFORMED

THE VERY FIRST MANNED SPACECRAFT RENDEZVOUS.

Man #3: HOW DOES IT FEEL FOR THE UNITED STATES

TO BE A NEW RECORD HOLDER?

Man #4: AT LAST, HUH?

Man #3: ROGER. CONGRATULATIONS.

Narrator: AFTER TWO WEEKS IN SPACE,

BORMAN AND LOVELL RETURN VICTORIOUSLY TO EARTH,

PROVING MAN CAN SURVIVE LONG-DURATION SPACE FLIGHT.

THE DEMANDS OF PROJECT GEMINI PUSH EACH TWO-MAN CREW

TO THEIR PHYSICAL AND PSYCHOLOGICAL LIMIT.

GEMINI EMERGED IN ORDER TO TICK OFF

THE THREE ESSENTIAL BOXES FOR A MOON MISSION --

LONG-DURATION FLIGHT OF UP TO 14 DAYS,

EXTRAVEHICULAR ACTIVITY, E.V.A., SPACE-WALKING,

AND FINALLY, OF COURSE, THERE WAS RENDEZVOUS AND DOCKING,

WHICH WAS ESSENTIAL TO COME BACK TO THE MOTHERSHIP

FROM THE SURFACE OF THE MOON.

AND, SO, WITHOUT GEMINI,

WE WOULD HAVE HAD TO OF PUT ALL THOSE THINGS

INTO THE APOLLO PROGRAM, AND BEEN YEARS BEHIND.

OF THE FINAL FIVE GEMINI MISSIONS,

EVERY SINGLE CREW MEMBER WENT TO THE MOON ON APOLLO.

IT REALLY SHOWS THAT THE PEOPLE THEY WERE PICKING

HAD THE RIGHT STUFF.

THEY HAD DETERMINATION.

THEY WEREN'T GOING TO GIVE UP WHEN CHALLENGES EMERGED.

AND, ULTIMATELY, THEY BECAME THE ONLY HUMAN BEINGS

TO HAVE EXPLORED ANOTHER WORLD.

Narrator: PRESIDENT KENNEDY'S DEADLINE IS NOW LESS THAN FOUR YEARS AWAY.

ALL ATTENTION MUST FOCUS ON THE COLOSSAL CHALLENGE

OF THE APOLLO PROGRAM

AND LANDING A MAN ON THE MOON BEFORE THE DECADE IS OUT.

♪

Narrator: BY THE TIME THE GEMINI PROGRAM CLOSES,

THE DESIGN AND CONSTRUCTION

OF THE APOLLO HARDWARE IS WELL UNDERWAY.

INCORPORATING ALL THE NECESSARY CAPABILITIES

TO PERFORM AND SUPPORT A LUNAR MISSION,

THESE IMMENSELY TECHNICAL MACHINES

WILL NEED HIGHLY TRAINED ASTRONAUTS TO PILOT THEM.

Ojha: YOU GOT A COMMAND MODULE

THAT'S THE ONLY PART TO COME BACK TO EARTH,

THAT'S YOUR MAIN LIVING QUARTERS FOR YOUR ASTRONAUTS,

AND STAYS ORBITING THE MOON,

AND THEN YOU'VE GOT YOUR LUNAR MODULE,

THIS INCREDIBLY FLIMSY AND YET CAPABLE VEHICLE

THAT GETS TWO ASTRONAUTS DOWN TO THE LUNAR SURFACE AND BACK AGAIN

TO RENDEZVOUS WITH THE COMMAND MODULE ORBITING.

BY HAVING THREE CREW MEMBERS IN A TWO-SPACECRAFT

CONFIGURATION, IT'S CLEAR THAT ONE PERSON

THAT ONE PERSON COULDN'T LEARN EVERYTHING.

AND THAT'S WHY THE SPECIALIZATION OF ROLES

WAS ABSOLUTELY CRITICAL ONCE ASTRONAUTS

WERE ASSIGNED TO PROJECT APOLLO.

♪

Narrator: COMMAND-MODULE PILOTS FLY SPECIALIST SIMULATORS,

PRACTICE DOCKING, NAVIGATION,

AND OTHER EARTH ORBIT AND LUNAR ORBITAL FLIGHTS,

WHILE COMMANDERS AND LUNAR MODULE PILOTS

PERFECT THEIR DELICATE LANDING PROCEDURES

IN LUNAR-MODULE SIMULATORS.

THESE PROCESSES ARE OVERSEEN BY SIMULATOR SUPERVISORS,

ALSO KNOWN AS SIM SUPES.

[ BEEPING ]

Baker: THEIR JOB IS TO PUT THE CREW THROUGH

THE MOST AGONIZING, TECHNICAL, EMOTIONAL,

AND PSYCHOLOGICAL STRESS THEY CAN POSSIBLY IMPOSE,

AND SIT BACK AND WATCH HOW THEY COPE WITH IT.

BUT THEY ARE VITAL BECAUSE THEY STRETCH THE CREWS

BEYOND THE LIMITS THEY KNOW THAT THEY'RE CAPABLE OF.

TO TRAIN ASTRONAUTS HOW TO FLY AND LAND ON THE MOON,

THE LUNAR LANDING RESEARCH VEHICLE IS DEVELOPED.

THIS TRAINING AIRCRAFT REPLICATES HOW THE LUNAR MODULE

WILL OPERATE IN THE WEAKER GRAVITY OF THE MOON.

Stevenson: IT'S EFFECTIVELY A BIG ENGINE

WITH THIS LIGHTER FRAMEWORK AROUND IT

AND THE CONTROLS THAT EMULATE FLYING LOW

AT A REASONABLE DESCENT RATE,

AND MAKING SURE THAT YOU'VE GOT SUFFICIENT RESOURCES

TO ALLOW PRETTY REALISTIC TRAINING AND PRACTICE

OF THE APPROACH AND LANDING,

AND THEREFOR, WAS A VERY, VERY IMPORTANT TRAINING RESOURCE.

Narrator: BUT THESE MACHINES ARE UNSTABLE AND DIFFICULT TO FLY,

EVEN FOR THE BEST PILOTS AMERICA HAS TO OFFER.

THREE OF THE FIVE BUILT ARE DESTROYED IN CRASHES.

♪

Shayler: SO, IT'S A HIGHLY DANGEROUS VEHICLE.

AND, CERTAINLY, THAT TRAINING

ON THE LUNAR LANDING RESEARCH VEHICLE

HELPED TO PREPARE THE ASTRONAUTS

WHO FLEW THE LUNAR MODULE FOR LANDING ON THE MOON.

♪

Narrator: AND JUST LANDING IS NOT ENOUGH.

ONCE DOWN ON THE MOON, THE APOLLO ASTRONAUTS WILL

HAVE TO EXIT THEIR SPACECRAFT AND WALK ON THE LUNAR SURFACE.

♪

Ojha: THE DIFFERENCE ON THE LUNAR SURFACE IS THAT YOU GOT

1/6 OF THE GRAVITY-FIELD STRENGTH THAT'S ON EARTH.

SO, IT WAS REALIZED THAT, SOMEHOW, WE NEED TO BE ABLE

TO REPLICATE 1/6 GRAVITY CONDITIONS,

AND THERE WERE ALL SORTS OF WAYS

THAT WERE USED VERY SUCCESSFULLY.

Stevenson: ONE OF THE MOST DRAMATIC ONES

WAS SUSPENDING FROM A RIG WHERE YOU LIE HORIZONTALLY

AND YOU WALK ALONG A WALL,

SUSPENDED BY A SERIES OF BUNGEES,

AND THE BUNGEES PROVIDE YOU WITH JUST ABOUT THE RIGHT

RESTORING FORCE AGAINST THE WALL TO ALLOW YOU TO PRACTICE

YOUR VARIOUS FORMS OF WALKING AND AMBULATION,

THE BUNNY HOPS AND ALL THIS KIND OF STUFF,

IN A RELATIVELY REALISTIC ENVIRONMENT.

Ojha: YOU COULD SUCCESSFULLY RECREATE LUNAR GRAVITY,

AND THIS WAS DONE TO LOOK AT THE CAPABILITIES OF ASTRONAUTS

TO WALK ON THE MOON, BUT TO USE TOOLS ON THE MOON,

AND ULTIMATELY TO USE REAL VEHICLES ON THE MOON.

ALL OF IT FOCUSED THOUGH ON TRAINING THE ASTRONAUTS

FOR THE JOBS THEY'D HAVE TO DO IN APOLLO.

Man #1: 3...2...1...MARK.

WE HAVE YOU GO FOR ORBIT.

YOU'RE GO FOR ORBIT.

Narrator: OCTOBER 1968.

NASA LAUNCHES APOLLO 7,

THE FIRST MANNED MISSION OF THE PROGRAM

TO RIGOROUSLY FLIGHT-TEST

THE NEW THREE-MANNED COMMAND MODULE IN EARTH'S ORBIT.

Man #2: 10...9...

WE HAVE IGNITION SEQUENCE START.

ALL ENGINES RUNNING.

LIFTOFF. WE HAVE LIFTOFF.

THE TOWER IS CLEAR.

Narrator: TWO MONTHS LATER, APOLLO 8 CONDUCTS THE FIRST

MANNED FLIGHT TEST OF THE SATURN V ROCKET.

Man #3: APOLLO 8 TO HOUSTON. YOU ARE GO FOR A T.L.I., OVER.

APOLLO 8 IS ALSO THE FIRST MISSION TO FLY TO MOON,

WHERE THE CREW CONDUCTS A TRIAL RUN OF THE COMMAND MODULE

IN LUNAR ORBIT.

THE MISSION SUCCESSFULLY TESTS THE NAVIGATION

AND GUIDANCE PROCEDURES VITAL FOR A MOON LANDING.

Man: IN THE BEGINNING, GOD CREATED THE HEAVEN AND THE EARTH.

AND GOD SAID, "LET THERE BE LIGHT,"

AND THERE WAS LIGHT.

Narrator: MARCH 1969.

APOLLO 9 PERFORMS THE FIRST TESTS OF THE LUNAR MODULE.

Man #1: HOW DOES THAT SPORTS CAR HANDLE, JIM?

Man #2: PRETTY NICE.

Narrator: THE CREW SUCCESSFULLY DOCKS

THE COMMAND AND LUNAR MODULES

IN EARTH'S ORBIT FOR THE FIRST TIME.

Man #3: APOLLO 9, EVERYBODY IS HAPPY AS A CLAM HERE.

-LOOKING GOOD. -OH, THIS IS VERY GOOD.

Narrator: MAY 1969 -- APOLLO 10 RETURNS TO THE MOON.

Man #4: HOUSTON, YOU CAN TELL THE WORLD THAT WE HAVE ARRIVED.

Narrator: THE MISSION RUNS A FULL REHEARSAL OF THE LUNAR LANDING,

FLYING JUST EIGHT MILES ABOVE THE SURFACE.

Man #5: WE ARE DOWN AMONG 'EM, CHARLIE.

Man #6: ROGER. HEY, YOU'RE WEAVING YOUR WAY UP THE FREEWAY.

Narrator: WITH ALL TESTING COMPLETE,

THE STAGE IS NOW SET TO ATTEMPT A LUNAR LANDING.

♪

Narrator: JULY 1969.

APOLLO 11 IS GO FOR LAUNCH.

Man #1: 6...5...

4...3...

2...1...

♪

LIFTOFF. WE HAVE A LIFTOFF.

Man #2: STANDBY FOR ONE BRAVO.

Man #3: THAT'S ONE BRAVO.

Man #4: THAT'S GOOD, FLY. REAL GOOD.

Man #5: FOUR FORWARD. DRIFTING TO THE RIGHT A LITTLE.

OKAY, ENGINE STOP.

HOUSTON, THE EAGLE HAS LANDED.

Man #6: WE COPY YOU DOWN, EAGLE.

Armstrong: THAT'S ONE SMALL STEP FOR MAN,

ONE GIANT LEAP FOR MANKIND.

Narrator: AFTER ALMOST A DECADE OF DEDICATION,

NASA HAS WON THE RACE TO THE MOON.

AND ASTRONAUTS NEIL ARMSTRONG AND BUZZ ALDRIN

BECOME THE FIRST OF ONLY 12 MEN TO WALK ON THE LUNAR SURFACE.

APOLLO 11 WAS A GREAT ACHIEVEMENT FOR NASA

BECAUSE IT DEMONSTRATED THAT THE MISSION PLAN

AND THE WAY IN WHICH THE PROGRAM HAD LAID OUT

ALL THE VARIOUS STEPS

AND THE TECHNOLOGIES AND THE HARDWARE

DID ACTUALLY WORK FOR REAL,

SO IT WAS AN ENGINEERING VERIFICATION.

FOR THE WORLD AT LARGE,

IT OPENED A WHOLE NEW CHAPTER OF EXPLORING OTHER WORLDS.

♪

Narrator: ALTHOUGH THE SPACE RACE IS POLITICALLY DRIVEN,

THE SCIENTIFIC BENEFITS OF KENNEDY'S GOAL

ARE NOT LOST ON NASA.

IF ASTRONAUTS CAN SURVEY AND SAMPLE THE LUNAR SURFACE,

MANKIND'S UNDERSTANDING OF THE MOON, THE EARTH,

AND THE SOLAR SYSTEM WILL BE GREATLY ENHANCED.

AFTER THE SUCCESS OF APOLLO 11,

NASA SCHEDULES SIX MORE LANDING MISSIONS.

EACH MISSION HAS ITS OWN SCIENTIFIC OBJECTIVES,

AND NASA ACCELERATES THE SCIENTIFIC TRAINING

FOR THE ASTRONAUT CORPS.

Joy: IT'S REALLY IMPORTANT FOR ALL THE ASTRONAUTS

THAT WERE GONNA WALK ON THE LUNAR SURFACE,

WHETHER THEY HAD A TEST-PILOT BACKGROUND

OR A SCIENTIFIC BACKGROUND,

TO BE TRAINED IN THE ART OF RECOGNIZING DIFFERENT ROCKS,

SO THEY UNDERWENT A SERIES OF EXTENSIVE TRAINING PROGRAMS

IN PLACES LIKE THE GRAND CANYON.

THEY EVEN WENT TO ICELAND AND HAWAII TO LOOK AT LAVA FIELDS.

THEY WERE TRAINED BY VERY EMINENT GEOLOGISTS

ON HOW TO RECOGNIZE DIFFERENT ROCKS,

HOW TO INTERPRET THE AGE RELATIONSHIPS

BETWEEN DIFFERENT ROCKS.

THEY ALWAYS HAD A LOT OF CLASSROOM EXERCISES

WHERE THEY LOOKED AT ROCKS UNDER THE MICROSCOPE

AND ENHANCED SPECIMENS.

SO, IT WAS A REALLY VALUABLE EXPERIENCE,

AND THEY WERE TRAINED BY SOME OF THE BEST GEOLOGISTS

IN THE WORLD TO DO THAT.

WHEN THE ASTRONAUTS GOT TO THE LUNAR SURFACE,

THE FIRST THING THEY DID WAS TO VIEW THE WHOLE OF THE AREA

AND TO REPORT A LOCAL GEOLOGICAL DESCRIPTION.

Man: THERE'S A RELATIVELY LEVEL PLAIN,

CRATERED WITH A FAIRLY LARGE NUMBER OF CRATERS

OF THE 5- TO 50-FOOT VARIETY.

AND THERE ARE LITERALLY THOUSANDS

OF LITTLE 1- AND 2-FOOT CRATERS AROUND THE AREA.

THE GEOLOGICAL TRAINING ALSO PREPARED THEM

TO COLLECT THE APPROPRIATE TYPES OF LUNAR SAMPLES

THAT WOULD PRESENT SCIENTISTS A WIDE A RANGE

AS POSSIBLE ABOUT THE LOCAL GEOLOGY.

Man: IT'S OBVIOUSLY VERY, VERY COHESIVE.

BECAUSE IT'S -- THE BOTTOM OF THE CORE IS NOT SMOOTH.

IT'S VERY JAGGEDY.

IT'S THREAD-METAL-LIKE.

WE'D LIKE TO SHARE A PIECE OF THIS ROCK

WITH SO MANY OF THE COUNTRIES THROUGHOUT THE WORLD.

WE HOPE THAT THIS WILL BE A SYMBOL OF WHAT OUR FEELINGS ARE,

WHAT THE FEELINGS OF THE APOLLO PROGRAM ARE,

AND A SYMBOL OF MANKIND

THAT WE CAN LIVE IN PEACE AND HARMONY IN THE FUTURE.

Narrator: TO MAXIMIZE THE SCIENTIFIC POTENTIAL

OF EACH MISSION, NASA DEVELOPS

THE APOLLO LUNAR SURFACE EXPERIMENTS PACKAGE,

KNOWN AS ALSEP.

Joy: THESE EXPERIMENT PACKAGES WERE DESIGNED BY SCIENTISTS

WHO WANTED TO ADDRESS REALLY KEY

AND INTERESTING QUESTIONS ABOUT THE MOON

SUCH AS WHAT THE LUNAR INTERIOR IS LIKE, IF IT HAS MOON QUAKES,

THE INTERACTION BETWEEN THE LUNAR SURFACE

AND THE SURROUNDING SPACE ENVIRONMENT.

THESE WERE SMALL, LIGHTWEIGHT SCIENCE EXPERIMENTS

THAT WERE LEFT ON THE LUNAR SURFACE

BY THE ASTRONAUTS TO OPERATE OVER A LONG PERIOD OF TIME

AFTER THEY RETURNED TO EARTH.

Man #1: I'M GONNA GO DEPLOY AN ALSEP.

Man #2: HAVE AT IT.

Man #1: FIRST, I GOT TO FIND AN ALSEP SITE.

♪ WELL, WE'RE OFF TO SEE THE WIZARD ♪

Joy: ALSEP IS THE EXPERIMENTS THAT KEEP ON GIVING.

IN FACT, THE LUNAR LASER RANGING STATIONS

ARE STILL STUDIED AT THE PRESENT DAY.

SO, ALSEP IS AN INCREDIBLY IMPORTANT PART

OF THE APOLLO MISSIONS.

♪

Narrator: IN ADDITION TO THEIR SCIENTIFIC

AND GEOLOGICAL TRAINING, ALL APOLLO ASTRONAUTS RECEIVE

EXHAUSTIVE PHOTOGRAPHIC INSTRUCTION.

Stevenson: THE PHOTOGRAPHY WAS CLEARLY GOING TO BE VERY,

VERY IMPORTANT ON THE MISSION.

PHOTO DOCUMENTATION FOR GEOLOGICAL PURPOSES,

FOR SAMPLE ANALYSIS,

PHOTOGRAPHING A ROCK BEFORE YOU MOVED IT.

♪

THEN, AFTER YOU LIFT THE SAMPLE, YOU HAVE TO PHOTOGRAPH

AND DOCUMENT THE PLACES IT'S COME FROM

SO YOU GET A REFERENCE, YOU KNOW --

YOU DIDN'T EXPECT TO SEE ANYTHING CRAWL OUT

FROM UNDER THAT ROCK, BUT IF THERE WAS,

YOU WANTED A PICTURE OF IT.

Joy: CONTEXT IS EVERYTHING IN GEOLOGY.

SO, WHEN WE HAVE A HAND-SPECIMEN SAMPLE,

WE WANT TO KNOW THE BIGGER PICTURE.

SO BY TAKING A PHOTOGRAPH OF THE SAMPLE IN THE LUNAR SURFACE,

WE COULD UNDERSTAND WHERE THAT ROCK'S ORIGINATED FROM

AND WHAT THAT TELLS US ABOUT THE LOCAL GEOLOGY.

Narrator: WHEN CREWS VISIT GEOLOGICAL SITES ALONG EARTH,

THEY ALSO PRACTICE WITH THE BODY-MOUNTED CAMERAS

THEY WILL USE ON THE MOON.

THE BODY-MOUNTED CAMERAS WERE VERY DIFFICULT TO USE,

MAINLY BECAUSE OF THE CONSTRAINTS OF THE SUIT.

YOU HAVE A HELMET ON, AND THE HELMET

IS EFFECTIVELY JOINED AT THE SUIT MORE AT YOUR NECK,

SO YOU CAN MOVE YOUR HEAD BUT THE HELMET DOESN'T MOVE.

YOU CAN'T EVEN LOOK DOWN INTO THE VIEW-FINDER.

SO IT WAS REALLY ABOUT HOW TO POSITION

THE CAMERA IN FRONT OF THEM, AND IT TOOK A LONG TIME.

Baker: SOME OF THE CREW DID IT BETTER THAN OTHERS,

AND SOME WERE MORE NATURAL PHOTOGRAPHERS THAN OTHERS.

SOME OF THE PHOTOGRAPHS FROM APOLLO

THAT LOOK BACK AT THE EARTH WERE SOME OF THE BEST THINGS

THAT HAPPENED ON THE SPACE PROGRAM.

THE LEGACY CREATED THE ENVIRONMENT MOVEMENT.

THE PALE BLUE DOT FLOATING IN SPACE

TURNED PEOPLE'S IMAGINATIONS TO SAY,

"WOW, WE NEED TO LOOK AFTER THIS PLANET."

Man: I THINK WE'VE SEEN AS MUCH IN 10 DAYS

AS MOST PEOPLE SEE IN 10 LIFETIMES.

Narrator: TO GAIN THE WEALTH OF UNTAPPED INFORMATION AVAILABLE IN SPACE,

NASA WILL NEED TO ENHANCE THEIR RESEARCH PROCEDURES

ON THE REMAINING APOLLO MISSIONS.

♪

Narrator: ALTHOUGH THEY HAVE COMPLETED

A SUCCESSFUL MOON LANDING, NASA ISN'T DONE YET.

NOW THEY'RE READY TO SET OFF ON A QUEST

FOR MORE SCIENTIFIC EXPLORATION

WITH WHAT ARE KNOWN AS THE J-CLASS MISSIONS.

SUDDENLY, THERE WAS A VERY WIDE VARIETY OF TASKS

THAT THE CREW HAD TO DO,

AND THAT WAS GRAFTED ON

TO AN ALREADY-DEMANDING TRAINING PROGRAM.

IT'S INTERESTING HOW WE CAME TO HAVE MORE SCIENCE

WITHIN THESE MANNED MISSIONS, BECAUSE, INITIALLY,

NASA FELT THAT THESE WERE LARGELY ENGINEERING VENTURES,

AND BEGAN TO RECRUIT SCIENTIST ASTRONAUTS

WHOSE PRIMARY SKILLS WERE NOT IN PILOTING OR ENGINEERING,

AND IT STARTED WITH HARRISON SCHMITT ON APOLLO 17.

AND, IN FACT, HE WAS INSTRUMENTAL

IN DISCOVERING THE LOCATION OF SOME VOLCANIC DEBRIS,

THE FAMOUS ORANGE SOIL.

THERE IS ORANGE SOIL! IT'S ALL OVER!

HEY, IT IS! I CAN SEE IT FROM HERE!

IT'S ORANGE.

Joy: HAVING A GEOLOGIST THERE

REALLY HELPED FOR SERENDIPITOUS DISCOVERIES

AND RECOGNIZING ROCK TYPES

THAT MAYBE SOME OF THE OTHER ASTRONAUTS

WOULDN'T BE TRAINED TO RECOGNIZE.

SCHMITT CERTAINLY HAS LEFT A LEGACY

FOR TRAINING OF SCIENTIFIC ASTRONAUTS,

AND AS NASA IS PLANNING TO GO BACK TO THE MOON

AND GO TO ASTEROIDS AND MARS IN THE FUTURE,

I HAVE NO DOUBT THAT GEOLOGISTS

WILL BE PART OF THAT EXCITING EXPERIENCE

SO THAT WE CAN MAXIMIZE THE SCIENTIFIC RETURN

FROM THESE LANDED EXPLORATION MISSIONS.

♪

Narrator: IN PREPARATION FOR THE LAST THREE APOLLO MISSIONS,

NASA TRAINED ITS CREWS TO OPERATE

A SMALL TWO-MAN EXPLORATION BUGGY KNOWN AS THE LUNAR ROVER.

Man #1: MAN, THIS IS A FUN RIDE.

Man #2: MY GOSH, THIS IS SOMETHING.

Man #1: MAN, YOU ARE REALLY ABOUT THIS.

-[ LAUGHS ] -YAHOO!

Ojha: THE PROBLEMS WITH THE EARLY MISSIONS

WAS A PRETTY LIMITED GEOLOGICAL FOOTPRINT

OF AREA THAT YOU COULD EXPLORE.

BASICALLY, THE ASTRONAUTS WERE LIMITED

BY HOW FAR THEY COULD WALK FROM THE LUNAR MODULE AND COME BACK,

AND THAT MEANS THEY'RE EXPLORING

A GEOLOGICALLY LESS DIVERSE AREA THAN THEY COULD.

AND, SO, IT WAS REALIZED THAT HAVING SOME TYPE

OF ROVING VEHICLE ON WHICH THE ASTRONAUTS

COULD TRAVERSE A LUNAR LANDSCAPE

AT MUCH HIGHER SPEEDS THAN THEY COULD WALK,

MEANT THAT THE SCIENCE YIELD COULD BE HIGHER.

Man: THIS IS REALLY SOME MACHINE.

THE TIRES, THEY SKID, JUST LIKE ON SNOW.

IT'S JUST LIKE DRIVING ON SNOW, HOUSTON, BY GOLLY.

Ojha: WHEN YOU LOOK AT THE AMOUNT OF LUNAR SURFACE THAT WAS COVERED,

WE'RE TALKING 15 TO 20 MILES BY THE TIME APOLLO 17 HAD FLOWN.

THE AMOUNT OF DOCUMENTATION THAT THEY DID

WAS ABSOLUTELY FIRST-RATE,

AND, IN FACT, IT JUST GOES TO SHOW THAT PROJECT APOLLO

PROVED THERE IS NOTHING THAT WILL COMPARE

TO HAVING A TRAINED OBSERVER,

BE IT ON THE MOON, AND, ULTIMATELY, BE IT ON MARS.

Man #1: 3...2...1...IGNITION.

Man #2: WE'RE ON OUR WAY, HOUSTON.

Man #1: TAKE YOUR FINAL LOOK AT THE VALLEY OF TAURUS-LITTROW.

Narrator: AS APOLLO 17 LIFTED OFF THE MOON'S SURFACE

ON DECEMBER 14th, 1972,

IT NOT ONLY SIGNIFIED THE END OF THE APOLLO PROGRAM,

BUT THE GREATEST CHAPTER IN THE HISTORY OF HUMAN EXPLORATION.

WHEN PRESIDENT KENNEDY PLEDGED TO PUT A MAN ON THE MOON,

NASA HAD BARELY PUT A MAN INTO ORBIT.

YET, LITTLE MORE THAN A DECADE LATER,

NASA HAD SUCCESSFULLY CROSSED THE VAST TECHNOLOGICAL GAP

BETWEEN PROJECT MERCURY AND APOLLO,

AND THE VAST OCEAN OF SPACE BETWEEN EARTH AND THE MOON.

Baker: THE TRAINING IN THE APOLLO PROGRAM

WAS THE PIVOTAL KEY TO BEING ABLE TO MOVE FORWARD

TO THE SHUTTLE PROGRAM.

THAT IS THE BEDROCK.

IT IS THE STRUCTURE THAT IS VIEWED

AS A TEMPLATE FOR EVERYTHING THAT STEMS FROM IT.

I THINK MANY PEOPLE HAVE CONTRIBUTED

TO THIS PINNACLE WE'VE REACHED.

SOME HAVE CONTRIBUTED MORE THAN OTHERS.

AND WE KNOW OF 14 INDIVIDUALS

WHO HAVE CONTRIBUTED ALL THEY HAD.

AND BECAUSE OF THAT, WE LEFT A SMALL MEMORIAL ON THE MOON

AND A SMALL, SUBTLE CRATER.

THERE'S A SIMPLE PLAQUE WITH 14 NAMES,

AND THOSE ARE THE NAMES, IN ALPHABETICAL ORDER,

OF ALL THE ASTRONAUTS AND COSMONAUTS WHO HAVE DIED

IN THE PURSUIT OF EXPLORATION OF SPACE.

NEAR IT IS A SMALL FIGURE REPRESENTING

THE FALLEN ASTRONAUTS.

♪

Ojha: LOOKING AT THE APOLLO GROUP OF ASTRONAUTS,

THE ONE THING THEY ALL HAD IN COMMON,

AND I THINK THIS CONTINUES TO TODAY'S ASTRONAUTS,

IS AN ABSOLUTELY DEDICATION TO THEIR TASK,

A REAL COMMITMENT TO TEAMWORK,

AND A REALIZATION THAT WHAT THEY WERE DOING

WAS JUST THE SHARP END OF A PYRAMID

BUILT ON THE ACHIEVEMENTS OF THOUSANDS OF OTHERS.

Baker: AND I THINK THE LEGACY OF THE APOLLO EXPERIENCE

HAS PROVIDED THE PERFECT TEMPLATE FOR FUTURE CREWS.

♪

Narrator: BETWEEN 1968 AND 1972, 24 MEN FLEW TO THE MOON,

AND 12 WALKED UPON ITS SURFACE.

WHEN NEIL ARMSTRONG TOOK THOSE FIRST HISTORIC STEPS,

NOT ONLY DID THEY REPRESENT MANKIND'S ABILITY

TO OVERCOME AND CHALLENGE,

BUT THEY SYMBOLIZED THE COURAGE AND DETERMINATION

OF A FEW EXTRAORDINARY MEN WHO WERE MADE OF THE RIGHT STUFF.