10 unusual aspects of the Apollo missions of the 1960s and 1970s
Top 10 Incredible Facts About the Apollo Missions
In July 1969 – five decades ago, and just eight years after President Kennedy challenged
the United States to land a man on the moon – Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin accomplished
the task to international fanfare.
They were of course just the tip of the sword.
The lunar landings were a massive accomplishment, supported by an international network of communication
stations and strategically located ships.
It had required advances in the preparation of food and the disposal of waste; the exact
determination of contingencies beyond the ken or caring of most of humanity.
It was a scientifically determined exercise which required, at the end, the courage of
three men strapped atop what was essentially an enormous bomb.
At the time, only a few unmanned vehicles had been dispatched to the moon, and more
than a few had failed spectacularly.
Scientists, engineers, mathematicians, cooks, tailors, technicians, administrators, politicians,
and virtually every discipline known to humanity had contributed to the effort, striving to
consider in advance every potential contingency and have in place the means to deal successfully
with whatever event may arise.
Fifty years later much of their efforts can be viewed as nearly quaint, particularly when
one compares the computing power of one’s smartphone with that of the Lunar Excursion
Module, which carried Armstrong and Aldrin to the surface of the moon and returned them
to rendezvous with their colleague, Michael Collins, in lunar orbit.
As with all of humanity’s great leaps forward, there are many aspects little remembered,
but which were a part of the event and the community which accomplished it.
Here are just a few.
10.
NASA took steps to protect the earth from moon germs, but they weren’t foolproof
Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin were the only two men of Apollo 11 to walk on the moon,
but upon their return to the mission’s Command Module they were reunited with fellow astronaut
Michael Collins.
Thus it was determined by whomever determined such things that all three astronauts could
have been exposed to unknown microorganisms while on their journey, and that it was a
wise precaution to isolate the three astronauts from the rest of the human race upon their
return to earth, at least for a short time.
Accordingly NASA constructed a Mobile Quarantine Facility (MQF) to house the three upon their
return, and it was waiting for them aboard USS Hornet.
It was, essentially, an Airstream trailer which had been properly modified.
Since they had made contact with other humans as part of exiting the spacecraft floating
merrily in the Pacific, those potentially contaminated worthies joined them in the trailer.
Within the confines of the Airstream – which was actually built by Airstream – the three
astronauts were seen via television chatting with American president Richard Nixon.
What the public did not see was that the astronauts, and those recovery personnel isolated with
them, were doing what many vacationers did when temporarily residing in their Airstreams.
They were enjoying martinis.
Perhaps it was the alcohol which stymied lunar pathogens, or perhaps it was a bit of over-caution
on the part of NASA officials, but after three weeks the quarantined men were allowed to
return to the life of the living, having exhibited no ill effects caused by moon germs (Not all
the time was spent in the Airstream.
They were transferred to a larger isolation facility after being flown to Houston).
After Apollo 14 (the Apollo 13 astronauts were not quarantined, having never reached
the moon) isolating the astronauts upon return was deemed to be unnecessary.
9.
A piece from the Wright Brothers’ airplane was carried to the moon by Neil Armstrong
Humanity first achieved powered heavier than air flight in December, 1903, when Wilbur
and Orville Wright launched their Flyer into the air at Kitty Hawk, North Carolina.
Less than 66 years later the first men walked upon the surface of the moon.
Millions of people who were alive when the first flight was accomplished were still alive
to see men on the moon.
Neil Armstrong, like the Wrights, was an Ohioan, and it was his decision to take to the moon
with him a tribute to the men who had not only achieved the first flight, but had developed
the principles of control which still determine the ability to fly.
To do so he enlisted the help of the Museum of the United States Air Force, also located
in Ohio, and obtained pieces of the Wright Flyer, one of muslin fabric from the left
wing of the aircraft, the other a piece of wood from the left propeller.
Armstrong took advantage of an authorized piece of equipment carried by the astronauts
known as the PPK – NASA speak for the Personal Preference Kit.
Basically it was a purse, made of Teflon coated fabric, and roughly the size of a standard
lunch box.
The space travelers were limited to five pounds or less of personal items, which they were
allowed to carry to the moon and back.
Although no one knows for certain what else Armstrong took with him to the moon (there
has been speculation that personal items which had belonged to his late daughter were carried)
the pieces of the Flyer which went to the moon were brought back with him.
Both the swatch of fabric and the piece of wood are in the possession of the Smithsonian
Institution in Washington today, having been, like a man, taken to the moon and returned
safely to earth by the end of the decade, as President Kennedy had challenged.
8.
The Apollo Program missions were a massive undertaking in terms of the numbers of men
and women working in their support
It is difficult to accurately estimate the number of people who directly supported the
Apollo program and its accomplishment of landing Americans on the moon.
Earlier programs, from which some workers had already retired, were essential to the
success of Apollo, though they are not usually counted.
By the time of the launch of Apollo 11 in July 1969, NASA had already been subjected
to cutbacks in other programs.
The United States military also provided active duty personnel, particularly the US Navy,
whose ships provided the recovery vessels for retrieving returning astronauts and their
spacecraft.
Other military organizations used the Apollo missions (and other space missions) to hone
their missile tracking skills as part of their continuous training towards stymying the Soviets
during the ongoing Cold War.
So a true number is somewhat difficult to pin down when counting those who made Apollo
a success.
At least 400,000 men and women were directly involved in the successful landing on the
moon.
Whether this number considers those who were tangentially involved – such as those who
prepared the recipe for a space dinner – is debated.
Regardless, the effort was truly a national one, involving contractors and subcontractors
from virtually every American state.
President Kennedy had exhorted “this nation should commit itself to achieving the goal”
and the nation responded in a manner not seen since the industrial buildup during the Second
World War, and unfortunately, not seen since.
Each Apollo space mission, including all of the components of the boosters and the Apollo
system itself, comprised over 5.5 million individual parts, any of which could have
led to a catastrophic failure and the loss of the lives of the three men which rode the
system into space.
7.
Astronauts returning from the moon signed customs forms asserting items to declare
When Apollo 11 returned from the moon – in the form of the three astronauts and the Command
Module, the rest of the equipment remained in space or on the moon – the astronauts
were treated to the trappings common to heroes in American tradition.
They were visited by the President of the United States.
They were interviewed by the press, radio, and television.
They were given ticker tape parades and the keys to the city by American towns.
Streets were renamed in their honor.
Later so were schools, parks, museums, highways, and other sites.
But before enjoying any of the perks derived from their mission, they were subjected to
the bureaucratic nonsense which is all too often part of modern life (after their period
of isolation in the Airstream, that is).
The first men to return from the moon returned to US territory via the deck of the aircraft
carrier USS Hornet.
From there they were flown, ensconced in their Airstream, to Honolulu, then Houston, where
they entered the more spacious isolation facility.
While in Honolulu they filed forms claiming that they were re-entering the United States
with items to declare to customs.
The items were dust and rocks collected from the lunar surface.
They also had to state, as all international travelers do, their travel itinerary, and
they described it as being from Cape Kennedy to Honolulu, with a stopover on the moon.
All three astronauts signed the form, declaring it to be “complete, exact, and true” as
if they could have possibly deviated, having just completed what was the most closely monitored
trip of all time.
6.
The Apollo 11 astronauts were among the most closely watched television personnel in history
Apollo 11 provided some of the most dramatic television scenes in history, presented by
the astronauts themselves as they continued on their journey, and emphasized by network
personnel hosting the broadcasts.
Walter Cronkite – an unabashed fan of the American space program – spent hours explaining
events as the mission wound on, and his competitors at the other networks did the same.
Regularly scheduled television broadcasts were bumped to allow events from space to
be viewed by the American public (who were paying for them through their taxes) as well
as by the rest of the world.
When Neil Armstrong stepped down the ladder of the Lunar Excursion Module, named Eagle
by the astronauts, it was seen live on television.
So were his early steps on the moon, undoubtedly the most dramatic footage yet created.
It should be no surprise then, to learn that a broadcast prepared by NASA and the astronauts
engaged on a space mission should be the recipient of an Emmy award.
But it went to the astronauts of an earlier Apollo mission, Apollo 7 in October 1968.
Apollo 7 never left earth orbit as the astronauts went on an eleven day mission which tested
the components of the program’s Command Module.
Astronauts Wally Schirra, Donn Eisele, and Walter Cunningham were awarded a special Emmy
award that year for their nightly broadcasts of what came to be known as the “Wally,
Walt, and Donn Show”, during which they demonstrated eating in space and other daily
evolutions.
Later Schirra revealed that he had wanted to televise astronauts using the relief tube
to answer the call of nature while in orbit, but his bosses in Houston demurred.
5.
When
astronauts needed clothes which moved with them, a bra manufacturer came to the rescue
As early as 1962 NASA was evaluating and testing spacesuits to be worn by the Apollo astronauts,
cognizant of the fact that unlike suits to be worn only within the confines of a space
capsule, the Apollo astronauts would require better range of motion and comfort.
Of particular concern were the suits to be worn by the astronauts on the surface of the
moon.
Two companies led the bidding process to produce the Apollo suits, International Latex Corporation
and Hamilton Standard.
Hamilton tried to muscle ILC out of the process, but Hamilton’s spacesuits failed to make
the grade required by NASA, with a great deal of the criticism coming from the astronauts
themselves (the astronauts were heavily involved in all aspects of crew comfort and safety
throughout the manned space program).
ILC became the lead developer and manufacturer of space suits, a position it retains in the
21st century.
ILC is better known by its current name, Playtex.
In 1962 it was a subsidiary of Playtex, known primarily as a manufacturer of two types of
women’s undergarments, brassieres and girdles.
Although girdles are all but unknown in current women’s fashions, in 1962 they were still
considered a foundation (ahem) of the lingerie industry.
The suit produced for the Apollo astronauts weighed just over 100 pounds minus the astronaut,
and when the latter and his support pack were included the total was around 500 pounds,
depending of course on the weight of the astronaut.
It is a little known fact that at the same time the women’s lib movement was beginning
to exhort their sisters to burn their bras, a suit designed and made by a bra manufacturer
was preventing astronauts from being burned up in space.
By the way, as of 2019, Playtex no longer manufactures girdles, preferring to concentrate
on something called shaping wear.
4.
Some of the astronauts carried contraband to the moon
America’s astronauts had an established history of smuggling unauthorized objects
into space with them, to the everlasting frustration of their earthbound bosses.
John Young once flew into space (Gemini 3) taking along a corned beef sandwich, mostly
as a joke on his traveling companion, Gus Grissom.
Both astronauts took bites from the sandwich before concerns over errant crumbs forced
Young to return it to his pocket.
The incident drew debate in the House of Representatives and other political posturing and drew Young
a reprimand, though according to Young it was neither the first nor the last sandwich
to be smuggled into space by astronauts less than enthralled with the NASA prepared official
cuisine available.
Alan Shephard took smuggling contraband a step further.
He took along a golf club on his journey to the moon.
Specifically, he took the head of a six iron, specially modified by an accomplice (a Houston
golf pro named Jack Harden) to fit an authorized piece of equipment to serve as a shaft.
In the manner of golfers everywhere, Shephard also smuggled along golf balls with great
secrecy, enabling him to play while his spouse thought him at work.
While on the lunar surface, Shephard took out club and balls, and became the only man
to hit a golf ball (thus far) while standing on the moon.
According to Shephard, he shanked the first shot.
On his mulligan he hit the ball “flush and it went at least 200 yards”, nice distance
for a one-handed shot while wrapped in an over one-hundred pound Playtex space suit.
The United States Golf Association Museum in New Jersey has the modified six iron, donated
to it by Shephard at the suggestion of Bing Crosby.
The balls still lie on the surface of the moon.
Shephard never revealed to the world what brand they are.
3.
Communion has been taken, but not served, on the surface of the moon
The second man to set foot on the surface of the moon was Edwin E. Aldrin, known to
his fellow astronauts as Buzz.
Aldrin was, in addition to being a veteran combat pilot (he flew 66 missions in Korea,
shooting down two enemy planes), the first astronaut to hold a PhD (Astronautics, from
Massachusetts Institute of Technology) and a veteran of walking in space, an Elder at
Webster Presbyterian Church.
While on the surface of the moon and while awaiting his commander’s first steps on
the lunar surface, Aldrin took communion, an event witnessed by a respectful Neil Armstrong,
who did not participate.
Aldrin took communion in the form of both water and wine, with the foreknowledge of
mission controllers on the ground.
The event was kept from the media at the time, since NASA was already involved in a lawsuit
regarding the astronauts having read from the Bible during the mission of Apollo 8 on
Christmas Eve, 1968, an event broadcast to the earth on television.
Aldrin used a communion kit which had been presented to him by the pastor of his church.
He poured the communion wine into a vessel and reported on the qualities it displayed
in the severely lower gravity as a matter of scientific observation.
Many years later (in 2009) Aldrin reflected that had he the opportunity to repeat his
act, he would not do so, since the rite was a Christian one and thus not reflective of
the mission’s self-stated intent to be for “all mankind”.
There are other examples of astronauts taking part in religious rites while deployed in
space, particularly on the space shuttle missions and while serving aboard the International
Space Station, but Aldrin’s communion is the only such act to have been performed on
the surface of the moon.
2.
Humanity has left tons of trash and refuse on the surface of the moon
For the most part, the moon and Las Vegas have in common that what happens there stays
there.
There have been six manned moon missions, all completed by the United States.
Twelve men, all Americans, have trod upon the lunar source.
No man has ever gone back.
Nearly all of the equipment taken to the moon by the missions was left behind.
In return for the soil samples and rocks which Americans took from the lunar surface, left
behind have been cameras, flags, shovels and other small tools, the bases of the six lunar
modules, lunar rover excursion vehicles (yes, there are abandoned cars on the moon), and
a host of other detritus.
At least one bird feather remains there (falcon) and a hammer.
The two items were used in an experiment mirroring those of Galileo, and then left to lay.
The Apollo missions aren’t the only source of man-made detritus on the moon, many unmanned
space missions which reached the moon are of course still there, some of them Soviet
property, making America not the only earthbound nation to litter the moon.
Most estimates are that there are upwards of 400,000 tons of earth made trash lying
around, waiting for the next lunar explorer to encounter.
In fact there is so much trash on the moon that missions to recover some of it have been
proposed, as a means of studying the long term impacts of radiation and the lunar environment
on man-made materials.
The NASA History Program Office maintains an inventory of items known to have been abandoned
or lost on the moon, visible online.
Among the items listed is a Gold Olive Branch (sic) and just a bit lower on the same page,
a Defecation Collection Device.
1.
Armstrong and Aldrin both claimed that they could smell the lunar surface
Beginning with Armstrong and Aldrin, and confirmed by subsequent lunar explorers (unanimously)
the surface of the moon had, or has, a unique but readily noticeable smell.
First noticed by the Apollo 11 astronauts at the end of their first stroll around Tranquility
Base (as they named the landing site in July 1969), it remained a subject of discussion
among the small fraternity of men who have seen the earth while standing on the moon.
The astronauts all noticed the smell upon re-pressurizing the cabin of the lunar module,
allowing them to remove their helmets.
Dust and other residue present on their boots, suits, and gloves gave off the smell, which
several likened to gunpowder.
Spent gunpowder.
An interesting phenomena is that the smell is not detected emanating from lunar samples
examined back on earth.
It was only present in the lunar module, shortly after completion of re-pressurization.
While all of the astronauts who walked on the moon agreed on the existence of the smell
and its similarity to the odor of gunpowder, none have ever agreed to explanations of what
the smell was, or why it was not replicated when examining samples on earth.
But the smell was bothersome at the time, as some scientists believed that lunar dust
collected by the astronauts could spontaneously combust when exposed to oxygen, a worry not
lost on Armstrong and Aldrin.
Armstrong collected a handful of dust while on the moon, depositing it in a pocket rather
than a sample bag, and placed it on a flat surface while the LEM was re-pressurized for
the first time, ready to act should the sample begin to smolder.
It did not, and the two astronauts returned to earth.
The strange smell of the moon is a mystery which began, rather than ended, with man’s
first trip to the moon.