The Apollo 11 mission that landed Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin on the surface of the moon rather overshadowed the phenomenal achievement of the previous mission, Apollo 10. Without the bravery of Thomas Stafford, John Young and Gene Cernan, the moon first landing would never have happened.

[…]

As part of the mission, Apollo 10’s lunar module ascent stage — affectionately called ‘Snoopy’ — was discarded and sent into an orbit around the sun. 42 years later and it’s still believed to be out there.

[…]

“We’re expecting a search arc up to 135 million kilometers in size which is a huge amount of space to look at,” Howes continues. “We’re aware of the scale and magnitude of this challenge but to have the twin Faulkes scopes assist the hunt, along with schools, plus the fact that we’ll doubtless turn up many new finds such as comets and asteroids makes this a great science project too.”

This is like trying to find a needle in a haystack made of needles.

In the Shadow of the Moon

Feb2

Watching this tonight.

We don’t do things this audacious anymore. Just think about the boldness and the sheer effort required and expended to do this—especially with the technology of the time. It’s staggering.

The US space program up through Apollo is one of the greatest stories of determination, leadership, and overcoming adversity ever.

And the heroes who walked on the face of the moon will soon be gone and we will not have followed in their giant footsteps.

Welcome NASA to the Commons

Aug31

NASA joins the Commons on Flickr today with three iconic sets spanning the US space agency’s 50+ year history. Their Commons account will feature photos from across the agency’s many locations and centers, chronicling the history of space and lunar missions, and the people and places of the organization.

Gaze upon what used to be at the forefront of American ingenuity and industriousness.

(via Flickr Blog.)