Come on out! Pete Conrad emerges from the Command Module following splashdown of Gemini 11 in the Atlantic Ocean, Sept 1966. The penultimate mission of Project Gemini saw Conrad & Richard Gordon perform the 1st direct-ascent rendezvous with an AGT (Agena Target Vehicle). The G11 craft docked with the AGT on 1st orbit, just 94 minutes after launch. Backup crew for the mission were Neil Armstrong & William Anders.
What’s that out my window? A lunar rendezvous is in progress between the Command Service Module & Lunar Module during Apollo 10, May 1969. A10 was the 2nd mission to orbit the moon (after Apollo 8) & served as a dress rehearsal for a landing on the moon. The mission was flown by John Young, Tom Stafford & Gene Cernan. They flew the Lunar Module 8.4 nautical miles above the moon’s surface. This is the point where a powered lunar descent would commence. On the way home they set a speed record for a crewed spacecraft at 39,897 km/h (11.08 km/s or 24,791 mph); a record which still stands today.
Leaving for work. Apollo 15 was the 4th mission to land on the moon. Astronauts David Scott & James Irwin became the first to drive on the moon courtesy the Lunar Rover. The pair landed by Hadley Rille which was originally planned to be the landing spot for Apollo 19 before budget cuts nixed the mission. The Aug 1971 mission was Scott’s 3rd and final spaceflight while it was Irwin’s & Command Module Pilot Al Worden’s first and only. What a historic mission.
The incredible rescue. The Command Module of Apollo 13 floats with astronauts James Lovell, Fred Haise & Jack Swigert catching their breaths. A damaged wire had ignited on the Service Module following a stir of the oxygen tanks. The explosion left the astronauts’ supply of oxygen venting out into space. The Lunar Module then became the lifeboat for the 3. It was designed to support 2 men on the moon for 2 days; Mission Control though worked around the clock to improvise & create new procedures to allow it to support 3 men for 4 days. Just incredible. As always, I recommend director Ron Howard’s classic ‘Apollo 13’ for your viewing pleasure to see the full story.
A First Day Cover from Sept 9, 1969 commemorating the Apollo 11 moon landing. There’s a post stamp from the July 20 moon landing & a beautiful 10 cent stamp featuring Neil Armstrong stepping down upon the lunar surface. So many great space-themed stamps were designed by the USPS during the space age.
Setting up shop. The Lunar Module Antares has touched down upon the moon with the instruments set up during Apollo 14, Feb 1971. The mission was the first to land in the Lunar Highlands & the final ‘H-Mission’, or 2-day stay on the moon. After this, Apollo flights would be J-Missions, or 3-day lunar stays. This mission with Alan Shepard, Edgar Mitchell & Stuart Roosa was to take place in 1970 but was pushed back following an investigation into the explosion upon the Apollo 13 spacecraft.
Practice makes perfect. Neil Armstrong & Buzz Aldrin go through the steps with the Lunar Lander during preparation for Apollo 11, 1969. Backup crew for the first mission to the moon were Jim Lovell, Fred Haise & William Anders. Armstrong & Aldrin spent 21 & ½ hours at Tranquility Base before joining Command Module Pilot Michael Collins who was in lunar orbit in Columbia.
Parking is ample. The first to drive on the moon, David Scott, walks away from the Lunar Rover during Apollo 15, Aug 1971. Scott & fellow astronaut Jim Irwin spent 18.5 hours on EVAs during their lunar stay while Command Module Pilot Al Worden orbited above.
The road to the Vehicle Assembly Building at Kennedy Space Center. Completed in 1966, the VAB was originally intended for the vertical stacking of the Saturn V rocket during the Apollo Program era. During the Space Shuttle era, shuttle orbiters were mounted to fuel tanks & rocket boosters. The VAB is the tallest building (outside an urban area) in the US. It was the tallest building in Florida until 1974 & is the largest single story building in the world at 526 feet. At 129,428,000 cubic feet, it’s larger than your average 1-bedroom apartment.
Before Apollo 17 & being the last man on the moon, astronaut Gene Cernan undergoes training for Gemini 9A, April 1966. During his space career, Mr. Cernan flew on G9A, Apollo 10 & A17. He spent 23 days & 14 hours in space, 24 hours of that on moon walks & EVAs. He served as a backup member on Gemini 12, Apollo 7 & A14. A wonderful documentary on his life is ‘The Last Man on the Moon’; it’s an excellent watch.
A 1963 model by NASA of what an upcoming moon landing might look like during that decade. The first human-made object to land on the moon from Earth was Luna 2 by the USSR in Sept, 1959. There were 6 crewed landings by the USA between 1969-72 during the Apollo 11-17 missions (with the exception of Apollo 13). There were no soft landings on the moon between Aug 1976 to Dec 2013. A soft landing is one in which major damage doesn’t occur to the vehicle or its payload. The average vertical speed during a soft landing is approximately 6.6 feet, or 2 meters per second.
Astronauts on a cloudy day. Alan Bean, Pete Conrad & Richard Gordon hop out of the shuttle bus & step towards the 363-foot tall Saturn V rocket in preparation for Apollo 12, Nov 1969. Conrad & Bean spent 31 hours on the lunar surface while Gordon orbited 45 times above in the Command Module. The spacecraft was nearly identical to that of Apollo 11 with the exception being that hammocks were added to the Lunar Module so that Bean & Conrad could rest more comfortably when not out moonwalking. The mission lasted a total of 10 days & 4 hours.
Flying in Skylab 3. Alan Bean moves about America’s first space station via a maneuvering unit. The July 1973 mission was the 2nd crewed flight to the space station. Bean, Owen Garriott & Jack Lousma were launched within the Apollo Command & Service Module situated atop a Saturn 1B rocket. It was the rookie spaceflight for Garriott & Lousma & the 2nd & final flight for Bean. The mission lasted a total of 59 days. The dome within which Bean moves is 19 feet in height & 22 feet in diameter.
Dynamic duo. Astronauts John Young & Gus Grissom stand by ‘Molly Brown’, their Gemini 3 capsule aboard the USS Intrepid following their successful flight. The March 1963 mission completed 3 orbits about Earth & was the first duo space flight by NASA & first crewed flight of Project Gemini. The flight lasted 4 hours & 52 minutes. Backup crew for the mission were Wally Schirra & Tom Stafford. The original crew were to be Alan Shepard & Stafford until an inner ear disorder grounded Shepard. He’d have to wait until Apollo 14 when he got to walk on the moon at 47 years of age. Something nice to look forward to.
Space legend. Cosmonaut Valentina Tereshkova became the first woman in space when she flew Vostok 6 in June 1963. The solo flight orbited Earth 48 times over a 2-day, 23 hour mission. She was selected from 400 applicants & it was her only spaceflight. She is the only woman ever to fly a solo space mission & in 2013 offered to go on a 1-way trip to Mars if the opportunity popped up. She flew at the age of 25 & remains the youngest woman to have flown in space.
From as early as Genesis, Jews have pondered the expanse that surrounds our planet, as well as their place in them. Astronomy, mathematics, and other sciences appear frequently in books published by rabbis and scholars in Hebrew and other languages during the 17th-19th centuries.
By the 20th century, Jewish astronauts and cosmonauts had successfully orbited the Earth and began to explore the very heavens their ancestors studied. As Jewish writers and filmmakers embraced these achievements (and other fantastic possibilities) on the screen and the page, science fiction and pop culture were changed for generations to come.
Jews In Space brings together dozens of out-of-this-world artifacts highlighting the indispensable contributions of Jewish scientists, astronomers, explorers, writers, and entertainers, including:
Rare 18th and 19th-century rabbinic tomes on astronomy in Hebrew, German, and Yiddish
Judaica taken aboard the Space Shuttle by Astronaut Dr. Jeffrey Hoffman
Yiddish, English, Polish, and Russian works of science fiction
Rare science fiction periodicals
Stay tuned throughout May for additional events, including:
Stardate 04.15.2018–All ages family program, with arts, crafts, and curator-led tours
Stardate 05.06.2018–All ages family fun program starting before the Center opens! We’ll be offering special sensory-specific fun and activities in a calm, crowd-free environment.
Stardate 05.07.2018–Meet five-time Space Shuttle astronaut Jeffrey Hoffman and listen to him discuss his experiences as a Jew in orbit! Hoffman will be joined by Dr. Valerie Neal, curator of the Smithsonian National Air and Space Museum, who will provide an overview of the history of Jewish astronauts and their achievements in space.
Are you the leader of a #GirlScouts troop or other youth group that would like to earn a special #JewsInSpace badge for exploring the stars?
The Center would love to take your aspiring astronauts on a tour through the solar system! Email [email protected] to plan a group visit.
For artifact sneak-peeks, external reviews/coverage, and additional event announcements, search for #JewsInSpace on Instagram and Twitter!
Jews In Space: Members of the Tribe In Orbit is proudly co-presented by the Center for Jewish History & YIVO Institute for Jewish Research and financially supported by the generosity of Lisa and Joshua Greer, Kepco, Inc. & the Kupferberg Foundation.
From as early as Genesis, Jews have pondered the expanse that surrounds our planet, as well as their place in them. Astronomy, mathematics, and other sciences appear frequently in books published by rabbis and scholars in Hebrew and other languages during the 17th-19th centuries.
By the 20th century, Jewish astronauts and cosmonauts had successfully orbited the Earth and began to explore the very heavens their ancestors studied. As Jewish writers and filmmakers embraced these achievements (and other fantastic possibilities) on the screen and the page, science fiction and pop culture were changed for generations to come.
Jews In Space brings together dozens of out-of-this-world artifacts highlighting the indispensable contributions of Jewish scientists, astronomers, explorers, writers, and entertainers, including:
Rare 18th and 19th-century rabbinic tomes on astronomy in Hebrew, German, and Yiddish
Judaica taken aboard the Space Shuttle by Astronaut Dr. Jeffrey Hoffman
Yiddish, English, Polish, and Russian works of science fiction
Rare science fiction periodicals
Stay tuned throughout May for additional events, including:
Stardate 04.15.2018–All ages family program, with arts, crafts, and curator-led tours
Stardate 05.06.2018–All ages family fun program starting before the Center opens! We’ll be offering special sensory-specific fun and activities in a calm, crowd-free environment.
Stardate 05.07.2018–Meet five-time Space Shuttle astronaut Jeffrey Hoffman and listen to him discuss his experiences as a Jew in orbit! Hoffman will be joined by Dr. Valerie Neal, curator of the Smithsonian National Air and Space Museum, who will provide an overview of the history of Jewish astronauts and their achievements in space.
Are you the leader of a #GirlScouts troop or other youth group that would like to earn a special #JewsInSpace badge for exploring the stars?
The Center would love to take your aspiring astronauts on a tour through the solar system! Email [email protected] to plan a group visit.
For artifact sneak-peeks, external reviews/coverage, and additional event announcements, search for #JewsInSpace on Instagram and Twitter!
Jews In Space: Members of the Tribe In Orbit is proudly co-presented by the Center for Jewish History & YIVO Institute for Jewish Research and financially supported by the generosity of Lisa and Joshua Greer, Kepco, Inc. & the Kupferberg Foundation.
NASA’s Desert RATS, or Research and Technology Studies, team made its 13th trip to the desert for another round of analog testing. The Desert RATS tests offer a chance for a NASA-led team of engineers, astronauts and scientists to conduct technology development research in the Arizona desert. The location offers a good stand-in for destinations for future planetary exploration missions. This year’s tests take place Aug. 31-Sept. 15. This image is a night-time shot of the rover and habitat unit.
The lighting looks so dramatic. And since all you can see is black sky and sand, you can make yourself believe that it’s really on the moon, or Mars or anywhere else when you look at the picture.
