Fifty years since the moon landings

[sycamore54321]

It will be 50 years ago later this month since the first moon landing. I wasn’t born. I’ve always imagined though, what it must feel like to look up at the moon and know that there were people there. Do any MNers recall it? Was it scary or awe-inspiring? What did it feel like?

It seems so odd to me that this huge milestone took place half a century ago, and then abruptly stopped almost as suddenly as it had begun a few years later. And since then, loads of other exciting space stuff but nobody else has ever stood on something that wasn’t of our planet.

I was six in summer of '69 and remember standing outside with my sister, looking up at the moon in the hope of seeing the astronauts moving about and we looked again thinking we might see the re-entry. It's one of my earliest clear memories.
I was obsessed by space at the time. Star Trek was my favourite TV programme for years, and today I'd go to space in a heartbeat even if I knew I wasn't coming back. "To slip the bonds of earth"... Amazing, amazing stuff, so moving.

@Soola , surely the existence of Hull is a myth. Like Weymouth. Everyone knows Weymouth doesn't exist, right?😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂

My mum was 8 years old and remembers the whole school (village school, about 20 infants and 20 juniors, if that!) watching it in the headmistresses house next door to the school. She said my Nana made her leave early before the good bits.

I loved the films First Man and Apollo 13 and I'm addicted to space race info. I get chills reading about the lost Russian cosmonauts. We spent our honeymoon in Florida and NASA was one of my favourite stops. I was lucky enough to see space shuttle Atlantis launch in 1996 when I was 13 and to see the actual shuttle up close on my honeymoon.

One of the little nuggets I read and that stuck with me was that NASA always planned to have the commander stay in the moon lander and have the second astronaut walk on the moon first. With the team schedule ever changing through illness and accidents, it was pure luck that Armstrong and Aldrin were scheduled for Apollo 11. NASA decided Armstrong was to be first out the lander and spin a tale that when the men were in their suit, the one nearest the door (the commander) went out first. This was bullshit because the men could have easily swapped places prior to putting on their suits. In reality it was because they considered the first man on the moon to be the Charles Lindbergh of the time and wanted the quiet and conscientious Armstrong rather than the headstrong Aldrin to be that particular ambassador. Apparently Aldrin went mental when he found out he wasn't going to be it.

Well, I haven’t been to the moon. So how do I know that anyone else has?

Bet you don't say that to people who show you their holiday snaps of Australia, or Fiji, or South Africa though ....

@bellinisurge

The Apollo missions were cancelled in 1975 OP. They carried on for 6 years after the first moon lending. NASA cancelled the last 3 due to lack of money.

As a 14 year old at the time, we followed the space programme very closely and had some from day 1. It was essential viewing and was always a news topic. The potential loss of Apollo 13 was big news too and widely followed. As indeed was the loss of the intended crew of Apollo 1.

There is a great Flight and Space Museum on the Mall in Washington and I highly recommend it. Also visit Arlington cemetery for the space death memorials. The John Glenn capsule is so Heath Robinson it’s amazing it came back to Earth!

My Dad also had a friend who worked on perfecting heat shields at the Rocket Propulsion Establishment in Bucks and important research work was actually done by Brits!

The Apollo missions were cancelled in 1975 OP. They carried on for 6 years after the first moon lending. NASA cancelled the last 3 due to lack of money.

There's a scene in Apollo 13 where one of the visiting Senate committee reminds NASA that funding hadn't been agreed for Apollo 14 yet ....

I am very sceptical about Australia, never trusted that Kylie Minogue.

The moon is like Finland. It’s on the map but do you know anyone who’s been there?

And I’ve never seen Star Wars. Go Figure.

The moon is like Finland. It’s on the map but do you know anyone who’s been there?

My DH has been to Finland on a work trip. It came up in conversation today, serendipitously, I might have forgotten otherwise.

I also despair at conspiracy theories around the moon landings. Especially since there's evidence like this:

www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/LRO/news/apollo-sites.html

To me, the conspiracies theories look like this:

pigeonsnest.co.uk/stuff/nasa-fakes-moon-landing.html

Your DH says he went to Finland. Actually, he sat in the departure lounge until it was time to go home.

And how about the Finnish girl I was acquainted with?

She only said she was from Finland. She was really from Billericay.

And she’s doing very well🚐

@sycamore54321 that wasn’t the last time people stood on the moon.

Nice article from a film maker explaining why it couldn't have been faked.
www.abc.net.au/news/2019-07-11/moon-landing-footage-faked-film-expert-shows-why-it-wasnt/11298680

We were at NASA today actually. I am so stupid I didn’t realise there were further moon landings after aldrin et al. They couldn’t have faked them all! I’m also having a hard time comprehending that the objective of 2030-2035 is to go to Mars and that children on the tour between 8-17 could be the ones going. I turned to mine and forbade them from the journey. They did express an interest in working on the mission in some capacity though.

There was some talk I overheard of using the moon as a staging post for Mars as they didn’t need as much fuel from there. But as he said, he’s no rocket scientist so that could be BS.

Watched the BBC programme 8Days last night. There is a fantastic photo that Collins took of the Lunar Module approaching Apollo with Earth in the background . And the observation was made that every human being alive is on that photo except Collins, the photographer. . I caught by breath because, technically, I'm on that photo - 3 year old me.
I was looking for my next book to read so, for the second time this year, I've picked up " The Martian". Such a positive book about humanity (and a really rollicking adventure). I really need reminding of that while everything is so shitty in the UK just now.

We watched that last night.
Totally in awe at the amazing things they achieved back then

I’m also having a hard time comprehending that the objective of 2030-2035 is to go to Mars and that children on the tour between 8-17 could be the ones going. I turned to mine and forbade them from the journey.

And what would their choice(s) be ? All a bit drama-llamary no ? Anyway, if DW and I get there first, they might not get a place . We'd happily go - even if we knew we might not even make it there, or ever return.

I 100% believe it happened but, I am more interested about why we haven't gone back?

Ah yes drama llama, the new favourite MN phrase.

I am more interested about why we haven't gone back?

For what purpose? The ISS is, I assume, better for low gravity experiments. Exploration of other parts of the solar system can be more effectively achieved using robots and remote sensors. I believe the Chinese are planning a manned trip eventually. But getting people to the moon and back is just so much more expensive than the more useful alternative current programs.

am more interested about why we haven't gone back?*
Lack of money and interest. Why spend 10s of billions on space exploration when you can spend 100s of billions on wars?
Wait till the Chinese get to the moon, the US government will be demanding that NASA get back to the moon ASAP.