Apollo 11: The NASA Mission Reports, Volume 2

Apogee Books Space Series #6

by Robert Godwin

Contains the entire crew of Apollo 11’s personal observations upon returning to earth.

Genres: Space

168 pages, Paperback

First published July 1, 1999

Reviews

[Apollo Archive · Rating 5 out of 5]

Apollo 11 was the first manned mission to land on the Moon. The first steps by humans on another planetary body were taken by Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin on July 20, 1969. The astronauts also returned to Earth the first samples from another planetary body. Apollo 11 achieved its primary mission - to perform a manned lunar landing and return the mission safely to Earth - and paved the way for the Apollo lunar landing missions to follow.

Lunar Module: Eagle

Command and Service Module: Columbia

Crew:
Neil Armstrong ,commander
Michael Collins, command module pilot
Edwin Aldrin, lunar module pilot

Launch: July 16, 1969
13:32:00 UT (09:32 a.m. EDT) Kennedy Space Center Launch Complex 39A

Landing Site: Mare Tranquillitatis (Sea of Tranquility)
0.67 N, 23.47 E

Landed on Moon: July 20, 1969
20:17:40 UT (4:17:40 p.m. EDT)

First step: 02:56:15 UT July 21, 1969
(10:56:15 p.m. EDT July 20, 1969)

EVA duration: 2 hours, 31 minutes

Lunar Surface Traversed: ~250 meters

Moon Rocks Collected: 21.7 kilograms

LM Departed Moon: July 21, 1969
17:54:01 UT (1:54:01 p.m. EDT)

Returned to Earth: July 24, 1969
16:50:35 UT (12:50:35 p.m. EDT)
Time on Lunar Surface: 21 hours, 38 minutes, 21 seconds

Mission Duration: 195 hr. 18 min. 35 sec.

Retrieval site: Pacific Ocean 13° 19'N latitude and 169° 9'W longitude

Retrieval ship: U.S.S. Hornet

Special Payload:

Plaque (commemorates first manned landing)
Carried to Moon and returned two large American flags, flags of the 50 states, District of Columbia and U.S. Territories, flags of other nations and that of the United Nations.

MEPS (Modularized Equipment Stowage Assembly) containing TV camera to record first steps on Moon and EASEP (Early Apollo Science Equipment Package).


Highlights:

First men on the Moon, Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin. First return of samples from another planetary body.

The prime mission objective of Apollo 11 is stated simply: "Perform a manned lunar landing and return".

First return of samples from another planetary body. These first samples were basalts, dark-colored igneous rocks, and they were about 3.7 billion years old.

Plaque affixed to the leg of the lunar landing vehicle signed by President Nixon, Neil A. Armstrong, Michael Collins and Edwin E. Aldrin, Jr. The plaque bears a map of the Earth and this inscription:

HERE MEN FROM THE PLANET EARTH
FIRST SET FOOT UPON THE MOON
JULY 1969 A.D.
WE CAME IN PEACE FOR ALL MANKIND