In addition to the websites and books mentioned here, readers may want to consult a list of , several of which are now available on the World Wide Web. See, also, NASA Histories On-line and NASA History Office Interesting Aerospace History Links.
NASA Space Flight Documents. Bob Andrepont has uploaded hundreds of NASA spaceflight documents to his Scribd webpage. Apollo - The Definitive Sourcebook by Richard Orloff and David Harland. Springer-Praxis.
Apollo 3D anaglyphs by Patrick Vantuyne.
Apollo Mission Sim for Orbiter - Mark Grant calls attention to the following family of simulator freeware: Orbiter is a freeware simulator for the Shuttle. Quotiing from the webpage, "The emphasis is firmly on realism, and the learning curve can be steep. Be prepared to invest some time and effort to brush up on your orbital mechanics background"; Project Apollo for Orbiter is an add-on which, Mark tells us, provides "about a 90% accurate simulation of the CSM, including running the original AGC software; AMSO, Mark says, "is simpler but currently has more features; e.g., the LEM is more functional, there are more autopilots, and you can collect rocks on the Moon." Mark contributes to the Project Apollo add-on.
Ed Hengeveld Gallery. Ed's online gallery offers photographic reproductions of many of his works.
Exploring the Moon by David Harland. Focuses on the geologic exploration undertaken by the six LM crews. Springer-Praxis.
First Men - by David Harland; tells the story of Apollo 11. Springer-Praxis.
Full Moon, Michael Light with an essay by Andrew Chaikin, Alfred Knopf, New York, 1999. This extraordinary coffee-table book contains 129 glorious images from the Apollo program digitized by the author from first generation negative masters and then exquisitely processed and printed. This collection tells the story of a composite Apollo mission from the moment of engine ignition at the Cape thru to splashdown. A traveling photo exhibit containing many of the images from the book is also highly recommended.
Honeysuckle Creek Tracking Station by Colin Mackellar. Colin's website provides a detailed retrospective of the role played by Honeysuckle during Apollo and other NASA programs. Major contributions from Honeysuckle veterans Mike Dinn, John Saxon, Hamish Lindsay, and others.
How Apollo Flew to the Moon by David Woods; presents a composite Apollo mission, focusing on operational and procedural aspects. Springer-Praxis.
Lunar Sourcebook: A User's Guide to the Moon, edited by Grant H. Heiken, David T. Vaniman, and Bevan M. French, Cambridge University Press, 1991, which is a collection of authoritative articles on the geology, geochemistry, and geophysics of the Moon. Available for free PDF download from the Lunar and Planetary Institute.
Man on the Moon, A by Andrew Chaikin. A richly detailed, lively, accurate account of the Apollo missions derived from extensive interviews conducted with the astronauts and others. Primary resource for the Tom Hanks/HBO Series From the Earth To The Moon. Viking, 1994. (Out-of-print, but available in the secondary market.)
Moonfire: The Epic Journey of Apollo 11 by Norman Mailer. A condensed version of Mailer's 1971 book, Of a Fire on the Moon, this large-format book is lavishly illustrated. Photo captions by Journal Editors Ken Glover, Eric Jones, and David Woods, with Taschen editor Nina Wiener. Moonpans by Mike Constantine. Mike's website offers excellent assemblies of panoramas taken by the Apollo crews.
My Little Space Museum by Karl Dodenhoff. Karl's website contains a great deal of marvelous material including equipment drawings and photos and info about space models.
NASA Mission Reports. Each volume in this set of books tells the story of a NASA mission using high-quality reproductions of various NASA documents. Many contain a bonus CD-ROM with photos, film segments, and video clips. From Robert Godwin and Apogee Books, which publishes an extensive catalog of space-related books.
On Eagle's Wings: The Story of Parkes Apollo 11 Support by John Sarkissian. John's website details the role played by the Parkes Radio Astronomy Observatory in reception of the Apollo 11 television signal from the Moon. See, also, the October 2000 Australian film "The Dish", which deals with the same material, albeit in a highly fictionalized form. The film takes considerable liberties in characterization, with events at Parkes, and completely ignores the central role of Honeysuckle Creek; but is both funny and moving. Highly recommended.
On the Moon: The Apollo Journals by Grant Heiken and Eric Jones. Includes eight, chapter-length extracts from the ALSJ and addition commentary. Springer-Praxis
Panoramas.dk Danish photographer Hans Nyberg has created VR panoramas of the Apollo missions and many other subjects.
Tracking Apollo to the Moon by Hamish Lindsay. An account of manned spaceflight in the 1960s and 70s that emphasizes the role of the NASA tracking stations in Australia. Springer-Verlag. (Out-of-print but avallable in the secondary market.)
Virtual Apollo / Virtual LM by Scott Sullivan. Lavishly presented Virtual CSM and LM views and cutaways with exquisite detail. Apogee Books
Virtual Lunar Roving Vehicle by Don McMillan, who has produced a Virtual LRV for each of the J missions. Check out the poster, too.
ALSEP Data - The National Space Science Data Center has begun digitizing data collected from the various ALSEP experiments deployed during Apollo.
Apollo 1 Accident - Apollo AS204, which in NASA's Apollo 1 Website incorporating the accident report and relevant selections from various NASA histories.
Apollo 11 PAO audio - Mike Smithwick has produced a digital version of the entire Apollo 11 PAO audio record
Apollo Guidance Computer Emulator - Ron Burkey has created an Apollo Guidance Computer (AGC) emulator. Ron writes: "Virtual AGC is a computer model of the AGC. It does not try to mimic the superficial behavioral characteristics of the AGC, but rather to model the AGC's inner workings. The result is a computer model of the AGC which is itself capable of executing the original Apollo software on (for example) a desktop PC. In computer terms, Virtual AGC is an emulator."
Apollo 14, A Space Opera by American composer DC Meckler. Excerpts of the opera were performed by the New York City Operat in their Showcasing American Composers series in 2002. With thanks to Journal Contributor William McEwen for the alert.
Apollo Guidance Computer: Build One For Yourself LInks to complete documentation by John Pultorak, who built one for USD 3,000, working 10 hours a week for 4 years.
Apollo Hoax - Dealing with Hoax Believers - For those in need of ready arguments to refute claims that the Apollo Landings never happened (the so-called Moon Hoax), the following sites are recommended: Moon Base Clavius; Jim Scotti's Apollo Page; Ian Goddard's Journal; Neil Atkinson's site; Phill Plait's Bad Astronomy/Apollo Hoax page; Matthias Lipinski's Apollo Projekt (in German); and Paolo Attivissimo's Luna? Sì, ci siamo andati! in Italian. All these sites have links to other sources of information.
Apollo Image Atlas - This LPI Atlas containing thumbnails and medium-resolution scans of all 70mm Hasselblad, Mapping Camera, Pan Camera, and Apollo Lunar Surface Closeup Camera imagery taken during the missions.
1/96 Apollo /Saturn V Paper Model Kit - This is a mammoth work in progress. When finished, "the kit will contain the crawler transporter, the mobile launch platform with LUT, the Saturn V launch vehicle and the Apollo space craft." The website includes some wonderful photos of the Crawler-Transporter, which is slowly making its way toward completion. Thanks to Sid Buxton for the tip.
Apollo Surface Panoramas - LPI presentation of panoramas assembled from the high-resolution scans of the original film by Warren Harold at NASA Johnson.
Arizona State University Space Exploration Resources - the lunar sectionof this extensive website includes a growing collection of digital scans from Lunar Orbiter, Clementine, and the Apollo Panoramic and Metric Camera, as well as a Digital Petrographic Slide Collection.
Bob Andrfepont's Spaceflight Document Collections - Bob Andrepont has uploaded hundreds of NASA spaceflight documents to his Scribd webpage. Boeing's Apollo 11 30th Anniversary Page - Phill Parker calls our attention to Boeing's webpage for the 30th anniversary of Apollo 11 and, in particular, a collection of Apollo memories written by Boeing employees.
Encyclopedia Astronautica - Extensive website created and maintained by Mark Wade.
Exploring the Moon (LPI) - This webpage from the Lunar and Planetary Institute contains a wealth of information not only on Apollo but on lunar programs before and since.
EMU (A7LB) Replica - David Sander is building a replica A7LB EMU (Extravehicular Mobility Unit). His website includes photos and links to related sites.
Geologic History of the Moon by Don Wilhelms. A high-quality PDF version of , USGS Professional Paper 1348 has been produced by Mark Robinson.
Landing Site Coordinates - Accurate co-ordinates for the six landing sites are available at the National Space Science Data Center website. I am told that Clementine data is being used to update our knowledge of the shape of the Moon and the co-ordinates of the landing sites will soon change again. Note, also, that the co-ordinates at the NSSDC site do not necessarily agree with those which were determined at in immediate post-mission analysis because of changes in the global lunar grid in the intervening years.
Landing Sites, Views of - Dan Durda has created a fascinating site with views of the Apollo landing sites from Earth and then with ever better precision down to the best pan camera frames.
Sy Liebergot Web Site - Liebergott served as EECOM on Apollo 13 and other missions. His website that complements his book, Apollo EECOM - Journey Of A Lifetime.
Lunar and Planetary Institute - LPI's website contains mission summaries, a superb collection of landing site images, and much more.
Lunar Map Catalog - This webpage is maintained by the Lunar and Planetary Institute and contains high-quality, high-resolution maps of the whole Moon and of areas of interest to the Apollo missions.
Lunar Module Spacecraft Assembly & Test - Ry Alford calls our attention to Frank Pullo's webpage, which contains photos and other useful information about the LM construction and testing.
Lunar Module 3D Simulator - Ron Monsen has created a 3D LM Simulator which, I'm told, is excellent and has been 'flown' by none other than Gene Cernan. Windows only, unfortunately. Check out the movie!
Lunar Orbiter Photographic Atlas of the Moon - The Atlas is now available in digital format. The Lunar Orbiter Photographic Atlas of the Moon by Bowker and Hughes (NASA SP-206) is considered the definitive reference manual to the global photographic coverage of the Moon. The images contained within the atlas are excellent for studying lunar morphology because they were obtained at low to moderate Sun angles. This digital archive consists of the complete set of 675 plates contained in Bowker and Hughes. Images in the archive have been enhanced to display the best photo quality possible. For accuracy and usability surface feature information has been improved and updated, and multiple search capabilities added to the database.
Lunar Sample Thin Sections - Kurt Hollocher at the Geology Department, Union College, Schenectady, NY, has produced a lovely collection of thin-section photographs of selected lunar sample for his petrology course. Click on the links in the right-hand column to get the pages for the individual samples.
Lunar Topographic Orthophotomaps - Among the items in the LPI digital collection is the set of Lunar Topographic Orthophotomaps done by the Defence Mapping Agency for NASA from data collected with the Mapping Camera flown on Apollos 15, 16, and 17. The contour intervals are 100 meters.
Lunar Sample Compendium - A collection of PDF documents being compiled by Chuck Meyer of Astromaterials Research & Exploration Science at NASA Johnson. Each PDF document deals is an individual lunar sample.
Manned Spacecraft Center (MSC) TV Support Team - Sam Russell was a member of the TV Support Team at NASA's Manned Spacecraft Center (Houston) during Apollo 15 and his website contains some lovely detail.
Mission Patches - Two excellent, non-commercial websites detail mission patches from space programs around the world: one from Eugene Dorr and the other from Jacques van Oene and Erik van der Hoorn Thanks to David Wood's for the tip.
NASA Astromaterial Curation - This NASA Johnson website contains a wealth of information about the lunar sample collection.
PDF documents on the Web - This linked list of space-related PDF documents is maintained by Bob Andrepont.
Saturn V Reference Page by John Duncan. The Saturn V Reference Page contains a great deal of useful information and photographs. With thanks to Gert-Jan Bartelds for the tip.
Space Exploration Resources - Arizona State University's website includes the results of a new (in mid 2007) JSC effort to produce high-resolution scans of all Apollo photograhy, especially images from the CSM Metric and Pan cameras; an extensive set of petrographic slides; and an online version of Don Wilhelms' Geologic History of the Moon.
Stereo Atlas of the Solar System - Lunar and Planetary Institute webpage that includes a number of Apollo stereopairs and other wonderful material. Ordering info for the CD-ROM version is available on the LPI website.
Technical Diagrams and Drawings from Mercury, Gemini, and Apollo - Located at a NASA HQ History Office website. Scanning was done by Journal Contributor Kipp Teague.
USGS Apollo Mission Lunar Exploration Media Gallery - This page contains a number of high-quality traverse maps, assembled panoramas, and anaglyphs (stereoimages).
USGS Apollo Panoramas - The USGS Astrogeology Branch has released a collection of Apollo panoramas.
USGS List of Named Lunar Features - Journal Contributor Ulrich Lotzmann calls attention to a USGS list of named features at the various landing sites. The list is incomplete because it contains only names approved by the International Astronomical Union. See the discussion following 122:04:08 in the Apollo 15 Journal. Among the missing are Arbeit, Buster, Cat, Dot, Luke, Mark, Matthew, MOCR, November, WC, etc.
USS Hornet Museum - Ulli Lotzmann calls our attention to this website, which provides fascinating details about the prime recovery vessel for both Apollo 11 and Apollo 12.
Watches worn on or near the Moon - Chuck Maddox has created a detailed site concerning watches worn on or near the moon.
Additional space resources can be accessed through the NASA Human Spaceflight webpage.
All We Did Was Fly to the Moon, Dick Lattimer, whispering Eagle Press, 1985, which contains interesting discussions of mission patches and call signs.
Angle of Attack: Harrison Storms And The Race To The Moon, Michael Gray, WW Norton & Co, 1992, which recounts the role of the North American manager who was a central character in the "Apollo 1" episode of Tom Hanks' 1998 series "From the Earth to the Moon"
Apollo EECOM: Journey of a Lifetime, Sy Liebergot with David Harland, which is the autobiography of a veteran NASA flight controller who played a key role in the successful return of the Apollo 13 crew to Earth. An enthralling, inspirational book, particularly the portions dealing with Liebergot's difficult childhood. A frank account of a life not wasted.
Apollo: The Race to the Moon, Charles Murray and Catherine Bly Cox, Simon and Schuster, 1989, which is a superb account of the missions told from the perspective of the flight controllers in Houston. A testament to the value of the book is the fact that it was recommended to me, with enthusiasm, by Gene Kranz, the Lead Flight Director for Apollo 11 and other missions.
Apollo Expeditions to the Moon, edited by Edgar M. Cortright, NASA SP-350, 1975, which is a collection of articles outlining the history of Apollo and written by senior managers of the Apollo program and by some of the Apollo astronauts. The on-line version was compiled by Hans-Peter Engel.
Apollo Spacecraft Chronology (NASA SP-4009), which is a detailed chronology covering the design and construction of the Apollo hardware. Volume I, edited by Ivan D. Ertel and Mary Louise Morse, was published in 1969 and covers up until November 7, 1962. Volume II, edited by Mary Louise Morse and Jean Kernahan Bays, was published in 1973 and covers the period November 8, 1962-September 30, 1964. Volume III, edited by Courtney G. Brooks and Ivan D. Ertel, also was published in 1973 and covers the period October 1, 1964-January 20, 1966. Volume IV, edited by Ivan D. Ertel and Roland W. Newkirk with Courtney G. Brooks, was published in 1978 and covers the period January 21, 1966-July 13, 1974. The on-line versions have been compiled by Journal Contributor David Woods. On October 22, 1997, David received a NASA Special Service Award for his efforts on this and other volumes in the NASA History Series. The accompanying photo of David and Anne Woods was taken by Steve Garber of the NASA HQ History Office at the Awards Ceremony. David is the one with the Award and Anne is the one with the smile.
Carrying the Fire, Michael Collins, Farrar Straus Giroux 1974, which is generally considered to be the best of the books by the Apollo astronauts. Literate, lively, and accurate.
Chariots for Apollo: A History of Manned Lunar SpacecraftNASA Sp-4205
Computers in Spaceflight: The NASA Experience, James E. Tomayko 1988, link
Deke!, Donald K. Slayton with Michael Cassutt, Tom Doherty Associates 1994, which is one of the better astronaut books. Saylton was a Mercury astronaut who, as Director of Flight Crew Operations throughout the Gemini and Apollo Programs, made the crew selections.
Enchanted Rendezvous: John C. Houbolt and the Genesis of the Lunar-Orbit Rendezvous Concept. This monograph tells the important story of Apollo policy making in the early 1960s over the method of reaching the Moon. It is available on-line.
A Field Guide to American Spacecraft, link
First on the Moon: A Voyage with Neil Armstrong, Michael Collins, Edwin E. Aldrin, Jr., Gene Farmer and Dora Jane Hamblin, Little, Brown, and Company 1970, which is a well-regarded book containing many details about preparations for the mission which are generally unavailable elsewhere.
Geology of the Apollo 16 Area, Central Lunar Highlands Ulrich, Hodges, Muehlberger, U.S. Geological Survey Professional Paper 1048, which is the most thorough post-flight summary of the geological results of the mission and includes station maps and laboratory photos of all the individual samples. Scanned by Mick Hyde. (Requires Adobe Acrobat Reader)
History of Manned Spaceflight, The, David Baker, New Cavendish Books, London, 1981, which Dave Scott (and Journal Contributor David Harland) recommends as an excellent, large format book covering all of the U.S. and Russian activity up to the end of the 1970s.
Interviews with the Apollo Lunar Surface Astronauts in Support of Planning for EVA System Design, NASA Technical Memorandum 108846, September 1994, M.M. Connors, D.B. Eppler, D.G. Morrow. This is a distillation of a series of interviews conducted in the early 1990s.
Journey to the Moon: the History of the Apollo Guidance Computer, Eldon C. Hall, American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics, Reston, 1996, which is a fascinating technical account of the development of what was at the time, a state-of-the-art on-board computer that made the lunar landings possible. The technical aspects of this book may challenge some readers, but it is well worth the effort.
Impact and Explosion Cratering: Planetary and Terrestrial Implications, D.J. Roddy, R.O. Pepin, and R.B. Merrill (eds), (Pergamon:NY) 1977, which is the proceedings of a conference held in Flagstaff the previous year. It contains a paper by V.R. Overbeck which can be used to estimate the size of the craters created by the LM impacts, namely, a 17-m diameter and a 4.3-m depth.
Lunar Constants and Models Document, Ralph B. Roncoli, JPL D-32296, 23 September 2005, ( 25 Mb ) which provides a single source for the constants and models to be used in trajectory and navigation design of missions whose objective is to orbit of land on the Moon. Focuses on the 2009-2012 time frame but can serves as a good introduction to the subject. Used with permission from the author.
Lost Moon, Jim Lovell and Jeffrey Kluger, Houghton Mifflin 1994, which is a well-written account of Lovell's astronaut career and, in particular, the Apollo 13 mission. It was from this book that the excellent Ron Howard/Tom Hanks film Apollo 13 was developed.
Lunar Rover Vehicle Operations Handbook, Boeing Company, LRV Systems Engineering Document LS006-002-2H, Apr. 19, 1971, which contains detailed drawings of the Lunar Rover, descriptions of the deployment procedures, and descriptions of the operating procedures. Some details differed on the three Rovers actually flown to the Moon, particularly with regard to equipment loading; the details in this reference refer to the Apollo 15 machine.
Moonport: A History of Apollo Launch Facilities and Operations, NASA SP-4204
Charles D. Benson and William Barnaby Faherty, NASA SP-4204, 1978, which is a detailed history of construction and operation of the Apollo facilities at Cape Canaveral. The on-line version has been compiled by AFJ Editor David Woods.
Moon Lander: How We Developed the Apollo Lunar Module, Thomas J. Kelly, Smithsonian Institution Press, 2001, which is an informative, honest discussion of the design, fabrication, testing, and flight of the LM. A page-turner for any Apollo devotee.
Moonwalker Charlie and Dotty Duke, Oliver Nelson, 1990, which is one of the better astronaut books and largely written by Charlie's wife Dotty.
On the Moon with Apollo 17: a Guidebook to Taurus-Littrow, Gene Simmons, NASA document EP-101, December 1972, which is a pre-flight introduction to the landing site and to the scientific activities that the crew planned to conduct. All three of Gene Simmons' Guidebooks - Apollos 15, 16, and 17 are available in digital form here in the Journal.
On the Shoulders of Titans: A History of Project Gemini, NASA SP-4203, Barton C. Hacker and James M. Grimwood. NASA's history of the Gemini program.
Taking Science to the Moon, Donald A. Beattie, The Johns Hopkins University Press, 2001, which is an interesting account of the struggle to get science done during Apollo, told from the perspective of a middle manager at NASA headquarters who dealt with both the scientific community and NASA staff. The book contains many interesting tidbits and, while the first half deals mostly with management/bureaucratic issues, it provides valuable insights into the problems of getting the most out of the limited opportunities available.
To A Rocky Moon: A Geologist's History of the Moon, Don E. Wilhelms, University of Arizona Press, 1993, which is a history of lunar exploration told from the perspective of a geologist who participated in the pre-Apollo telescopic and robotic lunar mapping efforts, in the Apollo site selection process, and in the astronauts' geology training. A well-written, fascinating book. Highly recommended. Now available as a free (but very large) download from the Lunar and Planetary Institute ( 200 Mb PDF.
Where No Man Has Gone Before: A History of Apollo Lunar Exploration Missions, NASA SP-4214, William David Compton. An excellent, book-length history of Apollo, with special emphasis on the interactions - and sometimes conflicts - between engineers and scientists over the planning and conduct of Apollo. The on-line version has been compiled by Journal Contributor David Woods.