Word: apollo
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Dates: during 1960-1969
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...minutes and 50 seconds away from time of loss of signal," Commentator John McLeaish reported, as Apollo began to curve around the back side of the moon, where its radio communication with earth would be blocked. "Here in mission control we're standing by with certainly a great deal of anxiety at this moment...
Then, after a terse "Roger" from Borman, all was silent. Apollo would be behind the moon and out of contact for 45 minutes. Until it emerged, no one on earth would know if the SPS engine had fired on schedule (25 minutes after LOS) or fired long enough to place the craft in orbit. Too short a burn, the controllers knew, could send Apollo smashing into the moon. But there was another problem that caused concern on the ground. Apollo's third-stage S-4B rocket, jettisoned shortly after it pushed the spacecraft out of earth orbit and toward...
Finally, from Houston came the message that everyone had awaited: "We've acquired a signal but no voice contact yet. We are looking at engine data and it looks good. Tank pressures look good. We got it! We've got it! Apollo 8 is in lunar orbit...
...Good to hear your voice," said Astronaut Lovell, breaking the long silence after Apollo had emerged from behind the moon. Wild cheering filled the control room. Says Flight Director Glynn Lunney: "It certainly wasn't a faint reaction. There was quite a bit of racket. I'm sure it can be described as one of the happiest Christmas Eves just about anyone there had seen...
Navigational data that the astronauts gathered will help NASA scientists plot Apollo's orbit more precisely than they could by tracking it from earth. Once the rises and dips in Apollo's orbital path have been identified, the scientists will be able to map their cause: variations in the lunar gravitational field believed to be caused by concentrations of massive material beneath some craters and seas. With better knowledge of the gravitational field, NASA will be able to plan more accurately the paths of future landing missions, on which errors of only a few feet could be dangerous...