Word: circumlunar
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Dates: during 1960-1969
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...that time, Apollo was a hazy project, with some sort of circumlunar flight scheduled for some time in the unforeseeable future. In October 1960, Low made the first official proposal that Apollo's aim should be to land Americans on the moon. As NASA's Washington-based chief of manned-space-flight programming, Low wrote: "It has become increasingly apparent that a preliminary program for manned lunar landings should be formulated. This is necessary to provide a proper justification for Apollo...
...Russians do indeed plan to steal the limelight from Apollo 8, their best opportunity for launching a manned circumlunar shot will occur during a brief period beginning around the first week in December. At that time, a spacecraft could be launched in daylight, streak around the moon, and return for a landing in Russia or the Indian Ocean during daylight hours, when it is easier to locate and reach the downed craft. The mission almost certainly will follow closely the trail of Zond-5 and Zond-6, the first craft to circle the moon and return safely to earth...
...miles from the earth and then descend into a low earth orbit for several days-or it could re-enter the atmosphere after traveling as far as 69,000 miles into space. Or, just as the Russians will probably do, the spacecraft could simply make a circumlunar flight, loop around behind the moon, and return directly to earth...
...third capsule might be launched to join the first two. But the Russians may also be assembling the pieces of a composite spaceship, bound for the moon. U.S. space experts studied that technique years ago and abandoned it as too expensive. The Soviets' last space shot, a circumlunar mission powered by a giant booster, suggested that they too had made the same decision. Now, no one can be sure. U.S. spacemen could only watch, wait and worry about where they stand in the lunar sweepstakes...
NASA has yet to decide whether or not it will fly a manned circumlunar orbit before attempting to land a man on the moon. Some NASA officials believe that such a preparatory flight would improve the chances for a trouble-free descent to the lunar surface. Others oppose it. Once an Apollo is in orbit around the moon with all its equipment functioning, runs the argument, why not go for broke...