On the 30th anniversary
of the first men landing on the moon, Aerospace Engineering highlights
the steps taken toward achieving this
remarkable milestone.
by Frank Bokulich, Associate Editor
There have been many extraordinary engineering achievements throughout history, but few, if any, compare to the first lunar landing. One of the things that has set this achievement apart from others was the fact that these technologies had to work correctly the first time because not only were the programs at stake, but also human lives were on the line. This was also complicated by the fact that much was not known about outer space and its effects on humans. Even with data gathered by unmanned spacecraft, many things still remained unknown. How would a weightless environment affect astronauts? Would the astronauts' bodies be capable of handling the stresses of takeoff and landing? Would they be able to survive outside the spacecraft with the space suits developed? These were just a few of the concerns that engineers had in developing the technologies for the race to the moon.
The human element proved critical to the design and manufacture of spacecraft. These vehicles not only had to have enough power and guidance to escape the planet's gravity and travel to the moon, but also they had to be reliable and capable of supporting human life, and returning safely to Earth. This added to the size, complexity, and robustness of these spacecraft.
Another critical element that had less to do with design and more to do with planning was the political pressure surrounding the space program. Unlike some of the military projects of this time, there was much public scrutiny of the space program. Many missions were televised, allowing millions of people to see both their successes and failures. Political pressure also mounted from the intense competition with the Soviet Union, which was also developing launch vehicles and spacecraft. "Recognizing the head start obtained by the Soviets with their large rocket engines, which gives them many months of lead time, and recognizing the likelihood that they will exploit this lead for some time to come in still more impressive successes, we nevertheless are required to make new efforts on our own," said President John F. Kennedy before a joint session of Congress in May 1961. "For a while we cannot guarantee that we shall one day be first, we can guarantee that any failure to make this effort will make us last. We take an additional risk by making it in full view of the world, but as shown by the feat of astronaut Alan Shepard (Freedom 7), this very risk enhances our stature when we are successful."
Each program was charged with developing and demonstrating different technologies that would place NASA one step closer to the moon. The Mercury program demonstrated the ability to reach space, maintain an orbit, and return to Earth safely. The Gemini program demonstrated rendezvous and docking with other spacecraft, extravehicular activity (EVA) or spacewalking, and sustaining astronauts for extended periods of time in space. Finally, Apollo demonstrated the capabilities of reaching the moon, orbiting it, landing on it, and returning to Earth safely.
