As I watched the Artemis II mission come to a conclusion with the splashdown Friday night, which I almost missed, I found myself thinking back to the 8-year old boy who watched the Apollo missions. So much has changed in the 56 years that have passed, yet there was also a familiar feeling.
Yes, I almost missed the splashdown Friday. I had had a busy day babysitting for my 9-month old grandson and I sat down to veg out and watch some TV shows. That’s when my wife texted me from work to say, “You watching the splashdown?” To which I replied, “Thanks for reminding me. I forgot!”
When I was younger I was really into the Apollo space missions. I had a model of the ship. The Saturn V rocket, the different stages that all came apart. There was a Lunar Module that got tucked away and then the command module. I also had a Gemini capsule and a Mercury capsule. Or maybe that belonged to my brother? I do know I played with them with the threat of, “You better not break anything!”
I remember watching Neal Armstrong walk on the moon on the black-and-white TV.
Then there was the Lunar Rover and Alan Shepard hitting a golf ball on the moon.
And, YES, I do believe we went to the moon! I admit, some of those conspiracy theorists raise some interesting points but I read two things this week that really confirm my belief.
First, approximately 400,000 people worked on the Apollo project over the years. Do you actually think that all 400,000 of them have been able to keep a secret for over 50 years?
Plus, we were in a space race with the Soviet Union. We beat them to the moon. Do you actually think if we had faked it the Kremlin wouldn’t be out to disgrace us?
Anyway….
The timing of our visit to the NASA Space Museum in Houston could not have been any better. We were there the day before the launch and there was definitely excitement in the air.
It was also cool to watch my 6-year-old grandson, Liam, discover the space missions that I had loved as a child.
He just seemed to be in awe. And honestly, so was Grampy.
Of course there was a display about the Artemis mission and I found myself wondering what adventures Liam will witness over the next 50 years.
As I watched Intrepid fall back to earth Friday, so much of the process was pretty much the same compared to what I watched with Apollo. The heat shields and the communication blackout period. The anxiety as you wait to hear from the astronauts again after that six minutes. Then the parachutes, the splashdown and the rescue by the Navy. I found it ironic that many things had not changed. They still haul them up into a helicopter and then transfer them to the ship.
During those moments with no communication I did find myself a little concerned. Reflecting on that I think it’s because I witnessed the Challenger explosion on live television forty years ago. The little boy who watched the space flights in the ‘60s and ‘70s has grown into a man who knows that things can, and sometimes do, go wrong.
Back when I was younger I only thought of the possibilities. To borrow a phrase from Dr. Seuss, “Oh the places you will go!” Not to sound jaded, but now I know more about the dangers, dealing with the unknown and political and budgetary restraints.
I do have to admit that this mission was a lot easier to follow. Back in the day you had to sit around the one television you had at your house and tune in to either ABC, NBC or CBS. I watched the Artemis launch on my phone while riding back to my hotel in Houston. No, I wasn’t driving.
Side note: We watched a video at NASA that was hosted by Tom Hanks. It was all about the moon missions and featured actual clips of newscasts from the 60s and 70s. Of course there was Walter Cronkite on CBS and Frank Reynolds and science editor Jules Bergman on ABC.
Wow! I watched those guys almost every night.
Of course there is debate about how the money spent on NASA is desperately needed in other areas. I also know we had the same debate in the 1970s. I do believe in the space program and the many scientific discoveries that have come from the program. As long as they find the funding, let’s keep going.
Hearing the future plans for the Artemis program are exciting. Are we really going to build a base on the moon? Artemis III will hopefully land on the moon in late 2027 followed by missions aimed at constructing the moon base.
The 8-year old Pete has just one thing to say about that, “Cool!” Or maybe it would have been, “Far out!”
I hope my grandchildren feel the same excitement!
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