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Apollo 14: Mission to Fra Mauro

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Apollo 13: Houston, We've Got a Problem

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Published: July 12, 2018

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In December of 1968, the crew of Apollo 8 became the first people to leave our home planet and travel to another body in space.

Video commemorating the 45th anniversary of Apollo 8

Earthrise: The 45th Anniversary

The Apollo 13 spacecraft heads toward a splashdown in the South Pacific Ocean.

Parachute silhouetted against clouds

Apollo XIII Spacecraft - Splashdown - South Pacific Ocean

Astronaut Alan B. Shepard Jr., prime crew commander of the Apollo 14 mission, uses a trenching tool during a simulation of a traverse on the lunar surface.

Astronaut digs during traverse simulation

Apollo XIV – Geology Training – Hawaii

NASA's LADEE mission came to an end as the spacecraft executed a planned de-orbit into the surface of the Moon at nearly three thousand, six hundred miles per hour.

Video about the end of the LADEE mission

NASA Completes LADEE Mission with Planned Impact on Moon's Surface (Reporter Package)

Since the 1960s, scientists have suspected that frozen water could survive in cold, dark craters at the moon's poles.

Video about water on the moon

Water on the Moon

The phase and libration of the Moon for 2018, at hourly intervals. Includes supplemental graphics that display the Moon's orbit, subsolar and sub-Earth points, and the Moon's distance from ...

video of moon phases

Moon Phase and Libration, 2018

Apollo 8 Astronaut James Lovell, Command Module (CM) pilot of the first manned Saturn V space flight into Lunar orbit, accepted a phone call from the U.S. President Lyndon B. Johnson prior to launc...

Man smiling and holding phone up to ear

Saturn Apollo Program

This photograph was taken from the Apollo 8 spacecraft with long-focal length lens, looking south at the large crater Goclenius, which is in foreground.

Craters on the moon

View of Goclenius and Other Craters

The Moon orbits the Earth in the months prior to the August 21, 2017 total solar eclipse.

In this animation, the olive-colored square represents the ecliptic plane, while the light blue circle shows the plane of the Moon's orbit.

2017 Eclipse and the Moon's Orbit

Searchlights penetrate the darkness surrounding Apollo 8 on Pad 39-A at Kennedy Space Center.

Searchlights illuminate the Apollo 8 spacecraft at night

Saturn Apollo Program

Astronaut Alan L. Bean, lunar module pilot for the Apollo 12 mission, starts down the ladder of the Lunar Module (LM) to join astronaut Charles Conrad Jr., mission commander, in extravehicular acti...

Astronaut climbing down ladder from lunar module on the moon

Apollo 12 Mission Image – Dark View of Astronaut Alan L. Bean Climbing Down the Ladder of the Lunar Module (LM)

In the early morning hours of April 15, 2014, the Moon enters the Earth’s shadow, creating a total lunar eclipse.

Lunar Eclipse of April 15, 2014, as viewed from the Moon

Lunar Eclipse of April 15, 2014

This animation shows the last three orbits of the Gravity Recovery and Interior Laboratory (GRAIL) mission, with views of the impact site.

Animation of GRAIL's last three orbits.

GRAIL Impacts the Moon

The Apollo 14 Command Module (CM) splashes down and two of its three main parachutes can be seen collapsing, as the 10-day mission comes to a safe and successful end.

Apollo 14 command module lands in the ocean

Apollo 14 Command Module Approaches Touchdown in South Pacific Ocean

This video explains how our moon creates a solar eclipse.

Video on how our moon creates a solar eclipse.

The Moon's Role in a Solar Eclipse

Silent video of the Apollo 8 Saturn V rocket launching into orbit

Silent video of Apollo 8 launch

Apollo 8 Airborne Tracking

Apollo 14 Mission Commander, Alan B. Shepard, Jr., waves to well-wishers as he and astronauts Stuart A. Roosa, Command Module pilot; and Edgar D. Mitchell, Lunar Module pilot, walk to the transfer ...

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Saturn Apollo Program

Astronaut Alfred M. Worden, command module pilot of the Apollo 15 lunar landing mission, floats in space outside the spacecraft during his trans-Earth extravehicular activity (EVA).

Astronaut floating in space outside spacecraft

Astronaut Alfred Worden Floats in Space Outside Spacecraft During EVA

The Apollo 9 (Spacecraft 104/Lunar Module 3/ Saturn 504) space vehicle is launched from Pad A, Launch Complex 39, Kennedy Space Center (KSC) at 11 a.m. (EST), March 3, 1969.

Launch of Apollo 9 space vehicle

Launch – Apollo 9 – Cape

Framed by palm trees in the foreground, the Apollo 9 (Spacecraft 104/Lunar Module 3/ Saturn 504) space vehicle is launched from Pad A, Launch Complex 39, Kennedy Space Center (KSC) at 11 a.m. (EST)...

Launch of Apollo 9, framed by palm trees

Launch – Apollo 9 – Cape

Apollo 8 astronauts and commanding officer of the recovery ship U.S.S. Yorktown walk the red carpet of the flight deck after splashdown recovery in the Pacific Ocean.

Group of men walking with American flag flying behind them

Saturn Apollo Program

The Apollo 7/Saturn IB space vehicle is launched from the Kennedy Space Center's Launch Complex 34 at 11:03 a.m. (EDT), Oct. 11, 1968.

Launch of Apollo 7 space vehicle

Apollo VII – Crew – Launch – KSC

A view of the Apollo 9 Lunar Module (LM), "Spider", in a lunar landing configuration, as photographed from the Command and Service Modules (CSM) on the fifth day of the Apollo 9 Earth-orb...

Apollo 9 Lunar Module in space with Earth in the background

Apollo 9 Lunar Module in Lunar Landing Configuration

The Apollo 10 astronauts Thomas P. Stafford (center), John W. Young (left) and Eugene A. Cernan (waving) are greeted by Donald E. Stullken (lower left) of the Manned Space Center's (MSC) recove...

3 astronauts standing outside helicopter

Recovery - Apollo 10

Rima Prinz is a channel carved by an immense lava flow.

a valley on the Moon

Rima Prinz and Vera

The Apollo 13 (Spacecraft 109/Lunar Module 7/Saturn 508) space vehicle is launched from Pad A, Launch Complex 39, Kennedy Space Center (KSC), at 2:13 p.m. (EST), April 11, 1970.

Launch of Apollo 13

Food Lab - Technician - MSC

This movie shows the variations in the lunar gravity field as measured by NASA's Gravity Recovery and Interior Laboratory (GRAIL) during the primary mapping mission from March to May 2012.

Video showing variations in the lunar gravity field

GRAIL's Gravity Tour of the Moon

The Apollo 7 Saturn IB launched from the Kennedy Space Center's Launch Complex 34 at 11:03 a.m. October 11, 1968.

Apollo 7 spacecraft launching with large antenna in foreground

Apollo 7 Launches on October 11, 1968

Astronaut David R. Scott, commander, standing on the slope of Hadley Delta, uses a 70mm camera during Apollo 15 extravehicular activity (EVA) on the lunar surface.

Astronaut photographing the lunar surface

Astronaut David Scott on Slope of Hadley Delta During Apollo 15 EVA

A close-up view of two components of the Apollo lunar surface experiments package (ALSEP) which the Apollo 14 astronauts deployed on the moon during their first extravehicular activity (EVA).

Lunar surface experiments package deployed on moon

Apollo 14 Mission Image - View of the ALSEP Station

On July 16, 1969, the huge, 363-feet tall Saturn V rocket launches on the Apollo 11 mission from Pad A, Launch Complex 39, Kennedy Space Center, at 9:32 a.m. EDT.

Video of Apollo 11 launch

Apollo 11 Launch

An excellent view of the unmanned Surveyor 3 spacecraft which was photographed during the Apollo 12 second extravehicular activity (EVA) on the surface of the moon.

Surveyor 3 on the moon

View of Surveyor III in Its Crater

The Apollo 17 spacecraft, containing astronauts Eugene A. Cernan, Ronald E. Evans, and Harrison H. Schmitt, glided to a safe splashdown at 2:25 p.m. EST on Dec. 19, 1972, 648 kilometers (350 nautic...

Apollo 17 module and parachutes landing over ocean

Apollo 17 Splashdown

A bird's-eye view of Apollo 6 and its gantry leaving the Vehicle Assembly Building on the transporter heading to the launch site on Pad 39-A at Kennedy Space Center.

View from above of Apollo 6 on its transporter

Saturn Apollo Program

During the Apollo 15 launch activities in the launch control center's firing room 1 at Kennedy Space Center, Dr. Wernher von Braun, NASA's Deputy Associate Administrator for planning, takes...

Man looking through binoculars

Wernher von Braun

The phase and libration of the Moon for 2017, at hourly intervals.

Animation showing phases on the moon in 2017.

Moon Phases 2017

Apollo 16 was the fifth moon landing of Project Apollo, and the 10th manned mission in the Apollo program. It was the second mission to utilize a Lunar Rover (Lunar Roving Vehicle, LRV) during luna...

Documentary on Apollo 16

Apollo 16: "Nothing So Hidden"

Apollo 6 (AS-502) Pacific Recovery

Apollo 6 module floating in ocean

Apollo 6 (AS-502) Pacific Recovery

View of Astronaut David R.Scott ,Apollo 9 Command Module pilot, inside the Command Module "Gumdrop" during the Apollo 9 earth-orbital mission.

Astronaut in main cabin of Apollo 9 Command Module

Apollo 9 Mission Image - Scott in CM Cabin

Ranger 9 was the last of the Ranger series of spacecraft launched in the 1960s to explore the moon and was designed to image and impact the moon's crater Alphonsus. Includes imagery from the on...

Video from Ranger 9 as it impacted the moon

Ranger 9 Impacts Moon

This photograph is a view of a display, control console, and hand controller for the Lunar Roving Vehicle (LRV) No. 2.

Display, control console, and hand controller for the Lunar Roving Vehicle

Saturn Apollo Program

At the end of the last Apollo 15 moon walk, Commander David Scott (pictured above) performed a live demonstration for the television cameras.

Video of astronaut on moon demonstrating hammer and feather falling at same rate

The Apollo 15 Hammer-Feather Drop

Astronaut Walter Cunningham, Apollo 7 lunar module pilot, is photographed during the Apollo 7 mission.

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Apollo 7 Mission, Lunar Module Pilot, R. Walter Cunningham

Pictured from left to right, the Apollo 9 astronauts, James A. McDivitt, David R. Scott, and Russell L. Schweickart, pause in front of the Apollo/Saturn V space vehicle that would launch the Apollo...

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Astronaut Edwin E. Aldrin Jr., lunar module pilot, prepares to deploy the Early Apollo Scientific Experiments Package (EASEP) during the Apollo 11 lunar surface extravehicular activity (EVA).

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View Apollo 11 Lunar Module As It Rested on Lunar Surface

Mrs. Mary Haise receives an explanation of the revised flight plan of the Apollo 13 mission from astronaut Gerald P. Carr in the viewing room of the Mission Control Center (MCC), Building 30, at th...

Man and woman in mission control viewing center

Mrs. Haise in Viewing Room Overlooking FCR

A close-up view of a portion of a "relatively fresh" crater, looking southeast, as photographed during the third Apollo 15 lunar surface extravehicular activity (EVA), on Aug. 2, 1971, at...

View from surface of lunar crater

View of Portion of “Relatively Fresh” Crater As Photographed by Apollo 15

This time lapse video taken during ISS Expedition 42 is assembled from JSC still photo collection.

Video from the ISS of the moon setting over the Earth's horizon

ISS Expedition 42 Time Lapse Video of Earth

To celebrate its 5th Anniversary, the Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter mission decided to hold a contest to pick a cover image for "The Moon As Art" collection.

Video of Moon art contest entries

The Moon As Art

By combining years of LEND data, scientists see mounting evidence of hydrogen-rich areas near the Moon’s south pole, strongly suggesting the presence of frozen water.

Video suggesting the presence of water on the Moon

Water on the Moon

Three days prior to its planned impact on a lunar mountain, mission controllers activated the camera aboard one of NASA's GRAIL twins to take some final photos from lunar orbit.

Video showing final photos from the GRAIL mission

Parting Moon Shots from NASA's GRAIL Mission

Dunned in his space suit, mission commander Neil A. Armstrong does a final check of his communications system before before the boarding of the Apollo 11 mission.

Neil A. Armstrong in his spacesuit

Saturn Apollo Program

The expended Saturn IVB stage as photographed from the Apollo 7 spacecraft during transposition and docking maneuvers.

Saturn 7B stage in orbit with Earth in background

Apollo 7/S-IVB Rendezvous in Space

Astronauts James A. Lovell Jr. (left) commander, and Fred W. Haise Jr., lunar module pilot, carry out a simulation of a lunar traverse at Kilauea, Hawaii, site.

Two men performing simulation of lunar traverse

Astronauts Lovell and Haise During Simulation of Lunar Traverse at Hawaii

A scanning electron microscope photograph of iron crystals which grow in a small vug or cavity in a recrystallized breccia (fragmented rock) from the Apollo 15 Hadley-Apennino lunar landing site.

Magnified view of iron crystals

Scanning Electron Microscope View of Iron Crystal

Man's second journey to the Moon is for science. The first EVA includes setting up Apollo Lunar Surface Experiments Package (ALSEP) for the return of scientific data. The second EVA includes a ...

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Apollo 12: Pinpoint for Science

Flight controllers in the Mission Operations Control Room (MOCR) of the Mission Control Center (MCC) view a colorful display which signals the successful splashdown and recovery of the crew of the ...

Mission control display monitors show "Welcome Home" message

Flight Controllers in Mission Control Center During Splashdown of Apollo 14

High Oblique photograph (taken over New Mexico) of the Apollo 9 Command/Service Modules taken from the Lunar Module,"Spider",on the fifth day of the Apollo 9 earth-orbital mission.

Apollo 9 command module in space with Earth in background

Apollo 9 Mission Image - Command Module

Dunned in his space suit, Lunar Module pilot Edwin E. Aldrin, Jr. does a final check of his communications system before the boarding of the Apollo 11 mission.

Astronaut Edwin E. Aldrin, Jr. in his space suit

Saturn Apollo Program

A close-up view of the plaque which the Apollo 14 astronauts will leave behind on the moon during their lunar landing mission.

Apollo 14 plaque signed by three astronauts

Plaque the Apollo 14 Crew Will Leave on the Moon

Searchlights illuminate this nighttime scene at Pad A, Launch Complex 39, Kennedy Space Center, Florida, showing the Apollo 17 (Spacecraft 114/Lunar Module 12/Saturn 512) space vehicle during prela...

Spacecraft on launchpad with full moon in background

Prelaunch – Apollo 17 (Rollout)

A front view of the Apollo 14 Lunar Module (LM), which reflects a circular flare caused by the brilliant sun, as seen by the two moon-exploring crew men of the Apollo 14 lunar landing mission durin...

Lunar module on the moon

View of Apollo 14 Lunar Module on the Moon

Katherine Johnson and other "Human Computers" played an integral role in the early days of America's space program.

Video about Katherine Johnson, one of NASA's "human computers"

Hidden Figures and Katherine Johnson

What does the other side of the Moon look like, the side that can't be seen from the Earth? This video answers that question.

Video explaining the other side of the Moon

The Moon From the Other Side

Earth appears in the far distant background above the hi-gain antenna of the Lunar Roving Vehicle in this photograph taken by scientist-astronaut Harrison H. Schmitt during the third Apollo 17 extr...

Astronaut on moon holding antenna with Earth in the background

View of Earth Above the Antenna of the Lunar Roving Vehicle During EVA

Gerald D. Griffin, foreground, stands near his console in the Mission Operations Control Room (MOCR) during Apollo 15's third extravehicular activity (EVA) on the lunar surface.

Apollo 15 flight director standing in Mission Control Center

View of Activity in Mission Control Center During Apollo 15 EVA

The ascent stage of the Apollo 10 Lunar Module (LM) is photographed from the Command Module prior to docking in lunar orbit.

Lunar module in orbit

Ascent Stage of Apollo 10 Lunar Module Seen From Command Module

Astronaut James A. Lovell Jr., commander of the Apollo 13 lunar landing mission, pauses for a quick photo while training for the Apollo 13 mission.

Portrait of astronaut James A. Lovell, Jr.

Portrait - Astronaut James A. Lovell Jr.

Replicas of Snoopy and Charlie Brown, the two characters from Charles Schulz's syndicated comic strip, "Peanuts," decorate the top of a console in the Mission Operations Control Room ...

Replicas of Snoopy and Charlie Brown on mission control console

Replicas of Snoopy and Charlie Brown Decorate Top of Console in MCC

Footage of the recovery of the Apollo 8 crew

Video of Apollo 8 crew recovery

Apollo 8 Recovery

The five F-1 engines of the huge Apollo/Saturn V space vehicle's first (S-IC) stage leave a gigantic trail of flame in the sky above the Kennedy Space Center seconds after liftoff.

Flame trailing from Apollo 6 spacecraft

F-1 Engines of Apollo/Saturn V First Stage Leave Trail of Flame After Liftoff

The second human lunar landing mission, Apollo 12, launched from launch pad 39-A at Kennedy Space Center in Florida on November 14, 1969 via a Saturn Five launch vehicle.

Astronaut collecting rock samples on the moon

This view from the Apollo 11 spacecraft shows the Earth rising above the moon's horizon.

Earth above the Moon's horizon

Apollo 11 Mission Image - View of Moon Limb, with Earth on the Horizon

The Moon from NASA's Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter

rotating moon globe

The Moon from LRO

A recording of the Apollo 8 astronauts reading from the book of Genesis.

A video of the Genesis reading during the Apollo 8 mission

Apollo 8 Genesis Reading

Overall view of the Mission Operations Control Room in the Mission Control Center, Building 30, on the first day of the Apollo 10 lunar orbit mission.

View of mission control center

Overall View of Mission Operations Control in Mission Control Center

Converting stereo images from the Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter into 3D maps of the Moon's surface.

video showing process of creating terrain maps on the moon

How To: Digital Terrain Models of the Moon

This view of Earth was photographed by the Apollo 15 crewmen as they sped toward the fourth lunar landing.

Image of Earth from Apollo 15

View of Earth Photographed by Apollo 15 on Voyage to the Moon

Includes the early problem of docking the Command and Lunar Modules, landing on the Moon, experiments package, climb up Cone Crater, onboard experiments, scenes in the NASA JSC's Lunar Receivin...

Documentary on Apollo 14

Apollo 14: Mission to Fra Mauro

A view of the Apollo 15 Command and Service Modules (CSM) in lunar orbit as photographed from the Lunar Module (LM) just after rendezvous.

Apollo 15 in lunar orbit

View of the Apollo 15 Command/Service Module in Lunar Orbit

Astronaut John Young, who walked on the Moon during Apollo 16 and commanded the first space shuttle mission, has passed away at the age of 87.

Memorial video about astronaut John Young

NASA Remembers Astronaut John Young, Moonwalker and First Shuttle Commander

Apollo 10 westward view across Apollo Landing Site 3 in the Central Bay.

Apollo 10 View Across Apollo Landing Site 3 in the Central Bay

This NASA video details the first journey of men around the moon.

Documentary about Apollo 8

The Flight of Apollo 8

Carrying astronauts Neil A. Armstrong and Edwin E. Aldrin, Jr., the Lunar Module (LM) “Eagle” was the first crewed vehicle to land on the Moon.

Astronaut on the moon

Saturn Apollo Program

The huge, 363-feet tall Apollo 17 (Spacecraft 114/Lunar Module 12/Saturn 512) space vehicle is launched from Pad A., Launch Complex 39, Kennedy Space Center (KSC), Florida, at 12:33 a.m. (EST), Dec...

Apollo 17 launch illuminates nighttime scene

Apollo 17 Launch

A simple visualization of Moon orbiting Earth in a view from the north ecliptic pole.

A simple visualization of Moon orbiting Earth in a view from the north ecliptic pole.

These three astronauts are the prime crew of the Apollo 10 lunar orbit mission.

3 astronauts standing in front of rocket

Portrait - Apollo 10 - MSC

Astronaut David R. Scott, commander, is seated in the Lunar Roving Vehicle (LRV) during the first Apollo 15 lunar surface extravehicular activity (EVA) at the Hadley-Apennine landing site.

Astronaut driving rover on the moon

Apollo 15 Mission Image - View of the Apollo Lunar Surface Experiments Package (ALSEP)

Video of the moon taken by the NASA GRAIL mission's MoonKam camera aboard the Ebb spacecraft on Dec. 14, 2012

video of lunar surface

Parting Moon Shots from NASA's GRAIL Mission

Astronaut John Young, who walked on the Moon during Apollo 16 and commanded the first space shuttle mission, has passed away at the age of 87.

Video tribute of Apollo 16 astronaut John Young

Remembering NASA Astronaut John Young, 1930-2018

After its soft landing, Surveyor 6 was the first spacecraft to be launched from the surface of the moon.

Video about the Surveyor 6 lunar landing

Surveyor 6 Lands on Moon

In October 2017, The Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter celebrated 100 lunar days of being at the Moon. That's about eight Earth years.

Two videos explaining Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter's exploration of Earth's Moon.

100 Lunar Days - Parts I and II

Astronaut Russell L. Schweickart, lunar module pilot, stands in "golden slippers" on the Lunar Module porch during his extravehicular activity on the fourth day of the Apollo 9 Earth-orbi...

Astronaut in space

Astronaut Russell Schweickart Photographed During EVA

Much of the western United States began the morning with the view of a super blue blood moon total eclipse.

Video and images of lunar eclipse.

Super Blue Blood Moon over NASA-JPL (Time Lapse)

This is the first footage of one orbiting robotic spacecraft taken by another orbiting robotic spacecraft at Earth's moon.

Video taken from a spacecraft orbiting the moon of another spacecraft orbiting the moon

Spacecraft Observes Another Spacecraft at the Moon

United States President Richard M. Nixon was in the central Pacific recovery area to welcome the Apollo 11 astronauts aboard the USS Hornet, prime recovery ship for the historic Apollo 11 lunar lan...

Richard Nixon greeting the three Apollo 11 astronauts

President Nixon - Welcome - Apollo XI Astronauts - USS Hornet

This photograph of the eclipse of the sun was taken with a 16mm motion picture camera from the Apollo 12 spacecraft during its trans-Earth journey home from the moon.

Sun eclipsed by the Earth

Eclipse - Apollo 12

The huge, 363-feet tall Apollo 14 (Spacecraft 110/Lunar Module 8/Saturn 509) space vehicle is launched from Pad A, Launch Complex 39, Kennedy Space Center (KSC), Florida at 4:03:02 p.m. (EST), Jan....

Apollo 14 liftoff

Launch - Apollo XIV - Lunar Landing Mission - KSC

A documentary view of the Apollo 17 journey to Taurus-Littrow, the final lunar landing mission in the Apollo Program.

Documentary on Apollo 17

Apollo 17: On The Shoulders of Giants

The Apollo 8 Crew included (L to R) James Lovell, Command Module (CM) pilot; William Anders, Lunar Module (LM) Pilot; and Frank Borman, Commander.

Crew of Apollo 8 mission

Saturn Apollo Program

Mark your calendars: a series of three supermoons will appear on the celestial stage on Dec. 3, 2017, Jan. 1, 2018, and Jan. 31, 2018.

three full moons

A Supermoon Trilogy

Astronaut Eugene A. Cernan (left), lunar module pilot of the Apollo 10 lunar orbit mission, confers with astronaut Edwin E. Aldrin Jr. during an Apollo 10 postflight de-briefing session. Aldrin is ...

2 men looking at a sheet of paper

Apollo X - Crew Training

The Apollo 14 crew men show off some of the largest of the lunar rocks which they brought back from the moon during a through-the-glass meeting with news men in the Crew Reception Area of the Lunar...

Group of men examining moon rocks

Apollo 14 Crewmen Show Off Lunar Rocks During Meeting With Newsmen

In the fall of 2011, the Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter (LRO) mission released its original Tour of the Moon, a five-minute animation that takes the viewer on a virtual tour of our nearest neighbor i...

video tour of moon

Tour of the Moon 4K

Astronaut Alan B. Shepard Jr., commander of the Apollo 14 lunar landing mission, stands near a Lunar Landing Training Vehicle (LLTV) prior to a test flight at Ellington Air Force Base, Houston, on ...

Astronaut standing next to training vehicle

Astronaut Alan Shepard Near Lunar Landing Training Vehicle Prior to Test

Astronaut Richard F. Gordon Jr., Apollo 12 command module pilot, suits up in the Kennedy Space Center's Manned Spacecraft Operations Building during the Apollo 12 prelaunch countdown.

Astronaut putting on his helmet

Astronaut Richard F. Gordon Suits Up During Apollo 12 Prelaunch Countdown

NASA successfully launched Apollo 6 (AS-502) from KSC's Complex 39A at 7:00 am (EST) on a mission to qualify the Saturn V launch vehicle for manned space flights.

Apollo 6 spacecraft launch

Launch of Saturn V AS-502

This montage depicts the flight crew patches for the manned Apollo 7 thru Apollo 17 missions.

Montage of Apollo mission badges

Saturn Apollo Program

A member of the Apollo 10 crew is hoisted up to a helicopter from the prime recovery ship, USS Princeton. Splashdown occurred at 11:53 a.m., May 26, 1969, about 400 miles east of American Samoa.

Helicopter lifting astronaut from recovery capsule over Pacific ocean

Navy Helicopter - Recovery - Apollo X Astronauts - Pacific

Researchers hope "LADEE" will solve a mystery that has been puzzling them since the days of Apollo.

Video about the LADEE mission

NASA Mission Seeks Lunar Air

The Apollo 12 Lunar Module (LM), in a lunar landing configuration, is photographed in lunar orbit from the Command and Service Modules (CSM).

The Apollo 12 Lunar Module in lunar orbit

Apollo 12 Lunar Module, in Landing Configuration, Photographed in Lunar Orbit

These three astronauts are the prime crew of the Apollo 15 lunar landing mission.

Portrait of three astronauts

Apollo 15 Prime Crew Portrait

The Apollo 9 spacecraft, with astronauts James A. McDivitt, David R. Scott, and Russell L. Schweickart aboard, approaches touchdown in the Atlantic recovery area to conclude a successful 10-day Ear...

Apollo 9 spacecraft approaching splashdown with parachutes deployed

Photo - Apollo/Saturn (A/S)-11 - 500 Ft. Above Water - Chutes Deployed

A close-up view of a footpad and surface sampler with scoop (arm, out of frame) on the Surveyor 3 spacecraft which was photographed by the Apollo 12 astronauts during their second extravehicular ac...

Close-up of the footpad of Surveyor 3 on lunar surface

Apollo 12 Mission Image – View of the Surveyor III Craft, Which Landed April 19, 1967

This animation features actual satellite images of the far side of the moon, illuminated by the sun.

This animation features actual satellite images of the far side of the moon, illuminated by the sun.

Moon Crossing From a Million Miles Away

Connecting the history of Apollo 17 to NASA's current Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter mission through the eyes of astronaut Harrison Jack Schmitt.

Astronaut Schmitt and photo of him working on Moon

Jack Schmitt: From Apollo 17 to LRO

Astronauts: James A. McDivitt, David R. Scott, and Russell L. Schweickart Stresses the testing of the Lunar Module, the spacecraft that will land men on the Moon. Featured are sequences of launch, ...

Documentary about Apollo 9

Apollo 9 - Three To Make Ready (1969)

This is a close-up view of an astronaut’s foot and footprint in the lunar soil, photographed by a 70 mm lunar surface camera during the Apollo 11 lunar surface extravehicular activity (EVA).

Astronaut's foot and footprint on lunar soil

Saturn Apollo Program

The LRO camera team has discovered more than two-dozen new impact craters – including an 18-meter-wide crater caused by a bright flash on March 17, 2013.

Video explaining the discovery of more than two-dozen new impact craters on the Moon.

New Craters on the Moon

Astronaut John W. Young, Apollo 10 command module pilot, adjusts strap on his communications cap during suiting up operations for the lunar orbit mission.

Astronaut adjusting strap on cap

Astronaut John Young During Final Suiting Operations for Apollo 10 Mission

Deep in the craters of the Moon's south pole lurk permanently shadowed regions: areas that have not seen sunlight in over two billion years.

Video on the Moon's permanently shadowed regions

The Moon's Permanently Shadowed Regions

The expended Saturn S-IVB stage as photographed from the Apollo 7 spacecraft during transposition and docking maneuvers at an approximate altitude of 125 nautical miles, at ground elapsed time of t...

Saturn S-7B stage in space with Earth in background

Apollo 7/S-IVB Rendezvous in Space

The scenes in the video are so dramatic that you may find yourself reaching out to pick up a rock and becoming restless to walk among the lunar peaks.

Video about the lunar surface and its exploration

From the Earth to the Moon

In the early hours of April 15, 2014, our pale moon will turn blood orange red. This spectacle will mark the first of four consecutive total lunar eclipses, a series known as a tetrad.

Video of our pale moon turning blood orange red

Red Moon Rising

AS-502 climbs to orbit, as seen from chase-plane.

Apollo 6 spacecraft climbing to orbit

AS-502 Climbs to Orbit

The Command and Service Module (CSM) for Apollo 11 move from 134 work stand and final mate to service-module-to-launch-module adapter (SLA).

Apollo 11 Command and Service Module

Not everyone gets to become a part of history, but mathematician Billie Robertson is one of the lucky ones.

Woman sitting at desk holding telephone and pencil

Running a Real-Time Simulation of Go-No-Go for Apollo 17

NASA's Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter Camera (LROC) acquired a high resolution image of the Apollo 11 landing site.

video showing Apollo 11 site from orbit and the ground

LRO Explores the Apollo 11 Landing Site

Records the accomplishment of the basic mission of Apollo 10 - to uncover and solve the few remaining problems before lunar landing.

Documentary about Apollo 10

Apollo 10: To Sort Out the Unknowns

Set to Claude Debussy's Clair de Lune, this visualization uses Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter data to show the stark beauty of evolving light and shadow near sunrise and sunset on the r...

Close views of the Moon set to classical music.

Featured are the standup EVA, the three traverses of the lunar surface, film taken from the Lunar Rover, hammer and feather test of Galileo's theory on falling objects in gravity fields, Worden...

Documentary on Apollo 15

Apollo 15: In the Mountains of the Moon

Astronaut Edwin E. Aldrin Jr., lunar module pilot, is photographed during the Apollo 11 extravehicular activity (EVA) on the lunar surface.

Astronaut and lunar module on surface of moon

Apollo 11 Mission Image – Astronaut Edwin Aldrin

The 363-feet tall Apollo (Spacecraft 112/Lunar Module 10/Saturn 510) space vehicle which leaves the Vehicle Assembly Building (VAB) to Pad A, Launch Complex 39, Kennedy Space Center (KSC).

View of Apollo 15 space vehicle

View of Apollo 15 Space Vehicle Leaving VAB to Pad A, Launch Complex 39

Apollo 7 lifts off from Cape Kennedy Launch Complex 34 at 11:03 A.M., EDT.

Liftoff of Apollo 7

Apollo 7 Launch

Astronaut Alan B. Shepard Jr., commander of the Apollo 14 lunar landing mission, stands by the deployed United States flag on the lunar surface during the early moments of the first extravehicular ...

Astronaut holding American flag on the moon

Astronaut Alan Shepard During Apollo 14 EVA on the Moon

The historic first landing of men on the Moon in July, 1969.

Documentary on Apollo 11

First Men on the Moon: Apollo 11: The Eagle Has Landed

Dunned in his space suit, Command Module (CM) pilot Michael Collins does a final check of his communications system before the boarding of the Apollo 11 mission.

Command Module pilot Michael Collins in his space suit

Saturn Apollo Program

Astronaut David R. Scott, commander, gives a military salute while standing beside the deployed United States flag during the Apollo 15 lunar surface extravehicular activity (EVA) at the Hadley-Ape...

Astronaut giving salute beside American flag on the moon

Astronaut David Scott Gives Salute Beside U.S. Flag During EVA

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