Physics 101 – Astronomy
Summer 2007
raNae
Assignment – Apollo 11 Moon Landing
Interview with My Family
In 1969 we were then / now:
Ray, my Father, age 33 / 71
Reah, my Mother, age 32 /
70
Randy, my Brother, age 9 /
47
Russ, my Brother, age 8 / 46
And of course myself, age 7 / 44
NOTE:
I have taken very little
artistic license on the information given here. With the exception of the “Popcorn”,
which may or may not have happened, but most likely did, the details are
accurate and true as my family remembers the Apollo 11 Moon Landing.
The
“Summer of Love” is over and the “Space Age” has begun. Gone are the dinosaurs,
race cars, and days of playing Cowboys and Indians. Now is the time of rocket
ships and men in space…
I
grew up in a small suburb just south of Salt
Lake City , Utah
My
dad, my mom, and the boy’s have been reading, watching, and listening to news
broadcast’s about man going to the moon and it seems that’s all people are talking
about.
It’s
Sunday, we’ve been to church and had our Sunday dinner. Mom has made sure we’ve
had our baths and that we were ready for bed when the time comes. But, whatever’s going on tonight is huge, because,
we get to stay up past our bedtime. Randy doesn’t even have to get special
permission or beg to do so, like he’s had to do for the last week. Something to
do with the rocket that was launched a couple of day’s ago. We all got to see a
REAL rocket going into outer space, not just a toy like the ones my brothers
shoot off in are front yard.
The
living room is dark and quiet except for the glow of the T.V. and the stifled sound
of men talking in the background. The front door is open along with the screen.
Russ is on the front porch, watching T.V. and eating ice, because it’s hot,
Utah Desert Hot. Mom and I are in the kitchen popping popcorn on the stove. Dad
and Randy are repositioning the television, much to Russ’s dismay, so we can
all see it.
My
parents gather us around a small, fairly new Black and White portable that is
now sitting in the middle of the living room floor. A big brown paper bag of
popcorn is sitting in front of us and we happily munch away as the Apollo 11
disappears to the dark side of the moon and contact is lost. My father holds his breath as the men in the
control room ham it up for the cameras and wait for radio transmission to be
made again with the astronauts. As the craft rounds the top of the moon my
father finally breaths when we hear “Huston?” “Good to hear from you again…” crackle’s over the
small speaker.
The
strange looking Lunar Module slowly un-docks and twists away from the Apollo. Gradually
it makes its descent to the moons surface, it seemed to take forever… the men
are talking about positions and coordinates. Our eyes are fixed and we hang on
every word. The spaceship lands and we all breathe a collective sigh of relief.
We
watch… We wait… “Huston, the eagle has landed…” My Mom is crying.
The
hour grows late, we grow tired, but still we wait. Then Neil Armstrong steps onto
the surface of the Moon… My mom continues to cry, my father looks as proud as
if it were he who just stepped foot on the moon, and my brothers cheer. Man has
just taken his first steps on unfamiliar, yet incredibly familiar ground, and nothing
will ever be the same…
There
has always been an intense involvement for my family in the NASA Space program.
We lived, ate, and breathed Space, we couldn’t get enough. Alan Shepherd was a
familiar name around our kitchen table as we would discuss the events that led us
to the moon and beyond, and it’s still the first name to come out of my father’s
mouth today when talking about the space program. Re-broadcasts of the launch, the moon walk,
and the amazing re-dock of the Lunar Lander with Apollo 11, and the splash down
played on the news and we watched it every time it came on. Neil Armstrong’s words
would echo in our ears for many years to come.
In
1970 my parents took us to the State Capital to see the exhibit that was on
display of the Apollo 11 Moon Mission (see attached pictures). On display was
the Apollo 11 Module, moon rocks, space suits and everything else space related.
Every kid in the greater Salt Lake
City
This
was not just a one night event for us but an ongoing fascination for all of us.
The impact of this single moment in time forever changed who we were as a small
family and that of a greater community.
Many
years later my father took my two younger brothers to Huston and toured NASA’s Mission Control Center
Randy
is an Electrical Engineer. He worked for years at Intel®
creating mobile technology that gets us
out of the house and man into outer
space.
Russ’s
fascination with space and flight still continues. I think he’s secretly
waiting for a flight simulator that will take him into outer space.
And
me, well, I’m just happy looking up at La Luna, wishing on stars and teaching
my daughter of all their wonders.
When
I asked the question “If given the opportunity and everything that you know
about the potential danger, would you go into space?” everyone, without
hesitation or thought of risk, had an unequivocal YES!
I
may have been too young to realize the significance of just how monumental
those first steps were but the memory of the event is very clear in my mind and
I realize just how huge an effect it has had on my own interests in space and
the science thereof.
“All of the Apollo missions were exciting and
of course very sad at the loss of many talented and smart people. The
risks of being a pioneer…” Ray, 27 June 2007
“It was the single most fascinating
event ever!” Russ, 29 June 2007
Side Note: My father worked for Kodak and was in charge of obtaining all
of the elements for the re-working of Challengers Stage One Atlas Rockets black
box.
(Web
link to the report on the black box)
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