It’s already 2020 so, 51 years ago, Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin landed the Lunar Module “Eagle” on the surface of the moon. Shortly after, with “one small step for man”, Neil Armstrong made a “giant leap for mankind” by being the first human being to set foot on the moon. While Michael Collins orbited above the lunar surface in the Command Module.

Exciting stuff. I was just eight years old, and my parents made sure I got to see it on live television! Of course growing up during those years we saw almost every space launch and recovery from Mercury 1 to Apollo 11 And beyond, and it was all amazing.

As an adult, I am a complete sucker for any book, movie, or pretty much anything else that deals with the 1960’s space program in a factual way.

Which brings me to the most recent book I have read. Moon Shot, By Alan Shepard and Deke Slayton – two of the original Mercury Astronauts.

This is a pretty amazing and thorough book from 1994 that was evidently made into a mini series (that I somehow missed) on PBS. What makes this different from most books on the subject is that it follows the space program from the very beginning to the first moon landing, and through to the Apollo-Soyuz joint mission that pretty much ended the Apollo program and was Deke Slayton’s one and only space flight after being grounded due to an intermittent heart condition during the Mercury program.

All in all, a very well written and interesting read, if you are inclined toward such material, and a perfect time to read it.

 

– stay safe, see the world through your own eyes, and thanks for reading.