The Moonlandings
An Eyewitness Account

An eyewitness account of the Soviet-American race to land a man on the moon.

Reginald Turnill (Author), Buzz Aldrin (Foreword by)

9780521035354, Cambridge University Press

Paperback / softback, published 18 January 2007

480 pages, 50 b/w illus.
23.4 x 15.6 x 2.5 cm, 0.691 kg

' … any serious fan of lunar literature should buy this book for their collection. Turnill is … the last of a generation of space reporters who can truly say of the lunar landing effort (on the ground, at least) that 'I was there. I saw it happen.' What a fabulous job it must have been.' BBC Sky at Night

The Soviet-American race to land the first man on the moon was a technical challenge unlike any other in recent human history. Reginald Turnill, the BBC's Aerospace Correspondent, covered the entire story first-hand, and his reports were heard and seen by millions around the world. With unparalleled access to the politicians, scientists and technicians involved in the race to the moon, Turnill got to know all the early astronauts - Alan Shepard, John Glenn, Neil Armstrong, Buzz Aldrin - as they pioneered the techniques that made the moon landings possible. He became a friend of Dr Wernher von Braun, the German rocket pioneer and mastermind behind it all. This eyewitness account of one of the most thrilling adventures of the twentieth Century is written in a lucid style, packed with action and drama, and is a fascinating read for all those interested in the story of the race to the moon.

Foreword Buzz Aldrin
Growing up with space - sources and acknowledgments
1. The context: a twentieth-century Faust
2. Preparing for manned spaceflight
3. Gagarin puts Russia ahead
4. The Moon and how to get there
5. The seven story begins
6. Glenn gets there first
7. Sequels to the seven story
8. Space travel: learning the rules
9. Overtaking the Russians
10. Apollo's bad start
11. Lassoing the moon
12. What makes an astronaut?
13. Final rehearsals
14. The eagle soars
15. The eagle swoops
16. First steps - and where they led
17. The moonrocks - and Mars!
18. Second steps on the moon
19. The thirteen story
20. Last men on the moon
21. Apollo's inconclusive findings
22. Epilogues to Apollo
23. John Glenn's Apollo postscript
Bibliography
Appendices
Index.

Subject Areas: Popular astronomy & space [WNX], Astronomy, space & time [PG]