Space & Astronomy

NASA celebrates 50th anniversary of Apollo 10

By T.K. Randall
May 19, 2019 ·  1 comment

Apollo 10 was a complete success. Image Credit: NASA While it was Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin who ultimately took the first tentative steps on to the surface of our lunar neighbor, the crew of Apollo 10 had previously come tantalizingly close.

On May 18th 1969, Eugene Cernan, John Young and Thomas Stafford blasted off from the John F. Kennedy Space Center in Florida on what was essentially a 'dress rehearsal' for a lunar landing.

Their trip to the Moon was the same as Apollo 11's in almost every way aside from the fact that, instead of landing, the Apollo Lunar Module only flew to within around 9 miles of the Moon's surface before returning to the command and service module.Cernan jokingly claimed that NASA had even taken the precaution of under-fuelling the Lunar Module just in case he and Stafford got any ideas about attempting to land.

"A lot of people thought about the kind of people we were: 'Don't give those guys an opportunity to land, 'cause they might!'" said Stafford.

The Apollo 10 crew returned to Earth on May 26th and Apollo 11 launched a mere two months later.

"This is the greatest honor of my life," Stafford said upon receiving the Congressional Space Medal of Honor. "I am very proud to have contributed to our nation's future in space and I am deeply grateful for the opportunity to have participated in the beginning of America's venture into the new and endless frontier."


Source: Space.com | Comments (1)

Tags: Apollo 10, Moon