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Christmas Eve, 1968. As one of the most turbulent, tragic years in American history drew to a close, millions around the world were watching and listening as the Apollo 8 astronauts - Frank Borman, Jim Lovell and Bill Anders - became the first humans to orbit another world.

The closing of the Christmas Eve broadcast from lunar orbit by the crew of Apollo 8. Bill Anders, Jim Lovell, and Frank Borman taking turns reading from the first chapter of the Book of Genesis.

While orbiting the Moon on Apollo 8, Christmas Eve, December 24, 1968, William Anders said, "We are now approaching lunar sunrise and for all the people back on Earth, the crew of Apollo 8 has a message that we would like to send to you. "In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth. And the earth was without form and void; and darkness was upon the face of the deep. And the Spirit of God moved upon the face of the waters. And God said, Let there be light and there was light. And God saw the light,...

On Christmas Eve in 1968, three astronauts aboard the historic Apollo 8 manned mission to the moon captivated the world by reading the opening verses of the Bible. The message was heard by an estimated 1 billion people on Earth. The Apollo 8 mission, which set forth into space on December 21, 1968, was critical in leading to an actual lunar landing just shy of seven months later. The three astronauts onboard – Air Force Col. Frank Borman, the mission commander; Navy Capt. James A. Lovell Jr., the command module pilot; and Air Force Major William A. Anders – were...

For Christmas Eve:Apollo 8's Christmas Eve Message

December 24, 1968: Apollo 8 Genesis Reading and Earthrise"We are now approaching lunar sunrise, and for all the people back on Earth, the crew of Apollo 8 has a message that we would like to send to you."Apollo 8 Christmas Eve Broadcast - Genesis Reading (1968)Apollo 8 Genesis readingEarthrise is a photograph of Earth and some of the Moon's surface that was taken from lunar orbit by astronaut William Anders on December 24, 1968, during the Apollo 8 mission.Earthrise

Jim Lovell should be in a large venue right now, hearing the thunderous applause of Americans thrilled to enjoy the company of the 92-year-old veteran astronaut on the 50th anniversary of the victory over tragedy that was Apollo 13. He should ideally be joined by his crewmate Fred Haise, 86, who was slated to walk on the moon with Lovell when they launched on April 11, 1970. Two-thirds of the way to the moon, their spacecraft exploded, throwing the crew, NASA and the nation into a drama not seen before or since. We have lost astronauts before. In a launch...

I never have posted an original thread or vanity, but I thought some might be interested in following the mission of Apollo 13 in real time. https://apolloinrealtime.org/13

On April 17, 1970, Apollo 13 returned to Earth after narrowly avoiding a deadly disaster in space. This was supposed to be the third mission to land on the moon. Astronauts Jim Lovell, Jack Swigert and Fred Haise launched on April 11 and were two days into their trip to the moon when an oxygen tank exploded, and NASA had to abort the mission. When the astronauts called mission control to report the incident, Swigert uttered the famous quote, "Houston, we've had a problem."

1918: 1st Aero Squadron pilots, equipped with the French Spad biplanes, perform the first American reconnaissance flight over enemy lines during World War I. 1945: At 3:15 p.m. a detachment of soldiers from the 9th Armored Infantry Battalion reach the front gates of Buchenwald concentration camp near Weimar, Germany. The emaciated prisoners give their American liberators a hero’s welcome. The Nazis incarcerated over a quarter million people in one of Germany’s first and largest camps, leading to some 56,000 deaths. The SS manages to evacuate many of Buchenwald’s prisoners before Patton’s Third Army can reach the site. The prisoners left...

While planning the lunar landings, Nasa had a decision to make: What route would they use to reach the Moon? It was one of many that needed to be made, but little did they know then, it would have an important effect of the survival of the ill-fated Apollo 13 crew. This Sunday, 17 April, marks the safe return of James Lovell, “Jack” Swigert and Fred Haise after almost 88 tense hours on board their critically wounded craft thanks to that stroke of luck. The drama started unfolding at almost 56 hours Ground Elapsed Time (GET), meaning it was the...

Apollo 14 Mission To Fra Mauro (1971) [documentary] Courtesy: NASA/JSC

Apollo 14 astronaut Edgar Mitchell, who became the sixth man on the moon when he and Alan Shepard helped NASA recover from Apollo 13's "successful failure" and later devoted his life to exploring the mind, physics and unexplained phenomena such as psychics and aliens, has died in Florida. He was 85. Mitchell died Thursday night at a West Palm Beach hospice after a short illness, his daughter, Kimberly Mitchell, said. Mitchell's passing coincides with the 45th anniversary of the Apollo 14 mission, which ran from Jan. 31 to Feb. 9, 1971. Mitchell, one of only 12 humans to set foot...

The Astronaut Wives Club, the summer series from ABC that depicted the race to the moon as a kind of “Desperate Housewives of NASA” ended its run Thursday with the episode dealing with the Apollo moon landing and the epic adventure of Apollo 13. What began with soap opera triteness ended in a dash of ugliness. The episode sought to remind the viewer that not everyone regarded the moon landings with awe and wonder. Some reacted to the greatest technological feat in the history of humankind with rage.

Bishop Hill points us to this video of the Tesla Supercharging station at the Harris Ranch exit of Interstate 5 in California. He writes: “How can one resist posting a video of Tesla electric cars being recharged (so it is claimed) using a diesel generator? These people love the environment you see.” The video shows a portable diesel generator next to the charging station and some Tesla automobiles. Watch this short video:

First, let me assure my friends that the rumors of my suicide have been greatly exaggerated. A brilliant young Machiavelli in Topeka told me that politics is more like poker than chess. We do not know what’s in the hands of the other players. We will never know what factors went into Sarah’s decision. Yes, it is heartbreaking for those of us who thought she articulated an effective platform, but we do not have time to waste postulating her reasons for not running for president. Hours after the accident aboard Apollo 13, heroes Swigert and Haise had a fear-induced momentary...

Heroes of the Apollo 13 Moon mission have called on the public to help to save America’s manned spaceflight programme as President Obama prepares to defend his plans to scrap it. At an appearance marking the 40th anniversary of the lunar expedition that turned into one of history’s greatest rescue stories, the retired astronauts Jim Lovell and Fred Haise urged people to lobby Congress to block the President’s proposal and throw Constellation a lifeline.

On April 14th, 1970, a new crater was carved into the surface of the Moon: How do we know it’s new? Because we made it. That’s the impact scar of the third stage of the Saturn V rocket (technically designated S-IVB) that carried Apollo 13 to — but sadly, not on — the Moon. Earlier missions had placed seismic instruments on the lunar surface to measure if the Moon had any activity. They found it did, and in fact several moonquakes were big enough that had you been standing there, you would have felt them quite strongly (and probably been...

The History Channel is showing the Tom Hanks movie, Apollo 13. How many of you know ANYTHING about the Apollo missions? How many men walked on the Moon? How many circled it? How many have gone twice? How many who have gone are still alive? When Teddy Kennedy can answer these questions (without a cheat sheet from an aid) I'll listen to him about education policy, particularly regarding "our position in science in the world."

Rona, the wife of astronaut Col. Ilan Ramon, told Israeli reporters in Houston on Sunday night that she didn't have any particular premonitions of disaster while waiting for her husbands return. But she recalls now that during the launch, when everyone was on a high because it was so successful, her daughter, Noa, 5, cried out, " 'I lost my daddy.' It turns out that she knew." Speaking after family members arrived from Israel to comfort her, she called on NASA to continue its space program. Wearing dark sunglasses and a blue blouse with a space shuttle logo, she said...