How America Won The Space Race Against The Soviets [4K] | Battle For The Moon (Part 2) | Spark

[Music] there's a way to make an entrance my destiny it was now a conspiracy of witches download veli today [Music] there's a feeling that's inside of me feeling like a melody just like a flame [Music] there's a reason in the things i do feeling like it's very true not like a game feel the gift you know that i received [Applause] [Music] [Applause] [Music] in 1962 president kennedy promises that an american will walk on the moon before the end of the decade after he's assassinated in dallas in november 1963 lyndon johnson becomes president no american or russian spacecraft has been sent into space for 14 months the competition is being played out in the research centers on april 8 1964 nasa launches the gemini program it's an essential step towards the apollo program which will put two men on the moon and before the soviets do [Music] in total there are about 30 of those conquerors of space to the seven pioneers of the mercury program have been added nine then fourteen candidates for the conquest of the moon dick slayton their boss puts gus grissom in charge of looking after them all as the gemini program rolls out gone are the days when nasa blamed grissom for losing his capsule in the ocean four years earlier [Music] grissom takes the initiative of redesigning the vessel's controls so the astronauts can take full control they'll be pilots not just passengers gemini's mission is to manage to tether two ships to each other then to get a man out walking in space as the prelude to a successful moon landing the departure of gemini 3 with a crew of two is announced for march 23 1965 from cape canaveral now renamed cape kennedy then with just five days to go the soviets put alexi leonov into orbit the russians surprised with another first in the person of alexey leonov who they say became the first man to walk around in space ever faster ever higher 200 kilometers of altitude at 28 000 kilometers an hour a man floats for the first time in space [Music] it's just a 10-minute expedition but the soviets show they're always ahead of the americans sorry taunt the moscow newspapers but it's the moon we're aiming for [Music] on march the 23rd as planned nasa launches gemini 3 into orbit grison's obliged to take over because alan shepard the space pioneer has been ruled out for health reasons [Music] after his mercury flight of 1959 grissom's the first astronaut to perform a second mission [Music] 45 million viewers watched the liftoff of the titan ii rocket carrying grissom and john young the second astronaut aboard the gemini capsule for five hours the two astronauts stuck there on the same seats test the capsule changing trajectory sometimes higher sometimes lower essential advances for the continuation of the space program [Music] grissom is now forgiven and enjoys the trust of his bosses he's in a good position to be a part of the crew that will one day go to the moon [Music] president johnson ever the politician intends to make the most of the mission's success he tells grissom and young the country is proud and very grateful to you [Music] [Applause] at nasa headquarters the engineers have decided to speed up their program stung by the soviet successes the americans planned the launch of one of their own into space in june 1965. [Music] the two astronauts chosen for the gemini 4 mission james mcdivitt and ed white studied together at the university of michigan [Music] this launch is urgent so they're given accelerated training to go out into space ed white wears a jumpsuit padded with 21 different layers of materials it'll be 120 degrees in the sun and minus 100 in the shade another of their tasks will be to test different food on board for longer trips 1965 gemini 4 has been in orbit for four days at the time the longest flight undertaken by nasa [Music] trajectory [Music] at cape kennedy patricia and pat the astronaut's wives are admitted to the control room and here comes mrs pat mcgivern the wife of investment off-demand pilot would you like to find out how you're feeling fine and uh what are you going to do here today what what's your reason for coming here check on what jim's doing i don't i haven't made it yet yep jim huh do you hear me rock here i can hear you boy you're doing great yeah going up here how are you i'm fine how are you fine fine they think you're at the cake after three orbits of the earth between hawaii and mexico white slips out of the ship secured only by an eight meter long call out [Music] [Music] he performs pirouettes with his oxygen [Music] i could see the outline of cities the roads the wakes of boats on [Music] and when grissom from the control room gives him the order to get back into the ship white is prey to the intoxication of space and it feels like the saddest moment of his life the flight director says get back in [Music] coming in [Music] wyden mcdevitt's mission is an important step towards the conquest of the moon lyndon johnson is satisfied in ed white he sees his hero his christopher columbus as john clan had been kennedy's for what you've done and particularly for your safe return you've both written your names in history and in our hearts at cape kennedy the engineer phone brown is working simultaneously on the upcoming apollo program he's designing the saturn v rocket 111 meters high and 2 900 tons on ignition to launch the apollo capsules into orbit the three million six hundred and fifty thousand liters of fuel the equivalent of a hundred rail tanker wagons feeds 95 engines all of america's aeronautics industry is mobilized the first story is built by boeing the second by north american rockwell the third by mcdonnell douglas ibm the mission brain designs the computers in just a few months the duration of flights has been prolonged and to distract the astronauts nasa establishes a musical program one which brushes aside classical music which makes occupants neurotic and favors fashionable pop and they'll need it for the next gemini mission which will last 14 days two capsules gemini six and seven will fly in the same orbit [Music] [Music] after two unsuccessful attempts to launch the two gemini capsules approach each other 40 meters apart [Music] then just 30 centimeters so close that the four astronauts can wave to one another from porthole to portal lowell shearer stafford and bormann [Music] gemini 6 returns to earth while lowell and borman continue their journey for two long weeks during which they will be monitored to see how their organisms adapt to an unusual environment [Music] on the eve of her husband's return susan borman buys the family christmas tree this long night of prayer preceding frank's return she calls the death watch wives are under orders not to express their anxieties because there's a high chance their husband will be chosen to be the first man on the moon were you able to talk with your husbands today no oh no there are no plans for that did you send them any messages oh they got word true that we were there did you have anything to say to them [Music] the return of gemini 7 is smooth but the flight was trying the astronauts were unable to stretch their limbs frank bormann the toughest of the crew returns very weakened [Music] in private the head of nasa is wary of the silence of the soviets he admits to president johnson if our adversaries win the battle for the moon the political price to pay will be considerable [Music] this is the man who will in july 69 be the first to set foot on the moon neil armstrong [Music] he doesn't know it yet does he even dream of it at the age of 35 neil has been one of the nine in the gemini program since 1962. he's a civilian and will go on his first space flight with david scott [Music] it's thanks to his cool-headed self-control that the two men come back safe and sound and that nasa will choose him aboard gemini 8 armstrong and scott had the task of docking two vessels [Music] the first name the agena takes off without passengers 90 minutes later it's the turn of gemini 8. 76 miles [Music] armstrong and scott meet up with the agenda five hours later okay eight uh we have a solid you're looking good on the ground go ahead [Music] the two astronauts succeed in linking the two capsules suddenly though the three tons of gemini 8 start a frenzied rotation shaking in all directions if you run into trouble just send in command 400 to turn above and take control of the spacecraft did you uh cover that as a seasoned test pilot armstrong keeps his cool and detaches the two vessels in vain the spinning persists [Music] it isn't the second satellite that's vibrating it's their own capsule both men are on the verge of losing consciousness to avoid panic houston cuts a full communication with janet and barbara their wives [Music] armstrong starts up the return engines and the infernal dance stops [Music] they're safe and sound lost in the night they descend over the congo before splash landing 35 minutes later 800 kilometers from japan [Music] [Applause] [Music] the missions of 1966 reveal serious problems when astronauts go out into space one struggled to get back into the capsule the other fainted in panic the malfunctions are mounting up and the outright abandoning of the moon program is envisaged there will be one last flight to dispel the engineers fears gemini 12 for his mission buzz aldrin trains in a swimming pool to prepare for his walk in space with talent and intelligence he corrects and improves the techniques of his predecessor he carries out three sorties one of them more than two hours long during which he cables unscrews installs he shows such mastery that the process is relaunched on board his gemini 12 capsule aldrin takes the first selfie in space [Music] then he completes the docking of the two vessels [Music] with the success of this flight he in turn places himself in a good position to head to the moon [Music] in 1967 lyndon johnson's america sees the vietnam war compete with violent racial revolts 18 months away from elections johnson the president in difficulty is hoping for a success in the field of space to ensure his re-election [Music] for studies show a growing number of americans prefer the struggle against pollution and poverty to the conquest of the moon we need that money for other things instead of going on the moon what's the purpose so i think there's a purpose right here right here how many launches have you seen oh close to 10 i think you get kind of tired of them after a while they do get boring [Music] the president is getting impatient the white house puts pressure on nasa [Music] selected for the first flight of the apollo program ed white the first american to be launched into space roger bruce shaffy one of the nine newcomers and gus grissom the old-timer on his third mission unlucky but likable gus grissom doesn't tell a soul but he has already been designated to be one of the first three men to set foot on the moon apollo 1 is nasa's most expensive launch ever the accumulated delays and many failures worry gus grissom [Music] electrical problems are affecting the smooth running of the tests he doubts the reliability of the capsule the manufacturer hasn't respected the specifications but for the excited journalists grissom just smiles it's 6 31 p.m when grissom white and shaffy walk towards their destiny grissoms worried should he blow the whistle on this program but he has agreed to undergo a simulation under the conditions of a real flight [Music] betty his wife has said to him gus promise me not to go up unless you feel everything is good and right [Applause] [Music] [Applause] [Music] [Applause] [Music] they die burned alive in seconds the pure oxygen has caught fire due to a short circuit at nasa headquarters in houston their colleagues and friends go to pieces america's first three apollo astronauts were trapped and killed by a flash fire that swept their moonship early tonight during a launch pad test at cape kennedy in florida virgil gus grissom 40 years old edward white 36 years old and rookie astronaut roger chaffee 31 years old it's shiro's wife who announces the news to betty grissom who remains dignified as for mata shafi she whispers i'd understood but i needed to hear it as for white's wife she bursts into tears [Music] as the widow of the oldest astronaut betty grissom insists on a national funeral at arlington cemetery [Music] and it's she who leads the cortege [Music] [Music] half an hour apart in the presence of president johnson gus grissom and walter shaffy are buried side by side [Music] all right [Music] the mercury astronauts flank the coffin shepherd present glenn present carpenter present slate present [Music] on walter shearer's arm betty looks at them and says they know the gus was the best of all of them [Music] she stressed in navy blue because gus hated black he also asked her to have a party if he were to disappear which was a good thing she had no desire to don the veil of the grieving widow [Applause] [Music] [Music] patricia white's widow attended the burials of gus and chaffee but she wanted ed to be buried at west point the military school where she and he had met the ceremonies held in the presence of the nearest and dearest armstrong macdivit aldrin bormann and his wife [Music] patricia white keeps repeating who am i now who am i the capsule had caught fire due to a short circuit the investigation established that the electrical installation had been sloppy and that the pure oxygen in the capsule was madness and would take more than a minute to evacuate nasa is indicted for conflict of interest between some directors and industrialists of the aeronautical industry but the culprit can be sought as far as the white house the next five apollo missions will take place without astronauts on board [Music] engineers check everything engine failures short circuits failures that defy reason and the apollo program can resume its course on april the 24th 1967 the soviet cosmonaut komarov crashes on a soyuz capsule flight as for the first hero of the space adventure yuri gagarin he in turn dies in the course of a training flight since the disappearance of khrushchev and the death of their strategist koroliev the conquest of the moon seems to be eluding the soviets [Music] on october the 11th 1968 more than a year and a half after the tragedy of apollo 1 walter shira goes into orbit for 11 difficult days it's the first manned flight since the catastrophe apollo 7 must validate the latest transformations and enchant america after a painful 1968 which saw the death of martin luther king and bobby kennedy a month later america elects its new president richard nixon [Music] in the nevada desert astronauts learned to use a camera in space [Music] the apollo 8 flight is looming but things are tense the cia declares the soviets are about to launch a giant rocket to the moon as a precaution nasa doesn't take a christmas break and the launch is scheduled for december the 21st 1968 with frank borman as commander accompanied by william anders and james lovell aboard a fond brown rocket the biggest ever imagined saturn v their mission to get to the dark side of the moon photograph it and come back [Music] an astronaut's wife is used to concealing her fear but since the death of grissom susan borman's started drinking the apollo 8 mission panics her nasa has given them a 50 chance of coming back alive she's convinced frank won't be coming back she's already written her funeral oration but frank promises susan he'll leave nasa at the end of the mission [Music] i'd love nothing better than to make a beautiful profound statement for you that would be earth shaking for everyone but i'm i'm just speechless i this hasn't sunk in yet to me and um yes i can muster a big smile [Music] on sunday morning susan goes to confession then she goes to bed she buries her head in the pillow the radio communications turned down low give us clues to what it looks like from way up there i can see the entire is now out of the center when he opens the shutter frank bormann sees the earth in its entirety the whole northern half of central america effect all the way down through argentina and down through uh chile they picked a good day for it the vessel makes three orbits around the earth and then heads to the moon [Music] [Music] it's december the 24th christmas eve on between the earth and the earth pretty small down here now houston michael i keep imagining this only travel from another planet when i think about the earth from this altitude whether i think it'd be inhabited or not the moon is so close that it blocks the view of the three astronauts the capsule moves into lunar orbit 365 000 kilometers from home the best way to describe this area is the vastness of black and white only for a bidding type existence or expanse of nothing and to make you realize just what you have back there on earth the earth from here is a grand awareness of the big fastness of space a human is about to discover the hidden face of the moon [Music] [Applause] from this moment communication stops apollo 8 disappears from the radar an endless silence of 247 seconds [Music] [Applause] the moon or santa what she wants is frank back safe and sound does god call the dry land while on earth millions of humans are celebrating the occupants of apollo 8 marvel christmas eve dinner is frugal crackers and soda as decided by bowman [Music] the lunar surface appears to them dark and dusty holed by meteorites their mission is to locate a site for the moon landing of the future mission apollo 11. it'll be the sea of tranquility the first earthrise seen from the moon is dazzling we came to discover the moon but we actually discovered the earth exclaims anders anders feverish takes a first photo then borman a second this time in color the impact of the mission is considerable half a billion viewers around the world [Applause] this is boring the flight's over i'm taking each happy moment as it comes and this is my happiest i assure you there really is a santa claus and my husband said it and it sounded marvelous as for frank borman he keeps his promise to susie and retires and becomes special advisor for space affairs to nixon [Music] [Applause] with the death of grissom and the withdrawal of borman neil armstrong becomes the first astronaut who will tread lunar soil coming from deep in america's heartland this deserving student was a military pilot in korea no one knows that this silent uncharismatic man is mourning his two-year-old daughter armstrong will never be the idol of crowds he's a civilian among the military which pleases president nixon who doesn't want the moon landing to be seen as an act of war [Music] but more than anything armstrong has the skills and the cool-headed composure needed time period when most people will be wondering well what does it look like out there or what do you see my wife and children bows aldrin and michael collins complete the crew [Music] collins will stay aboard the columbia vessel and aldrin will accompany armstrong to the moon in a four-legged beetle-shaped module the lunar excursion module grumman the manufacturer of this machine covered with knobs buttons and flashing lights has already tested it for many years in its laboratory it's a machine as light as a sheet of cigarette paper on these simulations depends the happy outcome of the mission [Music] armstrong and older and tirelessly repeat the gestures that will allow them to face any eventuality down there in the hangar these reconstructed images of the moon in a realistic setting are close to what will be discovered three years later the launch of apollo 11 is scheduled for july the 16th 1969 in the event of a disaster the protocol has considered all the possibilities nixon would address the nation televisions would stop broadcasting images and communication between astronauts and their families would be interrupted only a priest would keep in touch with them [Music] [Music] at dawn on july the 16th 1969 a year and a half before the date set by kennedy the saturn v rocket thrusts into the sky at its apex the capsule columbia and the lunar module for moon landing eagle the emotion is palpable around the world 5 000 guests and 3 500 journalists all invited to the event plans are laid down to leave in the lunar dust two medallions in memory of russian cosmonauts yuri gagarin and vladimir kumarov as well as a plaque dedicated to the apollo one day in their travel bags the three carry a thousand items belonging to their families and friends type ins cufflinks crosses a mother's bracelet and flags and aldrin has tucked away a little wine in a chalice and bread for communion that he wishes to celebrate werner von braun the father of space travel is seeing his life's dream come true ignition sequence at 9 30 a.m saturn 5 takes off [Music] people living and they're always complaining [Music] is is [Music] [Applause] [Music] [Music] 11 minutes after liftoff the capsule has completed an orbit and a half of the earth then it's detached from the third stage of the saturn v rocket accompanied by the music of dwarjak chosen by armstrong as soothing [Music] 76 hours later colombia's 380 000 kilometers from the earth orbiting the moon on july the 20th 1969 when they wake up the three swallow a cup of coffee and nibble some tepid bacon [Music] armstrong and aldrin attach themselves to the metal walls of the module at 1 11 pm collins alone in columbia watches them begin the descent [Music] take care guys see you later armstrong response [Music] you're looking great [Music] two hours later at a thousand eight hundred meters above the lunar surface eagle's computer sounds an alert it's nothing we're continuing they're told we'll go play okay we'll go we're go at 30 meters from the ground they fly over a vast crater surrounded by loose stones the computer has let them miss the landing zone by more than six kilometers the alarm goes off several times neil armstrong reacts and takes control aldrin says a prayer eagle only has enough fuel for one more [Music] his experience as a test pilot is decisive 30 seconds fuel left picking up some dust fake shadow forward drifting to the right level 30 seconds forward contact light okay engine stop [Applause] uh [Applause] [Music] [Applause] [Applause] the epic journey of apollo 11 today a landing on the moon they have to wait several hours before opening the door aldrin takes out his chalice and celebrates communion there are long seconds of waiting at the bottom of the ladder before armstrong sets down his foot neil will say that he recited a prayer to honor a promise made to his grandmother it's i only go in a small fraction of an inch maybe an eighth of an inch but i can see the footprints of my uh boots and the treads and the fine sanding particles armstrong films aldrin's descent the two astronauts are on lunar soil beautiful view did that happen [Music] a magnificent desolation [Music] uh for a final orientation we'd like it to come left about five degrees over okay that looks good there neil columbia columbia aldrin plants the american flag under the layer of dust the ground is hard the flag floats thanks to the metal rod that holds it up protocol requires that it be saluted roger the eva is progressing beautifully they're setting up the flag now at the same time the caretaker of the arlington cemetery claims to have discovered a fresh bouquet of flowers accompanied by a note upon which is written they succeeded president kennedy uh shortly afterwards richard nixon alongside frank borman his space adviser contacts that would be an honor go ahead mr president this is houston out hello neil the president reminds the world that we must redouble our efforts for peace on earth this is houston bag on shoulder they collect 22 kilograms of lunar pebbles to commencing your eva termination activities over in the distance the earth appears to them immense and colorful [Music] [Music] here is the only photograph of armstrong on the moon there in the reflection in aldrin's helmet [Music] on july the 21st after only four hours on the lunar surface armstrong and aldrin return to the module they spend an icy night hunkered down on the floor during their sleep a few hundred miles away the unmanned soviet probe luna 15 crashes onto the moon behind in the competition with the americans the russians had imagined they'd at least be the first to bring back samples of lunar rocks make that one of the last things 21 hours after armstrong's first step he starts the procedure for return and suspense reigns again [Music] a three and a half hour flight to reach columbia 60 hours of travel there and as for the module it will take several weeks to crash onto the moon [Music] [Music] on their return the three astronauts declare to customs officers the contents of what they brought back in their knapsack namely black dust and luna pebbles with a metallic acrid smell like gunpowder soviet television doesn't broadcast the images but a hundred high officials including brezhnev watched the u.s success on screen those two americans stepped on the moon 600 million people witnessed this page in the history of humanity nobody wonders why there are no photos of armstrong there on the moon but the rumor is that aldrin wasn't happy not to be the first man on the moon so didn't take any shots of neil [Music]

Channel: Spark

Views: 19,287

Keywords: Apollo mission, Astronauts, Cold War politics, Cold War tension in space, Documentary, Engineering, Historical event, Lunar landing anniversary, Lunar landing footage, Lunar science, NASA, Personal dramas, Space enthusiasts, Space era, Space missions history, Space missions timeline, Space research, Space rivalry, Spark, Technology, Television event

Id: SgBiucdnoJE

Length: 52min 13sec (3133 seconds)

Published: Wed May 25 2022