Manned Magnets

Manned Mars Mission illustration.

The Manned Orbiting Laboratory (MOL) was part of the United States Air Force (USAF) human spaceflight program in the 1960s. The project was developed from early USAF concepts of crewed space stations as reconnaissance satellites, and was a successor to the canceled Boeing X-20 Dyna-Soar military reconnaissance space plane. Plans to have military Space Shuttle launches from there were dropped.

CCCP soviet union space art.

Flight Patches for the 12 Apollo crews: Apollo 1 never left the ground. The 3 crew members died in their space capsule during training. As a result the next 5 missions were all unmanned. Apollo 7 circumnavigated Earth, Apollo 8 looped around the moon, Apollo's 9 & 10 tested the docking manouveres and lunar module in space. Apollo 11 was the first manned moon landing. Apollo 13 was forced to abort its mission and return. Apollo 17 was the last manned mission to vist the moon. They came in peace for all mankind. (see more designs like this in The Blue Box)

Manned maneuvring unit space walk, 1984. Astronaut Bruce McCandless floats free above the Earth in his manned manoeuvring unit (MMU) on 7th February 1984, during the 10th space shuttle flight (mission 41B). McCandless, who helped design the MMU, was the first person to fly it, thus becoming the first "human satellite" in orbit around the Earth. The MMU is propelled by small nitrogen thrusters which are controlled by the astronaut's hands. Because no umbilical cord attaches the astronaut to the spacecraft, it gives much greater mobility than was available to earlier spacewalkers. Mission 41B was launched from the Kennedy Space Center (KSC) on 3rd February 1984, and landed back at KSC on 12th February.

Apollo 11 Moon landing. Artwork of NASA's Apollo 11 lunar module LM-5 Eagle landing on the Moon's surface. Apollo 11 was the first manned lunar landing mission, touching down at 20:17 UTC (universal time) on 20 July 1969. Neil Armstrong and Edwin 'Buzz' Aldrin were in this module, becoming the first men to walk on the surface of the Moon. Michael Collins stayed in lunar orbit in the command module Columbia. The Eagle comprised both a descent and an ascent stage. The ascent stage was used to transport Armstrong and Aldrin back to Columbia, leaving the descent stage behind on the Moon's surface. Both the Earth and the Sun are also shown here.

Space Launch System launch. Computer illustration of NASA's Space Launch System (SLS) shortly after liftoff. SLS is a spacecraft heavy launch vehicle being designed by NASA to replace the retired Space Shuttle. It will to carry the Orion Multi-Purpose Crew Vehicle, as well as important cargo, equipment and science experiments to Earth's orbit and destinations beyond. The SLS will also serve as a back-up for commercial and international partner transportation services to the International Space Station.

Earthrise over the Moon taken by the Apollo 11 crew from the spacecraft's Command Module Columbia on the 20th July 1969. The area of the Moon seen here is Smyth's Sea.

The space shuttle Discovery leaving the launchpad at the Kennedy Space Center, Florida, on April 24th, 1990. Mission STS-31 carries the Hubble Space Telescope. Once in orbit it will be able to view objects 50 times fainter and 7 times more distant than is possible with existing ground based optical telescopes. Crew members are Commander Loren J. Shriver; Pilot Charles F. Bolden Jr.; and Mission Specialists Kathryn D. Sullivan, Steven A. Hawley, and Bruce McCandless II.

SpaceX's Crew Dragon in orbit, illustration. SpaceX's Crew Dragon is a next-generation spacecraft designed to carry astronauts to Earth orbit and beyond. The spacecraft will be capable of carrying up to seven crew. It will be able to land almost anywhere on Earth, and will be able to be rapidly refuelled and relaunched. It is intended to revolutionize access to space. SpaceX (Space Exploration Technologies) is a private US aerospace and space transport services company. It was founded in 2002 and has developed the Falcon rockets and the Dragon spacecraft. Future plans include crewed flights to Mars.

Apollo 11 spacecraft launching on top of a Saturn V rocket from Kennedy Space Center, Florida, USA, on 16th July 1969. This was the first manned mission to the Moon. On 20th July NASA astronauts Neil Armstrong and then Edwin (Buzz) Aldrin became the first men to walk on the Moon. The Apollo 11 crew, which also included Michael Collins returned safely to Earth on 24th July 1969.

First Space Shuttle launch, 12th April 1981. This launch, of Columbia, was the first ever launch of a Space Shuttle. The US astronauts on board were John Young and Robert Crippen, and the mission number was STS-1. The take-off took place from Launch Pad 39A at the Kennedy Space Center, Florida, USA. The mission lasted for 54 hours, and touch-down was at Edwards Air Force Base in California.

Apollo programme Saturn V rocket, exploded view. The Saturn V was the launch vehicle for NASA's Apollo programme of manned missions to the Moon between 1968 and 1972. From lower left, the rocket consisted of the first stage, equipped with five F-1 engines and fuel used during take-off. The second stage possessed five J-2 engines which boosted the rocket through the upper atmosphere, while the third stage, S-IVB, had one J-2 engine and set the craft on its course to the Moon. The Lunar Module was housed in a compartment (seen here with panels open) above the third stage. The Service Module was located above the lunar module, and connected to the conical Command Module containing the crew. The rocket was topped by the Launch Escape System ...

Exploring the Moon: astronaut Duke stands next to Crater Plum during the first excursion of the Apollo 16 mission. Duke is seen holding a bore sampling implement, used to take vertical profile samples of the lunar soil. On the far side of the 30 metre wide crater is the Lunar Roving Vehicle (LRV). Astronauts Duke and Young landed in the Descartes region of the Moon on 21 April 1972. During their 71 hour visit, they made three excursions on the surface totalling 20 hours 14 minutes, covering 26 kilometres in the LRV. After blasting off from the Moon, they rejoined astronaut Mattingly in the Command and Service Module, returning to Earth on 27 April 1972.

Apollo 8 launch. Apollo 8 spacecraft launching on top of a Saturn V rocket at Cape Canaveral (now Kennedy Space Centre), Florida, USA on 21 December 1968. This was the second manned Apollo mission and the first to be launched by a Saturn V rocket. The crew flew to the Moon and orbited it 10 times before returning to Earth on 27 December.

Earthrise from the Moon. This photograph was taken during the Apollo 8 mission of 21-27 December 1968. The lunar horizon is about 570 kilometers from the spacecraft, whilst the Earth is 384,000 kilometers distant. In this view, the Earth is seen with the South Pole as the white patch at the left end of the terminator. Part of the west coast of Africa may be seen at the right end of the terminator, North and South America being hidden by cloud at the top of the disc. The lunar terrain in the foreground is near the eastern limb of the Moon, as viewed from Earth.

Original drawings from patents office, Slate Blue background

Apollo 11 photograph showing the Lunar Module ascent stage before rendezvous with the Command & Service Module in lunar orbit. The large dark area on the surface of the Moon is called Mare Smythii. In the distance the Earth can be seen rising over the lunar horizon. Apollo 11 was the first manned lunar landing mission & was launched on 16 July, 1969.

Astronaut footprint on the Moon. Computer artwork recreating a photograph of boot imprints left by astronauts on the Moon. A total of twelve US astronauts have walked on the Moon as part of NASA's Apollo missions. Neil Armstrong was the first, in 1969, and Harrison Schmitt and Eugene Cernan were the last, in 1972. There are plans to return to the Moon by 2020.

Apollo 11 launch. Launch of the Apollo 11 space- craft using a Saturn V rocket. Apollo 11 was the first manned mission to land on the Moon. Apollo 11 had three parts: its command module is the cone at the tip of the rocket, its service module is the grey cylinder (upper centre), and the Lunar Module (LM) is in the white flared fairing at lower centre. Astronauts Neil Armstrong, Michael Collins and Edwin Aldrin were launched in Apollo 11 on 16 July 1969. Armstrong and Aldrin used the LM to land in the Sea of Tranquility region of the Moon on 20 July 1969, whilst Collins orbited in the Command and Service Modules.

The Moon, showing part of its far side, photographed from the Apollo 16 spacecraft after its landing on the Moon in April 1972. The dark patches at upper left are some of the lunar seas (maria) which are characteristic of the face it presents to Earth. The heavily-cratered region at right is on the far side of the Moon, which is never seen from Earth. The Moon always presents the same face to Earth, as it rotates on its axis in the same time that it orbits around Earth. Such gravitational locking of an orbit is common amongst satellites.

Explosion of the Space Shuttle Challenger (mission 51-L) seventy-three seconds after lift- off from Kennedy Space Center, Florida, on 28th January 1986. All seven crew members were killed. It is thought that O-rings in a seal on the right hand solid rocket booster failed, due to the extremely cold weather conditions experienced just prior to the launch. The subsequent leak of fuel resulted in the explosion.

Earthrise. This photograph of a blue & white Earth rising over the horizon of the Moon was taken from the Apollo 11 spacecraft in July 1969. The lunar terrain in the field of view is in the area of Smyth's Sea. Apollo 11 was the historic mission during which astronauts Neil Armstrong & Buzz Aldrin became the first humans to land on the Moon.

Launch of Apollo 17. The Saturn V rocket carrying Apollo 17 blasts into the night sky at Cape Canaveral on 7 December 1972. This was the only night launch of the Apollo Lunar programme. Apollo 17 carried astronauts Eugene Cernan and Harrison Schmitt to the Moon, Ronald Evans remaining in the command module in lunar orbit. Cernan and Schmitt landed in the Taurus-Littrow region on 11 December and left on 13 December. Cernan was the last man to stand on the Moon's surface. Apollo 17 returned to Earth on 19 December 1972 - the end of manned Lunar exploration for the time being.