Apollo 8 "First Manned  Lunar Trip"	Apollo 8 was crewed by Frank Borman, James Lovell, Jr., and William Anders.  It was launched on  Dec. 21, 1968 from the Kennedy Space Center in Florida.  Apollo 8 was the first human lunar orbit mission and the first manned flight using a Saturn V launch vehicle. The Apollo 8 astronauts became the first humans to see the far side of the Moon. The mission successfully tested Apollo Command Module systems, including tracking, communications and life-support, in cislunar space (the region between the Earth's surface and the Moon's surface) and lunar orbit, and allowed evaluation of crew performance on a lunar orbiting mission.  However they did have trouble with their windows, they were continuously fogged over, which made it hard to see out clearly.  The astronauts felt sick and nausea after exiting the Earth's atmosphere, due to the feel of the Saturn V launch vehicle; sharp movements and lack of gravity made them uncomfortable.  Luckily, by the next day, all were feeling well.  Several days later, the crew were the first humans to experience the pull of the moon's gravity.  They orbitted the moon a total of 10 times, 2 hours each.  During this time, the astronauts were the first to see the moon's surface at a relatively close distance.  They took many photographs of both the near and far sides of the lunar surface.   They also obtained information on topography, landmarks and other important information needed for future Apollo missions.  The crew were also the first to experience raidio blackout, while they werebehind the farside of the moon they were unable to communicate with Earth. The Apollo 8 spacecraft consisted of a Command Module similar to Apollo 7, but not the forward pressure and ablative hatches were replaced by a combined forward hatch, which would be used for transfer to the Lunar Module on later missions.  A Lunar Module was not used on the Apollo 8 mission because it was not ready, but a Lunar Module Test Article which was equal in mass  was mounted in the spacecraft/launch vehicle adapter as ballast for mass loading purposes.	Click on the Crew to see pictures of the mission Apollo 8 Crew Apollo 8 Crew Patch
Apollo 10 "The Dress  Rehearsal"	Apollo 10 was crewed by Eugene Cernan, John Young, & Thomas Stafford.  It was launched on  May 18, 1969 from the Kennedy Space Center in Florida.  Apollo 10 was the first Apollo mission to travel to the Moon with a full Apollo spacecraft, Command and Service Module, named 'Charlie Brown,' and the Lunar Module, named 'Snoopy.' The main goals of the mission were to demonstrate space vehicle, crew and mission support facilities during a human lunar mission and to evaluate Lunar Module performance in cislunar and lunar environments. All operations were performed except the lunar landing because this mission was basically a full 'dress rehearsal' for the Apollo 11 mission.  The crew did not have much to do on their way to the moon, except one course correction, five televised broadcasts and resting.  This was the first Apollo crew to not feel any sickness after entering space.  However, the astronauts did complain of the unpleasant tasting food.  Apollo 10 had virtually no problems, though there was some concern that Stafford and Cernan would no be able to redock the LM with the Command Module because of the angle at which they were currently docked, but Mission Control said that the angle was not severe enough to worry about.  On May 22,  the two astronauts entered the Lunar Module and fired the thrusters to separate the Lunar Module from the Command Module.  The Lunar Module was then put into orbit over the lunar surface, where they got as close as 8.9 kilometers (5.5 miles) from the surface of the Moon.  All systems on the Lunar Module were tested during the separation including  propulsion, communications, radar, and attitude control.  After 31 lunar orbits, the Lunar Module and Command Module had a successful rendezvous and redocking approximately 8 hours after separation. In addition to the extensive amount of photographs of the lunar surface from both the Lunar Module and Command Module, television images were also taken and transmitted to Earth.	Click on the Crew to see pictures of the mission Apollo 10 Crew Apollo 10 Crew Patch

Last Updated May 23, 2000                                                                                                                   a SCEN103 Project