USS YORKTOWN APOLLO 8 First Men to the Moon

FIRST MEN TO THE MOON Apollo 8 and the USS Yorktown

Again, the eyes of the world were on the USS Yorktown and her crew

The USS YORKTOWN cruise book, NASA Logo October 16, 1968 to February 28, 1969 reported "Apollo 8 Recover Smooth."

Story by Daniel A. Bernath
Apollo 8 and US Navy Photographer's Mate
Petty Officer 2nd Class
USS Yorktown 1968-1970)

originally published in Sea V Ten Magazine and on deposit at the United States National Achieves

SCROLL DOWN FOR THE STORY OF MAN'S FIRST TRIP TO THE MOON~~~

called Apollo 8 "the most fantastic voyage of all times".

The recovery portion of the Apollo 8 mission moved as smoothly as the entire manned lunar orbit. With astronauts Air Force Col. Frank Borman, Navy Capt. James Lovell, Jr. and Air Force Major (later Lt. Col.) William Anders piloting their spacecraft through the final re-entry phase, the capsule splashed down in the Pacific 1,000 miles southwest of Hawaii at 4:52 a.m. (Yorktown time) on December 27, only 2 1/2 miles from this 25 year old carrier.

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Apollo 8: The NASA Mission Reports Robert Godwin's series of books and DVDs about the Apollo lunar missions are stuffed full of original source data, including images and film footage of the actual missions. They are essential for anyone interested in the history of humankind's first program of lunar exploration.

This Second Edition adds two new documents, 850 pictures and an exclusive interview with Jim Lovell to the original volume.

See the USS Yorktown sailors retrieving the astronauts from the Pacific and fly them aboard the USS Yorktown 2 minute movie

See the NASA movie about Apollo 8 and see the actual movie of the first visit to the Moon and Astronauts being brought aboard the USS Yorktown 22 minutes long

Genesis: The Story of Apollo 8 by Robert Zimmerman. Americans living in the late 1960s went through the most exciting days of space exploration. Astronauts were more famous than rock stars, and the world eagerly followed each venture beyond the Earth's atmosphere. When Frank Borman, Jim Lovell and Bill Anders splashed down safely after circling the Moon in December 1968, they provided an upbeat ending to a ghastly year of assassinations, riots, and social unrest. More importantly, their flight marked the first time that humans had ever escaped from the Earth's gravity well. All of mankind seemed to hold its breath during the long minutes while the spacecraft was out of contact beyond the far side of the Moon. The three astronauts not only proved that a manned landing on the Moon was possible, but also brought back the first photographs showing Earth in its true perspective: a lovely blue marble in the black immensity of outer space. It was Frank Borman, however, who gave the world its most unforgettable moment when, on Christmas Eve, he slowly began to read: "In the beginning". A richly anecdotal account of the mission that nicely balances rocket science with the human element. He never lets the story get bogged down in melodrama, however, and is skilled in making all of the engineering and technology understandable to the average reader. This is probably the best writing on the space program since Michael Collins' Carrying the Fire. KLIATT