Echoes Among the Stars: The Original Website
The First Era in Space, 1957-1975
Apollo 12
November 14 - November 24, 1969
A Tale of Two Spacecraft
Two American spacecraft on the surface of the moon. In the foreground, the Surveyor 3 probe welcomes its first visitor since landing on the moon in 1967; in the background, the Apollo 12 lunar module Intrepid waits for its occupants, Pete Conrad and Alan Bean, to return. Not pictured, Dick Gordon waited far above the surface in command module Yankee Clipper. NASA photo.
Working on the Surface of the Moon
Pete Conrad on the lunar surface during Apollo 12. Conrad and Alan Bean thoroughly enjoyed their work, chatting pleasantly and whistling while they performed their out-of-this-world chores of exploring, taking photos, and collecting samples. Unfortunately, the television camera they’d brought along was damaged, so they were unable to live TV images. NASA photo.
Clear Sailing
The safe return of Apollo 12: the Yankee Clipper command module approaches splashdown. The peaceful float back to earth belies the mission’s scary early moments, when lightning struck the spacecraft while it sat atop the massive Saturn V rocket. The crew lost electrical power momentarily, but were able to restore order in time to salvage the mission. NASA photo.
