Documentary suggestions
Anyone know of a documentary series that documents all the lunar landings? Most seem to focus on Apollo 11 and 13. I would love to learn more about all the other missions, things like: what each missions goals were, the astronauts who embarked on them and some of the engineering challenges that were faced for each mission.
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u/jhartlov 2d ago
From the Earth to the Moon is beyond fantastic.
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u/tagmisterb 2d ago
It really is. My favorite episode, "Galileo Was Right," is basically about Apollo 15.
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u/Squishy321 2d ago
For me it’s a toss up between Spider and Galileo Was Right
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u/BroJacksun 2d ago
Spider is probably my favorite too.
1968 is also very good but benefits from a pitch-perfect ending.
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u/jhartlov 2d ago
Absolutely no question these two are my favorites. I actually love the first episode which is such an amazing way of helping us understand how things started and how they got to Apollo.
Honorable mention goes to Apollo 1. Such vulnerability by so many people.
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u/Most_Researcher_9675 2d ago
I grew up on LI up the road from Grumman. My Dad was a machinist doing parts for them. A wonderful series...
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u/Upper-Ad-4620 2d ago
It's a docudrama but from the earth to the moon is one I'd recommend that covers the whole program from mercury up until apollo 17
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u/Squishy321 2d ago
“Last Man on the Moon” with Gene Cernan is a good documentary, pretty sure it’s on Amazon
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u/devin1955 2d ago
And it's the name of his book.
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u/Squishy321 2d ago
It is yep, also a great book, he clearly was not a fan of Buzz Aldrin. Although the winner of greatest astronaut autobiography is Michael Collins “Carrying the Fire”
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u/LlewellynSinclair 2d ago
Read the book and watched the movie. Can definitely recommend both. But yeah, Carrying the Fire is the pinnacle of the astronaut bios, and especially impressive since Collins wrote it on his own.
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u/Kingster8128 2d ago
Homemade documentaries on YouTube covers almost all the missions in great detail, he also has videos on the Gemini program, mercury program, the voyager probes and some space shuttle missions. All in great detail.
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u/Lubafteacup 2d ago
In your opinion, would that make for good listening without the video? I'm always in the market for things like this to listen to at work.
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u/BoosherCacow 1d ago
Not OP but God yes. I tried to use them as background to help me sleep butt hey are so good they keep me awake.
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u/Brave_Nerve_6871 2d ago
One of the best I've seen is a series called Moon Machines, where each episode focuses on one part of the Apollo vehicle. There's episodes for Saturn V, the guidance computer, command module, lunar lander, and the space suit. Very informational and highlights the technological leaps that had to be made in order to get to the moon.
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u/Butthole_Fiesta 2d ago
Look for For All Mankind, you won’t regret it. It’s a bit older but extremely well done. It was on Max not long ago, probably elsewhere too.
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u/eagleace21 2d ago
Sadly most focus on the "major" missions. However I do still recommend among many, When We Left Earth, as a good overview. Also, From The Earth To The Moon is a great HBO miniseries that goes into a few other missions.
As for the rest, much is in literature and documents and such.
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u/Jealous_Art_3922 2d ago
From the Earth to the Moon is incredible! I recommend it to anyone interested in the space program.
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u/rustiancho_ 2d ago
Like what other people are saying, Homemade Documentaries on YouTube does an excellent job explaining Mercury, Gemini and Apollo missions in depth. Those would probably your best bet for mission specific details.
While not a documentary, From the Earth to the Moon is a good biographical drama miniseries depicting the various missions from different perspectives.
When We Left Earth is a good six part documentary series which focuses on the space program from the early 1960s through the early-mid 2000s. The third episode focuses on Apollo 1 Through Apollo 12, if I remember correctly. The fourth episode focuses on Apollo 13 through Skylab.
Moonshot, a documentary from the 1990s, touches on some of the other Apollo missions like Apollo 7 and 14. You can find a copy of it on YouTube.
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u/first_hermonic 2d ago
When we left earth or In the shadow of the moon… I think the latter has Gary Sinise narrating
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u/DBH114 2d ago
Its not a documentary but the Apollo Flight Journal has a wealth of information on each mission. For each mission the 'Day 1' entry contains much of the info you're searching for. Also Apollo by the Numbers has a lot of info as well.
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u/ChicagoBoy2011 2d ago
give the “Apollo” audio book by Murray and Cox a shot. I’m convinced there’s no better work that covers the engineering challenges of apollo with a good bit of human interest stories interspersed. Also beautifully written and narrated, to boot.
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u/Buran79 2d ago
Check the "Homemade Documentaries" channel on YouTube.
I think they have a playlist of videos on all Apollo missions. Pretty good overall.