The launch goes, in the words of Commander Wally Schirra, “like a dream”. There are few serious problems, except that the crew develops a cold, which is a far more uncomfortable condition in low gravity than it is back home (I’ll spare you the details).

The Apollo 7 mission proves that the Command and Service Module (CSM) is capable of functioning in Earth orbit. The next job is to get a rocket into the vicinity of our natural satellite. The astronauts crewing Apollo 8, Frank Borman, James Lovell Jr. and William Anders, launch from Cape Kennedy on Dec. 21, 1968. These three men become the first humans to ever leave Earth’s orbit, and then, the first to orbit the Moon. As they pass around it, out of communication range with NASA, they become the first to see, with their own eyes, the far side of our satellite. From Lunar orbit, William Anders takes the famous Earthrise photograph, which shows our tiny blue planet wreathed with clouds, peeking out of the vast inky void.  

From day 4 of the mission, the astronauts make a series of 7 films that will become the second live television broadcasts from a space mission, following a short transmission from Apollo 7. The American people enjoy the thrilling experience of seeing their astronauts complete their daring missions. On Christmas Eve, two days before the mission’s end, millions tune in to hear a reading from Genesis from the astronauts in space. Here, NASA begins a tradition that will culminate in the great worldwide TV spectacle of the Moon landings, and orchestrates a huge propaganda coup, showing the world that the USA has finally taken the lead in the Space Race.