A Tribute to Apollo 11

Kerbalsaurus · March 22, 2023

Several people now have made tributes Apollo 11. So here's mine!

JULY 16^TH, 1969

During the space race, America had lost mission after mission after mission. The soviets had launched the first artificial satellite, the first animal in space, the man into space, and had done the first EVA. The U.S. had enough of. They knew they'd have to beat the Russians to the Moon. And now it seemed like they were about to do just that. The mighty Saturn V, the most powerful rocket ever built, sat on the launch pad and waited for it's voyage to the Moon. Onboard is Commander Neil Armstrong, Command Module Pilot Micheal Collins, and Lunar Module Pilot Buzz Aldrin. Finally, after several years of work, the Americans were about to win the race to the Moon. The Countdown starts. T- 15, 14, 12, 11, 10, 9...

Ignition sequence start, 5, 4, 3, 2, 1...

We have liftoff! Liftoff on Apollo 11!

The mighty Saturn V thunders off the ground! Around the world, everyone watches the launch. The Saturn V is an amazing spectacle to see. Around LC-39A, the ground shakes about, and deafening roar of the F-1 Engines can be heard for miles. The sound fades though as Apollo 11 makes its way in the atmosphere, and the first stage runs out of fuel.

S-II Ignition

S-IVB ignition

Orbital insertion

Apollo 11 is now in a parking orbit! The crew orbit the Earth for about 1 time, waiting for the go from mission control. When everything seems in check, the crew told they are go for TLI.

The TLI burn goes without a hitch, and a few kilometers up from Earth, the crew begin their docking procedure.

Docking complete

From here, the crew spend the next 3 days drifting towards the Moon.

Lunar orbital insertion burn

After a resting period, the crew board the LM Eagle, and head down to the Moon. Micheal Collins will remain onboard CSM Columbia, and take photos of the Moon from orbit.

Heading down toward the Moon

During descent, the Crew get a 1202 alarm, warning them that onboard flight computers are overworked. What happened was Buzz and Neil left the rendezvous computer, just in case. But they didn't know this at the time. This could potentially end the mission. But mission control said everything was alright, so the crew continued down towards the surface.

At Eagle's designated landing site, Neil notices that it's very rocky. Buzz Aldrin proceeded to take manual control of the module. However, fuel started to run short, which could be devastating to the crew. Landing margins were going to be a little tight...

"60 seconds..."

"Contact light" -Buzz Aldrin

"Houston. Tranquility Base here. The Eagle has landed." -Neil Armstrong

"Roger, Twan- Tranquility. We copy you on the ground. You got a bunch of guys to turn blue. We're breathing again, thanks a lot." -Mission control

"Thank you" -Buzz Aldrin

They had done it. Apollo 11 was safely standing on the Moon's surface. The crew have another rest period before stepping foot onto the lunar surface. The crew prepare for EVA, and Neil steps out of the doors of the LM and walks down the ladder.

"Alright, I'm stepping off the LM now."

"That's one small step for man, one giant leap for mankind."

They'd done it. America had landed the first man on the Moon. Neil spends around fifteen minutes alone out there, until Buzz Aldrin begins to step down the ladder.