How Apollo Flew to the Moon
by W. David Woods · first published 2007
91% recommend9% neutral
Why HN recommends it
Deep technical account of how the Apollo spacecraft and Saturn V actually worked, covering engines, power, guidance, and computers; suits readers who want engineering detail beyond the usual mission narratives.
Summarised by Claude from recommending comments
"David Woods tells the exciting story of how the Apollo flights were conducted by following a virtual flight to the Moon and back. From launch to splashdown, he hitches a ride in the incredible spaceships that took men to another world, exploring each step of the journey and detailing the enormous range of disciplines, techniques and procedures the Apollo crews had to master. While describing the tremendous technological accomplishment involved, he adds the human dimension by calling on the testimony of the people who were there at the time." "In How Apollo Flew to the Moon there is wealth of
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I can unreservedly recommend the book "How Apollo Flew to the Moon": http://www.amazon.co.uk/Apollo-Springer-Praxis-Books-Explora...
on “Apollo Flight Controller 101: Every console explained” ↗For those interested in the engineering details behind the whole flight, from engines, to power systems, guidance, navigation and computers, I would say my favourite book is "How Apollo Flew to the Moon" by W David Woods https://www.amazon.com/Apollo-Flew-Springer-Praxis-Books/dp/...
on “Diskee: Apollo's Most Important Crewmember” ↗Chaikin's book is excellent. Two books on Apollo that I'd recommend: 1. How Apollo Flew to the Moon, by W David Woods. Don't be put off by the cheesy cover, this book goes into a lot of technical detail and does a pretty good job of explaining things. 2. Digital Apollo by David A. Mindell. A detailed…
on “The Apollo 11 Journey in Photographs” ↗A good companion book is "How Apollo Flew to the Moon", by W. David Woods. It fills in a lot of the technical detail that other Apollo space program books omit, without forgetting the human dimension. Amazing effort by a man who is not an engineer, nor…
on “The Story Behind Upcoming Film “Spacesuit” (2013)” ↗An excellent book, which coincidentally I was reading last night. I'd also recommend How Apollo Flew to the Moon by W. David Woods. Don't be put off by the slightly cheesy-looking cover - it contains a lot of fascinating technical information.
on “The triumph and near-tragedy of the first Moon landing” ↗"How Apollo Flew to the Moon" (https://www.amazon.co.uk/Apollo-Springer-Praxis-Books-Explor...) is pretty exhaustive on the technical details.
on “The last known unidentified marking on the Saturn V S-IC” ↗I second your recommendation of Digital Apollo - an excellent book. I also rate How Apollo Flew to the Moon by David Woods (Springer Praxis, 2011) very highly. The cover is kind of cheesy but its full of the kind of technical detail that is hard to find without reading through old NASA docs.
on “Apollo 11 and Other Screw-Ups” ↗…is Sunburst and Luminary by Don Eyles, who worked on the guidance system at MIT: https://www.sunburstandluminary.com/SLhome.html For deep technical details (but light on first-person stories), there's How Apollo Flew to the Moon: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/2323178.How_Apollo_Flew_... Finally, not strictly related to the space race, but for some truly wonderful first-hand tales from the development of rocket propellants,…
on “Debugging a Live Saturn V” ↗https://www.amazon.co.uk/Apollo-Springer-Praxis-Books-Explor... "How Apollo Flew to the Moon" is a very detailed look at the technical aspects of Apollo.
on “The red warning light on Richard Branson’s space flight” ↗…end of the stages to aid in separation.) I suppose you could call ullage solid motors PMDs, too. For an excellent deep dive into the systems, operations, and functions of the Saturn V, get a copy of "How Apollo Flew to the Moon" by W. David Woods.
on “How do you power a rocket engine?” ↗Not a film, but the book How Apollo Flew To The Moon is a fairly technical story of how it was done.
on “65 years ago, America announced the names of its first astronauts” ↗It feels like few people nowadays appreciate just how amazing Apollo was, some people even deny it happened at all. I strongly recommend the book "How Apollo Flew to the Moon" by W. David Woods if you are interested in them, it covers all of the missions in detail, including beautiful photographs. I felt sad when I came to the end.
on “The Insanely Amazing Apollo Missions: the tech, the landings and the expeditions” ↗…watching the earth getting bigger by the minute and listening to the radio communication is breathtaking, and every bit fits perfectly to everything I read about Apollo. Anyone interested should read "How Apollo flew to the moon" by W. David Woods (ISBN978-0-387-71675-6). In my opinion the best and most detailed report of the procedures, technology and processes of the moon landings.
on “Artemis 2 Coming Home” ↗…thrusters, but I assume that in atmosphere and under parachute canopy it’s harder to make sure they are perfectly opposed. Heating likely plays a role as well. I am not a rocket engineer, but I have read How Apollo Flew to the Moon and Ignition!: an informal history of liquid rocket propellants, both of which cover these issues. Highly recommended.
on “Artemis II safely splashes down” ↗Incidentally, the publisher of the AGC book, Praxis Publishing, has a whole collection of well-written, engaging, and technically deep books in their space exploration category, namely, 'How Apollo Flew to the Moon'. http://www.praxis-publishing.co.uk/books.php
on “Saturn V Flight Manual (1969) [pdf] ” ↗