Vanguard News Network
VNN Media
VNN Digital Library
VNN Reader Mail
VNN Broadcasts

Old January 7th, 2018 #1
Ray Allan
Senior Member
 
Join Date: May 2014
Posts: 15,170
Default Moonwalker astronaut John Young dies at 87

Astronaut John Young, Who Walked on the Moon and led 1st Shuttle Mission, Dies at 87



Young before Gemini 3 mission, March 1965



Jumping while saluting flag on Moon during Apollo 16, April 1972


Quote:
John Young, NASA's longest-serving astronaut, who walked on the moon and flew the first Gemini and space shuttle missions, has died. The first person to fly six times into space--seven, if you count his launch off of the moon in 1972--and the only astronaut to command four different types of spacecraft, Young died on Friday (Jan. 5) following complications from pneumonia. He was 87.

"NASA and the world have lost a pioneer," said NASA acting administrator Robert Lightfoot in a statement on Saturday (Jan. 6). "John Young's storied career spanned three generations of spaceflight, we will stand on his shoulders as we look toward the next human frontier."

"Young was at the forefront of human space exploration with his poise, talent, and tenacity. He was in every way the 'astronaut's astronaut,'" Lightfoot said.

Selected alongside Neil Armstrong and Jim Lovell with NASA's second group of astronauts in 1962, Young flew two Gemini missions, two Apollo missions and two space shuttle missions. He was one of only three astronauts to launch to the moon twice and was the ninth person to [set] foot on the lunar surface.
https://www.space.com/39307-astronau...-obituary.html

Sad to see another Moonwalker pass on. As a kid I got an autographed picture from Young.
__________________
"Military men are dumb, stupid animals to be used as pawns for foreign policy."

--Henry A. Kissinger, jewish politician and advisor
 
Old January 7th, 2018 #2
Squarehead Chris
Senior Member
 
Join Date: Dec 2010
Location: Crawlin' from the wreckage
Posts: 1,951
Default

In my opinion the Gemini missions were the most dangerous missions ever undertaken. Several times absolute catastrophe nearly struck during the Gemini program. But without it, there could never have been an Apollo program.
Those guys were plenty brave.
 
Old January 8th, 2018 #3
Ray Allan
Senior Member
 
Join Date: May 2014
Posts: 15,170
Default

The closest near-catastrophe was Gemini 8 when Neil Armstrong had to abort after a stuck-open thruster firing on the spacecraft produced a violent roll, almost causing him and fellow astronaut Dave Scott to black out. They quickly undocked from the unmanned Agena target vehicle and returned to Earth. The other time was the aborted liftoff of Gemini 6. The Titan II rocket shut down after 1 second, leaving Wally Schirra and Tom Stafford sitting on top of a potential bomb. Schirra chose not to eject and the astronauts lifted off successfully a few days later to rendezvous with Gemini 7 already in orbit.




__________________
"Military men are dumb, stupid animals to be used as pawns for foreign policy."

--Henry A. Kissinger, jewish politician and advisor
 
Old January 13th, 2018 #4
Ray Allan
Senior Member
 
Join Date: May 2014
Posts: 15,170
Default

It was very ballsy of John Young and Robert Crippen to fly Columbia on STS-1, the Space Shuttle's first mission. All of NASA's previous manned spacecraft, Mercury, Gemini and Apollo, made their first launches unmanned. It was also the first time Shuttle's Solid Rocket Boosters (SRBs) flew, the same type rockets that caused the loss of Challenger in 1986.

This is the same ABC launch coverage I watched on April 12, 1981, which was also the 20th anniversary of Yuri Gagarin's flight. The main commentators are Frank Reynolds, Jules Bergman, who was ABC's science editor, and astronaut Gene Cernan, the last man to walk on the Moon.


ABC coverage of Columbia's landing at Edwards Air Force Base, California on April 14, 1981.

__________________
"Military men are dumb, stupid animals to be used as pawns for foreign policy."

--Henry A. Kissinger, jewish politician and advisor
 
Old January 15th, 2018 #5
Ray Allan
Senior Member
 
Join Date: May 2014
Posts: 15,170
Default Where No Sandwich Has Gone Before

How John Young Smuggled a Corned-Beef Sandwich into Space

https://www.space.com/39341-john-you...eef-space.html
__________________
"Military men are dumb, stupid animals to be used as pawns for foreign policy."

--Henry A. Kissinger, jewish politician and advisor
 
Reply

Share


Thread
Display Modes


All times are GMT -5. The time now is 01:19 PM.
Page generated in 0.30113 seconds.