Apollo Special Part 2! Free Astronomy Magazine – July-August 2019 Issue Available For Reading And Download

Above: Neil Armstrong taking a photo of Buzz Aldrin on the Moon(!), with Armstrong in the helmet reflection, with Buzz in the helmet reflection helmet reflection, and Armstrong in the helmet reflection helmet reflection helmet reflection… And Michael Collins. Image courtesy NASA Public Domain.

A closing quote in praise of the 400,000-ish NASA employees and contractors who made the Apollo missions and, by connection, all future missions possible:

"We would like to give special thanks to all those Americans who built the spacecraft; who did the construction, design, the tests, and put their hearts and all their abilities into those craft. To those people tonight, we give a special thank you, and to all the other people that are listening and watching tonight, God bless you. Good night from Apollo 11." – Neil Armstrong

As part of that anniversary celebration, Michele Ferrara at Free Astronomy Magazine has worked up an excellent two-parter on the mission itself, starting with a massive article and image spread in the May-June 2019 issue (see My Announcement) and finishing in the July-August 2019 issue being announced in this post.

My upcoming NASA Solar System Ambassador lectures will be leaning heavily on both the great insights and wonderful image selections in this two-parter series, all in the hopes of having quality slides prepped and ready to go when it comes time to celebrate the 100th.

And, as always, the rest of the issue is filled with other excellent mission and astronomy/astrophysics updates.

Also, as always, please download, read, and pass along. Also, check out the many back issues at www.astropublishing.com

astropublishing.com/4FAM2019/ | Direct PDF

Click the Table of Contents image above for a full-size view. Or just go get the magazine.

Apollo Special Part 1! Free Astronomy Magazine – May-June 2019 Issue Available For Reading And Download

Above: The ultimate anti-selfie, taken by astronaut Michael Collins while awaiting the docking of the lunar module "Eagle," lunar orbit, Apollo 11, 1969. Credit: Michael Collins (and NASA for the travel assist).

The text below was written by Collins while in orbit – and isolation – as Neil and Buzz took America's (dare I say, the world's) first steps on the Moon:

"I am alone now, truly alone, and absolutely isolated from any known life. I am it. If a count were taken, the score would be three billion plus two over on the other side of the moon, and one plus God knows what on this side."

The above image is one of my prized desktop backgrounds and one I try to work into every astronomy talk I give – if for no other reason than how different it is from every other photo ever taken. At the time this image was taken, in the history of the entire planet, everyone who isn't Michael Collins – living and dead – is on the *other* side of the camera. It's the ultimate anti-selfie.

Such is the kind of comment that will fly around the internets this summer with the 50th Anniversary of the absolutely-historic, monumental-achievement, why-do-moon-landing-hoaxers-hate-America-? Apollo 11 mission.

As part of that anniversary celebration, Michele Ferrara at Free Astronomy Magazine has worked up an excellent two-parter on the mission itself, starting with a massive article and image spread in the May-June 2019 issue.

Of course, you can't go a month without reporting on The Event Horizon Telescope release of our first image of a black hole (this one in prime observing target Messier 87). An excellent, packed issue all around for your consideration.

As always, please download, read, and pass along. Also, check out the many back issues at www.astropublishing.com

astropublishing.com/3FAM2019/ | Direct PDF

Click the Table of Contents image below for a full-size view.

Click for a larger view.