To be answered while watching “Race to the Moon” (PBS American Experience) – Tuesday, Feb. 23, 2016
Race to the Moon
Video Questions
Name _________________________
_______________1. In what year did President John F. Kennedy first commit the United States to
sending American astronauts to the moon?
_______________2. With what country was the US competing in the “Space Race”?
_______________3. What were the names of the three NASA astronauts who crewed Apollo 8?
_________________________4. According to this video, what were some of the troubles that afflicted
_________________________ the US and the world in 1968?
_______________5. What kind of accident happened with the Apollo One crew during a routine drill in
January 1967?
_______________6. After dropping all of the booster stages, Apollo 8 only had one remaining engine
that would have to slow the Command Module enough to allow it to drop into
lunar orbit; after orbiting the moon 10 times, this engine would have to burn again
to send the crew home. What was this engine called?
_______________7. Why was there a lot of tension at Mission Control when Apollo 8 went around the
“dark side” of the Moon?
_______________8. What did Bill Anders take a picture of that became one of the most famous images
of all-time?
_______________9. When speaking with Susan Borman, the wife of astronaut Frank Borman, what did
Apollo flight operations director Chris Kraft say were the odds of Apollo 8 returning
successfully?
_______________10. Where did Apollo 8 “splash-down” on December 27, 1968?