Tag Archives: Buzz Aldrin
The Encyclopedia Show DC: The Moon
On Tuesday night, December 4, 2012, I had the pleasure of participating “The Encyclopedia Show DC” which focused this time on “The Moon.” It was a free form educational variety show that included skits, poetry, music, and me. My task … Continue reading
Do You Know Me? The Legacy of Neil Armstrong
Do You Know Me? That was the unforgettable phrase that opened a series of classic American Express commercials from the 1970s. In them, people with well-known names but whose faces were not so memorable pitched how that charge card gave … Continue reading
What If? Counterfactuals in Space History
Everyone loves playing “what if” games, as long as we all understand that they are games. Historians have a bit more sophisticated term, “counterfactual history,” which is the same type of “what if” approach to stories that we have all … Continue reading
Course Syllabus for “Spaceflight and Society: Exploring the History of the Final Frontier”
Beginning on August 31 I started teaching as an adjunct instructor at the Johns Hopkins University. The course is “Spaceflight and Society: Exploring the History of the Final Frontier.” Only one class meeting thus far, but it has been great … Continue reading
Whatever Happened to the Apollo/Saturn Launch Towers?
Because of the rare experience of Apollo, there was little value placed on maintaining in working order the infrastructure that made the Moon landings possible. NASA, therefore, sought either to dispose of these relics with all dispatch or to alter … Continue reading
Observing the Sabbath Aboard NASA Spacecraft
I was recently asked about U.S. policies concerning the keeping of the Sabbath aboard NASA spacecraft. Accordingly, I considered several questions: What is the history of Sabbath and other religious observances in space? Since almost the beginning of human space flight … Continue reading
Can We Preserve the Apollo Landing Sites?
The six Apollo landing sites on Moon pose an interesting, and thus far academic, question for the preservation of the material culture of the Apollo program. It is a subject I have been ponder more as time passes and it … Continue reading
Conspiracies R Us: “Birthers” and the Wingnuttia Universe
In a recent on-line chat Washington Post reporter Ben Pershing was asked why the “birther” conspiracy arguing that President Obama was not a natural born U.S. citizen has any saliency in the media. His response was inane: “Perhaps because there … Continue reading
