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“We choose to go to the moon ...” President John F. Kennedy’s commitment to landing an astronaut “on the Moon and returning him back safely to the Earth” was particularly audacious considering when he fi rst voiced the challenge, only one American had been in space for a grand total of 15 minutes and 28 seconds. Here is a look back at some of the milestones NASA and its astronauts reached on their way to the Moon. Learn more by visiting the John F. Kennedy Presidential 2 Library & Museum at www.jfklibrary.org 3 Only in the Sixties The Sixties could be described in words Charles To put President Kennedy’s proclamation in pers- Sadly, Gordon Cooper’s Faith 7 mission was the last Dickens had written just over a century before the pective, it is useful to remember that he made the of NASA’s manned space fl ights to take place in decade began: “It was the best of times, it was the speech only 16 months after America’s fi rst manned President Kennedy’s lifetime. worst of times ... “ space flight and seven months after John Glenn became the fi rst American to orbit the Earth. NASA’s While John F. Kennedy would not live to see his It was a time of stark contrasts. On one hand, it was four manned fl ights had each lasted less than fi ve dream realized, his challenge stimulated the imagi- an era of enormous political and social unrest. On the hours. In fact, NASA had only been established four nations of people from every nation and motivated other, it offered unparalleled scientifi c advancement years earlier. a team of visionary scientists, technicians and and artistic creativity. astronauts to do the seemingly impossible. The Sixties were Vietnam “It was the best of times, it was On the 21st of July, 2009 the world will comme- and protests against the morate the 40th anniversary of the culmination of war. But they were also the the worst of times ... “ President Kennedy’s expressed goal. The date has Beatles and Flower Power. particular poignancy for OMEGA because it was They were the assassinations of popular political In the fi rst manned space fl ight following President on the 21st of July in 1969 that the Moonwatch was leaders. But they were also movements in support Kennedy’s speech at Rice University, astronaut born. On that day, the Speedmaster became the civil and human rights. The Sixties have been Wally Schirra, recognizing the need for a chrono- fi rst and only wristwatch to be worn on the Moon. described as the end of innocence but also as the graph in space, wore his own OMEGA Speedmaster end of naïveté. on his Project Mercury Friendship 7 mission in While the Sixties were characterized by a number of “None of OMEGA’s milestones in the past October of 1962. dramatic historic events, the fi rst Moon landing has a 160 years can surpass the one reached in On September 12, 1962, a fi red-up President Kennedy unique place in the annals of technological achieve- July of 1969 when a man wearing a Speed- announced to an audience at Rice University that NASA’s launch of Faith 7 in May of 1963 was to be ment. The historian Arthur Schlesinger wrote, “The before the decade was fi nished, America was de- the fi nal Project Mercury fl ight. It was also the fi rst 20th Century will be remembered, when all else is master fi rst set foot on another world. For termined to land a man on the Moon and bring him after the OMEGA Speedmaster had been selected forgotten, as the century when man burst his terres- nearly half a century, our close association back safely to Earth. Given the technology of the for use on all of NASA’s Mercury space fl ights, start- trial bonds.” “And,” as OMEGA president Stephen with NASA has been a source of enormous day, it was an audacious challenge. And even now, ing a relationship which continues to this day. Urquhart has pointed out, “he did it wearing a pride and we are confi dent that our chron- it’s staggering to realize that less than seven years Speedmaster.” after that speech in Texas, the president’s startling ographs will be used by future generations goal would be met. of space explorers”. Stephen Urquhart 4 5 The Mercury Years 1961 1962 1963 May 5 20 February May 15 Alan Shepard became the fi rst American in space John Glenn became the fi rst American to orbit the Gordon Cooper was the fi rst American to spend with the launch of the Mercury Freedom 7 mission. His Earth on the Mercury Friendship 7 mission. The more than a day in space and the last to orbit the sub-orbital fl ight lasted 15 minutes and 28 seconds. duration of Glenn’s flight, which included three Earth solo. His fl ight lasted one day, ten hours, Earth orbits, was 4 hours, 55 minutes, 23 seconds. nineteen minutes and 49 seconds. He orbited the Earth 22 times. He wore an OMEGA Speedmaster May 25 chronograph. President John F. Kennedy, addressing a Joint 24 May Session of Congress, said, “First, I believe that this Mercury Aurora 7, piloted by Scott Carpenter, nation should commit itself to achieving the goal, orbited the Earth three times. The flight lasted 4 November 22 before this decade is out, of landing a man on the hours, 56 minutes and 16 seconds. President John F. Kennedy was assassinated. Moon and returning him back safely to the earth. He was 46 years old. No single space project in this period will be more impressive to mankind, or more important for the September 12 In a speech at Rice University, President Kennedy long-range exploration of space; and none will be said, “No nation which expects to be the leader so diffi cult or expensive to accomplish.” of other nations can expect to stay behind in this race for space. (...) We choose to go to the Moon 1964 21 July in this decade and do the other things, not because The Mercury Liberty Bell 7 mission, piloted by Virgil they are easy, but because they are hard.” November “Gus” Grissom, was launched. The sub-orbital fl ight Seven years later, Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin NASA begins the strenuous series of chronograph lasted 15 minutes and 37 seconds. would be the fi rst men to walk on the Moon; ten tests to determine whether any off-the-shelf years later, Eugene Cernan and Harrison Schmitt watches could be qualifi ed for use on manned would be the last. space fl ights. October 3 Wally Schirra’s Sigma 7 flight lasted 9 hours, 13 minutes, 11 seconds and included six Earth orbits. Strapped to the outside of his space suit was Schirra’s own OMEGA Speedmaster watch. 5/15/1963 - Mercury-Atlas 9 lifts off from Cape Canaveral with astronaut L. Gordon Cooper 6 aboard Faith 7 for the nation’s longest manned orbital fl ight. The Gemini Program 1965 March 1 December 4 – 18 The results of the rigorous chronograph tests are Gemini VII had the primary objective of determining announced: OMEGA is flight certified for all of whether humans could live in space for 14 days. NASA’s manned space fl ights . During their fl ight which lasted 13 days, 18 hours, 35 minutes and one second, astronauts Frank Borman and James Lovell also welcomed their colleagues March 23 Wally Schirra and Thomas Stafford of Gemini VI- A The fi rst manned Gemini mission, Gemini III, was in the fi rst space rendezvous on the 15th of December launched with astronauts Virgil “Gus” Grissom and 1965. The two capsules orbited in tandem for over John Young aboard. In 4 hours, 52 minutes and fi ve hours at distances of 0.3 meters to 90 meters 31 seconds they orbited the Earth three times. (one to 300 feet). June 3 – 7 On the Gemini IV mission, astronaut Ed White was the first American to perform a space walk. Photographs of the historic event clearly showed his OMEGA Speedmaster strapped to the sleeve of his spacesuit. James McDivitt was the pilot. August 21 – 29 On Gemini V, Gordon Cooper and Pete Conrad were the fi rst Americans to spend a week in space. It was the fi rst mission to use fuel cells for electrical power. They evaluated a guidance and navigation system for use in future rendezvous missions. They completed 120 orbits of the Earth in 7 days, 22 hours, 55 minutes and 14 seconds. 12/15/1965 - Gemini 7 spacecraft during rendezvous 8 manuevers and station keeping with Gemini 6. 06/1965 - Ed White : First American Spacewalker. 9 The Apollo Program 1966 1967 March 16 – 17 June 3 – 6 January 27 On the Gemini VIII mission, Neil Armstrong and Dave Thomas Stafford’s and Eugene Cernan’s Gemini IX Three astronauts were killed by fi re in the module Scott accomplished the fi rst docking with another fl ight included two hours of EVA and 44 orbits in a during a test exercise. The mission, which had been space vehicle, an unmanned Agena satellite. period of just over three days. referred to as AS-204, was renamed Apollo 1 after the fi re. July 18 – 21 Gemini X saw the fi rst use of the Agena target vehicle’s propulsion systems. During the mission’s 43 orbits, 1968 Michael Collins had 49 minutes of EVA standing in the hatch and 30 minutes of EVA to retrieve an October 11 – 22 experiment from the Agena stage.