Apollo 8: Leaving the Cradle

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Starring: Spacecraft Films
Rated: NR (Not Rated)
Type: DVD
Studio: 20th Century Fox
Release Date: 2003-08-19
Running Time: 240 minutes
Number of Items: 3
Own a piece of history! The most complete record ever available of this historic mission. This 3-disc set - over 4 hours in all - chronicles America's first manned lunar orbit from launch to splashdown with comprehensive footage from the film and videotape records of Apollo 8. Features the TV downlink including the famous Christmas Eve broadcast, all on-board 16mm films, close-up views of the moon from lunar orbit, multi-angle views of the launch and astronaut commentaries.

A DVD Mini-Encyclopedia of the Apollo 8 Flight
Instead of repeating other reviewers, let's focus on generally-unmentioned content. Apollo 8 was the first-ever spaceflight that made a deep penetration of space. It flight of 240,000 miles to the moon contrasted with previous flights, none of which had ventured more than 850 miles from the Earth's surface. Indeed, it was a leaving of the cradle.

Besides the full recording of the Christmas Eve reading from the Book of Genesis, there are many other treasured moments preserved. We hear mission control exclaim, "We've got it! We've got it! Apollo 8 in lunar orbit." The astronauts talk about the brown parts and the blue parts of Earth, and identify its geographic and weather features from afar. The moon reminds them of clouds and clouds of pumice stone. They praise the onboard computer--which was incredibly primitive by today's standards. During the post-flight award ceremony with President Johnson in the waning days of his administration, Werner von Braun, standing next to his wife, is brought to tears.

Segments of the post-flight debriefing are also presented. They suggest that the training in the recognition of stars could be better. The toiletry was adequate, but would've been unacceptable on a long flight. The astronauts wish that they had been freer to photograph objects of interest to them, and not only those that they had been told to photograph. They would've liked the cameras to be of a point-and-shoot nature--which of course became reality many years later. They complain about the space food tasting all the same and being unappetizing. More "normal" foods have since been used on spaceflights.

Well do I remember how my 14 year-old self thrilled at this flight. This series brings back a lot of memories. It blows my mind to comprehend that 40 years have passed since then.

Mine Wont Play
Mine came shrink-wrapped and brand new in the box, but none of the discs will play. Im furious. Anyone else have this problem?

Detailed descriptions from the Boxes
(From the boxes):


DISC ONE - A BOLD MISSION

The Apollo 8 mission was the first time human beings had ventured outside of Earth orbit. Mission objectives included a successful journey and return from the Earth to lunar orbit, testing of the Apollo spacecraft and communications at lunar distances, and photography of the lunar surface.


* Preparation

Centrifuge - October 1968 centrifuge runs with the prime crew to familiarize them with accelerations expected during flight. Audio is from the post-flight crew debriefing.

Altitude Chamber -.The prime crew in an altitude chamber run with their spacecraft. No audio.

To The White Room - A unique astronaut-view walkthrough from the base of the launcher to the white room, the rout:* the crew took to board the spacecraft an launch day . Audio commentary from the post-flight debriefing.

Countdown Demonstration Test - Suitup and transfer to pad during the prelaunch Countdown demonstration test. Audio is from post-flight debriefing.

Deluge Test - Pad 39a featured a water deluge system to protect hardware from the Heat and flame of a Saturn V launch. This is a test of the system prior to Apollo 8. Audio is from post-flight debriefing.


* Moonport

Rollout - Transport of the Apollo 8 vehicle from the VAB to Pad 39a. Audio is from natural sound of the crawler/transporter, recorded digitally by Peter Armstrong and used by permission.

Par Operations - Preparation for the first manned flight of a Saturn V. Audio is from post flight debriefing.


* To The Moon

Static Launch Views - 5 angles of the Apollo 8 launch. Audio is air to ground and public affairs officer. Surround.

Tracking Launch Views - 3 angles of the Apollo 8 launch. Audio is from the flight director's loop and continues through SECO. Surround

Pad Camera Views - 4 angles of the Apollo 8 launch. Audio is natural vehicle sound. Surround.

Coming Home - Recovery of Apollo 8. Splashdown occurred in predawn darkness. Audio is from onboard recorder during entry, air to ground transmissions during entry, and President Johnson's call to the crew after splashdown .




DISC TWO - TELEVISION TRANSMSSSIONS

This disk contains the complete television transmissions from the Apollo 8 spacecraft - 6 in all.Apollo 8's television camera was a 4.5 pound RCA black-and-white camera. There was no monitor or viewfinder on the camera - so framing the picture was done by dead reckoning.

Two lenses were carried, 160 degree field-of-view and 9 degree field-of-view. The Apollo 8 television transmissions were conducted with a power of just 20 watts, and were received in Goldstone, California and Madrid, Spain.


TV Transmission #1 took place on Sunday. December 22nd 1968, at 31:08 ground elapsed time. At this point the spacecraft was approximately halfway between the Earth and the Moon. This transmission shows the interior of the spacecraft with an attempt to show views of the Earth. Trouble with the telephoto lens prevented good pictures of Earth. Audio is air to ground with the flight director's loop. (13:50)

TV Transmission #2, on Monday, December 23rd, showed the Earth from a distance of 180,000 miles Audio is air to ground with flight director's loop. 55.07 GET. (21:52)

TV Transmission #3, the first of two transmissions on Christmas Eve, gave television audiences their first close up news of the lunar surface. During this transmission. the spacecraft was in a 168.8 x 59.9 nautical mile orbit of the moon. Audio from air to ground and the fight director's loop. 71:40 GET. (12:40)

TV transmission #4, the second Christmas Eve broadcast, and the most famous, again showed views of the lunar surface. During this transmission, Apollo 8 was orbiting the moon at 60.7 x 59.7 nautical miles. The broadcast ends with a reading from the book of Genesis and a historic sign-off from the first travelers to another world. Audio from air to ground and the fight director's loop. 85:41 GET (25:20)

TV transmission # 5, on Christmas Day. This transmission occurred after the successful trans-Earth injection burn which put the spacecraft on course for home. The broadcast shows the interior of the spacecraft. Audio is air to ground and flight director's loop. 104:24 GET. (10:00)

TV transmission # 6, on Thursday, December 26th, 1968, 128:01 GET. From the day before the return to Earth. Shots of Earth. Air to ground and flight director's loop. (4:20)



DISC THREE - ONBOARD 16MM FILM

This disc contains the complete I6 mm motion picture film exposed onboard the Apollo 8 spacecraft. In addition to footage of life aboard the spacecraft, incredible views of the moon from lunar orbit were captured. This was the first time human beings had orbited the moon, and our views up to this pint consisted of grainy black-and-white photos transmitted from unmanned probes.

Outside of the safe and successful completion of a lunar orbit mission, photography was on of the key goals of Apollo 8. A total of 11 130-foot motion picture magazines were carried on the flight. As it turned out, 6 were exposed.

The onboard film on this disc is accompanied by rare audio commentary, providing unique glimpses into the flight; taken from the air-to-ground transmissions, post-flight debriefings, and the onboard voice recorder.

Magazine H - Taken just after trans-lunar injection, a few hours after liftoff. Shows the Earth and the third stage of the Saturn after separation, along with some views of the lunar surface. Audio is air-to-ground transmission from the TLI and separation.

Magazine I - Lunar surface views. Audio commentary is from the post-flight photo debriefing with Bill Anders.

Magazine J - Lunar surface views. Audio is air-to-ground transmission form lunar orbit insertion and trans-Earth injection.

Magazine K- Lunar surface views and interior spacecraft. Audio is form the onboard recorder during the burn which placed the spacecraft into lunar orbit. Since the burn took place while on the far side, no communication with Earth was possible at the time.

Magazine Q- Lunar surface views. Audio is from the onboard recorder during the taking of the famous "earthrise" photographs.

Magazine R - Interior spacecraft - Audio commentary is from the post-flight debriefing on navigation with Jim Lovell.

Great Archival footage -- Just not for the casual fan
This whole series from the NASA archives (and I'll review the entire series, not just the Gemini set, since they all pretty mcuh take the same approach) are fascinating only if you are serious devotee of the space program. They are in many cases virtually raw footage from the flights and include plenty of dead air, clicks and beeps and in some cases inane narration by a NASA films employee from back in the day.

Many in the series, especially the Gemini Series, include narrationless launches from different angles and distances. Over and over and over in some cases.

Still, if you want to see and hear EXACTLY what happened on these flights, without editing, interruptions by Walter Cronkite or any other distractions, they are a wonderful and important addition to your library. As a true space program fan, I found them great as pieces of history, if nothing else.

For instance, have you ever wondered what happened AFTER Neil Armstrong took his first step on the Moon? The Apollo 11 set includes film and audio for every minute of every EVA, and you can supposedly switch views from one camera to another, although I have not been able to get that function to work for me.

The Apollo 11 set is also a great companion piece to a book like "First Man," the new biography of Armstrong, which goes into minute detail of each EVA. Being able to synch that up to real footage you'd never find in a Discovery Channel, NOVA or National Geographic DVD is good stuff.

Finally, there are comprehensive post-mission interviews with the crews of these flights, usually backed by footage from the flight itself. The style of interviewing is almost quaint, with such carefully crafted answers from the astronauts, and a generally respectful press gallery. Oh the good old days...

Each set includes three well labeled DVDs that break the missions up chronologicaly. Overall, I say this is a valuable collection of history for a serious NASA afficionado, but at $35 a piece, don't expect the casual fan to enjoy it much.

Great historical document
Like all the DVD-sets from Spacecraft films, this is a first class historical document. The complete footage of the Apollo 8 flight, the first voyage of humans all the way to the moon. An event comparable only to the voyages of Columbus and Magellan and the like. Much has been said and written about the magnificent and majestic, utterly sublime earthrise that was first observed by the crew of Apollo 8 (and thanks to television, by millions of people back on earth) when they returned in their spacecraft from the far side of the moon , but you will look for it in vain on this DVD-set. Neither the TV transmissions nor the 16 mm films show this famous earthrise. I suspect that it was actually made by Apollo 10 (the famous photographs are probably from Apollo 8, but not the video). Does somebody know this for sure? Really, I have been scanning these 3 DVD's three times, but I couldn't find the famous earthrise footage (there is one on the Apollo 11 DVD set actually, but that is not the famous one).
That being said, this set is a must-have for anyone truly interested in the history of space travel! Infinitely more valuable than any documentary. Praise to spacecraft films!!!