Alex Wolfe
On Another Apollo Anniversary, a Reminder: IBM Space Technology Continues to Evolve
History’s publicists have done well by Apollo 11 and Neil Armstrong’s first moon steps in July 1969. However, fewer recall the Apollo 12 lunar mission four months later. It almost didn’t happen. On Nov. 14, 1969, in the first minute after lift-off, two lightning bolts struck Apollo 12. The spacecraft’s main power supply went dark, […]
How a NASA Flight Controller’s Quick Thinking Saved Apollo 12
Less than a minute after Apollo 12 lifted off from the Kennedy Space Center on Nov. 14, 1969, it was struck twice by lightning. The electrical surges knocked out the main on-board power supply and disrupted the telemetry feed that was sending data from the command module to NASA controllers on the ground. Their monitor […]