Series
NOVA
Episode
To the Moon
Raw Footage
Interview with Robert Channing Seamans, Jr., Deputy Administrator at NASA and Professor at MIT, part 2 of 3
Producing Organization
WGBH Educational Foundation
Contributing Organization
WGBH (Boston, Massachusetts)
AAPB ID
cpb-aacip-15-348gf0nz10
If you have more information about this item than what is given here, or if you have concerns about this record, we want to know! Contact us, indicating the AAPB ID (cpb-aacip-15-348gf0nz10).
Description
Program Description
This remarkably crafted program covers the full range of participants in the Apollo project, from the scientists and engineers who promoted bold ideas about the nature of the Moon and how to get there, to the young geologists who chose the landing sites and helped train the crews, to the astronauts who actually went - not once or twice, but six times, each to a more demanding and interesting location on the Moon's surface. "To The Moon" includes unprecedented footage, rare interviews, and presents a magnificent overview of the history of man and the Moon. To the Moon aired as NOVA episode 2610 in 1999.
Raw Footage Description
Robert Channing Seamans, Jr., Deputy Administrator at NASA and Professor at MIT is interviewed about the early years of NASA and the Kennedy space program. Seamans describes the meeting with himself, Jim Webb, and Robert McNamara in order to establish a space program under the Kennedy Administration, and the drafting of a proposal to President John F. Kennedy to create the space program. Other considerations included the debate over when the "end of the decade" was, and the building of the NOVA spacecraft. Seamans describes the early, negative, reception of John Houbolt's theory of Lunar Orbit Rendezvous, and says that he was receptive to the idea. Over time, the theory was investigated and accepted as the best option to save fuel. The final minute of the interview is from the interview with James W. Head.
Created Date
1998
Asset type
Raw Footage
Genres
Interview
Topics
Technology
History
Science
Subjects
American History; apollo; astronaut; Gemini; Space; moon
Media type
Moving Image
Duration
00:22:18
Embed Code
Copy and paste this HTML to include AAPB content on your blog or webpage.
Credits
Producing Organization: WGBH Educational Foundation
AAPB Contributor Holdings
WGBH
Identifier: cpb-aacip-39a59a477c1 (Filename)
Format: Digital Betacam
Generation: Original
Duration: 0:22:18
If you have a copy of this asset and would like us to add it to our catalog, please contact us.
Citations
Chicago: “NOVA; To the Moon; Interview with Robert Channing Seamans, Jr., Deputy Administrator at NASA and Professor at MIT, part 2 of 3 ,” 1998, WGBH, American Archive of Public Broadcasting (GBH and the Library of Congress), Boston, MA and Washington, DC, accessed August 16, 2025, http://americanarchive.org/catalog/cpb-aacip-15-348gf0nz10.
MLA: “NOVA; To the Moon; Interview with Robert Channing Seamans, Jr., Deputy Administrator at NASA and Professor at MIT, part 2 of 3 .” 1998. WGBH, American Archive of Public Broadcasting (GBH and the Library of Congress), Boston, MA and Washington, DC. Web. August 16, 2025. <http://americanarchive.org/catalog/cpb-aacip-15-348gf0nz10>.
APA: NOVA; To the Moon; Interview with Robert Channing Seamans, Jr., Deputy Administrator at NASA and Professor at MIT, part 2 of 3 . Boston, MA: WGBH, American Archive of Public Broadcasting (GBH and the Library of Congress), Boston, MA and Washington, DC. Retrieved from http://americanarchive.org/catalog/cpb-aacip-15-348gf0nz10