NOVA; To the Moon; Interview with Steve Bales, former NASA engineer and flight controller, part 2 of 3

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This record is featured in “To the Moon Interviews.” This record is featured in “GBH Archives Open Vault.”
Series
NOVA
Episode
To the Moon
Raw Footage
Interview with Steve Bales, former NASA engineer and flight controller, part 2 of 3
Producing Organization
WGBH Educational Foundation
Contributing Organization
WGBH (Boston, Massachusetts)
AAPB ID
cpb-aacip-15-707wm14v3n
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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
Steve Bales, former NASA engineer and flight controller, is interviewed about his work in NASA's mission control during Apollo 11. He describes the now-primitive code that was created for a 64,000-word-machine by MIT students that was used to send men to space and the moon, and compares the differences in complexity of operations between the Gemini and Apollo programs. Bales also explains his feelings after the loss of Apollo 1, and his role during Apollo 11, and the importance of practice while running Apollo 11. Bales also describes training for Apollo 11 using simulations, and describes the moments before the Apollo 11 landing on the moon including the crowding in the room and the pressure that everybody felt. During Apollo 11's descent to the moon, an alarm began sounding, and Bales explains his thoughts and why he chose not to abort the mission.
Created Date
1998
Asset type
Raw Footage
Genres
Interview
Topics
Science
Technology
History
Subjects
Space; apollo; moon; astronaut; Gemini; American History
Media type
Moving Image
Duration
00:23:20
Embed Code
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Credits
Producing Organization: WGBH Educational Foundation
AAPB Contributor Holdings
WGBH
Identifier: cpb-aacip-bbb2e430fd2 (Filename)
Format: Digital Betacam
Generation: Original
Duration: 0:23:21
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Citations
Chicago: “NOVA; To the Moon; Interview with Steve Bales, former NASA engineer and flight controller, part 2 of 3 ,” 1998, WGBH, American Archive of Public Broadcasting (GBH and the Library of Congress), Boston, MA and Washington, DC, accessed August 14, 2025, http://americanarchive.org/catalog/cpb-aacip-15-707wm14v3n.
MLA: “NOVA; To the Moon; Interview with Steve Bales, former NASA engineer and flight controller, part 2 of 3 .” 1998. WGBH, American Archive of Public Broadcasting (GBH and the Library of Congress), Boston, MA and Washington, DC. Web. August 14, 2025. <http://americanarchive.org/catalog/cpb-aacip-15-707wm14v3n>.
APA: NOVA; To the Moon; Interview with Steve Bales, former NASA engineer and flight controller, 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-15-707wm14v3n