NOVA; To the Moon; Interview with George Mueller, engineer and associate administrator at NASA, 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 George Mueller, engineer and associate administrator at NASA, part 2 of 3
Producing Organization
WGBH Educational Foundation
Contributing Organization
WGBH (Boston, Massachusetts)
AAPB ID
cpb-aacip-15-qv3bz62m56
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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
George Mueller, engineer and associate administrator at NASA, is interviewed about the Apollo program. He describes the feeling and sound of the Saturn V craft doing the all-up test, and how the test helped NASA identify problems with the spacecraft that eventually was modified to be used in the Apollo 8 mission. Mueller explains how George Low and pressure from the Russians pushed them to come up with a successful mission for Apollo 8, and says that an issue with Apollo 8 would have been catastrophic for the entire NASA program. Apollo 10 was the "pre-cursor to the lunar landing", and it was decided that it would not land for safety reasons. Mueller describes the Apollo 11 mission and their near-crash during landing due to MASCONS and gravitational differences, as well as his own relief at their success. After Apollo 12, Mueller says that he decided to leave because of the pressures of the job and his own financial needs, among other reasons, including his desire to not be part of the problem of government in Washington. Mueller also explains the relationship between the scientists and the engineers, and he describes a 1968 plan to return to the moon, to be followed by a trip to Mars, which Mueller still believes in. Mueller then explains his work on reusable rockets to go to the moon, which he hopes would "transform space activities in the future". The interview ends with Mueller's reasons why he thinks we should return to the moon, and the final segments are audio-only segments on Russian rockets, and learning to operate spacesuits on Gemini.
Created Date
1998
Asset type
Raw Footage
Genres
Interview
Topics
History
Technology
Science
Subjects
American History; Gemini; apollo; moon; Space; astronaut
Media type
Moving Image
Duration
00:26:30
Embed Code
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Credits
Interviewee: Mueller, George Edwin, 1918-2015
Interviewee: Mueller, George Edwin, 1918-2015
Producing Organization: WGBH Educational Foundation
AAPB Contributor Holdings
WGBH
Identifier: cpb-aacip-689163a4f1d (Filename)
Format: Digital Betacam
Generation: Original
Duration: 0:26:30
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Citations
Chicago: “NOVA; To the Moon; Interview with George Mueller, engineer and associate administrator at NASA, part 2 of 3 ,” 1998, WGBH, American Archive of Public Broadcasting (GBH and the Library of Congress), Boston, MA and Washington, DC, accessed August 22, 2025, http://americanarchive.org/catalog/cpb-aacip-15-qv3bz62m56.
MLA: “NOVA; To the Moon; Interview with George Mueller, engineer and associate administrator at NASA, part 2 of 3 .” 1998. WGBH, American Archive of Public Broadcasting (GBH and the Library of Congress), Boston, MA and Washington, DC. Web. August 22, 2025. <http://americanarchive.org/catalog/cpb-aacip-15-qv3bz62m56>.
APA: NOVA; To the Moon; Interview with George Mueller, engineer and associate administrator at NASA, 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-qv3bz62m56