Artemis II vs Apollo

We were there to witness the launch of Artemis II, and on this episode we compare and profile it against one of the Apollo mission.  Which one though?

Transcript

Paula 0:00

For the Best Aerospace Era this is the mansplaining podcast. Here is your host Anthony L. Sealey

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Welcome, aerospace enthusiasts. Here at the Mansplaining Podcast, we don't just like to talk about aerospace history, we like to witness it ourselves. I was there to see the launch of Artemis II, and on this episode, I'll share what that experience was like. Also I'll profile and kinda do a comparison episode on how this lunar mission stacks up against one of the Apollo missions. But which Apollo mission should I compare it to? This question has been asked countless times since nineteen seventy-two. When are we going back? On the morning of April first, I flew down to Florida to find out. I even ran into some coworkers from in-flight that had the same idea that day. Now, astronauts have not traveled beyond low Earth orbit and further out towards the Moon since 1972. That's more than 50 years ago. It's one of the major reasons 1903 to 1975 is the best aerospace era. That changed this year on Wednesday, April 1st, 2026. It's estimated that there were more than four hundred thousand other aerospace enthusiasts who traveled to the Florida coast in anticipation of this historic launch. We made our way out through heavy traffic to the Kennedy Space Center, and we were located about five miles away. That's as close as NASA security would let me get. I could not see Artemis II on the launch pad beyond the tree line, but I could see the tip of one of the lightning rods that surround Launchpad 39B, so we knew exactly where to look. It's Florida, so of course, we got rained on while we waited for launch. Now, at eighteen thirty-five, it happened. The ground trembled slightly and then we saw SLS climb up from the tree line. It was like seeing a skyscraper ascend into the sky, an incredible sight. The light coming from the rocket engines was bright enough to hurt your eyes. Everyone began to cheer. I used my binoculars to get a closer look. It took some time for the loud sound from the launch to hit us. I followed SLS with my binoculars on its trajectory up and over the Atlantic. I was able to see the two solid rocket boosters separate perfectly. In the span of just minutes, what looked like a skyscraper in the sky began to look like a star until it faded into the blue sky. An incredible scene. This was April first, but this was no joke. Congrats to all the aerospace engineers and everyone who worked on this tirelessly to make this mission a success, and of course, to the crew, Victor Glover, Reid Wiseman, Christina Koch, and Jeremy Hansen. I did not try to take pictures or video because I prefer to live in the moment and see things with my own eyes rather than looking through a phone. There are plenty of other cameras there already. Despite the massive traffic and the short rain shower that happened while we waited, this was worth it, and I encourage everyone to try and see a launch at least once. Now, there is a lot of information out there about Artemis 2's mission on NASA.gov, artemislivetracker.com, and other socials. So I thought this would be a good time to compare this mission to one of Apollo's missions and see how it stacks up This will be a kind of a comparison episode. A lot has changed since the time of Apollo. For one perspective, a Ford Mustang GT back in the 1960s cost around $2,800. And now it costs around $50,000. That's inflation for you. Now Artemis II versus Apollo. But which Apollo mission? Let's compare Artemis II against Apollo 10. Why Apollo 10? Why not Apollo 10? There are some interesting similarities between these two lunar missions. But there is one major reason I chose Apollo 10 here, which I will get to at the end. Let's get into it. Let's go back to nineteen sixty-nine. Apollo ten's mission was basically a full dress rehearsal for the eventual lunar landing set for the next Apollo mission. We all know that one. but Apollo ten does not get as much coverage as the others. The most important part of Apollo ten's mission was to see how the lunar module, or LIM, would perform in lunar orbit. The astronauts selected for Apollo ten are Eugene Cernan, John Young, and Mission Commander Tom Stafford. A very experienced astronaut crew from their time in the Gemini program. Now, as commander of this mission, Tom Stafford made it a major point to give the American public as much access to this mission as technically possible at the time in the 1960s. The American public was paying for it after all. He said, "What better way to take viewers along to the moon than using color television?" Color TV was still new and a big deal back in the 1960s. Stafford worked with what he called a skunkworks team to modify a classified at the time TV camera originally intended to be used in the Korean conflict. It was ready and installed on Apollo ten only ten days before launch. Artemis II carries this same spirit With 32 cameras, including some mounted outside the spacecraft with much higher resolution. Also, the crew apparently took cell phones that were kept in airplane mode during the mission. Which they can also take pictures and video with. They could also be followed live at artemislivetracker.com, along with video streams from NASA's channel and their socials. Now, the crew of Apollo 10 nicknamed their command module Charlie Brown and lunar module Snoopy. This wasn't because they were just fans of the cartoon. I mean, who isn't? Stafford said NASA had for years given out Snoopy pins for outstanding quality work, so the choice of Snoopy was a way of acknowledging the contributions of the hundreds of thousands of people who got us there. There is a famous photo of Tom Safford in his spacesuit as he walked Down a hallway before launch. As he walked by, he patted the head of a Snoopy stuffed toy held by NASA staffer Jamye Flowers. The crew of Artemis II named their Orion spacecraft Integrity, which is also a fitting name. Now Apollo 10 lifted off from the same launch pad, 39B, on May 18, 1969. This is actually the first time a Saturn V had launched from 39B. Here's how that launch went in Stafford's words. The ride on the S-1C first stage was smooth. Nothing but a guttural roar you felt rather than heard. We pitched and rolled as planned, heading out over the Atlantic for over two minutes. It took 11 seconds for Apollo 10 to clear the tower complex. Artemis II cleared the tower faster than that. We went from nearly 5 Gs to zero in a fraction of a second. The shutdown [of the first stage] felt like being in a train wreck.” train wreck. Stafford said after the first stage fell away, the S-2 second stage's five J-2 engines fired and jolted the Apollo astronauts back into their seats. Young hit the switches to jettison the escape tower and shroud, so for the first time they could see out their small windows. About five minutes later, they were thrown forward again when the second stage shut down and fell away. Now with just the S-IVB third stage using this one J-2 engine, eleven minutes after launch, Apollo 10 was in orbit. What an amazing sight this must have been for the crowds of people who were there to see this back in 1969. Just as the crowds were to see Artemis II follow a similar trajectory and see the two solid rocket boosters fall away. Now, all was not well for the crew of Apollo 10, however. While over the night sky of Australia on their second orbit, Astronaut Charlie Duke, who served as CAPCOM in Mission Control for this mission, radioed that they had a go for trans-lunar injection, the burn that would take them out from low Earth orbit. Stafford said, As our speed rose, so did a disturbing sensation from the S-IVB engine. A kind of flutter and vibrations grew so strong we could not read the dials on the control panel. Stafford said he could barely get the words out of his mouth as he tried to radio the situation. The vibrations were so violent that Stafford actually placed his hand on the abort handle that could end their lunar mission right then and there. I told myself, if she's going to blow, she's going to blow. That's the kind of judgment call only an experienced test pilot and astronaut can make. Stafford, Young, and Cernan endured this vibration until shutdown. Later, a faulty helium vent was determined to be the cause of the violent oscillations. A problem aerospace engineers fixed before the next Apollo missions. About four hours later, the Command Module, Charlie Brown, separated from the S-IVB stage. Young performed the complex maneuvers required for the Command Module to rendezvous and dock back with the Lunar Module, Snoopy, which was still housed in the S-IVB. "We have a capture," Stafford radioed to Mission Control. The crew of Apollo 10 could finally take a breath. They were now thirty thousand miles from Earth, which now looked like the size of a basketball. The crew of Artemis 2 did not have to perform this maneuver, as they did not have a lunar lander to test on this mission. They did, however, send back an amazing picture of the Earth's night side from this perspective. Now that the Command Module and Lunar Module were docked, they could continue out away from Earth. Next stop, the Moon. The crew of Apollo 10 did a television broadcast on their way to the moon, Artemis II did with streaming services. Now, did anyone watch the live coverage from Artemis II's flyby of the Moon? We got access from inside and outside the Orion spacecraft, and we were able to see the Moon in great detail as it got bigger on their approach. There were some big moments here from this lunar flyby that I want to mention here. How about the moment Artemis II passed the distance mark set by Apollo 13? The furthest distance that Artemis II achieved was 254,756 Miles, according to artemislivetracker.com. This is a new aerospace record. How about the moment the crew revealed that they brought the U.S. flag that was intended to be mounted on the moon on Apollo 18, but that mission was canceled due to budget cuts. There was also the message from astronaut Charlie Duke, who I mentioned before was the Capcom for Apollo 10, and who later walked on the moon on Apollo 16. And as of the time of this recording, Charlie Duke is still with us at the age of 90. Also, the chilling moments, like the message from astronaut Jim Lovell, that he recorded for the Artemis crew before he passed away just last year. His message began with, "Welcome to my old neighborhood." And of course, the moment Jeremy Hansen suggested on behalf of the Artemis crew, naming one of the lunar sites on the surface Integrity after their Orion spacecraft. And another site named Caroll, after Mission Commander Reid Wiseman's late wife, who died of cancer just a few years ago. Afterwards, the crew of Artemis II all embraced each other in zero gravity. This was an awesome and truly human moment here. Something positive we all needed with everything going on down here on Earth. They also gave us some truly awesome new pictures of the Moon. Now back to May twentieth, nineteen sixty-nine. Apollo Ten was a hundred and fifty thousand miles from Earth at a speed of twenty-five hundred miles per hour and accelerating as they were captured by the lunar gravity. Their trajectory was so on point that three of the four burns scheduled were canceled. And in contrast to Artemis II's view of the Moon on approach, the crew of Apollo Ten could not see it at all. Although John Young said he thought he could see a dark spot in the stars Stafford radioed to Mission Control, "we'll take your word for it that it's there." It wasn't until they passed around the dark side of the Moon, the side that we never see from our perspective here on Earth, that they got a look at the lunar surface. This is a critical time when they're out of contact. Cernan said, 'god, that moon is beautiful. We're right on top of it.'" Imagine the isolated but incredible place to be on the far side of the Moon, out of sight and completely cut off from the Earth and everyone you've ever known. They did this for about forty minutes. I wonder if any astronaut who has ever experienced this had the irrational thought, "What if the Earth is not there when we come back around?" Isn't there a song about the dark side of the Moon? Maybe that one was on Artemis' playlist. When Artemis II did this, another record was made. It was the furthest humans had ever been separated as Artemis was on the far side of the moon, and those on ISS, the International Space Station, were on the far side of Earth. Now, unlike Artemis II, who just did a flyby of the Moon and headed back to Earth, Apollo 10 had some work to do. Their service propulsion system fired and slowed them down to three thousand seven hundred miles per hour to achieve orbit about sixty miles above the lunar surface. They admired the gray, black, yellow, and reddish colors of the ground and watched the earth rise. They performed another television broadcast. After that, it was time to get some sleep because the next day, Cernan and Stafford were going to take Snoopy, the lunar module, for a walk. On their 11th orbit, and after working out some communication and docking issues, Stafford and Cernan in the lunar module Snoopy undocked from the command module Charlie Brown with astronaut Young still inside. Cernan radioed to Young, "Don't leave without us." The command module is their only ride back home. As the lunar module descended down to the surface of the moon, Stafford said, "The rocky surface of the moon loomed closer and closer. We were only 35,000 feet above, not much more than a commercial airliner cruising above the surface of the Earth." They got a closer look than the crew of Artemis II. What an incredible sight Stafford and Cernan had as they flew along a flight path that was called the Freeway or US 1. along this path were mountains, craters, and a location called Tranquility. You may have heard of that one. They took pictures of future landing sites and tested the lunar module's landing radar system, valuable data that was needed for Apollo 11's mission scheduled for just a few months later. Stafford also got a look at a ridge named after his wife, Faye. He also had a hot mic moment here. Yes, It even happens to astronauts. As they came up on the gigantic crater named Censorinus Stafford said, "It's bigger than shit." Back on Earth, reporters ask, "Did he actually just say that?" Astronaut Jack Schmitt said, "No, no. He said it's bigger than Schmitt. He was talking about me." I doubt they bought that. After they flew around the dark side, it was time to ascend back up and rendezvous and dock with the command module. This is where they ran into a self-inflicted problem. Stafford inadvertently hit the abort guidance system to auto when it should have been left on hold altitude. The LM flipped end over end. Even our astronauts make mistakes. After a few more cuss words were heard over the radio, Stafford and Cernan were able to right the craft and fire their ascent engine. Now back up to a higher lunar orbit, Young in the command module maneuvered to dock with the LM. Stafford and Cernan waited until they heard the boom followed by the bang of the latches After some checks and equalizing the pressure, Stafford and Cernan join Young in the command module. Now the LM Snoopy would not be coming back to Earth on their journey home. After completing its mission, the lunar module Snoopy, was jettisoned for its own eternal journey in space. I wonder where Snoopy is now. They continued to orbit the moon in the command module Charlie Brown and took a few more pictures. In all, they spent 60 hours there. It was not all smooth, however. One of their fuel cells died, but they had two others to rely on. The more modern Orion spacecraft uses solar arrays instead of fuel cells. So Artemis 2 did not have this kind of problem. Now time to head back home. Now here is the big reason I wanted to compare Artemis 2 to Apollo 10. Tom Stafford said this in his book We Have Capture by Tom Stafford and Michael Cassatt After a two-minute burn, our trajectory was designed for the fastest return possible, allowing us to cover the 238,000 miles distance in 42 hours. This meant that at one point we'd reach a speed of 24,791.4 nautical miles or 28,547 statute miles an hour. The fastest human beings have ever flown or will ever fly until astronauts return from a trip to Mars. These are some bold words here from Stafford. This was one of those awesome things I came across during my independent study of the space race back at Reinhardt University. The fastest humans have ever gone. So did Artemis II beat this record? There are some variables to consider here. Artemis II did a flyby of the moon where Apollo 10 slowed down to achieve orbit around the moon before burning for home. They would reach immense speeds because of the Earth's gravitational pull. This is 20th century aerospace engineering versus 21st century aerospace engineering. Think of that 1969 Mustang GT and a 2026 Mustang GT that I mentioned earlier at the start line for a drag race. Apollo 10 versus Artemis II. So who wins? Well, let's find out. Stand by. I checked a few different sources because there's some conflicting information out there, but the answer is no. Artemis II did not achieve a faster speed than Apollo 10. If you want to check for yourself, go to the Guinness World Records website and type in Apollo 10. You will see that it still holds this record for the fastest manned craft. You will also see the location for this record is marked N/A, which is an interesting decision. This monumental mark stays with Apollo 10 and in the best aerospace era. Now back to Earth. Now Orion Integrity splashed down on April 10th at 20.07 Eastern Time, 2026, with a mission time of 9 days, 1 hour, and 31 minutes. Command Module Charlie Brown splashed down on May 26th at 12.53 Eastern Time, 1969, with a mission time of 8 days and 3 minutes. Both Apollo 10 and Artemis 2's mission was to set the stage for future lunar missions around and on our ever-present satellite and the largest object in our night sky. I have seen a lot of pictures online with Artemis 2 beside Apollo 8, 11, and 17 respectively. This is great and will get more people interested in the achievements of those from the best aerospace era. With this mission, are we on the precipice of a new golden age of aerospace? Or do you think this is all a conspiracy and Apollo 10 was filmed in a Hollywood studio and Artemis II was done using deepfakes and AI deepfakes? As someone who was there at launch, it looked real to me. Thank you so much for listening and remember there's always a light at the end of the runway.

Paula 28:16

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