NOVA; To the Moon; Interview with Gene Cernan, NASA astronaut, aviator, and engineer who was part of Gemini 9A, Apollo 10, and Apollo 17, part 1 of 3

1998

Gene Cernan, NASA astronaut, aviator, and engineer who was part of Gemini 9A, Apollo 10, and Apollo 17, is interviewed about his spaceflights. Cernan discusses the struggles of extravehicular activity (EVA) during Gemini 9, and his general difficulties during Gemini 9, as well as what was learned from Gemini. Cernan recounts his love for the Saturn V spacecraft, and describes its inspiring and overwhelming nature. Apollo 10 is then discussed, with Cernan describing it as the forgotten Apollo mission, describing the crew and the decision to not land on the moon, and ends by saying that it was for the best that Apollo 10 did not go to the moon.

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Series: NOVA
Program: To the Moon
Program Number: 2610
Title: Interview with Gene Cernan, NASA astronaut, aviator, and engineer who was part of Gemini 9A, Apollo 10, and Apollo 17, part 1 of 3
Series Description: NOVA is a general-interest documentary series that addresses a single science issue each week. Billed as "science adventures for curious grown-ups" when it first aired in March, 1974, NOVA continues to offer an informative and entertaining approach to a challenging subject. It is also one of television's most acclaimed series, having won every major television award, most of them many times over.
Program Description: Alan Binder, former Principal Investigator of NASA's Lunar Prospector mission, is interviewed about the Lunar Prospector. Binder says that if moon travel became viable again, he would want to go to the moon, but says that in order to get financial and public support for space exploration, scientists need to sell the science of the moon. Another option, according to Binder, is to make travel to the moon commercially viable, and lists many benefits of going to the moon, including using it as a fuel source, or colonizing the surface for human habitation (audio cuts out from 00:07:30 - 00:09:00). Binder explains the work of the Lunar Prospector and talks about the necessity of having computers to do a lot of the work. On Apollo, Binder calls the program the most significant event of the 21st century, and talks about the roles of the Apollo program, the Clementine spacecraft, and hte Lunar Prospector. The interview ends with Binder's views on his relationship with NASA, which he characterizes as being needlessly bound up in beaurocracy and red tape.
Duration: 0:23:28
Asset Type: Raw video
Media Type: Video
Subjects: Space; Gemini; Astronaut; Moon; American history; Apollo
Creators: WGBH Educational Foundation (Producing Organization)
Contributors: Cernan, Eugene "Gene", 1934-2017 (Interviewee)
Rights Summary: Rights Holder: WGBH Educational Foundation
Citation: Chicago: “NOVA; To the Moon; Interview with Gene Cernan, NASA astronaut, aviator, and engineer who was part of Gemini 9A, Apollo 10, and Apollo 17, part 1 of 3,” 1998, GBH Archives, accessed December 26, 2024, http://openvault.wgbh.org/catalog/V_E8608FE7ADDF4B468A42D791E75C1032.; MLA: “NOVA; To the Moon; Interview with Gene Cernan, NASA astronaut, aviator, and engineer who was part of Gemini 9A, Apollo 10, and Apollo 17, part 1 of 3.” 1998. GBH Archives. Web. December 26, 2024. <http://openvault.wgbh.org/catalog/V_E8608FE7ADDF4B468A42D791E75C1032>.; APA: NOVA; To the Moon; Interview with Gene Cernan, NASA astronaut, aviator, and engineer who was part of Gemini 9A, Apollo 10, and Apollo 17, part 1 of 3. Boston, MA: GBH Archives. Retrieved from http://openvault.wgbh.org/catalog/V_E8608FE7ADDF4B468A42D791E75C1032

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NOVA; To the Moon; Interview with Gene Cernan, NASA astronaut, aviator, and engineer who was part of Gemini 9A, Apollo 10, and Apollo 17, part 1 of 3