Countdown to History: The Prelude to the Moon Landing
In October 1968, NASA made significant progress towards President Kennedy's goal of landing a man on the Moon. The successful Apollo 7 mission marked the return of American astronauts to space after a 23-month hiatus, while preparations for the Apollo 8 mission to orbit the Moon were underway. The redesigned Apollo spacecraft was thoroughly tested, including live television broadcasts from space. Meanwhile, the Soviet Union resumed its crewed missions, and rumors of a Soviet crewed lunar mission influenced NASA's decision to send Apollo 8 on its historic circumlunar flight in December.