Ask people about the Apollo space program and they’re most familiar with Apollo 11, when man first set foot on the Moon. But by many accounts, an even more daring and risky mission occurred seven months earlier when Apollo 8, crewed by Frank Borman, Jim Lovell, and Bill Anders, became the first manned flight ever to reach the Moon.
The story of Apollo 8 has it all: an existential enemy (the Soviets); a race against time; epic danger; close calls; a stunning and unexpected Christmas Eve broadcast heard by one-third of the world’s population; a single photograph, Earthrise, that remains perhaps the most famous ever taken; a story of three heroic wives; and an ending powerful enough to unite a divided nation at the end of one of its most terrible years.
Join NewSpace Chicago and author Robert Kurson to celebrate the 50th anniversary of the Apollo 8 mission and his release of the new book Rocket Men: The Daring Odyssey of Apollo 8 and the Astronauts Who Made Man’s First Journey to the Moon. Robert will discuss the daring mission and his research in meeting with each of the Apollo 8 astronauts.
You can order your copy of the book here.
Robert Kurson is an American author, best known for his 2004 bestselling book, Shadow Divers, the true story of two Americans who discovered a World War II German U-boat sunk 60 miles off the coast of New Jersey. Kurson began his career as an attorney, graduating from Harvard Law School, and practicing real estate law. Kurson’s professional writing career began at the Chicago Sun-Times, where he started as a data entry clerk and soon gained a full-time features writing job. In 2000, Esquire published “My Favorite Teacher,” his first magazine story, which became a finalist for a National Magazine Award. He moved from the Sun-Times to Chicago Magazine, then to Esquire, where he won a National Magazine Award and was a contributing editor for years. His stories have appeared in Rolling Stone, The New York Times Magazine, and other publications. He lives in Chicago.
This is part of a continuing series of space entrepreneurship discussion and networking forums presented by NewSpace Chicago and hosted at mHUB Chicago. The admission fee for this event is $5.
Date: Tuesday, May 15 2018
Time: 6:00pm – 9:00pm
Venue: mHUB Chicago event space
Location: 965 W Chicago Ave, Chicago, IL (Get Directions)
RSVP: Sign up through EventBrite.com
Free parking available in the mHUB parking lot after 5:30pm.