So yesterday I told the amazing story the descent of the Apollo 11 mission's lander "Eagle". Hopefully, you came to realise that it was not at all as easy, or safe as popular histories might let you believe. I think that Armstrong, Aldrin and Collins were every bit as heroic in the face of terrifying situations as other explorers, such as Shackleton or Douglas Mawson (more about him another time perhaps).
Here is an edited sound file of the descent as it was broadcast on 20th July 1969. I have deleted some of the gaps and tidied up a few parts, so my version is considerably shorter than it would have been in reality.
Listen out for Charlie Duke's voice (he's "Houston", or CAPCOM), Buzz Aldrin reading out altitude and lateral data and Neil Armstrong announcing the landing. You'll also hear Charlie Duke say "copy 1202" just before they get to 1400 feet - that was the error code in the navigation computer. Later, you'll hear descriptions of "great shadow" (the Eagle's own shadow on the Lunar surface) and the spray of dust and debris as the rocket exhaust hit the ground. Just before the landing, listen out for "contact light" as the leg probe hits the Moon, and then the engine shut-down sequence. Finally of course, there is the hairs-on-the-back-of-the-neck exchange between Armstrong and Duke - "Tranquillity Base here, the Eagle has landed", and "you got a bunch of guys about to turn blue. We're breathing again. Thankyou!"
