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Readers! A November fund-raising drive!

 

It is unfortunately time for another November fund-raising campaign to support my work here at Behind the Black. I really dislike doing these, but 2025 is so far turning out to be a very poor year for donations and subscriptions, the worst since 2020. I very much need your support for this webpage to survive.

 

And I think I provide real value. Fifteen years ago I said SLS was garbage and should be cancelled. Almost a decade ago I said Orion was a lie and a bad idea. As early as 1998, long before almost anyone else, I predicted in my first book, Genesis: The Story of Apollo 8, that private enterprise and freedom would conquer the solar system, not government. Very early in the COVID panic and continuing throughout I noted that every policy put forth by the government (masks, social distancing, lockdowns, jab mandates) was wrong, misguided, and did more harm than good. In planetary science, while everyone else in the media still thinks Mars has no water, I have been reporting the real results from the orbiters now for more than five years, that Mars is in fact a planet largely covered with ice.

 

I could continue with numerous other examples. If you want to know what others will discover a decade hence, read what I write here at Behind the Black. And if you read my most recent book, Conscious Choice, you will find out what is going to happen in space in the next century.

 

 

This last claim might sound like hubris on my part, but I base it on my overall track record.

 

So please consider donating or subscribing to Behind the Black, either by giving a one-time contribution or a regular subscription. I could really use the support at this time. There are five ways of doing so:

 

1. Zelle: This is the only internet method that charges no fees. All you have to do is use the Zelle link at your internet bank and give my name and email address (zimmerman at nasw dot org). What you donate is what I get.

 

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Fifty years ago today: the Apollo 1 launchpad fire

Link here.

Fifty years ago Friday, the first – but sadly not the last – fatal spaceflight accident struck NASA when a fire claimed the lives of Virgil “Gus” Grissom, Roger Chaffee, and Ed White during a training exercise at Launch Complex 34. The accident, a major setback for the struggling Apollo program, ushered in the first understanding of the “bad day” effects of schedule pressure for spaceflight and brought with it words and reminders that still echo today.

The article provides a very detailed and accurate look at the history and causes of the accident, as well as its consequences, which even today influence American space engineering.

Genesis cover

On Christmas Eve 1968 three Americans became the first humans to visit another world. What they did to celebrate was unexpected and profound, and will be remembered throughout all human history. Genesis: the Story of Apollo 8, Robert Zimmerman's classic history of humanity's first journey to another world, tells that story, and it is now available as both an ebook and an audiobook, both with a foreword by Valerie Anders and a new introduction by Robert Zimmerman.

 

The print edition can be purchased at Amazon or from any other book seller. If you want an autographed copy the price is $60 for the hardback and $45 for the paperback, plus $8 shipping for each. Go here for purchasing details. The ebook is available everywhere for $5.99 (before discount) at amazon, or direct from my ebook publisher, ebookit. If you buy it from ebookit you don't support the big tech companies and the author gets a bigger cut much sooner.


The audiobook is also available at all these vendors, and is also free with a 30-day trial membership to Audible.
 

"Not simply about one mission, [Genesis] is also the history of America's quest for the moon... Zimmerman has done a masterful job of tying disparate events together into a solid account of one of America's greatest human triumphs."--San Antonio Express-News

5 comments

  • Wayne

    I’ll take this sad opportunity to mention– we have a very nice Planetarium dedicated to Chaffee, located in Grand Rapids, Michigan.

    https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Roger_B._Chaffee_Planetarium

    – professionally done intro history reel (great video)

    Chaffee Planetarium Installation
    https://youtu.be/4KCSgapb3is
    (6:22)

  • Garry

    The understanding of fire that was gained from the accident has had benefits well beyond the field of space travel.

    I wish I could find the old Life magazine article that fascinated me when I was a kid in the 70’s and made me a fan of the space program. The article was on the benefits of the space program, and one of their focuses was this accident.

    According to the article, in response to this accident NASA undertook what was the most thorough investigation of fire ever, which led to development of safe wiring used in many fields, paints that didn’t give off toxic fumes when burned, and many, many other products that have saved countless lives.

    As devastating as the accident was, we didn’t let it stop us, and in fact used it to learn very valuable lessons that brought great benefit to mankind. I hope we still have this spirit.

  • wayne

    Garry-
    Good stuff. (it’s really been 50 years… feel “old” today.)

    Google-books appears to have Life Magazine archived on-line, although it’s not quite the same as having them in hand.
    -Last I knew ( jeez, 2-decades ago)— you could get (random dates) them for $5-10 a copy. “historic” issues priced accordingly higher.

  • Edward

    Garry wrote: “As devastating as the accident was, we didn’t let it stop us, and in fact used it to learn very valuable lessons that brought great benefit to mankind. I hope we still have this spirit.

    I am reminded of Bill Whittle’s acknowledgement of The Deal that we have with reality:
    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GXbdJ3kyVyU (7 minutes)

    (Tomorrow is another sad anniversary.)

  • Garry

    Thanks, Edward; great video!

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