The Curiosity Chronicles

Changing things up a bit with this one.  Sundry Stuff Segments is a new type episode being introduced today.  Less research intensive, quick hit on multiple topics, that grew out of my love for Fun Fact Friday!  Lighthearted, have some fun, learn something and take these with you to your next cocktail party!

Sources:

https://www.history.com/news/inside-the-drug-use-that-fueled-nazi-germany

https://www.carpentershall.org/americas-first-bank-robbery

https://brilliantmaps.com/eng-gb-uk/

https://www.historic-uk.com/HistoryUK/HistoryofBritain/The-UK-Great-Britain-Whats-the-Difference/

https://www.presidentialpetmuseum.com/pets/andrew-jacksons-pet-parrot/

https://pearlharbor.org/how-much-of-the-film-pearl-harbor-is-accurate/

https://www.warhistoryonline.com/featured/endless-historical-errors-made-pearl-harbor-movie.html

https://www.britannica.com/biography/Commodus

https://www.history.com/topics/ancient-history/marcus-aurelius

https://www.britannica.com/biography/Marcus-Aurelius-Roman-emperor

https://www.britannica.com/biography/William-Wallace

https://www.scotsman.com/heritage-and-retro/heritage/10-braveheart-inaccuracies-historical-blunders-mel-gibson-film-about-wars-scottish-independence-2862621

https://www.history.co.uk/article/the-compi%25C3%25A8gne-wagon-one-train-carriage-two-peace-treaties

Not all Apollo landed on the moon!  Check out the last episode in the Space Race series and hear about the set up missions to the moon missions as well as the 6 flights that landed on the moon and the one "successful failure."  Apollo had it all, mutiny, first man, moon buggy, golf in space, and lightning strikes!

Sources:

Kluger, Jeffrey. Apollo 8: The Thrilling Story of the First Mission to the Moon. New York, Henry Holt and Company, 2017.

Kranz, Gene. Failure is not an Option: Mission Control from Mercury to Apollo 13 and Beyond. Simon and Schuster, 2000.

Shepard, Alan, et al. Moon Shot: The Inside Story of America’s Race to the Moon. Open Road, 1994.

Hansen, James R. First Man: The Life of Neil Armstrong. Simon & Schuster, 2005.

Lovell, Jim, and Jeffrey Kluger. Apollo 13. Houghton Mifflin, 1994.

See Apollo-Part One for more sources

Tune into The Curiosity Chronicles to finally hear about the lead up to the missions that landed men on the moon for the first time!  In part one of Project Apollo we explore the different theories on how to get to the moon, the awesome machinery that launched men to the moon, the tragedy that nearly de-railed Apollo, and more!!

Sources:

https://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/apollo/missions/index.html

https://www.oxfordreference.com/view/10.1093/oi/authority.20110803095739259

https://appel.nasa.gov/2012/01/10/5-1_lunar_orbit_rendezvous-html/

https://www.nasa.gov/centers/johnson/rocketpark/saturn_v.html

https://airandspace.si.edu/explore-and-learn/topics/apollo/apollo-program/spacecraft/saturn_v.cfm

https://www.history.com/this-day-in-history/apollo-8-returns-to-earth

https://www.bbc.com/future/article/20190716-apollo-in-50-numbers-oddities

https://airandspace.si.edu/explore-and-learn/topics/apollo/apollo-program/spacecraft/saturn_v.cfm

https://www.history.com/this-day-in-history/apollo-8-returns-to-earth

https://www.bbc.com/future/article/20190716-apollo-in-50-numbers-oddities

https://arstechnica.com/science/2021/02/remastered-images-reveal-how-far-alan-shepard-hit-a-golf-ball-on-the-moon/

https://airandspace.si.edu/explore-and-learn/topics/apollo/apollo-program/landing-missions/apollo15.cfm

https://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/apollo/missions/apollo16.html

https://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/apollo-soyuz/astp_mission.html

https://www.nasa.gov/content/national-space-council-users-advisory-group/membership_roster_h_schmitt/

https://history.nasa.gov/SP-4029/Apollo_18-17_Call_Signs.htm

https://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/apollo/missions/apollo17.html

See Apollo Part 2 for more sources!

Tune into The Curiosity Chronicles to hear about the missions that made Project Gemini a success!  They weren't all perfect but they accomplished the goals to get to Apollo.  Hear about great missions, not so great missions, and missions that nearly ended in tragedy in Part Two of Project Gemini!

Sources:

Kranz, Gene. Failure is not an Option: Mission Control from Mercury to Apollo 13 and Beyond. Simon and Schuster, 2000.

https://www.spaceline.org/united-states-manned-space-flight/gemini-mission-program-index/gemini-6a-fact-sheet/

Kluger, Jeffrey. Apollo 8: The Thrilling Story of the First Mission to the Moon. New York, Henry Holt and Company, 2017.

https://www.nasa.gov/feature/geminis-first-docking-turns-to-wild-ride-in-orbit/

https://nssdc.gsfc.nasa.gov/nmc/spacecraft/display.action?id=1966-047A

https://www.spaceline.org/united-states-manned-space-flight/gemini-mission-program-index/gemini-10-fact-sheet/

https://www.spaceline.org/united-states-manned-space-flight/gemini-mission-program-index/gemini-11-fact-sheet/

https://www.spaceline.org/united-states-manned-space-flight/gemini-mission-program-index/gemini-12-fact-sheet/

As well as all of the sources listed in Gemini Episode One

The United States had put a man into space and orbit but they were still behind the Soviets in terms of accomplishments and they were no where near putting a man on the moon!  NASA needed time to test techniques and equipment.  Project Gemini was that bridge between early space and lunar landing.  Tune in to The Curiosity Chronicles to hear the first part of Project Gemini!

Sources (Split between this and the next Gemini episode because they don't all fit in one):

https://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/gemini/index.html

https://www.nasa.gov/specials/gemini_gallery/

https://nasa.fandom.com/wiki/Orbit_Attitude_and_Maneuvering_System

Shepard, Alan, et al. Moon Shot: The Inside Story of America’s Race to the Moon. Open Road, 1994.

https://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/menieres-disease/symptoms-causes/syc-20374910

https://www.nasa.gov/content/profile-of-john-glenn/

https://www.britannica.com/biography/John-Glenn

https://www.nasa.gov/content/theodore-freeman-honored-in-50th-anniversary-memorial-ceremony/

https://www.nasa.gov/feature/remembering-nasa-astronauts-elliot-see-and-charles-bassett

https://www.spaceline.org/united-states-manned-space-flight/gemini-mission-program-index/gemini-3-fact-sheet/

https://www.space.com/39341-john-young-smuggled-corned-beef-space.html

https://www.spaceline.org/united-states-manned-space-flight/gemini-mission-program-index/gemini-4-fact-sheet/

https://www.spaceline.org/united-states-manned-space-flight/gemini-mission-program-index/gemini-5-fact-sheet/

In the 1950s the Soviet Union shocked the world by launching the first man made satellite.  Suddenly the Cold War turned into the Space Race.  Project Mercury was the U.S.A answer to getting a man into space as soon as possible.  This episode delves into the beginning of the Space Race, and introduces the first astronauts from the United States!  

Sources:

https://www.pbs.org/wgbh/americanexperience/features/chasing-moon-wernher-von-braun-and-nazis/

https://time.com/5627637/nasa-nazi-von-braun/

https://www.history.com/topics/cold-war/space-race

https://www.history.com/this-day-in-history/sputnik-launched

Shepard, Alan, et al. Moon Shot: The Inside Story of America’s Race to the Moon. Open Road, 1994.

Wolfe, Tom. The Right Stuff. New York, Picador, 1979.

https://www.space.com/24481-deke-slayton.html

https://www.britannica.com/biography/Wally-Schirra

https://www.britannica.com/biography/Alan-B-Shepard-Jr

https://www.britannica.com/biography/Virgil-I-Grissom

https://www.nasa.gov/audience/forstudents/k-4/stories/nasa-knows/who-is-john-glenn-k4.html

https://www.nasa.gov/astronautprofiles/carpenter/

https://www.britannica.com/biography/Gordon-Cooper

https://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/mercury/missions/objectives.html

https://www.space.com/17385-alan-shepard-first-american-in-space.html

https://history.nasa.gov/friendship7/

https://www.forbes.com/sites/quora/2016/11/17/this-is-why-objects-burn-when-they-re-enter-the-atmosphere/?sh=22f1213d6963

Kluger, Jeffrey. Apollo 8: The Thrilling Story of the First Mission to the Moon. New York, Henry Holt and Company, 2017.

https://www.americaspace.com/2015/05/24/flight-of-the-aurora-remembering-the-mission-of-scott-carpenter-part-2/

Kranz, Gene. Failure is not an Option: Mission Control from Mercury to Apollo 13 and Beyond. Simon and Schuster, 2000.

https://www.space.com/24461-wally-schirra.html

Bobby Kennedy lived much of his life in his brother's shadow, but in the mid 1960s he emerged as a leading figure in American politics.  He made a name for himself as Attorney General and later on as a Senator from New York.  In his bid to follow in his brother's footsteps and become President of the United States he instead met with a fate all to familiar to the Kennedy family.  This episode explores Bobby Kennedy's achievements, his impact on America, and how 1968 cut down another young and famous figure! 

Martin Luther King Jr. was a titan of the Civil Rights Movement.  Throughout the late 50s and most of the 60s he was influentially and personally involved with many different protests and movements to advance the status of Black Americans.  In this episode we explore some of those movements and how it all came crashing down in 1968!

Sources:

https://www.biography.com/political-figure/robert-kennedy

https://www.britannica.com/biography/Robert-F-Kennedy

https://www.biography.com/activist/martin-luther-king-jr

https://www.history.com/topics/black-history/civil-rights-movement

https://www.history.com/topics/black-history/martin-luther-king-jr-assassination

https://www.britannica.com/event/assassination-of-Martin-Luther-King-Jr/The-Mountaintop-Speech

https://www.smithsonianmag.com/history/martin-luther-king-jrs-assassination-sparked-uprisings-cities-across-america-180968665/

https://www.biography.com/activist/rosa-parks

https://www.history.com/topics/black-history/rosa-parks

https://www.history.com/topics/black-history/freedom-rides