The first page of a prepared statement for President Richard Nixon, in the event that the Apollo 11 astronauts were stranded on the Moon. Via the National Archives; tip of the hat to Letters of Note.
i remember seeing this a while back, i have it saved on my hard disk. it’s an interesting look at an alternate history that never panned out. the title is ominous, the language stirring, and the overall effect is pretty inspiring. up until apollo 11, nasa had never lost an astronaut in space, something that hasn’t happened since, either (both the challenger and columbia disasters occurred within earth’s atmosphere).
it also brings to mind the idea of russia’s so-called “lost cosmonauts”. there’s an interesting contrast between the two approaches.
and while we’re on the topic, here’s a link from an article boing boing ran a while ago about death in space.
(via itsfullofstars)
