{"id":73163,"date":"2018-10-03T20:30:00","date_gmt":"2018-10-04T00:30:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/?migration=converted-node-433494"},"modified":"2023-10-10T11:26:10","modified_gmt":"2023-10-10T15:26:10","slug":"apollo-7-launched-as-race-to-moon-reached-final-stretch","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/missions\/apollo\/apollo-7\/apollo-7-launched-as-race-to-moon-reached-final-stretch\/","title":{"rendered":"Apollo 7 Launched as Race to Moon Reached Final Stretch"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p><em>By Bob Granath<\/em><br><em>NASA\u2019s Kennedy Space Center, Florida<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:57px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p>On Oct. 11, 1968, three American astronauts launched to Earth orbit aboard <a href=\"\/mission\/apollo-7\">Apollo 7<\/a>. It was the first piloted mission of the spacecraft designed to meet President John F. Kennedy\u2019s challenge to land on the lunar surface.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The 11-day flight took place as the race to the Moon was heating up between the United States and the Soviet Union. A month earlier, the Soviets launched the unpiloted Zond 5, a simplified version of their <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/learning-resources\/for-kids-and-students\/what-is-the-soyuz-spacecraft-grade-5-8\/\" data-type=\"post\" data-id=\"41331\">Soyuz<\/a> spacecraft designed for cosmonauts. The capsule became the first to circle around the Moon and return safely to Earth.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Both nations also were recovering from tragic losses. Three <a href=\"\/mission\/apollo-1\">Apollo 1<\/a> astronauts perished in a launch pad fire on Jan. 27, 1967. That same year, the lone cosmonaut aboard Soyuz 1 died when the spacecraft crashed on April 24.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Following almost two years of <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/the-apollo-program\/\">Apollo<\/a> spacecraft redesign and testing, Paul Donnelly, Launch Operations manager at NASA\u2019s Kennedy Space Center in Florida, expressed confidence in the men and women who worked tirelessly to prepare for the flight.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>\u201cWe have a great group of specialists from government and industry trained to work as a team,\u201d he said. \u201cJust as the astronauts are ready to fly to orbit, we are ready to get them there.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Serving as commander of Apollo 7 was NASA veteran Wally Schirra, a U.S. Navy aviator and captain. He flew <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/mission\/mercury-atlas-8-sigma-7\/\" data-type=\"mission\" data-id=\"273511\">Mercury 8<\/a> on Oct. 3, 1962, and commanded <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/missions\/gemini\/dual-gemini-flights-achieved-crucial-spaceflight-milestones\/\" data-type=\"post\" data-id=\"307801\">Gemini VI<\/a> on Dec. 15-16, 1965.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Schirra was joined by two members of the third astronaut class, both making their first spaceflight. Command module pilot Donn Eisele was a U.S. Air Force colonel and test pilot. Walt Cunningham had been a colonel and fighter pilot in the U.S. Marine Corps Reserve. Although there was no lunar module (LM) on this flight, as the third member of the crew, Cunningham was designated LM pilot.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Following a flawless liftoff atop a Saturn 1B rocket from Launch Complex 34 at Cape Kennedy (now Cape Canaveral) Air Force Station, the command-service module (CSM) separated from the second stage. Eisele then practiced a simulated LM docking. During launch with a LM, it would have been housed inside the adapter between the second stage and the CSM.<\/p>\n\n\n<div id=\"\" class=\"hds-media hds-module wp-block-image\"><div class=\"margin-left-auto margin-right-auto nasa-block-align-inline\"><div class=\"hds-media-wrapper margin-left-auto margin-right-auto\"><figure class=\"hds-media-inner hds-cover-wrapper hds-media-ratio-none \"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/10\/1a-ap7-ksc-68pc-182.jpg\"><img fetchpriority=\"high\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1869\" height=\"1506\" src=\"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/10\/1a-ap7-ksc-68pc-182.jpg?w=1869\" class=\"attachment-2048x2048 size-2048x2048\" alt=\"Apollo 7 lifts off from Cape Kennedy\" style=\"transform: scale(1); transform-origin: 50% 50%; object-position: 50% 50%; object-fit: cover;\" block_context=\"nasa-block\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/10\/1a-ap7-ksc-68pc-182.jpg 1869w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/10\/1a-ap7-ksc-68pc-182.jpg?resize=300,242 300w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/10\/1a-ap7-ksc-68pc-182.jpg?resize=768,619 768w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/10\/1a-ap7-ksc-68pc-182.jpg?resize=1024,825 1024w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/10\/1a-ap7-ksc-68pc-182.jpg?resize=1536,1238 1536w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/10\/1a-ap7-ksc-68pc-182.jpg?resize=400,322 400w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/10\/1a-ap7-ksc-68pc-182.jpg?resize=600,483 600w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/10\/1a-ap7-ksc-68pc-182.jpg?resize=900,725 900w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/10\/1a-ap7-ksc-68pc-182.jpg?resize=1200,967 1200w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1869px) 100vw, 1869px\" loading=\"eager\" \/><\/a><\/figure><figcaption class=\"hds-caption padding-y-2\"><div class=\"hds-caption-text p-sm margin-0\">Apollo 7 lifts off from Cape Kennedy (now Cape Canaveral) Air Force Station’s Launch Complex 34 on Oct. 11, 1968. It was the first of several piloted flights designed to qualify the spacecraft for the half-million-mile round trip to the Moon.<\/div><div class=\"hds-credits\">NASA<\/div><\/figcaption><\/div><\/div><\/div>\n\n\n<p>A key objective of Apollo 7 was testing spacecraft systems, especially the crucial service propulsion system (SPS) engine at the base of the spacecraft. On lunar missions, the SPS would be used to place the spacecraft in lunar orbit and later, fire the crew on a trajectory back home. On Earth orbital flights, the SPS would be fired to slow Apollo for reentry.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>\u201cYabbadabbadoo,\u201d he exclaimed in a favorite saying of the television cartoon character Fred Flintstone. \u201cThat\u2019s like a ride and a half!\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The first test of the powerful SPS took place on flight day two. When it fired with 20,500 pounds of thrust, Schirra radioed that it was a real kick.<\/p>\n\n\n<div id=\"\" class=\"hds-media hds-module wp-block-image\"><div class=\"margin-left-auto margin-right-auto nasa-block-align-inline\"><div class=\"hds-media-wrapper margin-left-auto margin-right-auto\"><figure class=\"hds-media-inner hds-cover-wrapper hds-media-ratio-none \"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/10\/2-s68-33744.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"2048\" height=\"1532\" src=\"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/10\/2-s68-33744.jpg?w=2048\" class=\"attachment-2048x2048 size-2048x2048\" alt=\"Apollo 7 Crew\" style=\"transform: scale(1); transform-origin: 50% 50%; object-position: 50% 50%; object-fit: cover;\" block_context=\"nasa-block\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/10\/2-s68-33744.jpg 7890w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/10\/2-s68-33744.jpg?resize=300,224 300w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/10\/2-s68-33744.jpg?resize=768,575 768w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/10\/2-s68-33744.jpg?resize=1024,766 1024w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/10\/2-s68-33744.jpg?resize=1536,1149 1536w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/10\/2-s68-33744.jpg?resize=2048,1532 2048w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/10\/2-s68-33744.jpg?resize=400,299 400w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/10\/2-s68-33744.jpg?resize=600,449 600w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/10\/2-s68-33744.jpg?resize=900,673 900w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/10\/2-s68-33744.jpg?resize=1200,898 1200w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/10\/2-s68-33744.jpg?resize=2000,1497 2000w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 2048px) 100vw, 2048px\" \/><\/a><\/figure><figcaption class=\"hds-caption padding-y-2\"><div class=\"hds-caption-text p-sm margin-0\">Photographed during training on May 22, 1968,, the Apollo 7 crew pose at the hatch of their spacecraft. From the left are command module pilot Donn Eisele, commander Wally Schirra and lunar module pilot Walt Cunningham. Installation of a quick-opening hatch mechanism was one of the crucial improvements added after the loss of the Apollo 1 crew.<\/div><div class=\"hds-credits\">NASA<\/div><\/figcaption><\/div><\/div><\/div>\n\n\n<p>George Low, manager of the Apollo Spacecraft Program Office at NASA\u2019s Manned Spacecraft Center (now Johnson Space Center) in Houston, later noted that all eight firings of the SPS went extremely well.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>\u201cWe had a tremendous workout of the service propulsion system,\u201d he said. \u201cI believe that is more than any space propulsion system has ever been used in any one flight\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n<div id=\"\" class=\"hds-media hds-module wp-block-image\"><div class=\"margin-left-auto margin-right-auto nasa-block-align-inline\"><div class=\"hds-media-wrapper margin-left-auto margin-right-auto\"><figure class=\"hds-media-inner hds-cover-wrapper hds-media-ratio-none \"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/10\/3-as07-03-1545.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"2048\" height=\"1874\" src=\"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/10\/3-as07-03-1545.jpg?w=2048\" class=\"attachment-2048x2048 size-2048x2048\" alt=\"Apollo 7 S-IVB\" style=\"transform: scale(1); transform-origin: 50% 50%; object-position: 50% 50%; object-fit: cover;\" block_context=\"nasa-block\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/10\/3-as07-03-1545.jpg 3364w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/10\/3-as07-03-1545.jpg?resize=300,274 300w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/10\/3-as07-03-1545.jpg?resize=768,703 768w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/10\/3-as07-03-1545.jpg?resize=1024,937 1024w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/10\/3-as07-03-1545.jpg?resize=1536,1405 1536w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/10\/3-as07-03-1545.jpg?resize=2048,1874 2048w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/10\/3-as07-03-1545.jpg?resize=400,366 400w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/10\/3-as07-03-1545.jpg?resize=600,549 600w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/10\/3-as07-03-1545.jpg?resize=900,823 900w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/10\/3-as07-03-1545.jpg?resize=1200,1098 1200w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/10\/3-as07-03-1545.jpg?resize=2000,1830 2000w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 2048px) 100vw, 2048px\" \/><\/a><\/figure><figcaption class=\"hds-caption padding-y-2\"><div class=\"hds-caption-text p-sm margin-0\">Following launch, the Apollo 7 crew photographed the expended Saturn launch vehicle’s second stage, called the S-IVB. NASA’s Kennedy Space Center and Cape Kennedy (now Cape Canaveral) Air Force Station are visible on the lower left. The round, white disc inside the open panels of the S-IVB is a simulated docking target similar to that used for docking with a lunar module.<\/div><div class=\"hds-credits\">NASA<\/div><\/figcaption><\/div><\/div><\/div>\n\n\n<p>Another goal was broadcasting live television from the spacecraft. Three days after liftoff, the Apollo 7 camera was turned on, allowing Mission Control and viewers around the world to watch the crew in orbit.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>\u201cI can see Eisele there,\u201d said spacecraft communicator Tom Stafford, a fellow astronaut. \u201cHe\u2019s holding a sign and it says, \u2018From the lovely Apollo room, high atop everything.\u2019 \u201c<\/p>\n\n\n<div id=\"\" class=\"hds-media hds-module wp-block-image\"><div class=\"margin-left-auto margin-right-auto nasa-block-align-inline\"><div class=\"hds-media-wrapper margin-left-auto margin-right-auto\"><figure class=\"hds-media-inner hds-cover-wrapper hds-media-ratio-none \"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/10\/4-ap7-s68-50713.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"2048\" height=\"1555\" src=\"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/10\/4-ap7-s68-50713.jpg?w=2048\" class=\"attachment-2048x2048 size-2048x2048\" alt=\"TV Image of Donn Eisele and Wally Schirra\" style=\"transform: scale(1); transform-origin: 50% 50%; object-position: 50% 50%; object-fit: cover;\" block_context=\"nasa-block\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/10\/4-ap7-s68-50713.jpg 2569w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/10\/4-ap7-s68-50713.jpg?resize=300,228 300w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/10\/4-ap7-s68-50713.jpg?resize=768,583 768w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/10\/4-ap7-s68-50713.jpg?resize=1024,777 1024w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/10\/4-ap7-s68-50713.jpg?resize=1536,1166 1536w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/10\/4-ap7-s68-50713.jpg?resize=2048,1555 2048w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/10\/4-ap7-s68-50713.jpg?resize=400,304 400w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/10\/4-ap7-s68-50713.jpg?resize=600,455 600w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/10\/4-ap7-s68-50713.jpg?resize=900,683 900w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/10\/4-ap7-s68-50713.jpg?resize=1200,911 1200w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/10\/4-ap7-s68-50713.jpg?resize=2000,1518 2000w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 2048px) 100vw, 2048px\" \/><\/a><\/figure><figcaption class=\"hds-caption padding-y-2\"><div class=\"hds-caption-text p-sm margin-0\">During the first television broadcast, Apollo 7 commander Wally Schirra, right, displays one of several messages for viewers on Earth as command module pilot Donn Eisele looks on.<\/div><div class=\"hds-credits\">NASA<\/div><\/figcaption><\/div><\/div><\/div>\n\n\n<p>The crew fired the SPS engine on Oct 22, splashing down in the Atlantic Ocean eight miles from the recovery aircraft carrier, the USS Essex.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>After the flight, Schirra described the Apollo CSM as \u201ca magnificent flying machine.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Lt. Gen. Samuel Phillips, director of NASA\u2019s Apollo Program Office, considered Apollo 7 a perfect mission.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>\u201cWe were able to accomplish a major step in our progress toward the lunar landing,\u201d he said. \u201cI have every confidence that the progress of this mission will let us accomplish that by the end of next year.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">NASA Marks the Legacy of Apollo<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p>From October 2018 through December 2022, NASA is marking the 50th anniversary of the 11 piloted Apollo missions that included landing a dozen Americans on the Moon between July 1969 and December 1972. Today, NASA is working to return astronauts to the Moon to test technologies and techniques for the next giant leaps \u2013 challenging missions to Mars and other destinations in deep space.<\/p>\n\n\n<div id=\"\" class=\"hds-media hds-module wp-block-image\"><div class=\"margin-left-auto margin-right-auto nasa-block-align-inline\"><div class=\"hds-media-wrapper margin-left-auto margin-right-auto\"><figure class=\"hds-media-inner hds-cover-wrapper hds-media-ratio-none \"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/12\/9-apollo_50th_full_color-2.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"2048\" height=\"986\" src=\"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/12\/9-apollo_50th_full_color-2.jpg?w=2048\" class=\"attachment-2048x2048 size-2048x2048\" alt=\"NASA Marks the Legacy of Apollo\" style=\"transform: scale(1); transform-origin: 50% 50%; object-position: 50% 50%; object-fit: cover;\" block_context=\"nasa-block\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/12\/9-apollo_50th_full_color-2.jpg 8518w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/12\/9-apollo_50th_full_color-2.jpg?resize=300,145 300w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/12\/9-apollo_50th_full_color-2.jpg?resize=768,370 768w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/12\/9-apollo_50th_full_color-2.jpg?resize=1024,493 1024w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/12\/9-apollo_50th_full_color-2.jpg?resize=1536,740 1536w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/12\/9-apollo_50th_full_color-2.jpg?resize=2048,986 2048w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/12\/9-apollo_50th_full_color-2.jpg?resize=400,193 400w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/12\/9-apollo_50th_full_color-2.jpg?resize=600,289 600w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/12\/9-apollo_50th_full_color-2.jpg?resize=900,434 900w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/12\/9-apollo_50th_full_color-2.jpg?resize=1200,578 1200w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/12\/9-apollo_50th_full_color-2.jpg?resize=2000,963 2000w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 2048px) 100vw, 2048px\" \/><\/a><\/figure><\/div><\/div><\/div>\n\n\n<p>For more information about NASA\u2019s plan for the future, visit:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong><a href=\"https:\/\/science.nasa.gov\/earth\/moon\/nasas-exploration-campaign-back-to-the-moon-and-on-to-mars\/\" data-type=\"post-ext\" data-id=\"396220\" rel=\"noopener\">NASA Exploration: Back to the Moon and On to Mars<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>By Bob GranathNASA\u2019s Kennedy Space Center, Florida On Oct. 11, 1968, three American astronauts launched to Earth orbit aboard Apollo 7. It was the first piloted mission of the spacecraft designed to meet President John F. Kennedy\u2019s challenge to land on the lunar surface. The 11-day flight took place as the race to the Moon […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":9,"featured_media":78940,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"nasa_hds_core_meta_l10n":"en-US","nasa_hds_core_meta_article_editor":"","nasa_hds_core_meta_article_contacts":[],"nasa_hds_core_meta_article_topic":"","nasa_hds_core_meta_linked_locations":[],"nasa_hds_core_meta_article_related_articles":[],"hds_migrate_meta_pr_release_id":"","hds_migrate_meta_pr_release_type":"","nasa_hds_core_meta_location_x":"","nasa_hds_core_meta_location_y":"","nasa_hds_core_meta_gallery_images":[],"footnotes":""},"categories":[2935,3519,2862,2671,3508,3690],"news-tags":[],"internal-terms":[10285,3917],"coauthors":[11560],"parsely":{"version":"1.1.0","meta":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","headline":"Apollo 7 Launched as Race to Moon Reached Final Stretch","url":"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/missions\/apollo\/apollo-7\/apollo-7-launched-as-race-to-moon-reached-final-stretch\/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/missions\/apollo\/apollo-7\/apollo-7-launched-as-race-to-moon-reached-final-stretch\/"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/10\/1a-ap7-ksc-68pc-182.jpg?w=150&h=150&crop=1","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/10\/1a-ap7-ksc-68pc-182.jpg"},"articleSection":"Missions","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Bob Granath"}],"creator":["Bob Granath"],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"NASA","logo":"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/themes\/nasa\/assets\/images\/nasa-logo.svg"},"keywords":["Humans in Space","Astronauts","Former Astronauts","Walter M. Schirra Jr.","Apollo 7","Donn F. Eisele","Kennedy Space Center","NASA History","Walter Cunningham"],"dateCreated":"2018-10-04T00:30:00Z","datePublished":"2018-10-04T00:30:00Z","dateModified":"2023-10-10T15:26:10Z"},"rendered":"<meta name=\"parsely-title\" content=\"Apollo 7 Launched as Race to Moon Reached Final Stretch\" \/>\n<meta name=\"parsely-link\" content=\"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/missions\/apollo\/apollo-7\/apollo-7-launched-as-race-to-moon-reached-final-stretch\/\" \/>\n<meta name=\"parsely-type\" content=\"post\" \/>\n<meta name=\"parsely-image-url\" content=\"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/10\/1a-ap7-ksc-68pc-182.jpg?w=150&h=150&crop=1\" \/>\n<meta name=\"parsely-pub-date\" content=\"2018-10-04T00:30:00Z\" \/>\n<meta name=\"parsely-section\" content=\"Missions\" \/>\n<meta name=\"parsely-tags\" content=\"Humans in Space,Astronauts,Former Astronauts,Walter M. Schirra Jr.,Apollo 7,Donn F. Eisele,Kennedy Space Center,NASA History,Walter Cunningham\" \/>\n<meta name=\"parsely-author\" content=\"Bob Granath\" \/>","tracker_url":"https:\/\/cdn.parsely.com\/keys\/nasa.gov\/p.js"},"read_time":4,"time_ago":"6 years","featured_image":{"id":78940,"file":"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/10\/1a-ap7-ksc-68pc-182.jpg","title":"1a-ap7-ksc-68pc-182","alt":"Apollo 7 lifts off from Cape Kennedy","caption":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/73163"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/9"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=73163"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/73163\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":545300,"href":"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/73163\/revisions\/545300"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/78940"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=73163"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=73163"},{"taxonomy":"news-tags","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/news-tags?post=73163"},{"taxonomy":"internal-terms","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/internal-terms?post=73163"},{"taxonomy":"author","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/coauthors?post=73163"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}