Taking Science to the Moon

A former NASA scientist shares a behind-the-scenes history of the Apollo space program and the fight to include science activities in the missions.

In 1961, President Kennedy set a goal of putting a man on the moon in order to assert American dominance in the escalating Cold War. The mission’s sole purpose was to beat the Soviets to the punch. So how did science get aboard the Apollo rockets? And what did scientists do with the space allotted to them? 

Donald A. Beattie served at NASA from 1963 to 1973 in several management positions, including as program manager of Apollo Lunar Surface Experiments. In Taking Science to the Moon, Beattie takes readers inside NASA headquarters and the struggle to include science payloads and lunar exploration as part of the Apollo program.