Gene Kranz
publication date: Thursday, July 18, 2019 (part of Summer 2019)
category: 
Disasters
clue: Failure wasn't an option for this mission control director on any of his Apollo missions, including 11 and 13.
explanation: Kranz was popularized by the film Apollo 13, with the fictional line "failure is not an option" attributed to him. more…
intended difficulty: easy
solved by: Russ Wilhelm, Steve West, LaVonne Lemler, Samir Mehta, Chris Lemler, Richard Slominsky, Matthew Preston, and Erik Bates
Apollo 11 Week: Few events have captured the imagination of the world like the first Moon landing on July 20, 1969. To celebrate the fiftieth anniversary of the historic event, here are seven people whose work made it possible.Similar Goos
Jim Lovell
He was Apollo 11's backup commander in case of a problem, but he found a very famous problem himself as a commander two missions later. Go »
Buzz Aldrin
He must have been buzzing with excitement when it was his turn to set foot on the Moon. Go »
Michael Collins
He too made the voyage from the Earth to the Moon (except for the final descent), and designed the mission patch. Go »
John F. Kennedy
The American space program kicked into high gear thanks to this president's belief that "this nation should commit itself to achieving the goal, before this decade is out, of landing a man on the Moon and returning him safely to the Earth." Go »
Orville & Wilbur Wright
Without these two bicycling brothers, humans might never have left the surface of the Earth. In tribute, a chunk of wood from their greatest accomplishment was brought on board Apollo 11. Go »
