When my wife and I met Alan Bean he was witty, charming, warm, friendly, and a real joy to chat with. Subsequent email conversations only served to cement that impression.
From another article[0]:
“Alan Bean was the most extraordinary person I ever met,” said astronaut Mike Massimino, who flew on two space shuttle missions to service the Hubble Space Telescope. “He was a one of a kind combination of technical achievement as an astronaut and artistic achievement as a painter.”
“But what was truly extraordinary was his deep caring for others and his willingness to inspire and teach by sharing his personal journey so openly. Anyone who had the opportunity to know Alan was a better person for it, and we were better astronauts by following his example. I am so grateful he was my mentor and friend, and I will miss him terribly. He was a great man and this is a great loss,” Massimino said.
I had a brief hint of that, and couldn't say it better. The world is poorer without him.
While I can't vouch for its accuracy, the portrayal of the Apollo 12 mission is my absolute favorite from the "From the Earth to the Moon" miniseries. While the Apollo 11 were diehard professionals and excelled in the spotlight of one of the most prominent moments of humankind, the Apollo 12 crew seemed like just a bunch of regular (and obviously very talented) friends having enormous fun and the ride of their lifetime on their way to the moon.
If it serves of any proof, here are the words of the second crew setting their foot on the moon (which, contrary to the first one, almost nobody knows):
"Whooopeee! That might have been a small one for Neil, but it's a long one for me..."
In EVA 1, Conrad and Bean carry on like kids at an amusement park. There is a genuine sense of joy and amazement.
Their partnership was unique in Apollo, a genuine and moving warmth and friendship. In defense of other crews, the work schedule was gruelling and hyper-competitive, with alot of people vying for seats seeking opportunity to advance their chances.
I enjoy watching recent interviews with Bean, he comes across as an 80+ year old man-child. Had Apollo 12 been the first crew to land on the moon, at the time this was a distinct possibility, then the very human aspect of how we connect with that extraordinary event in history would be markedly different to how things are. RIP Alan Bean.
While the 'Spider' episode is my favorite, 'That's All There Is', the Apollo 12 episode is my second favorite, and I know what you mean. 'A Man on the Moon', by Andrew Chaikin, roughly corroborates what's depicted in 'From the Earth to the Moon.' Great stuff, and great reminders of what is possible.
Along with all the other great comments here about Bean, one of my favorite aspects of his time as an astronaut is that he was the one in the rocket for the renowned SCE to Aux situation. This 4-minute clip from the "Failure Is Not An Option" documentary explains.
FYI, the SCE was the Signal Conditioning Equipment, which converted various instrument data on the spacecraft into a 0 to 5 Volt DC signal that was then digitally coded for the telemetry downlink. That equipment needed a voltage reference to work correctly, of course, which normally came from the highly regulated main bus power. When Apollo 12 was hit by lightning it knocked a bunch of systems offline, including the 3 fuel cells that normally provided main power for the capsule. After this the capsule was instead forced onto battery power, but that resulted in voltage sag, causing the highly sensitive Signal Conditioning Equipment to start throwing bad data. Switching the SCE to its auxiliary power supply (which regulated the voltages being fed to it, with some loss of overall power efficiency) restored the telemetry data and enabled the ground crew to properly assess the situation on the spacecraft, work through the issues, and avoid an abort.
From time to time I enjoy listening to the soundtrack of that launch. Two strikes of lightning, every instrument reading going bonkers, all red lamps lighting up in unprecedented manner, sitting atop the chemical equivalent of half a Hiroshima bomb 30 seconds into a flight to the Moon.
And nowhere does any voice match my fluster when I phone home from the supermarket to report some item unavailable.
Watched "In The Shadow Of The Moon" [0] lately, a wonderful documentation from 2007 where, amongst the other astronauts, Mr. Bean drops some wonderful wisdom he gathered after being on the moon and coming back to earth.
There's a wonderful miniseries called "From the Earth to the Moon" which is sort of a dramatic retelling of the Apollo program. Think the "Apollo 13" movie, but longer and more diverse.
My favourite episode, "That's All There Is" (#7) is told from Alan Bean's perspective.
It portrays him, and the entire crew, as an amazingly capable, funny, and tight-knit group. The entire episode has a humorous tone which, after my impression from watching several interviews with Al bean, probably fits his personality.
If you're an aerospace nerd like me, you'll love it. I probably watch the whole series several times a year.
My dad ran into him on a plane once. I still have my dad's business card that he signed along with a coffee table book of his artwork. What a live he lived!
I’m obsessed about Apollo. Having grown up in the cape.
I created this site a while back, after I had spent years going thru the Hasselblad reels. You can view great Apollo images and buy frames, iphone cases, sheets. Check out Top 20.
[+] [-] wpietri|7 years ago|reply
It looks like we have 4 left:
Buzz Aldrin, age 88: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Category:People_who_have_walke...
David Scott, age 85: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/David_Scott
Harrison Schmitt, age 82: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Harrison_Schmitt
Charles Duke, age 82: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Charles_Duke
It will be a sad day for me when there's nobody left who has walked on our nearest neighbor. It feels like a turning away from possibility.
[+] [-] Animats|7 years ago|reply
Mission Control in Houston is being restored to its 1969 look. Funding is from a completed Kickstarter.[1]
[1] https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/589813043/restore-histo...
[+] [-] SiVal|7 years ago|reply
[+] [-] isostatic|7 years ago|reply
A few years ago, XKCD did a diagram showing the rise and fall of people who had walked on another world [0]
Running slightly to the left of the '50%' mark. Unless Musk pulls his finger out we'll be hitting zero in about a decade.
[0] https://xkcd.com/893/
[+] [-] gus_massa|7 years ago|reply
[+] [-] unknown|7 years ago|reply
[deleted]
[+] [-] cryptoz|7 years ago|reply
It's quite possible that will never happen, depending on the next few years of spaceflight (and their health).
[+] [-] ColinWright|7 years ago|reply
From another article[0]:
“Alan Bean was the most extraordinary person I ever met,” said astronaut Mike Massimino, who flew on two space shuttle missions to service the Hubble Space Telescope. “He was a one of a kind combination of technical achievement as an astronaut and artistic achievement as a painter.”
“But what was truly extraordinary was his deep caring for others and his willingness to inspire and teach by sharing his personal journey so openly. Anyone who had the opportunity to know Alan was a better person for it, and we were better astronauts by following his example. I am so grateful he was my mentor and friend, and I will miss him terribly. He was a great man and this is a great loss,” Massimino said.
I had a brief hint of that, and couldn't say it better. The world is poorer without him.
[0] https://www.nasa.gov/press-release/family-release-regarding-...
[+] [-] endymi0n|7 years ago|reply
If it serves of any proof, here are the words of the second crew setting their foot on the moon (which, contrary to the first one, almost nobody knows):
"Whooopeee! That might have been a small one for Neil, but it's a long one for me..."
[+] [-] geekpowa|7 years ago|reply
In EVA 1, Conrad and Bean carry on like kids at an amusement park. There is a genuine sense of joy and amazement.
Their partnership was unique in Apollo, a genuine and moving warmth and friendship. In defense of other crews, the work schedule was gruelling and hyper-competitive, with alot of people vying for seats seeking opportunity to advance their chances.
I enjoy watching recent interviews with Bean, he comes across as an 80+ year old man-child. Had Apollo 12 been the first crew to land on the moon, at the time this was a distinct possibility, then the very human aspect of how we connect with that extraordinary event in history would be markedly different to how things are. RIP Alan Bean.
[+] [-] pjmorris|7 years ago|reply
RIP Alan Bean.
[+] [-] yborg|7 years ago|reply
[+] [-] rjsw|7 years ago|reply
[+] [-] unknown|7 years ago|reply
[deleted]
[+] [-] NaOH|7 years ago|reply
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eWQIryll8y8
[+] [-] InclinedPlane|7 years ago|reply
[+] [-] interfixus|7 years ago|reply
And nowhere does any voice match my fluster when I phone home from the supermarket to report some item unavailable.
[+] [-] mrcslws|7 years ago|reply
[+] [-] projectapollo|7 years ago|reply
https://society6.com/product/apollo-12-face-of-an-astronaut_...
[+] [-] mast|7 years ago|reply
[+] [-] pangratz|7 years ago|reply
[0] https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Osl9sDYDPqs
[+] [-] ThinkingGuy|7 years ago|reply
http://spacerockethistory.com/
I recommend this series. He covers the US and Soviet space programs, with a balance of technical detail and human drama.
[+] [-] InternetOfStuff|7 years ago|reply
My favourite episode, "That's All There Is" (#7) is told from Alan Bean's perspective.
It portrays him, and the entire crew, as an amazingly capable, funny, and tight-knit group. The entire episode has a humorous tone which, after my impression from watching several interviews with Al bean, probably fits his personality.
If you're an aerospace nerd like me, you'll love it. I probably watch the whole series several times a year.
[+] [-] troymc|7 years ago|reply
[+] [-] ddp|7 years ago|reply
[+] [-] projectapollo|7 years ago|reply
I created this site a while back, after I had spent years going thru the Hasselblad reels. You can view great Apollo images and buy frames, iphone cases, sheets. Check out Top 20.
Check it out at http://www.projectapolloprints.com
I’ve been migrating stuff to Society6 this weekend.
[+] [-] direction534|7 years ago|reply
[+] [-] thomasmarriott|7 years ago|reply
[+] [-] martincmartin|7 years ago|reply
[+] [-] elcomet|7 years ago|reply