November 14, 1969: The only female serving in the US Senate, Maine's Margaret Chase Smith (second from left facing camera) in the Launch Operations Center at Cape Kennedy after the liftoff of Apollo 12. She was a charter member of the Senate Aeronautical and Space Committee. In 1962 the first telecommunications link between North America and Europe was accomplished by the Telstar satellite. The transmission was received in the United States at the Andover Earth Station built by AT&T in the western mountains of Maine, Smith's home state.

November 14, 1969: More on the fascinating and volatile friendship of Apollo 12 commander Pete Conrad and Italian journalist Oriana Fallaci. After the death of astronaut Ted Freeman in a T-38 crash in 1964, Fallaci travels to Arlington Cemetery to attend the funeral. 1/4 She is furious when she observes the astronauts' stoicism and their lack of tears. She hurls insults at them for what she perceives as their heartlessness. Pete Conrad takes her aside. "You really think we are not moved seeing him in that coffin?" 2/4

November 14, 1969: Onboard Apollo 12, Commander Pete Conrad takes with him a photograph of Italian journalist Oriana Fallaci as a child and one of her pendants. They have also made a wager about what words Conrad will say when he first sets foot on the Moon. Conrad later writes on the back of the photo of her as a child, "Dear Tosca, we carried this photo aboard the Yankee Clipper to the Ocean of Storms on the Moon. Nov 14-27, 1969. For Oriana." He tells her that he took her in his spacesuit for a walk on the Moon.

November 14, 1969: President Richard Nixon flies down to Cape Kennedy for the launch of Apollo 12, the only one he will witness in person during his presidency. Unfortunately the Saturn V—visible here in the distance—is launched in the worst weather of any Apollo mission. 1/ Seen arriving with the president is First Lady Pat Nixon, daughter Tricia, Maine Senator Margaret Chase Smith, NASA administrator Tom Paine and astronaut Frank Borman. 2/

October 10, 1969: The Apollo 11 Giant Leap tour travels on to Oslo, Norway, the only Scandinavian country on their itinerary. 1/5 Buzz Aldrin had hoped they might visit Sweden, the home of his ancestors, but the White House had ruled against it due to Prime Minister Olof Palme's opposition to American foreign policy in Vietnam. 2/

October 10, 1968: On the eve of the launch of Apollo 7, Wernher von Braun talks to NASA employees and contractors and suggests talking points whenever they are asked, “What is all this space exploration good for? How does it benefit us when there are many other problems?” 1/5 Von Braun says the space program is keeping American industry sharp by pushing cutting-edge technological progress; challenging it to do things never attempted previously. He cites the example of microelectronic medical monitoring devices invented for the astronauts. 2/5

October 9, 1968: The Houston Chronicle reports Rene Carpenter is being groomed for a possible major TV news assignment with NBC. The wife of Scott Carpenter will appear on-air with Chet Huntley and David Brinkley during NBC's upcoming Apollo 7 coverage. (Leonard McCombe LIFE) The profile reveals NBC is looking for female on-air talent that will connect with women and keep them watching rather than switching off when talk turns to engineering. She had previously appeared during NBC's live coverage of the funeral of Sen. Robert Kennedy. (L McCombe LIFE)

October 2, 1957: Physicist S. Fred Singer appears in American newspapers regarding a provocative paper he is to deliver in a few days at the International Astronautical Congress in Barcelona. He will enthusiastically proposes exploding nuclear weapons on the Moon. 1/4 "The idea of creating a creating a permanent crater as a mark of man's work is an appealing one," he says. In fact, he suggests a competition between the United States and the Soviet Union to see which can produce the biggest crater. 2/4

October 1, 1968: On NASA's tenth birthday, the New York Times reports that shortly before the scheduled launches of Apollo 7 and Apollo 8, the space agency faces an uncertain future with no clear mandate after Apollo. "On the threshold of its greatest exploits, the agency finds the public no longer clamoring for the moon and congress no longer handing over blank checks. War in Vietnam, poverty at home and disorder in the cities have forced space out as a top priority."

December 14, 1972: Apollo 17's LM Challenger leaves the lunar surface after three days and three extended expeditions. While the Apollo 17 crew are securing the LM and transferring their cargo, the capcom reads a celebratory statement from President Richard Nixon. 1/ In it, Nixon says, "This may be the last time in this century that men will walk on the Moon, but space exploration will continue.” Astronauts Cernan and Schmitt are astounded to hear this in an official statement only a few hours after having left the lunar surface. 2/

November 24, 1960: Columbia Pictures' biopic about Wernher von Braun, "I Am At the Stars," premieres at London's Leicester Square Theater. Banner-waving demonstrators rain anti-Nazi pamphlets on the attendees including embassy officials, film executives, and scientists. 1/4 Two protesters burst on stage from the wings carrying a 12-foot banner reading "Nazi von Braun’s V-2 rockets killed and maimed 9000 Londoners." The Observer's film critic writes, "This is a film which ought never to have been made for the purpose of public entertainment.” 2/4

November 22, 1969: The New York Times reveals the existence of the Moon Museum. In a publicity stunt, six New York artists, including Andy Warhol, had their work smuggled to the Moon inside the Apollo 12 LM descent stage. 1/4 Contrary to accounts in later years, this was not part of NASA's art program; NASA had no knowledge of the project. In fact had it been taxpayer funded, Warhol's unsubtle drawing would likely have prompted outrage from members of Congress and editorial writers. 2/4