Digital Trove of Apollo Artifacts Debuts on Draper’s New Website: Hack the Moon

CAMBRIDGE, MA—To celebrate the 50th anniversary of the Apollo 11 moon landing and to inspire the next generation of engineers, Draper is launching a website that shares a treasure trove of newly released photos, videos and stories about the unsung heroes behind the moon landing.

Draper President & CEO, Dr. Kaigham J. Gabriel explained, “Most people know the stories of the astronauts who landed on the moon, but few people know the stories of the engineers who got them there.”

The site details the remarkable story of the engineers behind some of the revolutionary technologies developed for the Apollo missions. In the face of epic challenges, and with a fraction of today’s technology, these are the people who navigated us to the moon and back.

Hack the Moon celebrates the engineers behind the Apollo Program who demonstrated remarkable ingenuity in solving real-world problems. When it seemed impossible, they made it a reality. Today, that revolutionary technology lives on in every plane we fly and computer we use.

Hack the Moon is free and open to the public. Visitors to the site—wehackthemoon.com—will find more than 2,000 images, 200 pieces of original content and 150 videos that tell the story of the Apollo missions. The site features a handy search engine, a mobile-friendly design and special sections on the people, the technology and the missions.

A section called “Hack Extras” takes visitors to podcasts, resources, upcoming events, trivia quizzes and more. “In Their Own Words” presents the personal stories of many of the engineers of Apollo as they encounter and overcome challenges and make some surprising discoveries.

Visitors can read personal accounts from Apollo astronauts such as Jim Lovell’s recollection of seeing the moon for the first time, and Harrison Schmitt’s story about his scientific discovery on the moon. Among the many video stories, Draper engineer Don Eyles recounts his experience averting disaster during Apollo 14, and Margaret Hamilton remembers the happy accident in the lab that led her to develop Apollo’s error detection recovery code.

Hack the Moon will be launched publicly April 8, 2019, at the 35th Space Symposium in Colorado Springs, Colo. Attendees are invited to visit Draper at booth 1139 and take a tour of wehackthemoon.com.

 

Wehackthemoon.com was curated and developed by Sugar Films Ltd.

Released April 8, 2019

Mission support engineers for Apollo 8. During the Apollo missions, engineers were on call to solve any problem that might arise. (Left to right) Norman Sears, Margaret Hamilton, Phyllis Rye and Ain Laats. Image courtesy: Draper.
Engineers working on early computer simulations crucial to Apollo missions' success.
Early development of computer simulation was a critical factor in the success of the Apollo missions. Image courtesy: Draper.
George Schmidt tests the Display Keyboard (DSKY) for the Apollo missions. Image courtesy: Draper.
Draper’s Hack the Moon website celebrates the people behind the Apollo missions in words, images and sound. Pictured is George Schmidt testing the Display Keyboard (DSKY). Image courtesy: Draper.
Draper personnel supporting Apollo missions from various locations, including Cape Canaveral and Houston.
Throughout the Apollo missions, Draper personnel offered support from Cape Canaveral, in Florida, Johnson Space Center, in Houston, and the company’s headquarters, in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Image courtesy: Draper
A technician works on a model of the Apollo guidance computer, built with integrated circuits.
The Apollo guidance computer was built on integrated circuits. Pictured is a model of the system. Image courtesy: Draper.
Apollo engineers celebrate the Apollo 17 splashdown at a party. Image courtesy: Draper.
Apollo engineers at the Apollo 17 splashdown party. Image courtesy: Draper.
Image of the moon with the text "wehackthemoon.com" overlaid, promoting Draper's new website.
To celebrate the 50th anniversary of the Apollo 11 moon landing and to inspire the next generation of engineers, Draper is launching a website that shares a treasure trove of newly released photos, videos and stories about the unsung heroes behind the moon landing. Image courtesy: Draper.
Mission support engineers for Apollo 8. During the Apollo missions, engineers were on call to solve any problem that might arise. (Left to right) Norman Sears, Margaret Hamilton, Phyllis Rye and Ain Laats. Image courtesy: Draper.
Mission support engineers for Apollo 8. During the Apollo missions, engineers were on call to solve any problem that might arise. (Left to right) Norman Sears, Margaret Hamilton, Phyllis Rye and Ain Laats. Image courtesy: Draper.
Early development of computer simulation was a critical factor in the success of the Apollo missions. Image courtesy: Draper.
Early development of computer simulation was a critical factor in the success of the Apollo missions. Image courtesy: Draper.
Draper’s Hack the Moon website celebrates the people behind the Apollo missions in words, images and sound. Pictured is George Schmidt testing the Display Keyboard (DSKY). Image courtesy: Draper.
Draper’s Hack the Moon website celebrates the people behind the Apollo missions in words, images and sound. Pictured is George Schmidt testing the Display Keyboard (DSKY). Image courtesy: Draper.
Throughout the Apollo missions, Draper personnel offered support from Cape Canaveral, in Florida, Johnson Space Center, in Houston, and the company’s headquarters, in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Image courtesy: Draper
Throughout the Apollo missions, Draper personnel offered support from Cape Canaveral, in Florida, Johnson Space Center, in Houston, and the company’s headquarters, in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Image courtesy: Draper
The Apollo guidance computer was built on integrated circuits. Pictured is a model of the system. Image courtesy: Draper.
The Apollo guidance computer was built on integrated circuits. Pictured is a model of the system. Image courtesy: Draper.
Apollo engineers at the Apollo 17 splashdown party. Image courtesy: Draper.
Apollo engineers at the Apollo 17 splashdown party. Image courtesy: Draper.
To celebrate the 50th anniversary of the Apollo 11 moon landing and to inspire the next generation of engineers, Draper is launching a website that shares a treasure trove of newly released photos, videos and stories about the unsung heroes behind the moon landing. Image courtesy: Draper.
To celebrate the 50th anniversary of the Apollo 11 moon landing and to inspire the next generation of engineers, Draper is launching a website that shares a treasure trove of newly released photos, videos and stories about the unsung heroes behind the moon landing. Image courtesy: Draper.