Before the Moon Blog
Exploring the past, present, and future of space.
-
In June 1964, a young engineer named Gary Wayne Johnson packed his wife, their belongings, and their dreams into a VW Bug and drove to Houston. “That was about all we owned,” he laughed. “I’d just graduated from Oklahoma State. I changed my major from chemical to electrical engineering because I wanted to work in…
-
In the quiet heart of Warminster, Pennsylvania, beneath the shadow of shopping centers and suburban streets, lies a history that once helped power the Space Race. Eleanor O’Rangers, President of the Southeastern Pennsylvania Cold War Historical Society, has dedicated her career to uncovering it. “Most people think of Bucks County as the birthplace of America,”…
-
When John Herrington floated out of the Space Shuttle Endeavour in November 2002, he carried more than tools and tether lines. He carried a story—a legacy. As the first Native American in space, Herrington’s mission wasn’t just about walking in the void. It was about representing an entire community that had never seen itself reflected…
-
Few figures in NASA’s history embody the courage, discipline, and leadership of America’s space age like Gene Kranz—the legendary Apollo Flight Director whose white vest became a symbol of cool resolve under pressure. From the Mercury missions to Apollo 13, Kranz didn’t just manage flights; he built the culture that made them possible. When I…
-
Long before the roar of the Shuttle’s engines filled the Texas sky, a young boy in Mississippi was standing on a dirt road, staring up at a moving star. “It was one of the early NASA satellites,” Stokes McMillan recalled. “I watched it glide across the sky, silent and bright. From that moment on, I…
-
From Typist to Trailblazer: Estella Gillette and the Women Behind NASA’s Early Missions In 1964, Estella Gillette was just out of high school, newly naturalized as a U.S. citizen, and walking through the doors of NASA’s Manned Spacecraft Center in Houston — the beating heart of the Gemini program. What she found was a workplace…
-
When you walk through the Mercer Museum in Doylestown, you’re not just looking at objects, you’re peering into the DNA of American invention. That’s where Clint Flack works as an Exhibit Specialist and Curator, installing exhibits, researching local history, and safeguarding the stories of Bucks County’s innovators. His perspective reveals how a quiet farming county…
-
When State Representative Brian Munroe talks about Warminster, it’s not just as a legislator – it’s as someone who feels deeply connected to the community’s past, present, and future. Representing Pennsylvania’s 144th District, which includes Warminster, Warrington, Ivyland, and parts of New Britain Township, Munroe has seen firsthand how small towns can leave an outsized…
-
Walking through the old Rockwell plant in Downey, California—home of the Apollo capsules, Space Shuttle orbiters, and parts of the International Space Station—was like stepping into a living museum. For Kirsten Armstrong, it was also the launchpad of a career that would put her at the forefront of space policy and strategy. Today, as President…
-
When people think of the Apollo era, one name rises above the rest: Gene Kranz. As NASA’s legendary flight director, he guided America through its greatest triumphs and darkest hours—from Apollo 11’s first lunar landing to the near-disaster of Apollo 13. Recently, I had the honor of sitting down with Kranz, and what he shared…