Virtual Apollo: A Pictorial Essay of the Engineering and Construction of the Apollo Command and Service Modules

Apogee Books Space Series #30

by Scott Sullivan, Tom Hanks (Foreword)

With this book readers can become acquainted with the Apollo spacecraft in detail and learn the story of its design and construction.

Genres: Space, Reference

128 pages, Paperback

First published February 1, 2003

Reviews

[H. Honsinger]

This is an astonishing book and I'm surprised that I am writing the first text review. There is nothing like this book (except for its twin, Virtual LM) in the world. It is essentially a painstaking dissection of the Apollo Command and Service Modules. Every panel, every instrument, every hatch, window, console, couch, computer, storage bin, fuel tank, oxygen tank, fuel cell, thruster, structural member, heat shield, and parachute. All reconstructed using computer graphics, put into its place, and visualized so that you can see where it went in the spacecraft.

If you've ever wanted to put yourself in the Astronaut's couch and ride to the moon, this book will give you the images to do it. If you are an Apollo geek and want to "geek out" on the nuts and bolts of the spacecraft that transported human beings to the moon, here you go. Have fun.

There ARE a few errors in the text (I caught a date or two that was incorrect) but the engineering reconstruction itself appears to be impeccable. This book is a MUST for anyone who has a deep interest in the Apollo program. And, if you are writing fiction about space hardware from that era, this book is an essential reference. I realize that the target audience for a book like this is small, but if you are in that audience, you NEED this book.

[Greg Parrott]

Great content!