What is the main message of Shoot for the Moon?

The main message of Shoot for the Moon is the power of ambition and determination in achieving extraordinary goals.

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The reading time for Shoot for the Moon varies depending on the reader's speed. However, the Blinkist summary can be read in just 15 minutes.

Who is the author of Shoot for the Moon?

James Donovan is the author of Shoot for the Moon.

Science

Shoot for the Moon Book Summary - Shoot for the Moon Book explained in key points

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Shoot for the Moon summary

Name: Shoot for the Moon
Rating: 4.6 (34 reviews)
Author: James Donovan

James Donovan

The Space Race and the Extraordinary Voyage of Apollo 11

4.6 (34 ratings)

33 mins

Brief summary

Shoot for the Moon by James Donovan is a non-fiction book that chronicles the historic journey of the Apollo 11 mission to the Moon, detailing the triumphs, challenges, and perseverance of the team who made it happen.

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The Cold War Space

Table of Contents

Shoot for the Moon
Summary of 11 key ideas

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Key idea 1 of 11

What’s in it for me? Leave Earth and explore the history of early space exploration.

Space: the final frontier. At least it was, until humankind leaped into the unknown and began exploring it in the 1950s and 60s. Sojourns away from our home planet were the last piece in a puzzle millions of years in the making and represented humankind’s complete mastery over nature and its destiny.

But during those crucial decades, nothing was predetermined. No one knew whether space travel was even possible; spaceflight technology was in its infancy and there were thousands of issues to resolve. Thankfully, there was no shortage of curious experts, or serious funding. With the Cold War raging, the US and USSR were determined to outdo each other in space firsts.

From early on, the Holy Grail for both superpowers was to put a person on the moon – but in the late 1950s this was little more than a pipe dream. And yet, through ambition, determination and a fair share of luck, this dream would become a reality in just ten years for the US.

In these blinks, you’ll learn

how long it takes to get to the moon;
which was the most powerful rocket ever produced; and
which astronauts died in a tragic accident.

The space race was a by-product of the Cold War.

On the morning of October 5, 1957, with the Cold War in full swing, America awoke to unsettling news. The Soviets had successfully launched a 184-pound steel ball into orbit around Earth. Named Sputnik 1 and housing two basic radio transmitters, it was the first ever man-made satellite. The USSR had beaten its mortal enemy to space.

This came as a nasty shock to the US, which had become accustomed to its own technological superiority. Worse still, during its orbit Sputnik passed directly over the US seven times a day. The space race was a culture war – with each side trying to prove the superiority of its own ideology – but it was also a national security threat.

Just four weeks later, at Florida’s Cape Canaveral, a military missile-launch facility, the Americans responded with their own attempted satellite launch. Broadcast live on TV, the launch of the 70-foot rocket ended in an explosion as millions of viewers watched. The small satellite, perched atop the rocket, escaped the fireball and rolled into a row of bushes.

The Americans were humbled – and they’d have to get used to the feeling: the USSR setting space records, and the US playing catch-up, would become a constant theme of the early space race.

Early the next year, on January 31, 1958, the Americans did succeed in sending up their own satellite, Explorer 1. But this was quickly overshadowed by the Soviet launch of Sputnik 3 on May 15 – this 2,926-pound satellite was far larger, and had an array of advanced research equipment.

This first half of 1958 was characterized by a flurry of American and Soviet satellite launches – or attempts anyway. There were at least five failed launches on the US side, and one in the USSR. But because the Kremlin never announced failed efforts, no one knew about these Soviet duds for decades. People on both sides of the Iron Curtain thought the USSR’s space program was disaster-proof.

By the end of 1958, it was becoming increasingly clear to both sides what the next objective would be: send a human into space, and return him safely. Whichever side could pull this off first would score a huge propaganda victory.

So, on December 17, 1958, the US announced a venture to do just that. And project Mercury, as it was called, would be run by the new civilian-led US space agency NASA, created just eight weeks before.

A huge range of issues had to be resolved for Project Mercury.

Thanks to Wernher von Braun – an ex-Nazi rocket scientist brought to the US at the end of WWII – the US already had a rocket booster called the Mercury-Redstone. This was powerful enough to send a human into suborbital flight – which meant reaching outer space, but not completing a full orbit around Earth.

But the Soviets, at this point, had an even more powerful rocket, the Sputnik-PS. This allowed a spacecraft sitting atop the rocket to achieve full orbit around Earth. And on November 3, 1957, the USSR achieved another space first: a stray dog named Laika became the first living animal sent into orbit.

NASA’s strict culture of safety and quality control was born during Project Mercury.

It’s hard to comprehend just how much preparation goes into spaceflight missions – especially those with a crew. For every minute spent in space, an untold number of hours is spent on the ground calculating, designing, building, testing and simulating. And the Mercury was the project on which these procedures began.

After modeling on basic computers and countless heat, drop, spin-tunnel and wind-tunnel tests, the design for the cone-shaped, blunt-nosed Mercury capsule was finished. It had a light but strong titanium outer layer, and a thick heat-resistant aluminum shield designed to burn away during reentry to Earth. At 21,000 feet it would deploy a parachute to stabilize its descent, and another at 10,000 feet to slow it down for landing.

Beating the Americans again, the Soviets sent the first human into space.

Even with the recruitment of the Mercury Seven, the first tests were not made with humans, but with animals.

The first primate to fly on a Mercury flight was Sam, a rhesus macaque, who flew 53 miles up on December 4, 1959, to test the capsule’s emergency escape system. He was safely recovered from the Pacific Ocean. The last nonhuman Mercury mission flew on November 29, 1961, when a chimpanzee named Enos successfully spent three hours in space, also surviving.

Project Gemini was NASA’s most advanced and ambitious project yet.

Even with the last few scheduled Mercury missions not yet completed, NASA began its new Gemini program – after all, they needed to catch up to the Soviets! Far from being just an extension of Mercury, Gemini, with its huge changes, became a completely different beast.

One of the biggest – and visible – improvements in the Gemini project was the use of the powerful Titan II rocket. Boasting 430,000 pounds of thrust, this booster would allow Gemini’s astronauts to achieve orbital spaceflight.

Every Gemini mission was a success and helped get humans to the moon.

There were twelve Gemini missions overall, each specifically designed to test equipment and gradually increase the knowledge needed to put a human on the moon.

The first manned Gemini mission, Gemini 3, blasted off on March 23, 1963. Its objective was to test the new spacecraft’s maneuverability, with the crew using rockets to change the ship’s orbit. It was also the last mission to be controlled from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station; from then on, mission control was shifted to Houston, Texas.

The Apollo program began with a catastrophe.

Although NASA had been working on the Apollo program during much of Gemini, they required a much more powerful booster than Gemini’s Titan II missile.

Thankfully, von Braun’s NASA team had been working on this for years. These new super-boosters would become the Saturn family of rockets. The most important, and the only rocket to transport humans to the moon, was Saturn V. This super heavy-lift rocket weighed 50 times more than the early Mercury boosters, packed 7.9 million pounds of thrust and came in 60 feet taller than the Statue of Liberty. To this day, it remains the tallest, heaviest and most powerful rocket ever used.

The crew of Apollo 11 underwent unprecedented levels of training for the moon landing.

After a hiatus of nine months while safety recommendations were implemented, manned spaceflight started again.

Like the Gemini missions, Apollo missions 4-10 gradually became more ambitious, and each was designed to test specific procedures essential for a moon landing.

With a successful launch, Apollo 11 headed to the moon.

After breakfast on July 16, the astronauts headed to the suit room. They installed their urine-collection devices and fitted their oxygen supplies and spacesuits, locking their plastic bubble helmets into place.

Next, they took an elevator up the huge launch tower, and crossed a bridge into the Apollo spacecraft. Ground crew began buckling them in, and the astronauts spent a couple of hours preparing the capsule for launch.

Arriving at the moon, Aldrin and Armstrong piloted the lunar module down to the surface.

At 5:21 p.m. on July 19, Apollo 11 arrived at the moon.

Entering lunar orbit, Aldrin and Armstrong spent the next few hours checking the lunar module, named Eagle. Then they ate dinner and got some rest.

On July 20, 1969, humankind set foot on the moon.

Aldrin and Armstrong began preparing for the moonwalk. It took over three hours to suit up, ready their equipment and depressurize the cabin, but at 9:39 p.m. they pulled open the hatch.

Grabbing the outside ladder, Armstrong lowered himself down. Halfway, he activated a TV camera and installed it on Eagle. These black-and-white images would be broadcast live to over 530 million people.

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What is Shoot for the Moon about?

Shoot for the Moon (2019) provides you with a riveting, wide-ranging account of the early space race, culminating with Apollo 11 – the mission that first landed humanity on the moon. Blasting through twelve years of space exploration, these blinks guide you through Apollo 11’s historic mission and the preparatory ones that made it happen.

Shoot for the Moon Review

Shoot for the Moon (2019) by James Donovan tells the incredible story of the Apollo 11 mission and the first moon landing in 1969. Here's why this book is worth reading:

Featuring detailed accounts and interviews with key figures, it offers a fascinating insight into the challenges and triumphs of the space race.
The book captures the excitement and tension of the mission, keeping readers on the edge of their seats as they relive the historic moments.
With its meticulous research and engaging storytelling, the book brings to life the determination and ambition that made this achievement possible.

Who should read Shoot for the Moon?

Anyone interested in the space race and the Cold War
Science geeks interested in NASA’s early endeavors
Future astronauts who need to do their homework

About the Author

James Donovan is an American author specializing in popular history. His previous best-selling books include A Terrible Glory: Custer and the Little Bighorn – the Last Great Battle of the American West (2008) and The Blood of Heroes: The 13-Day Struggle for the Alamo – and the Sacrifice That Forged a Nation (2012). He lives in Dallas, Texas.

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