A launch pad fire during Apollo program tests at Cape Canaveral,
Florida, killed astronauts Virgil “Gus” Grissom, Edward H. White II,
and Roger B. Chaffee.

The astronauts, the first Americans to die in a spacecraft, had
been participating in a simulation of the Apollo 1 launch that 
was scheduled for the following month.

The Apollo 1 prime crewmembers intended for the first
manned Apollo space flight: (L to R) Edward H. White II,
Virgil I. "Gus" Grissom, and Roger B. Chaffee.

Apollo 8, the first manned mission to the moon, returned safely
to Earth after an historic six-day journey.

On December 21, Apollo 8 was launched by a three-stage Saturn
5 rocket from Cape Canaveral, Florida, with astronauts Frank
Borman, James Lovell, Jr., and William Anders aboard.

On Christmas Eve, the astronauts entered into orbit around the
moon, the first manned spacecraft ever to do so.

From left Astronauts Borman, Anders and Lovell
after splashing down in the Pacific Ocean and
being recovered by the aircraft carrier USS Yorktown.            
           

                           

THE FIRST IMAGE TAKEN BY HUMANS OF THE
WHOLE EARTH on December 22. 

 
ED DANAHUE

Jane Seymour Fonda is 86 years young today.

    
1980           

Astronauts Eugene Cernan and Harrison Schmitt were last 2 individuals to walk on the moon as of today.

The U.S.-crewed spaceflight to the moon on Dec. 7, 1972, was
known as Apollo 17 — also known as the final flight of the
Apollo program.

This particular spaceflight included two historic astronauts:
Eugene Cernan and Harrison Schmitt.

These Apollo 17 astronauts would become — on this day in
history, Dec. 11, 1972 — the last humans to walk on the moon
thus far. 

A collection of rare autographs and memorabilia, including a
spacesuit from Apollo 11 astronaut Michael Collins, is being
auctioned for more than $62,000, according to the Tyler
Morning Telegraph in Texas.

According to records, Collins wore the NASA flight suit in the
days and months following his return to Earth with the Apollo
11 mission in July 1969.

The suit was removed from his personal locker just six months
after the historic flight following his retirement from NASA in
January 1970.

Other highlights of the auction include a love letter from Elizabeth
Taylor to Richard Burton, with a starting price of $44,000, James
Dean’s high school yearbook, signed by the actor, with a starting
price of nearly $12,000 and a set of Beatles autographs from 1963, starting at over $12,500. 
(FOX NEWS)

Michael Collins (1930-2021)