NASAProject Apollo · Budget request · FY1962
The Moon, before this decade is out.
Joint session of Congress · May 25, 1961
The decision
One decision: commit to the Moon.
Then fund the first year. Half way is not on the menu.
- New money, fiscal 1962
- $531M
- Additional, next five years
- $7B to $9B
- Deadline
- Before 1970
Why now
The score is five all. They have every front page.
Front pages5 to 0
- Oct 4, 1957 First satelliteSputnik 1 Front page USSR
- Nov 3, 1957 First animal in orbitSputnik 2, Laika Front page USSR
- Jan 31, 1958 Radiation belts discoveredExplorer 1 USA
- Mar 17, 1958 First solar-powered satelliteVanguard 1 USA
- Dec 18, 1958 First communications satelliteSCORE USA
- Sep 14, 1959 First probe to hit the MoonLuna 2 Front page USSR
- Oct 7, 1959 First look at the far sideLuna 3 Front page USSR
- Apr 1, 1960 First weather satelliteTIROS 1 USA
- Aug 11, 1960 First capsule back from orbitDiscoverer 13 USA
- Apr 12, 1961 First human in orbitVostok 1, Gagarin Front page USSR
Why now
Gagarin flew 108 minutes. Shepard got 15.
- Apr 12Gagarin orbits the Earth
- Apr 17Bay of Pigs landing
- Apr 20The President asks for a race we can win
- May 5Shepard flies Freedom 7
- May 25This request
Options considered
We looked at four options. Only one is a race we can win.
Cost$7B to $9B
Ready1967 to 1968
Odds of beating the Soviets
Excellent chance
It needs a rocket ten times bigger than theirs. They do not have one either.
Recommendation
The Moon needs a 10x rocket. Nobody has one.
Their head start is in big rockets. This race starts both sides at zero.
The goalLand a man on the Moon and return him safely to the Earth.
1xSoviet rocket today14,000 lb to orbit
10xNeeded for the MoonOwner: nobody, yet
Cost and phasing
Year one adds $531 million. By year four, NASA is five times bigger.
What it buys
Most of it goes to the Moon. Some of it checks the weather.
Urgent national needs · IX. SpaceFiscal 1962 · additional funds
- 01 The MoonLunar spacecraft, bigger boosters (liquid and solid), engines, robot scouts The rest
- 02 Rover nuclear rocketPlus $7M already on hand +$23M
- 03 Communications satellitesWhere we already lead +$50M
- 04 Weather satellites$53M of it for the Weather Bureau +$75M
Total, fiscal 1962$531M
Then an estimated $7B to $9B more over five years
Milestones
Five gates to the Moon, with two years of slack.
- 1962 An American in orbit Mercury
- Early 1962 A robot radio on the Moon Ranger
- 1964 The big booster flies reliably Saturn C-1
- 1965 to 1966 Three men around the Moon Apollo
- 1967 to 1968 First crew lands, and comes home Apollo
Risk register
Five risks, five owners. Only one of them is Moscow.
| Risk | Owner | Mitigation |
|---|---|---|
| R1Congress funds half of it | Congress | Don't. Half way is worse than not going at all. |
| R2The rocket does not exist yet | NASA | Build two kinds, liquid and solid, until one wins. |
| R3A Soviet crew circles the Moon first | Moscow | Let them. They would skip the safety features to do it. We land. |
| R4Rivalries, overruns, turnover | Everyone | A personal pledge from every engineer, contractor and civil servant. |
| R5Failing in full view of the world | The President | Fly in public anyway. Shepard showed it raises our stature. |
What success looks like
Success is three boxes. All three, or it doesn't count.
Landed July 20, 1969Home July 24
Counts
- A man lands on the Moon
- He returns safely to the Earth
- Before the decade is out
Does not count
- Flying around it
- A robot landing
- Going half way
The ask
Approve year one today, and commit to the decade.
- Fiscal 1962$531MApproved this year
- Next five years$7B to $9BCommitted, not re-argued
- Deadline1969Before the decade is out
ReturnOne man on the Moon. A whole nation put him there.