Page 18 - The Appollo Story

.----------1 The Apollo Story

Apollo 8 (AS-503) Fly Me To The Moon
The objectives of each successive mission and indeed the crew to fly them, were in a state of constant re-
view. Apollo 8 was originally stated as an Earth orbit test of the Saturn V booster and Apollo spacecraft
complete with lunar module, but given the flawless operation of Apollo 7 and delays in delivering the
first LM, NASA swapped missions with Apollo 9, gambling on an ambitious flight around the Moon.
This swapping of missions also entailed a reshuffling of crew, and consequently it was commanded by
Frank Borman who was accompanied by fellow Gemini veteran Jim Lovell and frrst-timer Bill Anders.
Bang on schedule, Apollo 8 lifted-off on 21 December 1968 to attain Earth orbit.

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The triangular shape of the insignia symbolizes the shape of the Apollo command module. It shows a red
figure 8 looping around the Earth and Moon representing the mission number as well as the circumlunar
nature of the mission. On the red number 8 are the names of the three astronauts. The initial design of the
insignia was developed by Jim Lovell. Lovell reportedly sketched the initial design while riding in the
backseat of a T-38 flight from California to Houston, shortly after learning of the re-designation of the
flight to become a lunar orbital mission. The graphic design of the insignia was done by Houston artist
and animator William Bradley.