Earthrise
My Adventures as an Apollo 14 Astronaut
Jefferson Cup Overfloweth Title
Recollections from the sixth man to ever walk on the Moon, for young adult readers.
On February 5, 1971, Edgar Mitchell jumped off the last rungs of a ladder connecting him to NASA’s Antares spacecraft and landed with two feet on the Moon. Following the disastrous Apollo 13 mission, Mitchell was one of three astronauts to successfully complete the Apollo 14 journey to the Moon, though it wasn’t without its own alarming moments.
In Earthrise, Edgar recalls his spectacular trip to the Moon and the life experiences that got him there, including his early days spent in Roswell, New Mexico, amid nuclear testing and the rumored UFO crash; his first solo airplane flight as a young teen; his time as a navy combat pilot; and becoming a NASA astronaut. With fascinating detail, Edgar describes what it was like to launch into space and land on the Moon, illuminating everything from the practical—eating, sleeping, and going to the bathroom in space—to the mystical, life-changing experience of gazing at Earth from afar.
With illuminating sidebars, transcripts of NASA recordings from the historic Apollo 14 mission, and extensive resources including lists of space-related websites, museums, organizations, films, and books, Earthrise is an invaluable addition to any space, astronomy, or science buff’s bookshelf.
Edgar Mitchell was a pilot in the historic 1971 Apollo 14 mission and the sixth man to ever walk on the Moon. His books include Paradigm Shift, The Space Less Traveled, and The Way of the Explorer. Recipient of the Presidential Medal of Freedom, the NASA Distinguished Service Medal, and three NASA Group Achievement Awards, Mitchell was nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize in 2005 and inducted to the Space Hall of Fame in 1979, the Astronaut Hall of Fame in 1997, and the Leonardo da Vinci Society for the Study of Thinking in 2011. He was the founder of the renowned Institute of Noetic Sciences and the cofounder of the Association of Space Explorers. He died in 2016. Ellen Mahoney is the author of Nellie Bly and Investigative Journalism for Kids. She has worked for Walt Disney Imagineering as a staff writer, contributed many educational pieces for Space Center Houston, and produced radio features for the BBC Science in Action show. She is an affiliate faculty instructor in the department of journalism and technical communication at Metro State University of Denver. She lives in Boulder, Colorado. Dr. Brian Cox is a professor of particle physics and Royal Society University Research Fellow at the University of Manchester. He presents various space and science programs on BBC radio and television, including Wonders of the Universe.