Two Sides of the Moon
Our Story of the Cold War Space Race
Published on 1. April 2005
Book
Paperback/Softback
432 pages
978-0-7434-5067-6 (ISBN)
Description
Growing up on either side of the Iron Curtain, Alexei Leonov and David Scott shared the same dream -- to become a pilot. Excelling at flying, they were chosen by their countries' burgeoning space programmes to be part of the greatest technological race ever -- to land a man on the moon. Cosmonaut Alexei Leonov became the first man to walk in space. He won a place in history, but almost lost his life. In 1966, David Scott and Neil Armstrong were seconds away from dying as Gemini 8 spun violently out of control across space. Both men survived against dramatic odds and Scott went on to command the most complex expedition in the history of space exploration, Apollo 15. When the US and USSR space programmes were eventually brought together in the Apollo-Soyuz Test Project, Scott and Leonov finally met. The project marked the end of the Cold War silence and started a friendship that would last for decades.
Reviews / Votes
'Their recollections have been intercut to create a dramatic chronological story whose chatty style gives us a compelling account of a slice of the cold war ... With refreshing candour, Leonov relates how the EVA, or "space walk", that earned him his "first" in the history books nearly cost him his life... Space fans will find much to admire in this book, not least the fact that it addresses why the Soviets lost ground after beating the American's to one milestone after another' Sunday Times 09/05 'A page-turner, a reminder that behind the high technology there was high drama' Guardian 6/5 'A unique dual perspective on the space race, its risks and the men who took them ... The tale they have written is a testament to the heights mankind can achieve - and a tale of hope for conciliation across the political divide' The Scotsman 21/5 '[Leonov's story is] fresh ... one of the first extended accounts of what service in the Russian space programme was like. The revelations are all the more fascinating because they are offered in parrallel to Scott's remarkably similar experiences... I was moved by humanity of Leonov's story, evoked most poignantly by tiny details ... The space race can now be seen not as an antagonistic contest, but as a remarkable human achievement. Read this book, and prepare to be inspired' SCOTLAND ON SUNDAY 'Compelling reading' OPTIMA 'An extraordinary book that provides a very valuable account of the way the Cold War was ended in Space. I much enjoyed reading it' Arthur C. Clarke 'Unique' Arthur C. Clarke, THES 'Fascinating ... packed with previously unknown details' ASTRONOMY NOW 'Scott and Leonov are admirable characters who tell their stories from different cultural perspectives but from similar scientific and technical points of view' The Times 9/4 'Excellently planned and well written. The authors have made a valuable contribution to the literature of the space race and its aftermath. I highly recommend this book' Sir Patrick Moore, THE SKY AT NIGHTMore details
Edition
New edition
Language
English
Place of publication
New York
United States
Publishing group
Simon & Schuster
Edition type
New edition
Product notice
Paperback (UK-B)
Illustrations
Illustrations, ports.
Dimensions
Height: 178 mm
Width: 111 mm
Weight
374 gr
ISBN-13
978-0-7434-5067-6 (9780743450676)
Copyright in bibliographic data is held by Nielsen Book Services Limited or its licensors: all rights reserved.
Schweitzer Classification
Persons
DAVID SCOTT is one of the twelve men to have walked on the moon. He was born at Randolph Air Force base, Texas, educated at West Point and received his pilot winds in 1955. He studied at MIT and graduated from the experimental test pilot school, before being selected as an astronaut by NASA in 1963. He flew three space missions: as Pilot of Gemini 8 in 1966, then as Command Module Pilot on Apollo 9 in 1969 and finally as Commander of Apollo 15 in 1971. He subsequently became closely involved in the joint USA/USSR Apollo-Soyuz Test Project, and from 1973-1977 worked as Director of the NASA Dryden Flight Research Centre. He went on to found two private companies, applying his technological expertise in the arena of commercial space, and has also acted as technical adviser on the film Apollo 13 and Tom Hanks' award winning televisions series, 'From The Earth To The Moon'. ALEXEI LEONOV was born in Siberia in 1934 and graduated from the Chuguyev Higher Air Force School in the Ukraine in 1957, before serving as fighter pilot in East Germany in 1959. He was amongst the first group of cosmonauts selected in 1960 and flew two space missions: as Pilot of Voskhod 2 in 1965 and in 1975 as Commander of Soyuz 19 during the Apollo-Soyuz Test Project. In 1966 he was appointed Commander of the lunar training group and would have been the first Soviet cosmonaut on the moon. He became Deputy Director of the Gargarin Cosmonaut Centre and was promoted to the rank of major general. He is currently vice-president of Russia's Alpha Bank.