The Apollo 15 Moon mission took place in 1971 at a time before real computers. One phase of the mission was Lunar Launch and docking with the command-module, Endeavor. This simple to imagine procedure is elaborately explained by Wikipedia in the following sentence:
“After the 'Apollo 15' Lunar Module 'Falcon' lifted from the Moon’s surface it docked with the Apollo Command-Service-Module, 'Endeavor'."
Amazingly easy! According to Wikipedia there is only the word "it" between 'surface' and 'docked'. But what actually transpired from Lunar launch until docking? What exactly is "it"? Did it take only one split second to launch back into orbit, get going 110 Kilometers per second (396,000 KPH?), then catch-up and dock safely with Endeavor in the empty vacuum of outer space? Sure, and bears shit in the Vatican.
In the late 1970s Apollo 15 crew members, Dave Scott and Jim Irwin, wrote a book on the experience titled, "If We Had Done It". The book created a sensation at NASA, and became a best seller. Later, both Scott and Irwin had their families kidnapped, and, under extreme duress, they publicly retracted this version. But it remains an underground classic.
In 1990, after reading the book, and realizing the great potential of a "Lunar Launch" film, director Stanley Kubrick bought the rights to the detailed story and interviewed the astronauts involved. A script was created, and a extremely diverse cast was assembled by Kubrick to satisfy his weird sense of humor and add ample surrealism. The cast was selected based on the three performers' innate natural characteristics and leading character portrayals. The result is quite interesting. (Full article...)
