Apollo 15 Background: Part 1
Video from the channel AP Archive about Apollo 15, linked on its Above Ten Thousand entry. Duration: 3:15. Language: English. Video type: Archive footage.
Archival footage from the AP agency shot before the launch of Apollo 15, with shots of the launch facilities, the three astronauts, and images of the landing site area. The portion with sound is a statement by commander David Scott about the difficulties of the descent near the mountains.
Scott explains that the profile of the Apennines was well known and that the terrain had been modeled in the onboard computer, which represented it as five distinct slopes. The approach came in over the Mare Serenitatis, which is very flat, and then crossed the Apennines in a succession of climbs, flat stretches and a descent.
The footage is part of the period news coverage ahead of the mission.