While the LM separated and landed, the CSM remained in orbit. The design was based on the lunar orbit rendezvous approach: two docked spacecraft were sent to the Moon and went into lunar orbit. Two additional components complemented the spacecraft stack for space vehicle assembly: a spacecraft–LM adapter (SLA) designed to shield the LM from the aerodynamic stress of launch and to connect the CSM to the Saturn launch vehicle and a launch escape system (LES) to carry the crew in the command module safely away from the launch vehicle in the event of a launch emergency. The expendable (single-use) spacecraft consisted of a combined command and service module (CSM) and an Apollo Lunar Module (LM). The Apollo spacecraft was composed of three parts designed to accomplish the American Apollo program's goal of landing astronauts on the Moon by the end of the 1960s and returning them safely to Earth. Saturn V-launched payload that took men to the MoonĬomplete Apollo spacecraft stack: launch escape system, command module, service module, Lunar Module, and spacecraft–LM adapter The Apollo 17 CSM seen in lunar orbit from the ascent stage of the Lunar Module

Apollo space source:life grateful dead