I posted the following 5 years ago in honor of the 40th anniversary of the Apollo 11 mission. I thought the 45th anniversary might be a good time to repost. The original thread can be seen here.

What follows is that same OP with no changes;


In light of all the Apollo 11 threads and the 40th anniversary of the first lunar landing coming up, I thought some on DU might enjoy this.

I've always been fascinated by our spaceflight programs and came across these images today. They offer a behind-the-scenes glimpse of the assembly process of "the stack". Bear in mind while you look at these photos that all of this was built before the age of complex computers and CAD/CAM by engineers whose most capable calculating device was the slide rule. (Link added for those younger DU'rs who have never seen one)


Apollo 11 S-IC first stage in the Vehicle Assembly Building transfer aisle.


A crane lifts the Saturn first stage.


Workers prepare the S-IVB for mating of the Instrument Unit (pictured left), which houses guidance, control and other Saturn V systems. The ring is the same diameter as the stage the workers are standing on, but it is closer to the camera, thus distorting the perspective.


The S-II second stage is moved into position for mating with the S-IC first stage


This photo shows the S-IVB third stage being hoisted into position for mating with the second stage.


The S-IVB third stage is moved into position for mating


Apollo 11 CSM (Command Service Module) being moved from its work stand for mating


The Apollo 11 Command/Service Module (CSM-107) being readied for transfer to the Vehicle Assembly Building.


This photo shows the Apollo 11 Command-and-Service Module being mated to the spacecraft adapter.


Apollo 11 Saturn V rollout from the Vehicle Assembly Building. 20 May 1969.


Aerial view of the Apollo 11 Saturn V rollout from the Vehicle Assembly Building. 20 May 1969


This photo is a ground-level view of the Apollo 11 Saturn V during transport. The vehicle is 363 feet (111 meters) tall.


Apollo 11 Saturn V on the Crawler as it begins to go up the ramp to Pad 39-A. This photo clearly shows the hydraulic jacking capabilities of the Crawler, keeping the vehicle perfectly straight up as it climbs the grade. Note the diesel smoke as the crawler moves it's multi-million pound load up the hill.


This photo is an aerial view of the Apollo 11 Saturn V moving to the firing position on the pad at the Kennedy Space Center.

Many MANY more photos of this series and the Apollo 11 mission as well as technical data, video, audio and transcripts can be found here

Similar image libraries and data for all the Apollo missions can be found here