Apollo Remastered

Between 2008 and 2018, NASA worked to digitise the original filmstock from their early crewed programmes, working at a finer resolution than the grain of the original negatives allowed. After reviewing the entire archive of over 35,000 images, the author of this new book has used the latest image processing and stacking techniques to present hundreds of amazing photos, often managing to carefully tease out more details than we’ve seen before.

After a brief introduction and selection of images from pre-Apollo flights, the majority of the book is divided into the individual Apollo missions. Each begins with a two-page outline of the astronauts, their missions and what they were tasked with photographing. This is followed by page after page of images shown at their very best. A final section details the original camera equipment used and explains processing techniques and goals.

The difference between the images then and now is often striking. The famous ‘A Man on the Moon’ photograph of Buzz Aldrin for example, with Armstrong and the Lunar Lander reflected in his visor, now has a warm golden quality from the light reflected by the thermal blankets.

Image captions contain a wealth of information and also mention whether a picture has been included out of chronological order or has been rotated or cropped. For some of the panoramas, the facing page folds out to give an uninterrupted three-page spread.

The result is an authentic and highly engaging look at what it was like to fly such an advanced programme in what is now vintage machinery.

★★★★★