148. [Apollo 7] THE SPACE CHASE OF THE TUMBLING "FLOWER-LIKE" S-IVB STAGE (diptych) Walter Cunningham or Walter Schirra, 11-22 October 1968 Printed 1968. Two vintage chromogenic prints on fibre-based Kodak paper [NASA images AS7-3-1569 and AS7-3-1572]. With "A Kodak Paper" watermark on the reverse, numbered "NASA AS7-3-1569" and "AS7-3-1572" in red in the top margin (issued by NASA Manned Spacecraft Centre, Houston, Texas). Each: 20.3 x 25.4 cm. (8 x 10 in.) Historical context These exceptionally crisp photographs reveal superb details of the 'flower-like' S-IVB rocket stage tumbling in the dark void, captured from different angles. Taken after Apollo 7 had separated by 76 miles, they illustrate a crucial phase of the mission. The crew then fired the Service Propulsion System (SPS) engine for the first time to chase down the S-IVB in a simulated rendezvous—a critical manoeuvre for future missions requiring docking with the Lunar Module. "We just slid right up the pipe and onto the target," recalled Command Module Pilot Donn Eisele. "It was a great feeling."(Mason, pp. 142–144) Schirra, however, expressed concern about closing further, telling Mission Control: "It's tumbling rather wildly, so we are starting to stay away from it." With Apollo 7 proving the CSM's capabilities, these images symbolize the transition from Earth-orbit operations to lunar exploration, where future crews would venture through the vast emptiness of deep space. Literature TIME, 1 November 1968, p. 58 (first photograph)