– English Lyrics

Lyrics & Translation

[English]

<i>♪ Music </i>

(Jim Lovell) Spaceflight is so interesting. The rewards

far overshadow the risks.

That was my feeling.

<i>(Launch Countdown)</i> <i>5, 4, 3, 2, 1, 0 … ignition.</i>

The reason for the mission was that

the maximum time to go to

the Moon and back –

and we were only planning for Apollo –

was two weeks.

<i>(Astronauts in rocket during launch)</i> <i>We’re on our way Frank!</i>

<i>Yep!</i>

(Jim Lovell) So they said,

‘Well if we can put people up

into zero gravity for two weeks

it will prove out one aspect

of the Moon flights.’

<i>♪ Music </i>

(Jim Lovell) When twelve rolled around they said,

‘Let’s devote a lot of time on twelve

to find out how we can really work

outside the spacecraft

to make sure that everything will work.’

And of course, on twelve

Buzz completed three spacewalks –

about five-and-a-half hours, I guess.

<i>♪ Music </i>

<i>(Rocket Engine) </i> <i>We have liftoff.</i>

<i>Liftoff at 7:51 a.m. Eastern.</i>

(Jim Lovell) We were so curious, so excited

about being at the Moon

that we were like three school kids

looking into a candy store window –

watching those ancient old craters go by.

When we determined that we would get

and burn into the lunar orbit

on Christmas Eve, we thought –

boy, we ought to say something.

What can we say?

<i>(Astronauts Read from The Bible)</i> <i>And God called the light ‘day,’</i>

<i>and the darkness he called ‘night.’</i>

<i>And the evening and the morning</i>

<i>were the first day.</i>

You know with riots and assassinations

and a war going on,

I was part of a thing that

finally gave an uplift

to the American people.

That’s why I say Apollo 8

was really the high point

of my space career.

<i>♪ Music </i>

<i>(Apollo 13 call to Mission Control)</i> <i>Uh, Houston we’ve had a problem.</i>

We sent down everything we could

when we had the explosion.

They said, ‘Yeah, we’ve got

a lot of guys working on it down here –

we’ll help you out.

<i>(Mission Control call to Astronauts)</i> <i>Stand by 13, we’re looking at it.</i>

That’s when they started getting that

teamwork together.

That was the whole idea of NASA –

new ideas. What can we do differently?

Perseverance was predominate in the

program at that time –

let’s keep on trying.

<i>♪ Music </i>

Key Vocabulary

Vocabulary	Meanings
spaceflight /ˈspeɪsˌflaɪt/ B2	noun - the act of traveling or operating in outer space
rewards /rɪˈwɔːdz/ B2	noun - something given in recognition of achievement or service; benefits
risks /rɪsks/ B2	noun - a situation involving exposure to danger
ignition /ɪɡˈnɪʃən/ C1	noun - the act of starting combustion or lighting a fire; initiation
Moon /muːn/ A1	noun - the Earth’s natural satellite
mission /ˈmɪʃən/ B1	noun - an important task or assignment; a voyage undertaken for a particular purpose
maximum /ˈmæksɪməm/ B2	adjective - the greatest possible amount or degree
Apollo /əˈpɒloʊ/ B2	noun - NASA's Apollo missions to the Moon noun - Apollo, the Greek god
weeks /wiːks/ A1	noun - periods of seven days
spacecraft /ˈspeɪsˌkræft/ B1	noun - a vehicle designed for travel in outer space
gravity /ˈɡrævɪti/ B1	noun - the natural force that attracts objects toward the Earth
craters /ˈkreɪtərz/ B2	noun - large round holes on a surface made by impacts
liftoff /ˈlaɪtfɒf/ B2	noun - the moment a rocket leaves the ground
curious /ˈkjʊriəs/ B1	adjective - eager to know or learn something
excited /ɪkˈsaɪtɪd/ B1	adjective - feeling or showing happiness and enthusiasm
astronauts /ˈæstrəˌnɔːts/ B1	noun - people trained to travel in spacecraft
spacewalks /ˈspeɪsˌwɔːks/ B2	noun - extravehicular activities where astronauts work outside a spacecraft
NASA /ˈnæsə/ B2	noun - National Aeronautics and Space Administration
perseverance /ˌpɜːrsəˈvɪərəns/ B2	noun - continued effort despite difficulties or delays
planning /ˈplænɪŋ/ B1	noun - the process of making plans or arrangements