Apollo 1 Hills

[[File:Grissom hill2.JPG|thumb|upright=2.5|Grissom Hill]]

The '''Apollo 1 Hills''' are three hills on [[Mars]] named to memorialize the crew of [[Apollo 1]]. The three hills were some of the first landmarks sighted following the January 7, 2004, landing of the [[MER-A|''Spirit'' rover]] on Mars.

==Background== [[NASA]] astronauts [[Gus Grissom]], [[Roger Chaffee]], and [[Ed White (astronaut)|Ed White]] perished in a [[flash fire]] which engulfed their [[Apollo command module|command module]] on January 27, 1967, while training for the first of the crewed Apollo missions, initially designated as Apollo Saturn-204 (AS-204).<ref name="NBC"/><ref name="EDN"/> Their capsule stood atop the [[Apollo 1|Saturn-1B]] rocket which was at the time docked to the [[Service structure|launchpad gantry]] at [[Cape Canaveral]]'s [[Launch Complex 34]], while they performed an in-[[space capsule|capsule]] training for what was to be a [[low Earth orbit]] shake-out mission for the United States' [[Apollo program|Apollo Space Program]].<ref name="Coll">[http://www.collectspace.com/news/news-012317a-apollo1-50th-anniversary-memorials.html ''Apollo 1 50th Anniversary Memorials'']; webpage; Collect Space online; accessed January 2020</ref> The craft was set to launch three weeks later, on February 21, 1967.<ref name="NBC"/> Following the fire, the mission was renamed Apollo 1 to honor the crew's work.<ref name="EDN"/><ref name="Sith">[https://airandspace.si.edu/explore-and-learn/topics/apollo/apollo-program/orbital-missions/apollo1.cfm ''Apollo 1 – (AS-204)''] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190411100402/https://airandspace.si.edu/explore-and-learn/topics/apollo/apollo-program/orbital-missions/apollo1.cfm |date=April 11, 2019 }}; Smithsonian National Air and Space Museum online; accessed January 2020</ref>

[[File:Apollo 1 Prime Crew - GPN-2000-001159.jpg|thumb|upright=.9|The memorialized crew (l to r: White, Grissom, Chaffee)]]

Mission Command Pilot Grissom had flown in both [[Mercury program|Mercury]] and [[Gemini program|Gemini programs]].<ref name="EDN"/> Chaffee, at 31, was the youngest member of the astronaut corp ever chosen and was prepping for his first flight.<ref name="EDN"/> White had been the first American to perform a [[spacewalk]] during the Gemini program.<ref name="EDN">[https://www.edn.com/apollo-1-testing-ends-in-tragedy-january-27-1967/ ''Apollo 1 Testing Ends in Tragedy'']; webpage; January 27, 2019; MacNeil, Jessica; EDN online; accessed January 2020</ref>

==Location== The three vastly separated hills are located in the [[Gusev (Mars crater)|Gusev crater]], part of the [[Aeolis quadrangle]] on Mars.<ref name="NBC"/> They were photographed from ''Spirit''{{'}}s landing site, designated as the [[Columbia Memorial Station|''Columbia'' Memorial Station]], shortly after the descent and soft landing on the Martian surface of the [[Mars rover|rover]]. The ''Columbia'' station and the nearby [[Columbia Hills (Mars)|Columbia Hills]] are themselves named in honor of the seven crew members of the fatal [[Space Shuttle Columbia disaster|''Columbia'' spacecraft breakup]].<ref name="NBC">[https://www.nbcnews.com/id/wbna4080663 "Martian Hills Named after Apollo Crew"]; webpage; [[NBC News]] online; accessed January 2020</ref>

The hills are named in memory of the three Apollo 1 astronauts.<ref name="EDN"/> Grissom Hill is located 7.5 km (4.7 mi) southwest of the ''Columbia'' Memorial Station (at Martian co-ordinates {{Coord|14.5718|S|175.4785|E|globe:Mars}}); while 11.2 km (7.0 mi) to the northwest lies White Hill; and Chaffee Hill is located 14.3 km (8.9 mi) south-southwest of the station.<ref name="NBC"/> As of January 2020, however, the [[International Astronomical Union]] has not officially designated the hills with the names of the astronauts.{{Citation needed|date=January 2020}}

{{Quote|"Through recorded history, explorers have had both the honor and responsibility of naming significant landmarks. Gus, Ed, and Roger's contributions, as much as their sacrifice, helped make our giant leap for mankind possible … as America strides towards our next giant leap, NASA, and the Mars Exploration Rover team created a fitting tribute to these brave explorers and their legacy." – written statement by former NASA Administrator, [[Sean O'Keefe]]<ref name="NBC"/> }}

==Panoramic view== [[Image:Main Apollo Hills.jpg|upright=4|thumb|center|Apollo Hills panorama from the MER-A landing site]]

==See also== *[[Geography of Mars]]

==References== {{Reflist}}

==External links== * http://www.nasa.gov/images/content/55172main_apollo_hills.jpg * [http://marsrovers.jpl.nasa.gov/ Official Mars Rovers site]

[[Category:Hills on Mars]] [[Category:Apollo 1|Hills]] [[Category:Mars Exploration Rover mission]] [[Category:Aeolis quadrangle]] [[Category:Gus Grissom]] [[Category:Ed White (astronaut)]]