From the Earth to the Moon

From the Earth to the Moon by Jules Verne (1865)

After the Civil War, the Baltimore Gun Club decides to fire a projectile at the Moon — and three men volunteer to ride inside it. Verne's remarkably prophetic novel predicted the Apollo program with uncanny accuracy.

Historical Significance:
Published in 1865, Verne's novel predicted: the launch site in Florida (near Cape Canaveral), a crew of three Americans, the use of a cannon-like launch system, weightlessness in space, a splashdown in the Pacific, and the cost approximately matching NASA's Apollo budget (adjusted for inflation). NASA's actual trajectory to the Moon was almost identical to Verne's fictional one. The novel, written 104 years before Apollo 11, is the most prophetic work of science fiction ever written. Georges Méliès' 1902 film A Trip to the Moon was based partly on this novel.

This public domain classic was originally published in 1865. Free to read and share.