spacetoday.net: Amazon founder finds Apollo 11 first stage engines

Amazon founder finds Apollo 11 first stage engines

Posted: Thu, Mar 29, 2012, 6:23 AM ET (1023 GMT)
Saturn 5 launch of Apollo 11 (NASA)

The founder of Amazon.com announced Wednesday that an expedition he funded has found the first stage engines of the Saturn 5 rocket that launched Apollo 11 in 1969. Jeff Bezos said that a team of "undersea pros", using a deep sea sonar, has found the F-1 engines at a depth of 14,000 feet (4,200 meters) in the Atlantic Ocean. The condition of the engines is unknown, but Bezos said in a statement that he's hopeful they are in good enough condition to be salvaged. The engines remain the property of NASA, a fact Bezos acknowledged, but said he hoped that if multiple engines can be recovered, one of them can be put on display at the Museum of Flight in Bezos's home of Seattle.