America’s moonshot in 1969 stands as testament to great engineering and organization. However, all plans are subject to change. As early as 1962, Popular Mechanics was analyzing NASA’s concepts for the Apollo program. The launch vehicle was to be a “white-and-silver shaft jutting majestically 185 feet into the still-cool morning air,” a description that paralleled the three-stage construction of the Saturn V rocket, but underestimated the eventual design by nearly 200 feet. NASA had considered launching several small rockets and linking their payloads in orbit—an idea that current NASA planners are mulling for a return to the moon by 2020—but chose one 363-foot Saturn V instead. You can read the 1962 article in full in Google's Popular Mechanics archives here. And check out our full Apollo coverage here. —Allie Haake