gitwtfhub

wtf is apollo-11?

chrislgarry/apollo-11 — explained in plain English

Analysis updated 2026-06-20

67,773AssemblyAudience · researcherComplexity · 1/5LicenseSetup · easy

TL;DR

This is the original assembly code that flew astronauts to the Moon in 1969, digitized from physical printouts, a public-domain historical archive of the Apollo Guidance Computer software for both the Command Module and Lunar Module.

Mindmap

mindmap
  root((Apollo 11 code))
    What it is
      Historical archive
      Public domain
      1969 assembly code
    Two computers
      Comanche 055 Command Module
      Luminary 099 Lunar Module
    Key content
      Navigation algorithms
      Trajectory calculations
      Real-time executive
    Who it is for
      Computing historians
      Space enthusiasts
      CS educators
    How to use
      Browse as archive
      Run in Virtual AGC

Code map

Detail Auto

An interactive map of this repo's files and how they connect — its source is parsed live in your browser. Click Visualize to build it.

filefunction / class

Why would anyone build with this?

REASON 1

Browse the actual navigation algorithms and trajectory calculations that guided humans to the Moon's surface.

REASON 2

Use the code as an educational resource to study early software engineering practices under extreme hardware constraints.

REASON 3

Compile and run the Apollo Guidance Computer code in the Virtual AGC simulator to see the original software in action.

REASON 4

Research the history of software engineering, including the work of Margaret Hamilton's team at MIT.

What's in the stack?

Assembly

How it stacks up

chrislgarry/apollo-11microsoft/ms-dosvxunderground/malwaresourcecode
Stars67,77332,06618,209
LanguageAssemblyAssemblyAssembly
Setup difficultyeasyhardmoderate
Complexity1/51/51/5
Audienceresearcherresearcherresearcher

Figures from each repo's GitHub metadata at analysis time.

How do you spin it up?

Difficulty · easy Time to first run · 5min
Public domain, completely free to use, copy, modify, and distribute with no restrictions whatsoever.

Wtf does this do

This repository contains the original source code that ran on the Apollo Guidance Computer (AGC) during the Apollo 11 mission, the first crewed Moon landing in July 1969. Specifically, it holds the code for two separate guidance computers: Comanche 055, which ran in the Command Module that carried astronauts to lunar orbit and back to Earth, and Luminary 099, which ran in the Lunar Module that actually descended to and ascended from the Moon's surface. The code was written at MIT's Instrumentation Laboratory under NASA contract and was digitized from physical hardcopy printouts held at the MIT Museum. The language is assembly, the most basic form of programming, where instructions correspond almost directly to the operations a processor performs. This is not code you would write or run today for practical purposes, it runs on the AGC, a computer from 1969 with roughly 2 MHz of processing power and 4 KB of reusable memory. The repository exists primarily as a historical archive and educational resource. You can browse through the actual logic that guided humans to the Moon: navigation algorithms, guidance equations, trajectory calculations, and the real-time executive that managed tasks with extraordinary precision under severe hardware constraints. The approval records included in the code show signatures from engineers including Margaret Hamilton, who led the software team. You would look at this repository if you are interested in computing history, the origins of software engineering as a discipline, or the remarkable engineering feats of the space age. If you want to actually compile and run the code in a simulator, the Virtual AGC project provides the tools to do so. The code is in the public domain. The primary language is Assembly.

Yoink these prompts

Prompt 1
I want to run the Apollo 11 guidance computer code in the Virtual AGC simulator after cloning the apollo-11 repository. What steps do I follow?
Prompt 2
Explain what the EXECUTIVE module in the Luminary 099 code does and how it managed real-time task scheduling with only 4 KB of reusable memory.
Prompt 3
Walk me through the lunar descent guidance algorithm in the Apollo 11 code and explain what each major section is doing.
Prompt 4
What were the biggest software engineering challenges the Apollo 11 team faced, and how can we see those constraints reflected in this source code?

Frequently asked questions

wtf is apollo-11?

This is the original assembly code that flew astronauts to the Moon in 1969, digitized from physical printouts, a public-domain historical archive of the Apollo Guidance Computer software for both the Command Module and Lunar Module.

What language is apollo-11 written in?

Mainly Assembly. The stack also includes Assembly.

What license does apollo-11 use?

Public domain, completely free to use, copy, modify, and distribute with no restrictions whatsoever.

How hard is apollo-11 to set up?

Setup difficulty is rated easy, with roughly 5min to a first successful run.

Who is apollo-11 for?

Mainly researcher.

View the repo → Decode another repo

This repo across BitVibe Labs

Don't trust strangers blindly. Verify against the repo.