The Apollo Command Module carried a total of 27 astronauts to lunar orbit aboard nine missions between 1968 and 1972. Launched by a Saturn V rocket, the largest and most powerful rocket ever built, it was the only part of the spacecraft recovered at the end of a mission. It served as the control center and living quarters for most of the lunar missions. One astronaut spent an entire mission inside while the other two left it only during lunar landings. Missions to the Moon typically lasted from six to 12 days.
