Trivia / Tintin: Destination Moon

• Life Imitates Art: Both "Tintin: Destination Moon" and "Tintin: Explorers on the Moon" (1950-1953, in publication) depict a moon landing expedition. This was about fifteen years before the Americans actually landed on the moon. Tintin's moon exploration was also scientifically very accurate without any typical science fiction clichés of aliens and such.
• Science Marches On: While the book portrays realistically the lack of Inertial Dampening during the take-off, the method chosen by the rocket designers to cushion its anatomical effects on the crew is to have them lay on their stomachs, which was considered an actual method back in late 1940s. We now know that such a method is the last thing you want to do to prepare for take off, as you are allowing the acceleration to effectively squeeze your lungs flat between the floor and your own body. The outcome shown in the take-off is accurate: everybody being painfully smothered until passing out is pretty much what they would have got in real life.