Editing Apollo 4 (section)

==Aftermath, assessment and spacecraft location==
{{quote box | align = right | width = 24em | salign = right
| quote = Technically, managerially, and psychologically, Apollo{{nbs}}4 was an important and successful mission, especially in view of the number of firsts it tackled. It was the first flight of the first and second stages of the Saturn{{nbs}}V (the S-IVB stage had flown on the Saturn{{nbs}}IB launch vehicles), the first launch of the complete Saturn{{nbs}}V, the first restart of the S-IVB in orbital flight, the first liftoff from Complex 39, the first flight test of the Block{{nbs}}II command module heatshield, the first flight of even a simulated lunar module, and so on. The fact that everything worked so well and with so little trouble gave NASA a confident feeling, as Phillips phrased it, that "Apollo [was] on the way to the moon."| source = —Courtney G. Brooks, James M. Grimwood and Loyd S. Swenson, ''Chariots for Apollo: A History of Manned Lunar Spacecraft'' (1979)<ref name="Brooks Apollo 4" />}}

All Apollo 4 launch vehicle and spacecraft systems performed satisfactorily. On the climb to orbit, each of the Saturn{{nbs}}V's three stages burned for slightly longer than expected. This left the craft in an orbit roughly one kilometer higher than expected, something well within tolerance. A burn eleven seconds longer than planned meant that the CM entered the Earth's atmosphere slightly faster and at a shallower angle than planned, but still within tolerance. This discrepancy happened not because of the performance of the guidance system (which was exemplary), but because the burn had been controlled from Earth. The CM's environmental control system kept the ship's cabin within acceptable temperatures and pressures throughout the mission, increasing by only {{convert|5.6|C-change|0}} during atmospheric entry.{{sfn|Orloff & Harland 2006|pp=124–127}}{{sfn|Press Kit|p=43}}

President [[Lyndon Johnson]] described the launch, "The whole world could see the awesome sight of the first launch of what is now the largest rocket ever flown. This launching symbolizes the power this nation is harnessing for the peaceful exploration of space."{{sfn|Seamans 2005|p=80}} Von Braun spoke of the mission as "an expert launching all the way through, from lift-off exactly on time to performance of every single stage".<ref name ="moonport launch" /> In his history of the Saturn{{nbs}}V, Roger E. Bilstein wrote that "the flawless mission of Apollo{{nbs}}4 elated the entire NASA organization; everyone looked ahead with buoyant spirits."{{sfn|Bilstein 1996|p=359}} Mueller stated that Apollo{{nbs}}4 dramatically increased the confidence of many and showed it should be possible for astronauts to land on the Moon by mid-1969.<ref name = "moonport launch" />

Apollo 6, the second flight of the Saturn{{nbs}}V, was launched on April 4, 1968. Although the Saturn{{nbs}}V's stages gave more trouble than on Apollo{{nbs}}4 (the mission experienced [[pogo oscillation]] during its first stage and had an early second-stage engine shutdown),{{sfn|Orloff & Harland 2006|pp=153–154}} it was decided that a third uncrewed flight was unnecessary. The Saturn{{nbs}}V flew with a crew for the first time on [[Apollo&nbsp;8]].{{sfn|Orloff & Harland 2006|pp=55–59}} A Saturn{{nbs}}V launched astronauts into space, and (except for [[Apollo 9]]) towards the Moon, on each of the Apollo missions that followed.{{sfn|Orloff & Harland 2006|pp=572–573}}

In January 1969 CM-017 was transferred to the [[Smithsonian Institution]].<ref name="Smithsonian-1967">{{cite web|url=https://airandspace.si.edu/collection-objects/command-module-apollo-4/nasm_A19700254000|title=Command Module, Apollo 4|website=airandspace.si.edu|access-date=July 19, 2020}}</ref> As of 1978, it was on display at the [[North Carolina Museum of Life and Science]].<ref name = "hardware">{{cite web|title=Apollo/Skylab ASTP and Shuttle Orbiter Major End Items|date=March 1978|url=https://s3.documentcloud.org/documents/6473665/Apollo-Skylab-ASTP-and-Shuttle-Orbiter-Major-End.pdf|publisher=[[NASA]]|page=15}}</ref> The CM was subsequently put on public display at NASA's [[Stennis Space Center]], where it remained until 2017. It is currently on display at Stennis Space Center's visitor center, the Infinity Science Center, in [[Pearlington, Mississippi]].<ref name="space-2017">{{cite web|first=Robert Z.|last=Pearlman|date=October 31, 2017|url=https://www.space.com/38626-apollo-4-lands-infinity-science-center.html|title=Apollo 4 Capsule From 1st Saturn V Launch Lands at Infinity Science Center|website=www.space.com|access-date=July 19, 2020}}</ref>