After these three space voyagers made there way into the MQF, a physician Dr. William Carpentier and a technician John Hiraski stayed sealed inside with them while the carrier made its way to Pearl Harbor, Hawaii and while the MQF was flown to Houston. After the Apollo 11 was hoisted onto the carrier it was placed adjacent to the MQF and attached to it by way of a large sealed plastic tunnel. Hiraksi then drained all of the remaining toxic chemicals from the capsule and removed the lunar samples. After the crew settled into their new home the President of the United States, Richard Nixon, even spoke to them from the other side of large window in the MQF. (This is another indication that the concern over moon germs was not taken very seriously if the President of the United States was standing in the impact zone of where the germ could have begun to propagate on Earth). While the carrier made its way to Hawaii, the crew of Apollo 11 began the long process of describing their mission. They were also carefully examined. While the MQF was much larger than the Apollo capsule, it was still very cramped. The 34-foot long facility had a set of bunk beds, a small kitchen, and a room that served as a meeting room and living room. There was also a flushing toilet and a shower, something absent during their space voyage.
On July 27 the USS Hornet "plus three," as the astronauts were called, arrived at Pearl Harbor. From Pearl they were transferred to Hickam AFB, but not before a parade. While still inside the MQF the astronauts were then flown in a C-141cargo plane to Houston where they were transferred into the larger quarters of the Lunar Receiving Lab (LRL). During the trip from the Pacific Ocean to Houston they were given blood tests and examined for exotic contaminants, but none were found.
The LRL was a veritable palace compared to the cramped quarters of the Apollo 11 capsule and the two rooms of the MQF, but it was still not home. The LRL was also home to the lunar samples. A week before the astronauts arrived at the LRL a clinical pathologist, 5 lab technicians, 3 cooks and housecleaners, a photography expert, and a NASA public relations rep, entered quarantine in the LRL. They would be the astronaut's companions while the mission and the lunar samples were carefully scrutinized.
