https://www.apolloupclose.com/home daily 1.0 2024-07-23 https://www.apolloupclose.com/new-page daily 0.75 2020-10-12 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5f8386b27bb62b2036ef616b/1602466574413-1T96FXJFKZ6VE79Y3CTI/Freedom7II.jpg Project Mercury The Freedom 7II at the Smithsonian. Note the retro pack on the left side. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5f8386b27bb62b2036ef616b/1602466759801-X7FOAY4MPZK0EZYP0VI7/retro_strap3.jpg Project Mercury https://www.apolloupclose.com/contact daily 0.75 2020-11-24 https://www.apolloupclose.com/credits daily 0.75 2020-11-24 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5f8386b27bb62b2036ef616b/1602889565179-SPCJ7RRC3SFT4GVHDCSK/IMG_1661.highContrast.jpg Credits Copr. 2020, Mike Smithwick https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5f8386b27bb62b2036ef616b/1602485539505-2AMY7HKAR75OXB19MJAX/retro_strap3.png Credits Copr. 2020, Mike Smithwick https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5f8386b27bb62b2036ef616b/1602523169125-6LMUI4062PSMFSKGRRJ7/IMG_0665.jpeg Credits Copr. 2020, Mike Smithwick https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5f8386b27bb62b2036ef616b/1602547739327-3847T2KFE981WJ68S4KW/IMG_9700.jpeg Credits Copr. 2020, Mike Smithwick https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5f8386b27bb62b2036ef616b/1602563367825-57EF97LIAK2PH8J66CCM/IMG_1017+%281%29.jpeg Credits Copr. 2020, Mike Smithwick https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5f8386b27bb62b2036ef616b/1605169521615-LZHZSLCRXTBCUKVSBDSV/CMHatchCarstenOlson.Cropped2.jpg Credits Copr. 2020, Carsten Olson, used with permission https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5f8386b27bb62b2036ef616b/1602648437026-MQ2ZPUO3N37Q3ER47UJ3/LMFootPad.jpg Credits Copr. 2020, Carsten Olson, used with permission https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5f8386b27bb62b2036ef616b/1602660951471-MB3PRN86K324GT8ZLDBG/F1.jpg Credits Copr. 2020, Carsten Olson, used with permission https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5f8386b27bb62b2036ef616b/1602700953690-PI12P1F0GWPHED09OYNI/f-1-engine-injector.jpg Credits NASA https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5f8386b27bb62b2036ef616b/1602703546139-JO9RBCOAB0H899MAAVGM/injectorPlateInF1.jpg Credits NASA https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5f8386b27bb62b2036ef616b/1602704442934-DD42ESUE8WC2KBC7OZDZ/lkLandingGearFramed.CarstenOlson.BW.jpg Credits Copr. 2020, Carsten Olson, used with permission https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5f8386b27bb62b2036ef616b/1602719293413-ZO8X60SJUZ8UWYDPTRSM/CarlstenOlsen.ShuttleEngines.jpg Credits Copr. 2020, Carsten Olson, used with permission https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5f8386b27bb62b2036ef616b/1602724516792-4QVDIH3CYSW62VF3OV6D/ShuttleEngines.BW.jpg Credits Copr. 2020, Mike Smithwick https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5f8386b27bb62b2036ef616b/1602727874003-U7MJQ1LBGBAWSIK96NVE/Bolt.jpg Credits Copr. 2020, Mike Smithwick https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5f8386b27bb62b2036ef616b/1602733852743-8EU2Z6EWQC5R8FT1WK4T/GlobusCropped.jpg Credits Copr. 2020, Mike Smithwick https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5f8386b27bb62b2036ef616b/1602789214484-C0OJNNU5GCD601N1071K/LMMESA.CarstenOlson.jpg Credits Copr. 2020, Carsten Olson, used with permission https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5f8386b27bb62b2036ef616b/1603236713965-R4D36CZK2MC5SBKMW9NN/WDFcontrol.jpg Credits Copr. 2020, Mike Smithwick https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5f8386b27bb62b2036ef616b/1602725795450-QC9WDQMWH29SM73MTI0B/IMG_2776.bw.jpg Credits Copr. 2020, Mike Smithwick https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5f8386b27bb62b2036ef616b/1603240920176-59F2FDLZW4KAZURSL12K/GDC.1.jpg Credits Copr. 2020, Mike Smithwick https://www.apolloupclose.com/about daily 0.75 2020-11-24 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5f8386b27bb62b2036ef616b/1606185149941-6IJ5DBR78UCZJHRXS1OX/IMG_2802.jpeg About - Why did I do this? Pure unadulterated greed and desire for attention. Plus, I thought it would be really cool. (this is a proof of concept to gauge the interest of this little project of mine. Book editors, take note!) If you’ve never stopped to look at the aesthetics that can be found in nearly all engineering endeavors, that means you’ve never looked the insides of you phone (use an old phone, cuz, getting to its innards will likely destroy the things, ask my poor iPhone 5 about that), the gentle arcs in a bridge, or the lines of the grill on your car, you should do it sometime. There are beautiful things to see that can only be appreciated up-close, carving out these brand new forms the can be revealed. My greatest interest is the early space program and so that’s where I start. What I strive to do here is to take an up-close view of some of the hardware from Mercury through Shuttle, with a detour to some Soviet items as well. For the most part I avoided trying to “pretty up” the image with colors or dramatic lighting so the devices can speak for themselves. I rarely show off the full piece, as I look at the buried patterns that can be unearthed, up-close. I’ll be adding more images here from my own collection along with the wonderful shots from Carsten Olsen, oh, and NASA as well. As this is in an alpha version of the project, much of the photography works well enough, but could certainly be improved over time. https://www.apolloupclose.com/new-page-2 daily 0.75 2022-11-27 https://www.apolloupclose.com/shop daily 0.75 2020-10-12 https://www.apolloupclose.com/shop/p/gift-card-pfck6 monthly 0.5 2019-07-03 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5ce6d339a8ffbf0001a8fb20/1559834442430-DBRWR0KGWCXAJFOUOG2S/giftcard-template.jpg Shop - Gift Card https://www.apolloupclose.com/shop/p/palm-dbkjp monthly 0.5 2020-03-31 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5ce6d339a8ffbf0001a8fb20/1559833646039-FTYEXWSDNPJG79BCWWQQ/Ecomm_18_Palm_004.jpg Shop - Palm https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5ce6d339a8ffbf0001a8fb20/1559833645956-EVT0P939RUCDOR7WGCE2/Texture_16_004.jpg Shop - Palm https://www.apolloupclose.com/shop/p/fern-75ndp monthly 0.5 2020-03-31 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5ce6d339a8ffbf0001a8fb20/1559833595614-2WGCJ5ZPXUOXHFW584GJ/Ecomm_07_Fern_003.jpg Shop - 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Swing Arm 7 console - Saturn V Firing Room #2 It always amazed me with the enormity of the Saturn Launch Control Center firing rooms. Originally it was planned to have four launch pads each their own dedicated firing room. Ultimately only 2 pads were build and 3 firing rooms. Depending on the mission and launch vehicle there could be over 130 consoles and personal on the main floor. Each one of the Saturn’s stages, fueling systems and launch tower systems would have numerous dedicated consoles controlling and monitoring even the tiniest system. Over the years a number of panels have popped up on in the various space auctions. Most have been tracked to Firing Room 2. Room 1 conducted all of the Apollo missions except Apollo 10 which room 2 supported. Room 2 also did the manned launches for Skylab and Apollo-Soyuz Test Project. Many of room 1’s consoles are either on display at the Saturn V center at the Kennedy Space Center, or likely on loan to other museums. This panel is for the “Swing Arm 7” near the very top of the launch tower. Each tower had seven such “access arms” allowing both personnel and equipment access to the various points on the Saturn. Arm #7 was where the legendary White Room was located that allowed the crew access to the spacecraft.Their final contact with earth was controlled here. To think that as complicated as each console was and each room, consider how much work and design it to work put up one room and think that they were going to do FOUR! Top Photo: ©2020 by Mike Smithwick https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5f8386b27bb62b2036ef616b/1602725984190-MIFMRD83V88WKDUU148V/LCC.SwingArm9.BW.jpg Start Here - Swing Arm 7 console https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5f8386b27bb62b2036ef616b/1602645939930-VL07A6YY09WKJZMR8G9E/KittyAndPanel.jpg Start Here - Swing Arm 7 console https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5f8386b27bb62b2036ef616b/1602725406009-BUSNVETQTS6GORSL01YH/Interior_view_of_the_White_Room_atop_Pad_A_during_the_insertion_of_the_Apollo_12_crew.jpg Start Here - Swing Arm 7 console https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5f8386b27bb62b2036ef616b/1602646772308-OHUPBXOYT6P8DD31EKXC/ap1-ksc-67pc-17-800x632.jpg Start Here - Swing Arm 7 console https://www.apolloupclose.com/gallery-1/hsiegx-sn9sw-fy4mb-b329x-kmznd-t9zwj-8tjp3-apwfb-pe97z monthly 0.5 2020-11-12 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5f8386b27bb62b2036ef616b/1602885192510-N6YZVQUUWRCDAG36Q9UI/Apollo_11_command_module_hatch.Photograph+by+Mike+Peel+%28www.mikepeel.net%29.jpg Start Here - Command Module Hatch - Apollo CommandModule Hatch, Block II The command module’s “Unified Crew Hatch” weighs in at about 225 lbs, or 112.5 kg and comes with 15 latches around the edge. This is the second design, after a poorly designed hatch for the early version of the spacecraft, Block 1, was partially responsible the tragic Apollo 1 pad fire in 1967. The main difference was that the Block I hatch had to open inward, an awkward and deadly combination. The commander of the Apollo 1, veteran Mercury astronaut, Gus Grissom, insisted on that design when looking back on his Mercury flight. On that mission, his hatch blew off prematurely (using explosive bolts) causing his near drowning and the loss of the spacecraft. Ultimately, the latter would be recovered in 1999 from a depth greater than the Titanic. A mechanical reason was never discovered so some concluded it could only be “pilot error.” Still not a satisfactory explanation as Grissom was an outstanding pilot, and many felt he would selected to command the first lunar landing. Top photo by Oliver Farries, used with permission https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5f8386b27bb62b2036ef616b/1602885016044-CVS3X2LU01FLF1QQ4EFA/Apollo1cabin.jpg Start Here - Command Module Hatch https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5f8386b27bb62b2036ef616b/1602884952549-2WO0CA0R01NU7J1QDRY0/Liberty-Bell-7-underwater-768x576.jpg Start Here - Command Module Hatch https://www.apolloupclose.com/gallery-1/hsiegx-sn9sw-fy4mb-b329x-kmznd-t9zwj-8tjp3-eancf monthly 0.5 2020-10-21 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5f8386b27bb62b2036ef616b/1603243051003-YY0PNSFJPRMQWN7V2A9I/472715_1_En_6_Fig16_HTML.png Start Here - Gyro Display Coupler - Apollo Gyro Display Coupler The Apollo command module (CM) has about 20 or so large boxy electrical modules similar to this. They are marvelous in their design, driven not by aesthetics but by size and weight limits. Consider the engineers who designed this unit and those who created and managed the construction and testing of each of these. And then do that another 20 to 30 times. And then multiply that for each of the other boxy things such as the VHF radio, MDM and so on. This is called the “Gyro Display Coupler” and was the unit that helped keep the crew informed of their actual attitude. This would be compared to those generated by Inertial Measurement Unit that would give the calculated attitude that. When struck by lighting during its launch, Command Module Pilot, Dick Gorden can be heard saying “ All we've got's the GDC.” Meaning that main attitude module was knocked offline so they had to rely on the backup. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5f8386b27bb62b2036ef616b/1603243242993-DIALAJCUD9MULFT5278J/GC_att_sys.jpg Start Here - Gyro Display Coupler https://www.apolloupclose.com/gallery-1/hsiegx-sn9sw-fy4mb-b329x-kmznd-t9zwj-8tjp3-nwlmw monthly 0.5 2023-08-06 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5f8386b27bb62b2036ef616b/1603239826881-2DOA2C50X66LRKPSIOHI/toiletAnnotated.jpg Start Here - Shuttle Restroom Control Panel - Shuttle Waste Containment Controls Let’s face it. We all have to do it. “Using the restroom” is one euphemism “using the crapper” another one Then there is the loo, WC and in medieval times, the privy. And out of the mouths of any 5th grader when meeting an astronaut is the question “how do you go to the bathroom in space?” One astronaut’s response was “there a’int no graceful way.” If you’ve seen 2001-A Space Odyssey, the only moment of levity is when Dr. Heywood Floyd is readying the instructions to use the zero-gravity toilet. (Those were real instructions, someone had to actually design a system that was less primitive than baggies, then write up the instructions). Over the decades there have been countless variations of the process, but ultimately comes to using tubes, funnels, air circulation, hold down straps, bags and gloves. In fact it was such an awkward process, one Apollo astronaut went so far as to ask for a “low residue diet,” or foods that can almost entirely be used by the body leaving little waste. No more gloves and baggies for him. And to make matters worse, an astronauts, uh, “output,” was then saved and examined when they got back. Perhaps the only thing worse to using a toilet in space is testing one on earth, where getting the test subjects and having then to work on they’re business rapid enough for the 45 seconds or so they’d get of zero-G in the training aircraft. In the days of the Soviet MIR station, their toilet was nicknamed “the daisy” as it apparently smelled exactly not like a daisy, or any other flowers except perhaps the Amorphophallus titanum. What you see here is the control panel for a real zero-gravity toilet located in the “WCCA”, the Waste Compartment Control Assembly,” and it looks so pretty with the brushed metal finish I had to include it. I display this in my guest bathroom along with a flown-in-space “privacy curtain.” https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5f8386b27bb62b2036ef616b/1603239877111-9A10FZ5VEAYJSEL5X6OP/Space_toilet.svg.png Start Here - Shuttle Restroom Control Panel https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5f8386b27bb62b2036ef616b/1603239906501-1WZOX4FXC8KTCR0WWD8A/C8phXba.jpg Start Here - Shuttle Restroom Control Panel https://www.apolloupclose.com/gallery-1/hsiegx-sn9sw-fy4mb-b329x-kmznd-t9zwj monthly 0.5 2020-10-16 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5f8386b27bb62b2036ef616b/1602790494205-UFRKM55J2XOLNE3SA0MY/cassiniProbe.jpg Start Here - LM MESA - Lunar Module Insulation On the photos returned from the moon, I’ve always loved the ones with the relatively colorless lunar soil contrasting with the luminous gold covering of the Lunar Module’s descent stage, of the lunar module. The gold covering is the outer surface of the LM’s insulation blanket, a very complex assortment of 2 dozen layers of mylar, “kapton,” glass and aluminum. Since the LM would have to suffer under temperatures going from -250F to 250F, the insulation helped moderate that. It is still used today as almost any satellite will show. This is the “MESA” (Modularized Equipment Stowage Assembly) which is deployed by the first astronaut to exit the LM. It carried the TV camera along with tools needed for the early part of the moonwalk. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5f8386b27bb62b2036ef616b/1602791076203-QDDL64NKG8B9T8VO86IE/c321b.jpg Start Here - LM MESA https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5f8386b27bb62b2036ef616b/1602790896810-0CPVBR9B2BFGPQTUVBYQ/mesa1b.gif Start Here - LM MESA https://www.apolloupclose.com/gallery-1/hsiegx-sn9sw-fy4mb-b329x monthly 0.5 2020-10-15 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5f8386b27bb62b2036ef616b/1602732106949-9WMCAX59QZOFYP6ONJT7/LocationOfHoldDownBolts.jpg Start Here - Hold Down Bolt - Space Shuttle Hold Down Bolt I had always wondered how the Space Shuttle was held down on the pad before liftoff. It was bolted! With eight stainless steel bolt weighing 110 lbs each. The two solid rocket boosters, SRBs, were bolted to the launch pad with four bolts each. The nuts, weighing 16 lbs, were “frangible” in that they would be blown apart and off all eight bolts allowing the shuttle to shed the earthly realm. The two halves of the nuts were given out the various crew members and others involved in the mission. The price of each of these bolts was estimated to be about $10,000. When I was expecting this in the mail, I get a call from the delivery man asking me if there was anything breakable in this really heavy package he had for me as it apparently was damaged slightly in the truck. I told him that the object was perhaps the most unbreakable things he’d ever had to deliver. A little later when he arrives he asked me what was in it. I opened up the box and showed it to him. His response? “That’s so cool!” Then he took some pictures to show his family. Top Photo: ©2020 by Mike Smithwick https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5f8386b27bb62b2036ef616b/1602732265185-SIV9C0B6QPN36O4A1ZG6/FrangibleNut.jpg Start Here - Hold Down Bolt https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5f8386b27bb62b2036ef616b/1602787752132-PFDJ1FXUCJ4SLZ8ZL9XK/IMG_2813.jpeg Start Here - Hold Down Bolt That is an iPhone SE for scale https://www.apolloupclose.com/gallery-1/hsiegx-sn9sw-fy4mb-b329x-kmznd monthly 0.5 2020-10-15 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5f8386b27bb62b2036ef616b/1602744184997-YILQB13U8TADLM7T7X3O/soyuz-11-men.jpg Start Here - Soyuz Globus - Soyuz Globus World Map One of the trademarks of the Soviet spacecraft is a particularly useful device called the “Globus.” It is a simple mechanical globe showing where exactly the spacecraft was. Starting with the first flight of Vostok 1 up to recent times, the Globus has been virtually unchanged until the Soyuz spacecraft was finally outfitted with more modern digital displays. On the collectors market the Globus is highly prized. I got this off of eBay for a little less the a recently auctioned display. Sometime later the gent I bought it from told me he and recently received the panel it came from but no one wanted to buy the panel without the Globus. Lucky me! Perhaps one of the weirdest things I picked up from eBay. I’ve been hoping to find a way to get the lights to illuminate but no luck so far. Interestingly enough two of the six Mercury spacecraft had something similar, called the Earth Path Indicator, or EPI. Both Gus Grissom’s Liberty Bell 7 and John Glenn’s Friendship 7 had the EPI. The other spacecraft had an empty slot where it was supposed to go. These displays are so rare, one recently was sold at auction for over $74,000. Top Photo: ©2020 by Mike Smithwick https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5f8386b27bb62b2036ef616b/1602745463052-YN8NJ6GN2YN7Q7QMSO3P/Friendship7.jpg Start Here - Soyuz Globus https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5f8386b27bb62b2036ef616b/1602745890213-CF5KET42CYPDIU72W8DM/Mercury.EPI.jpg Start Here - Soyuz Globus https://www.apolloupclose.com/gallery-1/hsiegx-sn9sw-fy4mb monthly 0.5 2020-10-15 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5f8386b27bb62b2036ef616b/1602563597182-6PDP60PNRLFA553R6YBD/Space_Shuttle_cockpit.HSI.jpg Start Here - Shuttle HSI - Space Shuttle Horizontal Situation Indicators Well, okay, the Space Shuttle can have a lot of pretty engineering as well, not just Apollo. The Space Shuttle was a “plane” of sorts, for the last few minutes of its mission at least. And as such, the cockpit was modeled after standard aviation instruments and layout. There were three main instruments on the front panel. This one is a “Horizontal Situation Indicator” or “HSI”. It was used to indicate the heading towards the primary airfield and a backup in case the the first one was unavailable. The shuttle HSI is virtually identical to the standard aircraft unit and should be instantly recognizable to any seasoned pilot. In the late 90s the shuttle fleet received a wholesale upgrade to a “glass cockpit” which means getting rid of the old electromechanical displays and replacing them with video screens. The actual graphics were identical to the original hardware, just easier to maintain. Interestingly though, for all of the old displays that would have been removed from the spacecraft, multiple simulators and part-task trainers, spares, defective units, very few have come to the collectors market, but a recent one sold for over $30,000. The attitude display, the “8-ball,” was virtually identical to the lunar module units and are highly desirable to the collector. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5f8386b27bb62b2036ef616b/1602563673577-W3EYQCO9EYJXGGJ9WEWR/HSI.above.jpg https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5f8386b27bb62b2036ef616b/1602565650983-GAVPORQSHQ5G4M11SN8W/HSI.front.jpg https://www.apolloupclose.com/gallery-1/hsiegx-sn9sw-fy4mb-zyfz4 monthly 0.5 2020-10-15 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5f8386b27bb62b2036ef616b/1602721924062-FLMNMBN3DTWOANU48D21/1024px-Pratt_Whitney_Rocketdyne_space_shuttle_main_engines.jpg Start Here - Shuttle Engines #1 - Space Shuttle Horizontal Situation Indicators The Space Shuttle came with three engines, each of which would produce 400,000 lbs of thrust for 8.5 minutes. The engines were fuel with liquid hydrogen and oxygen producing an exhaust of little more than water vapor. Weighing in at just under 4 tons, the RS-25 engines were a little over 14 feet tall with a diameter of 8 feet. Since the retirement of the shuttle fleet, the engines have been stored for later use in the new Artemis 1 and 2 missions to the moon. Eighteen new RS-25s have been ordered for later missions of the SLS, Space Launch System. Above photo by Carlsten Olsen, used with permission https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5f8386b27bb62b2036ef616b/1602722332861-7JTUOXKJEVUNJDZHBS42/space-shuttle-main-enginea.jpg Start Here - Shuttle Engines #1 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5f8386b27bb62b2036ef616b/1602722129982-ANYLB4PVLZ1FPV67CG6I/020408_STS110_Atlantis_launch_0.jpg Start Here - Shuttle Engines #1 https://www.apolloupclose.com/gallery-1/hsiegx-sn9sw-fy4mb-zyfz4-sswhe monthly 0.5 2020-10-21 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5f8386b27bb62b2036ef616b/1602721924062-FLMNMBN3DTWOANU48D21/1024px-Pratt_Whitney_Rocketdyne_space_shuttle_main_engines.jpg Start Here - Shuttle Engines #2 - Space Shuttle RS-25 Engines The Space Shuttle came with three engines, each of which would produce 400,000 lbs of thrust for 8.5 minutes. The engines were fuel with liquid hydrogen and oxygen producing an exhaust of little more than water vapor. Weighing in at just under 4 tons, the RS-25 engines were a little over 14 feet tall with a diameter of 8 feet. Since the retirement of the shuttle fleet, the engines have been stored for later use in the new Artemis 1 and 2 missions to the moon. Eighteen new RS-25s have been ordered for later missions of the SLS, Space Launch System. Pictured is the Atlantis at the Kennedy Space Center photo: © 2020, Mike Smithwick https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5f8386b27bb62b2036ef616b/1602722129982-ANYLB4PVLZ1FPV67CG6I/020408_STS110_Atlantis_launch_0.jpg Start Here - Shuttle Engines #2 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5f8386b27bb62b2036ef616b/1602722332861-7JTUOXKJEVUNJDZHBS42/space-shuttle-main-enginea.jpg Start Here - Shuttle Engines #2 https://www.apolloupclose.com/gallery-1/hsiegx-sn9sw-fy4mb-r3t9y-5l8cs monthly 0.5 2020-10-15 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5f8386b27bb62b2036ef616b/1602712060422-7T99GITCEHPR934DUKNM/LK-3_lunar_lander_engineering_test_unit.jpg Start Here - Soviet LK Lunar Lander - LK Landing Gear During the early 60s after the lunar landing initiative was spelled out by President Kennedy, it was assumed the Soviet Union had a similar program in the works. However, by early 1969, once they realized that they could lose the “moon race” in a matter of months, denied they had ever had plans to land a man on the moon when robots would be cheaper and safer. But they did. And it was believed that extremely popular cosmonaut and the first man to walk in space, Alexi Leonov, would likely do the same on the moon. It would be kept secret for two decades. Seen here is one of the landing gear for their LK (“Lunniy Korabyl”, lunar cabin”). Over 18 feet tall and barely one third the mass of the Apollo lander, the LK could only carry a crew of one along with few small experiments. To launch both the LK and LOK (lunar lander and return vehicle), a rocket more powerful than the Saturn V would need to be built. With 30% more thrust than the Saturn V, the Soviet’s poor knowledge of micro-electronics or lightweight alloys, the more powerful rocket could only deliver two men to the moon and a seriously stripped down lander. To save weight, no docking tunnel was created, so the Leonov would have to do a spacewalk to transfer to the return ship. And one version left out the forward hatch so the cabin would be in vacuum the entire time and stay on the moon a scant 6 hours. Unfortunately the massive N-1 lunar rocket failed all four unmanned launch attempts from 1969 to 1972, one being called “the largest man-made non-nuclear explosion in history.” The LK lander would fly unmanned for three earth orbiting missions, and the program scrapped by 1976. It was believed that only a single landing would take place. However, they had a backup plan. Shortly before Apollo 11 launched, the Russians launched the unmanned lander in a last ditch effort to return lunar samples before the Americans. Luna 15, we were assured, would not interfere with Apollo. Delayed a day, the Luna began its descent less than two hours before lunar liftoff for Eagle. Four minutes later it went silent after crashing into a mountainside about 344 miles away from Apollo 11 Above photo by Carlsten Olsen, used with permission https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5f8386b27bb62b2036ef616b/1602712161283-1WS6FUQUOYY344XR2GJZ/400px-Landef%C3%A4hren.jpg Start Here - Soviet LK Lunar Lander https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5f8386b27bb62b2036ef616b/1602712318725-BJP5QIN50TFY7Y5PAYQE/lkpanels.jpg Start Here - Soviet LK Lunar Lander The very cramped cabin barely had room for the spacesuited pilot and a few small experiments. https://www.apolloupclose.com/gallery-1/hsiegx-sn9sw-fy4mb-r3t9y-3heyn monthly 0.5 2020-10-14 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5f8386b27bb62b2036ef616b/1602702273250-TLT9XI19CZ0WDGVB4BH6/RecoveredApollo11.IjectorPlate.jpg Start Here - F1 Injector Plate #2 - F1 Injector Plate An “injector plate” in a liquid fuel rocket injects both fuel and oxidizer into the combustion chamber. This plate is about 40” in diameter and 8” thick. In 2012 a Jeff Bezos sponsored search recovered one of the engines from the Apollo 11 booster, about 400 miles east of the launch center, and submerged nearly 3 miles deep. This plate (right) is one of the very few Saturn V pieces ever recovered. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5f8386b27bb62b2036ef616b/1602702573800-HF1R1C51PNRPRWZCV2Y8/f-1-injector-orifices.jpg Start Here - F1 Injector Plate #2 https://www.apolloupclose.com/gallery-1/hsiegx-sn9sw-fy4mb-r3t9y monthly 0.5 2020-10-14 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5f8386b27bb62b2036ef616b/1602702273250-TLT9XI19CZ0WDGVB4BH6/RecoveredApollo11.IjectorPlate.jpg Start Here - F1 Injector Plate - F1 Injector Plate An “injector plate” in a liquid fuel rocket injects both fuel and oxidizer into the combustion chamber. This plate is about 40” in diameter and 8” thick. In 2012 a Jeff Bezos sponsored search recovered one of the engines from the Apollo 11 booster, about 400 miles east of the launch center, and submerged nearly 3 miles deep. This plate (right) is one of the very few Saturn V pieces ever recovered. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5f8386b27bb62b2036ef616b/1602702573800-HF1R1C51PNRPRWZCV2Y8/f-1-injector-orifices.jpg Start Here - F1 Injector Plate https://www.apolloupclose.com/gallery-1/hsiegx-sn9sw-fy4mb-5dtwr monthly 0.5 2023-08-06 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5f8386b27bb62b2036ef616b/1602663356218-3GDY99ZBI6DT4TPK0GF8/ApolloF1_Bezos4X3-879x485.jpg Start Here - F1 Engine - Saturn V F1 Engine A total of 96 F1s were made, 65 were launched. Many of the rest in scattered in various museums or remain attached to unflown Saturn V rockets currently on display. The engine stands 19 feet high and 12 feet wide. The five burned 15 tons of kerosene and liquid oxygen every second. A more powerful derivative, the F-1B, would have produced 1.8 million if thrust, 20% more than the original, and was proposed as a follow-on to post-shuttle era. But was deemed too costly to produce. In 2012 a Jeff Bezos sponsored search recovered one of the engines from the Apollo 11 booster, about 400 miles east of the launch center, and submerged nearly 3 miles deep. This is one of the very few Saturn V pieces ever recovered (photo: Bezos Expeditions) https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5f8386b27bb62b2036ef616b/1602664032453-A70QE4G7L9PRAT6L4CU9/F1Construction.jpg Start Here - F1 Engine https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5f8386b27bb62b2036ef616b/1602663922942-BR6G6LWECSF2NDEWGUA2/F1Firing.jpg Start Here - F1 Engine https://www.apolloupclose.com/gallery-1/hsiegx-sn9sw-fy4mb-m8hyl monthly 0.5 2020-10-14 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5f8386b27bb62b2036ef616b/1602659736829-C2NJ7ZLK4DXLCNG8AW7O/Aldrin_near_Module_leg.jpg Start Here - Lunar Module Landing Pad Connection Point - Lunar Module Footpad Joint The LM’s landing pads are 37 inches across and are attached to the legs via a ball joint and some funny gray stuff. Try as I might, there is precious little information about the footpads. photo by Carsten Olsen, used with permission (the photo above, obviously not the photo to the right :-) https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5f8386b27bb62b2036ef616b/1602659866968-V39VT1YVDXJ59HPLA51K/LMLandingGear.jpg Start Here - Lunar Module Landing Pad Connection Point https://www.apolloupclose.com/gallery-1/voyagrer-engine89egx monthly 0.5 2020-10-13 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5f8386b27bb62b2036ef616b/1602488962361-2TL0GSFEG8NG01V62656/artist-rendering-nasa-voyager-1.jpg Start Here - Voyager Rocket Engine - Voyager Spacecraft Prototype MR-103B Engine NASA habitually makes its spacecraft incredibly durable. None more so than the Voyager I and II. Launched in 1977 the two spacecraft were the first to flyby Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus and Neptune and returned some of most iconic photos in planetary exploration, Over 14 billion miles from Earth, so far it takes over 20 hours for their signals to reach us, the twin spacecraft still return import science data as they head towards interstellar space. This engine model is a variant of the 16 small adjustment engines the spacecraft. Using hydrazine as its fuel, each engine could produce up to about 100lbf of thrust. First used in 1977, descendants of this little engine are still in use on NASA’s new Orion manned spacecraft. https://www.apolloupclose.com/gallery-1/lmhandcontrollerl89egx-sn9sw-p3zs9 monthly 0.5 2020-10-13 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5f8386b27bb62b2036ef616b/1602553034155-29W8NBUHXKOU4J5W9DDO/LM12.ACA.jpg Start Here - Lunar Module Hand Controller - Lunar Module Hand Controller Also called the “Attitude Control Assembly” or “ACA” the hand-controller is just a really big and fancy joystick. There were two controls on each side of the LM cockpit so either astronaut could fly the vehicle. The ACA would rotate the LM around its three axis, its attitude. The other is the “Translational Thrust Controller” or the THC, which allowed the LM to be moved forward/backwards, left/right, and up/down. One of the very first words spoken on the moon was when Buzz Aldrin said “ACA,” as in: Contact light. Okay, Engine stop, ACA out of detent,…. They were not “the Eagle has landed.” I’ve always wanted to open ‘er up and see if I could set it up as a joystick for the Eagle-3D landing simulation. https://www.apolloupclose.com/gallery-1/mercury monthly 0.5 2023-12-26 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5f8386b27bb62b2036ef616b/1602469742620-NK4UU4N8ZU48YXFYXRUX/Freedom7II.jpg Start Here - Mercury Retro-pack - Mercury Retro-pack Project Mercury’s goal was simple. Get a man into orbit and bring him back. Safely. Preferably in that order. And to see how long-term weightlessness would affect him, mentally and physically. Would his eye’s focus? Could he swallow any foods? What would happen to his circulatory system? This image depicts the center of the Mercury’s retro-pack. It had 3 small solid fuel engines which would fire off in sequence. Afterwards the straps (the three narrow strips) would be released, letting the pack drift away.That was the plan. However, on John Glenn’s flight a light on the ground indicated that his heat shield was loose. (When nearing splashdown, the heat-shield would be dropped by about a foot, uncovering an inflatable landing bag that would cushion the impact.) Glenn was commanded to keep the retro pack on just in case the readings were true, it might hold the heat-shield on. As it turned out, the indicator was at fault and Glenn’s spacecraft worked normally. And Glenn was rather upset when they withheld that information from him at first. https://www.apolloupclose.com/gallery-1/block1controlpanel89egx-sn9sw monthly 0.5 2023-12-26 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5f8386b27bb62b2036ef616b/1602526293331-7DJKD6ZJRZX7AFU7LWID/typical-block-i-main-display.small.jpeg Start Here - Block I Control Panel - Apollo Control Panel The Apollo Command Module had 566 switches 24 instruments, 40 event indicators, and 71 lights. No touch screens, iPads or Alexas on-board. All very old-school. And I think much cooler looking than the “glass cockpits” of the latest generation of spacecraft. Even up to the early 2000s, the Space Shuttle had a very similar set of discrete devices. This panel is from the first version of the Apollo spacecraft known as “Block I.” Originally designed before the lunar landing architecture was firm, it ultimately would have very little use as it didn’t have the docking port. The very first manned Apollo mission, Apollo 1, was to use a Block I. However, the Apollo 1 crew would tragically die in a 1967 fire just a few weeks before their mission. The fire broke out in their spacecraft thanks to the poor mechanical and electrical design. Ultimately, only a couple of Block Is would fly, unmanned in the first test flights of the Saturn V. This panel is from the far right side and handles the electrical systems of both the fuel cells and batteries. In the movie, First Man, the sounds of the switches being flipped in the Apollo 11 segment where taken from this panel. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5f8386b27bb62b2036ef616b/27d45d07-7c90-403b-b7dd-e3e4f1f3a991/IMG_0714.jpeg Start Here - Block I Control Panel The backside https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5f8386b27bb62b2036ef616b/1602542339366-82IQG0L379O2J7UP8EMC/IMG_0512.jpeg Start Here - Block I Control Panel https://www.apolloupclose.com/gallery-1/project-one-f5w4d-39zrw monthly 0.5 2023-12-26 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5f8386b27bb62b2036ef616b/a91c5d79-3673-4cf7-8d3c-74b7e779d6c5/Looking_inside_Lunar_Module_Eagle_pillars.jpg https://www.apolloupclose.com/gallery-1/project-one-f5w4d-3kw8h monthly 0.5 2023-12-26 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5f8386b27bb62b2036ef616b/2e3f05f5-01f4-4d94-9d77-f82db7e1a1fc/AS11-40-5918HR.jpg https://www.apolloupclose.com/gallery-1/lcc-test monthly 0.5 2025-11-19 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5f8386b27bb62b2036ef616b/dcc613ef-eff6-4133-a732-6c8acea8e6fd/IMG_7409.jpg Start Here - LCC test