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Aviation History
1969
1969 - 2544.PDF
fUGHT International, 31 July 1969 Left, The commemorative plaque, mounted on the entry ladder of the lunar module, is unveiled. Signed by the three crew-members and President Nixon, it was read aloud by Armstrong (right). Below, the American flag is erected. Although the United Nations flag was not taken, a halfpenny-sized disc carrying goodwill messages from leaders of 73 countries was left on the Moon. A micro-miniature etching technique was used to write their messages, which included one from the Queen spacecraft for 2hr 14min and Aldrin for lhr 33min. The ascent- stage engine was cut off at 1901 BST on July 21. The time taken for orbit-insertion (from lift-off to ascent engine cut-off) was 7min ISsec, during which time a velocity of 6,055ft/sec had been attained and some 4,990lb of fuel consumed. As the spacecraft reached a height of 47.2 n.m., the apolune of its ballistic trajectory (the highest point above the Moon which it would attain without a further impulse), the reactionrcontrol system was fired for 46sec to provide a further 49ft/sec increment and so nearly circularise the orbit at 44 n.m. altitude, some 15 n.m. below and slightly behind the command module. A 3sec burn then circularised the orbit at 45 run. Because of the lower orbit of the LM, it gained on the command module at a rate of 0.072°/min. When the eleva tion of the CM as seen from the lunar module reached an angle of 26.6° a further RCS burn of 23sec was made to increase the velocity by 24.6ft/sec along the line of sight, thus changing the orbit to an elliptical path 61.2 n.m. by 43.2 n.m. The closing speed was now 131ft/sec. At 2225 BST, some 3ihr after Eagle had left the Moon's surface, Armstrong reported that he and Aldrin had caught up with Columbia, and that the separation was now only 100 yards. Only lOmin later Collins reported the docking. The final closing rate was only 3in/sec, and the docking took place at 2235 BST (3min late). Although the docking entry was gentle, there was considerable gyration, lasting for 6sec- 8sec, before the two craft settled down. Immediately after wards, Armstrong and Aldrin climbed through the docking tunnel to rejoin Collins. There followed a very busy time with a vacuum cleaner, ensuring that the command module was kept free of any contamination brought back from the sur face. The precious boxes of Moon soil were then transferred to Columbia. Four hours later, at about 0225 BST, Eagle was abandoned in lunar orbit, and at 0357 BST on July 22 the service propulsion engine was fired behind the Moon for 2min 29sec, generating a 3,293ft/sec velocity increment to inject Columbia into the trans-Earth orbit. The three astronauts then slept soundly for lOhr. Their only major task that day was a mid-course correction made at about 2100 BST. From then on the mission was old hat, as Ool Thomas Stafford, commander of the Apollo 10 flight last May, described it. Meanwhile the passive seismometer which had been left on the Moon to record continuously any moonquakes which might occur during the next two years, had already signalled a disturbance on July 22. This was interpreted as a surface wave caused by a movement of large magnitude, and could have been caused by a moonquake or meteorite. The journey back was relaxed and uneventful. The re-entry was begun from 400,000ft at 1736 BST on Thursday, July 24, at a range of 1,533 n.m. from the predicted splashdown point in the Pacific at 172.5°W, 10.6°N. The flight profile was vir tually identical with that of Apollo 10, with Columbia making its re-entry just as dawn was breaking over the recovery area. Owing to scattered cloud, only brief sightings of the meteor like re-entry trail were visible. A TV and voice communication breakdown from the re covery aircraft carrier USS Hornet threatened to deprive the waiting world of the psychological moment. But the fault was cleared in time to hear Houston's confirmation that Apollo 11 was in the centre of the entry corridor. On board the Hornet were President Nixon, NASA Administrator Dr Thomas O. Paine and Frank Borman, commander of Apollo 8, the first manned flight around the Moon. Soon Recovery Helicopter 66—the aircraft which brought back the crews of Apollo 8 and 10—reported a sighting. Splashdown took place at 1751 BST, at a distance of 11.5 miles from the ship, and so was not seen on TV. The water was slightly rough and Columbia was capsized, to be righted again by her buoyancy bags. Biological isolation garments were passed to the crew through the hatch, and the astronauts eventually emerged to wash one another down and cleanse off any Moondust. It was not until 1854 BST that the helicopter landed back on Hornet. The stringent isolation precautions included the immediate striking-down of "66" to the hangar deck. The door was opened and the astronauts quickly walked the 15ft to the mobile quarantine facility where they were being incarcerated for 21 days. President Nixon made a brief speech and the welcome-back ceremony was completed. All very subdued, but the conditions of quarantine were such as to preclude a full- scale rejoicing. There is no doubt, however, that the ticker tape will be out in large quantities on August 12, the release date from quarantine.
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