Questions tagged [apollo-program]
NASA's Apollo program was a 17-mission program that focused on landing a human on the lunar surface. The program was the third human spaceflight by NASA, after Mercury and Gemini.
763
questions
3
votes
0
answers
65
views
How does a Space-Stabilized Inertial Navigation System actually torque its gimbals?
I've been trying to make a fairly-accurate video (with 3D animations coming soon) about Inertial Navigation Systems (INS), in which I plan to cover all the details from each gyroscopes and ...
4
votes
1
answer
243
views
What proportion of the total fuel load in a Saturn V was used to drive the pumps?
In a liquid propellant rocket, power is needed to pump propellant against the pressure inside the combustion chamber. The Rocketdyne F-1 reportedly used 55,000 HP to drive the pumps.
What proportion ...
- 22.9k
4
votes
1
answer
216
views
Is there any film of Saturn V Stage 1 falling to the ocean?
Although there were more than ten Saturn V launches and the first stage separation is clearly visible, I have never seen any tracking of the huge first stage as it fell 100 km back to the Atlantic ...
1
vote
1
answer
98
views
Apollo Third Stage SLA Separation design change?
Did NASA change the design of the SLA on the Apollo third stage? First leaving it connected and then having the panels separate from the third stage?
3
votes
0
answers
46
views
Pressurisation in the Apollo Lunar Module? [duplicate]
After the Apollo 1 fire, the Command Module atmosphere at launch was 15psi of 60:40 nitrogen:oxygen, which was allowed to vent down to 5psi during the ascent, and then slowly changed over to 5psi ...
- 418
3
votes
1
answer
359
views
How long can inertial only navigation systems maintain landing accuracy in LEO?
Inspired by this question, pre GPS all space craft used inertial navigation with periodic fixes from the ground. Inertial systems will drift with time, so the longer between last fix and landing the ...
- 23.3k
3
votes
1
answer
254
views
How far could Apollo have got from the earth and still return safely?
We know Apollo could not have gotten anyone to Mars and returned them alive. My question is, using Apollo hardware, how far from earth could an astronaut have traveled and still return safely?
Notes:
...
- 1,852
33
votes
2
answers
5k
views
Could Apollo have survived the lander toppling over?
Did the Apollo mission have a contingency plan for the lander tipping over? For instance, would it have been possible for the two astronauts to somehow right it?
EDIT
This question is closely related ...
- 431
1
vote
1
answer
182
views
Instead of ending the Apollo program, why didn't NASA just decrease the frequency of lunar flights?
Russia is launching the completely non-reusable Soyuz rocket about four times a year on manned missions to the ISS, and even more often if you include the Progress cargo launches, not to mention Soyuz ...
- 382
13
votes
2
answers
2k
views
What spares were taken on Apollo missions, and what was left behind? The question of gloves
In the graphic novel based on John Michael Greer's 'The Next 10 Billion Years', there's a haunting picture of the descent stage of a lunar module (the shorter online version, 'Grounded', is here: ...
- 233
2
votes
3
answers
343
views
Why does NASA suit color coding not follow conventional navigation color coding?
Pictures of NASA spacesuits like the ones below of Neil Armstrong’s Apollo suit (from the Smithsonian) and Gemini suit usually show the right wrist connection red and the left blue.
Color coding for ...
- 22.9k
11
votes
2
answers
1k
views
Changes to Apollo that enabled heavier missions
This question has a table that shows the dry weight of the LM grew by 1600 kg between Apollo 11 and 17.
What enabled this weight growth? I know some of it was enabled by improving descent engine ...
- 128k
5
votes
0
answers
143
views
Apollo mini-bike? For real?
NASA considered motorcycle style transportation for use on Lunar missions. Apparently, it didn’t make the cut, despite the fact it “got air” in a 1/6-G test run:
Fig. 4: Test of an Apollo Motorbike ...
- 22.9k
8
votes
1
answer
268
views
How are parachutes attached to capsule spacecraft?
Spacecraft capsules (Apollo, Orion, Dragon, Starliner, Soyuz, etc) use an arrangement of pilot, drogue, and main parachutes to land. I'm looking for details regarding how and where these parachutes (...
- 151
32
votes
1
answer
4k
views
Apollo 13's plutonium RTG re-entry into the Tonga Trench: Good shootin' or good luck?
Plutonium powered RTGs are encased to survive re-entry. According to the Wikipedia article on Apollo 13
RTGs were used to power … the scientific experiments left
on the Moon by the crews of Apollo …...
- 22.9k