The Apollo ProgramPTYS 395October 9, 2008Sarah MattsonMay 25, 1961President Kennedy announces the Apollo Program.The goal was to put a man on the Moon, and return him safely to Earth, by the end of the decade.Apollo Program 1961-1972GoalsPolitical TechnologicalScientificInspirationGemini IV astronaut Edward White on first U.S. spacewalk, June 1965NASA Space ProgramSupporting MissionsRobotic●Ranger 1961-1965●Surveyor 1966-1968●Lunar Orbiter 1966-1967Manned●Mercury 1961-1963●Gemini 1965-19661958 Act creating NASAUnder President EisenhowerHow to get there?Direct Ascent- Single large launch vehicle- Rocket required not feasible Earth Orbit Rendezvous (EOR)- Launch parts of the s/c into orbit, assemble in space- Several rockets requiredLunar Orbit Rendezvous (LOR)- Several craft launched on one rocket- Lander and orbiter separate in lunar orbit- Part of lander lifts off from surface of Moon to rendezvous with orbiter- Orbiter returns to EarthUnmanned MissionsSA-1 SA-2 SA-3SA-4Apollo 4Apollo 5Apollo 6SA-5 launch of the Saturn I rocketApollo 4 on the launch padTesting of the Saturn rockets and of the various components of the system.Manned Missions Apollo 7 - 117 Schirra, Eisele, Cunningham Oct. 11-22, 1968 Orbited Earth 163 times8 Borman, Lovell, Anders Dec. 21-27, 1968Saturn V, Flew around Moon on Christmas eve9 McDivitt, Scott, Schweikart Mar. 3-13, 1969151 Orbits of Earth, 1st test of Lunar module10 Stafford, Young, Cernan May 18-26, 1969Orbited moon, lunar module got within 9 miles of lunar surface11 Armstrong, Collins, Aldrin July 16-24, 1969Moon landing, took core samplesManned Missions Apollo 12 - 1712 Conrad, Gordon, Bean Nov. 14-24, 1969 Landed near Surveyor 3 probe, returned parts of of Surveyor to study effects of space environment on equipment13 Lovell, Haise, Swiegert April 11-17, 1970 Oxygen tank blew, had to abandon lunar landing, flew home in LM14 Shepard, Roosa, Mitchell Jan. 13-Feb.9, '71 Science experiments, astronauts almost got disoriented in landscape15 Scott, Irwin, Worden July 26 – Aug. 7, 1971 Lunar rover, 1st Apollo space walk, Hadley Rille, placed lunar satellite16 Young, Mattingly, Duke April 16-27, 1972Malfunction nearly scrubbed launch, took Lunar rover up to 18 km/h17 Cernan, Evans, Schmitt Dec. 7-19, 1972 Last men on the Moon.Taurus-LittrowTraining for ScienceTest pilots, not scientistsSecond class of astronauts trained in areas of science such as astrophysics and geologyExpanded recruitment guidelines to include scientists who were not pilots. Harrison “Jack” Schmitt was one of these – he flew on Apollo 17.Eugene Shoemaker, Flagstaff, trained Apollo astronauts to do geology on the MoonUsed cameras, core samplers, retrival of rocks.Eugene ShoemakerScience PlanningApollo 13 EVA MapReally took effect post-Apollo 11Landing site selectionTrainingInstruments- Cameras- ALSEPMappingLunar RoverLunar Sample Collection SitesApollo astronauts collected 381.69 kg of lunar rocks and regolithALSEP – Apollo Lunar Surface Experiments PackageA set of experiments set up at each landing site from Apollo 12 on that would continue to relay information back to Earth.ALSEP setupSolar Wind SpectrometerPassive Seismic ExperimentSIDE-Suprathermal Ion Detector (lunar atmosphere)Lunar surface magnetometerScience Return – in briefGeology of the Moon- Highlands- Lowlands- CompositionMagnetic field- Varied spatially- Estimated thermal conductivityGravitational - Anomalies informed knowledge of interiorLunar history - Age of Moon ~4.6 Ga- Attempted to explain originNew perspective on Earth- Influenced study of EarthRadiation- Effects on life and techApollo 14, Alan Shepard taking a core sampleNo evidence of life, either past or present- Scarcity of CarbonAnalysis of Samples Yielded Geological HistoryThe known phases of lunar evolution are as follows: 1. The existence of a melted shell from about 4.6 to 4.4 billion years ago. 2. Bombardment to form the cratered highlands from about 4.4 to 4.1 billion years ago. 3. The creation of the large basins from about 4.1 to 3.9 billion years ago. 4. A brief period of formation of light-colored plains about 3.9 billion years ago. 5. The eruption of the basaltic maria from about 3.8 to about 3.1 billion years ago. 6. The gradual transition to a quiet crust from about 3.0 billion years ago until the present. Excerpted from Harrison Schmitt, Apollo Expeditions to the Moon, Chapter 14http://www.hq.nasa.gov/office/pao/History/SP-350/ch-14-2.htmlLunar InteriorCrust – Ca, Al-rich silicate plagioclase, broken up in top ~15 miles, more cohesive from 15-40 miles deep.Upper mantle 125 to 200 miles thick that contains the magnesium and iron silicates, pyroxene and olivineLower mantle ~200 to ~400 miles deep ,chondritic materialCore – 700- 1080 miles deep, iron-rich? ~400 to ~700 miles deep ,chondritic material may be locally melted and seismically activeLegacyPlanetary Science- Learn about Earth by studying the formation of other planetsSkylab- Made use of hardware left over from cancelled Apollo missions 18, 19 and 20Apollo-Soyuz- Political venture- Docking of two disparate craft in orbit- Used Apollo 18Why did progress stop?- Budget cuts- NASA shifted focus to Space Shuttle programConstellation program- Return to the Moon- Establish a lunar baseReferencesProject Apollo: A Retrospective Analysishttp://www.hq.nasa.gov/office/pao/History/Apollomon/Apollo.htmlApollo – Expeditions to the Moonhttp://www.hq.nasa.gov/office/pao/History/SP-350/cover.htmlApollo – Manned mission charthttp://www.hq.nasa.gov/office/pao/History/apollo/welcome.html#chartSample Returnhttp://www.lpl.arizona.edu/SIC/moon/“Where No Man Has Gone Before”http://www.hq.nasa.gov/office/pao/History/SP-4214/ch6-1.htmlApollo and Skylabhttp://www.hq.nasa.gov/office/pao/History/apollo/welcome.html#chartOf