As part of the Apollo software team’s contribution in the search for extra LM hover time and/or payload capability, they are vigorously working on the development of a new descent guidance and throttle control technique. The pay off could be impressive compared to things like trying to decrease LM weight. Specifically, a ΔV improvement on…
Category: Apollo missions
First meeting of the Descent Phase Mission Techniques Working Group
This memo is to request your participation in the detailed development of the Apollo Mission Techniques for the Descent phase of the lunar landing mission. We are setting up a small working group of the following composition to do this job:…
Relative orientation of the LM and CSM navigation bases
Unless some unexpected problem arises, it is currently planned to align the LM platform on the “D” mission for the docked DPS burns without AOT star observations. The primary reason for this is to save LM RCS fuel, although it is anticipated that overall crew procedures may also be simplified. The proposed technique involves taking…
Mission Techniques Documentation Schedule
Some people have asked me for a schedule of when the various Mission Techniques books will be coming out. I can’t remember who they all were so I’m sending it to everyone. I’ll update it in a couple of months….
C’ Lunar Orbit – Navigation and Block Data
On Thursday, November 7, we gathered with the C’ Flight Crew and everyone else who was interested in the lunar orbit Operations On that flight. At this meeting we cleaned up a lot of loose ends primarily dealing with the lunar orbit navigation and with block data. This memo is to report the new things…
Apollo 13 Mission Techniques are in good shape
On December 5 we had what I expect to be our last full-blown Mission Techniques meeting for Apollo 13. This memo is to tell you about it….
Apollo Spacecraft Software Configuration Control Board meeting number 32
On October 9 Chris Kraft convened the first Software Configuration Board meeting since June 5 at MIT. We had a real pot full of PCR’s to discuss, some of which were approved for Apollo 13, some for 14, and some were put in a category in which MIT was to continue development to a point…
“C” Rendezvous Mission Techniques Review
Attached is a preliminary version of the “C” Rendezvous Mission Techniques document. It is based on numerous meetings of a MSC working group involving Flight Controller Directorate, Flight Crew Directorate, and Engineering and Development Directorate people and their contractors. Although there are still known flaws and more open items, we have reached a point where…
C’ Mission Techniques
Attached are a list of ground rules and working agreements I compiled from my notes taken at the September 13 and 14 Mission Techniques meetings and the September 20 Lunar Abort meeting, all on the C’ mission. This list is far from complete. Basically, these items are only the changes and additions to the material…
Propulsion system to be used on the “D” Mission Rendezvous CSI Maneuver
One of the planned rendezvous maneuvers (CSI₁) on the “D” mission is nominally zero. Since it is intended to make this maneuver based on the real time situation, some logic must be established to govern when and how the maneuver would be made. This memo is to describe the proposed logic….