TRW Systems released the AS-207/208 Preliminary Spacecraft Reference Trajectory during the first week of May. This report was put together on a compressed schedule, starting from rather hastily defined mission requirements. As a result, there are a number of things about it which were recognized as being in error even before release; however, since we…
Category: Cancelled missions
Spacecraft computer program requirements for AS-207/208, AS-503, and AS-504
On May 13 and 14, 1966, a flock of MSC people met with MIT people in Boston to discuss the spacecraft computer program requirements for missions AS-207/208, AS-503, and AS-504. This memorandum is probably one of several on the subject you will be getting in the near future. My main purpose is to describe the…
Apollo spacecraft computer program development newsletter
There are a number of us who feel that the computer programs for the Apollo spacecraft will soon become the most pacing item for the Apollo flights. This is certainly likely to be the case for AS-207/208, by which time spacecraft, and booster delivery and Cape operations are likely to have become relatively routine, with…
Spacecraft computer program status report
Tom Gibson and I went to MIT on May 25 and 26 with one of our primary objectives to determine exactly what the program schedule situation was for the AS-504 (AS-207/208) spacecraft computer programs. Although we had a number of very fruitful discussions with MIT people, such as Ed Copps, Dick Battin, John Dahlen, and…
Apollo spacecraft computer programs–or, a bucket of worms
Well, I just got back from MIT with my weekly quota of new ulcers, which I thought might interest you. We spent one day discussing the AS-204 situation, another on AS-501 and AS-502, and the third day primarily on crew procedures associated with the LEM lunar rendezvous crew timeline. I will give you my impression…
Another Apollo spacecraft computer program status report
This is another of my gripping reports on the status of the Apollo spacecraft computer programs and associated matters based on my weekly visit to MIT on June 28 and 29….
Capability to do orbit navigation in earth orbit will not be implemented for AS-207 or AS-504.
MIT currently has plans for supplying a number of different modes for using their basic orbit determination program. (MIT calls this process “navigation,” so I will, too.) These modes differ in that there is a variety of types of observational data used during different mission phases….
Rendezvous terminal phase guidance program in the Apollo spacecraft computer
On July 7, 1966, a team of MSC and MIT “experts in rendezvous” (including Paul Kramer, Ed Lineberry, John Dablen, and Norm Sears) met at MIT to discuss and review the preliminary Guidance System Operation Plan (GSOP)which MIT has unofficially distributed, covering the terminal phase and External ΔV programs for the AS-207/208 mission. This meeting…
AS-204 computer program status
During the week of July 4, 1966, the prime and backup crews for the AS204 mission attended briefings at MIT, which, among other things, led to their request that four changes be made in the spacecraft computer program for that mission. This request triggered off a considerable amount of activity which I would like to…
Automatic rendezvous braking maneuver
As you know, MIT is currently designing the command module and lunar module computer programs without provision for automatic braking maneuvers. There has been some thought to reversing this direction. However, Don Cheatham, Aaron Cohen, and I agreed today to proceed as we are for the AS-207/208 programs–that is, do not provide automatic braking maneuvers…