Apollo By the Numbers

[Kiwi]

An extremely valuable resource for we Apollo Pedants is "Apollo By the Numbers" by Richard W. Orloff.
history.nasa.gov/SP-4029/SP-4029.htm

However, it is not the easiest site to get around and from each page there is no way to jump back to the contents page, so it's often a good idea to keep it in a separate window:
history.nasa.gov/SP-4029/contents.htm

Following each page that introduces a mission there are more about that particular mission -- Objectives, Spacecraft History, Ascent Phase, Earth Orbit Phase, Translunar Phase, Lunar Orbit Phase, Transearth Phase, and the very valuable Timeline. These pages can only be accessed by using the "Next" and "Back" buttons on each page.

However, not all "Back" and "Next" buttons work and some are missing. For instance, The Apollo 8 Timeline and pages following the introduction to Apollo 9 seem to be hovering somewhere in cyberspace limbo. Here are their links:
history.nasa.gov/SP-4029/Apollo_08i_Timeline.htm
history.nasa.gov/SP-4029/Apollo_09b_Objectives.htm
history.nasa.gov/SP-4029/Apollo_09c_Spacecraft_History.htm
history.nasa.gov/SP-4029/Apollo_09d_Ascent_Phase.htm
history.nasa.gov/SP-4029/Apollo_09e_Earth_Orbit_Phase.htm
history.nasa.gov/SP-4029/Apollo_09f_Timeline.htm

Enjoy these pages. There are many gems -- here are the headings on the Apollo 11 Ascent Phase sheet:

GET (hhh:mm:ss)
Altitude (n mi)
Range (n mi)
Earth Fixed Velocity (ft/sec)
Space Fixed Velocity (ft/sec)
Event Duration (sec)
Geocentric Latitude (deg N)
Longitude (deg E)
Space Fixed Flight Path Angle (deg)
Space Fixed Heading Angle (E of N)

With things like the exact latitude, longitude and velocity of the spacecraft quoted, perhaps Stargazer could tell us at exactly which "out of sight" coordinates it plunged into the ocean as part of the fake, but in "The Hoax Theory", of course.

[Kiwi]

Here are two more disconnected pages:

Apollo 1 Spacecraft History
history.nasa.gov/SP-4029/Apollo_01b_Spacecraft_History.htm

Apollo 1 Fire Timeline
history.nasa.gov/SP-4029/Apollo_01c_Timeline.htm

Can't remember exactly which ones now, but one "Objectives" page had Spacecraft History in the filename, and the related "Spacecraft History" page had Objectives in the filename.

Please post links to any pages you find that I haven't. There's a list in the next post.

<Additions following Apollo 1 Fire Timeline>

[Kiwi]

The following numbering and naming system is useful for saving the files. It doesn't include the cover page, and the last handy list can be accessed with the "Next" button on the Photo Credits page:

001 Welcome.htm
002 Title Page.htm
003 Foreword.htm
004 Introduction.htm
005 Acknowledgments.htm
006 Dedication.htm
007 Table of Contents.htm
008 Apollo 1 The Fire.htm
009 Apollo 1 Spacecraft History.htm
010 Apollo 1 Fire Timeline.htm
011 Apollo 7 The First Mission.htm
012 Apollo 7 Objectives.htm
013 Apollo 7 Spacecraft History.htm
014 Apollo 7 Ascent Phase.htm
015 Apollo 7 Earth Orbit Phase.htm
016 Apollo 7 Timeline.htm
017 Apollo 8 The Second Mission.htm
018 Apollo 8 Objectives.htm
019 Apollo 8 Spacecraft History.htm
020 Apollo 8 Ascent Phase.htm
021 Apollo 8 Earth Orbit Phase.htm
022 Apollo 8 Translunar Phase.htm
023 Apollo 8 Lunar Orbit Phase.htm
024 Apollo 8 Translunar Phase.htm
025 Apollo 8 Timeline.htm
026 Apollo 9 The Third Mission.htm
027 Apollo 9 Objectives.htm
028 Apollo 9 Spacecraft History.htm
029 Apollo 9 Ascent Phase.htm
030 Apollo 9 Earth Orbit Phase.htm
031 Apollo 9 Timeline.htm
032 Apollo 10 The Fourth Mission.htm
033 Apollo 10 Objectives.htm
034 Apollo 10 Spacecraft History.htm
035 Apollo 10 Ascent Phase.htm
036 Apollo 10 Earth Orbit Phase.htm
037 Apollo 10 Translunar Phase.htm
038 Apollo 10 Lunar Orbit Phase.htm
039 Apollo 10 Transearth Phase.htm
040 Apollo 10 Timeline.htm
041 Apollo 11 The Fifth Mission.htm
042 Apollo 11 Objectives.htm
043 Apollo 11 Spacecraft History.htm
044 Apollo 11 Ascent Phase.htm
045 Apollo 11 Earth Orbit Phase.htm
046 Apollo 11 Translunar Phase.htm
047 Apollo 11 Lunar Orbit Phase.htm
048 Apollo 11 Transearth Phase.htm
049 Apollo 11 Timeline.htm
050 Apollo 12 The Sixth Mission.htm
051 Apollo 12 Objectives.htm
052 Apollo 12 Spacecraft History.htm
053 Apollo 12 Ascent Phase.htm
054 Apollo 12 Earth Orbit Phase.htm
055 Apollo 12 Translunar Phase.htm
056 Apollo 12 Lunar Orbit Phase.htm
057 Apollo 12 Transearth Phase.htm
058 Apollo 12 Timeline.htm
059 Apollo 13 The Seventh Mission.htm
060 Apollo 13 Objectives.htm
061 Apollo 13 Spacecraft History.htm
062 Apollo 13 Ascent Phase.htm
063 Apollo 13 Earth Orbit Phase.htm
064 Apollo 13 Translunar Phase.htm
065 Apollo 13 Transearth Phase.htm
066 Apollo 13 Timeline.htm
067 Apollo 14 The Eighth Mission.htm
068 Apollo 14 Objectives.htm
069 Apollo 14 Spacecraft History.htm
070 Apollo 14 Ascent Phase.htm
071 Apollo 14 Earth Orbit Phase.htm
072 Apollo 14 Translunar Phase.htm
073 Apollo 14 Lunar Orbit Phase.htm
074 Apollo 14 Transearth Phase.htm
075 Apollo 14 Timeline.htm
076 Apollo 15 The Ninth Mission.htm
077 Apollo 15 Objectives.htm
078 Apollo 15 Spacecraft History.htm
079 Apollo 15 Ascent Phase.htm
080 Apollo 15 Earth Orbit Phase.htm
081 Apollo 15 Translunar Phase.htm
082 Apollo 15 Lunar Orbit Phase.htm
083 Apollo 15 Transearth Phase.htm
084 Apollo 15 Timeline.htm
085 Apollo 16 The Tenth Mission.htm
086 Apollo 16 Objectives.htm
087 Apollo 16 Spacecraft History.htm
088 Apollo 16 Ascent Phase.htm
089 Apollo 16 Earth Orbit Phase.htm
090 Apollo 16 Translunar Phase.htm
091 Apollo 16 Lunar Orbit Phase.htm
092 Apollo 16 Transearth Phase.htm
093 Apollo 16 Timeline.htm
094 Apollo 17 The Eleventh Mission.htm
095 Apollo 17 Objectives.htm
096 Apollo 17 Spacecraft History.htm
097 Apollo 17 Ascent Phase.htm
098 Apollo 17 Earth Orbit Phase.htm
099 Apollo 17 Translunar Phase.htm
100 Apollo 17 Lunar Orbit Phase.htm
101 Apollo 17 Transearth Phase.htm
102 Apollo 17 Timeline.htm
103 General Background.htm
104 Crew Information 1.htm
105 Crew Information 2.htm
106 Apportionment of Training According to Mission Type.htm
107 Apollo Training Exercises.htm
108 Capsule Communicators.htm
109 Support Crews.htm
110 Flight Directors.htm
111 Apollo Space Vehicle Configuration.htm
112 Designations.htm
113 Launch Vehicle 1.htm
114 Launch Vehicle 2.htm
115 Launch Vehicle 3.htm
116 Launch Windows.htm
117 Launch Weather.htm
118 Apollo Program Budget Appropriations.htm
119 Call Signs.htm
120 Mission Insignias.htm
121 Ground Ignition Weights.htm
122 Ascent Data.htm
123 Earth Orbit Data.htm
124 Saturn Stage Earth Impact.htm
125 Launch Vehicle Propellant Usage 1.htm
126 Launch Vehicle Propellant Usage 2.htm
127 Launch Vehicle Propellant Usage 3.htm
128 Translunar Injection.htm
129 S-IVB Solar Trajectory.htm
130 S-IVB Lunar Impact.htm
131 LM Lunar Landing.htm
132 LM Descent Stage Propellant Status.htm
133 LM Ascent Stage Propellant Status.htm
134 LM Ascent and Ascent Stage Lunar Impact.htm
135 Extravehicular Activity.htm
136 Lunar Surface Experiments Package Arrays and Status.htm
137 Lunar Surface Experiments 1.htm
138 Lunar Surface Experiments 2.htm
139 Lunar Orbit Experiments.htm
140 Geology and Soil Mechanics Tools and Equipment.htm
141 Lunar Subsatellites.htm
142 Selected Mission Weights.htm
143 Baseline Apollo Food and Beverage List.htm
144 Command Module Cabin Temperature History.htm
145 Entry Splashdown and Recovery.htm
146 Accumulated Time in Space During Apollo Missions.htm
147 Apollo Medical Kits 1.htm
148 Apollo Medical Kits 2.htm
149 Crew Weight History.htm
150 Inflight Medical Problems in Apollo Crews.htm
151 Postflight Medical Problems in Apollo Crews.htm
152 NASA Photo Numbers For Crew Portraits and Mission Insignias.htm
153 Bibliography.htm
154 Photo Credits.htm
155 The NASA History Series.htm

[gwiz]

An expanded version with additional text by David Harland is to be published soon. Amazon has the details.

[Ranb]

Very interesting site. One question though. I have read that the Apollo 10 LM was too heavy to land on the moon, but the above posted site has the Apollo 10 LM as the lightest of all. Was it a heavy frame with smaller fuel and oxidizer tanks?

I read about the Apollo program and each flight when I was a kid. I remember thinking, "How could the Apollo 10 crew get so close to the moon (50,000 feet) and not land?" This was of course before I realized how professional the crews had to be to accomplish these missions. But then, what if the LM had been able to land, and the abort procedure failed, and they had to land on the moon, then sort things about before returning in the ascent module. That would have been an interesting experience. I guess they did not have the right suits or train for taking a walk on the moon for that mission though.

Ranb

[Kiwi]

I don't know the exact explanation, but here are some words form Gene Cernan on the commentary track to the movie, "For All Mankind."

Gene Cernan — Landing on the moon
0:44:21 Gene Cernan: This is what the moon began to look like when you pitched over, and that's a familiar place to me. You pitched over and got closer to the surface, and once we got within about 200 feet of the surface we were pretty-well committed, because if there was a failure we didn't expect in the descent engine, if it shut down, we could not have separated the ascent stage and the descent stage and fired the ascent engine to get out of there without hitting the lunar surface. So it was very critical. Below 200 feet, if we wanted to initiate an abort ourselves, without a failure, for whatever reason, we could do it, but if a failure occurred, we could not have reacted quick enough. It was just a fact of life and it was one of those... we call it a dead man's curve from 200 feet on down, and it was one of those things you accepted. You know when you have been on top of the booster and you've gone all the way to the moon and you're in orbit around the moon, you begin to accept risks that would sometimes seem unacceptable early on, because you've put yourself way out there in that environment. And as I say, when you get that close, even on Apollo 10, you know we came within 47,000 feet as a precursor to the landing. We didn't land, and that was fine. Apollo 10 should have been... it would have been the first landing at one point early on in the program, but it wasn't to be because of a number of changes. But coming that close still was worthwhile, and people always want to know did I get the urge to land. Well, sure we got an urge to land, but we didn't have enough fuel to get off the surface, so that sort of solved our problem for us. 0:46:02

Gene Cernan — If Apollo 10 had been his last flight
0:46:02 Al Reinert: Would you have been a disappointed astronaut if you had never got the chance to go back then on 17, if 10 was all and you'd came that close? 0:46:08

0:46:08 Gene Cernan: Oh sure, sure I would. You know I would have looked back and having flown two flights, a great Gemini flight, spacewalk and EVA flight, and been one of the second crew ever to go to the moon, first to fly a lunar module around the moon, come close, I would have had no reason to be disappointed. Anybody in the world would have given their left arm to have done what I've been able to do. On the other hand, I was determined I wanted to go back and I wanted to command my own crew. That was very, very important to me. 0:46:39