Episodes Tagged with "Charles Houbolt"

Feb 12

Space Rocket History #100 – Apollo: Preliminary Design

Posted on February 12, 2015

In January 1960, President Eisenhower directed NASA Administrator Glennan to accelerate the Super Booster Program that had recently been assigned to NASA. This order ensured the transfer of the von Braun group from the Army Ballistic Missile Agency t...

Using a model at upper left, William Rector of General Dynamics Corp. describes the design his company proposed for the Apollo lunar mission

Spacecraft modules in this drawing were identified in the Space Task Group’s request for proposals from contractors for developing and producing the command module

Saturn 1 test

Saturn 1 test 2

mySuperLamePic_c1194b7fa9498eb5af694d8530d3ebf8

At lower left, E. E. Clark and Carlos de Moraes of the Martin Company display three of a dozen command module configurations considered before the choice of the one to the right

ASA’s second Administrator, James E. Webb (at center above), and George M. Low (right above) of NASA Headquarters receive a model of General Electric’s proposed vehicle

Tagged:A Plan For Manned Lunar Landing, Abbott, Alan Shepard, Apollo, Avco, C 2 Saturn, Cape Kennedy, Charles Houbolt, Circumlunar, Congress, Convair, Docking, Dolan, Donlan, Eisenhower, Eldon Hall, Exploration, Faget, Feasibility Studies, Gagarin, Gemini Project, General Electric, George Low, Gilruth, Glennan, Goett, History, Houston, Hugh Dryden, J R Clark, James Killian, James Webb, Jerome Wiesner, Jfk, John Disher, John Lee, Jpl, Kennedy, Kieth Glennan, Langley, Lbj, Lovelace Foundation, Low, Lunar, Lunar Module, Lyndon Johnson, Manned Lunar Landing Task Group, Manned Spacecraft Center, Markley, Marshall Space Flight Center, Martin, Mercury, Moon, Nasa, Nova, Oran Nicks, Ostrandersiepert, Pickering, Piland, Project Apollo, Rendezvous, Richard S Johnston, Robert Chilton, Rocket, Saturn, Seamans, Silverstein, Soviet, Space, Space Task Group, Sputnik, Stanley White, Strass, Von Braun, Vought Astronautics, Webb, William Petynia

Feb 19

Space Rocket History #101 – Apollo: Preliminary Design Part 2 – Mode, Command Module, and Astronavigation.

Posted on February 19, 2015

In May 1961, NASA was not really prepared to direct an enormous Apollo program designed to fly its spacecraft to the moon. New and special facilities would be needed and the aerospace industry would have to be marshaled to develop vehicles not easily...

David G. Hoag, technical design director at the laboratory, examines the inertial measuring unit that would measure changes in Apollo spacecraft velocity when propulsion systems were fired

MIT Instrumentation Laboratory Director C. Stark Draper inspects a mockup of the Apollo guidance and control system in the September 1963

astronaut positions

Tagged:Apollo, Avco, C 2 Saturn, Cape Kennedy, Charles Houbolt, Circumlunar, Congress, Convair, Docking, Dolan, Donlan, Eisenhower, Eldon Hall, Exploration, Faget, Feasibility Studies, General Electric, George Low, Gilruth, Glennan, Goett, History, Houston, Hugh Dryden, J R Clark, James Killian, James Webb, Jerome Wiesner, Jfk, John Disher, John Lee, Jpl, Kennedy, Kieth Glennan, Langley, Lbj, Lovelace Foundation, Low, Lunar, Lunar Module, Lyndon Johnson, Manned Lunar Landing Task Group, Manned Spacecraft Center, Markley, Marshall Space Flight Center, Martin, Mercury, Moon, Nasa, Nova, Oran Nicks, Ostrandersiepert, Pickering, Piland, Project Apollo, Rendezvous, Richard S Johnston, Robert Chilton, Rocket, Saturn, Seamans, Silverstein, Soviet, Space, Space Task Group, Sputnik, Stanley White, Strass, Von Braun, Webb

Feb 26

Space Rocket History #102 – Apollo: Preliminary Design Part 3 – Command Module Contract, Mode, and Launch Vehicles

Posted on February 26, 2015

Max Faget thought the first stage of the moon rocket should use four solid-fueled engines, 6.6 meters in diameter. He reasoned these could certainly accomplish whatever mission was required of either the Saturn or Nova, and it would be more cost eff...

John_Houbolt_and_LOR2

Earth Orbit Rendezvous

Apollo_Direct_Ascent

Tagged:Albert Clagett, Apollo, C 2 Saturn, C 4, Cape Kennedy, Charles Houbolt, Charles Mattews, Circumlunar, Congress, Dave Lang, Docking, Eor, Exploration, F 100, F 86, Faget, Feasibility Studies, Fleming, General Electric, George Low, Gilruth, Glennan, Goett, Golovin, Heinrich Weigand, History, Hjornevik, Hound Dog, Hugh Dryden, James Chamberlin, James Webb, Jerome Wiesner, Jfk, John Rubel, Jpl, Kavanau, Kennedy, Kieth Glennan, Kleinknecht, Koppenhaver, Langley, Lbj, Lor, Lovelace Foundation, Low, Lunar, Lunar Module, Lundin, Lyndon Johnson, Marshall Space Flight Center, Martin, Martin Company, Matthew Collins, Mcdonnell, Moon, Nasa, Navajo, North American Aviation, Nova, Oswald Lange, Piland, Project Apollo, Rendezvous, Robert Mcnamara, Robert Seamans, Rocket, Saturn, Saturn C 3, Seamans, Soviet, Space, Space Task Group, Sputnik, Von Braun, X 15

Mar 26

Space Rocket History #106 – Apollo: The Mode Decision – Part 1

Posted on March 26, 2015

The mode that Apollo would use to land on the moon was the most studied, analyzed, and debated decision made for the lunar landing program. There were four main choices Direct-ascent, Earth-Orbit Rendezvous, Lunar-Orbit Rendezvous, and Lunar Surface...

two landing techniques proposed for the direct ascent mode

SA-1

RendezvousMethods

proposed lunar-surface-rendezvous procedure, a propellant-transfer vehicle takes fuel from the tanker to a manned space vehicle. After loading the fuel, the two astronauts would fire the engine of their spacecraft to return to the earth

Major configuration changes in the Apollo spacecraft from May 1960 to July 1962

Early design concepts of C-1 and C-5 versions of the Saturn launch vehicles

A ferry that would leave a command ship in orbit around the moon, visit the lunar surface, and then return to the command ship for the voyage back to the earth

Tagged:Abe Silverstein, Abma, Apollo, Arthur Bogeley, Astraco, Bell Aerosystems, C 2 Saturn, Cape Kennedy, Charles Houbolt, Charles Mattews, Clinton Brown, Congress, Direct Ascent, Docking, Dolan, Donald Heaton, E J Daniels, Earth0orbit, Eldon Hall, Eor, Exploration, Faget, Fleming, Gilruth, Glennan, Golovin, History, Hugh Dryden, Huntsville, Institute Of Aerospace Sciences, J R Clark, James Webb, Jfk, John Bird, John Cord, John Rubel, Jpl, Juno V, Kavanau, Kennedy, Kieth Glennan, Koppenhaver, Kurbjun, Kurt Strass, Langley, Leonard Seale, Lor, Lunar, Lunar Module, Lunar Orbit, Lundin, Lunex, Marshall Space Flight Center, Max Faget, Mode, Moon, Nasa, Nova, Owen Maynard, Paul Purser, Project Apollo, Rendezvous, Robert Oneal, Robert Seamans, Rocket, Saturn, Saturn C 3, Seamans, Soviet, Space, Space Task Group, Von Braun, William Fleming, William Michael, William Pickering

Apr 2

Space Rocket History #107 – Apollo: The Mode Decision – Part 2

Posted on April 2, 2015

Langley’s brochure for the Golovin Committee described Lunar landers of varied sizes and payload capabilities. There were illustrations and data on a very small lander that was able to carry one man for 2 to 4 hours on the moon. There was an “econo...

Early design concepts of C-1 and C-5 versions of the Saturn launch vehicles

NASA announced selection of the lunar-orbit-rendezvous landing technique at an 11 July 1962 press conference. left to right James E. Webb, Robert C. Seamans, Jr., D. Brainerd Holmes, and Joseph F. Shea

Harry C. Shoaf (Space Task Group Engineering Division 15 November 1961 of a proposed lunar lander to be used with an advanced version of the Mercury spacecraft

concept of a small lunar lander during descent to the surface of the moon, as proposed by Langley Research Center employees in October 1961

Tagged:Abe Silverstein, Abma, Alfred Eggers, Ames Research Center, Apollo, Brainerd Holmes, Caldwell Johnson, Charles Frick, Charles Houbolt, Charles Mattews, Charlie Fricks Road Show, Clinton Brown, Congress, Direct Ascent, Docking, Dolan, Eldon Hall, Eor, Exploration, Faget, Fleming, General Dynamics Convair, George Low, Gilruth, Golovin, Harold Hornby, History, Holmes, Houbolt, Houston, Hugh Dryden, Huntsville, James Chamberlin, James Webb, Jfk, John Eggleston, Joseph Shea, Jpl, Kennedy, Kurt Strass, Langley, Lewis Research Center, Lina, Lindsay, Lor, Lunar, Lunar Crasher, Lunar Module, Lunar Orbit Rendezvous, Lunar Orbit, Manned Space Flight, Manned Spacecraft Center, Marshall Space Flight Center, Max Faget, Mode, Moon, Nasa, Nova, Project Apollo, Rendezvous, Robert Seamans, Rocket, Saturn, Saturn C 5, Seamans, Soviet, Space, Space Task Group, Spacecraft Research Division, Vogeley, Von Braun, Vought, William Rector

Apr 9

Space Rocket History #108 – Apollo: The Mode Decision – Part 3

Posted on April 9, 2015

“I would like to reiterate once more that it is absolutely mandatory that we arrive at a definite mode decision within the next few weeks. . . . If we do not make a clear-cut decision on the mode very soon, our chances of accomplishing the first luna...

Shea uses models to demonstrate how the lunar module would dock with the command module

Rocket Comparison

Lunar orbit insertion

Tagged:Abe Silverstein, Abma, Alfred Eggers, Ames Research Center, Apollo, Brainerd Holmes, Caldwell Johnson, Charles Frick, Charles Houbolt, Charles Mattews, Charlie Fricks Road Show, Clinton Brown, Congress, Csm, Direct Ascent, Docking, Dolan, Douglas, Dryden, Eldon Hall, Eor, Exploration, Faget, Fleming, General Dynamics Convair, George Low, Gilruth, Golovin, Grumman, Harold Hornby, History, Holmes, Houbolt, Houston, Hugh Dryden, Huntsville, James Chamberlin, James Webb, Jerome Wiesner, Jfk, John Eggleston, Joseph Shea, Jpl, Kennedy, Kurt Strass, Langley, Lem, Lewis Research Center, Lina, Lindsay, Lor, Lunar, Lunar Crasher, Lunar Module, Lunar Orbit Rendezvous, Lunar Orbit, Manned Space Flight, Manned Spacecraft Center, Marshall Space Flight Center, Max Faget, Mode, Moon, Msc, Msfc, Nasa, Nicholas Golovin, Nova, Presidents Science Advisory Committee, Project Apollo, Psac, Rca, Rendezvous, Robert Seamans, Rocket, Saturn, Saturn C 5, Saturn C 8, Saturn C Ib, Seamans, Soviet, Space, Space Task Group, Spacecraft Research Division, Vogeley, Von Braun, Vought, William Rector