Apollo Docking sequence - Connecting the Command Module to the Lunar Module.
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- Опубликовано: 3 авг 2024
- I made this video to hopefully help people understand the Apollo Docking System. I've read an unhealthy amount of documentation on the subject but I was frustrated that there weren't any animations to show the sequence. The first thing I did was collect photos of the probe and docking ring. this was helped when I contacted John Fongheiser at space1 who supplied me with some drawings of the probe that they had built.
www.space1.com/
Using Photogrammetry, I recreated all the elements in Solidworks, including the mechanical movement. I then used 3D Studio max to do the animations. I only had a month's trial so didn't have long. I can see mistakes now but can't redo them, unfortunately.
I decided to keep the majority of the spacecraft grey so as not to confuse what I was trying to highlight. I downloaded the fantastic scan of the command module from the Smithsonian at:
3d.si.edu/object/3d/command-m...
this helped to show the interior and where the tunnel and equipment fitted.
Finally, I put it all together in Premier using music from:-
www.bensound.com/
Hope this of use. I know it's quite a dry subject for most, but for those, like me, who love the whole Apollo era, I hope you get something out of it. 
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The more you learn about the Apollo program the more overwhelming it feels with the endless little engineering miracles that were required to complete a mission.
Yeah, when you just look at the whole mission videos they don't give that much detail. Which each single day that passes I get more surprised when I look at the moon and think that people actually got there
@@Agent_B0771E Yeah man. This is also why those idiot moon hoaxers can fuck right off. Like I’m so sure that they scripted things like SCE to AUX or a 1202 alarm just to fool people.
@@Agent_B0771E If I was an astronaut on the moon and had a filming camera , the first thing I would do is to make a 360° scan of the landscape around me. Has anyone seen any in the different documentaries of the Apollo missions ?
@@arelortal6580 They did that on 15,16 and 17. There’s footage I’m sure somewhere in the depths of RUclips.
@@patton303 I have seen the NASA documentaries of those missions you mentioned here on RUclips and there is not one single 360 ° or full circle pan of a camera. But happy if you send me a link proving me wrong.
As a young Aerospace Engineer at NASA-KSC, I was assigned to work on the Apollo Command and Service Module (CSM) for Apollo missions 6, 9, 12, 13, 15, 17, the three Skylab's and finally the Apollo Soyuz Test Project (ASTP). Starting with Apollo 9, all Lunar Excursion Modules (LEM) ascent stages were mated to the Apollo Command Modules (CM) at KSC. For Skylab, only the first of the three Skylab missions was the Skylab docking module docked to the CM. On ASTP the Docking Module/Air Lock was docked to the CM in the same manner as the LEM ascent stages. In addition, the Russian side of our Docking Module had been previously sent to Russia and mated to their side of the Soyuz spacecraft. All the docking tests at KSC were performed in the large CSM altitude chamber except for the first Skylab mission. The Skylab docking module was too long and could not be lowered into the altitude chamber. This test was performed after the CSM was removed and placed on another test stand. All docking test were performed in the same manner. LEM ascent stages, Skylab docking module and ASTP docking module were inverted upside down outside of the altitude chamber before being lowered on to the CSM. A special lifting device was used that controlled and monitored the amount of weight being lowered onto the CSM docking ring. The Apollo prime crew commander using the mounted Crew Optical Alignment System (COAS) in his forward looking window monitored the LEM ascent stage target during the lowering of the ascent stage. This helped us to properly align the two spacecraft. After probe to drogue capture was verified by the prime crew, the ascent stage was lowered until just before the 12 ring latches would be triggered. This was the critical part of the test. Each of the 12 latches has a pull down clamping force of 2,000 lbs for a total of 24,000 lbs. The 24,000 lbs would greatly exceed the structural integrity of the ascent stage as the latch hooks pulled the the ascent stage to the CSM docking ring in the 1g environment. The specially designed lifting sling was capable of controlling the LEM ascent stage in a manner that only allowed just 5,000 lbs to be inserted to the ascent stage. Once docked to the CSM, the lifting sling would only let a maximum of 5,000 lbs of the ascent stage to rest on the CSM. Then the Apollo Commander would do a final adjustment to his window mounted COAS by manually aligning the cross hairs in his COAS to the ascent stage docking target stand offs. After the docking probe and drogue were removed by the crew, the Lunar Module Pilot was to attempt entry into the ascent stage in order to align the Lunar Module COAS to a CM target that he installed above his seat looking out of his forward window. On Apollo 9 two things became obvious, first the lunar pilot could not properly adjust the COAS since he could not stand upside down in the ascent stage. Second, he found that it was difficult to see the CM target through the small CM window. At that time the Apollo program called for the LEM to be the active vehicle for docking when returning from the moon surface. As a result of the docking test, the CSM became the active vehicle for all dockings. Finally, how the 12 latches worked. The 2,000 lb clamping force is the result of a set of stack Belleville washers in a cylindrical housing that is connected to the latch hook. The first pull of the latch handle compresses the Belleville washers 50%. In addition, it raises the latch hook up off the LEM docking ring. The second pull of the handle compresses the Belleville washers to 100% and retracts the hook to clear the LEM docking ring. When the latch is triggered releasing the stored energy in the Belleville washers, the hook moves forward at the same time it clamps down on the LEM ring. If a latch fails to fire, the astronaut can activate a backup release button on the latch. The blue latch handle had an indicator button that let the crew member know if the latch hook was fully engaged on the LM docking ring. If it was not fully engaged he could then re-cock the latch and fire it. Only a minimum of three latches were required for the mission. To remove the docking probe he first disconnects the electrical connection between the docking probe and latch ring and stores it on the probe. Then he would move a lever that allowed the three legs of the docking probe to collapse. The next step was to manually releases the three docking probe latches form the drogue and store it under one of the crew couches. After the CSM/LEM was in orbit around the moon and the two crew members were in the LEM with the LEM hatch and the docking drogue installed the Lunar Pilot would insert the docking probe into the drogue automatically engaging the three probe head latches. The electrical cable would be un-stowed and connected to the docking ring. Then by moving the the same release lever used in removal he would extend the collapse legs. The three legs would be inserted into three pockets in the docking ring. Next he would operate a blue ratchet handle at the base of the docking probe. This was a ratchet mechanism connected to a hook that kept the docking probe retracted. Ratcheting the handle preloaded the hook to maintain structural integrity and sealing of the two spacecraft while the twelve latches were cocked. After the CSM tunnel hatch was installed, the lunar pilot would release the three probe head latches. The two spacecraft were no longer docked. Once separated he then would electrically release the probe hook for the probe to be extended. Upon redocking he would initiate a gas cartage inside the probe to retract the probe.
Wow, absolutely fantastic. That was amazing to read. Thank you so much for posting. I love the fact I've put this up and so many more interesting people are contributing to the discussion. Thank you so much for your contribution.
This all a crock!
You can’t possibly believe they flew to the moon, landed and reconnected with little to no fuel . And fly back 240,000 miles straight to earth, and not burn up on re-entry! Ridiculous! Just watch the Artemis program
All hoax all the time. No reality.
nice story kid , but you are not even born back the .. go back to playing computer games now
And like magic every single thing all functioned on version one with no real test system. Total BS
I've also read a bunch of documentation on the Apollo docking system, but this was the first time I truly understood the mechanics of how it worked. Excellent visualization!
Same here. Always wondered how exactly it worked.
Ditto.
I have also read about this, but I also read that some of the latches were closed by hand to prevent damage to the docking collar.
I always thought it was 2 connections, the docking one and tunnel, this certainly made it clear now.
One picture DOES speak one thousand words.
I just turned 60 so I was glued to the tv on every Apollo mission this is hands down the best visualization/presentation I've seen.
Thank you so much, really appreciate your comments.
Might want to give the show Lost in Space a watch.
Same here, my Dad made us watch every second of launch coverage including the 6 hours of the rocket sitting on the pad.
I wish there were more animations like this that teach us how major components worked on the apollo spacecraft
It is wild to me how much this part is passed up in media. "Gotta close the hatch now..." 'wait, what happened to the thingy out front...?!?!" Thank you for doing an amazing job of showing that it ain't a quick thing, but very involved to make it happen.
I always wondered the same thing about the escape tower until they jettisoned it in “Apollo 13”.
You have answered a question I've been asking myself for years. I sort of figured how the probe latched into the cone, but I couldn't understand how the astronauts made their way freely into the tunnel and into the LEM with the docking system blocking the passage. Thank you so much.
Up till now, the best explanation I've found for how this system works was in Michael Collins book 'Carrying the Fire: An Astronaut's Journeys' from 1974. This animation was LONG over due, and so very well done. Thanks... from all of us space geeks.
Yes, pretty well the same for me. It’s hard to visualize what Collin’s was describing, at least for me it was.
I always wanted to know how this worked after watching _Apollo 13,_ especially with so much of the docking hardware being 'in the way' in the tunnel. Thank you so much.
Glad you liked it, thanks
In the film, they didn’t show all the removal of hardware, which was definitely confusing for people who didn’t know how the system worked.
@@jeffw8218 , Exactly. I didn't know if it was clever enough to fold away into the hatch somehow or what. But as I have now seen, they literally take it apart once docked and stow it away. Obviously, _Apollo 13_ was more focused toward the drama; because that's the job of a movie. So the minutae of quite a lot of the technical bits were not shown.
They never show the removal of the hardware, and they kept the tunnel and its hatches wide open for the entire translunar cruise. Both ways. Other than that, it was pretty much completely accurate.
@@meson183 In the movie, when they realize the CM is running out of power, Haise has to go power up the LM quickly before they lose their CM navigation computer. I imagine it could be very time consuming to remove the probe and drogue assembly if it was blocking the tunnel at the time of the accident.
Brilliant piece of work - I was always confused why hardware had to be passed manually through the docking tunnel.
Outstanding presentation! This is the best simulation I have ever seen of docking and undocking and how all of the docking equipment is integrated to both spacecraft. Excellent work.
Thanks for your comments, really appreciate it.
@@graffix101 Are you kidding me? Watch this Kevin!
ruclips.net/video/jDbUgd3MWSI/видео.html
Amazing ingenuity. I was nine years old during Apollo 11, and remember all these missions. As a kid, I could not possibly conceive of the engineering involved. The more I learn, the more my mind is blown. This is what you accomplish when you dump your resources into a worthwhile goal, cost be damned. The payoffs make the cost look like nothing. It’s already happened
couldn't agree more
A banner in the Grumman plant on Long Island where the LM was made said "Waste anything but time".
I'm quite sure all astronauts would salute the educational perfection of this well-made video.
Thank you. That would be the ultimate praise!
@@graffix101 I spent some time thinking about what to write. Glad to have been able to pay back a little for this pedagogical masterpiece.
@@LoffysDomain really appreciate that 👍
Having recently read Michael Collin's book, Carrying the fire, and his struggles with the probe and drogue system It's great to see this awesome visualization, Thanks!
I really enjoyed Carrying the Fire.
Was thinking the same thing. Great book, and great to see how the mechanism all worked.
Thank you Scott Manley for that recommendation.
Awesome book.
I didn't even know he had a book. I've read some of the other astrounauts' books so I will grab Collins' too. Thanks.
Great video... The Apollo program is likely the most underrated achievement of humanity, yet it set us foot on the moon. Excellent video, and imagine they design and built all this with NO computer, NO CAD software, no CNC milling, totally incredible
Totally agree
I am going to take my daughter to Kennedy Space Center on Father’s Day this weekend. I can not wait to see the look on her face when she sees the Saturn V for the first time in person.
One of the best books I’ve read about the Apollo program is by Charles Murray & Catherine Bly Cox. It’s titled Apollo: The Race To The Moon. When they get to the first ever launch of the Saturn V, the guy in charge of loading the propellants looked up at Saturn V in all its glory and thought to himself that there’s no way something so big is going to get off the ground. Fortunately he was wrong but this was an experienced person who had prepared many other rockets, including the Saturn 1’s but even his mind had a hard time grasping the Saturn V.
I was hoping a new edition of their book might have been released to coincide with the 50th anniversary of Apollo 11 but it didn’t happen.
I repeat the remarks of others: this was a magnificent intro to the docking technology of Apollo. I knew about the 12 capture latches around the circumference of the ring but not the three on the nose of the probe; up until now I thought it was the 12 latches which made the initial engagement, which did not explain why the retraction of the docking probe was called for. Now I understand how the mechanism truly worked. Many thanks for making this!
This system alone is stunning, never mind the complete mission system
Late to the party here.. I read about this over-and-over Michael Collins book but could never quite "get it". First class. Thank you.
Well damn. That was excellent. It's about time somebody made a clear explanation of the Apollo docking system. I have wondered for years, and your video is the first breakdown that shows it.
Thanks ben
I'm glad somebody finally explained this. There were never any videos to show what the mechanics of this were and I couldn't figure it out.
Fantastic! Genuinely answered lots of questions! 👍🏻🙂
I always wonder how docking worked since I watched Apollo 13 in 90's. Thank you so much for detail presentation. Two thumbs up!!
Thank you for finally explaining something I’ve wondered about for 50 years! Very well done!
thanks
I’ve always wondered how they transfer crew through that claw looking thing, turns out it isn’t really a claw and more of a latch. And they have to remove it first. Genius design.
This is a great illustration of how this mechanism worked. I, too, was confused on what the astronauts do with the mechanism when it is time to pass through the tunnel. Thanks for clearing it up!
I have wondered for YEARS how that worked. THANK YOU!
Thank you for this video. This the first time I fully understand the docking system. Sorry for my english. Greetings from Switzerland 🇨🇭
Hi Pascal, glad you enjoyed it. And your English is perfect.
Excellent job. I was always unsure how this docking system worked and how the astronauts were able to pass through the modules after watching Apollo 13.
I share your frustration about the lack of animation or illustration of how this worked. Especially about how astronauts actually moved from the CSM and LM. EXCELLENT work. Thank you for this.
These are the shoulders we stand on today! Thanks for sharing and the very best of luck!
Absolutely, and thanks.
Theres a non-zero probability that Apollo 11's LEM is still orbiting the moon in a strange and quirky frozen orbit in LLO, I wish we'd find out for sure, that thing belongs in a museum
My God! I was three years old when they first landed on the moon and this video has finally explained this question I hadn't had answered since I was a kid. Wow! Great video!
Thanks
I just saw this setup in Huntsville two days ago. It is a crazy high tech unit. They didn't explain how it worked but you just did, thanks.
I saw the Saturn 5 rocket and I've been waiting to do that for 50 years, since I was eight yes old.
Much more impressive seeing it rather than pictures video etc.
excellent illustration! I still boggle over the heroes who operated these mechanisms with the certain doom of the vacuum of space right there on the other side... that vehicle was a masterful piece of art, perhaps humankind's greatest achievement.
Dude, what an incredible video! Scott Manley would approve.
That would be high praise indeed 👍
I saved this video in my Apollo list.
Two notes on slang terms:
3:19 soft dock 3:35 hard dock
Apollo 14 took 6 attempts and 1hr 42min to dock & extract the LM.
I've been always curious about the docking devices since the Apollo 13 movie, but never seen it clearly before. Now I know how it works. Thanks a lot for the explanation!
That’s probably the single best explanation and visualisation available.
Thank you for taking the time to put this together! It’s very well done and very much appreciated.
In Michael Collins’s spectacular “carrying the fire“ he talks about never being very mechanical whatsoever and he’s stressed profusely about making sure he mounted the probe accurately.
Excellent! I was never able to fully visualize/understand how they docked and moved through the same tunnel.
Yes, excellent video. If they had gotten to the moon, the Soviets one manned version of the LM required the cosmonaut to do an EVA to enter it while in lunar orbit.
THANK YOU! I've been puzzled and amazed by the engineering involved in this mechanism. Finally someone makes it understandable. GREAT JOB!
Wow, thanks!
un grand merci pour cette explication très claire. Depuis tant d'années, je me demandais comment cette opération fonctionnait. Votre explication est magnifique, thank you Mr Hugues !
this is the best explanation of the docking sequence ive ever seen.
Ive always seen pictures and archive footage of the docking but i never knew exactly how it worked
Thank you!
Thank you so much for your kind words
Brilliant ! Probably the best explanation and visually beautiful on top of it as well . Thank you so much
Just imagining the amount of engineering that went it that one piece of the Saturn V vehicle is staggering, simply mind blowing.
Beautiful! This is something I was very curious about and couldn't find much info about on Wikipedia.
Excellent depiction of the workings of the Apollo docking system. Engineers were never able to explain the problems experienced with the Apollo 14 docking system during initial transposition and docking and it worked fine when the two craft rendezvoused in lunar orbit. Michael Collins in his book, "Carrying The Fire" discussed the complexity of the probe / drogue system, saying that he hated the probe and drogue and that he was convinced that it hated him!
thanks. I know, I read that too. :-)
Very cool. I always wondered how crew transfer happened with all the docking equipment in the way, and tried to imagine a complex mechanism that would fold it away. It never occurred to me that it was simply a matter of manually removing and stowing the equipment.
Fantastic Kevin. I've been an Apollo fan since I was a kid growing up in the 60's, but I never fully understood how the docking works. Amazing that all of this was created without computer design.
An excellent audio-visual description of how the Apollo docking system worked. ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
Is nobody gonna talk about how this is the only video on this channel?
No channel description, just an explanation of how the docking system on lunar missions worked, and thats it.
I've been reading about the docking system for a long time. Then last year I built the probe and drogue using photogrammetry. I then thought about recreating the whole sequence during lockdown. I was always frustrated that there were not any simplified animations so I thought I'd do my own. The channel was my own and was full of random things from drone flights etc. I decided to start again and now plan do space and Apollo.
Phenomenally well done explanation on something that I have wondered about for years. Thank you very much for this informative video!
Thank you
Fantastic work i never really understood the docking mechanism in such depth.Thank you. I admire highly the ingenuitity of the Apollo designers.
This is an excellent explanation! I have never seen anything close to this level of detail concerning the docking assembly. Thank you!
Glad you enjoyed it!
Hello Mr. Hughes, thank you for posting this most informative and instructional video regarding Apollo's Docking sequence.
I never realized how much the astronauts had to do to to prepare the gear.
Yes, after this it's obvious why they spent so long in orbit before actually landing and had such long mission manuals, every step was programmed and had to be checked off - can you imagine the consequences if they got one step of this docking procedure wrong?
@@ianmansfield68 Hence the value of checklists and having someone verify the steps are being followed. *beep* Copy, set SCE to AUX *beep*
This answers so many questions I've had over the years. Well done!
I have ALWAYS wanted to know how this system worked. Thank you so much for the animation and accompanying description.
Excellent. Thank you for all your work on this. Lots of these little known elements of the Apollo system have always kept me intrigued
Thanks for sharing!
I've read about this but I've never been able to picture so well. Thanks.
Wow, whoever designed that really knew what he was doing. And I am glad that I now understand how it all came together while it was out side of Earths atmosphere
Fascinating stuff. I've always wondered about this, and now I know - many thanks. It underlines the complexity of the whole programme, and the constant busy-ness of the 'nauts
Absolutely brilliant! Great explanation and illustration of the docking and unlocking procedures.
Thank you!
For years I was curious how this system worked!
Well done! My father was involved in the manufacture of the docking ring and retraction system for Apollo/Soyuz in 1975. He was also a part if the development of many X-Plane and commercial airliners but I believe he was most proud of this one project. When people say we went to the moon it sounds so simple however; nothing could be farther from the truth. Thank you for this outstanding recreation. It was one small moment of what was an unimaginably complex flight.
thank you. when I was 8, I wrote to NASA from the UK asking for some pictures. One of the large diagrams they sent me was the Apollo Soyuz!. So glad to get a comment from you.
@@graffix101 We often forget what an amazing time this was. Less than 70 years after the Wright Brothers we were standing on the moon. Every division of NASA has an online library of historical images and videos. I could spend days looking at the pictures. If you've not seen it, look at Edwards Air Force Base and Dryden Flight Test libraries. All the people and aircraft that lead to the space programs success. Great talking with you and thanks again for your work on the Apollo video. BR: Tim.
@@coptertim thanks, i'll take a look
Fascinating. I did a presentation when I was 8 on the Apollo XI mission using an Airfix model of a Saturn V. I knew at what point each stage separated but had no information about the manoeuvre to dock with the lunar module, so I just guessed how it must have worked. I’m glad to learn today that I got it right!
Thank you for creating this video, I have had the same frustration myself. I have read and seen images of the Apollo docking system, but I have never seen it in full motion.
Thanks for your reply. I know what you mean. I kept reading, thinking I'd understood it, then something else would cause me confusion. Like, how was it unlatched prior to undocking without undermining the integrity of the tunnel! hopefully, I've covered all of that now.
@@graffix101 Exactly, but thankfully you have now answered a question I think sat on everyone's minds for quite sometime
I've always wondered how this worked. This was a phenomenal video. You got yourself one more subscriber
Thank you
Much appreciated! This was the last piece of the Apollo puzzle I didn't really understand. It never occurred to me they removed the probe, so I always wondered how they through the tunnel with it in the way.
It's such a complex solution but it shows how ingenious the engineers were. I've read, Micheal Collins hated it 😆
It's amazing that so much planning, effort, resources, engineering, and human life was put into a project that, let's face it, really didn't have to be done.
By your reasoning neither the voyages of Columbus or Magellan needed to be done either.
@@marksprague1280 What reasoning
@@FrankStone-qe4yj You said it, not I.
@@marksprague1280 Said what
What is your reason that it "didn't really have to be done?"
Kevin I can't even tell you how much I appreciate this. I am so fascinated.
Great job..
Thank you
Very good. Have wanted for years to see how this happened. Thanks you.
Glad you enjoyed it
Thank you so much for this! I’ve looked for years for something that explained the mechanism (and how they got it out of the way).
I've been an Apollo enthusiast for most of my life and this is the best explanation of the docking sequence I've seen. Well done and thanks.
Thank you. I really appreciate your kind words.
Kevin, what a great presentation!
Planning, research, 3D modeling, rendering, animation, explanation. Perfect!
Thank you very much
You're very welcome!
That’s great it always puzzled me how entrance to the LEM was made with the docking equipment in the tunnel.
Well done! Excellent video explanation of the these systems.
Watching this video has made my day. I've been an avid space nut since watching Apollo 13 well over twenty years ago, and this has been a huge unanswered question of mine and finally that question has been answered.
wow, thanks for your comments
I've been curious how this worked for awhile; this was exactly what I was looking for. Thanks!
Brilliant animation, details I was never sure about.
Thanks
My father was a Tech. Rep. For North American Aviation. He assembled the electrical connections used here.
Wow, fantastic. I bet he had some great stories 👍
@@graffix101 he also worked on the B-70 mach 3 Bomber. When I was 10 years old he took me to the roll out in 1964. We still don't have a heavy bomber capable of mach 3.Also the X-15 Rocket Plane capable of Mach 6.7+.
@@depluribusunum3128 For supersonic bomb delivery, rockets took the job and can deliver bombs large enough to blow up the plane delivering it, because the rocket is disposable.
As many have said, excellent video. I've never seen anything approaching the terrific animation and explanation of how this worked.
thanks
Beautifully explained. I always wondered how the docking system worked. Apollo still give me goosebumps....
Oh my gosh, what an excellent video. The hours that you put in are all on the screen - it was an amazing job. Thank you for your efforts and the detailed explanation.
thank you. It's something I've wanted to do for a long time.
This makes alot more sense now that you've walked through it with graphics. Thank you for putting this together. Now I'm curious how Gemini did it with the Agena Target Vehicles.
I read somewhere that Apollo 14 had problems for the first docking, they tried several times and it finally worked at last allowed chance, as the multiple attempts were fuel-consuming. They were lucky to be able to land on the Moon and not doing only an alternative lunar orbit mission. The initial mission was continued even with the risk it would occur again after liftoff from the moon, as there was an alternative: doing an EVA, anchor the CSM and the LM together with some chains and go back to the commande module by walking in space, carrying boxes with rock samples.
Thank you! That was great. I've always wondered about the procedure of how they lined up, joined and passed through the modules. In reality, it was quite involved and fiddley. I can see it having mechanical problems. Just shows the skill, grit, and amazing design engineering involved.
I always wondered how that worked, I could never understand how they entered the LM with that probe in the way. I knew it had to be removed somehow, but they never showed the astronauts doing it.
In the movie Apollo 13 you can see some of how it was done since they cover some of the procedure
On Apollo 14 they did a TV transmission on the way to the Moon where they took the docking hardware out and inspected it on camera (initial docking with the lunar module took multiple attempts so there was a need to look that equipment over carefully to make sure it was going to work again later in the mission).
More of this please. Do more engineering mechanism breakdowns, I would absolutely love to see it!
how bout this?
ruclips.net/video/jDbUgd3MWSI/видео.html
All these decades and even seeing the assembly with my own eyes, I was still fuzzy on the process. Well done.
I especially like the deployment of the S-Band antenna on the service module following separation from the 3rd stage.
FYI, recent computations show that, at least theoretically, Eagle's ascent stage (Apollo 11) *_may_* still be in lunar orbit.
If that is the case, it would be one heck of an historically significant salvage prize once we're going back to the Moon on a regular basis.
Fantastic video! Finally someone out here that has the details for these questions I’ve been asking for years, easily understood and well explained for the layman. Thanks!
Thank you, really appreciate it. 👍
Fantastic, love the detail.
Thank you! Cheers!
This is amazing. I always wondered how the tunnel was made with the docking probes in the way
As a young space fan during the Apollo missions and onward, I knew how the hatches and probe-and-drogue system worked. But I'd forgotten the specifics about the latches on the probe portion and how they worked. Your excellent animation shows it all very well, making it easy to understand. Such an elegant design, needing to balance functionality with usability while minimizing weight; it had to provide life support as well as acting as a structural load point during flight maneuvers.
Thank you!
Let's have a mission to retrieve the Apollo 10 LM when it swings by earth in 2037. It should be in the Smithsonian.
It's gonna be more than 10 times further than the moon. It won't be easy.
Nobody said it would have to be easy. It's necessary...
TARS, initialize rotation in synchro with Snoopy.
Amazing achievement.
This video answered a whole lot of questions I had about the command module/lunar module docking & how the astronauts were able to get from one to the other. When I first saw the movie 'Apollo 13', I couldn't figure out how they were supposed to get into the LM with the docking probe in the way. A little research is all it took to find out that all that stuff gets detached & stowed following docking. Seeing it visualized helps me understand it that much more. Thanks.
This is brilliant. Excellent animation and a thorough explanation of how the docking system works. I'm going to have to watch this a few more times.
I had no idea the Apollo 10 lunar module (Snoopy) still existed. In 2037, they should send up an unmanned craft (or manned) to recover it and return it to Earth. Not only would it be a cool exhibit in the Smithsonian, but it could provide valuable information about the effects of space on the hardware over the decades it spent in solar orbit.
That was awesome
Obrigado. Sempre quiz saber desse mecanismo.