"The Apollo 10 mission was a vital step toward the national goal of landing men on the Moon and returning them safely to Earth. This mission used the first complete Apollo spacecraft flown in lunar orbit and took men closer to the Moon than ever before. Each Apollo lunar mission acquires photographs of areas on the Moon never before seen in such great detail. This report provides only a small sample of the types of analysis that can be performed with this photography. Even more important, however, this report provides scientists throughout the world with a knowledge of what new lunar photography is available and how the photograph can be obtained. It is hoped that more extensive analysis of this photography will continue..."--p. iii.
The only work to date to collect data gathered during the American and Soviet missions in an accessible and complete reference of current scientific and technical information about the Moon.
This book provides an overview of the origins of the Apollo program and descriptions of the ground facilities, launch vehicles and spacecraft that were developed in the quest to reach – and return from - the surface of the moon. It will serve as an invaluable single-volume sourcebook for space enthusiasts, space historians, journalists, and others. The text includes a comprehensive collection of tables listing facts and figures for each mission.
The technological marvel that facilitated the Apollo missions to the Moon was the on-board computer. In the 1960s most computers filled an entire room, but the spacecraft’s computer was required to be compact and low power. Although people today find it difficult to accept that it was possible to control a spacecraft using such a ‘primitive’ computer, it nevertheless had capabilities that are advanced even by today’s standards. This is the first book to fully describe the Apollo guidance computer’s architecture, instruction format and programs used by the astronauts. As a comprehensive account, it will span the disciplines of computer science, electrical and aerospace engineering. However, it will also be accessible to the ‘space enthusiast’. In short, the intention is for this to be the definitive account of the Apollo guidance computer. Frank O’Brien’s interest in the Apollo program began as a serious amateur historian. About 12 years ago, he began performing research and writing essays for the Apollo Lunar Surface Journal, and the Apollo Flight Journal. Much of this work centered on his primary interests, the Apollo Guidance Computer (AGC) and the Lunar Module. These Journals are generally considered the canonical online reference on the flights to the Moon. He was then asked to assist the curatorial staff in the creation of the Cradle of Aviation Museum, on Long Island, New York, where he helped prepare the Lunar Module simulator, a LM procedure trainer and an Apollo space suit for display. He regularly lectures on the Apollo computer and related topics to diverse groups, from NASA's computer engineering conferences, the IEEE/ACM, computer festivals and university student groups.
