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Apollo 12, a New Vista for Lunar Science

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Apollo 12, a New Vista for Lunar Science DOCUMENT RESUME ED 059 052 SE 013 176 TITLE Apollo 12, ANewVista for Lunar Science. INSTITUTION National Aeronautics andSpaceAdministration, Washington, D.C. REPORT NO NASA-EP-74 PUB DATE 70 NOTE 24p. AVAILABLE FROMSuperintendent of Documents, GovernmentPrinting Office, Washington, D.C. 20402 ($0.650-372-723) EDRS PRICE MF-$0. 65 HC-$3.29 DESCRIPTORS *Aerospace Education; *AerospaceTechnology; Instructional Materials; *LunarResearch; Photographs; Resource Materials;Scientific Research IDENTIFIERS NASk; *Space Sciences ABSTRACT Man's second lunar landing,Apollo 12, provided a wealth of scientific informationabout the moon. The deployment of the magnetometer, seismometer,and ionosphere detector, and other activities on the lunar surface aredescribed. A number of color photographs show the astronautssetting up equipment on the moon as well as close-ups of the lunarsurface.. Some illustrations are afull page in s ize. (PR) 1 A I A OIL dr I dr OIL U S DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH. EDUCATION & WELFARE OFFICE OF EDUCATION THIS DOCUMENT HAS BEEN REPRO DUCED EXACTLY AS RECEIVED FROM THE PERSON OR ORGANIZATION ORIG INATING IT POINTS OF VIEW OR OPIN IONS STATED DO NOT NECESSARILY REPRESENT OFFICIAL OFFICE OF EOU CATION POSITION OR POLICY AI, * 4.40' 4 / N Apollo A New 12 Vista for Lunar Science . S. gab. IP 011. ris Oen. se. 011... NIV71^1. AIL; 0 . v _Mak a 4 I f 1 "'r S. 4 44: . inS. f dkirserat AA. a "bow' LP e. 5, . ri 111111641111,416,.. a I- P. .11 fr i a 4 4 S. In reviewing the events of the 60's, a thousand, maybe even a million lunar science v4%ciuld undergo historians will mark the year times more important to science major modific*ons as a result 1969 as the beginning of a new than Apollo 11." Director of the of thr missiok The geophysical era in which the Apollo 11 U.S. Geological Survey, Department stati*, set u,on the Moon's flight demonstrated man's of th,,e Interior, W. T. Pecora, after surface, haS4aupched a new age capability to leave Earth, land eliminary inspection of the in lunar stclies and in the on another celestial body and lunar samples brought back byti-IS exploratiOn of the solar return safely to his home planet Apollo 12irew, commented that the syster-A.- They will cite Apollo 12 as the rocks broight back by Apollo 11 Irriportaht and exciting as the beginning of a new era of were a "... geologic hors troeuvre" re/sults of the individual experiments different and, perhaps, more while the samples collected by were, the broader implicatiogs of consequential dimensions when Apollo 12 were "... a veritable the mission were of greater men took this,new capacity and feast." sinificance. The new understand- used it to achieve a broadening of If there was a constant in the gsNIe dynamics of the the horizOns of science. early data produced by the Apollo unar struure, its environment A judgment of this kind was 12 flight, it was the element of -. and the forces with which rlointed mit by one scientist soon the unexpected. Experienced it intetacts provide the basis.for dfter the completion of the Apollo investigators, inherently cautious fresher and deeper insights into 12 flight. He described the in drawing conclusions from the origins of Earth, the forces that Apollo 12 mission as ". particularly in the preliminary influence its environment, and its phases of analysis, inclined toward place in the solar system. the view that basic concepts of a e -115. a*? 110 ,* t A .2 .) ,, ..1 Deploying the Apirfk) lunar Surface xperimentc Package (Al SI P). On the 1`011.1111`lett a carrying pallet and «Ivo Aisfoyink from left to right are I the Solar Wind Spec trumetvi, the lonocpherp Ikle( fnr mid the ntli generatorI hp 7 1. aftronant scraruling next to the Al SIP err vntial Station with the Sel%morneter he ha( k ,ind the AleIgnenimeter ; 4 . or 1;..1C, \ e'r.{ I0 t '1Vsk , --- ;;. 111.1glk Captain Alan L. Bean, USN, Pilot of the Captain Richard Gordon, USN, Pilot of the Spacecraft Commander Captain Charles Intrepid (the lunar module). command module Yankee Clipper, who Conrad, USN, who, along with Bean, won kept watch from lunar orbit while his crew praise from the missioo scientists for the mates walked on the Moon. werk on the Moon. Lift Off for the Ocean of Storms As Apollo 12 lift-off time platform, heart of the spacecraft 12 was placed in a trajectory approached, a low overcast moved guidance system, was "just that lacked the free return in over the launch area and rain drifting all over the place." factor. This was necessitated by the fell. The question of delaying Discussing the incident a few location of the landing site. I-lad the iaunch was discussed and, minutes later into the flight, the a malfunction kept it out of after a search plane reported that crew commented, "We all said lunar orbit, it would have swung there was no lightning within there were so many trouble lights into a highly ellipticai Earth orbit 20 miles of the launch pad, the on we couldn't read them." that would have made its return mission directors elected to to Earth far more complicated. The flash triggered overload launch on schedule. detectors and circuit oreakers in A significant feature of Apollo The countdown proceeded the electr;cal systems into an 12's lunar journey was its pinpoint smoothly to ignition and then automatic disconnect. This landing 600 feet from Surveyor liftoff exactly as planned, and dropped the entire load on the 3 (an unmanned spacecraft that the huge Saturn V space backup battery system. In an landed on the Moon in Apri:, vehicle cleared the gantry and emergency of this kind, this is 1967). Once set in the correct climbed deliberately toward the what is supposed to happen. lunar orbit, the crew avoided overcast. As it entered the clouds, activities, such as the dumping of a bolt of lightning arced between Within roughly 3 minutes, the wastes, that would have the rocket and the ground. For crew had closed the circuit caused minor changes in its flight a few heartstopping seconds breakers and overload detectors. path. During the second phase of there was silence, and then details All circuits were back in operation the landing maneuver, the powered started coming back from the and the fuel cells again on-line. descent, Spacecraft Cornmanckv Command Module (CM). When the spacecraft entered Charles Conrad manipulated the From the spacecraft: "Okay, we Earth's shadow on its first orbit, on-board computer to compensate just lost the platform, gang. I Command Module Pilot Richard for errors that would have landed don't know what happened here. Gordon, took star sights and used the Lunar Module (LM) 5 miles We had everything in the world the navigational fix, thus obtained north of its target. to right the guidance platform. drop out ...fuelcell,lights, Establishing the capabi:ity for a and AC buss light, fuel cell Apollo 12 made a significant pinpoint landing, a major objective disconnect, AC buss overload, departure from the course followed of the mission, makes feasible the one and two main buss A and B by previous manned lunar plans for future Apollo missions out . ." The vital inertial missions. The three predecessor that are targeted for upland and missions had flown a free return mountainous areas of the Moon trajectory wherein, if the where rough terrain makes spacecraft failed to achieve lunar precise navigation essential. orbit, it would loop,around the 2 Moon and return, tr, Earth: Apollo 8 -eee 41, PS 47.4k0S. eee (10,JCO ir lor k. I. lotor,t01,11,tilt 1" vattepler12 t,, ,a/ Apolloovercast ',*.*".*Iiiim the ''4%s.*.","-'4,...,^, boosts ""... rre....:,'''',../. toward V, --'.',,,,..1,:A11,4i:/,,N'i RocketN./ ' 's+ -100,;-,4))10*1' Saturn'The ... !et, ...a,pt. _11 The Lunar Field le + Trips spilb - -444111111 art dit 400"..40.1*42 4111) lope Asle :0; ,. Vd OAF .4 41. .401 *0°41v *a! "'?'nriljadir1141 , e* rt, goo Conrad starts down the ladder (attached to one of Intrepid's struts) toward the Moon's surface as Bean photographs him through the hatch. of a geophvsk.al ,,tation that has The geologi-al survey conducted ', .111(1,1111(y icpOiled no 'leer On the --or On by the two astronauts occupied drai Ludt- the seismometer is a marvel a small fraction of the first walk on (onipdctiles, ..iod sensitivity. the Moon's surface and most of the d',111)11.1ttk,as th.'y instru,mmts in second walk. Geologists at the !!-.,ir lunar duties. ohse-vatori,--, Ixotdd Manned Spacecraft Center at .,liort lime afterits ten times larger.I he ALSIT Houston v.'ere delighted with the had recorrled ten instrument is 16'' high and ,.righs performance of their exuberant natural origin xyhich pourds.itis so sensitive that it proxies on the Moon's surface. The .rotrt 2.0 to .10 minotes----probably would he useless on the dynamic running commentary maintained ion ,olneleorite hils----although and quake-ridden Earth. Wind and by Conrad and Lunar Module Pilot -Is one experimenier put it, no wave motion alone would dominate AlanA. Bean enabled the scientists .,elf-respel ling geologist xvould have the instrument.Itis "critically to determine that the assigned said !..) before the Apollo 12 damped" so lhat there is no tasks were properly executed and mission. As lunar ni,;;ht fell, the thin resonance. A shock is recorded also provided on-the-spot layer of .1..,neole, mantle rocks once and the sensor is instantly observations that could be linked a II ed d regolith- --that underlies the ready lo rer.ord the next one.
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