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SpaceFlight A British Interplanetary Society publication

Volume 61 No.9 September 2019 £5.25 ! Made to measure: the BIS suit

The Brit who saved Khrushchev's super-booster Starship visionaries 09> 634089 770038 9

CONTENTS Features 12 Memories of Apollo A UK engineer joined the Apollo programme after being hired by Lockheed. Here, Tony Errington recounts his experiences and the he saved from a premature return to 4 Earth.

Letter from the Editor 17 Webb’s Giant Nobody believed him at first – only the CIA knew Well that’s over for another 50 but what will we be he was telling the truth. NASA Administrator celebrating, and from where, James Webb spoke of a giant Russian super- when has its centenary: booster that epitomised their race to the Moon. Earth, Moon or Mars? Perhaps all Only years later did the story come out. three. The overwhelming enthusiasm 22 A long and winding road for this great in July 1969 John Sealander recalls the day he stood on the was rekindled in scores of places 4 all across the UK, with the British site where left Earth for the Moon and Interplanetary Society and its shares his thoughts as he went back to see the representatives supporting events flight of from an adjacent launch around the nation. The sense of pad fifty years later. coming together, sharing a great adventure and taking joy over a 40 Above and Beyond great endeavour that stands outside politics, strife and Stephen Ashworth takes us to the stars as he discontent was everywhere. I recounts proceedings at the Interstellar Studies couldn’t help but admire the way Workshop during late June. everyone bore that glowing sense of wonder, joy at a magnificent 12 achievement – it was as though it had happened . Regulars I could not help but reflect in my own mind how far we have come 2 Behind the news with the robotic exploration of to get moving – From Prague to the every planet in the system – Cornish Riviera – Into the wild and more worlds visited than we knew about when Armstrong and 4 Opinion Aldrin landed on the Moon. The achievement of Apollo was that 6 ISS Report because it went so far there was 9 June – 8 July 2019 no turning back from the wider 17 possibilities. And as we look 26 Correspondence toward new and exciting missions to come we will never forget what 30 Obituary began it all – still held dear in all John Healey (1922-2019), Jerrie Cobb (1931-2019) our hearts. 33 Multi-media The latest -related books, games, videos

36  Digest 560 – June 2019 David Baker [email protected] 44 Society news / Diary 22 COVER: THE DESIGNED BY ROSS AND SMITH OF THE BRITISH INTERPLANETARY SOCIETY, NOW ON DISPLAY AT THE NATIONAL SPACE CENTRE, LEICESTER / NATIONAL SPACE CENTRE SPACE / NATIONAL CENTRE, LEICESTER SPACE THE NATIONAL AT ON DISPLAY NOW SOCIETY, INTERPLANETARY THE BRITISH OF AND SMITH ROSS DESIGNED BY SUIT THE SPACE COVER: What’s happened/ What’s coming up

OUR MISSION STATEMENT Editor David Baker, PhD, BSc, FBIS, FRHS Sub Editor Ann Page Creative Consultant Andrée Wilson Design & Production MP3 Media Promotion Gillian Norman Advertising Tel: +44 (0)20 7735 3160 Email: [email protected] The British Interplanetary Society Distribution Warners Group Distribution, The Maltings, Manor Lane, Bourne, Lincolnshire PE10 9PH, England Tel: +44 (0)1778 promotes the exploration and 391 000 Fax: +44 (0)1778 393 668 SpaceFlight, Arthur C. Clarke House, 27-29 South Lambeth Road, London SW8 1SZ, use of space for the benefit England Tel: +44 (0)20 7735 3160 Email: [email protected] www.bis-space.com Published monthly by the British Interplanetary Society, SpaceFlight is a publication that promotes the mission of the British of humanity, connecting people Interplanetary Society. Opinions in signed articles are those of the contributors and do not necessarily reflect the views of to create, educate and inspire, the Editor or the Council of the British Interplanetary Society. Registered Company No: 402498. Registered charity No: and advance knowledge in 250556. The British Interplanetary Society is a company limited by guarantee. Printed in England by Latimer Trend & Co. © 2019 British Interplanetary Society 2017 ISSN 0038-6340. All rights reserved. No part of this magazine may be reproduced all aspects of astronautics. or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying or recording by any information storage or retrieval system without written permission for the Publishers. Photocopying permitted by license only.

SpaceFlight Vol 61 September 2019 1 SLUGBEHIND THE NEWS

Time to go! Tim Peake is taking a two- sabbatical from his astronaut duties. TIME TO GET MOVING Britain‘s only active astronaut, Tim Peake, will be returning from the (ESA) to the UK.

BASED AT THE European Astronaut’s Centre (EAC) eligible for a mission to the International in Cologne, Tim has been working as Astronaut Space Station (ISS) as a member of the ESA Operations Team Lead, plus carrying out the normal astronaut “class of 2009” – this follows his first UK and European-led outreach and training work space flight in 2015/16 when he undertook the responsibilities. Now he is coming back to the UK highly successful six- Principia Mission on for two years, to undertake more education and board the ISS. outreach work as part of the UK Space Agency’s ESA are committed to continue to help maintain current programme. crew on the ISS until at least 2024. Italian astronaut ESA announced the move, saying that whilst he Luca Parmitano is due to take over as the ISS will be taking an unpaid leave of absence for two commander as part of his “Beyond” mission this years from 1 October 2019, this is not unusual as year. astronauts often use the period between space Whilst Tim Peake’s second mission prospects missions for “personal and career development”. obviously depend on continued UK government Tim is expected to continue in his role as a STEM financial support for ESA and Ambassador for the UK, in addition to his outreach aspects in particular, encouragingly in 2016 ESA work for the Prince’s Trust and as a Scout Director Jan Worner stated his intention that all Ambassador. astronauts in the class of 2009 will fly twice by The ESA statement notes that Tim remains 2024. SF Nick Spall

2 Vol 61 September 2019 SpaceFlight BEHIND THE NEWS

With headquarters in Prague, the UK’s imminent exclusion from the satellite navigation system has given the UK Space Agency a wakeup call. IMAGES: ESA IMAGES: From Prague to the Cornish Riviera? THE UK IS TO SET UP a National Space up to £20 million to help Spaceport upgrades to the airport for supporting Council as part of a package of Cornwall and US launch operator Virgin Virgin ’s converted Boeing 747 measures designed to reinforce the Orbit to develop facilities to enable the which will be used for the air-launch industry ahead of the country’s launch of small – although the platform LauncherOne, a project to departure from the European Union investment remains subject to which Virgin Orbit will contribute £2.5 later this year. Under plans revealed in “business case approval processes”, million. An agreement was signed at July by the department for business, according to the government. Greg the July 2018 Farnborough Air Show the government also said it would make Clark, business secretary, said space is between officials from Cornwall and funding available towards a project that a “rapidly growing sector of our Virgin Orbit to study the possibility of could see Cornwall become the launch economy which plays a key role in our adapting existing facilities for site for a range of small satellites from modern Industrial Strategy, promotes LauncherOne and that has endorsed as early as the 2020s. The UK Space Global Britain and ensures our national initial expectations that the project is Agency will also work with the US to security”. valid, fundable and environmentally TIME TO GET MOVING enhance forecasting. The investment aims to provide acceptable. SF David Baker The measures come at a critical time for Britain’s space sector, which has been buffeted by uncertainty over the impact of Brexit and the UK’s exclusion from the military aspects of Europe’s Galileo satellite navigation programme. The industry, which employs around 42,000 people, has repeatedly called for a sustained national space programme. The UK has set an ambitious target of cornering 10 per cent of the global space market by 2030 in a sector dominated by the US, and China. The new council, which will be set up later this year, will co-ordinate all aspects of Britain’s space strategy. Colin Paynter, managing director of Airbus Defence and Space UK, said the commitment recognised the “importance of satellites and space applications to all areas of government”. ABOVE Separately, the UK Space Agency and Samsung S8 Smartphones capable of Cornwall Council plan to make available receiving Galileo sat-nav signals.

SpaceFlight Vol 61 September 2019 3 BEHIND THE NEWS in Briefing Into the wild WHILE PRO-SPACE LOBBYISTS high-quality jobs” would be created applaud the selection of several by the venture, adding that “the sites in the UK for development of jobs which will be available to local horizontal launch sites such as that people have been stated as in Cornwall there is also support for housekeeping and security”. They an existing agreement allowing also question the prosperity and development of a vertical-launch jobs this development would facility in Sutherland on the Atlantic accrue, stating that it could coast in northern Scotland. But not compromise other and more

The Satellite Ground Control Station at Portsdown West. s TL

D everyone is convinced that this is an appropriate businesses. appropriate site for such However, a spokesman for SKYSEARCH development. A surveyed section of Highlands and Islands Enterprise The Defence and Technology land on the A'Mhoine Peninsula in said that: "The HIE board approved Laboratory (Dstl) has acquired its first Sutherland has been identified as a support for the Sutherland satellite ground control station to support location for the launching of rockets Spaceport following the UK Space space research activities for the carrying micro satellites but there is Agency’s decision to support Ministry of Defence. Based at Portsdown local opposition and some weighty development at this site and to West, Hampshire, the ground station will use environmental concerns. award research and development its 6.3 m diameter antenna (above) to direct Several groups have asked why a grant funding to two international satellites in low-Earth and geosynchronous designated national “wild land” site launch companies as partners in the , and will form a core part of the Dstl has been selected for this Sutherland project. Space Science & Technology programme. development. The selection is, “One of these companies has Scientists from Dstl’s Space Group will however, defended by the Highlands already opened a factory in Forres develop and test software for satellite and Islands Enterprise and by the where it is creating jobs. This is an operations, and train civilian and military UK Space Agency, asserting that the early sign of the economic personnel in satellite mission operations. analysis was conducted only under a launch site will Towards the end of 2019, the ground station the “ rigorous” of for different parts of our will task its first satellites, before progressing circumstances. Research by Prof. region. to control multiple satellite missions and Mike Danson of Heriot-Watt “We commissioned an other ground assets by 2021. University and by Geoff Whittam of independent economic impact Glasgow Caledonian University also assessment as part of our due questions the claim that “40 diligence. This concluded that Space IN MEMORIAM A key figure in the management of mission operations and flight control teams, Opinion Christopher Columbus Kraft Jr has died, 95 years, two days after the 50th anniversary celebrations of Apollo 11. One of the original flight directors, he climbed the ONE THING, THEN ANOTHER management ladder on sheer merit and became Director of the Johnson Space READERS MAY BE AWARE that political fluctuations are causing uncertainty Centre in January 1972 and retired at the end in national space programmes in continental Europe, in the UK and in the USA. of 1981. His legacy lies in the management This does not bode well. Just this last month, from across the nation and around structure he defined and set up and in the the world, people came together to celebrate the 50th anniversary of Apollo 11 pattern of decision-making criteria for and the first astronauts to set foot on the Moon. That happened because of astronaut and crew assignment. SpaceFlight commitment across three presidential terms, a consistency which ensured will carry an extended obituary next month. success through commitment and a sustained goal transcending politics and partisan causes, a resistance to meddling securing success. Now, 50 years on, while there is deep uncertainty about the future of the UK and NASA its aerospace industry, the European Union has a new tranche of leaders and the President of the is beginning to intervene, unhelpfully, in NASA’s bid to get back on the Moon. Neither does any of this bode well for consistency and long-term success as we look to and fresh challenges. Despite resistance from some in the European Space Agency, increasing pressure is being brought by the EU to embrace large sections of Europe’s space activity – particularly in navigation (Galileo) and Earth science (Sentinel). ESA has fought hard to remain apolitical but those days are numbered, due to increasing contractual agreements being made with user bodies entrenched within the political union and traction from those who see in ESA an existing pan-national body for Euro-wide applications. Rocket man Chris Kraft, who died 22 July.

4 Vol 61 September 2019 SpaceFlight BEHIND THE NEWS Briefing INDIA'S MOON To the sound of applause within the control centre and watched by 7,000 dignitaries and children, the Chandrayaan-2 spacecraft was launched to the Moon on 22 July. Weighing 2,400 kg, India’s lunar orbiting spacecraft carries the Vikram A lander, which will be sent down to the surface in September at a site near the South Pole. The Pragyaan rover is designed to free itself from Vikram A and operate at the surface for up to 14 Earth days. Chandrayaan-1 was Satellites could be launched from the A'Mhoine Peninsula within ten years. launched to the Moon in 2008 but signals UK SPACE AGENCY UK SPACE were lost after 213 days in lunar orbit. Expected to crash to the surface shortly Hub Sutherland has the potential to allocation of national funding pivots thereafter, it was found again in 2016. support 40 high quality jobs locally, on the balance between competing and 400 across our region.” claimants, for grants, programme But the UK is not focusing decisions and the broader national FALLS entirely on the potentially very policy. Issues over launchers and lucrative horizontal and vertical science instruments for applications Launched from French Guiana on 11 July, launcher market. Albeit unrelated to satellites require an independent a Vega rocket carrying the FalconEye-1 the launch sites announcements, body capable of making an objective satellite for the United Arab Emirates the UK is to provide a team at and dispassionate set of decisions. failed less than two into its flight. University College, London through The new UK National Space Council This is the first failure with a Vega after 14 a £7 million grant for development is to serve as the coordinating node straight successes since the inaugural of a plasma analyser for monitoring for decisions regarding national launch in 2012. The launch had been space weather from an ESA space development across many postponed due to high winds and the mission supporting a separate users and several government reason for the failure is still uncertain but spacecraft built by the US National departments including industry, film of the ascent shows the rocket Oceanic and Atmospheric defence, national security and veering off course before the trajectory Administration (NOAA). development. As such the decision was “degraded”, according to officials. Overall, contentious decisions to inaugurate a UK National Space regarding launchers and the Council is to be applauded. SF RENTAROOM On the back of NASA’s decision to open up the International Space Station to non-government astronauts and private The President of the United States is individuals, Bigelow has paid “substantial sums of money” to SpaceX for four beginning to intervene, unhelpfully, in NASA’s launches to the ISS. Up to four people could fly in a single Dragon 2 capsule with bid to get back on the Moon stays aboard the station of up to 30 days. The first could come as early as 2020 and In the United States the presidency of Donald Trump was benign to begin with NASA will charge $35,000 for each night and then supportive of the bi-partisan Congressional acceptance of NASA’s plan aboard the ISS, a sum based on the cost to build a gateway from where crewed landings on the surface could resume of consumables and data. These toward the end of the 2020s. Then came intervention in the reformation of the opportunities are opening up as a result National Space Council with Vice-President Mike Pence at the helm and a of SpaceX and Boeing developing their mandate to go quicker. own crewed spacecraft. Only a few ago, the White House invigorated the plan by giving NASA the hurry-up – Donald Trump wanted US astronauts back on the Moon by 2024. NASA Administrator Jim Bridenstine had little option but to comply, putting SPACEX together a plan which requires an immediate 8% boost in NASA’s budget and twice that for at least the following two or three years. Just before the Apollo 11 celebrations Trump changed his mind, all but chiding NASA for talk of going back to the Moon. Trump wants us to go Mars by 2033 and forget all talk of the Moon, even challenging NASA to listen to Mike Collins and Buzz Aldrin “and learn from them” about bypassing the Moon and going straight to Mars. Once again, as this country itself faces uncertainties, in the US meddling is setting in and we may, after all, be left with an undetermined destination for the hardware already being built. SF DB Dragon 2 may carry up to four tourists at a time to the ISS.

SpaceFlight Vol 61 September 2019 5 SATELLITES

fter enjoying a light-duty day on 9 June, conducting housekeeping chores, performing their daily exercises and is underway. Following the talking to family and friends, Hague and safe return to Earth in late June of Oleg AKoch began the working on 10 June by drawing blood samples and spinning them in a Kononenko, Anne McClain and David Saint- centrifuge before stowing them in a science freezer. Saint-Jacques worked with the BioNutrients-1 Jacques, the International Space Station has experiment. This study is exploring manufacturing nutritional compounds in space to maintain returned to temporary three person operations healthy crews for successful missions. Kononenko, McClain and Saint-Jacques began to stow items under its commander Alexei Ovchinin and his inside their spacecraft for their imminent return to Earth. crew of and . Kononenko continued readying his Soyuz vehicle on 11 June and together with Ovchinin Report by George Spiteri set up the Russian Chibis suit which the three returning crewmembers periodically donned over the next two to counteract microgravity and

6 Vol 61 September 2019 SpaceFlight ISS REPORT ISS Report 8 June – 8 July 2019

LEFT Soyuz MS-12 crew ship (foreground) and the 72 resupply ship pictured as they orbited 415 km above the Atlantic Ocean northeast of Puerto Rico.

RIGHT Canadian astronaut David Saint-Jacques checks plants being grown for the Veg-04A space botany experiment.

help draw body fluids towards the feet to minimise head pressure. The United States Orbital Segment (USOS) crew of Hague, McClain, Koch and Saint-Jacques

ALL IMAGES: NASA ALL IMAGES: took part in a variety of biomedical examinations including eye and blood pressure tests. McClain and Koch checked NASA’s Veg-04A botany experiment and McClain later joined Hague to work with the Electrostatic Levitation Furnace (ELF) physics investigation inside Kibo. McClain also tweeted her best wishes to the USA women’s football team ahead of their first game in the FIFA Women’s World Cup which they won by a record 13-0 and eventually went on to win the competition. On 12 June, Hague and McClain worked with ESA’s Airway Monitoring study, which involves the crew collecting samples of an astronaut’s breath to detect dust and other toxins. Saint-

SpaceFlight Vol 61 September 2019 7 ISS REPORT

Jacques collected blood samples for ’s McDowell as the complex flew 411.9 km above the Bio-Analyser biomedical experiment, whilst river Amazon. Hague monitored the deployment Koch performed tests for the Standard Measures and photographed the which were from investigation which observes a variety of cognitive Nepal, Sri Lanka, Japan and Singapore respectively. functions such as memory, attention and NASA reported that the CubeSats from Nepal and orientation. Sri Lanka were the “first ever satellites to go into McClain and Hague conducted further space” from those two nations. research with the Airway Monitoring experiment On 18 June, Kononenko’s crew continued on 13 June, whilst Kononenko, McClain and loading Soyuz with cargo, McClain resumed Saint-Jacques resumed loading items into their stowing items inside the cargo craft and Soyuz spacecraft and Saint-Jacques participated NASA reported partnered Saint-Jacques for the Standard Measures in ultrasound scans throughout the day for the study. Koch performed another run of the Genes Vascular Echo cardiovascular study. that the CubeSats In Space-6 (GIS-6) experiment inside Columbus to Saint-Jacques conducted more tests with one sequence DNA samples and Hague devoted most of of the Astrobee cube shaped free-flying robots from Nepal and Sri his day to the Capillary Structures investigation to named “Bumble” and according to NASA took observe how fluid and gas mixtures behave inside it on “its maiden voyage” flying under its own Lanka were the structures designed for microgravity. power inside Kibo on 14 June. NASA added that “first ever McClain and Saint-Jacques began two days of Astrobee “demonstrated its ability to navigate research on 19 June with JAXA’s Probiotics human around the station” with the Canadian astronaut satellites to go research experiment, whilst Hague devoted a “putting it through its paces”. Koch worked with the second day to the Capillary Structures investigation Combustion Integrated Rack (CIR) inside Destiny into space” from and Koch worked with an experiment which and McClain took her turn with the Vascular Echo is exploring manufacturing nanoparticles that experiment. Hague serviced the US Extravehicular those two nations target a disease’s underlying cause rather than its Mobility Unit (EMU) suits in the Quest airlock symptoms. Saint-Jacques took time out later to talk and Kononenko and Ovchinin did further work to Canadian journalists for the final time before his with the Chibis suits as part of the Fluid Shifts return to Earth and summed up his mission as “an experiment. incredible human adventure”. During their light-duty weekend 15/16 June, the On 20 June, Kononenko, McClain and Saint- crew worked on the Standard Measures experiment Jacques conducted a dress rehearsal of their which examines crew performance and other undocking and landing procedures inside their critical outcomes during spaceflight and conducted Soyuz spacecraft. Ovchinin assisted Kononenko one of their regular ISS ham-radio passes as part of for another run with the Chibis suit, whilst Hague the Amateur Radio on the ISS (ARISS) programme. worked with the Probiotics experiment. Koch Kononenko, McClain and Saint-Jacques began explored the possibility of producing high-grade their final week in orbit on 17 June by checking fibre optic cables in microgravity and McClain their Sokol launch and re-entry suits for leaks and BELOW partnered Saint-Jacques with a suite of biomedical The six resumed packing their Soyuz vehicle with critical crewmembers gather for tests. items. a portrait inside Japan’s The following day, McClain and Saint-Jacques Kibo laboratory module. At performed their final medical experiments, whilst ENTRANTS bottom from left Christina Hague joined McClain to work inside Kibo and Four CubeSats were ejected from outside of Kibo Koch, Alexey Ovchinin and then assisted Koch to upgrade power electronics Nick Hague. At top from using the JEM- Orbital Deployer-11 left Anne McClain, Oleg in Harmony. All six crewmembers gathered inside (J-SSOD-11) between 10:15 UTC and 10:20 UTC Kononenko and David Zvezda to videotape their activities as part of the on 17 June according to space analyst Jonathan Saint-Jacques. ISS Experience investigation which records life aboard the station for audiences on Earth. Kononenko and Saint-Jacques tested the Soyuz flight control and propulsion system during their final weekend in orbit on 22/23 June and according to a tweet from Saint-Jacques everything was “working well after being parked in space for 6 months!” The command of the station passed from Kononenko to Ovchinin during the traditional Change of Command Ceremony on 23 June. Kononenko said that his crew tried “to perform all the tasks assigned” and thanked “all the specialists” on the ground for their support. Ovchinin responding in English said “it was pleasant working with you….we will continue working here on board ISS”.

RETURN TO SENDER The hatches between the ISS and Soyuz MS- 11/57S were closed at 20:15 UTC on 24 June. Soyuz commander Kononenko together with

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McClain and Saint-Jacques undocked Soyuz ABOVE Once the crew were extracted from the from Poisk over three later at 23:25 Koch pictures dinner in Russia's spacecraft they were assisted to the regular Zvezda module, where a pizza UTC as the Station drifted 411.9 km above floats above the galley. reclining chairs at the landing site and in warm eastern Mongolia. Signalling the official start sunny conditions Kononenko told reporters “so far to Expedition 60, the badge included an eagle BELOW as the weather is concerned when you come back on the crew patch in honour of the fiftieth The departing crewmembers. from space we’re happy to see any weather”. Saint- anniversary of Apollo 11. Soyuz performed a 4 min 39 sec de- orbit burn at 01:55 UTC on 25 June and the spacecraft’s three modules successfully separated 27 min later leaving the crew inside the Descent Module. TV cameras caught their first views of Soyuz underneath its huge parachute, venting excess hydrogen peroxide 21 min before landing and Soyuz touched down at 02:47 UTC on 25 June (08:47 local time) south east of the remote town of Dzhezkazgan, to complete a mission of 203 days 15 hr 15 min. Kononenko became the world’s sixth most experienced space traveller with a cumulative time of 736 days 18 hr 43 min in space on four missions and Saint-Jacques flew the longest space flight by a Canadian and is now his country’s second most experienced astronaut behind .

SpaceFlight Vol 61 September 2019 9 ISS REPORT

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Jacques appeared pale and conceded “ is LEFT / RIGHT Anne McClain is helped not my friend” and at a post-flight press conference out of the Soyuz MS-11 admitted he “felt completely unable to stand up”. In spacecraft just minutes contrast McClain looked remarkably well, giving a after she and her fellow thumbs up, smiling for the cameras and during her crewmates landed in a remote area near the town first post-flight interview said “it’s fun getting used of Zhezkazgan, to Earth again” and that she “absolutely would like Kazakhstan (right). to go back” to space. McClain and Saint-Jacques were taken by NASA jet to to be reunited with family and friends, whilst Kononenko was flown back to Moscow. On 26 June, Ovchinin conducted science experiments and plumbing maintenance in the station’s Russian segment, whilst Koch filmed herself in virtual reality with a 360 degree camera as part of the ISS Experience investigation and Hague replaced life support hardware inside Kibo. The RED-EYE CubeSat designed to demonstrate satellite communications and attitude control 2-5 and SpaceFlight Vol 61 No.1 pp 6-8) when he technologies was deployed according to Jonathan “had his life saved by a launch abort system, I can McDowell from “the arm” at 20:05 UTC attest today was a truly significant milestone”. on 27 June. The release was monitored and The ISS received a re-boost by what Russian photographed by Hague. Hague also took his turn space analyst Anatoly Zak tweeted as the “rather with the ISS Experience camera, whilst his Russian rarely used engines of the Zvezda Service Module” commander worked with computer hardware at 00:18 UTC on 3 July for 34 sec, using 76 kg of inside Zvezda and conducted Earth observations propellant. This raised the station’s altitude by and photography using a high-powered camera. 900 m to place the complex in a 436.4 x 411.4 km Koch tended to the plants growing inside orbit in readiness for the next Soyuz and Progress Columbus for the Veg-04A experiment and launches. Ovchinin worked with the ongoing relocated the TangoLab-2 and Russian Matryoshka-R radiation investigation, and Advanced Research Systems-1 (STaARS-1) whilst Koch stored microalgae samples for the facilities in the Expedite the Processing of Veg4A and Photobioreactor experiments, the latter Experiments to Space Station Rack-6 (EXPRESS-6) of which aims to demonstrate a hybrid life support science rack. system. Hague again monitored the release of seven On 28 June, Koch watered the plants in the Veg- more CubeSats in four separate deployments using 04A facility and replaced fuel bottles to support the NanoRacks CubeSat Deployer-16(NRCSD-16) flame and fuel research inside Destiny. Ovchinin from Kibo. NanoRacks tweeted that the CubeSats devoted his time exploring tools and techniques which were designed by an international team future cosmonauts could use when controlling a of engineers and students were released between spacecraft or robot on a planetary surface. 10:15 UTC and 16:25 UTC on 3 July and expressed their “congratulations to all of our customers”. LIFE-SAVER The whole crew celebrated US Independence Koch spent part of the crew’s light-duty weekend Day with Koch and Hague sending a short message 29/30 June conducting further monitoring of the “to wish the American people at home and around Veg-04A experiment and on 1 July she began the world a very happy Fourth of July”. Hague the working week by relocating NASA’s General tweeted that the crew would enjoy a “cookout Laboratory Active Cryogenic ISS Experiment tonight. Beef patties, corn, blueberry cobbler, and Refrigerator2 (GLACIER2) rack. Later in the day lemonade are all on the menu”. He also found time Koch answered questions from news outlets from to congratulate his wife Catie via “on her her home state of North Carolina and told them recent promotion!” to the rank of Colonel in the “it’s great to be talking to someone from home” and US Air Force. acknowledged that she used to “dream of being an On 5 July, Koch sampled the station’s life astronaut” when “growing up in North Carolina”. support system for microbes whilst Hague serviced Koch also joined Hague to filters and the ELF inside Kibo and Ovchinin conducted components in the station’s Water Recovery System further work with the Matryoshka-R bubble (WRS), whilst Ovchinin tested laptop computer hardware. batteries and conducted Progress cargo transfers. The trio had another light-duty weekend 6/7 On 2 July, Koch and Hague conducted further July and on 8 July Koch tweeted a photo of the work with the WRS, Hague took his turn tending “weekend barbershop” aboard the station, having to the Veg-04A facility and Ovchinin targeted given Ovchinin a haircut after he in turn had various areas on Earth for observation and trimmed Hague’s hair. The two US astronauts also photography. Hague tweeted his congratulations answered questions from the New York Police following NASA’s successful Launch Abort Department, in which Hague described “the test in Florida and referred to his own Soyuz beauty” of Earth from space as being the biggest launch abort last year (SpaceFlight Vol 60 No.12 pp surprise of his space flight. SF

SpaceFlight Vol 61 September 2019 11 SPACE

Memories of APOLLO Early in 1965, British engineer Tony Errington was hired by the Lockheed Electronics Company to work on their Engineering Support Contract at the NASA Manned Spacecraft Center (MSC) in Houston. Little did he know what lay ahead.

by Tony Errington NASA

e worked alongside NASA engineers ABOVE RIGHT ATCA & SCS with our own management structure and Senior NASA One of my early assignments was building a copy of management received “job orders” defining what was gather to make a the LM Analog Autopilot (also known as the Attitude required. At the peak of Apollo support final decision on and Translation Control Assembly (ATCA)) which the Electronic Systems Section (ESS) the integrity of the was a backup system used in the event of failure of W Stabilization and employed 10 engineers and 10 technicians and there the primary digital system. This unit was to be used were plenty of interesting tasks. For each complete Control System in a Rendezvous Simulator being built in Building aboard the Apollo spacecraft – that is, Command Service Module (CSM) 16 spacecraft. 5 to allow astronauts to practice the last 15 m of and Lunar Module (LM) – primary guidance navigation rendezvous and docking of the Command Module and control was by a digital computer system designed with the Lunar Module. Grumman, Prime Contractor by the Draper Labs of Massachusetts Institute of for the LM was unable to deliver this hardware to Technology (MIT). NASA but provided schematics of the unit. Each spacecraft had an analogue backup system Analysis of their circuitry showed possible to ensure that the astronauts could return to Earth simplifications by replacing many discrete in the event of a major computer failure. Fortunately, components with “modern” analogue integrated there were none during the Apollo missions. The ESS circuits and this was quickly proved with a was mainly involved with the CSM backup system – breadboard. The unit was delivered in October 1966 the Stabilization and Control System (SCS) built by and met all its performance requirements. Honeywell. In 1966, the Block 2 Engineering Model 2 SCS

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was delivered to our Lab to become part of a system on each connector. Then with some trepidation simulator to validate the design for lunar missions. we powered each unit in turn until the system was My task was to generate the wiring lists for the My task was complete, thankfully without problems. harnesses connecting the five SCS units, two gyro As it turned out most of the equipment called the assemblies, two Flight Director Attitude Indicators to generate 2H1 Test Set was not used for the system simulation (FDAI, similar the an aircraft artificial horizon), as will become apparent later. various hand controllers, power supplies etc. The SCS the wiring units were mounted on a cold plate which was fed by lists for the RISING a chiller. The 27 January 1967 was the darkest day in the Apollo A panel mimicking the commander’s control panel harnesses programme. Grissom, White and Chaffee were killed was equipped with two FDAIs, Service Propulsion by a fire in the first manned Block 1 spacecraft (CSM- System (SPS) servo position indicator and the various connecting 012) which was on the pad during preparations for hand controllers. The task took several months flight at Cape Canaveral. This event caused NASA to involving the whole section. In view of the impact of the SCS units abandon manned flights of the Block 1 spacecraft and damaging any unit, checkout of the harness before move directly to the Block 2 version configured for connecting up the equipment had to be thorough. flights to the Moon, with LM attached. Two of us verified the connectivity and we then The first vehicle was already in test but now it powered up without the equipment connected and was extensively modified with a new fast opening verified the power supply and grounding was correct hatch, protective harness ducting and removal of

SpaceFlight Vol 61 September 2019 13 SPACE HISTORY

flammable materials among other changes. The result of these modifications was a significant increase in Command Module (CM) mass which required requalification of the parachutes and modification of the control systems. Changes to the computer programmes were relatively straightforward since the rope memory for each mission was prepared six months before each flight. For the analogue backup systems, however, this required changes to capacitor and resistor component values.

FUNCTIONAL SCS At the beginning of May 1967 we received a job order to update the 2H1 Test Set with the new component values as specified in the latest SCS schematics. On BAKER DAVID / LEFT: ERRINGTON TONY VIA LEFT: BELOW opening the Electronic Control Assembly (ECA) box we found that the electronic modules were of cordwood configuration using blank boards with welded strip wiring rather than the printed circuit boards expected. In addition, although schematics were provided, there was no board layout data available. It would have been an almost impossible task for us to modify the hardware, and in addition, since it had been decided not to use the gyro packages in the simulator it would have been necessary to adapt the simulation computer dc outputs to 400 cps ac required by the ECA. Since we had the experience from the ATCA task, I was convinced that the only solution was to build a copy of all the units of the Honeywell SCS except the Gyro Display Coupler, an electromechanical device that, with the gyros, performed the same function as the IMU and did not require modification. NASA was sceptical at first, but finally was convinced it was the only practical solution. They demanded to know the completion date and I told them my guess was three ABOVE With two engineers (including me) and two SPS test unit to six months away. showing the technicians we set up a sort of production line where I The most difficult part of the job was estimating plumbing and would design the circuit and pass it to a technician for the number of boards required based on the circuit control assemblies. assembly while the other engineer designed the rack schematics provided, which was essential to allow The pitch actuator layout and drawer panels which were passed to the ordering of rack equipment. Most of the electronic is at bottom NASA workshop for manufacture. Together we tested right and the components were available from NASA stores but fuel delivery line each of the 33 boards as it was completed. some small relays had to be ordered which had a long runs from bottom The most serious schedule problem occurred when lead time. centre to top. the relay manufacturer told us that all of our order had been requisitioned by the US Air Force. Sorting this out was a task for NASA and they negotiated a shared delivery which just fitted in with our build schedule. There were no heart stopping moments and everything came together as hoped. Performance was within the tolerances of flight equipment and while we were at work the NASA workshop had built a plywood Command Module, outfitted with windows, control panel and couches so one could really get the impression of flying the real thing. Later, GE built displays mounted outside the windows which provided a realistic exterior view to the “astronaut” at the controls. The task took about 8,000 man hours and six months to complete.

APOLLO 7 At the end of March 1968 CSM 101 was in checkout in Downey in the facilities of the prime contractor North American Rockwell (NAR) when it was noticed The 2H1 test set upgraded for the new SCS configuration. that switching from one FDAI to the other caused the IMU inner gimbal (pitch) to move by 11.15

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degrees. I was told to attend a telecom with the Cape RIGHT and Downey to understand the problem. This had Testing the functional SCS also been detected on Spacecraft 102 during data equipment and reduction with three similar events detected during associated testing before it was modified after the Spacecraft 12 components. fire. The problem only occurred when the 11.25 bit was already set to logic 1. The ECDU manufacturer was unable to reproduce the problem in the lab but use of a generator could cause a similar effect. The IMU communicated its gimbal positions via a Resolver which provided sine and cosine analogue signals at 800 cycles per second to an analogue- to-digital converter called the Electronic Coupling Data Unit (ECDU). My guess was that the action of breaking the circuit with its inductive source and load by switching between FDAIs could generate a voltage spike which could be conducted through the wiring and interfere with the analogue-to-digital conversion. A few of us got together to discuss how to proceed. In a nearby lab some of the ESS engineers were running tests on a LM primary guidance system consisting of an IMU mounted on a CARCO 3-Axis table, a guidance computer and Display and Keyboard (DSKY) and an ECDU. We decided to commandeer the rig to try to reproduce the problem. No FDAI RIGHT was available but a NASA engineer found a Resolver The five major which we attached via a relay to the pitch output of SCS components including the IMU and set up to drive the relay at 10 Hz. A electronic control counter was attached to measure the number of relay assembly, RCS actuations. Using the Coarse Align Lunar Module and engine on-off Computer programme, the IMU was aligned to set control, electronic the 11.25 bit to logic 1. The relay actuation was started display assembly, gyro display and an error occurred almost immediately – we were coupler and thrust able to reproduce the problem. vector position servo amplifier. GLOVES OFF BELOW This was the start of a three month investigation. We Major stabilization found that there were a number of combinations of and control system unit configurations which could affect the results and components. all axes were affected to a greater or lesser extent. Three fixes were tried – capacitors, back to back zener diodes and feed-through filters. The .005 microfarad capacitors were selected for spacecraft 101 and possibly spacecraft 103 with feed-through filters for subsequent missions. One final activity was testing four flight ECDUs to identify the least sensitive (without the fix). This was monitored by a quality control expert who checked all connectors for bent pins etc. After the test on the final unit was completed at about 9 pm, and I had removed my white gloves, unthinking I patted the unit and muttered “good luck” leaving a handprint in the nickel coating of the box. We nearly had to call an ambulance! After the successful flights of Apollos 7 and 8 our work turned to investigating data busses and fault tolerant computers for the . When we found that Apollo 16 was to be launched on a Sunday, one of my engineers who had a half share in a small plane suggested a trip to the Cape to the launch. Four of us watched from the parking lot of the Titusville Holiday Inn which had an unrestricted view of the Cape (from 19 km away). It was impressive, even from that distance, and interesting to

AB OVE RIGHT & CENTRE RIGHT: VIA TONY ERRINGTON / RIGHT: NASA / RIGHT: ERRINGTON TONY VIA & CENTRE RIGHT: RIGHT AB OVE see the approaching shock wave coming across the

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water. We flew back to Houston that afternoon. NASA

ABORT AVOIDED During that week, the Apollo 16 mission continued to plan and I listened to progress from time to time on the radio. When it was announced that Descent Orbit Insertion (DOI) had been postponed, I phoned an acquaintance in the Engineering Support Team to find out what had happened. He immediately asked “Do you know anything about the SPS servos?” I responded: “actually, yes, I used them as an example in my Master’s Thesis”. He said “I’ll meet you in Building 30 Lobby” (Mission Control). My office in Building 16A was just across from Mission Control and I arrived in a few minutes to be confronted by a security guard who demanded my name which I gave. With his hand on his gun he said I was not on the list. Shortly after, I was escorted to the lift and taken to a large conference room packed with people. Jim Lovell was in charge and told me they were awaiting telemetry from Mojave expected within 30 minutes. This proved to be correct and a large roll of telemetry printout was spread along the table. The pre DOI test that failed was the response to a two degree manual step input to the yaw backup ABOVE control problem seen in orbit and the Draper Lab was servo which displayed a four degree peak to peak The three Apollo asked to verify that Trans Earth Injection would be 16 Moonwalks, oscillation, damping out after three cycles to the including the possible with the faulty servo. Both were confirmed. desired two degrees. I said this was typical of failure in geological surveys On 22 July 1972 I was invited to the Honor Award rate feedback and, since it damped out fairly quickly, using the second Ceremony as a member of the Engineering Support the backup system might be usable in an emergency. I Lunar Roving Team and received a Group Achievement Award was thanked and escorted from the building. A couple Vehicle, were presented by Max Faget, the Chief Engineer. made possible in of hours later the LM landed on the Moon. part by the work of I continued to work for Lockheed until 1974 when Later I found out that NAR had been asked to Tony Errington. I was hired by The European Space Agency to work verify that disabled rate feedback would cause the on Spacelab. But that’s another story. SF

CLOSE CALL NASA To get more time on the surface, the procedure for Apollo 16 had the CSM (Casper) start Powered Descent Initiation (PDI) LEFT on the same revolution that the LM (Orion) circularised its The SPS engine orbit. When the two spacecraft came into view on revolution gimbal actuator. 13 Mission Control learned that Casper had been unable to fire the Service Propulsion System engine. An oscillation was noticed in the yaw axis of the secondary servo system BELOW for the engine gimbal actuator but not in the primary system, The failure path which was unaffected. However, unimpeachable mission of the Service rules required that there should be a backup in case of total Propulsion System failure in either system. The landing could not go ahead. gimbal actuator The oscillations were at a minor +/-1º and a rate of 2.5Hz tracked to a despite the gimbal operating correctly in moving the engine rate transducer in selected angles. In effect, the actuator was vibrating that caused around a very limited deadband at medium frequency. There oscillations. was suspicion that the problem was electrical because with power off the actuator the engine was repositioned without oscillation. The lurking fear of an imminent re-dock and immediate return to Earth using Orion’s descent engine loomed large. Engineering recommendations based on Tony Errington’s advice and simulations at Downey gave a “go” for using the secondary system should it be needed. The landing went ahead. The cause of the oscillation was an open circuit in the rate feedback loop of the secondary servo system. Tests showed that if the secondary system had to be used the oscillations would damp out after ignition due to side loads on the engine bell during thrusting. Extensive examination of other vehicles in production flow did show that there was some strain on the wiring harness where it was clamped when the engine gimballed and the position of the clamp was changed so as to prevent that occurring on a future flight.

16 Vol 61 September 2019 SpaceFlight SPACE HISTORY Webb's giant

They called it “Webb’s NASA Giant” and the “James E. Webb Memorial Rocket”. Congressional staffers and journalists snickered a bit when they talked about it in the late 1960s. They were not discussing the , but a phantom – a Soviet rocket that only Jim Webb publicly claimed existed. by Dwayne A. Day NASA Administrator Jim Webb (above) and the giant Soviet N1 Moon rocket (below).

ebb’s Giant was the NASA administrator’s ultimate insurance policy, the kind of ace in the hole that has not existed since then, and whose absence will continue to haunt VIA DAVID BAKER VIA DAVID W future NASA leaders. Although much of the American side of the race to the Moon has been known for , there were portions of it that have remained shrouded in secrecy until relatively recently. In particular, the role that American intelligence information on the Soviet space programme played in NASA decision-making remains murky. Much of that information was based upon satellite photography, and that photography was not declassified until 1997. More was released in 2002 and 2011, and more remains classified to this day. The intelligence reports derived from these photographs only became available in significant quantities in the last . What they reveal is that Webb’s public pronouncements about the Soviet response to Apollo closely tracked with what the intelligence community – primarily the CIA – was telling him. Webb was regularly briefed on Soviet progress and apparently allowed by the CIA to speak publicly about what he knew. As the intelligence information changed, and improved, Webb’s public statements changed as well. That story can now be told.

GOAL ORIENTATED When John F. Kennedy approved the Apollo programme in May 1961 he did so essentially blind. He did not know if the Soviet Union had its own lunar programme. The Soviets did not talk about landing humans on the Moon, and American intelligence

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assets on the Soviet space programme were extremely limited. Usually the CIA knew about a Soviet space project only after it was orbiting overhead, and that was happening all too frequently. As Sayre Stevens, a Soviet ALL IMAGES: CIS ALL IMAGES: space analyst in the CIA’s Office of Scientific Intelligence put it, “What was clear was that they were beating the shit out of us”. When Jim Webb became NASA administrator in early 1961 he was granted top security clearances. Not only access to intelligence data, including satellite photographs, but access to the technical information about the intelligence satellites themselves. The relationship between the CIA and NASA had become strained under Webb’s predecessor, T. Keith Glennan, who felt that NASA’s reputation had been hurt during the incident involving the shoot-down of Gary Powers’ U-2 spyplane in May 1960 when NASA provided a cover story for the spy flight that quickly fell apart. Webb assured the CIA leadership that he wanted to ABOVE assembled vertically inside, or next to the long building. work with them, and in return they granted him access The Missile But the analysts who looked at the photographs also Assembly Building to all the best information. (MAB) at "Complex could not determine if the rocket facility was for a lunar However, in the years immediately after Kennedy J" photographed programme. One big problem was that the analysts established the lunar goal there was almost no by an American who focused on Complex J could not understand information at all indicating that the Soviets had a lunar reconnaissance why, if the Soviets were racing the Americans to the programme. In summer 1963 a Soviet scientist told a satellite in 1966. Moon, it took them so long to finish the launch facility. Analysts initially British scientist that the Soviets did not have plans for thought that the They had clearly started behind the United States and landing humans on the Moon. This information was rocket would they needed to catch up. But there were long pauses at the time accurate, but it rippled through American be assembled in the construction. “We looked at this and nothing government circles. Why was the United States outside the happened!” Stevens exclaimed, still exasperated over building, but later spending billions to race the Soviets to the Moon if the concluded that it forty years later. “It took them forever… It just didn’t Soviets were not planning on going there themselves? would be rolled seem like it was the way they would be doing it if they Starting in spring 1963 American reconnaissance out horizontally were really gonna chase us down.” satellites photographed a massive construction project to the pad on at Baikonur, what the CIA then called “Tyura-Tam”, a transporter- CONSISTENT MESSAGES erector. the Soviet launch range. The CIA soon designated this Jim Webb was regularly briefed on these developments. “Launch Complex J”, the tenth launch facility detected In May 1964 he went public and said “There is some at Tyura-Tam, and speculated that it was intended for BELOW evidence the Soviets are working on a larger rocket, but Marshall Space launching a massive new space rocket. Flight Center we cannot say yet for sure”. His reluctance accurately For the first six months or so, through the fall of Director Wernher reflected the confusion within the intelligence 1963, the construction was only worker housing. Then von Braun community. the construction workers, many of them Soviet army (left) applauds By October 1964 he was certain, saying that “there is President Lyndon troops, began building concrete batch plants, technical Johnson's remarks increasing evidence” of the new rocket. That increasing facilities, and apartments, and soon what the CIA during an address evidence was indication that the Soviets were building designated the “missile assembly building”, or MAB, to 26,000 workers launch pads equipped with massive flame trenches. In where they would construct the rocket. By 1964 they at the Michoud a speech in Missouri, Webb speculated that the Soviets started digging pits for two launch pads and American Assembly Facility, would flight test the rocket by 1967-1968. 13 December 1967. intelligence analysts began speculating about the size At right is NASA Webb’s public comments were totally consistent of the rocket that would be launched from there, at Administrator with what the CIA and other members of the first erroneously thinking that the rocket might be Webb. intelligence community had concluded. It is probably no coincidence that in October 1964, at around the same time Webb made his public statement, the CIA’s Office of Scientific Intelligence had produced a report titled “New Space Facilities at the Tyuratam Missile Test Center”. Webb would have been briefed on this subject, possibly before the document was finalized. But even then there was some confusion within the CIA as to what kind of pad construction was underway. Webb apparently did not comment publicly throughout 1965 on the Soviet development, although in February he did say that “during the last year, the Russians have shown more progress than we thought they could a year ago”. During this time the United States flew a number of reconnaissance satellites over the area and in October the intelligence community produced a detailed report on the massive complex, complete with for the

18 Vol 61 September 2019 SpaceFlight SPACE HISTORY construction of the facility and estimates of the size of various buildings. But there was still no evidence that the rocket was for a lunar landing programme. CIA analysts concluded that it could also be intended to launch a large space station into orbit. A National Intelligence Estimate on the Soviet space programme produced in spring 1965 concluded that the Soviet manned lunar programme was “not competitive” with Apollo. NASA’s budget was also at its peak. Webb did not have to talk about the Soviet rocket because NASA was clearly ahead in the race to the Moon. In September 1966, stories appeared in the Washington Post and the New York stating that the United States had information that the Soviet Union was “developing a rocket booster bigger and more powerful than its own gargantuan and untried Saturn-V Moon rocket”. The New York Times article estimated that the rocket’s thrust was 7.5 million to 10 million pounds (33,360-44,480 kN) compared to the Saturn V’s 7.5 million pounds (33,360 kN) thrust. But both articles stated that US intelligence analysts had not yet seen the rocket itself. Previous estimates of the still-unseen rocket were that it would have a thrust of around five million pounds (22,240 kN). But by summer 1966 this estimate had been increased, although exactly when and why the CIA increased its estimate remains classified. Again it was probably no coincidence that these press leaks occurred in September, as the National Photographic Interpretation Center was finalizing what by now was an annual report on the launch complex. That report was officially dated October 1966, but drafts of it would have circulated throughout the intelligence community, and to some NASA officials, beforehand. In this case the press leaks apparently created problems for Webb, for they soon appeared in both the Post’s sister edition, the Herald Tribune European edition, and the New York Times European edition while Webb himself was touring Europe. Webb immediately returned home from Bonn, Germany because, as he explained to President Johnson, he “felt it unwise to expose myself to questions by the European TOP But by spring and summer 1967 NASA was under press with respect to this report of a new large Russian The launch considerable pressure because of the fire and Congress tower for one of booster”. Webb clearly did not want to undercut an the "J Vehicle" was looking harder at its budget. Webb felt it necessary upcoming announcement by President Lyndon Johnson launch pads to go public about the Soviet capabilities. about space cooperation with the Germans. photographed In July 1967 Webb told the Senate Subcommittee on Although Webb ducked the issue in early September in March 1968 Appropriations that “in my view, they are preparing to 1966, a month later at the International Astronautical by an American launch a booster with an appropriate large payload that KH-8/GAMBIT-3 Federation conference in Madrid there was widespread reconnaissance will be larger than the Saturn V and that will give them discussion and speculation about the new Soviet rocket. satellite roughly the image and capability for the next several years of But what is most notable is that for over two years, 150 km overhead. being ahead of the US programme. So at the time we although he had plenty of information that the Soviets Degraded for are reducing manpower at the rate of 5,000 per month, declassification, were developing a new rocket, Jim Webb apparently it still reveals they are increasing”. Webb also said that he had told the never mentioned it in public. an incredible committee the same thing the previous year, but that amount of detail information did not make it into the press, possibly SILENT WITNESS such as the steel because it was presented in closed session. In 1967 the political environment changed, and latticework of the In October at a news conference in Houston, Texas, lightning towers. as a result, Webb finally broke his two-and-a-half- Webb was asked about the by a reporter and years public silence on the Soviet rocket effort. In ABOVE again responded that the Soviets “are preparing to fly March 1967 the intelligence community produced an In August 1968 boosters bigger than the Saturn V with appropriate updated National Intelligence Estimate on the Soviet another GAMBIT-3 payloads”. But the CIA was still uncertain if the Soviets space programme. In January NASA had suffered a satellite imaged were preparing to launch a lunar mission or a large devastating setback with the fire, but this new a "J-Vehicle” on space station. the pad. Note estimate stated that despite the American accident, the the three blast In December 1967 for the first time American Soviets were still not likely to beat the Americans to the channels equally reconnaissance satellites photographed the Soviet rocket Moon at their present schedule. spaced around it. on the launch pad. The Soviets designated this rocket

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the N1. Before it had appeared, Sayre Stevens and his his testimony. But if they found any problems with fellow CIA analysts initially called it “the big mother”, it, the result remains unknown. By September 1968 until their superiors told them that such a salty term Webb called the CIA to seek approval to show satellite was not a proper intelligence designation. Now that reconnaissance photographs of Complex J to President the rocket had made its public debut for American Johnson. David Brandwein, the Director of the CIA’s intelligence experts, they started calling it the “Jay bird”, Foreign Missile and Space Analysis Center, told Webb or the “J-vehicle”. that there was no problem with doing this. Johnson, In early February 1968 Webb spoke about the rocket Brandwein knew, had already been briefed on this before the House Science and Astronautics Committee information. BELOW where he said that the Soviets “soon will be in a position A CIA-built model Also in September 1968, made to launch a booster with greater thrust than the Saturn of the two pads a top secret phone call to Brandwein via a secure V”. In response to questions supplied to him ahead of at the "Complex phone at the Marshall Space Flight Center, and he told time, Webb stated that “in the coming year, still larger J" facility. This Brandwein that he was about to travel to New York City model, based upon Soviet boosters will be coming into use. During 1968, or reconnaissance to appear on the CBS radio network and he expected to shortly thereafter, they will have available a booster with satellite photos, be asked some questions about the recent Soviet Zond over (44,480 kN)”. Dr. Wernher von Braun was there was classified top 5 flight. as well and also answered some questions about the secret and shown Only a few days earlier had been launched vehicle. He said “as Mr. Webb testified, there is reason to senior American from Baikonur. It became the first spacecraft to fly political leaders. to believe that the Russians are indeed working on such It includes two around the Moon and successfully land on Earth, a vehicle”. scale N1 rockets splashing down in the Indian Ocean where it was That reason was the photographs of the rocket with different recovered by Soviet vessels. This was obviously an sitting on its launch pad, taken by satellites that the US paint schemes, important milestone in the effort to send humans to reflecting the government would not acknowledge existed. But von different vehicles the Moon, and considering that NASA had announced Braun also added “today they are at most a year behind observed by in mid-August that it was planning on sending the us”, a statement that was entirely consistent with the reconnaissance manned mission to the Moon in a few months, latest intelligence information. satellites. It also naturally the media would ask von Braun who was Webb’s comments may have made someone in the includes a scale ahead in the Moon race. Saturn V and intelligence community uneasy, because late in the the Washington Brandwein briefed von Braun on the Zond 5 mission month two people from the CIA, including the agency’s Monument for and von Braun asked him what he could publicly assistant legislative counsel, went to NASA to review comparison. say about the flight. Brandwein said that he could

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certainly say the Soviet mission was an important ABOVE LEFT Today newspaper, some of them also called it “the milestone, but cautioned against claiming that the As seen from a James E. Webb Memorial Rocket”. The reporters never GAMBIT-3, an spacecraft could have supported a manned lunar improved—but saw it, and they wondered if it was real. Although the landing or even an orbiting mission, because it lacked still degraded for whispering campaign continued at Washington cocktail the payload capability. He then suggested that von declassification— parties, the few people in the know, the ones who really Braun could “make a personal judgment” that Zond view of what is mattered, understood that Webb’s Giant was not a 5 would probably be followed by another unmanned now known as the product of the administrator’s over-active imagination. N1 launcher. circumlunar flight and that, if it was successful, that The Soviet N1 was in fact Webb’s ultimate insurance could be followed by a manned flight around the ABOVE RIGHT policy against cancelling Apollo, and a useful weapon Moon either in late 1968 or early 1969. In fact, Zond Viewed from to fight cuts in NASA’s budget. As long as the Soviets an American 6 launched unmanned in mid-November 1968, but spy continued to roll that massive rocket out onto the pad suffered several problems, and no manned Zond satellite, the and American satellites photographed it, the threat was mission followed. destruction real. Nobody was going to cancel the Moon programme, The intelligence director also explained that von caused by the or even slow it down significantly. That kind of powerful Braun could say that it was obvious that Zond 5 was failure of the shield against programme cancellation has never existed second N1 on 3 intended as a precursor manned mission, because its July 1969 is clearly for any other NASA administrator. trajectory was shaped to minimize g-loads during visible after the Unfortunately, Webb’s Giant suffered poorly in the reentry. If all the Soviets had wanted to do was shoot giant rocket fell annals of history. The N1 blew up four times between a spacecraft around the Moon, they could have used a back on to its pad. early 1969 and November 1972. One of the legacies of different trajectory that was unsuited to humans, but this failure was that it removed pressure from American would have resulted in an easier recovery. presidents and the Congress to maintain higher levels of Von Braun then asked another, touchier question: The Soviet N1 NASA spending. By the late 1960s the Soviets were not could he mention anything about the large Soviet rivalling the United States in space to the same extent rocket that was clearly intended to send humans all was in fact they had at the beginning of the decade, so it was safe the way to the Moon’s surface? Unlike the publicly to cut NASA’s budget and to shut down the Saturn V known Zond 5 flight, the only information that Webb’s production line. the CIA had about the J vehicle came from satellite Some of these failures were reported in the press. reconnaissance, not any actual flights like the Zond ultimate But no photographs were ever released of the Soviet missions, which had been publicly announced by the rocket until two decades later, and that created another Soviets. “I told him that this information was still insurance historical legacy as well. Because Webb’s Giant never highly classified”, Brandwein wrote in a secret memo policy against reached orbit, reporters and others who doubted its after their discussion. However, because Webb had existence had no independent confirmation that it already spoken about the large rocket several times cancelling was real. They soon concluded that it had only been while testifying before Congress, and Webb’s testimony a figment of James Webb’s imagination, and that the had been cleared by by the CIA, Brandwein told von Apollo United States had never been involved in a race to the Braun that it would be fine if he simply quoted Webb’s Moon. Even noted newscaster Walter Cronkite later statements. stated that there had never been a race to the Moon. By this time members of the press had nicknamed Today we know the truth. Webb knew, he tried to tell the unseen rocket “Webb’s Giant”. According to Florida’s us, and many people never believed him. SF

SpaceFlight Vol 61 September 2019 21 LAUNCH VEHICLES PHOTOGRAPHS BY THE AUTHOR THE BY PHOTOGRAPHS A long and winding road On 18 May 1969 Apollo 10 lifted off from Launch Complex 39B at the on a dress rehearsal for the lunar landing. Fifty years later I find myself standing on the exact spot where it began its journey. by John Sealander

am looking to the south toward the companion ABOVE RIGHT launch pad 39A where Apollo 11 lifted off just Launch Complex 39B from where Apollo 10 departed nine weeks later. The reason I’m here is now is Earth in May 1969 on a that SpaceX is using the historic 39A location dress rehearsal for the to launch a new generation of rockets that can Moon landing, now being I modified for the Space be used again and again. , the Falcon Heavy rocket I see being prepared on the pad will Launch System. send 24 satellites into orbit. Several have been designed to pave the way for a return to the Moon and an eventual journey to Mars. I was still in architecture school when I watched the first Moon landing on a bulky black and white Magnavox television in the university’s student union. I never dreamed that I would be standing on the exact spot where this incredible journey began fifty years later. A lot has changed in fifty years. I did structural calculations for my architecture RIGHT Designated STP-2, the classes using a slide rule. I didn’t even own a ‘phone Falcon Heavy stands ready at the time. If I wanted to call someone, I used a for the third flight of this pay ‘phone down the hall at my dorm. Don’t feel type from LC-39A.

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sorry for me though. These were the best of times. Woodstock took place during the same summer that Neil Armstrong planted that first human boot print on the Moon. There was this amazing guitar player named Jimi Hendrix. I remember telling friends about a new band called Pink Floyd after listening to an album called The Piper at the Gates of . There was a lot of unrest in 1969, but I remember this period as an incredibly optimistic time. Anything seemed possible. I lost a lot of this optimism over the years, but visiting the Kennedy Space Center on the 50th Anniversary of the Moon landing made me realize that a lot of very bright people haven’t given up yet.

FROM THERE TO HERE The reason I’m standing on Pad 39B thinking about all this is that NASA invited me here to attend the Falcon Heavy STP-2 Mission. They have a special programme for social media influencers that allow you to apply for essentially the same press credentials they give to major media outlets like CNN, NBC, and CBS. I wouldn’t exactly call myself a social media influencer, but by a stroke of good luck my application to attend the STP-2 launch was accepted and here I am. NASA began this outreach programme in an attempt to reach a new and different audience. I guess they succeeded. I’m a huge fan of the space programme but I mostly blog about dogs. I felt honoured to be part of a group that included an actress who appeared in movies, a young guy who invented the Fidget Spinner, and several real rocket scientists. I hope I am able to convey to others my excitement about what I was able to see during my visit. The magnitude of what was accomplished fifty years ago at Launch Complex 39 is only exceeded by what is happening right now. We are going back to the Moon and then to Mars. The SpaceX Falcon Heavy that will be launching while I am here carries several technological test beds that will be essential to explore deep space. One of these satellites is a deep space atomic that

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will be the first step towards a space based GPS network that will allow space travellers to navigate autonomously without needing to contact Earth. This is also a satellite designed to test a new type of rocket fuel that is safe to handle and doesn’t have a tendency to explode violently like hydrazine. Bill Nye the Science Guy even managed to convince

NASA to launch his small working model of a solar AUTHOR THE BY PHOTOGRAPH light sail which could someday use the Sun’s light to change the path of spacecraft. I got to talk with some of the mission specialists who designed the payloads that will launch aboard the Falcon Heavy rocket. They were incredibly bright, extremely motivated, and left me filled with hope for the future. I had begun to think that solving impossible problems was a lost art. Somehow we managed to get to the Moon using computers that were less powerful than the one in my Apple Watch. We didn’t even know if humans could survive in space, but it didn’t stop us from trying. The calculations for John Glenn’s first orbits around the Earth were all done by hand. When ABOVE Navy used this technique to allow submarines I first saw the Saturn V rocket on display at the The NASA bus waiting carrying nuclear missiles to pinpoint their location to take the press and in Houston, I couldn’t help photographers to watch the with the help of six satellites orbiting the poles. This thinking that it was going to be impossible to get launch of Falcon Heavy. space based satellite navigation system continued to this enormous thing off the ground. We did it grow and evolve, eventually becoming something though. that almost everyone on the planet depends on. Today’s scientists are trying to solve new This is how the space programme affects us all. problems. Can we navigate in space like we do It’s not just Tang and freeze-dried meals. What with our cars? Is there an alternative to dangerous, started at launch pads 39A and 39B didn’t stay highly toxic rocket fuels? Can rockets be used over there. Kennedy Space Center is not Las Vegas. The and over again? What about using light from the innovations that started here travelled around the Sun to power future spacecraft? All these things world and wound up in your cars, your ‘phones, will be explored during the STP-2 mission. affecting almost every aspect of your daily life. I was interested in space fifty years ago, but We were all I think about this as we travel on a NASA bus I was never a rocket scientist. When I was very to Merritt Island to view the launch. The bomb- young I wanted to be an astronomer until I realized prepared for sniffing dog had already inspected our cameras that there was a lot of math involved. Later in life and gear and we had cleared security. We were I actually did become an architect, but there was something good to go. The Merritt Island National Wildlife a fair amount of math involved in that as well. dramatic, but the Refuge is a beautiful place on a clear night. When Eventually I landed at a large ad agency where we arrived at our destination on the shores of the you basically just live by your wits. Remember launch exceeded Banana River around 1.00 am, a copper coloured that show called Mad Men? This was my world for Moon was just starting to rise on the eastern many years. everyone's horizon. Behind us, Jupiter was shining brightly The fifty-year journey from fledgling advertising just above the constellation of Scorpio. The sky writer to social media is a long story but expectations was dark enough that I could actually see the it’s why I’m thinking about the Apollo programme Milky Way for the first time in years. Directly today. What a long and winding road it’s been. ahead, something else was shining brightly on the So much has changed and a lot of what we take horizon. It was the Falcon Heavy rocket bathed in for granted today wouldn’t have been possible searchlights at launch pad 39A. without the hundreds of thousands of people who worked on the Apollo programme. As a result of FROM HERE TO THERE the space programme I traded my slide rule for a The launch of STP-2 was supposed to have little Texas Instruments calculator. Later I traded taken place at 11:30 pm on Monday evening but my IBM Selectric typewriter for a computer. got delayed for three hours because of a minor When I travelled to the Kennedy Space Center technical problem on the pad. There was a lot of for the Falcon Heavy launch, I made all my travel nervousness within our little group of social media arrangements on my ‘phone. Airline, hotel and influencers as we began to hear rumours of the rental car reservations were all made in a matter of OPPOSITE PAGE delay. When the countdown clock stopped and minutes with just a few clicks. After a day’s delay due to went dark, we were afraid that the launch might be I don’t think I could have found my way around technical problems, STP-2 cancelled. When the rumours began circulating, we Titusville and the space centre without GPS. GPS lifts off for a perfect launch were scattered between Cocoa Beach and Titusville had its origins in the Sputnik when scientists (top). Safe retrieval of the eating dinner before returning to meet the bus two side boosters was discovered that they were able to track the little achieved yet again – six out that would take us to our viewing location. Lots of satellite using shifts in its radio signal created by of six booster recoveries for messages went back and forth before a new plan the Doppler effect. During the mid-sixties the US Falcon Heavy (below). was announced. None of us were rocket scientists,

24 Vol 61 September 2019 SpaceFlight LAUNCH VEHICLES

heads. Less than a later we saw the second stage engine start. The side boosters continued to fall rapidly as the second stage slowly faded from sight. About seven minutes after liftoff, the two side boosters simultaneously began their entry burn and started to slow down rapidly as they approached the landing zone. We saw puffs of smoke from the rockets exhausts rising from the landing zone indicating a successful touchdown and less than a second later heard two incredibly loud sonic booms. Sound travels slowly and the sonic booms arrived at our location after the boosters had actually landed. Although the centre core failed to land on a drone ship positioned over 1,600 km away in the Atlantic Ocean, the mission was a huge success. The two side boosters, which had already been used before on a previous Falcon Heavy mission, proved their worth again. All of the 24 satellites were deployed successfully. The brilliant people we talked to during the two days who had spent years and years developing these payloads must have been very happy this morning. Our little group of social media was happy too. For many of us this was a dream come true. We had been up for over 24 hours, but I'm sure that some of us were already making plans in our mind to do this again. It is inspiring to see people succeed at doing something so complicated. As I returned to my hotel to pack my bags and return to Dallas, I felt like I had made some new friends and witnessed something important. I'm not always a positive person, but I felt good as I was flying home to Dallas on a Southwest Airlines flight full of children returning from Disneyworld. If humans can do something this complicated just by working together, we can do anything. We may not make it to Mars in my lifetime, but it will be close. I hope I live long enough to see the day. Maybe the journey will begin at Launch Complex 39 like so many other historic voyages into space. I have a feeling that some of the younger people I met during my stay at Kennedy Space Center might be making that trip. SF

but we were pretty good at keeping in touch with each other. The good news was that launch would SPACEX still take place and had been rescheduled for 2:30 am Tuesday morning, 24 June. We were all prepared for something dramatic, but the launch exceeded everyone's expectations. When the countdown clock reached zero, there was an intense flash of light on the horizon. An enormous trail of fire rose quickly into the sky, followed about ten later by the thundering sound of 27 Merlin engines. Literally in a matter of seconds, darkness was turned into day. Night launches are spectacular because you can see the rocket much longer. As the Falcon Heavy climbed in a graceful arc toward orbit, we could clearly follow it all the way through stage separation and second stage ignition. The return of the two side boosters to SpaceX Landing Zones 1 and 2 was amazing. The two side boosters began their boost-back burn almost directly over our

SpaceFlight Vol 61 September 2019 25 CORRESPONDENCE LETTERS TO THE EDITOR

Imagination to Reality

Sir: I was intrigued to see the design of the proposed Toyota six wheeled Lunar Rover illustrated in the May 2019 issue of SpaceFlight GOODWIN PETER magazine (Vol 61 No 5 p 6) and how it echoed my own illustration of a similar rover that graced the cover of Spaceflight back in December 1993. Is reality finally beginning to catch up with imagination, only time will tell? The illustration in question was my attempt in the early 1990s to depict what a future crewed lunar rover may look like once we returned to explore and live on the Moon, the rover being able to sustain personnel for several weeks at a time as the rover ranged far from a permanent Lunar base. In the late 20th this was still very much a dream and seemed unlikely to be achieved even in my life time as human lunar exploration had faltered and finally ended with . The design of my rover was of course pure fantasy and no doubt an amalgamation of ideas and designs absorbed over my many years of interest in, and illustrating space related subjects, this interest also resulted in me becoming a member of the British Interplanetary Society in the mid-1970s, my membership of the Society spurring me on to write and illustrate several articles which subsequently were published by the Society in SpaceFlight magazine in later years. In the last few years there has been a renewed push to return a human presence to the Moon; fifty years have passed since Neil Armstrong took that first small step for all mankind, so maybe it is time to take that next giant leap. We are living in exciting times and I for one hope that the dream of soon returning to the Moon to stay is more than just imagination.

Peter G Goodwin FBIS (via email) ABOVE and the BIS makes an invaluable contribution to Peter Goodwin‘s 1993 rendition of a future lunar keeping us abreast of developments, and fostering a Lost in translation roving vehicle. sense of history where the Space Age is concerned. Keep up the good work! Sir: I have recently re-joined BIS after a lengthy absence and find myself eagerly awaiting the arrival Peter Cooke (via email) of SpaceFlight each month. My enjoyment of a recent issue has included I find myself reading Nick Spall's article on the legacy of Apollo For the record (SpaceFlight Vol 61 No 4 p 28), but the pedant eagerly awaiting in me can't resist pointing out that "perestroika" Sir: In the July 2010 issue of SpaceFlight (Vol doesn't mean either "listen" as he translated it, or the arrival of 52, No 7 p 262) I had an article published titled indeed anything of the sort. "Pere-" has the sense “Anniversary of Saturn rocket’s first test firing”. of "around" or, more relevantly here, "again", and SpaceFlight The article highlighted the 50th anniversary of the "stroika" means construction. Thus, the word is first Saturn rocket test which had taken place on usually translated as "restructuring", which is a fair each month 28 March 1960. At the time I was unable to locate description of Gorbachev's actually rather modest a good photo of the actual first firing. However I efforts to introduce a degree of market-style reform did include a cutting from the Redstone Rocket into the creaking Soviet command economy. newsletter which had a poor quality image of These are exciting times for us space buffs the first firing. Now, nine years later the original

26 Vol 61 September 2019 SpaceFlight SLUG MIKE JETZER

photo has emerged, courtesy of Mike Jetzer at ABOVE – the launch of “Prospero”, as discussed in Reader Alan Lawrie provides heroicrelics.org, and is reproduced here. the original photo with better SpaceFlight (Vol 61 Vol 4 p 12), I am reminded detail than the one he was of “The 2024 Report”, a study of the near future, Alan Lawrie (via email) able to use in his original July written in 1975, by the former Economist Editor, 2010 Spaceflight article. Norman MacRae. In one section, Mr MacRae suggests that the passing of legislation requiring Out of sight? men with red flags to walk in front of motor vehicles effectively marked the end of British Sir: I am thinking about the results of the Hayabusa industrial supremacy. II mission to the asteroids. Why it is not receiving Had he the time, I suspect that he might more attention as a destination for other space also have had something to say regarding the agencies. Surely, the exploration of the solar system significance of this country being the only one to embraces the need for better understanding of establish a successful launch capability and then these ancient relics from the formation of the abandon it. I can also remember a few comments, planets? It would help us gain further information As various from other sources, concerning the lack of “space about a class of material which may pose a threat to scientists” on the scientific committees advising life on Earth, should any NEO collide with us. commentators the government on future policy. I thought NASA was right to go for asteroid However, as various commentators have retrieval using Orion and other equipment but we have pointed out, pointed out, with regard to the Industrial seem to have lost our way again, now deciding to with regard to the Revolution, there are certain advantages to not rush back to the Moon. I thought Mars was the being the leader in a particular field – other next goal but now I am not so sure that a lunar Industrial countries could avoid our mistakes, hire our landing, whenever it happens, is really the right experts, copy our techniques and machinery, and way to go as we look toward Mars as the next step Revolution, there so on. forward. This suggests that coming back from behind Perhaps somebody could tell me why it is so are certain seems quite a reasonable strategy assuming, as you important to go back and commit precious say, that we receive sufficient support from the resources on what I believe to be a diversion. advantages to not government, and, indeed, from the general public. Perhaps we need to circulate some more copies of Peter McKnight (via email) being the leader in The 2024 Report: “Those who learn nothing from a particular field history...” On a related topic, with regard to your article Flag days on the “Impact of Apollo”, I am reminded of the award-winning writer, Robert A Heinlein's Sir: With regard to Black Arrow and its address to the (American) Naval Academy in 1973 cancellation, following – or immediately before (downloadable in full, under “Robert A Heinlein –

SpaceFlight Vol 61 September 2019 27 CORRESPONDENCE

Naval Academy”): “Behaving on a still higher moral level were the astronauts who went to the Moon, for their actions tend toward the survival of the entire race of mankind. The door they opened leads to hope that homo-sapiens will survive indefinitely long, even longer than this solid planet on which we stand tonight. As a direct result of what they did, it is now possible that the human race will NEVER die. “Many short-sighted fools think that going to the Moon was just a stunt. But those astronauts BAKER DAVID RIGHT: / BELOW US NAVY LEFT: knew the meaning of what they were doing, as is shown by Neil Armstrong's first words in stepping down onto the soil of Luna: 'One small step for a man, one giant leap for mankind.' Let us note proudly that eleven of the Astronaut Corps are graduates of this our school. And let me add that James Forrestal was the FIRST high-ranking Federal official to come out flatly for space travel.”

Peter Davey (via email)

Worthy accolade

Sir: I was very pleased indeed to read in the June 2019 SpaceFlight (Vol 61, No 6, p 44) magazine that David Hardy has been awarded an Honorary Fellowship of the British Interplanetary Society. My introduction to space art came when I was 12 ABOVE least, as being entirely the province of “mind”, to Here seen with President years old and I saw one of David’s paintings on a Harry S. Truman, James be analysed and studied by probes and telescopes, rock album that has become a classic of the 1970s. A Forrestal, the first US but not to be “interfered with” by humanity (or The painting immediately struck a chord with Secretary of Defense, was a any other form of intelligent life, presumably) staunch advocate of me; I was transported to a distant planet where a space travel. through settlement, mining, or exploration (there calm meandering river led to the misty reaches of is a suggestion of this in the National Geographic a mysterious futuristic city set before magnificent series Mars). purple hued mountains beneath a brilliant starry Before Christmas last year, there was some sky. I found in this image a sense of mystique and further speculation in the press, concerning of splendid wonder; it conveyed to me a sense of the possibility of a substantial increase in solar magic which still inspires me to this day. electromagnetic radiation causing substantial A few years back when I was doing some damage to civilisation; overloading circuitry, research into the genre, David was very generous erasing data-banks, etc. with his time in responding to me with a This helps to illustrate that the dividing line delightfully detailed letter regarding the painting. between the Earth and the rest of the Universe Congratulations David on a well-deserved honour. is not as clear-cut as some people seem to think. As the science- Eventually, the Earth will die, caught in a wave Clive Tester (via email) of heat and radiation, as the Sun expands. In fiction writer, Larry the meantime, of course, there are any number (All of us at the BIS echo your sentiment Clive. of lesser catastrophes capable of destroying I first came across David in the mid-1970s and Niven, put it: civilisation, and possibly the human race. shortly thereafter was honoured to have his As the science-fiction writer, Larry Niven, put illustrations in one of my first books. We are indeed “Sometimes the it: “Sometimes the only defence against something fortunate to have such a legendary figure in our only defence is to be somewhere else when it happens.” “family”. – Ed) This was one of the themes of the Science of against something Discworld series; Earth's history has been marked by a series of catastrophes, we are currently Humans or robots? is to be somewhere between catastrophes, but must plan for the next one. According to Terry Pratchett: “One of the Sir: I write with reference to the “Opinion” else when it great dreams of humanity has been to visit other section, in SpaceFlight Vol 61, No 2, p 10 and worlds. It’s starting to look as though this might the question of manned exploration as against happens” be a very good idea – not just for fun and profit, “electronic” exploration. but for survival.” is therefore There are apparently a number of scientists – not just a matter of curiosity, but of hard, practical Carl Sagan was accused of being one – who see the survival. Universe, that part of it beyond our atmosphere, at The various private tourism initiatives – Musk,

28 Vol 61 September 2019 SpaceFlight CORRESPONDENCE

Branson, etc. – are helping to establish the idea of (updated to include NASA’s new Space Shuttle and a human presence in space, but less directly, and a space station) he turned to BIS member Eric without the same co-ordination and expertise. When movie Burgess for technical advice. Obviously, a short-term preference for unmanned Does anyone have any further information over manned exploration may not amount producer Albert on this fascinating James Bond connection – can to much, but they can lead to a longer-term we finally identify Ian Fleming’s unofficial rocket strategy. Unmanned probes, and the various other “Cubby” Broccoli expert? manifestations of the electronic revolution can be of great help to humanity, but it cannot replace it. decided to film the Dominic Phelan (via email) If the Earth were to be destroyed tomorrow, novel in the late evidence of our existence would still be around, (I am sure some BIS members must have on the Moon, Mars, and further out. We are the 1970s, he turned to added input to this but thanks Dominic for the first species of which this could be said. However, fascinating link. I can add further to this myself. In as a commentator once pointed out, sometimes BIS member Eric early 1979 I was finishing up a small book on the the best symbol for something is the thing itself. Shuttle and had master-modeller Mat Irvine do an The best symbol for humanity is surely the human Burgess for end section on adapting the Airfix Shuttle kit. My race itself. publisher wanted to pair the book to the upcoming Besides, leaving evidence of existence behind technical advice Bond film and we had an interesting meeting with for others to “unearth” is an idea that only really “Cubby” Broccoli in London with some fascinating works if there is someone else out there to do conversation. In the end he wanted us to change so, something for which there is currently no the book’s Shuttle to “his” version, which would evidence. If asked, I would guess, as I suspect that have meant the book losing all its connection with most BIS members would, that there is other life, the NASA Shuttle. It worked out fine though; other intelligence out there, but I feel that this is BELOW North American Rockwell, prime contractor on The Editor’s book on the far too important a matter to be based on a guess. Shuttle that nearly became a the Orbiter, promptly took 40,000 copies for PR Until proved otherwise, we should assume that it Bond movie poster! distribution! – Ed) all depends on us. I hope that most BIS members would also support me on that, as well.

Peter Davey (via email)

Shuttle shuffle

Sir: In 1954 author Ian Fleming contacted the British Interplanetary Society for help designing a rocket he put at the heart of his latest James Bond novel Moonraker. The plot revolved around the then topical subject of German rocket scientists working in England, with the “Bondian” twist that their leader, Hugo Drax, was a Nazi intent on avenging their defeat by turning the weapon on London. Although wartime intelligence officer Fleming was familiar with the V-2, he wanted to learn more about the latest in rocket technology. According to biographer Andrew Lycett (Ian Fleming 1995, pg.257), Fleming was initially looking for Arthur C. Clarke but he was away in the United States. Another BIS member was nominated for the job. When the book was published in 1955 (complete with a stylish “rocket flame” cover), the Moonraker was described as a single stage liquid propellant missile resembling a “V-2 with big fins”. The fluorine/hydrogen fuel is fed into the combustion chamber by a turbine pump run on stream generated by mixing hydrogen peroxide and potassium permanganate. Readers were told its range was 6,400 km, with a top speed of 24,140 km/hr. Perhaps the Society’s influence is best illustrated by the comment that this high speed was desirable as “a step towards escape from the E a r t h”. When movie producer Albert “Cubby” Broccoli decided to film the novel in the late 1970s

SpaceFlight Vol 61 September 2019 29 OBITUARY

REMEMBERING John Patrick Healey (1922-2019)

The distinguished American

aerospace engineer who NASA IMAGES: ALL OTHER / BAKER VIA DAVID LEFT: took over management of the troubled Apollo CSM project and steered it to success. by Fabrizio Bernardini FBIS

he first time I met John Healey, thanks to my friends Joe and Julie, I was immediately confronted with a question: “What is the most important thing about Apollo 8?” Despite still T being in awe after just having been introduced to him I was trying to decide between several answers: the first flight outside the bounds of Earth’s gravity, or the full test of the autonomous guidance and navigation ABOVE White and Chaffee and endangered the existence of the system, or even the management gamble that quickly John Healey, a whole programme. benchmark for reshuffled Apollo flights for this daring adventure. quality control John’s perspective was formed based on his Before I could answer John rather bluntly pointed a and sound experience as an aircraft quality inspector at the Glenn finger at me and exclaimed: “The Bible!”, referring of aerospace project L. Martin Company in Baltimore where the culture course to the reading from while in lunar orbit. management. was fully committed to “crew safety first”. This primary I immediately understood that after nearly 50 years, goal and way of thinking was applied relentlessly at all John Patrick Healey – of unmistakable Irish descent levels of the manufacturing process and left no room for – was still as opinionated as he was when he took compromise. control of the Apollo Command and Service Module On my first meeting with him he told me about (CSM) production line back in 1967 at the behest of Bill “We sent 33 how he handled his first visit to the CSM production Bergen, President of North American Rockwell’s Space line. He was appalled at how easily anyone could Division and others. At that time he joined a group of men into “visit” the spacecraft while it was being assembled. pioneers whose careers in aerospace had begun years He immediately got rid of the VIP’s welcoming area before at the Glenn L. Martin Company in Baltimore, space…and and sign in book. From that point forward only those Maryland, and then moved with that company when they all came who were actually assigned to work on building they established their new headquarters as Martin the spacecraft would be allowed in. Nobody – no Marietta in Colorado. From there he matriculated to back alive!” matter their rank – would be allowed to approach the North American in California in the wake of the Apollo spacecraft. All exceptions would have to be specifically 1 fire. His opinions about the event and the aftermath authorised by him. remained vivid until our last meeting, a few months This, and other drastic measures (like the precise before his passing. He had always been critical about accounting of every item going into and out of the those who – in his opinion – killed the crew of Grissom, spacecraft) became the new normal by which everyone operated, and in so doing John became a key player in the aftermath of Apollo 1. His role in transforming the environment within which their spacecraft came together was recognized by the flight crews assigned to the first Apollo missions. In later years, when asked what the most significant thing he did for the Apollo programme was, John would state: “We sent 33 men LEFT into space…and they all came back alive!” The bonds The formed between John and many of the astronauts CSM. It was remained close throughout their lifetimes. Healey who So many of the key people involved with the Apollo got production of the troubled missions became more than a team. They were like spacecraft back family. One story that was related to me by Walt on track. Cunningham was how Sam Goldstein, another member

30 Vol 61 September 2019 SpaceFlight OBITUARY of Rockwell’s and John’s management team, had given him and several astronauts keys to his house in Downey, California. This way, when they flew in late, they could REMEMBERING just let themselves in and stay in the guest bedroom, thus avoiding the formalities and the pressure from being in the public eye. John’s daughter, Helen, was Jerrie Cobb living with the Goldsteins at that time while attending college. She stated that there were many mornings when (1931-2019) she came to the kitchen for her morning coffee and was surprised to find yet another astronaut having breakfast! During the production of the Command Module at Rockwell, John required that the crew for that The first American woman particular mission spend time on the floor with those doing the assembly. John reiterated that these people to train as an astronaut, she were more than highly skilled workers. They were the passed her tests with flying people who were building the spacecraft that was going to keep them alive. Therefore, it was important that colours but was denied the each astronaut get to know every person involved in the assembly on a first name basis, because their work chance to fly into space. guaranteed the success of that spacecraft. John was granted carte blanche by Bill Bergen to do by David Baker whatever it took to achieve success. John’s unorthodox management style and attention to detail brought the merica’s first woman to pass astronaut tests first Block II CSM to the Cape in near perfect condition but denied status as a candidate for selection and with fewer issues than any other spacecraft to has died at the age of 88 after a brief illness. In date. His caring relationship with the Apollo 7 crew 1961 she became the first woman to complete afforded him an opportunity not granted to many: A the rigours of physiological and psychological participating in their pre-launch breakfast. He told me evaluation for astronaut without achieving her goal of that, as honoured as he was, he could not remember reaching space, an ambition denied by social prejudice what he said or what he ate that morning! All he could of the age and a government agency unwilling to flout remember was that he felt so agitated that he ended up the wishes of her male contemporaries. There was a forgetting his headset that he had placed on the roof of majority opinion among male astronauts that women his car! had no place in a spacecraft, a view that changed with After managing the CSM production line, and then the Shuttle era. as Vice President of the Saturn V’s S-II second stage Born on 5 March 1931 into a military family, Jerrie for most Apollo missions, John went back into aviation learned to fly before her teens and was barnstorming where he had critical roles in the B-1A programme around the Great Plains at the age of 16. Passionate BELOW and in taking the A-10 into production. In recent years about flying and aviation in general, she began teaching Jerrie Cobb on the (at the age of 87!) he was persuaded to come out of men to fly at 19 and two years later was employed MASTIF astronaut retirement to consult for Lockheed Martin, together delivering military combat aircraft to air forces around trainer in 1960. She outperformed with astronaut Dick Gordon, on the management and the world. With a licence for multi-engine aircraft, some of the safety aspect of the Orion programme. Lockheed Cobb began to receive international acclaim for her selected male Martin had never built a manned space capsule before. capabilities, being named Pilot of the Year by the astronauts. What better person to oversee this new endeavour than John Healey! He was involved for almost two years before the cancellation of the Constellation programme by the Obama administration. After that he returned to his family life in Littleton, Colorado, where he remained active in the community and in his church and enjoyed playing golf and occasionally showing off his 1971 Lincoln Continental Mark IV! Born on 7 March 1922, at the age of 97 he left this world peacefully on 15 March 2019 surrounded by family and friends. He didn’t miss the 50th anniversary of Apollo because “his” 50th happened in October 2018 with the anniversary of Apollo 7, the first flight of the crewed Block II CSM, an event he was able to enjoy and know that he was a part of. His role, as sketched in Beirne Lay Jr’s excellent book Earthbound Astronauts, and in many astronauts’ biographies, has been without any doubt that of yet another unsung hero that contributed to the success of Apollo. SF The author wishes to thank Joe and Julie Witte for letting him be a part in their family and therefore get well acquainted with John Healey. Thanks also to Helen, for the help provided in preparation of this article.

SpaceFlight Vol 61 September 2019 31 OBITUARY

Salon Aeronautique International in Paris, Life in this field is part of our social order”. magazine including her in the top 100 most important Formal requirements for astronaut application young people in the country. Thus began a required candidates to have had extensive experience as Fascinated with the potential afforded by the NASA a military test pilot and to have an engineering degree Mercury space flight programme, Cobb was recruited recognition and the rules were not changed. The Lovelace women by Dr. W. Randolph Lovelace II to participate in the that men and campaigned for a change to these regulations and a same tests for astronaut as those imposed by NASA White House staffer penned a letter, which was never on male applicants and she became the first woman to women are sent by Vice President Lyndon B. Johnson who scrawled do so. She helped the Lovelace Clinic select a further across the draft: “Let’s stop this now!” 25 women who exhibited fascinating capabilities very different Nevertheless, there were forward-thinking of physical and psychological robustness unique to individuals who tried to inject change. NASA women. Thus began a recognition that men and women in the way Administrator James Webb had hired Cobb as a are very different in the way their bodies work and the consultant in May 1961 at the time President Kennedy aptitudes they display for space flight, evidence that is their bodies was deciding to fly men to the Moon and some believed now enshrined within NASA’s human and life it might just be possible to induct women to lunar research programmes. work landing flights. But it was not to be. Only a year later But she was not to realise her dream of flying in Valentina Tereshkova became the first woman to fly in space. Strong resistance from male astronauts, the space and on 16 January 1978 NASA announced its first NASA leadership and the social environment of the women astronauts to fly in the Shuttle but as Mission 1960s prevented these women from being considered in Specialists, not as pilots. Not until 17 January 1990 did a world dominated by male prejudice and role-shaping BELOW NASA announce an astronaut selection including a before the fact. Positive discrimination came from the Jerrie Cobb poses woman pilot – Eileen Collins, who flew her first mission at a Mercury most accomplished astronauts in the field, John Glenn spacecraft mock- in 1995. Now NASA is committed to sending the first testifying to Congress that: “Men go off and fight the up, the closest she woman to the Moon, perhaps within ten years. wars and fly the airplanes. The fact that women are not got to space. MISSIONARY MANDATE For Cobb, whose dream never died, there was another life ahead flying supplies to indigenous tribes in South America and helping to survey new routes in isolated areas where threatened tribes were in need of aid and medical supplies. For this pioneering work, opening up vast tracts of land Cobb has been honoured by Brazilian, Columbian, Ecuadorian, French and Peruvian governments and in 1981 she was nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize in humanitarian work. But her drive to reach space was insatiable. When NASA announced that it was sending John Glenn back into space at the age of 77 and, ten years his junior, Cobb lobbied for an opportunity. That never came and her request was turned down, despite pressure from the National Organization for Women to achieve parallel comparison with a man by sending a woman into space. But in truth NASA had been reluctant to fly anyone of that age and only when Glenn carried out precisely the same physical and psychological tests that new applicants were required to take was he cleared to go. That was only agreed by NASA Administrator Gerry Griffin as a reference to how Glenn had responded when initially selected 39 years previously. Nevertheless, as a sign of changing times, many people felt that NASA could have learned a lot from this, especially as the science of human space flight was pointing up the strong and distinct differences between men and women. They felt that it had missed the chance to right a wrong and some even went so far as to compare that negative dismissal with the positive decision to replace a test pilot with a scientist for the final Moon landing in 1972, when Jack Schmitt got to walk on the lunar surface. Jerrie Cobb lived her dream as an aviator but was denied her ambition of taking the ultimate high flight and passed away at her home in Florida on 18 March 2019, age 88 years. I met her once. She shone like a beacon, all through her life. The culture she grew up in may have bypassed her but she brought relief for many forgotten tribal cultures in South America. SF

32 Vol 61 September 2019 SpaceFlight REVIEWS MULTI-MEDIA

The latest books, films, TV, models and games for space enthusiasts of all ages

SPACE MODELS Ahead of its time: the BIS Moon lander

ith the celebrations of Apollo 11 over, RIGHT (or Spaceship) dates from a decade later, 1949. It A 1:6 model of the BIS lander perhaps it is now time to look back at design on display at the was this that proposed Lunar Orbit Rendezvous as the BIS connection, especially when it One Small Step exhibition at a method, as against a direct flight. And it was this comes to the Lunar Module, a precursor Spaceport, near Liverpool. proposal that found its way into Project Apollo and The model was planned by W to which was the design put together Mat Irvine, and built by The especially the Lunar Module. by the British Interplanetary Society utilising sound Model Unit, headed by NASA had initially explored some sort of Earth science and engineering principals. Mike Tucker. Orbit Rendezvous plan for the Apollo Missions, but At a first glance there is no real resemblance to the when the speech from the President proposed it had look of the smooth dome-shaped design proposed by to be done “within the decade”, EOR was deemed the Society to the spidery appearance of the Grumman impossible to achieve within the time. Instead the plan design that landed on the Moon in 1969. But looks are moved to Lunar Orbit Rendezvous, but the BIS had deceptive. The way the Apollo LM works is precisely got there first. With LOR, you don’t take your whole the same as the BIS plan from two decades earlier. ‘craft to the Moon, you just take the bits you need, The initial BIS plans date back as far as 1938, in this case the Command-Service Module and the though what became the “definitive” BIS Lunar Lander Lunar Module. The Lunar Module has to perform two tasks. To get the crew down the surface and – equally important (if BELOW not more!) – get them safely off again. To this end the A side-by-side comparison BIS had come up with the plan that you don’t need to of the BIS lander of the late 1940s and the Grumman- return all the landing craft to Lunar orbit, just enough designed Lunar Module to contain the crew. To this end the lander is in two built for NASA during the parts – the Descent Stage and the Ascent Stage – the 1960s. These models were on display at the One Small Step latter using the former as a launch pad on lift-off. exhibition in Dundee. Grumman took exactly the same approach with the IMAGES: MAT IRVINE MAT IMAGES:

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1:48 as it had to be the same scale as an existing Lunar Module kit – otherwise comparisons are meaningless. Consequently it could be conveniently compared to the best 1:48 scale model kit of the LM of the time, the one made by Monogram. So side-by-side the two models conveniently show firstly the BIS version is quite a bit larger than the Apollo LM as it was intended to take three, possibly four, crew, while the Apollo LM only has two. It is also far more streamlined. It was, after all, a “child of the forties and fifties”, when spaceships still looked like large versions of the V-2 and “sleekness” was seemingly built into their genes. It would also have been launched on the nose of the launch rocket, with minimal shrouding, so had to have this streamlined shape. The idea of containing the Moon lander within a shroud only came with Apollo, where the streamlined SLA contained the definitely non- streamlined LM, for its journey through the Earth’s atmosphere. This meant that Grumman had no need to make streamlining a factor with the LM, as it served no engineering or practical purpose. In fact the only , with the lower Descent Stage ABOVE visual commonality to both designs is that they both On display at Vision of Space landing the ‘craft on the Moon, then acting as the 2 in Wells. Unfortunately, had four legs that unfolded out from a stored position, launch pad for the upper Ascent Stage on departure. due to the size and shape which terminated in circular landing pads. Models of the Apollo Lunar Modules are of the display cabinet, the Exit however had to follow a similar pattern as in two lunar landers could not numerous, and the previous columns in SpaceFlight be displayed side by side. both cases the crew were in the upper Ascent Stage. have noted many of them. But unfortunately no However, note the inclusion The Apollo LM had a built-in ladder on one of the legs kits to date have appeared of the BIS version. of the BIS book, Highroad to while the BIS version, being taller, had to rely on an the Moon, with the BIS lander. One was contemplated by one of the American (The presence of the author added ladder from the hatch over half way up, with “garage” specialist companies but so far this has not gives a sense of scale…) a then somewhat perilous climb down for the crew, materialised as an actual kit. albeit in 1:6 g. But to illustrate the differences and the similarities So two designs – visually worlds apart, but both you need both designs to the same scale, depicted performing the same task. And the BIS version came side by side and preferably in 3D as against drawings first. If pressed the Grumman engineers, some say, or photos. To this end, and some years ago, your had to admit – that’s where they got the idea! author scratch-built a BIS Lunar Lander. He chose Mat Irvine FBIS

GAMER'S CORNER with Henry Philp Apollo 50 – Kerbalised ALSEP! Continuing the theme of the Apollo 50 anniversary, this month I will be discussing the Apollo Lunar Surface Experiment Package, as used on the Apollo surface missions, and the way that it can be mirrored within the scope of the game Kerbal Space Program. The recent release of the second paid expansion for KSP - “Breaking Ground” - is particularly useful for this, since it adds, among other things, a set of surface experiments that can be used to gather information. There are several types, and many are similar to the ALSEP experiments. The image shown was not taken on the Mun (the game’s analogue of the Moon) but it does show several experiments in action, along with the central station good data would be received with an LRRR in that case! and power sources needed for their operation. On the other hand, the PSEP does have a direct analogue in the On the Apollo 11 mission, the risk of an early abort meant that seismometer experiment from “Breaking Ground”. The PSEP was only two packages were brought – the Laser Ranging extremely sensitive to vibrations from the lunar surface – it even Retroreflector (LRRR) and the Passive Seismic Experiment detected the astronauts’ movements as they slept in the LM! On Package (PSEP). The LRRR was essentially a mirror off which later missions, several S-IVB stages and LM ascent stages were laser light could be bounced to precisely measure the distance deliberately crashed into the Moon to provide calibration data. between the Earth and the Moon. This particular type of Some ‘Moonquakes’ were also recorded, before the deployed experiment was not included in the expansion, for good reason – ALSEPs were shut down in 1977 due to budgetary constraints. the Mun was made to orbit in a perfect circle to simplify Who knows, maybe we’ll see a Martian surface experiment gameplay, which means that its altitude remains constant. No package being deployed sometime in the next fifty years!

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with the rest of her family. We are treated to an honest and unique from his siblings, close friends, first wife (retrieved from the excellent BBC Apollo series in 1994) his brother and close friends. Mike Collins, the Apollo 11 CMP, tells it how it was and Chris Kraft is very candid about his role in selecting Neil as the first person to descend Eagle's ladder and enter the history books. The one person missing is Neil’s fellow Moonwalker, Buzz Aldrin. Throughout his professional life we are given a fresh insight into his focus and solo dedication to engineering and exploration by seeking to understand the unknowns both in and out of Earth’s atmosphere. His dedication to duty and his country is evident throughout the film and is very apparent when he actively participates in the investigation into the Explosion in 1986, when he steps out into the public eye once more.

FLIGHTS OF FANCY The only element of Hollywood here is provided by Harrison Ford’s deep and steady narration as he reads from Neil’s letters to his parents, his speeches and lectures given during various world tours. Their shared love of flying provides a deeper bond and adds resonance to Armstrong’s own words (Harrison had wanted to participate, not because of his own exploits in but when he saw a first draft of the film he wanted to actively collaborate and was very generous with his time). The music also includes the song “Flights of Fancy” written by Mark Armstrong and sung by Kali Armstrong, Neil’s granddaughter. Here is proof that Neil’s musical talents have been passed down through the generations (Neil was 14 when he and some friends started the brass band the Man on the Moon “Mississippi Moonshiners”). The director promises many interesting clips in his documentary owes a huge debt to BELOW the additional scenes on the as-yet to be released Armstrong – from youthful SF two boxes of 8mm Kodak home cine X-15 jock to global hero. DVD. A definite addition to your space collection. films handed over to the director by Neil Mark Yates Armstrong’s sons Rick and Mark. That T debt is quickly repaid with interest as we see Armstrong as he truly was – his humour, his playfulness and his resilience. David Fairhead, the film’s director, is well qualified having worked on Mission Control, The last Man on the Moon and Spitfire. With the 50th anniversary of Apollo 11 upon us much is being written about the man and the mission. First Man gave us one angle into a single decade of Neil’s life. This film goes further and covers his entire life – the small boy building model aeroplanes, his combat flying in Korea and his varied career after NASA, as a professor of aeronautical engineering turned farmer and finishes with his sister talking about his last days in the summer of 2012. Readers of SpaceFlight and James Hanson’s excellent biography “First Man” will be familiar with Armstrong’s career and achievements and with the personal tragedy of losing his only daughter Karen to brain cancer. Here for the first time is family footage of her at Christmas time NASA

SpaceFlight Vol 61 September 2019 35 SATELLITE DIGEST Satellite Digest 560 Satellite Digest is SpaceFlight’s regular listing of world space launches using orbital data from the United States Strategic Command space-track.org website. Compiled by Geoff Richards

Spacecraft International Date Launch Mass Orbital Inclin. Period Perigee Apogee Notes designation site (kg) (deg) (min) (km) (km) Tianxiang 1 2019-032A Jun 5.17 Yellow Sea Chang Zheng 11H 65 Jun 17.21 44.99 95.96 563 578 [1] Jilin 1 03A 2019-032B 40 Jun 5.88 44.98 95.86 556 576 [2] Bufeng 1A 2019-032C 50? Jun 8.70 44.98 95.85 556 574 [3] Tianqi 3 2019-032D 10? Jun 5.75 45.00 95.85 555 576 [4] Bufeng 1B 2019-032E 50? Jun 6.81 44.99 95.85 554 576 [3] Louxing 1 2019-032F 10? Jun 5.82 44.98 95.82 552 576 [5] Tianxiang 2 2019-032G 65 Jun 24.20 44.98 95.96 560 582 [1] RCM 1 2019-033A Jun 12.60 WTR Falcon 9FT 1,450 Jun 12.72 97.77 96.53 584 604 [6] RCM 3 2019-033B 1,450 Jun 12.72 97.77 96.53 584 604 [6] RCM 2 2019-033C 1,450 Jun 12.72 97.77 96.53 584 604 [6] T-16 2019-034B Jun 20.90 CSG Ariane-5ECA 6,330 Jul 3.60 0.01 1,436.02 35,780 35,793 [7] 7C 2019-034A 3,400 Jun 21.15 5.96 630.74 255 35,737 [8] Beidou DW46 2019-035A Jun 24.76 Xichang Chang Zheng 3B 4,600 Jul 5.58 55.05 1,435.76 35,731 35,831 [9] Prox 1 2019-036A Jun 25.27 KSC Falcon Heavy 71 Jun 27.46 24.02 98.96 709 725 [10] NPSat 1 2019-036B 86 Jun 26.52 24.00 98.95 708 725 [11] OTB 1 2019-036C 138 Jun 29.38 24.00 98.95 708 725 [12] GPIM 2019-036D 180 Jul 1.08 24.00 98.94 707 725 [13] FormoSat 7-3 2019-036E 278 Jun 25.77 24.00 98.93 708 722 [14] DSX 2019-036F 668 Jun 26.52 42.20 316.83 6,005 12,035 [15] FalconSat 7 2019-036H 5 Jun 25.48 28.53 96.11 307 853 [16] TEPCE 2019-036J 3 Jun 26.41 28.53 96.09 307 851 [17] Prometheus 2-06 2019-036K 2 Jun 26.41 28.52 96.07 306 851 [18] FormoSat 7-1 2019-036L 278 Jun 27.32 24.00 98.93 707 724 [14] FormoSat 7-4 2019-036M 278 Jun 25.62 24.00 98.93 706 726 [14] FormoSat 7-2 2019-036N 278 Jun 27.11 24.00 98.93 707 724 [14] ARMADILLO 2019-036P 4 Jun 26.28 28.53 96.07 307 849 [19] FormoSat 7-6 2019-036Q 278 Jun 26.52 24.00 98.92 707 724 [14] Psat 2 2019-036R 2 Jun 26.41 28.53 96.03 305 848 [20] BRICsat 2 2019-036S 1 Jun 26.41 28.53 96.03 305 847 [21] Oculus-ASR 2019-036T 70 Jun 27.42 28.53 95.99 301 847 [22] E-TBEx A 2019-036U 4 Jun 28.06 28.53 96.01 305 846 [23] FormoSat 7-5 2019-036V 278 Jun 26.52 24.00 98.92 705 725 [14] E-TBEx B 2019-036W 4 Jun 26.41 28.52 95.98 300 847 [23] LEO 2019-036X 2 Jun 28.19 28.53 95.96 298 848 [24] StangSat 2019-036Y 1 Jun 26.20 28.51 95.96 298 848 [25] Oculus Sphere 1 2019-036AA 1? Jul1.27 28.51 95.75 305 820 [22] LightSail 2 2019-036AC 5 Jul 8.20 24.00 98.97 710 725 [23] Global 3 2019-037A Jun 29.19 Mahia Electron 60 Jun 29.73 45.01 93.60 451 461 [27] SpaceBEE 8 2019-037B 0.4 Jun 29.69 45.01 93.56 448 461 [28] SpaceBEE 9 2019-037C 0.7 Jun 29.63 45.01 93.54 446 461 [28] Prometheus 2-07 2019-037D 2 Jun 29.63 45.01 93.47 439 461 [18]

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Spacecraft International Date Launch Launch vehicle Mass Orbital Inclin. Period Perigee Apogee Notes designation site (kg) epoch (deg) (min) (km) (km) Acrux 1 2019-037E 1 Jun 29.61 45.01 93.45 438 460 [29] Prometheus 2-09 2019-037F 2 Jun 29.61 45.01 93.45 437 460 [18] ? 2019-037G 3? Jun 29.60 45.01 93.45 437 460 [30]

NOTES

1. Tianxiang or Zhongdian Wangtong (China ETG Network 11. NPSat is a technology development and science satellite built Communications) are a pair of communications technology by the Naval Postgraduate School carrying a Langmuir probe for satellites from China Electronic Technology Group with Ka-band electron density and temperature, a CERTO beacon transmitter for transponders for inter-satellite communications tests. First launch coherent electromagnetic radio tomography of the ionosphere, from Tai Rui platform in the Yellow Sea near Qingdao using sea- experimental solar cells, a fault-tolerant computer, COTS launch version of Chang Zheng 11. It is not presently clear which components and MEMS sensors for performance test and a payload corresponds to which object. deployable drag sail for de-orbit at end of mission. 2. Jilin 1 Gaofen 03A (High-resolution) Earth survey satellite built by 12. Orbital Test Bed 1 is a technology development and science the Chang Guang Satellite Technology Co. and HIT carrying a high- satellite built by General Atomics using an SSTL-150 bus carrying resolution camera for Earth observation. a mercury-ion and GPS receiver (DSAC, supplied 3. Bufeng (Wind capture) are a pair of technology development by JPL) for performance test, an iMESA-R electrostatic analyser, satellites built by CAST to observe ocean-surface wind velocity a flexible receiver, radiation monitor, solar panel and other from effect on GNSS signals. electronic components (ETR, MSA and CUSP) for performance test, a deployable tape drag device for de-orbit and the 4. Tianqi 3, also known as Tao Xingzhi Jiaoyu 1 (Tao Xingzhi Education 16 Heritage Flight payload containing the cremated 1), communications technology 3U Cubesat built by Guodian Hi- remains of 152 individuals. Tech for the Tao Xingzhi Education Foundation with a transponder for IoT data acquisition and a camera for educational imaging. 13. Green Propellant Infusion Mission is a technology development satellite built by Ball Aerospace using a BCP-100 bus for NASA 5. Louxing 1, named for the district where SpaceTy is based, also carrying five hydroxyl ammonium nitrate (HAN) thrusters for known as Tianyi 7 and Xiaoxiang 1-04, is an Earth survey 6U performance test, a mass spectrometer (SWATS) for neutral Cubesat built by SpaceTy carrying a camera for Earth observation and plasma components of the upper atmosphere, an iMESA-R and two deployable triangular drag-brakes mounted on solar panels electrostatic analyser and a tracker (SOS) for space objects to to hasten decay. reduce collision risk. 6. Constellation Mission are a trio of radar earth mapping 14. FormoSat are six atmospheric science satellites, also known as satellites built by MDA using a MAC-200 bus for the CSA COSMIC 2, built by NSPO using the SSTL-100 bus for NSPO and and are each carrying a multi-mode synthetic aperture C-band radar NOAA and each carrying an L-band receiver for GNSS signals for all-weather surface imaging including sea state and capability (TGRS) transmitted through the Earth's limb, a Langmuir probe and to detect moving targets such as ships and an AIS receiver to track ion velocity meter for direct measurement of ionosphere and a shipping. First stage, that previously flown on Crew Dragon Demo 3-band (UHF, L-band, S-band) beacon transmitter for ionospheric launch, landed at LZ-4 back at the launch site. electron density. Will manoeuvre to reach six equally spaced 7. T-16 communications satellite, formerly known as DirecTV 16, built orbital planes at 535 km altitude. using a 3000LX bus by Airbus DS for AT&T and launched 15. Demonstration and Science Experiments is a technology by Arianespace. Mass quoted above is at launch. Satellite is development and geophysics payload built around an ESPA adapter located at 137.8°W for test and will be stationed over 101°W for TV (ESPAStar bus plus two attached SN-200 bus units) by Sierra broadcast service to the USA including Alaska, and Puerto Nevada Corp. for the USAF STP programme with two deployable 8 m Rico. booms and two deployable antenna booms spanning 8. Eutelsat 7C telecommunications satellite built by Maxar using an 51 m and three payload packages: the Wave Particle Interaction SSL 1300 bus for Eutelsat. Mass quoted above is at launch. Satellite Experiment (WPIx) with an electron telescope, a fluxgate will use electric propulsion to manoeuvre from transfer orbit given magnetometer, two VLF receivers and VLF beacon transmitter for to planned orbit over 7°E, replacing Eutelsat 7A, for high-throughput natural and man-made phenomena; Space Weather Experiments service including broadband Internet and direct TV broadcast to (SWx) with high and low-energy spectrometers, instruments Africa, Turkey, Europe and the Middle East. to monitor changes in the immediate radiation environment 9. Beidou, or Compass 3I2, is a navigation satellite using a CAST (CEASE), an electrostatic analyser for low-energy electrons and a DFH-3B bus for SASTIND, a third generation type in inclined high-energy imaging proton spectrometer and geosynchronous orbit. Mass quoted above is at launch. Orbit is Effects (SFx) with radiometers, photometers and five dosimetry centred over 105.5°E. instruments (CREDANCE, DIME-1 and 2, ELDRS and COTS-2) for effects of space on electronic components. 10. Prox 1 is an educational satellite built by Georgia Tech for the USAF Nanosat 7 mission with a P-POD deployer for LightSail. Initially 16. FalconSat 7 or DOTSI (Deployable Optical Telescope for SSA intended to carry systems to observe and manoeuvre in conjunction and ISR) is a technology development 3U Cubesat built by USAF with LightSail, but due to development problems will instead be Academy using a Boeing Colony-2 bus with a telescope (Peregrine) used as an optical tracking target. Payloads comprise the STP 2 using a 0.2 m deployable photon sieve as a diffractive primary lens mission. Boosters successfully landed at LZ-1 and LZ-2 back at and a CMOS camera to image the Sun in Hα radiation and a camera launch site, but first stage failed to land on the Of Course I Still Love to inspect sieve deployment. For most of the Cubesats, it is not You barge 1240 km downrange. presently clear which payload corresponds to which object.

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17. Tether Electrodynamics Propulsion CubeSat Experiment are a pair 23. Enhanced Tandem Beacon Experiment are a pair of ionospheric of technology development 1.5U Cubesats built by NRL connected science 3U Cubesats built by SRI International, each with a tri- by a deployable 1 km electrodynamic tether for propellantless frequency beacon transmitter for ionospheric electron density. propulsion test using electron collectors and hot-wire electron Satellites will work in conjunction with FormoSat 7 to provide extra emitters. Each satellite has a camera to image tether and a plasma beacon locations. detector. 24. LEO (Launch Environment Observer) or CP 9 technology 18. Prometheus are 1.5U Cubesats built by Los Alamos National development 2U Cubesat built by California Polytechnic for Laboratory for USSocom, each carrying two software-defined NASA with a thermocouple and two accelerometers for launch radios for communicating with remote users. environment, a camera for pictures of StangSat and a Wi-Fi system 19. Attitude Related Maneuvers and Debris Instrumentation in Low to communicate with StangSat. Orbit educational and geophysics 3U Cubesat built by University 25. StangSat technology development 1U Cubesat built by Merritt of Texas at Austin for the USAF Nanosat 7 mission with two Island High School for NASA with two accelerometers for launch software-defined GPS receivers (FOTON) for atmospheric data environment and a Wi-Fi system to communicate with LEO. from occultation and a piezoelectric impact detector (PDD) for Demonstration with LEO of capability to operate and communicate dust particles. ARMADILLO, LEO and StangSat comprise the NASA within P-POD deployer. ELaNa 15 mission. 26. LightSail is a technology development 3U Cubesat built by a 20. Parkinson Satellite 2 is a 1.5U Cubesat communications technology consortium including Stellar Exploration Inc and California satellite built by the US Naval Academy carrying three advanced Polytechnic for The Planetary Society carrying a 5.6 m square mylar amateur-band communications transponders for relay from remote solar sail for deployment and propulsion test and two cameras to sites including ocean buoys. monitor sail deployment. Deployed from Prox 1 July 2.32. 21. Ballistically Reinforced Communications Satellite technology 27. Global 3 is an Earth survey satellite built by Spaceflight Services development 1.5U Cubesat built by the US Naval Academy carrying for BlackSky Global carrying an SV-24 0.24 m telescope and high- four μCAT pulsed plasma thrusters from George Washington resolution colour scanner for Earth imaging. It is not presently clear University for performance test, an amateur communications which payload corresponds to which object. transponder and a camera for thruster effect. 28. Space Basic Electronic Elements are a pair of communications 22. Oculus-ASR (Attitude and Shape Recognition) calibration target technology 1U Cubesats built by each with a built by Michigan Tech for the USAF Nanosat 6 mission carrying VHF store-and-forward transponder for IoT communications. two cameras for imaging space objects, two deployable 0.10 m 29. Acrux is an educational 1U Cubesat built by Melbourne Space target spheres and retro-reflectors for laser tracking. Solar panels Programme, a student group, with an amateur-band transmitter and can be folded to hide or reveal different types or colours of surfaces systems for performance test. and change optical appearance of satellite. First target sphere ejected about June 30. 30. Undisclosed payload, apparently a commercial Cubesat. SPACE X SPACE

SpaceX prior to the launch of the Radarsat Constellation Mission on 12 June.

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ADDITIONS AND UPDATES DESIGNATION COMMENTS DESIGNATION COMMENTS 1989-077A FltSatCom 8 (USA 46) was relocated at 72°E c. May 30. 2019-014A WGS 10 (USA 291) circularised orbit over 122°W by 1997-026A Galaxy 25 was manoeuvred off station at 93°W June 1 June 10. Add orbit: and is drifting to the east. Jun 10.63 0.05° 1,436.06 min 35,785 km 35,790 km 1998-018B Iridium 61 was manoeuvred from a reserve orbit to a 2019-018AB AISTECHSA T 3 is in fact a 2U Cubesat, mass probably disposal orbit June 21. Add orbit: 2 kg, which carries only the communications and Jun 27.18 86.43° 93.62 min 174 km 733 km ADS-B payloads, not as in Satellite Digest 558. This also applies to 2018-099L AISTECHSAT 2. 2002-062A 2 was relocated back at 91.5°E June 7. 2019-021A Arabsat 6A was declared operational June 18. 2007-065C 2436 (Uragan-M 723) was transferred to reserve status June 19. 2019-022 Three BIRDS 3 Cubesats and SpooQy 1 were deployed from ISS via the Kibo airlock June17.43. Add objects 2010-065A HYLAS 1 was relocated at 18.3°W June 17. with orbits: 2012-061A Luch 5B was relocated at 14.5°W June 14. NepaliSat1 1998-067QE 2014-058A Luch (Olimp-K) manoeuvred off station at 60°E June 25 Jun 19.74 51.64° 92.69 min 405 km 417 km and was relocated at 64°E June 30. Raavana 1 1998-067QF 2014-076A Hayabusa 2 descended from its 20 km station to 35 m above Ryugu June 13 to rehearse landing at SCI crater Jun 19.74 51.64° 92.69 min 406 km 417 km and returned to 20 km June 14. Uguisu 1998-067QG 2016-050A JCSat 16 was relocated at 123.8°E, co-located with Jun 18.80 51.64° 92.69 min 405 km 416 km JCSat 4B, June 19. SpooQy 1 1998-067QH 2016-052A GSSAP 3 (USA 270) has manoeuvred off its station at Jun 18.81 51.64° 92.68 min 406 km 416 km 135°W and is drifting to the east, according to amateur 2019-023A Beidou DW44 apogee should be 35,846 km, correcting trackers. value in Satellite Digest 558. 2016-055A OSIRIS-REx manoeuvred to 680 m orbit around Bennu 2019-025A Dragon CRS 17 was unberthed from ISS/Harmony on June 12. June 3.52 using the ISS arm and released June 3.67. 2017-008 Most of the Lemur satellites have had their identities Spacecraft was de-orbited June 3.87. Landed in the reassigned. 2017-008AV is Lemur 2 Jobanputra, 008AW Pacific Ocean about 300 km from the coast of Mexico is Lemur 2 Spire-Minions, 008AX is Lemur 2 Satchmo, June 3.91. RED-EYE satellite was deployed from ISS 008AY is Lemur 2 Smita Sharad, 008BA is Lemur 2 via the Kibo airlock June 27.84. Add object with orbit: Tachikoma, 008BB is Lemur 2 NoguesCorreig and RED-EYE 1998-067QJ 008BC is Lemur 2 Mia-Grace Jun 28.39 51.64° 92.72 min 407 km 418 km 2017-082B T subame ended its second period of using ion thrusters to counter drag June 9, then manoeuvred to 2019-029 Fifty-three of the sixty satellites have 240 km orbit for third period from June 16 to 25. manoeuvred up to reach their operational orbit (53.00°, 95.56 min, 549 to 552 km), including two of the four 2018-036A CBAS (USA 283) was manoeuvred off its test station satellites that initially remained in deployment orbit at 112°W about June 1 and is drifting to the west, (2019-029AA and 029AG). Of the remaining seven, three according to amateur trackers. have failed and are decaying naturally, two are testing 2018-042A InSight lifted the HP3 June 23 and moved it to uncover end-of-life disposal and two are still manoeuvring up. the mole device, which had only penetrated a short It is still not clear which satellites are which, though way into the surface. 029J and 029AQ have yet to manoeuvre and 029AV has 2018-081A Haiyang 2B was declared operational June 29. manoeuvred to below deployment altitude. Of the four 2018-091A Progress MS-10 undocked from ISS/Zvezda June 4.36 that have manoeuvred above deployment orbit but are and was de-orbited over the Pacific Ocean June 4.49. still below the operational orbit, 029Q and 029Y have most recently manoeuvred up and 029AZ and 029BG 2018-098A Soyuz MS-11 crewed by Kononenko, Saint-Jacques and have most recently manoeuvred down. McClain undocked from the ISS/Poisk port June 24.98 and landed near Zhezkazgan in Kazakhstan June 25.12. 2019-030A Kosmos 2534 (Uragan-M 758) manoeuvred to slot 12 of the GLONASS constellation by June 16 and was 2019-010C-F OneW eb 0008, 0007, 0006 and 0011 have manoeuvred declared operational June 22. Add orbit: to their operational orbits. All six successfully completed testing July 9. Add orbits: Jun 16.66 64.78° 675.70 min 19,098 km 19,162 km Jun 20.36 87.89° 109.45 min 1,201 km 1,204 km 2019-031A Y amal 601 experienced attitude control problem during first burn of main apogee engine, so used smaller orbit Jun 16.48 87.89° 109.45 min 1,201 km 1,204 km control engines from June 6 to reach geostationary Jul 2.84 87.88° 109.45 min 1,200 km 1,205 km orbit over 48.8°E June 24. Add orbit: Jul 2.77 87.89° 109.45 min 1,201 km 1,204 km Jun 24.11 0.02° 1,436.04 min 35,778 km 35,796 km

INTERNATIONAL SPACE STATION ACTIVITY RECENTLY DETAILED ORBITAL DECAYS International Object name Decay There were no orbital manoeuvres of ISS during June. Designation

End-of-June orbital data: 1998-067LU ZA-Aerosat Jun 2 Jun 31.85 51.64° 92.73 min 408 km 419 km 2018-091A Progress MS-10 Jun 4.52 2018-098A Soyuz MS-11 Jun 25.12 2019-025A Dragon CRS 17 Jun 3.91

SpaceFlight Vol 61 September 2019 39 INTERSTELLAR TRAVEL Above & beyond

Winding up the Second Foundations of Interstellar Studies Workshop in the Bone Mill at Charfield, near Bristol in the UK, chairman Kelvin Long asked: what might be the next level of achievement to accelerate the ambition of interstellar flight? by Stephen Ashworth

articipants at the three-day conference, held developed by SpaceX and Blue Origin. A design for at 27-30 June and co-chaired by Harold hyperloop surface transport on Mars was presented “Sonny” White and Rob Swinney, offered …inspired by by the young Egyptian engineer Samar AbdelFattah, many tantalising answers, themed around the examples assuming a colony of 80,000 people. She is an award P broad topics of living in deep space, interstellar winner in a SpaceX hyperloop competition, and had propulsion and building megastructures in space. also helped to organise the event. But many questions remain as to how practical or from nature Angelo Vermeulen brought a more ecological affordable these answers might be, and how soon they perspective with his discussion of adaptive systems.

such as a THE BY AUTHOR PHOTOGRAPHS might appear. This morphogenetic or emergence engineering Communications and navigation would be the least termite approach is inspired by examples from nature such as a of the problems an interstellar mission might face. termite colony, where a complex system emerges from Solutions that were presented by Philip Mauskopf colony interactions among many individuals rather than by included an optical laser for data transmission – due following a master blueprint. In similar vein, Patrick to be first used by an interplanetary spacecraft on Mahon drew on the writings of Rachel Armstrong and the upcoming (2022) NASA mission to the asteroid Kim Stanley Robinson to emphasise the importance – and navigation using sightings of pulsars, of biodegradability on a worldship, and the need to extragalactic radio sources and even the cosmic recycle material which has been worn away to dust, microwave background. perhaps using genetically engineered dust mites. The relationship between space colonies and Mahon recommended that the Biosphere 2 project of interstellar worldships was explored by Mark the early 1990s needed to be revisited and taken to a Hempsell, a former president of the BIS, while Kelvin new iteration. ABOVE Long himself described a Dysonship – driven by a Kelvin Long microwave laser aimed at a light sail – to carry 500 presents designs NUCLEAR FUSION human colonists to a nearby star. Space elevators for an interstellar Perhaps the most significant talk of the weekend, for for Earth and other worlds were covered by Peter colonisation those interested in the general progress of humankind Robinson from the International Space Elevator vessel (top) and on Earth as well as beyond it, was given by Alan the conference Consortium, and Richard Osborne advocated room viewed from Costley from Tokamak Energy. He reported on two construction of a Stanford torus space colony in a corner of the major advances in nuclear fusion research: innovative Earth orbit, using the large launch vehicles now being stage. design of smaller and cheaper reactors, and progress

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in high-temperature superconductors. The field seems ABOVE spacecraft (Ryan Weed). poised to finally overturn the old quip that practical A panel Other talks presented the latest research into discussion. From controlled fusion is always 50 years in the future, a left to right: Harold unconventional physics with possible applications to joke contradicted in any case by the steady progress in White, Samar interstellar flight. Jeremy Munday spoke on the Casimir raising the “triple product” (the performance measure AbdelFattah, effect and fluctuations in the quantum vacuum. of a fusion reactor) at a rate better than Moore’s law Stephen Harold “Sonny” White challenged the long-established over recent decades. Ashworth, John Copenhagen interpretation of quantum mechanics Davies, Angel Inevitably the topic of interstellar propulsion was Vermeulen, with his pilot wave and dynamic vacuum concepts. But high on the agenda. Project Icarus has spent the past Richard Osborne Heidi Fern’s experimental tests of a device employing ten years reconsidering and updating the classic and Rob Swinney. the Mach effect gravitational assist had so far produced Daedalus design study for an interstellar probe driven only micronewtons of force. Remo Garattini and by pulse nuclear fusion. The inspiration from Icarus Francisco Lobo’s papers on the general relativity contributed to the ferment of ideas leading to the mathematics of wormhole physics were not for the Hundred Year Starship and Breakthrough Starshot faint-hearted. Their conclusion was that science still projects. Rob Swinney reported that the Firefly version has no firm idea how to build a traversible wormhole of Icarus is the most advanced of the five competing Many or a warp drive. designs worked out in detail so far. innovative Mike McCulloch made some of the most Many innovative alternative propulsion systems dramatic claims. His theory of quantised inertia were offered. Some kept within the realm of known alternative (QI) allowed him to account naturally for the recent physics: a fusion drive in the Princeton field-reversed puzzling observations of galaxy rotation and cosmic configuration to enable interstellar precursor missions propulsion acceleration, and therefore dispense entirely with the to and to the Sun’s gravitational focus (Charles makeshift concepts of dark matter and dark energy. The Swanson); a laser electric engine, also for missions systems were QI thruster, which potentially results from his theory, to the outer Solar System (Angelo Genovese); an might bring an interstellar voyage within the span of a engine to generate thrust from positronium trapped offered human lifetime. Further collaborative research is under in the form of a Bose-Einstein condensate, thus way thanks to a $1.3 million grant from DARPA. fulfilling the dream of tapping the immense energy The ongoing Breakthrough Starshot project was per kilogramme of matter-antimatter annihilation highlighted in talks by Philip Lubin (speaking via while solving the problem of antimatter storage on a Zoom from America) and James Schalkwyk. The

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roadmap to the first interstellar probes had to be which, rather than remain on Earth, had preferred shaped to engage funding agencies, future generations to take up residence in the Kuiper belt, leaving little of students and the general public, for Lubin saw He even evidence in the fossil record. The workshop was thus long-term commitment in this 50-year programme brought to a close on a highly speculative note. as the greatest necessity for success. Current thinking raised the The 80-seat auditorium at the host organisation, stressed a modular, scalable buildup of capability: the the Initiative for Interstellar Studies, was well filled Earth-based laser to power the Starshot sailcraft will possibility by participants from around the world. They were comprise millions of individual beam generators and that a non- welcomed to the Bone Mill at Charfield with food benefit from the economics of large-scale automated and wine while a trio of piano, bass and saxophone production. To go big, you have to start small. human played cool jazz in the background. With a poster session showcasing the work of students from McGill STILL SEARCHING industrial University, panel discussions, and a conference dinner Finally, shifting attention to the search for at a nearby hotel, there was plenty going on additional extraterrestrial intelligence, Al Jackson speculated that civilisation to the formal presentations. The main sponsors were an alien civilisation might use a neutrino beacon as Stellar Engines Interstellar Research Centre, and a means for attracting the attention of less developed had arisen on Space Excess. civilisations such as our own. The advantage of Earth itself in The meeting room was as much a museum as a neutrino signals is that they can pass through the conference centre, its walls filled by photographs, densest parts of the Galaxy without attenuation. And the distant posters and works of art, and with displays of models, Greg Matloff noted that sunlike stars approach one plans, books and other artefacts relating to all aspects another close enough for their cometary Oort clouds past of science fiction and spaceflight history. So it was with to touch at intervals of about a million years, at which sadness that I heard that the centre in the Bone Mill is times the hypothetical occupants of space colonies being closed down, due partly to the fact that it is used located in the Oort cloud of one star could cross to that only intermittently, and partly to a lack of sympathy of another without even needing interstellar capability. for the Initiative from the local authorities. Once established in orbit around our own Sun, they The Foundations of Interstellar Studies Workshop would gradually filter inwards, leading him to ask: is series is however expected to continue. Its first the Kuiper belt inhabited? BELOW meeting was in New York in June 2017. Papers from Matloff pointed to the anomalous shapes of some The conference this second workshop will be submitted to the Journal bodies in the outer Solar System. He even raised the dinner. The food of the British Interplanetary Society. A third workshop was very much possibility that a non-human industrial civilisation had better than the will hopefully be announced in due course, led as arisen on Earth itself in the distant past, suggesting, for rustic decor always by its creator and inspirational motivator, example, a species of more highly evolved Hadrosaurs suggests! Kelvin Long. SF

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SLUGSOCIETY NEWS

The display of BIS history at the National Space Centre, Leicester (above) and Moonsuit maker Stephen Wisdom with Griffith Ingram (right). BIS IS CENTRE STAGE The Society takes pride of place in a new exhibit at the National Space Centre, Leicester. CENTRE SPACE NATIONAL IMAGES:

ON THE 16 JULY, several BIS members visited the British Interplanetary Society Lunar Spacesuit. It National Space Centre in Leicester to see the new was crafted from Harry Ross’s paper “Lunar “Britain in Space” exhibition, funded by the Spacesuit” published in the January 1950 issue of Wolfson Foundation, to which staff at BIS the Journal of the British Interplanetary Society, headquarters contributed technical advice based upon a talk presented by Harry Ross in a regarding, and help with scanning, the artwork of November 1949 BIS symposium, and illustrated by A Smith and the design concepts that he Ralph Smith. evolved with Harry E. Ross. I use the term “interpretation” because Stephen, The evening began with a lecture by BIS whilst remaining faithful to 1940/50s materials and President Gerry Webb on the history of the Society technology, made certain small design changes to and of Britain’s engagement with space. Gerry solve problems that would have become apparent showed the audience photographs of early BIS had the suit been built in 1950, all the time meetings and members, including noted Science- preserving the of the original design. Stephen Fiction author Arthur C Clarke and Ted Carnell, editor even created a “period” BIS insignia shoulder patch of the long-running SF magazine “New Worlds”, and for the suit! excerpts from the classic “Dan Dare” comic strip, The two HQ staffers who attended then went to relating the awakening of his own interest in space. the “Britain in Space” gallery, in the famous We were then privileged to listen to a lecture by “Rocket Tower” (which houses Thor Able and Blue Stephen Wisdom, production designer, presenter, Streak rockets), to see the space suit replica. They and “prop” builder, concerning his commission to also saw a classic newsreel from Pathe News of produce the first full size interpretation of the Ralph Smith and Harry Ross, with R. A. Smith

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Wolverhampton showcase for BIS West Midlands branch UP IN THE MIDLANDS, the Schools day with the Saturday the doors opened at 10.00. Again, University of Wolverhampton runs being open to the public. Alistair the Soyuz simulator proved very Scifest every year. A celebration of Scott, Tony James and I travelled popular. However as expected the science, technology, engineering up to Wolverhampton on the audience was somewhat older and maths and this year, with the previous Thursday afternoon and with the general visitors’ parents Apollo 50 celebrations the focus of set up the BIS stand along with the and grandparents showing a lot the festival was Space! Soyuz simulator. I also took along more interest in the BIS and in the So, who better to have at the a selection of rocket hardware rocket and spacecraft hardware on festival than the oldest continuously from the former Rocket Propulsion display. running space advocacy group Establishment Westcott including a Particularly pleasing for me with in the world – the British Skua (MET) Sounding Rocket. The my West Midlands Branch hat on Interplanetary Society! staff at the University kindly let us was the interest shown in our next The festival runs over two days set up indoors in a prime position event, Space Day at the Hive in and this year Friday 5 July was by the lecture theatre where all the Worcester on Saturday 5 October. talks for the festival were being All three of us had a great time given, bringing lots of visitors to the at Scifest enthusing about space, stand! rocketry and the BIS. Hopefully Proceedings began 9.30 on we kindled the wonder of space in the Friday with the first schools some of the attendees! groups coming around. Until the Helping out with BIS stands/ schools departed we had a steady exhibitions or at BIS branch events, The display of BIS history at the National Space Centre, Leicester (above) and Moonsuit maker Stephen Wisdom with Griffith Ingram (right). throughput with the Soyuz Simulator or even just attending BIS events and its simulated docking at the is always fun and interesting and International Space Station proving a great way of participating in very popular with the smaller humankind’s journey outward from visitors! Earth! Alistair, Tony and I tidied up the Hope to see plenty of BIS stand in preparation for Saturday members at the West Midlands and then headed off to the pub for a Branch next event: Space Day at the well-deserved pint or two, a meal Hive in Worcester. Don’t forget if and lots of chat about the day and of you’re a member or fellow do come course all things Space. to the stand and say hello! SF For the public day on Saturday, Mark Perman

artwork, and models, to a common scale, of the V-2 and the BIS “Megaroc”, or “Man-Carrying Rocket”. Proposed by Smith and Ross in Smith’s paper “The Man-Carrying Rocket”, this concept was published in the Journal of the British Interplanetary Society for May 1948, from a talk that he gave to the Society on 7 January 1948. The scheme had been presented to the Ministry of Supply in 1946, to show the vision and the reality. The Redstone missile, much adapted for the Mercury ballistic space flights of Shepard and Grissom in 1961 was, of course, a redesigned adaptation of the V-2 from the same design team, albeit with a different engine, and the technique of separating the capsule was similar to that proposed for Megaroc. The visit to the NSC was truly amazing, and the new exhibition is a “must-see” for BIS members and anyone interested in the unique contribution made by the Society even before the Space Age Alistair Scott and Tony James, intensely focused on the Soyuz simulator at Scifest. SF began! Griffith J. Ingram MARK PERMAN

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As always, a significant attendance for the 39th Sino-Russian forum, which took place at BIS HQ on 1-2 June.

Where west meets east GEIR ENGENE THE ANNUAL SINO-RUSSIAN TECHNICAL members also recalled. Phil Clarke related his own FORUM, the longest-running series in the BIS's close encounter with Soviet officialdom when he , has long been among the foremost open crawled under a life-size engineering model of Luna gatherings of experts intent on uncovering the 16 to inspect the landing engines! secrets of the world’s most elusive space Pat Norris once worked for TRW in Apollo tracking programmes. This year’s event, which took place on activities. He explained some of the lessons learned 1-2 June at BIS HQ in London was no exception. As from the failed Soviet lunar landing programme, well as exploring a range of topics relating to current which have fresh relevance in the context of current Russian and Chinese space efforts, the forum also efforts to return to the Moon. The Soviet manned looked back at Soviet achievements of the 1960s Moon programme failed due to rivalry between and 70s, and forward to the fast-growing Indian competing design bureaus, the absence of a single space programme and to Japanese lunar projects. coordinating space agency, and lack of adequate Tireless event co-ordinator Dave Shayler opened development funding. Even so, it came up with with some recollections of how the Apollo 11 Moon innovative designs such as the LK lander, which landing stimulated his youthful interest in space employed the same engine for descent and ascent flight. He went on to co-write many books, including and in doing so saved precious weight.. seminal works on Soyuz and the early cosmonauts. Gurbir Singh, an authority on the Indian space Andrew Thomas’ first paper continued a theme programme, gave three talks. First was a preview of from the previous forum – how Chinese philately the forthcoming Chandrayaan 2 mission, which it is illuminates social networks of space enthusiasts and hoped will soon deposit the Vikram lander and its astronautics workers. These individuals and groups rover at the most southerly lunar site yet exchange official space postage stamp “covers”, explored. He then covered India’s anti-satellite test, reinforcing working relationships between Chinese which clearly worked, since radar tracking showed spacecraft manufacturers, tracking stations, and the target turning into a plume of . scientific facilities. Andrew showed how Henan Gurbir later made a plausible case for the historical Aerospace Philatelic Research Association significance of BIS member Stephen H. Smith as celebrated this year’s Chang’e 4 lunar flight and, in India’s first rocket scientist. In the 1930s Smith doing so, identified which tracking stations were demonstrated the use of rockets for sending mail, handling the mission’s radio transmissions. food and medicine across difficult terrain and Three Soviet exhibitions of technology held at swollen rivers. His work has appeared in publications Earl’s Court in London during the 1960s and 70s in Europe and the USA, including NASA literature. were outlined by Ken MacTaggart. Many of the In his first of two presentations, Brian Harvey space exhibits of Sputniks and Luna probes gave an overview of the lunar programme of the appeared to be the same as the ones displayed in third country to fly to the Moon, Japan. Hiten and New York in 1959. Yuri Gagarin attended the 1961 Hagoromo reached the Moon in 1990 and were show shortly after his historic space flight, and the followed by Japan’s most ambitious and successful presenter showed his photographs taken at the last lunar spacecraft, the Kaguya orbiter, which sent back exhibition in 1979 – an event which some older BIS extraordinary HD video from lunar orbit.

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BIS President Gerry Webb introduced the third employed as a small scientific research facility and a annual paper in memory of a good Russian friend of docking and transfer module. In the unmanned the Society, the extraordinary rocket engineer Oleg Progress craft version, it stores supplies on launch, Sokolov. Vadim Zakirov delivered a historical and is a waste repository as it heads for incineration overview of the Soviet nuclear space programme, during re-entry after its mission is over. which saw 34 missions carrying small reactors Brian Harvey then explored the impact of launched over 18 years. These compact power sanctions on the Soviet, Russian and Chinese space sources overcame the disadvantages of large-area programmes. The COCOM sanctions regime has solar panels, generating unacceptable drag and been imposed by the West on Russia and China using heavy batteries, to supply the intense power since 1949. In the space sector, the sanctions have requirements of radar satellites. After expiring they had the effect of encouraging self-reliance in the were usually injected into a high-altitude “burial two space programmes, cooperation between orbit”, but the crash of the radioactive Kosmos 954 in Russia and China and the Interkosmos programme, Arctic Canada in 1978 showed up the dangers. but has also constrained their revenues. They have Cosmonauts of the Soviet lunar programme were also personally impacted the head of Roskosmos, covered by Bert Vis, prolific author on Russian Dmitri Rogozin. cosmonauts. In a constant battle, Nikolay Kamanin Sunday afternoon saw a new feature in a “troika” of the Gagarin Cosmonaut Training Centre and Vasily of talks limited to 20 minutes each. First was Dave Mishin of the Korolev design bureau tried to push Shayler outlining the remarkable artistic output of their own cosmonauts into the best positions. In the space architect and designer Galina Balashova. She end, none of them got any further than Earth orbit, worked on the internal fittings of the Soyuz OM, As always, a significant attendance for the 39th Sino-Russian forum, which took place at BIS HQ on 1-2 June. and some of them not even that far. Salyut and space stations and designed the Separately, Bert later speculated on the challenge for Soyuz-Apollo. Largely unknown of and cultural heritage. The outside the Soviet Union, she retired in 1990, but the preservation of landing craft and historic sites on the 2015 publication in English of a monograph on her Moon will pose more challenges than simply getting life and achievements exposed her work to the west. The annual there. The Lunokhod 2 vehicle and its lander Luna 21 Next, Ken MacTaggart presented a short tribute have already been bought by US millionaire space- to the late Valery Bykovsky, the fifth Soviet Sino-Russian traveller Richard Garriott for about $68,000 at a cosmonaut and the eleventh human in space, who Sotheby’s auction. died in March. He piloted Vostok 5 in a celebrated Technical Some discussion of space archaeology at the joint flight with Valentina Tereshkova, the first Forum has Woomera launch centre and discarded rocketry in woman in orbit, and the pair made a public the desert also followed Andy Thomas’s second talk. appearance in Coventry in 2004. With his death and long been He returned to the podium to review Sputnik stories now only Valentina still living, the curious in the Australian press of October 1957. coincidence arises that the six Vostok cosmonauts among the An interesting perspective on the unique and will have passed away in the order of their flights. somewhat mysterious “troika” mission of Soyuz 6, The “troika” was concluded by Dave Shayler’s foremost 7 and 8, whose 50th anniversary is this autumn, was reappearance to show some excellent Roskosmos offered by Andrew Knight. He illustrated his topic photos of the Russian ISS spacewalk VKD-46 by open through coverage in UK newspapers at the time, and and Alexey Ovchinin in late May. As it was “the welder in space” experiment that caught they exited the Pirs module in their Orlan suits, the gatherings the attention of the popular press. Soyuz 6 had no duo started their EVA with a birthday tribute to the of experts docking apparatus and was probably intended to first spacewalker, Alexei Leonov. observe a docking between the other two craft, Phil Mills’ talk suggested the possibility of an intent on which failed to occur. intriguing connection between China’s achievement Forum stalwart Phil Clark’s first talk examined of the first-ever landing on the far side of the Moon uncovering China’s manned lunar programme and the giant CZ-9 in Von Kármán crater, and the American-Hungarian launch vehicle, which can to place 140 tonnes into aerospace engineer after whom the crater is named. the secrets and will be capable of taking Chinese Lunchtime on the first day had seen an auction of crews to the Moon around 2030. Later, he reviewed space memorabilia, signed books and postal covers. of the some Russian intelligence-gathering satellites An inadvertent attempt to auction the meticulous world’s most introduced to replace familiar programmes from the space models created by Phil Mills, exhibited for Soviet era which apparently “we knew and loved so display only, was narrowly averted! elusive space dearly”, or at least Phil did. The Lotos, Luch/Olymp-K, As usual, there were numerous socialising Tundra and EMKA/Kosmos 2525 missions were opportunities over the weekend. On the prior Friday programmes covered in detail, plus some forthcoming evening some members met for drinks at the programmes – Araks-R, Faza, Labirint, Neitron, Masons Arms in Mayfair – a venue frequented by Pion-NKS, Razdan and Repei. Arthur C. Clarke and other BIS pioneers. A lunchtime The second day’s programme continued with toast with an appropriate Russian fluid Dave Shayler returning to present on the Soyuz commemorated the 85th birthday of Alexei Leonov, Orbital Module, or “living in a sphere”. The Soyuz has the first man to walk in space. And a congenial been the workhorse of Soviet and Russian human dinner was held on Saturday at the Fentiman Arms, space flight for over five decades, and since 2011 a short walk from BIS headquarters in Vauxhall. has been the only craft ferrying crews to and from The forum looks forward to next year’s major the International Space Station. As well as milestone of the 40th annual session, when new habitation, the OM compartment has also been delegates will be very welcome. SF Ken MacTaggart

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BIS LECTURES & MEETINGS MEMBERSHIP NEWS

THE UK SPACE SCIENCE PROGRAMMES 11 September 7:00pm VENUE: BIS, 27/29 South Lambeth Road, London SW8 1SZ In a golden age of European Space Science, nearly every European scientific mission carries UK-made instrumentation. Chris will describe the UK narrative that lies behind these missions and offer insights into the people and processes that make it all happen. UK SPACE CONFERENCE 24-26 September VENUE: International Convention Centre, Wales The most influential event for space in the UK. See the website for details. SPACE DAY 6 October 2019 VENUE: The Hive, Sawmill Walk, The Butts, Worcester WR1 3PD

Call for exhibitors! Book a free stand at this popular BIS Standing in at the last minute, Mark Yates presents Apollo 11 to a packed audience.

West Midlands event during World Space Week. Email GEIR ENGENE [email protected]. Attendance is also free and there’s no registration. Please join us if you can. – A PINPOINT LANDING 20 November 2019 7.00pm BIS Moon meet VENUE: BIS, 27/29 South Lambeth Road, London SW8 1SZ HAVING WORKED INTENSELY TO PREPARE for the 50th anniversary Following the triumph of the first manned landing on the lecture to the Society celebrating the flight of Apollo 11, Jerry Stone Moon, the next mission had a more specific goal – the was struck down with a medical condition that put him in hospital and unmanned which landed on the Moon in he was unable to present at the BIS as scheduled on 17 July. April 1967 and the aim was to land close by and recover Rising to the challenge presented by Jerry’s absence, the BIS staff parts of it. and volunteers sprang into action and saved the evening with a fascinating mix of content. This included a sparkling presentation from PUTTING ASTRONAUTS IN IMPOSSIBLE Mark Yates, who stood in at extremely short notice and delivered a LOCATIONS polished presentation. The well-known collector of genuine Apollo 27 November, 9.30am artefacts, Mark provided stimulating insight and a novel approach to VENUE: BIS, 27/29 South Lambeth Road, London SW8 1SZ looking at the Moon (literally!), alluding to items from the Apollo programme. These included a book that inspired Mike Collins to outline While the human exploration of the Moon and Mars has the mission badge selected for the first landing mission, a microchip been extensively examined, serious technical from a prototype camera, the flight plan for Apollo 11, the message consideration of the rest of the solar system has been that would have been read by the US President had the crew been largely ignored. This one-day symposium is designed to abandoned on the surface and a piece of the heat shield passed around explore the limits of where human exploration can go in the audience. the solar system and how to overcome the challenges Following on, Apollo veterans Keith Wright and Tony Errington involved. appeared by Skype to describe their experiences and field questions from the packed audience, with some interesting questions, the entire evening hosted by former President Alistair Scott and with the assistance of BIS volunteers and Griffith Ingram. We wish Jerry well and by the time you read this he should be fully recovered and back preparing more talks, picking up with Apollo 12 on 20 November. SF David Baker

NEW MEMBERS Another clutch of new members this month – 11 from the UK, 3 from the USA and 1 from Canada. A warm welcome to you all, and a reminder that the Society welcomes members from across the world.

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