Space Above & Beyond - Book Design

Above & Beyond

The Missions of NASA

“We and other nations have a great responsibility to promote the peaceful use of space and to utilize the new knowledge obtainable from space science and technology for the benefit of all mankind.�

- President Dwight D. Eisenhower

Above & Beyond

The Missions of NASA

PENGUIN BOOKS EDITION, JULY 2014 Copyright Š 2014 by Demetrius Korbakis All rights reserved under International and Pan-American Copyright Conventions. Published in the United States by Anchor Books, a division of Random House of Canada Limited, Toronto. Originally published in hardcover in the United states by Doubleday, a Division of Random House, Inc., New York, in 2001 Penguin Books and Colophon are registered trademarks of Penguin Books, Inc. The Library of Congress has cataloged the Doubleday edition as follows: Korbakis, Demetrius Above & Beyond: The Missions of NASA / by Demetrius Korbakis p.cm.

ISBN 0-385-50156-0 Anchor ISBN: 0-385-72092-0 Book design by Demetrius Korbakis Printed in the United States of America 20 19 18 17 16 15

Penguin Books

Dedicated to those who have lost their lives in the effort to reach the stars.

Greg Jarvis, Christa McAuliffe, Ronald McNair, Ellison Onizuka, Judith Resnik, Michael J. Smith, Dick Scobee, Rick D. Husband, William McCool, Michael P. Anderson, David M. Brown, Kalpana Chawla, Laurel B. Clark, Ilan Ramon, Michael J. Adams, Theodore Freeman, Elliot See, Charles Bassett, Gus Grissom, Edward White II, Roger Chaffee, Clifton “C.C.� Willaims, Robert Lawrence

Contents The Birth of NASA Project Mercury: The Space Race Gemini 3: To Reach The Stars

The Space Age Apollo 11: One Small Step Skylab: The Final Frontier

The Birth of NASA “There are many aspects of space and space technology, which can be helpful to all people as the United States proceeds with its peaceful program in space science and exploration.

Every person has the opportunity to share through understanding in the adventures which lie ahead.”

This statement of the President’s Science Advisory Committe makes clear the opportunities which a developing space technology can provide to extend man’s knowledge of the earth, the solar system, and the universe. These opportunities reinforce my conviction that we and other nations have a great responsibility to promote the peaceful use of space and to utilize the new knowledge obtainable from space science and technology for the benefit of all mankind.

President Dwight D. Eisenhower “Introduction to Outer Space” March 26, 1958

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“Every person has the opportunity to share through understanding in the adventures which lie ahead.�

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Project Mercur

ry: The Space Race

Project Mercury: The Beginning Project Mercury was the first human spaceflight program of the United States led by its newly created space agency NASA. It ran from 1959 through 1963 with the goal of putting a human in orbit around the Earth, and doing it before the Soviet Union, as part of the early space race. It involved seven astronauts flying a total of six solo trips.

On May 5, 1961, Alan Shepard became the first American in space in a suborbital flight after the Soviet Union had put Yuri Gagarin into orbit one month earlier. John Glenn became the first American to reach orbit on February 20, 1962. He was the third person to do so, after Soviet Gherman Titov made a day-long flight in August 1961. When the project ended in May

1963, the Americans’ NASA program was still behind the Soviet space program, but the gap was seen as closing.

On Feb. 20, 1962, an Atlas rocket successfully carried Sen. John Glenn and the hopes of an entire nation into orbit aboard Friendship 7, a flight that ushered in a new era of space travel that eventually led to Americans walking on the moon by the end of the 1960s. Glenn was soon followed into orbit by colleagues Scott Carpenter, Walter Schirra and Gordon Cooper. Their fellow Mercury astronauts Alan Shepard and Virgil “Gus” Grissom flew earlier suborbital flights. Deke Slayton was grounded by a medical condition until the Apollo-Soyuz Test Project in 1975.

John Glenn became the first American to reach orbit on February 20, 1962.

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Ham: The Astro Chimp On January 31, 1961, Ham, whose name was an acronym for Holloman Aero Med, became the first chimpanzee in space, aboard the Mercury Redstone rocket on a sub-orbital flight very similar to Alan Shepard’s. Ham was brought from the French Camaroons, West Africa, where he was born July 1957, to Holloman Air Force Base in New Mexico in 1959.

The original flight plan called for an altitude of 115 miles and speeds ranging up to 4400 mph. However, due to technical problems, the spacecraft carrying Ham reached an altitude of 157 miles and a speed of 5857 mph and landed 422 miles downrange rather than the anticipated 290 miles. Ham performed well

during his flight and splashed down in the Atlantic Ocean 60 miles from the recovery ship. He experienced a total of 6.6 minutes of weightlessness during a 16.5-minute flight. A post-flight medical examination found Ham to be slightly fatigued and dehydrated, but in good shape otherwise.

Ham’s mission paved the way for the successful launch of America’s first human astronaut, Alan B. Shepard, Jr., on May 5, 1961.

Upon the completion of a thorough medical examination, Ham was placed on display at the Washington Zoo in 1963 where he lived alone until September 25, 1980. He then was moved to the North Carolina Zoological Park in Asheboro.

Ham became the First Chimp in Space aboard a Mercury Redstone Rocket.

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The First Astronauts: The Mercury 7 The Mercury Seven were the group of seven

Members of the group flew on all classes of

Mercury astronauts selected by NASA on

NASA manned orbital spacecraft of the 20th

April 9, 1959. They are also referred to as the

century—Mercury, Gemini, Apollo, and the

Original Seven or Astronaut Group 1. They

Space Shuttle. Of the seven, only John Glenn,

piloted the manned spaceflights of the Mercury

who was the oldest, is still living; he went on

program from May 1961 to May 1963. These

to become a U.S. senator. Gus Grissom died in

seven original American astronauts were

1967, in the Apollo 1 fire. The others all survived

Alan Shepard, Gus Grissom, John Glenn, Scott

past retirement from service.

Carpenter, Wally Schirra, Gordon Cooper, and Deke Slayton.

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On May 5, 1961, Alan Shepard became the first American in space aboard the Mercury Redstone Rocket.

Alan Bartlett Shepard, Jr. (1923–1998), USN

Virgil Ivan “Gus” Grissom (1926–1967), USAF

Leroy Gordon “Gordo” Cooper, Jr. (1927–2004), USAF

Malcolm Scott Carpenter (1925–2013), USN

Donald Kent “Deke” Slayton (1924–1993), USAF Walter Marty “Wally” Schirra, Jr. (1923–2007), USN

John Herschel Glenn, Jr. (1921–), USMC

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Project Gemini:

To Boldly Go...

Project Gemini: Origins Project Gemini was the second human

The Gemini Program was a necessary

spaceflight program of NASA, the civilian

intermediate step between Project Mercury and

space agency of the United States government.

the Apollo Program.

Project Gemini was conducted between projects Mercury and Apollo, with ten manned flights occurring in 1965 and 1966.

Originally introduced on December 7 as Mercury Mark II, it was re-christened Project Gemini on January 3, 1962, from the fact that

On May 25, 1961, three weeks after Mercury

the spacecraft would hold two crewmen, seated

astronaut Alan Shepard became the first

abreast, as gemini in Latin means “twins” or

American in space, President John F. Kennedy

“double”. Gemini is also the name of the third

announced the goal of sending astronauts to the

constellation of the Zodiac and its twin stars,

moon before the end of the decade.

Castor and Pollux.

To facilitate this goal, NASA expanded the existing manned space flight program in December 1961 to include the development of a two-man spacecraft. The program was officially designated Gemini on January 3, 1962.

President John F. Kennedy announced the goal of sending astronauts to the moon.

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Gemini: Missions There were two unmanned Gemini flights in 1964 and 1965, followed by ten manned flights in 1965 and 1966. All were launched by Titan II launch vehicles. Highlights of the Gemini program achieved its objectives in support of the Apollo program.

Edward H. White became the first American to make an extravehicular activity (EVA, or “space walk”), on June 3, 1965 during Gemini 4.

Gemini 5 demonstrated the 8-day endurance necessary for an Apollo lunar mission with the first use of fuel cells to generate its electrical power.

Gemini 6A and 7 accomplished the first space rendezvous in December 1965, and Gemini 7 set a 14-day endurance record.

Gemini 8 achieved the first space docking with an unmanned Agena Target Vehicle.

Gemini 11 set a manned Earth orbital altitude record of 739.2 nautical miles (1,369.0 km) in September 1966, using the propulsion system of its Agena target vehicle. This record still stands As of 2014.

Edwin “Buzz” Aldrin on Gemini 12 became the first space traveller to prove that useful work could be done outside a spacecraft without life-threatening exhaustion.

It was at this point where the American manned space program began showing its. superiority over that of the Soviet Union.

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Gemini-Titan II The Titan II GLV (Gemini Launch Vehicle) or Gemini-Titan II was an American expendable launch system derived from the Titan II missile, which was used to launch twelve Gemini missions for NASA between 1964 and 1966.

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“This nation will move forward, with the full speed of freedom, in the exciting adventure of space.”

-John F. Kennedy

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The Space Age “We choose to go to the moon. We choose to go to the moon in this decade and do the other things, not because they are easy, but because they are hard, because that goal will serve to organize and measure the best of our energies and skills, because that challenge is one that we are willing to accept, one we are unwilling to postpone, and one which we intend to win, and the others, too.�

-President John F. Kennedy

Apollo 11:

One Small Step

Apollo 11: First Man On The Moon

The Apollo program, also known as Project

1960s, which he proposed in a May 25, 1961,

Apollo, was the third human spaceflight

address to Congress. Project Mercury was

program carried out by the National

followed by the two-man Project Gemini

Aeronautics and Space Administration

(1962–66). The first manned flight of Apollo

(NASA), the United States’ civilian space

was in 1968.

agency, and the program was responsible for the landing of the first humans on Earth’s Moon in 1969.

Kennedy’s goal was accomplished on the Apollo 11 mission when astronauts Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin landed their

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First conceived during the Presidency

Lunar Module (LM) on the Moon on July

of Dwight D. Eisenhower as a three-man

20, 1969, and walked on its surface while

spacecraft to follow the one-man Project

Michael Collins remained in lunar orbit in the

Mercury which put the first Americans

command spacecraft, and all three landed

in space, Apollo was later dedicated to

safely on Earth on July 24. Five subsequent

President John F. Kennedy’s national goal of

Apollo missions also landed astronauts on the

“landing a man on the Moon and returning

Moon, the last in December 1972. In these six

him safely to the Earth” by the end of the

spaceflights, 12 men walked on the Moon.

“We feel that this stands as a symbol of the insatiable curiosity of all mankind to explore the unknown ...”

-Buzz Aldrin

Apollo 11: Mission Accomplishments Apollo set several major human spaceflight

NASA’s current human spaceflight capability,

milestones. It stands alone in sending manned

and funded construction of its Johnson Space

missions beyond low Earth orbit; Apollo 8

Center and Kennedy Space Center. Apollo also

was the first manned spacecraft to orbit

spurred advances in many areas of technology

another celestial body, while the final Apollo

incidental to rocketry and manned spaceflight,

17 mission marked the sixth Moon landing and

including avionics, telecommunications, and

the ninth manned mission beyond low Earth

computers.

orbit. The program laid the foundation for

The Apollo Lunar Module (LM), also known as the Lunar Excursion Module (LEM), was the lander portion of the Apollo spacecraft built for the US Apollo program by Grumman to carry a crew of two from lunar orbit to the surface and back.

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Command/Service Module

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The Command/Service Module (CSM) was one of two spacecraft, along with the Lunar Module, used for the United States Apollo program which landed astronauts on the Moon.

Michael Collins (1930-Present), USAF

Neil Armstrong (1930-2012), Civilian

Edwin “Buzz” Aldrin (1930-Present), USAF

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Skylab: The F

Final Frontier

Skylab: The First Space Station Skylab was a space station launched and

to rescue the crew in orbit if it was needed.

operated by NASA and was the United States’ first space station. Skylab orbited the Earth

Skylab included the Apollo Telescope Mount,

from 1973 to 1979, and included a workshop,

which was a multi-spectral solar observatory,

a solar observatory, and other systems. It was

Multiple Docking Adapter (with two docking

launched unmanned by a modified Saturn V

ports), Airlock Module with EVA hatches, and the

rocket, with a weight of 169,950 pounds (77

Orbital Workshop, the main habitable volume.

tons). Three manned missions to the station,

Electrical power came from solar arrays, as well

conducted between 1973 and 1974 using the

as fuel cells in the docked Apollo CSM. The

Apollo Command/Service Module (CSM) atop

rear of the station included a large waste tank,

the smaller Saturn IB, each delivered a three-

propellant tanks for maneuverizng jets, and a

astronaut crew. On the last two manned missions,

heat radiator.

anz additional Apollo/ Saturn IB stood by ready

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Skylab served as the greatest solar observatory of its time, a microgravity lab, a medical lab, an Earth-observing facility, and, most importantly, a home away from home for its residents.

Skylab: Mission Accomplishments Skylab 2 (also SL-2 and SLM-1[4]) was the first

spaceflight duration. Furthermore, its crew were

manned mission to Skylab, the first U.S. orbital

the first space station occupants ever to return

space station. The mission was launched on

safely to Earth – the only other space station

a Saturn IB rocket and carried a three-person

occupants, the crew of the 1971 Soyuz 11 mission

crew to the station. The name Skylab 2 also

that had manned the Salyut 1 station, were killed

refers to the vehicle used for that mission. The

during reentry.

Skylab 2 mission established a record for human

The Skylab program also led to new technologies. Special showers, toilets, sleeping bags, exercise equipment and kitchen facilities were designed to function in microgravity.

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Skylab: Crew Quarters One of Skylab’s most important functions was to study the feasibility of long-duration space missions. As a result, the ongoing activity of astronauts just going about their daily lives in orbit was one of the greatest of all the scientific experiments aboard the station. Though they were free-falling in Earth orbit, traveling at 16,000 miles per hour, the Skylab crew members said that everyday life on the station was actually pretty normal.

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Joseph Peter Kerwin (1932-Present), USN

Charles “Pete” Conrad, Jr. (1930-1999), USN Paul Joseph Weitz (1930-Present), USN

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