Greg (Strider) Moore wrote:

"Ken S. Tucker" wrote in message ...

Greg (Strider) Moore wrote:

"Ken S. Tucker" wrote in message ...

GordonD wrote:
"Ken S. Tucker" wrote in message
...
GordonD wrote:
Just watched the above documentary, which I assumed was from 2 -
3 years ago but the copyright date at the end was 2005. It was a
somewhat sensationalised account of the Apollo 11 flight,
focusing on the problems encountered during the mission (the
program alarms during descent, the delayed landing leading to low
fuel levels and the breaking of the ascent engine arm switch)
though they also threw in the sighting of the SLA panel. The
impression that came across was that it was more by luck than
anything else that the flight was a success.

However at one point they stated that the LES wouldn't have
worked because in the event of an emergency it would take two
seconds to go into operation, whereas the Saturn V would be a big
fireball in only half a second. The person who said this was
David Baker, author of several books on the space programme, who
could in no way be described as a kook. Was he right on this
occasion, and if so why hasn't more been made of it?

My thoughts as well.
I'll hypothesize that the effectiveness of the LES depends on the
nature
of the anomaly. If a small fire begins the LES would be a
lifesaver prior to a catastrophe, IIRC the Ruskies used the system
once successfully.

Yes, Soyuz T-10, in an off-pad abort when the launch vehicle caught
fire. Accounts say it took several seconds for the escape system to
be triggered.

The earlier abort on Soyuz 18 didn't involve the LES as it was
later in the launch phase, after it had been jettisoned.

I think you are right about that part of the documentary as being
sensational.

The whole thing came across that way. The problem with the ascent
engine arm switch was portrayed as a real horror story, whereas in
reality it was spotted before the moonwalk and the astronauts
simply decided that was something they'd have to fix later. There
was certainly no panic - I don't think *anything* would cause
Armstrong to panic!

I'm not sure how or why they inadvertently over flew the intended
landing location they were trained for, and in turn had a narrowing
margin of time to land, and a defunct radar altimeter, but there's
no question that landing was harrowing. They had the Sun on their
backs and were able to use the LM shadow as an altimeter.
That seems well done in the documentary.
Ken


They overflew the landing zone because Armstrong spotted more
boulders than they thought and wanted a clearer area to land.

That's not quite what I have heard, let me quote from wiki Apollo 11,

"As the descent began, Armstrong and Aldrin found that they were
passing landmarks on the surface 4 seconds early and reported that
they were "long": they would land miles west of their target point."


Hmm, wasn't aware of that quote.

You might find a better ref.
It was that 4 seconds that nearly mucked things up. After the landing
it was never mentioned much.

Interesting. Might be worth perusing Carrying the Fire and some other
sources to confirm.
Thanks.

Welcome, some more from an unusual link...

http://www.popsci.com/military-aviat...i-moon-landing

"When Apollo 11’s lunar lander, the Eagle, separated from the orbiter,
the cabin wasn’t fully depressurized, resulting in a burst of gas
equivalent to popping a champagne cork. It threw the module’s landing
four miles off-target."

Ken