2009 Archived News
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December 26, 2009:
I recently acquired an LM-1 launch certificate of participation. I scanned it, reconstructed it, and added some information about LM-1's flight.
HomeDecember 23, 2009:
I just scanned & uploaded a document regarding a proposed change to the Saturn V S-IC (first) stage, to be called the "S-ID". Much like an Atlas, the four outboard engines would be jettisoned once above much of the atmosphere, with the center engine remaining, serving as a sustainer engine. This document is S-ID Propulsion/Mechanical.
HomeNovember 18, 2009:
Uploaded pictures of some Apollo artifacts, including Lovell's Apollo 8 inflight coverall garment and the Apollo 8 flight plan at the Museum of Science & Industry.
HomeOctober 6, 2009:
Uploaded a PDF version of a pamphlet, circa 1962, explaining Lunar Orbital Rendezvous.
HomeOctober 4, 2009:
Pictures of a display of models depicting Lunar Module evolution, at the Cradle of Aviation. Also added a page detailing some early lunar module evolution and a fun little info page regarding Grumman's use of paperclips in aerospace design.
HomeOctober 1, 2009:
Uploaded picture sets of some lunar module artifacts (including an RCS thruster, thrust translation and attitude controllers, a section of an APS engine, LM landing gear strut crushable aluminum honeycomb, and a lunar surface sensing probe) and of the Gemini 4 hatch from the Cradle of Aviation.
Also uploaded accompanying "info" pages:
HomeSeptember 30, 2009:
By special request, uploaded a set of pictures of the Apollo High Gain Antenna at Stafford Air & Space.
HomeSeptember 26, 2009:
Grrr. The NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS) has been down for a couple of days, delaying some research into a set of LM pictures I've been working on, so that'll have to wait.
But, I have put the time to good use, preparing a set of lunar module structural drawings for LTA-8.
HomeSeptember 17, 2009:
Uploaded a number of picture sets from the National Air & Space Museum, including
- Ascent Propulsion System engine (from the Apollo lunar module).
- A model depicting an early lunar module.
- A mockup of a lunar module cockpit.
September 16, 2009:
Uploaded a number of picture sets from the Cernan Earth & Space Center, including
- The Apollo Boilerplate BP-213.
- Ascent Propulsion System engine (from the Apollo lunar module).
- The Jack Schmitt's Apollo 17 lunar EVA gloves.
September 15, 2009:
Also uploaded Ascent Propulsion System thrust chamber (from the Apollo lunar module) at the Air Zoo.
HomeSeptember 15, 2009:
Uploaded a number of picture sets from the US Space & Rocket Center, including
- Ascent Propulsion System engine (from the Apollo lunar module).
- The Descent Propulsion System engine (from the Apollo lunar module), when it was displayed outdoors.
- The Descent Propulsion System engine (from the Apollo lunar module), when it was displayed in the "old" museum.
September 13, 2009:
Uploaded a number of picture sets from the former Michigan Space & Science Center, including
- The Apollo 10 command module hatch
- Ascent Propulsion System engine (from the Apollo lunar module ascent stage).
- Pegasus Micrometeoroid Satellite mockup.
- S-I 1/4 scale model (Block I Saturn I first stage) manufactured by the ABMA.
- Skylab artifacts including triangular interlocking shoes and the Lower Body Negative Pressure experiment.
August 15, 2009:
Today marks Saturn's 51st birthday, when ARPA Order No. 14-59 called for the development of a 1.5 million-pound booster.
Today also marks heroicrelics.org's 1st birthday. Yes, by sheer, dumb luck, I happened to sign up for a hosting plan on the 50th anniversary of the Saturn program. I started out with no images online, and a year later, and I've posted 3,252 pictures of "relics" which I've taken, plus 88 "supplemental" images (mostly diagrams I've scanned or captured from other electronic documents). Not a bad year!
Now, those of you who've visited before know we take our Saturns pretty seriously around here, so to commemorate the event(s), I've uploaded a number of Saturn-related items:
- A NASA booklet on the SA-6 mission, a Block II Saturn I.
- A Chrysler publication, AS-207 Vehicle Systems Information Drawings, an early set of engineering drawings on the Saturn IB.
- A set of Saturn V inboard profiles, for the S-IC, S-II, and S-IVB stages.
- NASA Facts 33, the "Saturn V poster" NASA Facts issue.
Of course, this just supplements all the Saturn-related content that's been on this site for a while now:
- ARPA Order No. 14-59, which authorized the creation of the Saturn family of rockets
- A diagram of the Saturn I Block I profile
- Block I S-I fuel pressurization system
- Block I Saturn I second stage adapter
- S-I LOX pressurization system
- The Block I Saturn I static test stage, SA-T, and Marshall Space Flight Center's static test tower, where it was static tested.
- A diagram of the Saturn I Block II inboard profile
- A diagram of the Saturn I Block II boattail
- Saturn I/IB turbine exhaust
- S-IB LOX vents
- A photo from SA-209's assembly
- A diagram of the Saturn V S-IC positions
- A time-lapse photo of the Saturn V S-IC assembly
- S-IC-15, the Saturn V first stage at the Michoud Assmebly Facility.
- A composite picture of S-IC-15 at night at the Michoud Assembly Facility
And, of course, there are pages I've written up about Saturn rocket engines, as well as pictures of 11 F-1 engines at museums all over the country.
Happy birthday, Saturn, and happy birthday heroicrelics!
HomeJuly 30, 2009:
Uploaded my pictures of Gemini 2/MOL at the Kennedy Space Center.
HomeJuly 29, 2009:
Uploaded my pictures of the Manned Orbiting Laboratory (MOL) space suit at the Omniplex and a few pictures of the Gemini-MOL spacecraft at the Air Force Museum.
HomeJuly 24, 2009:
July 24, 1969: Splashdown! The Apollo 11 crew returns safely to Earth.
A flurry of activity as the crew splashes down in the ocean: the spacecraft was stabilized and secured by uprighting bags and a flotation collar (on display at the Udvar-Hazy Center), the Apollo 11 hatch (on display at the National Air & Space Museum) is opened, biological isolation garments (on display at the USSRC) are tossed in for the astronauts to don, the astronauts climb into the Billy Pugh net (on display at the National Air & Space Museum) and are whisked away to the carrier, where they march into the Mobile Quarantine Facility (on display at the Udvar-Hazy Center).
This concludes heroicrelics' commemoration of the Apollo 11 anniversary; 1007 new pictures were posted during this nine-day period!
HomeJuly 23, 2009:
July 23, 1969: The moon ... now "back."
Having accomplished the "landing a man on the moon," the astronauts are nearly done with the less ambitious "and returning him safely to the Earth" portion of their mission.
And the spacecraft which will return them safely to the Earth is their Apollo 11 command module, Columbia, on display at the National Air & Space Museum.
heroicrelics will commemorate the Apollo 11 anniversary by posting a number Apollo 11-themed picture sets. Check back throughout the anniversary of the flight.
HomeJuly 22, 2009:
July 22, 1969: The moon ... now "back."
Having accomplished the "landing a man on the moon," the astronauts are now settling in for the less ambitious "and returning him safely to the Earth" portion of their mission.
But, that "landing a man on the moon" portion was too impressive to be contained in a single day, so today we present pictures of Armstrong's Apollo 11 backup space suit, on display at the Neil Armstrong Air & Space Museum.
heroicrelics will commemorate the Apollo 11 anniversary by posting a number Apollo 11-themed picture sets. Check back throughout the anniversary of the flight.
HomeJuly 21, 2009:
July 21, 1969: The moon ... now "back."
Having accomplished the "landing a man on the moon," the astronauts are now settling in for the less ambitious "and returning him safely to the Earth" portion of their mission.
But, that "landing a man on the moon" portion was too impressive to be contained in a single day, so today we present pictures of Aldrin's lunar EVA space suit, on display at the National Air & Space Museum.
heroicrelics will commemorate the Apollo 11 anniversary by posting a number Apollo 11-themed picture sets. Check back throughout the anniversary of the flight.
HomeJuly 20, 2009:
July 20, 1969: The first manned lunar landing!
The Apollo 11 astronauts landed on the moon in lunar module #5, or LM-5. It remained on the moon, but there are unused lunar modules here on Earth. LM-2, on display at the National Air & Space Museum, is one such lunar module, and the Smithsonian displays it in a diorama depicting the Apollo 11 moon landing.
heroicrelics will commemorate the Apollo 11 anniversary by posting a number Apollo 11-themed picture sets. Check back throughout the anniversary of the flight.
HomeJuly 19, 2009:
July 19, 1969: The coast to the moon.
All of the Apollo 11 crew were space flight veterans. Neil Armstrong first flew on Gemini 8, on display at Neil Armstrong Air & Space.
heroicrelics will commemorate the Apollo 11 anniversary by posting a number Apollo 11-themed picture sets. Check back throughout the anniversary of the flight.
HomeJuly 18, 2009:
July 18, 1969: The coast to the moon.
All of the Apollo 11 crew were space flight veterans. Buzz Aldrin first flew on Gemini 12, on display at the Adler Planetarium.
heroicrelics will commemorate the Apollo 11 anniversary by posting a number Apollo 11-themed picture sets. Check back throughout the anniversary of the flight.
HomeJuly 17, 2009:
July 17, 1969: The coast to the moon.
All of the Apollo 11 crew were space flight veterans. Mike Collins first flew on Gemini 10, on display at the Kansas Cosmosphere.
heroicrelics will commemorate the Apollo 11 anniversary by posting a number Apollo 11-themed picture sets. Check back throughout the anniversary of the flight.
HomeJuly 16, 2009:
July 16, 1969: Apollo 11 launches.
A Saturn V may not have moved under its own power since the launch of Skylab in 1973, but the Saturn V at the US Space & Rocket Center moved from Rocket Park to the Davidson Center for Space Exploration, in July 2007 during Rocket Roll.
heroicrelics will commemorate the Apollo 11 anniversary by posting a number Apollo 11-themed picture sets. Check back throughout the anniversary of the flight.
HomeJuly 15, 2009:
It may seem like nothing's been going on for the last month or so, but heroicrelics has been busy preparing for the 40th anniversary of the flight of Apollo 11.
Check back tomorrow and throughout the anniversary of the entire flight (July 16 through July 24) for Apollo 11-themed picture sets!
HomeJune 13, 2009:
Added a few pictures from my recent trip to the Neil Armstrong Air & Space museum.
HomeMay 25, 2009:
This Memorial Day, take a virtual visit to Arlington National Cemetery. Also, visit my newly-uploaded pictures of the Eighth Air Force Memorial at the National Air Force Museum.
HomeMay 25, 2009:
Added additional information regarding the nozzle extension shingle damage on the F-1 engine at the Air Zoo.
HomeMay 25, 2009:
This Memorial Day, take a virtual visit to Arlington National Cemetery. Also, visit my newly-uploaded pictures of the Eighth Air Force Memorial at the National Air Force Museum.
HomeMay 24, 2009:
Updated my page about the F-1 engine thrust chamber throat security closure with additional information regarding locking the closure to the shaft.
HomeMay 24, 2009:
I recently found out that the "V-2" at the Omniplex was a replica, not an original V-2, so I updated appropriately. I also found out that the Omniplex is now known as "Science Museum Oklahoma", so I updated for that, too.
HomeMay 10, 2009:
To commemorate tomorrow's planned launch of the Hubble Space Telescope Servicing Mission 4, I uploaded Hubble-related pictures from my 2007 tour of Goddard Space Flight Center, including Building 29, SSDIF High Bay Clean Room, various Hubble mockups, and the Space Environment Simulator.
HomeMay 8, 2009:
Added the About and Resources pages.
HomeMay 5, 2009:
Was reminded that today is the 48th anniversary of Alan Shepard's Freedom 7 flight.
HomeMay 5, 2009:
Started giving the site a facelift. Right now, it's limited to the main page and some of auxiliary pages it references, but I've also got something in the works for the other pages as well.
HomeApril 25, 2009:
Uploaded my pictures of F-1 engine F-041 at the Air Zoo.
HomeApril 24, 2009:
Uploaded my pictures of the LM-1 supercritical helium tank section at the Cradle of Aviation.
HomeApril 11, 2009:
Updated my pictures of the Omniplex's F-1 engine regarding the engine's LOX dome. Also prepared an info page on the F-1's LOX dome.
HomeFebruary 15, 2009:
Uploaded my pictures of the USSRC's outdoors F-1 engine. Also uploaded my picture of the National Air & Space Museum's F-1 engine display (I haven't yet put NASM on the front page because of the extremely small number of pictures I've posted from it).
HomeFebruary 7, 2009:
Uploaded my pictures from the NASA Headquarters building.
HomeFebruary 7, 2009:
This site has many pictures of relics, but had few of heroes. Today I address this deficiency by uploading the pictures I took at Arlington National Cemetery.
HomeJanuary 24, 2009:
Uploaded my photos of the F-1 engine at Space Center Houston/Johnson Space Center.
HomeJanuary 19, 2009:
Uploaded my photos of the F-1 engine at Stennis Space Center.
HomeJanuary 17, 2009:
Uploaded my photos of the F-1 engine at the former Michigan Space & Science Center and my F-1 engine photos from Kennedy Space Center.
Also uploaded a Saturn IB assembly picture, featuring SA-209 (which currently resides in KSC's Rocket Garden).
HomeJanuary 10, 2009:
Uploaded my photos of F-1 engine 114-2 at Stafford Air & Space.
Also added a photo to my F-1 Engine Thrust Chamber Throat Security Closure page.
HomeJanuary 4, 2009:
Uploaded my pictures of Gemini 5 at Space Center Houston.
Also uploaded my pictures of the Gemini artifacts and some of my pictures of the Gemini simulator at the USSRC.
HomeJanuary 3, 2009:
Uploaded the remaining Saturn SA-T pictures, as well as a page documenting the Block I S-I Fuel Pressurization System.
HomeJanuary 2, 2009:
I uploaded a number of new pictures of the Saturn SA-T stage at Marshall. While the number of new pictures is small, I also uploaded a number of reference pages as well:
- Saturn I Block I Profile
- Saturn I/IB Turbine Exhaust
- S-I LOX Pressurization System
- Block I Saturn I Second Stage Adapter
January 1, 2009:
With the start of a new year, I archived 2008's news.
2008 was quite a year for me, as I'd been talking about starting a Website for several years. I realized that I was never going to be "ready", so I finally just went and did it. 2008 ended with 1688 pictures of relics and 19 supplemental pictures online.
Certainly the highlight of the year came December 22, when collectSPACE ran a feature article (the basis of which was written by Alan Lawrie) about an Apollo 8 F-1 engine I photographed while touring MSFC, and then a day later when a "teaser" version of that same article hit the front page of space.com.
For those of you waiting for additional pictures, I'm still going through my Marshall pictures -- I'm doing a lot of research about the objects I've photographed, and will be uploading additional information about them. Hopefully, you will find it worth the wait.
HomeAugust 15, 2008:
Site goes live. "Live" might be too strong of a word for it, as there's nothing here other than a "welcome" page, but at least I do have a presence on the web!
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