- Member since
June 2012
- From: Anniston, AL
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Posted by GAF
on Thursday, July 18, 2019 11:56 PM
Not much to report tonight. I've got the "United States" decals on the Titan and am working on the Atlas. A minor mishap set me back a bit, but the damage has been fixed and work proceeds. I got word the lettering has shipped, so I hope it will be here at least by Saturday.
Also, I read today that the National Geopraphic Channel is going to be producing a new series based on Tom Wolfe's book "The Right Stuff". Not sure how good it's going to be, and it has a lot to live up to when compared to the movie.
Hope everyone is resting and surviving the heat!
Gary
Today In Space History:
Happy Birthday, John Glenn!
1921 July 18 - .
- Birth of John Herschel Jr Glenn - . Nation: USA. Related Persons: Glenn.
American test pilot astronaut 1959-1963 and 1997-1998, later a politician and US Senator. First American in orbit on his first flight, Mercury MA-6, in 1962, and oldest person in space on his second flight, STS-95, in 1998. 2 spaceflights, 9.1 days in space. Flew to orbit on Mercury 6 (1962), STS-95.
1965 July 18 - . 14:38 GMT - . Launch Site: Baikonur. Launch Complex: Baikonur LC1. LV Family: R-7. Launch Vehicle: Molniya 8K78.
- Zond 3 - . Payload: 3MV-4A s/n 3. Mass: 959 kg (2,114 lb). Nation: Russia. Agency: MOM. Program: Mars. Class: Mars. Type: Mars probe. Spacecraft Bus: 3MV. Spacecraft: Mars 3MV-4A. USAF Sat Cat: 1454 . COSPAR: 1965-056A.
Zond 3 was towards the moon and interplanetary space. The spacecraft was equipped with a TV system that provided automatic inflight film processing. On July 20, during lunar flyby, 25 pictures of very good quality were taken of the lunar farside from distances of 11,570 to 9960 km. The photos covered 19,000,000 km square of the lunar surface. Photo transmissions by facsimile were returned to earth from a distance of 2,200,000 km on July 29 and were retransmitted later from a distance of 31,500,000 km, thus proving the ability of the communications system. After the lunar flyby, Zond 3 continued space exploration in a heliocentric orbit. Those pictures showed clearly the heavily cratered nature of the surface. This mission dramatized the advances in space photography that the U.S.S.R. had made since its first far-side effort six years earlier.
1966 July 18 - . 22:20 GMT - . Launch Site: Cape Canaveral. Launch Complex: Cape Canaveral LC19. LV Family: Titan. Launch Vehicle: Titan II GLV.
- Gemini 10 - . Call Sign: Gemini 10. Crew: Collins, Young. Backup Crew: Bean, Williams, Clifton. Payload: Gemini SC10. Mass: 3,763 kg (8,295 lb). Nation: USA. Related Persons: Bean, Collins, Williams, Clifton, Young. Agency: NASA Houston. Class: Manned. Type: Manned spacecraft. Flight: Gemini 10. Spacecraft: Gemini. Duration: 2.95 days. Decay Date: 1966-07-21 . USAF Sat Cat: 2349 . COSPAR: 1966-066A. Apogee: 259 km (160 mi). Perigee: 160 km (90 mi). Inclination: 28.90 deg. Period: 88.70 min.
An Air Force Titan Gemini Launch Vehicle placed the Gemini 10 (GT-10) spacecraft into orbit for the three-day mission of Astronauts John Young and Michael Collins. Rendezvous and docking were accomplished with the Gemini Agena Target Vehicle (GATV) that had been launched from Cape Kennedy aboard an Atlas Booster just ahead of GT-10. Using the GATV-10 Primary Propulsion System (PPS), the docked vehicles achieved a manned-flight altitude record of 476 miles. Reentry was accomplished on 21 July and recovery was made 544 miles east of Cape Canaveral. Exciting mission with successful docking with Agena, flight up to parking orbit where Gemini 8 Agena is stored. Collins space walks from Gemini to Agena to retrieve micrometeorite package left in space all those months. Loses grip first time, and tumbles head over heels at end of umbilical around Gemini. Package retrieved on second try.
The Gemini X mission began with the launch of the Gemini Atlas-Agena target vehicle from complex 14. The Gemini Agena target vehicle (GATV) attained a near-circular, 162- by 157-nautical-mile orbit. Spacecraft No. 10 was inserted into a 145- by 86-nautical-mile elliptical orbit. Slant range between the two vehicles was very close to the nominal 1000 miles. Major objective of the mission was achieved during the fourth revolution when the spacecraft rendezvoused with the GATV at 5 hours 23 minutes ground elapsed time and docked with it about 30 minutes later. More spacecraft propellant was used to achieve rendezvous than had been predicted, imposing constraints on the remainder of the mission and requiring the development of an alternate flight plan. As a result, several experiments were not completed, and another secondary objective - docking practice - was not attempted. To conserve fuel and permit remaining objectives to be met, the spacecraft remained docked with the GATV for about 39 hours. During this period, a bending mode test was conducted to determine the dynamics of the docked vehicles, standup extravehicular activties (EVA) were conducted, and several experiments were performed. The GATV primary and secondary propulsion systems were used for six maneuvers to put the docked spacecraft into position for rendezvous with the Gemini VIII GATV as a passive target. The spacecraft undocked at 44 hours 40 minutes ground elapsed time, separated from the GATV, and used its own thrusters to complete the second rendezvous some three hours later. At 48 hours and 42 minutes into the flight, a 39-minute period of umbilical EVA began, which included the retrieval of a micrometorite collection package from the Gemini VIII Agena. The hatch was opened a third time about an hour later to jettison extraneous equipment before reentry. After about three hours of stationkeeping, the spacecraft separated from the GATV. At 51 hours 39 minutes ground elapsed time, the crew performed a true anomaly-adjust maneuver to minimize reentry dispersions resulting from the retrofire maneuver.
1968 July 18 - .
- Cosmonaut revolt. - . Nation: Russia. Related Persons: Belyayev, Leonov, Nikolayev, Vershinin.
The cosmonauts are revolting against the selection of Nikolayev as their commander. They have written a letter demanding that Belyayev be put in the position. Leonov is also lobbying for the job, but Kamanin notes he has made two serious mistakes since April, no chance. Leonov attends a self-criticism meeting with the 'Gagarin comrades', self-confesses and emotionally says he will leave the cosmonaut unit if there are no future chances for promotion due to his repeated mistakes. Finally he is told that if does good work in the future, he could achieve the deputy commander position, but he can never, never make mistakes again.
A Zenit-2 spy satellite capsule has gone off course, splashed down in the Volga River, and sunk. Vershinin is in the hospital with intestinal polyps. Kamanin is reminded of Korolev's case, although he is told Vershinin's condition is not serious. There is criticism of the botched Zenit-2 recovery from Kutakhov. Meanwhile the Central Committee has decided to take no action on Czechoslovakia but send a letter to the Czech Communist Party. Kamanin is sick of this limp-wristed talk, talk, talk.
1975 July 18 - .
2016 July 18 - . 04:45 GMT - . Launch Site: Cape Canaveral. Launch Complex: Cape Canaveral LC40. Launch Pad: Cape Canaveral SLC40. LV Family: Falcon. Launch Vehicle: Falcon 9 v1.2.
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