View allAll Photos Tagged MSFC
“Shown here are the elements of a simulated environmental test program being conducted at the Marshall Space Flight Center to determine the problems of maintaining a carrier rocket in space. In these experiments, an engineer stands on an air-bearing platform within a pressurized space suit. Under these simulated space conditions, he is directed through a series of mechanical and electrical operations, representative of those an astronaut might encounter in his alternate role as a “space mechanic.” These tasks are performed on specially made up units, such as the one on which the engineer is working, and an actual Saturn H-1 engine, seen at right. The tests are being conducted jointly by NASA’s Marshall and Manned Spacecraft Centers. (NASA-Marshall Photo)
January 3, 1962
IMMEDIATE RELEASE”
Above per the official NASA/MSFC caption associated with the image.
The primitivity is absolutely delightful & endearing. Although I know less than squat regarding electrical connections, circuitry, etc., then or now, I do know that's a vacuum tube at the top of the angled "made up unit" with the hand-written numbers on it.
8" x 10.5".
1962 MSFC artist’s concept of an Apollo Saturn C-5 during ascent.
A very static, still-life depiction...no sense of movement...sort of like its suspended and motionless.
A confirmed Perseid meteor as observed by a NASA meteor camera at Hiram College in Ohio.
#AskNASA #NASA #Perseid #MeteorShower
Image credit: NASA/MSFC/MEO
Read more/watch video:
blogs.nasa.gov/Watch_the_Skies/2014/05/16/earthgrazer-seen-in-the-southern-sky
View more images from the Meteoroid Environment Office:
www.flickr.com/photos/nasamarshall/sets/72157607380035209/
_____________________________________________
These official NASA photographs are being made available for publication by news organizations and/or for personal use printing by the subject(s) of the photographs. The photographs may not be used in materials, advertisements, products, or promotions that in any way suggest approval or endorsement by NASA. All Images used must be credited. For information on usage rights please visit: www.nasa.gov/audience/formedia/features/MP_Photo_Guidelin...
An early shuttle concept from NASA's Marshall Space Flight Center. Many such proposals included jet engines to assist in flying the booster stage back to the launch site.
Two probable Perseids occurring within seconds as seen by NASA meteor camera at Oberlin College in Ohio.
#AskNASA #NASA #Perseid #MeteorShower
Image credit: NASA/MSFC/MEO
Read more/watch video:
blogs.nasa.gov/Watch_the_Skies/2014/05/16/earthgrazer-seen-in-the-southern-sky
View more images from the Meteoroid Environment Office:
www.flickr.com/photos/nasamarshall/sets/72157607380035209/
_____________________________________________
These official NASA photographs are being made available for publication by news organizations and/or for personal use printing by the subject(s) of the photographs. The photographs may not be used in materials, advertisements, products, or promotions that in any way suggest approval or endorsement by NASA. All Images used must be credited. For information on usage rights please visit: www.nasa.gov/audience/formedia/features/MP_Photo_Guidelin...
Full Description: At its founding, the Marshall Space Flight Center (MSFC) inherited the Army's Jupiter and Redstone test stands, but much larger facilities were needed for the giant stages of the Saturn V. From 1960 to 1964, the existing stands were remodeled and a sizable new test area was developed. The new comprehensive test complex for propulsion and structural dynamics was unique.
Construction of the S-IC Static test stand complex began in 1961 in the west test area of MSFC, and was completed in 1964. The S-IC static test stand was designed to develop and test the 138-ft long and 33-ft diameter Saturn V S-IC first stage, weighing in at 280,000 pounds. Required to hold down the brute force of a 7,500,000-pound thrust produced by 5 F-1 engines, the S-IC static test stand was designed and constructed with the strength of hundreds of tons of steel and 12,000,000 pounds of cement, planted down to bedrock 40 feet below ground level. The foundation walls, constructed with concrete and steel, are 4 feet thick. The base structure consists of four towers with 40-foot-thick walls extending upward 144 feet above ground level. The structure was topped by a crane with a 135-foot boom. With the boom in the upright position, the stand was given an overall height of 405 feet, placing it among the highest structures in Alabama at the time. In addition to the stand itself, related facilities were constructed during this time. Built northeast of the stand was a newly constructed Pump House. Its function was to provide water to the stand to prevent melting damage during testing. The water was sprayed through small holes in the stand's 1900 ton flame deflector at the rate of 320,000 gallons per minute. In this photo, taken September 5, 1963, the flame deflector is being installed in the S-IC test stand.
Credit: NASA
Image Number: MSFC-75-SA-4105-2C
Date: September 5, 1963
A wonderful engraving, simple yet elegant. At/from. The obituary is a must read:
www.findagrave.com/memorial/95670671/rosemary-ann-dobbins
Credit: "Find a Grave" website
Also, although disappointingly cursory, with no reference to, nor context as to significance. That being: a woman - during the early 1960s - producing exquisite, foundational & critical technical illustrations - for NASA - specifically, pertaining to the APOLLO PROGRAM (and who knows what else) - as part of one of the United States’ most incredible accomplishments - when a woman’s “place” was “in the kitchen”. Particularly underwhelming since it was posted in conjunction with Women's History Month.
Don't get me wrong, I appreciate the effort, but it totally misses the point & would more fittingly be part of "Command Module History Month". But at least she’s finally “somebody” via a NASA outlet, hence a “WIN”:
www.nasa.gov/image-feature/rosemary-dobbins-illustrating-...
A confirmed Perseid meteor observed by one of the All Sky cameras at the Allegheny Observatory near Pittsburgh, PA.
#askNASA #MeteorShower #Perseids
Image credit: NASA/MSFC/MEO
Read more/watch video:
blogs.nasa.gov/Watch_the_Skies/2014/05/16/earthgrazer-seen-in-the-southern-sky
View more images from the Meteoroid Environment Office:
www.flickr.com/photos/nasamarshall/sets/72157607380035209/
_____________________________________________
These official NASA photographs are being made available for publication by news organizations and/or for personal use printing by the subject(s) of the photographs. The photographs may not be used in materials, advertisements, products, or promotions that in any way suggest approval or endorsement by NASA. All Images used must be credited. For information on usage rights please visit: www.nasa.gov/audience/formedia/features/MP_Photo_Guidelin...
The adapter and a United Launch Alliance Delta IV test article were successfully connected during a fit check at the Marshall Center. (NASA/MSFC)
More about SLS:
More SLS graphics and concepts:
www.nasa.gov/exploration/systems/sls/multimedia/gallery/S...
Space Launch System Flickr album
www.flickr.com/photos/28634332@N05/sets/72157627559536895/
________________________________
These official NASA photographs are being made available for publication by news organizations and/or for personal use printing by the subject(s) of the photographs. The photographs may not be used in materials, advertisements, products, or promotions that in any way suggest approval or endorsement by NASA. All Images used must be credited. For information on usage rights please visit: www.nasa.gov/audience/formedia/features/MP_Photo_Guidelin...
NASA PHOTO: MSFC-9801807. REMASTERED by Dan Beaumont
President John Kennedy and Dr. von Braun tour one of the laboratories at Marshall Space Flight Center, September 11, 1962.
Von Braun 1957 INFO /Dan Beaumont Space Museum: www.flickr.com/photos/mrdanbeaumont/15544174008/in/photos...
Von Braun, NASA documents and biography: history.msfc.nasa.gov/vonbraun/
Wernher von Braun: "Missile to Moon", documentary. PBS (2012) VIDEO: www.youtube.com/watch?v=4Ch0OgkkJKI
Wernher von Braun rocket scientist VIDEO COLLECTION: www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PL-HsE-FedVRg3kVyyhy5ohjoNV...
NASA PHOTO: MSFC-75-SA-4105-2C. REMASTERED by Dan Beaumont.
NASA / MSFC INFO: Explorer 1 atop a Jupiter-C in gantry. Jupiter-C carrying the first American satellite, Explorer 1, was successfully launched on January 31, 1958. The Jupiter-C launch vehicle consisted of a modified version of the Redstone rocket's first stage and two upper stages of clustered Baby Sergeant rockets developed by the Jet Propulsion Laboratory and later designated as Juno boosters for space launches.
Von Braun with (ABMA) and JPL, "Sputnik challenge" with Explorer one (Development in 84 days) 1957 VIDEO: www.youtube.com/watch?v=0U5Y0-dY0FI
WIKIPEDIA INFO: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Explorer_1
NASA INFO: www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/explorer/explorer-overview.html
EXPLORER 1: " First US satellite "Jupiter C rocket, January 31, 1958 VIDEO ( French audio ): www.youtube.com/watch?v=wK40bJm-G4c
Wernher von Braun: "Missile to Moon", documentary. PBS (2012) VIDEO: www.youtube.com/watch?v=4Ch0OgkkJKI
Explorer one, US first satellite, january 31, 1958 VIDEO FROM JPL: www.youtube.com/watch?v=HNHCEK6cPwI
Jupiter C rocket launch: " Explorer 4 satellite ", July 26, 1958 VIDEO: www.youtube.com/watch?v=NengyrD9-ag
Marshall Center engineers conduct the first circumferential weld of the pathfinder version of the adapter design. (NASA/MSFC)
More about SLS:
More SLS graphics and concepts:
www.nasa.gov/exploration/systems/sls/multimedia/gallery/S...
Space Launch System Flickr album
www.flickr.com/photos/28634332@N05/sets/72157627559536895/
________________________________
These official NASA photographs are being made available for publication by news organizations and/or for personal use printing by the subject(s) of the photographs. The photographs may not be used in materials, advertisements, products, or promotions that in any way suggest approval or endorsement by NASA. All Images used must be credited. For information on usage rights please visit: www.nasa.gov/audience/formedia/features/MP_Photo_Guidelin...
You gotta start somewhere, right? A MSFC test subject/engineer appears to be testing the use of some common terrestrial/household/garage tools, while standing on a crude plywood low-friction air-cushion platform, to ascertain the action/reaction challenges astronauts might face with similar tasks in zero-g. Good old-fashioned rope, tied to his harness and anchored above, appears to be the safety/fall prevention mechanism - OUTSTANDING. And possibly an H-1 rocket engine up on blocks behind him?
8" x 10.5".
“In 1970, NASA initiated Phase A contracts to study alternate Space Shuttle designs in addition to the two-stage fully reusable Space Shuttle system already under development. A number of alternate systems were developed to ensure the development of the optimum earth-to-orbit system, including the Stage-and-a-half Chemical Interorbital Shuttle, shown here. The concept would utilize a reusable manned spacecraft with an onboard propulsion system attached to an expendable fuel tank to provide supplementary propellants.”
Above and image at/from:
commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Chemical_Interorbital_Shu...
Credit: Wikimedia Commons website
Excellent reading regarding the Chemical Interorbital Shuttle, i.e. space tug:
www.secretprojects.co.uk/threads/chemical-interorbital-sh...
Credit: SECRET PROJECTS FORUM website
Further informative reading, with the image featured on the cover:
ntrs.nasa.gov/api/citations/19740013405/downloads/1974001...
Actually, my primary purpose for posting this was because it’s by Manuel E. Alvarez, an extremely talented & formerly elusive North American Rockwell/Rockwell International artist.
Description: At its founding, the Marshall Space Flight Center (MSFC) inherited the Army's Jupiter and Redstone test stands, but much larger facilities were needed for the giant stages of the Saturn V. From 1960 to 1964, the existing stands were remodeled and a sizable new test area was developed. The new comprehensive test complex for propulsion and structural dynamics was unique within the nation and the free world, and they remain so today because they were constructed with foresight to meet the future as well as on-going needs. Construction of the S-IC Static test stand complex began in 1961 in the west test area of MSFC, and was completed in 1964. The S-IC static test stand was designed to develop and test the 138-ft long and 33-ft diameter Saturn V S-IC first stage, or booster stage, weighing in at 280,000 pounds. Required to hold down the brute force of a 7,500,000-pound thrust produced by 5 F-1 engines, the S-IC static test stand was designed and constructed with the strength of hundreds of tons of steel and 12,000,000 pounds of cement, planted down to bedrock 40 feet below ground level. The foundation walls, constructed with concrete and steel, are 4 feet thick. The base structure consists of four towers with 40-foot-thick walls extending upward 144 feet above ground level. The structure was topped by a crane with a 135-foot boom. With the boom in the upright position, the stand was given an overall height of 405 feet, placing it among the highest structures in Alabama at the time. This aerial shot gives a birds eye view of the test stand construction site in its entirety as of August 25, 1961. The site is now ready for its foundation. The original Redstone Test Stand can be seen in the upper center portion of the photograph. The far upper right hand corner reveals the S-4 Dynamic test stand which was later taken down.
Credit: NASA
Image Number: SPD-MARSH-0600502
Date: August 25, 1961
Vehicle identification is based on, in conjunction with the hand-annotated date on the verso, the following excerpts:
“The S-IC-4 stage arrived at MSFC [this is a little misleading, as technically, the MTF was organizationally a part of MSFC, but not geographically] on April 4 aboard the barge Pearl River. The following day Boeing personnel placed the stage in the MTF S-IC static test stand.”
Above at/from:
www.hq.nasa.gov/pao/History/MHR-5/part-8.htm
And:
“…the 124-meter-tall test stand at the Mississippi Test Facility is hoisting the first operational S-IC first stage for the Saturn V into test position.”
www.hq.nasa.gov/pao/History/SP-4206/ch3.htm
Specifically:
www.hq.nasa.gov/pao/History/SP-4206/p75b.jpg
Interestingly, thanks to the remarkable inherent photo resolution & my gracious 1200 dpi scanning, a “SIC-T4-2” placard affixed to the handrail of the B-1/B-2 Test Stand’s walkway is easily legible, almost directly above the upper right F-1 engine.
Finally, I’m assuming the large, apparently ribbed cylindrical object, wrapped & strapped(?) down to the deck of “Pearl River” to be an F-1 engine nozzle extension. Makes sense it/they would’ve accompanied the S-IC stage, right? However, would all FIVE fit on one barge? I have a photo from another perspective, of “Pearl River”, and it doesn’t look like there’s that much cargo capacity aft of the bridge.
Really a superb photo, further enhanced by the subject matter. Still of superior gloss, the obvious fingerprint near the upper left corner does not detract. And get this, it's part of the original photographic processing...therefore not unique to this photo, there's absolutely no relief to it when viewed obliquely. Not to be a dick, but I think the print should be run through AFIS, and the guy responsible, along with his non-existent "QC" supervisor should both be posthumously suspended, demoted or something like that.
Peripheral, but informative...and it includes pics & references to S-IC-4:
www.collectspace.com/ubb/Forum29/HTML/001915.html
Credit: collectSPACE website
Ken Cooper, materials engineer, shows Newman some of the recent builds from the Additive Manufacturing Lab. The Marshall Center is at the forefront of this emerging technology and has begun "printing" parts for rocket engines.
Read more about Dr. Dava Newman
Image credit: NASA/MSFC/Emmett Given
_____________________________________________
These official NASA photographs are being made available for publication by news organizations and/or for personal use printing by the subject(s) of the photographs. The photographs may not be used in materials, advertisements, products, or promotions that in any way suggest approval or endorsement by NASA. All Images used must be credited. For information on usage rights please visit: www.nasa.gov/audience/formedia/features/MP_Photo_Guidelin...
Caption: First place, college race: University of Puerto Rico at Humacao, Team 2.
Image credit: NASA/MSFC/Fred Deaton
View all 2014 race photos here:
www.flickr.com/photos/122910914@N04/sets/72157643807281893
More about NASA's Human Exploration Rover Challenge:
NASA today declared the winners of the first NASA Human Exploration Rover Challenge, held April 11-12 at the U.S. Space & Rocket Center in Huntsville, Ala. Student racers from the Academy of Arts, Careers and Technology in Reno, Nev., claimed first place in the high school division; the University of Puerto Rico at Humacao Team 2 won the top prize in the college division.
Organized by NASA's Marshall Space Flight Center in Huntsville and building on two decades of competitive student innovation in the NASA Great Moonbuggy Race (held in the "Rocket City" from 1994-2013), the new event challenges students to design, build and race lightweight, human-powered roving vehicles, solving technical problems along the way just like NASA engineers must do.
Those NASA engineers are paying attention: Students' most innovative vehicle and hardware designs could help inform NASA's own development of rovers and other space transportation systems for future exploration missions across the solar system.
Just as importantly, the experience is designed to provide the future workforce to realize those new missions, inspiring students to pursue careers in the technical "STEM" fields -- science, technology, engineering and mathematics -- so crucial to the agency's endeavors.
Check here for full news release and full list of winners/awards:
www.nasa.gov/centers/marshall/news/news/releases/2014/14-...
More about the NASA Human Exploration Rover Challenge:
2014 Rover Challenge Photo Gallery:
www.flickr.com/photos/122910914@N04/sets/72157643807281893/
Class of 2014: Face of the Race:
www.flickr.com/photos/122910914@N04/sets/72157643816443805/
______________________________
These official NASA photographs are being made available for publication by news organizations and/or for personal use printing by the subject(s) of the photographs. The photographs may not be used in materials, advertisements, products, or promotions that in any way suggest approval or endorsement by NASA. All Images used must be credited. For information on usage rights please visit: www.nasa.gov/audience/formedia/features/MP_Photo_Guidelin...
Marshall Center engineers receive materials to begin manufacturing the flight adapter. (NASA/MSFC/Ray Downward)
More about SLS:
More SLS graphics and concepts:
www.nasa.gov/exploration/systems/sls/multimedia/gallery/S...
Space Launch System Flickr album
www.flickr.com/photos/28634332@N05/sets/72157627559536895/
________________________________
These official NASA photographs are being made available for publication by news organizations and/or for personal use printing by the subject(s) of the photographs. The photographs may not be used in materials, advertisements, products, or promotions that in any way suggest approval or endorsement by NASA. All Images used must be credited. For information on usage rights please visit: www.nasa.gov/audience/formedia/features/MP_Photo_Guidelin...
“A “full house” replaced “three-of-a-kind” at the National Aeronautics and Space Administration’s Michoud Operations this week, as a second Saturn I space vehicle first stage was returned after static firing tests at the Marshall Space Flight Center, Huntsville, Ala. Lined up (left-to-right) in assembly and checkout positions are two Saturn IB flight boosters, A Saturn IB dynamic test stage and two Saturn I first stages. The 1.5-million-pound-thrust Saturn I boosters will be used in the early phases of the Apollo manned lunar landing program as well as to orbit meteoroid technology satellites. The more powerful – 1.6-million-pound-thrust – Saturn IB first stages will launch Apollo spacecraft into earth orbit for astronaut training and spacecraft test preliminary to actual manned landings on the moon. Both the Saturn I and Saturn IB are two-stage launch vehicles. The 21-foot-diameter, 80-foot-tall first stages are being assembled at Michoud by the Chrysler Corporation Space Division.”
SA-8 first stage is on the far right.
According to this:
history.nasa.gov/MHR-5/Images/fig200.jpg
From left to right, it's: S-IB-2, S-IB-1, S-IB-D/F, and S-I-...IDK...since the online image is cutoff at this point). But hey, identification of 4 out of 5 ain't bad.
7.75" x 9.5"
In honor of Presidents Day, this is a photo of Dwight D. Eisenhower, 1953-1961, at the Dedication of the George C. Marshall Space Flight Center, in Huntsville, Alabama (September 8, 1960)
Read more about past presidents and their role with NASA:
www.nasa.gov/50th/50th_magazine/10presidents.html
and
MSFC model shop-manufactured Advanced Saturn, circa 1961/62(?), at 1/96th scale and a whopping 45".
Compare to:
www.pinterest.com/pin/Ae8w5FkT7bKMZ2YbOpF77E7Z_CFSxJ8a1vO...
Credit: Pinterest/Quitus Maximus
Rigging of the protective shields for Skylab was rehearsed many times in the neutral buoyancy simulator. Here, a shield made of netting (for simulation only) is being rigged underwater to determine the problems that would be encountered in space.
history.nasa.gov/SP-400/p55.jpg
history.nasa.gov/SP-400/ch3.htm
Credit: NASA History website, specifically "SP-400: Skylab, Our First Space Station"
Additional informative reading:
www.spacesafetymagazine.com/space-exploration/skylab/plan...
Credit: Space Safety Magazine website
And - appropriately enough - this being an MSFC photo:
"The second manned Skylab crew was launched on July 28, 1973. In addition to continuing the Skylab science program, the crew had to replace the parasol sunshade with the Marshall sail when the temperature inside the workshop started rising again. On August 6, with Astronaut Alan Bean standing by inside the workshop, Astronauts Owen Garriott, and Jack Lousma exited the Skylab space station and successfully erected the Marshall twin-pole solar shield."
history.msfc.nasa.gov/skylab/skylab_planning.html
Credit: MSFC History Office website
A MSFC test subject/engineer tests the use of some common terrestrial/household/garage tools, while standing on a crude plywood low-friction air-cushion platform, to ascertain the action-reaction challenges astronauts might face with similar tasks in a weightless environment. Old-fashioned rope, tied to his harness and anchored above, appears to be the safety/fall prevention mechanism - PRECIOUS.
He appears to be working up quite a sweat, note the condensate in the immediate vicinity of his nose/mouth...I hope his air conditioning/cooling unit is working properly. And by the looks of the form-fitting nature of the suit, along with it being quite pressurized, he's probably fighting its resistance just as much as any 'action' induced 'reaction' of the air table platform he's standing on.
The triangular outline and the checkerboard pattern behind the stern looking fellow in the background may be part of a Saturn I interstage adapter?
8" x 10.5".
At its founding, the Marshall Space Flight Center (MSFC) inherited the Army's Jupiter and Redstone test stands, but much larger facilities were needed for the giant stages of the Saturn V. From 1960 to 1964, the existing stands were remodeled and a sizable new test area was developed. The new comprehensive test complex for propulsion and structural dynamics was unique within the nation and the free world, and they remain so today because they were constructed with foresight to meet the future as well as on going needs. Construction of the S-IC Static test stand complex began in 1961 in the west test area of MSFC, and was completed in 1964. The S-IC static test stand was designed to develop and test the 138-ft long and 33-ft diameter Saturn V S-IC first stage, or booster stage, weighing in at 280,000 pounds. Required to hold down the brute force of a 7,500,000-pound thrust produced by 5 F-1 engines, the S-IC static test stand was designed and constructed with the strength of hundreds of tons of steel and 12,000,000 pounds of cement, planted down to bedrock 40 feet below ground level. The foundation walls, constructed with concrete and steel, are 4 feet thick. The base structure consists of four towers with 40-foot-thick walls extending upward 144 feet above ground level. The structure was topped by a crane with a 135-foot boom. With the boom in the upright position, the stand was given an overall height of 405 feet, placing it among the highest structures in Alabama at the time. In addition to the stand itself, related facilities were constructed during this time. Built directly east of the test stand was the Block House, which served as the control center for the test stand. The two were connected by a narrow access tunnel which housed the cables for the controls. This construction photo taken August 17, 1962 depicts a view of the Block House from the test stand site. The tunnel opening is visible in the forefront center of the photo.
Credit: NASA
Image Number: SPD-MARSH-0600551
Date: August 17, 1962
The Atlas V rocket that will launch Boeing's CST-100 Starliner spacecraft is coming together inside a United Launch Alliance facility in Decatur, Alabama. Boeing’s Starliner will launch on the Atlas V rocket to the International Space Station as part of NASA’s Commercial Crew Program. Photo credit: NASA/Marshall Space Flight Center
The Atlas V rocket that will launch Boeing's CST-100 Starliner spacecraft is coming together inside a United Launch Alliance facility in Decatur, Alabama. Boeing’s Starliner will launch on the Atlas V rocket to the International Space Station as part of NASA’s Commercial Crew Program. Photo credit: NASA/Marshall Space Flight Center
The Atlas V rocket that will launch Boeing's CST-100 Starliner spacecraft is coming together inside a United Launch Alliance facility in Decatur, Alabama. Boeing’s Starliner will launch on the Atlas V rocket to the International Space Station as part of NASA’s Commercial Crew Program. Photo credit: NASA/Marshall Space Flight Center
The Atlas V rocket that will launch Boeing's CST-100 Starliner spacecraft is coming together inside a United Launch Alliance facility in Decatur, Alabama. Boeing’s Starliner will launch on the Atlas V rocket to the International Space Station as part of NASA’s Commercial Crew Program. Photo credit: NASA/Marshall Space Flight Center
The 2019 Lunar Rover Challenge Competition was hosted by the U.S. Space and Rocket Center in Huntsville, Alabama. This annual event celebrated the 25th anniversary of what began as the Great Moonbuggy Race in 1994. High school and College teams from the United States and foreign countries competed. The awards ceremony was held at the adjacent Marriott on Saturday evening.
Image credit: NASA/Fred Deaton
Rover Challenge awards news release
The 2019 Lunar Rover Challenge Competition was hosted by the U.S. Space and Rocket Center in Huntsville, Alabama. This annual event celebrated the 25th anniversary of what began as the Great Moonbuggy Race in 1994. High school and College teams from the United States and foreign countries competed. The awards ceremony was held at the adjacent Marriott on Saturday evening.
Image credit: NASA/Fred Deaton
Rover Challenge awards news release
“Thrust structure for the Saturn V moon rocket first stage (S-IC) is lowered into its vertical assembly position, as assembly of the first S-IC stage began this week at the National Aeronautics and Space Administration’s Michoud Operations. The 33-foot-diameter, 90,000-pound corrugated tail section, built by the Boeing Company’s Launch Systems Branch, will support the booster’s five, 1.5-million-pound-thrust engines. Assembled on top of the thrust structure will be the fuel tank, intertank structure, liquid oxygen tank and forward skirt assembly.”
Hand-highlighted areas are due to this photo having been used for news/press release purposes, and I'm assuming the crude printing techniques of the time required the highlighting to provide definition and delineation within the photo.
Per Wikipedia:
“S-IC-D was the first to be built by Boeing at the Michoud Assembly Facility, New Orleans using the tooling that had been developed in Huntsville.”
Per the Saturn Illustrated Chronology (for 1965):
“Technicians at Michoud on March 24 installed the S-IC-D thrust structure in the Vertical Assembly Building.”
“On October 13 the S-IC-D arrived at MSFC's Saturn V dock after leaving Michoud dock aboard the barge Poseidon October 6, the Poseidon's first trip.”
For 1966:
“Saturn V milestones on January 13 involved the first stage and instrument unit. The S-IC-D booster went into the dynamic test stand at MSFC on this date...”
And for 1967:
“The S-IC-D stage arrived at MTF from Huntsville on April 23. Workmen at MTF placed the stage in storage pending its use in the early fall.”
SA-1 liftoff: MSFC re-release to mark the 20th Anniversary of the first research and development flight of the Saturn space vehicle (SA-1), 27 October 1961.
The fifth and final F-1 engine is about to be installed by Boeing technicians in mid-February 1966, leaving only minor assembly work to complete the stage. S-IC-3 is the first flight Saturn V first stage to be assembled at NASA’s Michoud Assembly Facility (MAF). The New Orleans rocket will be used to launch the flight of Apollo 8. Its five engines produce 7.5-million pounds of thrust, the equivalent of 160-million horsepower in flight, making the first stage the free world’s largest and most powerful rocket.
Above taken from another photo caption and slightly reworded to be applicable.
The remaining engine is visible on the far right, possibly being prepared for hoisting and installation. Some additional great views of the facility installation hoist, and of course, the requisite engine horizontal installation tool: ;-)
archive.org/details/MSFC-6975864
Credit: Internet Archive website
www.boeingimages.com/archive/Saturn%20V%20first%20Stage%2...
Credit: Boeing Images website
As always, excellent additional information - in this case pertaining to vertical engine installation/removal, and great additional links, at:
heroicrelics.org/info/f-1/f-1-vei-g4049.html
Credit: Mike Jetzer/heroicrelics.org
“REFUELING OPERATION”
Alrighty…based on the inset diagrams, the R-1/R2-labeled vehicle, which has apparently docked with the “tanker”, is being refueled through the two feed lines into what (to me) look like two vernier rocket engine nozzles. Note the different configurations of the two feed lines, to include color, possibly due to one being the oxidizer and the other the fuel. Note also - based on the inset diagrams - that the "interstage" of the R-1/R2 vehicle appears to remain attached to the tanker/depot after undocking. So then, what are the four appendages at the aft end of the tanker/depot? I initially thought they were engines, but no longer. IDK. And, lastly, can it be assumed that the R-1/R2 vehicle is manned? For lunar…interplanetary exploration? ¯\_(ツ)_/¯
The verso bears the repeating letters/logo of "EKC". This rarely seen Eastman Kodak Company backprint technique pre-dates the coveted "A KODAK PAPER" watermarked NASA photographs, hence my date range estimation.
Most importantly & fortunately, just enough of the artist’s signature escaped cropping, permitting my identification of the individual, that being Euel Dean Cagle. Mr. Cagle was a NASA-MFSC artist, born December 1925/died January 2002, with unfortunately no additional information…as of yet. A WIN nonetheless…I’ll take it.
Also, per a blurb in the May 1979 issue of “NASA Activities”, he’s identified as being responsible for the final design and artwork for the original/official Space Telescope Program "badge"…aka the Hubble Space Telescope.
“Saturn V Breadboard, S-IV-B and instrument unit 500ST Stages.”
Awarded the contract September 1964, operated by the Boeing Company, the Saturn V Development Facility, aka the "Saturn V breadboard" at MSFC, would electrically simulate the operation of the Saturn V and its ground and electrical support equipment. Each step at the launch site, through liftoff and flight of each stage, could be computer-simulated at the facility.
Above at:
history.nasa.gov/MHR-5/part-9.htm
I believe "500ST" and/or "500S/T" refer to the simulator/test articles. The complete(?) S-IVB version of such seen here I guess. To include its J-2 engine.
The 2019 Lunar Rover Challenge Competition was hosted by the U.S. Space and Rocket Center in Huntsville, Alabama. This annual event celebrated the 25th anniversary of what began as the Great Moonbuggy Race in 1994. High school and College teams from the United States and foreign countries competed. The awards ceremony was held at the adjacent Marriott on Saturday evening.
Image credit: NASA/Fred Deaton
Rover Challenge awards news release
The sixth Saturn IB booster (S-IB-6) built at Michoud for launching in the Apollo moonshot program is rolled aboard barge for upriver trip to Huntsville, Ala., and static firing tests. This is the first booster to be shipped sans the familiar blue protective cover. Technicians decided it wasn't needed. This may be one of the boosters which will lift three astronauts into orbit aboard the Apollo capsule."
I believe it was also the first Saturn I/IB to have all white fuel tanks, not the alternating black and white.
If indeed S-IB-6, an excellent concise history of the vehicle is as follows:
SA-206: (S-IB-6/S-IVB-206/S-IU-206) Launched 5/25/1973 from KSC LC39B with CSM-116 on Skylab-2 orbital mission. Stages originally manufactured in 1966, delivered KSC December 1966, erected on LC37B on January 23, 1967 for AS-206 mission with LM-1, then destacked after AS-204 fire resulted in LM-1 reassignment to SA-204. Returned to Michoud (S-1B-6), Huntington Beach (S-IVB-6) and Huntsville (S-IU-6) during March/April 1967 for storage. Refurbished and tested in 1971-72. S-IU-206 delivered KSC June 1971. S-1B and S-IVB delivered August 1972.
Credit: Space Launch Report website, specifically:
Dr. Frank Six, assistant manager of Marshall’s Academic Affairs Office, hands out certificates during the NASA Community College Aerospace Scholars workshop at NASA’s Marshall Space Flight Center, in Huntsville, Alabama.
@NASA_Marshall #NASA_Marshall #NCAS2014 #STEM #NASA
Image Credit: NASA/MSFC/Fred Kepner
The 2019 Lunar Rover Challenge Competition was hosted by the U.S. Space and Rocket Center in Huntsville, Alabama. This annual event celebrated the 25th anniversary of what began as the Great Moonbuggy Race in 1994. High school and College teams from the United States and foreign countries competed. The awards ceremony was held at the adjacent Marriott on Saturday evening.
Image credit: NASA/Fred Deaton
Rover Challenge awards news release