Podcasts about space rocket history

Celebrations erupted in Mission Control, with broad smiles and cigar smoke marking the successful conclusion. But, while Mission control was celebrating, it was not yet known that the crew had been exposed to toxic fumes during descent. The crew was … Continue reading → The post Space Rocket History #464 – Apollo-Soyuz Test Project – Coming Home first appeared on Space Rocket History Podcast.

“I had thoughts I couldn't express at the time. It felt like we weren't just opening a hatch in space, but opening the door to a new era on Earth.”  Tom Stafford. The post Space Rocket History #463 – Apollo-Soyuz Test Project – Joint Operations first appeared on Space Rocket History Podcast.

On July 17, 1975, orbiting in space high above the French city of Metz, the American and Russian commanders shook hands. Their conversation, a mix of personal and technical remarks, reflected a casual familiarity, reminiscent of their simulator training sessions. … Continue reading → The post Space Rocket History #462 – Apollo-Soyuz Test Project – Handshake first appeared on Space Rocket History Podcast.

CapCom Truly radioed at 10:46 with the go-ahead: “I've got two messages for you: Moscow is go for docking; Houston is go for docking. It's up to you guys. Have fun.” The post Space Rocket History #461 – Apollo-Soyuz Test Project – Rendezvous first appeared on Space Rocket History Podcast.

Reports from Baykonur indicated that the weather was perfect for the launch: clear skies, light winds, and hot July sunshine. The post Space Rocket History #460 – Apollo-Soyuz Test Project – Light the Candles first appeared on Space Rocket History Podcast.

Television coverage involved meticulous planning of specific television transmissions, detailed preparation for an onboard press conference, and careful scheduling of symbolic activities designed to engage and inform the public. The post Space Rocket History #459 – Apollo-Soyuz Test Project – I Want my Apollo/Soyuz TV first appeared on Space Rocket History Podcast.

Eight cosmonauts arrived in Washington, D.C. on February 7th, 1975 to start their final training session in the U.S. as the technical specialists argued whether the spacecraft was ready or not. The post Space Rocket History #458 – Apollo-Soyuz Test Project – Final Training & Tang Ceremony first appeared on Space Rocket History Podcast.

The origin of the Soviet's concern, regarding the potential impact of the Apollo Command Module's Reaction Control System (RCS) thrusters on the Soyuz spacecraft during docking maneuvers, can be traced back to a Skylab film. The post Space Rocket History #457 – Apollo-Soyuz Test Project – Soviet Concerns with Apollo first appeared on Space Rocket History Podcast.

Continue Listening to Space Rocket History on the Main Feed. Space Rocket History Podcast Homepage.

Soyuz 16 served as a comprehensive rehearsal for the Soviet contribution to Apollo-Soyuz Test Project (ASTP). The post Space Rocket History #456 – Apollo-Soyuz Test Project – Soyuz 16 first appeared on Space Rocket History Podcast.

The American astronauts acknowledged the necessity of enhancing their Russian language proficiency. They observed that their Russian counterparts, had demonstrated a remarkable commitment to learning English, dedicating 6 to 8 hours each day to individual language instruction. The post Space Rocket History #455 – Apollo-Soyuz Test Project – Spacecraft Orientation first appeared on Space Rocket History Podcast.

Lovell toggled the “master arm” switch to On and glanced around to see if everything else was in order. Guidance control was set to “Primary Guidance”; thrust control was on “Auto”; engine gimbals were enabled; the propellant quantity, temperature, and pressure looked good; the ship was maintaining the correct attitude. Homepage with pictures.

Aquarius, can you see any stars yet? Homepage with pictures

For the first time, the Soviet Union publicly announced the crew assignments for a Soyuz mission before the flight. Previously, cosmonaut identities were kept secret until after their flights. The post Space Rocket History #454 – Apollo-Soyuz Test Project – Astronauts & Cosmonauts first appeared on Space Rocket History Podcast.

According to George Low, the Soviet mission operations control room was quite large – it contained 16 two-man consoles, thus allowing them 32 flight controllers. In addition, there was a back row of consoles which were used for personnel such … Continue reading → The post Space Rocket History #453 – Apollo-Soyuz Test Project – Mid-term Review first appeared on Space Rocket History Podcast.

Cronkite did not look good. He called Schirra over and thrust a sheet of wire-service copy at him. Schirra scanned the text hurriedly, and with each sentence his heart sank. This was bad. This was worse than bad. This was . . . unheard of. He had a thousand questions, but there wasn't time to ask…… Homepage with pictures 

Kraft wanted to fire the descent engine now, get the ship back on its free-return slingshot course, and when it emerged from behind the moon and reached the PC+2 point, execute any maneuvers that might be required to refine the trajectory or increase its speed. Homepage with pictures.

In April of 1972, George Low returned to Washington from Moscow and briefed Henry Kissinger. He conveyed NASA's assessment that a joint space mission in 1975 was feasible. The post Space Rocket History #452 – Apollo-Soyuz Test Project – Full Speed Ahead first appeared on Space Rocket History Podcast.

In a re-evaluation of the proposed test mission, the Soviets concluded that utilizing the Salyut spacecraft would not be technically and economically viable. The post Space Rocket History #451 – Apollo-Soyuz Test Project – No More Salyut? first appeared on Space Rocket History Podcast.

As near as Lovell could tell, it would be a while before the ship's endgame would play out. He had no way of calculating the leak rate in the tank, but if the moving needle was any indication, he had a couple hours at least before the 318 pounds of oxygen were gone. Homepage with pictures

EECOM, Sy Liebergot looked away from his monitor; the end, he knew, was at last here. Liebergot, through no fault of his own, was about to become the first flight controller in the history of the manned space program to lose the ship that had been placed in his charge. Homepage with pictures.

Finally Kraft and Gilruth told the Soviets that if they were unwilling to agree to the telephone conversations then the NASA delegation might as well pack up and go back to Houston. After some hesitation, the Soviets decided to try … Continue reading → The post Space Rocket History #450 – Apollo-Soyuz Test Project – Round 3 with the Soviets first appeared on Space Rocket History Podcast.

The spacecraft designers led by Caldwell Johnson faced a demanding task. Director Gilruth urged them to accelerate the development of the docking adapter design, aiming to have a functional model ready for the upcoming November meeting with the Soviets. The post Space Rocket History #449 – Apollo-Soyuz Test Project – Apollo-Salyut Test Mission Planning first appeared on Space Rocket History Podcast.

Swigert: I believe we've had a problem here! CapComm: This is Houston. Say again, please. Lovell: Houston, we've had a problem. Homepage with Pictures:

By the time Flight Director Kranz heard Lovell's report, of “Houston, we've had a problem. ” three controllers had reported related problems. Kranz was wondering which problem Lovell was reporting, as he started relaying the long list of warning indications from the spacecraft displays. Homepage with Pictures

Two options were presented: Apollo docking with Salyut/Soyuz or Soyuz with Skylab/Apollo. Caldwell Johnson was taken aback by the Soviets' eagerness to immediately pursue the development of a universal docking mechanism. The post Space Rocket History #448 – Apollo-Soyuz Test Project – Soyuz/Skylab & Apollo/Salyut first appeared on Space Rocket History Podcast.

On January 20th, 1971 in private negotiation, Low and Frutkin met with Keldysh and Feoktistov to discuss rendezvous and docking. NASA proposed developing compatible systems for Apollo and Soyuz rather than future spacecraft, aiming to give specialists something concrete on … Continue reading → The post Space Rocket History #447 – Apollo-Soyuz Test Project – Creating a Partnership first appeared on Space Rocket History Podcast.

Milt Windier's team at mission control quickly reviewed the status of the remaining four engines, ran the computations for the new engine cutoff times, and passed them to the crew. Homepage with Pictures

As Lovell prepared for the thruster adjustments, Haise finished closing down the LEM and drifted through the tunnel back toward the command module and Swigert threw the switch to stir all 4 cryogenic tanks. Homepage with Pictures

A critical problem emerged during the separation and ignition of the third stage approximately five minutes into the flight. A failure in the electrical system responsible for releasing the locks securing the core stage of the booster to the third stage resulted in only one side of the locks disengaging. Continue reading → The post Space Rocket History #446 – Apollo-Soyuz Test Project – Tell Us All Your Secrets first appeared on Space Rocket History Podcast.

A critical problem emerged during the separation and ignition of the third stage approximately five minutes into the flight. A failure in the electrical system responsible for releasing the locks securing the core stage of the booster to the third stage resulted in only one side of the locks disengaging. Continue reading → The post Space Rocket History #445 – Apollo-Soyuz Test Project – A Kind Invitation first appeared on Space Rocket History Podcast.

A critical problem emerged during the separation and ignition of the third stage approximately five minutes into the flight. A failure in the electrical system responsible for releasing the locks securing the core stage of the booster to the third stage resulted in only one side of the locks disengaging. Continue reading → The post Space Rocket History #444 – Apollo-Soyuz Test Project – Competition and Cooperation first appeared on Space Rocket History Podcast.

Lovell completed four space flights and is one of only three men to travel to the Moon twice. Lovell accrued over 715 hours spent in space, and he saw a total of 269 sunrises from space on his Gemini and Apollo flights. Homepage with pictures.

During the Apollo era, North American-Downey built the Apollo Command & Service Module. After each completed spacecraft, Nasa conducted formal reviews of the build paper work before each vehicle was accepted for flight. Homepage with pictures.

A critical problem emerged during the separation and ignition of the third stage approximately five minutes into the flight. A failure in the electrical system responsible for releasing the locks securing the core stage of the booster to the third stage resulted in only one side of the locks disengaging. Continue reading → The post Space Rocket History #443 – Salyut 4 – The April 5th Anomaly & Soyuz 18 with Lazarev, Makarov, Klimuk, & Sevastyanov first appeared on Space Rocket History Podcast.

The crew of Soyuz 17 embarked on a historic 29-day mission, surpassing the previous Soviet mission-duration record of 23 days set by the Soyuz 11 crew aboard Salyut 1 in 1971. The post Space Rocket History #442 – Salyut 4 – Soyuz 17 with Gubarev & Grechko first appeared on Space Rocket History Podcast.

At thirty-six, Haise was the youngest member of the crew of Apollo 13, and his black hair and angular features made him seem younger still. Homepage with Pictures.

John Leonard Swigert Jr. aka Jack Swigert was born on August 30, 1931 in Denver, Colorado to parents John Leonard Sr. and Virginia Swigert. Homepage with Pictures.

The Salyut 4 space station, designated DOS-4, marked the second phase of the Soviet Union's civilian space station program. It was an improved version of the failed Salyut 2 station, with several notable enhancements.   The post Space Rocket History #441 – Salyut 4 first appeared on Space Rocket History Podcast.

Initially, the rendezvous with Salyut 3 proceeded smoothly. However, as the Soyuz spacecraft approached the station, a critical problem arose. The Igla rendezvous system, designed to guide the spacecraft to the station, malfunctioned. The post Space Rocket History #440 – Salyut 3 – Soyuz 14 & Soyuz 15 Part 2 first appeared on Space Rocket History Podcast.

Targeted for touchdown on the third lunar landing was a place known as the Fra Mauro range, a stretch of rugged, Appalachian-type mounds 110 miles east of the Apollo 12 landing site. Homepage with pictures.

Just before the mission began things started to go wrong. The weekend before launch Charlie Duke, the backup lunar module pilot, came down with a case of German measles. Homepage with pictures.

Salyut 3 featured a “self-defense” gun purportedly designed by Alexander Nudelman for station use. Some reports suggest it was outfitted with a Nudelman-Rikhter “Vulkan” gun, a modified version of the 23mm Nudelman aircraft cannon, or conceivably a Nudelman NR-30 30mm … Continue reading → The post Space Rocket History #439 – Salyut 3 – Soyuz 14 Part 1 first appeared on Space Rocket History Podcast.

NASA's Explorer 50, also known as Interplanetary Monitoring Platform-8 or IMP-8, stands as a testament to humanity's relentless pursuit of knowledge and exploration beyond the confines of Earth.   The post Space Rocket History #438 – Explorer 50, Westar 1, & NOAA 4 first appeared on Space Rocket History Podcast.

Dick Gordon opened the tunnel to Intrepid, saw his companions floating in a dirty cloud of moon dust, and slammed the hatch closed. He called out, “You guys ain't gonna mess up my nice clean spacecraft!” Homepage with pictures

Ten days ago, their Saturn V rocket had blasted Bean and his crew mates out of earth's gravitational pull. Now their home planet was pulling them back at more than 24,000 miles per hour, twelve times faster than a high-speed rifle bullet. “Boy,” said Bean, “we are really hauling!” Homepage with pictures

Scientists had long been intrigued by Mercury, the innermost planet of our solar system. Despite its proximity to the Sun, Mercury remained largely unexplored, with many questions remaining about its surface features, geological composition, and magnetic field. The scientific community … Continue reading → The post Space Rocket History #437 – Mariner 10 – Venus & Mercury first appeared on Space Rocket History Podcast.

Pioneer 11 detected Saturn's bow shock on Aug. 31, 1979, about 932,000 miles (1.5 million kilometers) out from the planet, thus providing the first conclusive evidence of the existence of Saturn's magnetic field. The post Space Rocket History #436 – Pioneer 11 first appeared on Space Rocket History Podcast.

This second generation of the Soyuz spacecraft, the Soyuz 7k-T was flown on Soyuz 12 through Soyuz 40 missions from 1973–1981. The new 7K-T spacecraft was designed to accommodate only two cosmonauts who would wear pressure suits at all times … Continue reading → The post Space Rocket History #435 – Soyuz 12 & 13 first appeared on Space Rocket History Podcast.

At this point in 1973, the Soviets were attempting to fly 2 types of space station, the long duration orbital station scientific version called DOS.  The other station was a military spy space station equipped with a machine gun, called … Continue reading → The post Space Rocket History #434 – Salyut 2, Mars 4, 5, 6, 7 & Tang Ceremony first appeared on Space Rocket History Podcast.