Accession Number:

AD0698493

Title:

A PHOTOGRAPHIC STUDY OF APOLLO 9,

Descriptive Note:

Corporate Author:

MICHIGAN UNIV ANN ARBOR INST OF SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY

Personal Author(s):

• Parsons,Wayne
• Heath,Joseph

Report Date:

1969-12-01

Pagination or Media Count:

30.0

Abstract:

An experiment was conducted at the Mount Haleakala Observatory to obtain high-quality photographs of the Apollo 9 spacecraft in low earth orbit. Photographs of the Command and Service Module CSM and separate photographs of the Lunar Module LM were successfully obtained during tracking of Apollo 9 on the mornings of March 12 and 13, 1969. These photographs demonstrate the performance of the high-resolution photographic HRP system associated with the 60-in. aperture telescope at this observatory. The acquisition and tracking problems that a fast target such as the Apollo 9 CSM presents, and the solutions to these problems will be of interest to others contemplating a similar effort. This report presents a description of this experiment and an analysis of the results. Author

Descriptors:

• (*MANNED SPACECRAFT
• OPTICAL TRACKING)
• (*SATELLITE TRACKING SYSTEMS
• *PHOTOGRAPHY)
• LOW ORBIT TRAJECTORIES
• TARGET ACQUISITION
• TRACKING
• MISSION PROFILES
• TRACKING TELESCOPES
• PHOTOGRAPHIC RECORDING SYSTEMS
• DATA PROCESSING
• PHOTOGRAPHIC ANALYSIS

Subject Categories:

• Photography
• Optical Detection and Detectors
• Spacecraft Trajectories and Reentry

Distribution Statement:

APPROVED FOR PUBLIC RELEASE