This is my Apollo CSM in 2/3 Scale. It was used in the Apollo 13 Movie in 1995 and hasnt been used since. I bought it 10 years ago and now it sits next to my planetarium. We hold lectures twice a week, especially focused on Kids and explain how rockets work and how big the universe really is. If you have any questions, feel free to ask!

The film Apollo 13 shows the CDR on the left, CMP middle, LMP on the right. This is at launch.

The film Fist Man shows them seated as CDR, LMP, CMP at launch

I’m wondering if the switch to direct rendezvous from coelliptic rendezvous for Apollo 14 had anything to do with the lunar rover. Obviously the rover wasn’t used on 14, but it seems possible to me the direct rendezvous approach was selected specifically because the savings in fuel mass would allow for carrying the rover, and that this approach was adopted for the Apollo 14 mission to prove direct rendezvous’ viability prior to sending the rover. In other words, the timing seems to line up (that having been said, I don’t know what the mission profile for Apollo 13 called for, coelliptic or direct rendezvous).

Does anyone know one way or the other?

Was his illness caused by the conditions? Or did he pick up a virus?

wonder what would have happened if the flight was normal and he was sick for landing/EVA.

Just realized it’s JY who awakens Mattingly to “get into the simulator“. And then the JY seems to defer to KM as the expert on the CM.

Couldn’t it be safe to assume that JY was more than an expert Ashe was CMP on 9 and well on his way to training as CDR on Apollo 16 (Though Not yet announced).

or was an earth re-entry from lunar orbit drastically different than a re-entry from earth orbit ?

ps. Is there any evidence ANY of the Apollo astronauts actually did sim work to help 13 return?

Look at 47:22 bottom middle/right. Bit confused!

Hi all,

I have looked for some information on this subject and have not been able to find much. I am curious as to how much time the astronauts on the Apollo missions spent in the LEM on the journey to the moon. Were the hatches on the doors open soon after they docked to the LEM? Did the astronauts use the extra space in the LEM to sleep/spend time? Or did they not utilize the LEM until soon before separation and landing on the moon?

I know that the LEM was jettisoned shortly after redocking so it was not utilized on the return journey, but curious if this was the case for the trip out as well.

Thanks in advance for any insight.

For those of you interested in diving a bit deeper into Apollo, I would highly recommend trying out Project Apollo - NASSP for Orbiter.

Orbiter is a free physics based space simulator and we have been developing NASSP (NASA Apollo Space Simulation Project) for many years and it's constantly evolving/improving!

This allows you to fly any of the Apollo missions as they were flown with the actual computer software and a very accurate systems simulation. We also have been working on the virtual cockpit in the CM and LM and they really outshine the old 2d version which if any of you are familiar with NASSP might know.

Additionally, users have been able to fly custom missions to other landing sites using the RTCC (real time computing complex) calculations, the possibilities are enormous!

We have an orbiter forum site here with installation instructions stickied. Additionally, we have a discord presence in the #nassp channel of the spaceflight discord:

https://discord.gg/9PnBbt38U2

Oh yeah, did I mention it's all free?

Feel free to ask questions here or drop by the forum and discord!

-NASSP Dev Team

Also, those of you who do fly NASSP, please post your screenshots in this thread!

Ok..so the Apollo 13 movie is somewhat Hollywood-tized. sure..but still a fantastic movie.

But the one thing i did not understand one bit is during the return to earth after the course correction burn they came in just a bit to steep of an angle again for re-entry. The reason was they were expected to be hauling a couple of hunderds of pounds of moonrock which they obviously did not have. So the crew was asked by mission control to get some weight from the LM to the CM to put the angle a bit down?

I thought "what?" Does that make any sense or difference in a zero G emvironment? Did this actually happen?

(This might be a stupid question) I’m watching this new documentary about Apollo 13 on Netflix and I was wondering how did the astronauts move from the command module to the service module? Was that even possible?Considering that the bottom of the command module is covered with reentry heat shield. Was the service even accessible? Or was it just a compartment with engines and tanks and other rocket stuff not accessible to the astronauts?

”the more I learn, the less I understand”

starting a thread for the random questions that pop into my head.

1. did anything land On the moon and return to Earth before Apollo 11? If not, did anything land there, take off and stay in space?

2. for things that landed before 1969…..did they land using a rocket engine as they on 11? Or another landing method?

3. further to the above…..how and when did engineers learn about what thrust was required to leave the moon? And what thrust was required to come home?

As much as I read, I’m shocked at the pace of space exploration In the 60s. I’m trying to uncover when and how some of the “basics” were learned.

I certainly don’t plan to sell it, but I am curious. There’s so much Apollo memorabilia I’ve found! Also among the stuff was his certificate to the Apollo roll of honor. He designed, among other things, a backup pad escape system. He worked in the Mercury program too, but I have yet to find anything from that era.

I am of the understanding that the LOX explosion and near loss of the crew of Apollo 13 was the major catalyst for the cancellation of Apollos 18 and 19. How true is this really? If Apollo 13 had succeeded, would Apollo 18 and Apollo 19 have flown, or would they have still been cancelled to put more funding towards Skylab? Furthermore, if Apollo 18 and 19 flew, what would the crews have been? I am almost certain Joe Engle would have flown on Apollo 17. This means Apollo 18 would have likely flown with CDR Richard Gordan, CMP Vance Brand, and LMP Harrison Schmitt. However, Fred Haise was supposed to command Apollo 19 only because of the failure of Apollo 13. As such, who would have flown on Apollo 19?

The acting secret service director is currently testifying in front of Congress about the assassination attempt. He used Frank Borman’s quote “failure of imagination.” I wish the secret service director had credited Borman with the line.

While in the US Air Force, he would apply to be an astronaut. His NASA application was initially withdrawn and he was chosen for the X-15 program. He flew the X-15 sixteen times, three of which went above the Kármán Line. He then reapplied to NASA with hopes of going to the Moon. He was selected to be an astronaut in 1966. He served on the support crew for Apollo 10 and as the backup LMP for Apollo 14. He was originally slated to fly as the prime LMP on Apollo 17 alongside Commander Gene Cernan and CMP Ronald Evans. However, due to pressure from the scientific community, he was removed from the Apollo 17 crew and replaced with Harrison Schmitt. Admirably, he continued to support the mission and would later state, “When you think about it, the lunar missions were geology-oriented." He would later go on to participate in the Space Shuttle Approach and Landing Tests and would even fly into space aboard the Space Shuttle on two occasions. First on the STS-2 mission aboard Columbia and again on STS-51-I on board Space Shuttle Discovery. Rest in Peace Joe.

Taken onboard Apollo 15 during their moon orbit

Just posting for anyone interested. Probably one of the best documentaries I’ve ever seen, with unreal video and editing. It’s free to watch on the App Tubi.