How did the Apollo spacecraft navigate?
How did the Apollo spacecraft navigate?
Apollo astronauts used three navigation systems to determine the proper flight paths to the Moon and back to Earth. An optical navigation system consisted of a scanning telescope and a sextant. With these instruments the astronauts could take star sights and plot the position of their spacecraft.
How did Apollo fuel cells work?
The Apollo Command Module’s primary source of electric power was from a set of three “fuel cells” housed in the Service Module. Each fuel cell combines hydrogen and oxygen to produce electricity and water. Each cell has hydrogen and an oxygen compartments and electrodes and in combination produce 27 to 31 volts.
Who programmed the Apollo guidance computer?
Apollo Guidance Computer
Apollo Guidance Computer and DSKY | |
---|---|
Invented by | Charles Stark Draper Laboratory |
Power consumption | 55 W |
Language | AGC Assembly Language |
Weight | 70 lb (32 kg) |
How did the Apollo 11 crew survive radiation?
On near Earth missions such as visits to space stations, the Earth’s magnetic field provides some protection. Apollo solved the cosmic radiation problem in a counter-intuitive manner: by minimizing shielding. Most cosmic rays are very-high-energy atomic nuclei; the rest are very-high-energy protons.
How did Apollo 11 get oxygen?
How did the astronauts breathe? The spaceship was pressurised with an on-board oxygen source that enabled the crew to breathe normally. This provided them with oxygen to breathe in and removed the carbon dioxide they exhaled.
How many fuel cells died in Apollo 13?
By the time Apollo 13 flew, the mission rules stated that you couldn’t land on the Moon with two fuel cells. So when oxygen tank 2 ruptured on Apollo 13, the crew proceeded with mission rules. Readouts in the spacecraft and in Houston said the oxygen tank and fuel cells 1 and 3 had failed.