Includes bibliographical references (pages 315-320) and index.
Contents:
Acknowledgements ; Dedication ; About the author ; Foreword ; Preface -- Chapter 1. Introduction. From fishing for mullet to shooting the moon ; Why a book about the Kennedy Space Center during Apollo? ; How this book is organized ; 24,000 perspectives -- Chapter 2. Setting the stage for Apollo/Saturn, 1960-1966. The Cape and Kennedy Space Center ; LC-34 and LC-37 and the Launch Operations Division ; The spacecraft organization comes together ; Operations at LC-34 and LC-37 ; KSC learns to use computers. Growing pains ; The ACE system for spacecraft checkout ; Hangar D and the central instrumentation facility ; Different origins, different hardware, different cultures, common goal ; The people ; Putting it all together : launch day at LC-34/37 ; Preparing for manned Apollo/Saturn missions -- Chapter 3. The Apollo 1 fire. Preparations for the first manned Apollo mission ; Tests at the pad ; January 27, 1967 : the plugs-out overall test ; Monitoring the test from the ACE room ; Fighting the fire ; Shock and grief ; Locking down ; Lessons learned ; Apollo moves ahead -- Chapter 4. The spacecraft assembly and checkout facilities. The world of spacecraft operations ; The manned spacecraft operations building (MSOB). The astronauts’ KSC home base ; The assembly and test area ; Altitude chambers L and R ; Computerized spacecraft checkout : the ACE system. The quick-look data station ; Other KSC spacecraft support sites. RF test facility ; Hypergolic maintenance facility ; The super guppy ; The dangerous world of spacecraft testing -- Chapter 5. The VAB and the mobile launcher. The vehicle assembly building. Cranes ; Work platforms ; Activating the VAB ; The launcher/umbilical tower ; Swing arms ; Environmental chamber (white room) ; Tail service masts ; Holddown arms ; Engine servicing platforms ; The milkstool -- Chapter 6. The launch control center and firing rooms. The launch control center ; Firing rooms. Area A ; Area B ; Area C ; Areas D, E, and F ; The woodshed ; Operational intercom system (OIS) ; Operational television ; The LCC ran the show. The computer-DDAS-hardwire-TCS complex ; Terminal countdown sequencer ; The transfer-logic-distribution complex ; The system in operation ; Activating the LCC ; About that spacecraft ready light -- Chapter 7. Launch pads 39A and 39B. Pad terminal connection room (PTCR) ; Environmental control system (ECS) room ; Rubber room and blast room ; High-pressure gas storage facility ; Pad interface for LUT and MSS ; Azimuth alignment building ; S-IC engine servicing equipment ; Launch pad cameras ; Sidebar : cameras in the flame trench ; Pad water systems ; Pad support area ; Fuel systems facilities ; LOX system facility ; Putting it all together : the AS-500F facilities integration vehicle -- Chapter 8. Life at the launch pad. Security. Badges ; The soviet threat ; APIP ; Working in the PTCR ; Women at the launch pad ; Trailers ; Inside the mobile launcher at the launch pad ; Crossing the swing arms ; Inside the Saturn V ; Launch pad safety ; Weather ; Fire safety ; Working around hypergolic propellants ; SCAPE suits ; Hypergolic spills at the launch pad ; Crew extraction and rescue ; Red crews. Apollo 4/AS-501 relay failure ; Rubber room and blast room ; Slide wire system. The gondola ; Launch pad explosions ; Plutonium and car washes ; Brute force sometimes saved the day ; Replacing launch vehicle fins on the launch pad ; Thoughts on working at the launch pad ; Observing a launch. Apollo 4 ; Apollo 11 ; Other missions ; Back to work -- Chapter 9. Epilogue. The end of an era ; Reflections on the experience ; Conclusions -- Appendix A. Acronyms and abbreviations -- Appendix B. Missions with Apollo and Saturn flight hardware -- Appendix C. RCA 110A features ; Appendix D. Mobile launcher layout ; Appendix E. Firing room areas A and B manager positions and test engineer consoles -- Appendix F. Recommended reading and references -- Appendix G. Interviewees.
Summary:
"This [work] describes NASA's first computer systems used for spacecraft and rocket checkout and explains how tests and launches proceeded. Hundreds of illustrations complement the firsthand accounts of more than 70 Apollo program managers and engineers"--Back cover.
This resource is supported by the Institute of Museum and Library Services under the provisions of the Library Services and Technology Act as administered by State Library of Iowa.