Apollo+40: GO for TLI

All of Apollo 11's earth orbit checkouts look good. At 2:26:30 MET, Mission Control radioed the following good news:

Apollo 11, this is Houston. You are GO for TLI. Over.

TLI - Trans-lunar injection - the burn of the Saturn V S-IVB third-stage engine to send the mission on its way to the moon.

TLI will take place at 2:44:16.

Apollo+40: 11 on orbit

Apollo 11, now about at 1:15:00 MET, is in a safe earth orbit. The crew, working in concert with Mission Control, is checking out their spacecraft and making sure that all is well with systems and guidance in preparation for the next big mission hurdle: trans-lunar injection, or TLI.

The TLI burn of the Saturn V S-IVB third-stage will set Apollo 11 on its course for the moon. TLI is expected to take place at about 12:16 PM EDT today, or at 2:44:00 MET.

Apollo+40: Godspeed, Apollo 11!

Apollo 11 accelerates through the sound barrier on its way to earth orbit.

LIFTOFF! At 9:32 AM, Apollo 11 takes to the skies. A few seconds before liftoff, the five massive F-1 engines of the Saturn V S-IC first stage ignited, generating the 7.6 million pounds of initial thrust necessary to send the two Apollo spacecraft to the moon.



The times that follow are Mission-Elapsed Time (hr:min:sec):

At 00:02:03, Mission Control told the crew that they were GO for staging; in the first two and a half minutes of flight, the S-IC stage consumed about 2,000,000 liters of propellants. At staging, Apollo 11 was 30 nautical miles high, and had travelled 35 nautical miles downrange.

Staging - the five J-2 engines of the S-II second stage are now driving Apollo 11 higher and faster.

At 00:04:00, Apollo 11 is still GO - 72 nautical miles high, 190 nautical miles downrange, velocity 11,000 feet per second.

5 minutes...GO! 6 minutes...GO! 7 minutes...GO! 8 minutes...GO! 9 minutes, second-to-third staging...GO! 10 minutes...GO!

Apollo 11 is 101 nautical miles up, 1,000 nautical miles downrange, velocity 23,128 feet per second.

At 00:11:42, the single engine of the S-IVB third stage shuts down, and Apollo 11 is in a safe earth orbit of 101.4 by 103.6 nautical miles, velocity 25,568 feet per second!

So far, so good!

Apollo+40: T-00:06:00

From the Apollo 11 PAO Transcript:

This is Apollo-Saturn launch control. We've passed the 6 minute mark in our countdown for Apollo 11. Now 5 minutes, 52 seconds and counting. We're on time at the present time for our planned lift off of 32 minutes past the hour. Spacecraft test conductor, Skip Chauvin now has completed the status check of his personnel in the control room. Ail report they are GO for the mission, and this has been reported to the test supervisor, Bill Schick. The test supervisor now going through some status checks. Launch operations manager, Paul Donnelly, reports GO for launch. Launch director Rocco Petrone, gives a GO. We're 5 minutes, 20 seconds and counting.

Apollo+40: T-00:30:00

From the Apollo 11 PAO Transcript:


This is Apollo/Saturn Launch Control. We've Just passed the 31 minute mark in our count. At T minus 30 minutes 52 seconds and counting, aiming toward our planned liftoff time of 32 minutes past the hour, the start of launch window on this the mission to land men on the Moon. The countdown still proceeding very satisfactorily at this time. We've got by an important test with the launch vehicle checking out the various batteries in the 3 stages and instrument unit of the Saturn V. We remain on external power through most of the count to preserve those batteries which must be used during the powered flight. We've Just taken a look at them by going internal and then switching back to external again. The batteries all look good. The next time we go internal will be at the 50 second mark with those batteries and they will remain, of course, on internal power during the flight. The lunar module, which has been rather inactive during these latter phases of the count also is going on internal power at this time on the 2 batteries on the ascent stage and the 4 batteries on the descent stage. For the next 20 minutes we will take a look at some systems in the lunar module and then power down at about the 10 minute mark in the count, power down the telemetry to preserve the power of the LM. The lunar module on Apollo 11, of course, when it separates from the command module in lunar orbit, will have the call sign Eagle. The command module call sign, once the 2 vehicles separate, will be Columbia. Both Columbia and Eagle are GO at this time at 29 minutes 24 seconds and counting. This is Kennedy Launch Control.

Apollo+40: Apollo 11 Countdown Progressing

From the Apollo 11 PAO Transcript:

This is Apollo/Saturn Launch Control. 'We have Just passed the 56-minute mark in our
countdown. We are still proceeding in an excellent manner at this time. All elements reporting in that all systems continuing to look good at this point. We are still aiming toward our planned liftoff at the start of the lunar window 9:32 AM eastern daylight. A short while ago, in fact the spacecraft test conductor - we are doing quite well, in fact some 15 minutes ahead on some aspectsof the preparation spacecraftwise. Armstrong replied that was fine so long as we don't launch 15 minutes early. I guess they ars referring to the start of the window. The countdown is still going well, T minus 55 minutes, 10 seconds in counting, this is Kennedy Launch Control.

Apollo+40: Apollo 11 Ready for Launch

Commander Neil Armstrong leads Command Module Pilot Michael Collins and Lunar Module Pilot Buzz Aldrin to the transfer van on their way to Launch Complex 39, Pad A for the flight of Apollo 11 (Image: NASA)

Deke Slayton, NASA's Director of Flight Crew Operations woke the Apollo 11 crewmembers just after 4:00AM. After brief physical examinations, Armstrong, Aldrin, and Collins sat down for the traditional pre-flight astronaut breakfast of steak and eggs. After suiting up and beginning to breathe the 100 percent oxygen atmosphere they'd be using in flight, the crew departed for the launch pad amidst the cheers and well wishes of NASA.

The countdown is proceeding well; a few minor glitches have been resolved, but otherwise all is well with Saturn V booster #506, Command/Service Module #107, and Lunar Module #5.

Apollo 11 is targeted for launch at the beginning of the window at 9:32 AM Eastern Daylight Time.

Apollo+40: Go Apollo 11!

Apollo 7 - October 11-22, 1968 - Commander (CDR) Wally Schirra, Command Module Pilot (CMP) Donn Eisele, and Lunar Module Pilot (LMP) Walt Cunningham made the first flight of the Apollo Command & Service Modules (CSM) in earth orbit.

Apollo 8 - December 21-27, 1968 - CDR Frank Borman, CMP Jim Lovell, and LMP Bill Anders made man's first flight away from the confines of earth orbit; nobody will ever forget their Christmas Eve broadcast from lunar orbit.

Apollo 9 - March 3-13, 1969 - CDR Jim McDivitt, CMP Dave Scott, and LMP Rusty Schweickart completed the first critical flight test of the Lunar Module, callsign Spider, in earth orbit.

Apollo 10 - May 18-26, 1969 - CDR Tom Stafford, CMP John Young, and LMP Gene Cernan returned America to lunar orbit and completed the dress rehearsal for a lunar landing - descending to about 50,000 feet above the surface in LM Snoopy as CSM Charlie Brown remained in lunar orbit.

After these successes the next flight, Apollo 11, was given clearance to attempt the first lunar landing. Launch was targeted for July 16, 1969.

The Apollo 11 crew is:

CDR Neil Armstrong

CMP Michael Collins

LMP Edwin "Buzz" Aldrin

Their Finest Hour will be honoring the flight of Apollo 11 (and this time, I mean it! ;-) ). My blog postings will typically be as if the events were happening in the present.

In his wonderful memoir Carrying the Fire, Apollo 11 CMP Michael Collins listed eleven key mission points on which the success or failure of the flight would hinge (pp. 339-341):

1. Launch Obviously a hazardous time, with gigantic engines, explosive fuels, high temperatures and velocities, terrific wind blasts, and stringent guidance requirements combining to make a very tense eleven minutes from lift-off to earth orbit.

2. TLI Translunar injection, wherein the third-stage Saturn engine was reignited, causing us to depart the relatively stable situation of being in earth orbit and begin a trajectory that would hopefully just miss the moon three days later. If the engine stopped prematurely, we had some complicated scrambling to do to make it back to earth at all.

3. T&D Transposition and docking, the process of separating the CSM, turning it around 180 degrees, docking with the LM, and pulling it free from the carcass of the Saturn. I also include here clearing the [docking] probe and drogue from the interconnecting tunnel.

4. LOI Lunar orbit insertion, a two-burn procedure for slowing down enough to be captured by the moon's gravatational field, but not enough to crash into it. If the engine shut down prematurely during the first burn (the more important of the two), some really weird trajectories could result, and the LM's engine might have to be quickly pressed into service to return us to earth.

5. DOI/PDI Descent orbit insertion and powered descent initiation were two LM burns which caused Neil and Buzz to depart my comfortable sixty-mile orbit and intersect the surface of the moon at the right spot. If not precisely performed, the LM would come down in the wrong place or - more likely - couldn't land at all, in which case some really zany rendezvous sequences could ensue.

6. Landing Could be very dangerous; we simply didn't know. Fuel was short, therefore timing was critical. Also, the properties of the lunar surface in that one spot might be poor. Worse yet, visibility and depth-perception problems could cause a crash instead of a landing. Thus it has been since the days of the Wright brothers.

7. EVA [Extra-vehicular Activity] Walking on the moon might be physically taxing and overload the oxygen or cooling systems. There might be potholes, or even underground lava tubes which would cause the surface to collapse. Even more basic, any EVA puts man just one thin, glued-together, rubber membrane away from near-instant death.

8. Lift-off Only one engine, and it had better work properly - that is, provide enough thrust and provide it in exactly the right direction. If not, at best the LM would limp up into an orbit from which I might be able to rescue it; at worst, Neil and Buzz would be permanent decorations among the rocks in the Sea of Tranquility.

9. Rendezvous A piece of cake, if...a horror, if...which if would prevail? I would have my book with its eighteen variations on the theme tied to my neck, literally, as I waited in the CM to find out. Then, hopefully, docking and tunnel clearing again.

10. TEI Transearth injection; we burn our one engine, which could get us home or leave us forever stranded in lunar orbit. No back-up this time, as the LM would be empty and gone at this point.

11. Entry Diving into the earth's atmosphere at precisely the right angle was required for a successful splash, not to mention the flawless on-time performance of the parachute system and related claptrap. I would fly the entry phase, because, of course, I had to learn how to do it all in case I came back from the moon without Neil and Buzz.

The adventure is about to start!

Sources for my tribute are primarily NASA, and I'll provide links/references where possible. Some in advance:

NASA Mission Transcripts

NASA Apollo Lunar Surface Journal

Rest in Peace, Karl Malden

I heard on the radio a little while ago that we've lost one of the true greats of Hollywood, Karl Malden. His career spanned decades, won him an Oscar, and produced many memorable performances.

My favorite of his is the famous "Sermon on the Docks" from On the Waterfront. Mr. Malden's talent is truly on display, and on top of being a wonderful moment in film, it is a true Christian message. Enjoy!



Karl Malden was 97 years old. Thanks for the memories, and rest in peace.

Our Most Precious Resource

Today in my music rotation, the song "Concrete Angel" by Martina McBride came up. It's about child abuse and the silent, innocent victims of violence primarily at the hands of those who should be their ultimate protectors: their parents.

I'm a parent, and I would do anything to protect the lives and health of my two wonderful children.



Thank you, Martina.

Please visit the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children and ChildHelp - and consider donating to these worthy causes.

Our children are our future, and they must be defended.

Another Liberal Sees the Light!

Heard about this piece from American Thinker this morning on Jim Quinn's program entitled: Why Do Liberals Bleed? It's dead on.

The money quotes are in the writer's conclusion:

As a good, loyal liberal, I always expected others to take care of me. If I gave my unqualified loyalty to the system, I could sleep well at night. But now, with victims left bleeding, a dangerously naive government, and sheep like masses, I see the absurdity of my thinking.

I heard a philosopher once say that one of the biggest existential tasks of life is giving up the fantasy of the ultimate rescuer. Liberalism reinforced this fantasy for me, as it does for so many others. Now I see the truth: We come into this world alone, and we will leave it alone. When we live our lives in the back seat of the car expecting Daddy to drive us, we only have a child's view of the world.

On that very dark day in November years ago when I became an object of someone's evil and inhumanity, I glimpsed a truth I never wanted to see: that there really is no protection, not in the way I had always thought, not by other flawed humans. I didn't know what to do with this insight until 1 1/2 years ago when I discovered that there were others out there like me, that there was something called conservatism, and now slowly but surely the pieces are coming together for me, one by one.

As I continue on the path to independence and personal responsibility, perhaps looking to myself for protection is another step on my journey.

Welcome home, "Robin of Berkeley", and America is better from your homecoming.

From the mouths of those who'd know best...

According to the attorneys who have argued before the US 2nd Circuit Court of Appeals as cited in the Almanac of the Federal Judiciary, just one of the 21 judges on the court is rated unfavorably for their temperment and conduct on the bench.

It can't be Sonia Sotomayor. No way. She's the shining star of the Federal Courts. Who cares how she acts as a judge anyway? It's just her "life story" that's important here!

Another "Pro-Choice" Writer Sees the Light

David Harsanyi of the Denver Post shows some intellectual honesty and has come down on the side of life!

Hat tip: Stand Firm

The California Supreme Court Gets One Thing Right

I'm not commenting on Proposition 8, up or down. Here is the one thing the California Supreme Court got right, whatever your feelings on the decision:

From the court's ruling, on page 3:

Regardless of our views as individuals on this question of policy, we recognize as judges and as a court our responsibility to confine our consideration to a determination of the constitutional validity and legal effect of the measure in question. It bears emphasis in this regard that our role is limited to interpreting and applying the principles and rules embodied in the California Constitution, setting aside our own personal beliefs and values.

In other words, justice - as it should always be - is blind.

A Victory for the Tenth Amendment

I haven't seen the text of the decision yet, but I'm very pleased that the California Supreme Court has decided to follow the will of the voters and not impose their will by judicial fiat.

Apollo+40: Go Apollo 10!

Today at 12:49 EDT, we celebrate the 40th Anniversary of the launch of Apollo 10. Follow along as Their Finest Hour honors the dress rehearsal for America's moon landing!

More will follow later, and I promise that I'll be better about posting the history than I was with the flight of Apollo 9.

The effect of abortion on the course of history

...or rather, the effect of not "choosing" on history:




Hat tip: Stand Firm

UPDATE 11:49 - oh, and what if another young mother to be had made a different "choice"?

A rock will work, if that's all you've got...

...but wouldn't it have been better if this woman had been better armed?

Mothers Arms
Second Amendment Sisters

Is the tide turning?

(Image: Gallup)

Well, well. I'm sure this Gallup poll result published today that found that 52 percent of Americans consider themselves "pro-life" vs. 42 percent "pro-choice" will be the lead story on MSNBC and CNN today.

Or not. I just did searches against both MSNBC and CNN's web sites for "Gallup abortion" and didn't find any references to the poll result. (And in fairness, it doesn't look like Fox News has picked up on it yet either.)

Gallup's "Bottom Line" on the poll may rank as one of the understatements of the year:

With the first pro-choice president in eight years already making changes to the nation's policies on funding abortion overseas, expressing his support for the Freedom of Choice Act, and moving toward rescinding federal job protections for medical workers who refuse to participate in abortion procedures, Americans -- and, in particular, Republicans -- seem to be taking a step back from the pro-choice position. However, the retreat is evident among political moderates as well as conservatives.

It is possible that, through his abortion policies, Obama has pushed the public's understanding of what it means to be "pro-choice" slightly to the left, politically. While Democrats may support that, as they generally support everything Obama is doing as president, it may be driving others in the opposite direction.

No, it has pushed the understanding of "pro-choice" to be what it really is, which is "pro-abortion" - hardly "slightly" to the left. The New Soviet Man is the most virulently pro-abortion politician we have ever seen elected to national office.

Life should never be viewed as a cost to the state, as Mr. Obama has demonstrated by his words and actions. Life is a blessing and an opportunity for greatness and achievement.

"The Obama Card"

New video, courtesy of the Republican National Committee's YouTube Channel: