Spacelog Apollo 8

Roger. I'd suggest that. I've got a whole page full.

Okay.

Alright. Tape the red filter to the telephoto lens. That red filter is the 25A red filter, not the one that is in the red and blue filter holder.

Roger.

Attach telephoto lens to the camera.

Okay. We can figure out how to do that. Roger.

Insure that the automatic light control, the ALC switch on the camera, is in the IN position. Over.

ALC IN. Roger.

Roger. Attach camera to the adjustable TV bracket and attach the bracket to the TV mounting point on the commander's side of the hatch to point out rendezvous window number 2.

Roger.

Okay. There is a note here that says use dovetail on top of camera, rather than the side dovetail. Use the dovetail on the top of the camera for mounting to bracket and place the rocking nut on the bracket down, and down means toward your minus X direction.

Roger.

Okay. They say this step I just got through giving you is somewhat complicated. You might want to get the cameras set up early using the instructions I just gave you. When it's properly —

We are not reading you.

Roger. I say again, the instructions that I just gave you should end up having the camera looking out the window and about 30 degrees yawed left from your plus X-axis, so I suggest you get the camera set up that way early; and if there are any problems, come back to us; we will talk them over. These mounting instructions are sort of complicated.

Roger.

Okay. The next step: dim the interior lights. Over.

Dim interior lights.

Roger. Next, stop passive thermal control at gimbal angles pitch 224, yaw 020, roll 270. Over.

Pitch 224, yaw 020, roll 270.

Roger. Next, acquire on high-gain antenna, switch to AUTO tracks, narrow beam upon acquisition. Over.

Got it.

Okay. Yaw spacecraft left to get good view of earth and your rendezvous window number 2. You may have to pitch slightly as well, but primarily a left yawing maneuver to get a good view of the earth.

Got it.

Okay. This maneuver is going to put you very close to your scan limits for the high-gain antenna, so while you are making the maneuver, check your lights. If your scan limit light comes on, you still have got 15 degrees to play with. But the only message is, should you break lock, then you are going to have to go back and reacquire and do that maneuver over again, because you are going to be very close to the edge of your high-gain antenna capability.

Thank you.

Okay. And then finally, now that you have got the spacecraft over there, aim the camera as required to include the earth in the field of view, and do not touch the body of the lens while televising. Apparently, if you put your hands on the lens itself, it causes electrical interference. Over.

Okay. Aim camera and do not touch lens while televising.

Right. And in all this stuff in all these pictures using the ALC, it is important that you let the camera stabilize for at least 10 or 20 seconds, to let the ALC do its thing.

Stabilize for 10 to 20 seconds. Thank you.

Right. Now we have some additional instructions in case this does not work. They say a full 20, Frank, on that ALC. It requires a full 20 seconds undisturbed for the ALC to properly do its thing. Now if these procedures that I've given you do not work, then we will be giving you some more, and they have to do with other filters and various combinations thereof. So I'd have the polarizing filter and the red and blue filter holder at hand because we will be attempting to use those in addition to the red filters if this procedure doesn't work.

All very well, Mike.

That's all we have right now. We will have a few more remarks on the TV coming up to you later. I would suggest that you get set up for this early, and if you have any questions on it, shoot them down to us. We have a bunch of experts down here to help out.

Apollo 8, this is Houston. Over.

Go ahead, Houston. Apollo 8.

Roger. Just a voice check, Frank.

Roger. You're loud and clear.

Apollo 8, Houston.

Go ahead, Houston. Apollo 8.

Roger. We would like some high bit rate data when you can get it locked up on the high gain. We haven't had any of that for a while.

Roger. We will do that.

Thank you. How is that camera bracket thing working out?

We are doing it right now.

Houston, this is Apollo 8 transmitting to you on the high gain. How do you read?

Read you loud and clear, Frank. Thank you.

That is affirmative, Apollo 8. We are getting a good high bit rate.

Thank you.

Apollo 8, Houston.

Go ahead.

Roger. I've got some more talking to do about the TV any time it's convenient for you.

Go ahead.

Okay. First thing, we've made no provisions in these instructions for taking pictures of the moon. If you get some moon shots after it's all over by looking out a different window or by making some small maneuver, of course, we would be happy to have them, but the show as scheduled is just out the window at the earth only. Over.

Roger.

The second point is, of course, when you stop your passive thermal control, you are about 90 degrees to the earth line, so when you make that yaw left, you are going to have to yaw left until your middle gimbal angle is in the vicinity of 60 degrees. You will get the additional 30 degrees by offset between where the camera is pointed and your plus X axis. But the two together are going to total up around 90. We just wanted to make sure that you understood you were going to be working with a large middle gimbal angle. Over.

Roger. We understand that. We also are looking at the earth right now, and there is a spectacular long thin band of clouds. Looks like it may be a jet stream. It's absolutely spectacular—going almost all the way—or half way around the earth.

Roger. Well, you might want to repeat that during the TV narrative, and we would like you, if possible, to go into as much of a detailed description as you poets can on the various colors and sizes of those things and how the earth appears to you, in as much detail as you can possibly muster. Over.

Roger. I figure we will have to do that because I bet you—I won't bet—but I bet the TV doesn't work.

Well, we won't take that bet, but anyway, we are standing by for a nice lurid description, and we would suggest that you talk a little bit slower than you did yesterday. Over.

Okay.

And the only other thing on this TV is that the experts tell us that—do not point—with the wide angle lens on the camera, do not point at either the earth or the moon. It comes close to damaging interior of the instrument due to the fact that it's too bright. Over.

Understand.

Houston, Apollo 8. We're going to have to switch to an OMNI.

Apollo 8, Houston. Over.

Go ahead, Houston. Apollo 8.

Roger. Just checking the voice COMM, Frank.

Apollo 8, Houston.

Go ahead, Houston.

Roger. We'll be switching antennas from Madrid to Goldstone in another 3 minutes. You can expect a glitch on your COMM.

Houston, how do you read? Apollo 8.

Apollo 8, Houston. We're reading you loud and clear through Goldstone. Over.

Okay. We have the television ON now, and we're trying to maneuver to the—to the earth.

Roger. Understand.

Houston, Apollo 8.

Apollo 8, Houston. Over.

Roger. We're maneuvering to position now for the TV. Bill's got it set up in Frank's left rendezvous window, and I'm over in Bill's spot looking out the right rendezvous window, and the earth is now passing through my window. It's about as big as the end of my thumb.

About as big as the end of your thumb at arm's length, huh?

That's right. I think what we see now is South America down below us.

Roger. Is the TV camera pointed about 30 degrees yaw left from the plus X axis?

Stand by a moment. We're checking it. We think we've got it in the right position. We're going into position now.

Okay.

Houston, are you getting any sort of a picture?

Apollo 8, Houston. Negative; not yet.

Okay. Houston, Apollo 8. We should have —