影片對白 It's 18 months to the end of the decade and we still haven't had a single manned Apollo flight.
文化面面觀 Apollo Lunar Module 阿波羅登月艙
To learn lunar landing techniques, astronauts practiced in the Lunar Landing Research Vehicle (LLRV), a flying vehicle that simulated the Lunar Module on earth. A 200-foot-tall, 400-foot-long gantry structure was constructed at NASA Langley Research Center; the LLRV was suspended in this structure from a crane, and "piloted" by moving the crane. (The facility is now known as the Impact Dynamics Research Facility, and is used for aircraft crash tests.)
Early configurations of the LEM included a forward docking port, initially it was believed the LEM crew would be active in the docking with the CSM. Early designs included large curved windows. Configuration freeze did not start until April 1963 when the ascent and descent engine design was decided. In addition to Rocketdyne a parallel program for the descent engine was ordered from Space Technology Laboratories in July 1963, and by January 1965 the Rocketdyne contract was cancelled. As the program continued there were numerous redesigns to save weight (including "Operation Scrape"), improve safety, and fix problems. For example initially the module was to be powered by fuel cells, built by Pratt and Whitney but in March 1965 they were paid off in favor of an all battery design.
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| A Lunar Module in the National Air and Space Museum |
The initial design iteration had the LEM with three landing legs. It was felt that three legs, though the lightest configuration, was the least stable if one of the legs were damaged during landing. The next landing gear design iteration had five legs and was the most stable configuration for landing on an unknown terrain. That configuration was too heavy and the compromise was four landing legs.
The first LM flight was on January 22, 1968 when the unmanned LM-1 was launched on a Saturn IB for testing of propulsion systems in orbit. The next LM flight was aboard Apollo 9 using LM-3 on March 3, 1969 as a manned flight (McDivitt, Scott and Schweickart) to test a number of systems in Earth orbit including LM and CSM crew transit, LM propulsion (推進力), separation and docking. Apollo 10, launched on May 18, 1969, was another series of tests, this time in lunar orbit with the LM separating and descending to within 10 km of the surface. From the successful tests the LM successfully descended and ascended from the lunar surface with Apollo 11.
In April 1970, the lunar module Aquarius played an unexpected role in saving the lives of the three astronauts of the Apollo 13 mission (Commander James A. Lovell Jr., CSM pilot John L. Swigert Jr., and LM pilot Fred W. Haise Jr.), after an electrical short circuit caused an oxygen tank in that mission's service module to explode. Aquarius served as a refuge for the astronauts during their return to Earth, while its batteries were used to recharge the vital re-entry batteries of the command module that brought the astronauts through the Earth's atmosphere and to a safe splashdown on April 17, 1970. The LM's descent engine, designed to slow the vehicle during its descent to the moon, was used to accelerate the Apollo 13 spacecraft around the moon and back to Earth. After the accident, the LM's systems, designed to support two astronauts for 45 hours, actually supported three astronauts for 90 hours.
考考你
用今日所學將下面的句子譯成英語。
1. 我們決定堅持以前的計劃。
2. 爸爸正在計算稅款，孩子們卻在煩擾他。
3. Trudy 錯失了晉升的機會。
From the earth to the moon《從地球到月球》精講之三
1. 離開之前你得把房間收拾好。
Square away the room before you leave.
2. 你在給誰打電話？
Who's on the line?
3. 我非常明白你話的意思。
I catch your words five by five.
影片對白 It's 18 months to the end of the decade and we still haven't had a single manned Apollo flight.
文化面面觀 Apollo Lunar Module 阿波羅登月艙
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(英語點津Annabel編輯)
