Jun 2 1966
From The Space Library
June 2-14: NASA SURVEYOR I became first US. spacecraft to soft-land on the moon when it touched down in the Ocean of Storms and began transmitting the first of its more than 10,000 clear and detailed television pictures to JPL Deep Space Facilities, Goldstone, Calif. Landing sequence began 2,000 mi. above moon when, traveling at 6,000 mph, SURVEYOR I shifted its normal cruising attitude to position main retrorocket. Triggered by radar ejected at 52-mi. altitude, main retrorocket burned until 37,000-ft. altitude, slowing craft to 400 mph. After retrorocket burnout, smaller guidance rockets ignited, slowing SURVEYOR I to 3« mph at 14-ft. altitude. Craft then free-fell to lunar surface at 8 mph. Landing so precise that spacecraft's three footpads touched lunar surface within 19 millisec. of each other -confirmed that lunar surface could support Apollo Lunar Excursion Module (LEM) and proved concept of automatically decelerating a spacecraft from 6,000-mph speed to touchdown speed of 3« mph. Photos transmitted by SURVEYOR I before its camera was secured after sunset of first lunar day (June 14) revealed nearly level lunar surface littered with rock fragments [see During June]. "Rubble scattered over the surface is probably a fairly general characteristic all over the NASA Surveyor Project Scientist Dr. Leonard Jaffe told JPL press conference. Pictures taken June 4 during seven two-second firings of nitrogen gas from spacecraft's attitude control jets showed no disturbance of the lunar surface. In addition to wide-and narrow-angle lurain photographs, SURVEYOR I obtained pictures of the stars Sirius and Canopus to determine spacecraft's exact location. Halting communication with SURVEYOR I June 14 to allow spacecraft to conserve battery energy throughout lunar night (June 14-29), JPL announced: "It is very difficult to predict if Surveyor's batteries will withstand the -260øF cold. If Surveyor survives, the engineers estimate it will be several days after sunrise before the batteries thaw out." [see June 28-29]. Considerably more complex than Soviet LUNA IX which soft-landed on the moon -Feb. 3, SURVEYOR I apparatus remained a closed intact system up until touchdown. A tripod-legged arrangement of cameras, antennas, and other equipment which used solar cells to convert sun's energy into electric power for operation on lunar surface, SURVEYOR I had a landing system which used radars, a computer, and four rocket engines to adjust its own speed, attitude, and fight path. LUNA IX was crash-proof, uncontrolled photographic instrument package jettisoned by its carrier rocket immediately before impact, which free-fell under pull of lunar gravity. It had transmitted only 12 photos. The near-flawless performance of SURVEYOR I, an engineering model, far exceeded JPL officials' expectations. "This, in my opinion, puts the Surveyor program ahead a year," Robert F. Garbarini, NASA Deputy Associate Administrator for Space Science and Applications for Engineering, told JPL press conference. "We thought it would take three or four flights to get the craft operational." (NASA Proj. Off.; NASA Release 66-127; JPL Transcript; Spivak, WSJ, 6/3/66, 2; WSJ, 6/15/66, 1; Shreveport Times, 6/3/66, 12A; Clark, NYT, 6/3/66, 1, 22; 6/4/66, 12; 6/5/66, 1; 6/6/66, 40M; AP, NYT, 17; Hines, Wash. Eve. Star, 6/5/66, C3; AP, Wash. Eve. Star, 6/6/66, A9; Wash. Eve. Star, 6/15/66, A6; Berman, Wash. Post, 6/5/66, A14; AP, Wash. Post, 6/15/66, A10).
President Johnson's statement on SURVEYOR I's successful soft-landing on the moon: "Overnight the eyes of SURVEYOR I have become the eyes of the world on the Moon. Another exciting chapter in the peaceful exploration of the universe is open for men to read and share. . . . "The odds against achieving full success in such a difficult mission on the first flight were understandably great. This moment of triumph for all who have participated in the Surveyor project has been well earned, for back of Surveyor's perfect performance on this fist flight are years of hard work, painstaking care, and brilliant engineering. "Today our Nation salutes the highly deserving team of scientists, engineers, technicians, and managers-in Government, industry, and the universities-who have a vision and the skills to pursue it successfully. As the day approaches when men land on the Moon, it is of the greatest importance that we agree to exchange openly all information that could affect their safety and welfare. It is equally important that we preserve these regions for peaceful, scientific activities. I welcome the constructive approach of the Soviet statement of May 31 on a treaty I have proposed to cover these matters and hope that progress can be made rapidly." (Pres. Doc., 6/6/66, 728)
NASA SURVEYOR I's successful soft-landing on the moon received worldwide acclaim. Daily Telegraph, London: "There is magic of a kind in the latest achievement of American exploration in placing their electronic Surveyor almost directly on its target on the moon. . . . The technological power behind the enterprise of putting a man on the moon is mounting with visible acceleration. But the human element remains most vital." Le Monde, Paris: "In succeeding with their first attempt at a soft landing on the moon only three months after the Soviets, the United States has shown that they are on the point of catching up with the Soviets in the race to the moon. There is only one experiment left in which the United States is behind the Soviet Union: the orbiting around the moon of a lunar probe similar to Luna-10. This lag is not very great, since the first trial of the Lunar Orbiters is set for next month." Il Tempo, Rome: "We think that the best judgment, even if purely a prioristic, of the SURVEYOR Is that given by the Soviet Government, which, the day after the departure of the lunar probe, practically adhered to President Johnson's initiative of March 7, tending to a recognition of the internationalization of the moon and other extraterritorial bodies." Tass: "The success of the SURVEYOR Is an important part of the American space program and Soviet scientists think very highly of it." (NYT, 6/5/66, E13)
Congratulatory cable from Soviet President Nikolay V. Podgorny to President Johnson: "On the occasion of the successful soft-landing of the SURVEYOR I spacecraft on the moon, accept . . . our congratulations for the American specialists who ensured the success of this flight." (Reuters, NYT, 6/5/66, 80)
Successful overlapping operation of PEGASUS I, II, and III meteoroid detection satellites-launched Feb. 16, May 25, and July 30, 1965, respectively had provided full year of data which defined "more precisely than ever before" near-earth meteoroid environment, NASA reported. Data-including cumulative count of 1,000 "hits" on target plate thickness, identification and location of specific panel hit, attitude of spacecraft with respect to earth and sun at impact time, and time of penetration-confirmed "protective adequacy" of Apollo manned lunar landing spacecraft against meteoroids; provided designers of future spacecraft with guidelines on probability of meteoroid penetrations; and improved mapping of South Atlantic anomaly by measuring electron radiation density. (NASA Release 66-134)
V/Adm. H. G. Rickover (USN), in speech at Athens meeting of Royal National Foundation, noted benefits to humanity in science and warned of dangers inherent in misuse of technology. He urged that technological capability be applied selectively to enhance human welfare and conserve natural resources, rather than to "submit meekly to whatever is technically feasible." (Text, CR, 6/21/66, 13114-17)
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