May 13 1965
From The Space Library
MARINER IV, 78,277,013 mi. from earth at 9 a.m. EST, had covered 251,691,170 mi, along its orbit. The Mars probe was travelling 46,214 mph relative to earth and was returning data and scientific information continuously. (NASA Release 65-159)
President Johnson transmitted to Congress a plan to merge the Weather Bureau, the Coast and Geodetic Survey, and the Central Radio Propagation Laboratory of the National Bureau of Standards into an Environmental Science Services Administration, "The new administration will then provide a single national focus for our efforts to describe, understand, and predict the state of the oceans, the state of the lower and upper atmospheres and the size and shape of the earth , , as well as enhance our ability to develop an adequate warning system for the severe hazards of nature ... which have proved so disastrous to the Nation in recent years," He added that Federal agencies "concerned with the national defense [and the] exploration of outer space" would receive improved services and that combining of offices and technical facilities would save money. (White House Release)
Gemini GT-4 countdown rehearsal at KSC with Astronauts James A. McDivitt (Maj. USAF) and Edward H. White II (Maj., USAF) was delayed because of a minor fueling problem. Launch of the GT-4 mission was scheduled for June 3. (AP, Galveston News-Tribune, 5/14/65)
An Emeraude rocket was successfully fired by France from the Hammaguir range, Algerian Sahara, to a planned altitude of 112 mi. It was topped by a mockup of the Topaze rocket which was to be the second stage of the Diamant launcher that France was developing. (Reuters, NYT, 5/18/65; Root, Wash. Post, 5/18/65; M&R, 5/31/65, 11)
NASA Goddard Space Flight Center researchers Dr. John B. Schutt and Charles M. Shai announced development of a new series of inorganic spacecraft paints with promise of commercial application; report given at a meeting of the Philadelphia Society for Paint Technology-and the Philadelphia Section of the American Chemical Society. The paints would utilize an alkali-metal silicate as a binder and an inorganic phosphate as a wetting agent. They would adhere to most metals and non-metals; would not crack, peel, chalk, flake, or fade when subjected to temperatures between 1,800°F and -320°F; would be washable; could be made in any color; and would have a long shelf life. (GSFC Release G-13-65)
American Broadcasting Co. notified the FCC it was preparing plans for a domestic communications satellite to relay network television programs to affiliated stations for rebroadcast, thereby raising for the first time the question of a company other than ComSatCorp owning and operating a comsat. (Gould, NYT, 5/14/65, 1)
NBC announced it would televise the June 3 Gemini GT-4 spaceflight in color. It would be the first live-color coverage of a space flight. (Doan, N.Y , Her, Trib, 5/14/65)
Cornell Univ. astronomers at Arecibo radiotelescope facility revealed that their radar observations of the planet Mercury April 25 indicated that Mercury rotated on its axis once every 59 days, rotating in the same direction as its orbit. This new study confirmed clearly that Mercury did not have a retrograde rotation and laid to rest the classic view that Mercury did not rotate on its axis at all. The astronomers had reported their findings on Mercury's rotation in Washington last April 21 but at that time were not sure whether the rotation was retrograde or direct. (Hines, Wash, Eve, Star, 5/13/65)
The Sofar (Sound Fixing and Ranging Device), used to locate ICBM's through a small explosive charge set off as the missile sank, would be transformed into a rescue device for aircraft and ships in the Pacific, Capt, John M. Waters, Jr. (USCG), told a U.S. Coast Guard-sponsored North Atlantic Search and Rescue Seminar in New York. A pressure switch mechanism would fire the explosive at 2,500 ft, below the surface-depth at which sound waves encountered least resistance; sound of the explosion would be picked up by four hydrophone listening stations and the exact disaster site plotted. Capt, Waters said the device was "practically foolproof" and had been endorsed by the Naval Aviation Center, Each Sofar locator would cost about $75. (Bamberger, NYT, 5/14/65, 65)
Soviet engineer T. Borisov suggested that cause of LUNA V's apparent failure to soft land on the moon might have been failure of the braking rockets to fire "precisely when needed," the New York Times reported. Borisov pointed out that earth stations could not help the automatic equipment during this phase because it takes 2½ sec, for radio signals to make round-trip between earth and moon. (NYT, 5/14/65, 3)
A descriptive report on the three generations of Soviet manned spacecraft - VOSTOK I through VOSTOK VI, first generation; VOSKHOD I, second generation; and VOSKHOD II, third generation-was prepared by Space Daily, in collaboration with Soviet space officials and the Novosti Press Agency: "The Soviet's first three generations of manned spacecraft are injected into orbit within a standard cone-cylinder configuration with a maximum length of 30.3 feet and a maximum diameter of 8.7 feet .. . "The launch-to-orbit vehicle is comprised of four major components: the last stage of the rocket; the instrument and service module; the cosmonaut cabin and re-entry capsule; and the nose cone and fairing... "The cabin for the first two generation spacecraft remained in external configuration essentially the same. The major modification ... was the internal arrangement providing a capability for two astronauts instead of one which included the requirement for an additional hatch. The third generation spacecraft has required not only a major modification for the internal arrangement, for the third cosmonaut, but has forced a configuration addition to the 7.5 foot sphere with the attachment of the airlock... "For the first generation spacecraft the cosmonaut was seated in the center of the sphere with his back to re-entry portion of the sphere. The capsule had three hatches: the egress hatch, the parachute compartment hatch and an equipment access hatch . . . The parachute compartment was located to the left and rear of the cosmonaut ... Antennas for the radio system of the re-entry capsule were located 180 degrees from the stagnation point of the heat shield. Even in that location it is possible that heat build-up destroyed all protruding systems as evidenced by the landed VOSTOK... "The first generation vehicles weighed about 10,430 pounds, after ejection of the nose cone and fairing and separation of the third stage of the booster... . The cabin for the first and second generation missions weighed about 5300 pounds. "In addition, VOSKHOD II represents an advancement to a more operational type of vehicle with an arrangement indicating its role for extensive Earth-orbital operations. "The airlock for the VOSKHOD II mission would represent the farthest evolution of the Soviet manned spacecraft program ... a cylindrical projection to the basic vehicle, positioned within the nose cone and fairing above or forward of the cabin in the antenna region. With respect to the cosmonauts the airlock would be above and to the front as they remained in their seats; its position would be 180 degrees from the stagnation point of the heat shield." (SBD, 5/13/65, 68-70)
May 13-14: Executives of four competing companies briefed the USAF Space Systems Div. source selection board on their Manned Orbiting Laboratory (MOL) entries. Represented were the Boeing Co, General Electric Co., Lockheed Aircraft Corp., and Douglas Aircraft Co. (Av. Wk, 5/31/65, 22)
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