Apollo Program Weather
Support
An additional unit at Honululu
was added to the Spaceflight Meteorology Group to support the expected
increase in Pacific ocean recoveries during the Apollo program. The
Spaceflight Meteorology Group supported the Apollo lunar missions, the
Skylab orbital missions, and the Apollo-Soyuz Test Program during this
period. Weather support was required not only for launch and recovery
operations, but also for in-flight weather experiments conducted by the
astronauts. This in-flight support was particularly important during
the Skylab missions.
At the close of the Apollo
program, NASA allowed each center to select their weather support structures.
Kennedy Space Center opted to use the Patrick Air Force Base/Cape Canaveral
Air Force Station Air Weather Service unit (now the 45th Weather Squadron)
for weather support to pre-launch and launch operations. Johnson Space
Center chose to retain the National Weather Service for weather support
services. The SMG subordinate units were closed with only the
Houston office supporting the Mission Control Center remaining. Following
the Apollo program, SMG provided staff support services and planning to
support the next phase of the United States human spaceflight program -
The Space Shuttle.
Mission Weather Summary
Apollo Missions(1)
|
Mission |
Launch Date (UTC) |
Launch Weather |
Recovery Date (UTC)
Location |
Recovery Weather |
Apollo 7 |
11 Oct 1968
15:02:45 |
Cld: SCT021CB SCTxxx(CI)
(2)
Vis: 10SM CB SW
Temp/Dew: 82F/69F
Wind: 08017G22KTS
60' Wind: 090/20KTS |
22 Oct 1968 11:11:48
27.63N, 64.15E |
Cld: OVC006 (2)
Vis: 2NM Light Rain
Temp/Dew: 72F/70F
Wind: 210/11KTS
Water Temp: 81F
Wave Height: 3 FT |
Apollo 8 |
21 Dec 1968
12:51:00 |
Cld: SCTxxx(Ci) (3)
Vis: 10SM
Temp/Dew: 59F/56F
Wind 34006KTS
60' Wind: 348/11KTS |
27 Dec 1968 15:51:42
8.10N, 165.00 W |
Cld:SCT025 BKN120
(3)
Vis: 10 NM
Temp/Dew: 82F/mmF
Wind: 080/11KTS
Water Temp: 82F (1)
Wave Height: 6 FT |
Apollo 9 |
03 Mar 1969
16:00:00 |
Cld: BKN040 OVC090
(AS) (4)
Vis: 10SM Aircraft Report
of BKN140
Temp/Dew: 67F/54F
Wind: 14012KTS
60' Wind: 160/13KTS |
13 Mar 1969 17:00:54
23.22N, 67.98W |
Cld: SCT020 BKN090 (5)
Vis: 10 NM
Temp/Dew: 79F/67F
Wind: Calm
Water Temp: 76F
Wave Height: 5 FT |
Apollo 10 |
18 May 1969
16:49:00 |
Cld: SCT023 SCT040
BKN110 OVCxxx(Ci) (6)
Vis: 10SM
Temp/Dew: 82F/73F
Wind: 12012KTS
60' Wind: 142/19KTS |
26 May 1969 16:52:23
15.07S, 164.65W |
Cld: SCT020 SCT070 (7)
Vis: 10 NM
Temp/Dew: 79F/68F
Wind: 100/09KTS
Water Temp: 82F
Wave Height: 3 FT |
Apollo 11 |
16 Jul 1969
13:32:00 |
Cld: SCT030 SCT140
OVCxxx(CI) (8)
Vis: 10SM
Temp/Dew: 86F/75F
Wind: 22005KTS
60' Wind: 175/6KTS |
24 Jul 1969 16:50:35
13.30N, 169.15W |
Cld: BKN015 BKNxxx(CI) (8)
Vis: 10 NM
Temp/Dew: 82F/mmF (Wet Bulb
77)
Wind: 080/17 KTS
Water Temp: mmF
Wave Height: 6 FT |
Apollo 12 |
14 Nov 1969
16:22:00 |
Cld: OVC021
(9)
Vis: 7SM Rainshowers SCT015
OVC070
Temp/Dew: 70F/66F
Wind: 220/12G19KTS
60' Wind: 280/13KTS |
24 Nov 1969 20:58:25
15.78 S, 165.15 W |
Cld: SKC (10)
Vis: 10+ NM
Temp/Dew: 79F/72F
Wind: 100/15KTS
Water Temp: mmF
Wave Height: 3 FT
(swells to 7 ft) |
Apollo 13 |
11 Apr 1970
19:13:00 |
Cld: BKN200 (11)
Vis: 10SM Few Cu over land
Temp/Dew: 76F/60F
Wind: 080/10KTS
60' Wind: 105/12KTS |
17 Apr 1970 18:07:41
21.63 S, 165.37 W |
Cld: SCT025 BKNxxx(CI) (12)
Vis: 7 NM
Temp/Dew: 79F/mmF
Wind: 270/06 KTS
Water Temp: mm F
Wave Height: 6 FT |
Apollo 14 |
31 Jan 1971
21:03:02 |
Cld: BKN040 BKN080
(13)
Vis: 10SM Rainshowers
E NE SW
Temp/Dew: 71F/67F
Wind: 260/05KTS
60' Wind: 255/10KTS |
09 Feb 1971 21:05:00
27.02 S, 172.67 W |
Cld: SCT020 (14)
Vis: 10 NM
Temp/Dew: 23C/18C
Wind: 100/10KTS
Water Temp: mmF
Wave Height: 4 FT |
Apollo 15 |
26 Jul 1971
13:34:00 |
Cld: BKN250 (CI)
(15)
Vis: 10SM
Temp/Dew: 84F/73F
Wind: 170/05 KTS
60' Wind: 156/10KTS
1 |
07 Aug 1971 20:45:53
26.13 N, 158.13 W |
Cld: SCTvBKN020 (16)
Vis: 10 NM Rain Vicinity
Temp/Dew: 81F/mmF
Wind: 080/07KTS
Water Temp: mm F
Wave Height: Calm
FT |
Apollo 16 |
16 Apr 1972
17:54:00 |
Cld: SCT030 (CU)
(17)
Vis: 10SM
Temp/Dew: 88F/63F
Wind: 232/02P07KTS
60' Wind: 269/12KTS1 |
27 Apr 1972 19:45:05
0.70 S, 156.22 W |
Cld: SCT020 (18)
Vis: 10 NM (19)
Temp/Dew: 82F/mmF (19)
Wind: 110/15KTS
Water Temp: mmF
Wave Height: 4 FT |
Apollo 17 |
07 Dec 1972
05:33:00 |
Cld: SCT026 BKN260
(20)
Vis: 10SM
Temp/Dew: 70F/68F
Wind: 300/07KTS
60' Wind: 005/08KTS
(21) |
19 Dec 1972 19:24:59
17.88 S, 166.11 W |
Cld: BKN025 (22)
Vis: 10 NM
Temp/Dew: 23.9C/20C
Wind: 120/14KTS
Water Temp: 27.8C
Wave Height: 1.5 FT |
Skylab
missions |
Mission |
Launch Date |
Launch Weather |
Recovery
Date (Duration) |
Recovery
Weather |
Skylab I
(Unmanned Station) |
14 May 1973 |
Cld: SCT024 SCT050 BKN120
OVC230 (23)
Vis: 10 SM
Temp/Dew: 87F/65F
Winds: 260/06KTS
60' Wind: 155/10KTS
(24) |
N/A |
Burned up on re-entry into
atmosphere |
Skylab II
1st manned mission |
25 May 1973 |
Cld: SCT008 BKN025 BKN080
BKN300 (25)
Vis: 6 SM Fog
Temp/Dew: 79F/74F
Wind: 260/06
60' Wind: 212/11 KTS (26) |
6/22/1973
(28 days
0 hours
50 minutes) |
Cld: BKN018 (29)
Vis: 10 NM
Temp/Dew: 64F/57F
Wind: 030/09KTS
Water Temp: 69 F
Wave Height: 1.5 FT |
Skylab III |
28 July 1973 |
Cld: BKN150 BKN300 (30)
Vis: 3 SM FOG
Temp/Dew: est 74F73/F
Wind: Calm
60' Wind: 264/05 KTS (31) |
9/25/1973
(59 days
11 hours
9 minutes) |
Cld: BKN020
(32)
Vis: 10 NM
Temp/Dew: 65F/61F
Wind: 360/18KTS
Water Temp: 65 F
Wave Height: 1.5 FT |
Skylab IV |
16 Nov 1973 |
Cld: SCT100 (33)
Vis: 10 SM
Temp/Dew: 72F/63F
Wind: 220/07KTS
60' Wind: 202/07 KTS (34) |
02/08/1974
(84 days
1 hour
17 minutes) |
Cld: BKNxxx (CI)
(35)
Vis: 10 NM
Temp/Dew: 58F/52F
Wind: 060/16KTS
Water Temp: 57F
Wave Height: 1.5 FT |
Apollo-Soyuz
(ASTP) |
Mission |
Launch |
Launch Weather |
Recovery
(Duration) |
Recovery Weather |
Apollo 18 |
7/15/1975 |
Cld:SCT029CB
SCT140 SCT330 (36)
Vis: 10SM CB SE and SW-W
Temp/Dew: 84F/73F
Wind: 090/09KTS
60' Wind: KTS |
7/24/1975
(9 days
1 hour
30 minutes) |
Cld:
Vis: NM
Temp/Dew: mmF/mmF
Wind: KTS
Water Temp: mm F
Wave Height: FT |
Soyuz 19 |
7/15/1975 |
Cld: SKC
Vis: Good
Temp/Dew: xxF/xxF
Wind: "Light" (37) |
7/21/1975
(5 days
23 hours
31 minutes) |
N/A |
Significant Events
Total Number of Weather Related
Scrubs and Delays: 0 Scrubs, 1 Delay.
Apollo 7: First
Apollo Manned Flight (Schirra/Eisele/Cunningham)
Launch winds close to limit
Apollo 11: First
Lunar Landing (Armstrong/Aldrin/Collins)
Recovery location moved
Apollo 12: Second
Lunar Landing (Conrad/Bean/Gordon)
Launch into precipitation
and electrified clouds triggered lightning strike to vehicle. The mission
continued to a successful conclusion after quick action on the part of the flight
controllers and the crew to recover the spacecraft electrical systems.
Apollo 13: Vehicle
Crippled (Lovell/Haise/Swigert)
Apollo 13 recovery location
moved due to tropical storm
Apollo 14: Lunar
Landing (Shepard/Evans/Roosa) (1 Delay)
Apollo 14 launch delayed
Apollo 16: Lunar
Landing (Young/Mattingly/Duke)
The Apollo 16 mission was
shortened 1 day due to technical issues not related to weather. However,
this changed the recovery location which significantly improved the weather
conditions in the recovery area.
Skylab 2:
(Conrad/Weitz/Kerwin)
Thunderstorms developed
during previous afternoon, but then continued into night and morning hours.
However, storms remained west of area. 15
Apollo-Soyuz Test Project
(Stafford/Brand/Slayton)
The Apollo and Soyuz spacecraft
were launched on the same day with the Soyuz launching first during daylight
hours. This necessitated an afternoon launch at KSC during July.
Therefore, there was a great deal of concern regarding the potential for
thunderstorm occurrence, the ability to predict thunderstorms 8 - 12 hours
in advance, and whether it was reasonable to scrub the Soyuz launch
at Baikonur due to a forecasted occurrence of thunderstorms at KSC.
Although SMG was proud of its capability to predict thunderstorms at KSC,
they recommended not scrubbing a launch due to forecast thunderstorms.
The launch rules for ASTP were modifed from the version used in the Skylab
missions. NOAA aircraft supported Apollo-Soyuz launch
to provide measurements to help avoid any triggered lightning. As
it turned out, thunderstorms ended up not being a significant threat on
the launch day.
References:
1. NASA
SP-4029: "Apollo by the Numbers: A Statistical Reference"
Launch
Weather Table Entry,
Splashdown and Recovery Table
2.
Launch and Recovery Weather Form for Apollo 7 (Undated)
3.
Launch and Recovery Weather Form for Apollo 8 (Undated)
4.
Launch Weather Summary for Apollo 9 (Undated)
5.
Launch and Recovery Weather Form for Apollo 9 (Undated)
6.
Launch Weather Summary for Apollo 10 (18 May 1969)
7.
Launch and Recovery Weather Form for Apollo 10 (Undated)
8.
Launch and Recovery Weather Form for Apollo 11 (Undated)
9.
Launch Weather Summary for Apollo 12 (Undated, Jim Nicolson)
10.
Launch and Recovery Weather Form for Apollo 12 (Undated)
11.
Launch Weather Summary for Apollo 13 (Undated)
12.
Apollo 13 Operation Report, 30 Apr 1970
(O.A. Gordon NWS/HNL to
Chief, SMG) and supporting documentation
13. Launch Weather Summary
for Apollo 14 (Undated)
14. Apollo 14 Operation
Report, Undated (O.A. Gordon NWS/HNL to Chief, SMG) and supporting documentation
15. Apollo 15 Post-Launch
Report, 27 July 1971 (Ernie Amman to Manager, Apollo-Skylab Programs, AA)
and supporting documentation
16. Apollo 15 Operation
Report, 13 August 1971 (O.A. Gordon NWS/HNL to Chief, SMG) and supporting
documentation
17. Apollo 16 Post-Launch
Report, 17 April 1972 (Ernie Amman to Manager, Apollo-Skylab Programs,
AA) and supporting documentation
18. Apollo 16 Operation
Report, 13 May 1972 (O.A. Gordon NWS/HNL to Chief, SMG) and supporting
documentation
19. Memorandum: SMG's
Forecast support for Apollo 16, 9 May 1972 (Chief, SMG to Chief, Flight
Control Division) and supporting documentation
20. Apollo 17 Launch Weather
Summary (Jim Nicholson, undated memo)
21. AS-512 Launch Wind Data,
10 Jan 1973 memo (Dale Johnson, S&E-AERO-YT to Distribution)
22. Apollo 17 Operation
Report, 10 Jan 1973 (O.A. Gordon NWS/HNL to Chief, SMG) and supporting
documentation
23. Skylab I Launch Weather
Summary (Jim Nicholson, 14 May 1973 memo)
24. SA-513/SL-1 Launch Wind
Data, 19 Jun 1973 (Dale Johnson, S&E-AERO-YT to Distribution)
25. Skylab II Launch Weather
Summary (Jim Nicholson, 25 May 1973 memo)
26. SA-206 Launch Wind Data,
18 Jun 1973 (Dale Johnson, S&E-AERO-YT to Distribution)
27. Summary of Spaceflight
Meteorology Group Activities at Kennedy Space Center in Support of the
Launch of Skylab I, 12 June 1973 memo (MIC, Cape Kennedy Section to Chief,
SMG)
28. Summary of Spaceflight
Meteorology Group Activities at Kennedy Space Center in Support of the
Launch of Skylab II, 12 June 1973 memo (MIC, Cape Kennedy Section to Chief,
SMG)
29. Skylab II Operation
Report, 5 Jul 1973 (O.A. Gordon NWS/HNL to Chief, SMG) and supporting documentation
30. Skylab III Launch Weather
Summary (Jim Nicholson, 28 July 1973 memo)
31. SA-207/SL-3 Launch Wind
Data, 29 Aug 1973 (Dale Johnson, S&E-AERO-YT to Distribution)
32. Skylab III Operation
Report, 12 Oct 1973 (O.A. Gordon NWS/HNL to Chief, SMG) and supporting
documentation
33. Skylab III Launch Weather
Summary (Jim Nicholson, 28 July 1973 memo)
34. SA-208/SL-4 Launch Wind
Data, 21 Jan 1974 (Dale Johnson, S&E-AERO-YT to Distribution)
35. Skylab IV Operation
Report, 21 Feb 1974 (O.A. Gordon NWS/HNL to Chief, SMG) and supporting
documentation
36. ASTP Launch Weather
Summary (Jim Nicholson, 15 July 1975 memo)
Note: Conditions recorded
for launch from post-launch reports represent conditions as recorded on
the 150m tower included in the report.
37. SP-4209 The Partnership:
A History of the Apollo-Soyuz Test Project. Chap 11.
Go to the Mercury or Gemini weather support pages.
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