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Apollo 11

Day 1 part 2: Earth Orbit and Translunar Injection

Corrected Transcript and Commentary Copyright © 2008 by W. David Woods, Kenneth D. MacTaggart and Frank O'Brien. All rights reserved.

[Now safely in orbit, Apollo 11 circles Earth just over one-and-half times while still attached the S-IVB third stage of the Saturn launch vehicle. The crew will remove their helmets and gloves and for a while are free to move around the cabin. They unstow equipment, take some photographs, check the spacecraft systems and make star sightings. When over Hawaii, the S-IVB stage is re-ignited to perform the Translunar Injection burn that sends them on their way to the Moon.]

000:17:38 COMM TECH: Uh, you... Houston Comm Tech. Canary Comm Tech.

000:18:18 McCandless: Apollo 11, this is Houston through Canary. Over.

000:18:23 Armstrong: Roger. Reading you loud and clear. Our insertion checklist is complete, and we have no abnormalities.

000:18:30 McCandless: Roger. And I'd like to pass up your Delta azimuth correction at this time if you're ready to copy.

000:18:36 Armstrong: Stand by.

000:18:40 Collins: Roger. Go ahead. Ready to copy.

000:18:42 McCandless: Okay. Delta Azimuth correction is plus 0.22, that is plus .22, and we do recommend the P52 alignment. Over.

000:18:54 Collins: Okay. We'll go ahead with the P52, and deflecting angle [Delta Azimuth] plus 0.22.

000:19:01 McCandless: Roger. And your LOS time at Canary is 23 37. Over.

000:19:09 Armstrong: 23 37.

000:19:11 McCandless: Houston. Roger. Out.

PAO: This is Apollo Control. Based on that initial orbital figures, the orbital period is 1 hour, 28 minutes, 16 seconds. This number will be refined as - also as we get better information on the orbit through radar tracking. At the present time, we're showing an orbital period of 1 hour, 28 minutes, 17 seconds. We'll continue to stand by live through the Canary Station.

000:22:41 McCandless: Apollo 11, this is Houston. One minute to LOS Canary. AOS at Tananarive 37 04 in VHF Simplex Alpha. Over.

000:23:08 McCandless: Apollo 11, this is Houston. Coming up on LOS Canary. AOS Tananarive at 37 04, Simplex Alpha. Houston. Out.

000:23:23 Armstrong: Apollo. Roger.

PAO: This is Apollo Control at 23 minutes, 52 seconds. Canary Islands station has Loss of Signal from Apollo 11. We have a tape of the air/ground [communication] during the launch phase. We'll play that for you now.

[The Public Affairs Officer then replays a tape of the air/ground communication that covers the ascent phase and excludes his original commentary. Meanwhile, on Columbia, the DSE recorder is placed into record mode. This records digital data from sensors around the spacecraft and includes a voice track to record the conversations in the cabin. It is normal practice for this equipment to record throughout the ascent but this was evidently missed on this occasion.]

000:29:59 Aldrin (onboard): Why don't I leave the dark slide...

[This slide is part of the Hasselblad 70-mm (film width) stills camera on board.]

000:33:18 Collins (onboard): Okay, Buzz, are you ready for 16-millimeter?

[Mike is unstowing the DAC movie camera from a locker below the couches. Built by Maurer, it uses 16-mm wide film stock.]

000:35:41 Aldrin (onboard): Now, let's see. You got an 18-millimeter on here, right?

[Buzz is referring to the 18-mm lens that Mike has installed on the 16-mm DAC movie camera.]

000:35:52 Collins (onboard): Yes, one's for the 18, and one's for the 75. I - I think, just as long it looks like it's out and - the window, that's the main thing.

[Meanwhile, the Public Affairs Officer has been replaying a tape of the air/ground conversation through the launch phase to the press.]

000:36:40 Armstrong (onboard): Did you get a secondary radiator leak check?

000:36:43 Aldrin (onboard): Yes, we did that.

000:36:44 Armstrong (onboard): Okay. We're not hearing them, but we're... Tananarive.

000:36:48 Collins (onboard): Are we on Simplex A?

000:36:49 Armstrong (onboard): We're on Simplex A.

000:36:51 Aldrin (onboard): We're on Simplex A, but we're not due over Tananarive for another couple of seconds.

000:36:56 Armstrong (onboard): Okay.

000:36:58 Collins (onboard): What - ... time is 36 something...

000:37:00 Aldrin (onboard): Am I set up on VHF? Can you tell?

000:37:11 Collins (onboard): Yes, just a second. Just a second - Your Master is On; your Intercom is On; your VHF is On; your Pad Comm is Off; your S-Band is On; and you're in Intercom Push-to-Talk, so you're all squared away, except for maybe Volume dial.

000:37:29 Aldrin (onboard): Okay.

000:37:31 Armstrong (onboard): Now, Buzz, this item here at Canaries. LOS, 23:36. Potable Water Heater, Main A...

000:37:38 Aldrin (onboard): Yes, I got that.

000:37:39 Armstrong (onboard): ...PCM Bit Rate, Low...

000:37:40 Aldrin (onboard): I got that.

000:37:41 Armstrong (onboard): ...You got all that, okay. Okay, when was the...

000:37:44 Aldrin (onboard): And the purge check's complete, and I'm working my way down to ECS.

000:37:50 Armstrong (onboard): Okay.

000:37:51 Collins (onboard): I'm having a hell of a time maintaining my body position down here. I keep floating up.

000:37:56 Aldrin (onboard): Well, there's such a great tendency to - to try and put a little force - want to stay there. Just forget about all that and go wherever you want.

000:38:11 Armstrong (onboard): Okay, I got the Systems Test Meter set up on 4-B and ... attitude...

000:38:18 Aldrin (onboard): 4-B, okay.

000:38:19 Collins (onboard): What are you reading?

000:38:20 Armstrong (onboard): I'm reading 3.50.

000:38:26 Aldrin (onboard): ... our attitude quantities...

PAO: This is Apollo...

000:38:36 McCandless: Houston, Apollo 11.

000:38:37 McCandless: Apollo 11, this is Houston through Tananarive. Over.

000:38:41 Armstrong (onboard): Hello, Houston, Apollo 11.

000:38:46 Collins (onboard): Optics Zero is Off. I'm going to jettison the... cover...

[An external cover on the opposite side of the Command Module from the crew hatch has protected the external surfaces of the navigation system's optics during launch. The cover is now ejected when Mike pushes a lever in the Lower Equipment Bay.]

000:38:56 Armstrong (onboard): Hello Houston, Apollo 11. Go ahead.

000:39:04 Armstrong: Houston, Apollo 11. Read you on VHF A Simplex. How do you read? Over.

000:39:09 McCandless: Roger, 11, this is Houston. We're reading you loud and fairly clearly. For your information, Canary radar shows you in a 103.0 by 103.0 orbit. Over.

000:39:25 Armstrong: Beautiful.

000:39:27 McCandless: Roger. We concur.

[Radar shows Apollo 11 to be in an extremely accurate circular orbit with an altitude of 103 nautical miles, better than earlier estimates.]

PAO: This is Apollo Control. The orbital period at that 103-nautical mile-circular orbit is 1 hour, 28 minutes, 24 seconds.

000:39:40 Collins (onboard): I jettisoned the optics; I hope they went. Did you see them go?

000:39:44 Aldrin (onboard): I heard a little something, but I...

000:39:47 Collins (onboard): Don't want to miss that.

000:39:48 Aldrin (onboard): No.

000:39:55 Collins (onboard): Can't really tell here. I think I'm seeing the horizon - out there, but I'm ... far from being dark-adapted. It's hard to tell...

000:40:08 Aldrin (onboard): ... a double blind on this?

000:40:12 Collins (onboard): Yes. What were those Z-30 angles? 0.22, isn't it?

000:40:18 Aldrin (onboard): That's right, plus.

000:40:19 Collins (onboard): Sure's a big one, isn't it? Okay, well, I'm standing by to do this...

000:40:28 Aldrin (onboard): Got A and B down.

000:40:32 Collins (onboard): ...IMU align. Unstow the optics handles. Anybody wants any of that claptrap out of R-l, now is the time to say it.

[R-1 is the stowage locker at bottom right, below the LMP's couch.]

000:41:43 Collins (onboard): And 3.8.

000:41:44 McCandless: Apollo 11, this is Houston. One minute to LOS Tananarive. AOS Carnarvon is at 52:15. Over.

000:41:54 Armstrong: Apollo 11. Roger.

000:41:56 Aldrin (onboard): 52:15:00

000:41:57 Armstrong (onboard): You want some of these lights down further, Mark...Mike?

000:42:04 Collins (onboard): Don't worry about it for the time being. I'm potting around with handholds right now, Neil...

000:42:13 Aldrin (onboard): That battery compartment pressure, Mike, it ought to be less than 1.5. However, it says NA until first vent.

000:42:21 Collins (onboard): Okay.

000:42:22 Aldrin (onboard): It's greater than 1.5; that vent - vent...

000:42:25 Collins (onboard): Well, we haven't even done it yet.

000:42:27 Aldrin (onboard): ... [garbled]

000:42:28 Collins (onboard): Yes.

000:42:53 PAO: This is Apollo Control at 42 minutes, 53 seconds. Tananarive has Loss of Signal. We'll come back up at 52 minutes into the mission when the Carnarvon, Australian station acquires Apollo 11. This is Mission Control, Houston.

000:43:13 Armstrong (onboard): Man, we are in the dark, now.

000:43:13 COMM TECH: TAN LOS.

000:43:25 Collins (onboard): You got any reading off that Repress O₂ to be greater than 8...

000:43:37 Aldrin (onboard): We got - No, not quite that much. That's that crazy gauge.

000:43:48 Armstrong (onboard): Okay, can I have the... now?

000:43:53 Aldrin (onboard): Yes, you got it. ... 50 degrees...

000:44:06 Armstrong (onboard): ... here is your acid test.

000:44:10 Collins (onboard): Okay, what did he say, 52...

000:44:11 Armstrong (onboard): 52... percent, about.

000:44:15 Collins (onboard): As I say, I can't see. Let me know if you want me to...come back.

000:44:52 Collins (onboard): It's...Menkent.

000:44:58 Aldrin (onboard): ... ball on that pad. It's maintaining about 39 degrees, Mike.

000:45:02 Collins (onboard): Yes, I noticed that. Before, it was maintaining less than that; it was abnormally low. I almost asked them about it during boost, and then I decided to heck with it. Damn, it'll be hard to see through these optics... down a little bit. Okay, proceed to Menkent. There she goes, Menkent.

000:45:31 Collins (onboard): Menkent. God, what a star.

000:45:35 Aldrin (onboard): Nobody in their right...

000:45:36 Collins (onboard): Menkent's good...

000:45:37 Aldrin (onboard): ...nobody in their right mind would pick that one.

000:45:38 Collins (onboard): ...Menkent's a good star.

000:45:40 Aldrin (onboard): Hey, I sure wish you'd get out that - that star chart.

000:45:45 Armstrong (onboard): Can't see a thing, huh?

000:45:46 Collins (onboard): No. It's in the...

000:45:48 Armstrong (onboard): Did you look in the telescope?

000:45:49 Collins (onboard):...in the sextant. Yes, but I can't see it in the telescope. In the sextant - I can't.

000:45:53 Armstrong (onboard): Okay.

000:45:54 Collins (onboard): I believe it's at the angle we have to mark on it.

000:46:06 Aldrin (onboard): It's a little on the chilly side in the cabin. Would you like...

000:46:08 Armstrong (onboard): Feels comfortable to me.

000:46:09 Aldrin (onboard): ...would you like it a little warmer, anybody?

000:46:10 Armstrong (onboard): I don't think so. I think it's a little on the...

000:46:13 Aldrin (onboard): ...

000:46:16 Armstrong (onboard): It sure doesn't look, sure doesn't feel like - Actually, it may be a little - it may be a little warm.

000:46:20 Aldrin (onboard): Well, my - my feet are a little chilly. See, it's 47. Okay, 37 is...

000:46:26 Collins (onboard): No, that's...

000:46:27 Aldrin (onboard): ...is Nunki. What?

000:46:30 Collins (onboard): Okay. Hey, Buzz?

000:46:31 Aldrin (onboard): What?

000:46:32 Collins (onboard): Did you write down any marks on 30 and on 37?

000:46:35 Aldrin (onboard): I was going to mark on 37, and that's Nunki; 30 and 37?

000:46:39 Collins (onboard): Yes, sir.

000:46:45 Armstrong (onboard): I can see some stars. Well, maybe I...

000:46:53 Collins (onboard): Okay, again, looking through the telescope, I'm absolutely unable to tell if it's Nunki, but I have it in the sextant. So let's mark on it.

000:47:18 Collins (onboard): ... you guys would appreciate doing this with old G&N men.

000:47:24 Armstrong (onboard): 0.01.

000:47:26 Collins (onboard): 0.01, alright. Shoot, I forget, I think that's gray Gienah.

000:47:29 Armstrong (onboard): Cup of coffee around here later on, when you get a little time.

000:47:34 Aldrin (onboard): You like that, Neil? You want us to record that star?

000:47:40 Collins (onboard): I got it, I got it. Go ahead.

000:47:41 Aldrin (onboard): Let's see, what's tearing me up is we're going to orb-rate on this damn booster, and the rate is very evident.

000:47:48 Collins (onboard): Okay, Z torque is plus 0.152 instead of 150. I suppose that's close enough. Now then, you got those numbers written down, Buzz?

000:48:01 Aldrin (onboard): Copy.

000:48:02 Collins (onboard): Okay. Now I - I - if I remember right, I think you're just supposed to torque without further ado. We give them the time at which we torque. So, as soon as you got them written down, let me know and I'll proceed and you can mark the time.

000:48:13 Aldrin (onboard): I've got it.

000:48:14 Collins (onboard): Okay, here we go. Proceed, torque.

000:48:15 Aldrin (onboard): 48:15:00

000:48:18 Collins (onboard): Okay, now I - I'm going to verify with the third star, and let's see what that star's going to be. Star number 34...

000:48:34 Aldrin (onboard): Atria.

000:48:35 Collins (onboard): ...is Atria. You might note that, Buzz, also. I think...

000:48:39 Aldrin (onboard): 34?

000:48:40 Collins (onboard): Yes, I think that's the third star. It'll say somewhere in that checklist. Proceed to Atria. Alright, if IMU is realigned, realign the GDC.

000:49:04 Aldrin (onboard): 0.1 degree. Probably GDC's off a lot more than that.

000:49:12 Collins (onboard): Okay, and Atria is there in the sextant. Well, you know, it's not right in the middle of the sextant. Of course, I guess - I don't know what - Have you ever heard any rules on what constitutes a good third star check?

000:49:32 Aldrin (onboard): No, all you're really doing is seeing that you've got the right stars, it seems to me.

000:49:36 Collins (onboard): It's there, but it's not dab smack in the middle of the sextant. It's off, I would guess, 0.02 or some crazy number like that. Alright, having done that, Verb 37, Enter; ... Enter, and I'm going Optics Zero and Manual, and cranking up the floodlights down here.

000:50:04 Collins (onboard): God, I'll tell you, the visibility through that telescope is a big disappointment.

000:50:10 Aldrin (onboard): It's...

000:50:13 Collins (onboard): Okay, Buzz, got all that good stuff?

000:50:20 Armstrong (onboard): GDC's realigned, okay...

000:50:27 Collins (onboard): Reticle brightness... I don't know anything about that. Stow optics eyepieces, okay, that's in work.

000:50:35 Armstrong (onboard): And... out there right now...Buzz?

000:50:46 Aldrin (onboard): Neil, I haven't been looking out. My eyes aren't very well adapted.

000:50:52 Armstrong (onboard): You got your light on.

000:50:59 Collins (onboard): Yes, look at those bright ones down here.

000:51:09 Aldrin (onboard): Lightning! Is that lightning out your window?

000:51:12 Armstrong (onboard): No, I haven't seen any lightning.

000:51:15 Aldrin (onboard): Hell, that must be lightning. Either that or it's the...

000:51:19 Collins (onboard): You know, no matter how many times I put these optics eyepieces...

000:51:23 Armstrong (onboard): I just saw something. Maybe it is the... They said that Borman's... [crew? Apollo 8] could see it. They couldn't hear it, but they could see it alright.

000:51:30 Aldrin (onboard): Yes.

000:51:35 Collins (onboard): No matter how many times I put these optics eyepieces in their box, it doesn't seem right.

000:51:45 Collins (onboard): 0.01, God damn it! Now that's enough to piss a body off.

000:51:51 Armstrong (onboard): ... that time.

000:51:53 Aldrin (onboard): S-band noise.

000:51:57 Armstrong (onboard): We're about to get - 10 seconds until acquisition.

000:51:59 Aldrin (onboard): Okay.

000:52:02 Collins (onboard): Okay, and my optics eyepieces are stowed.

000:52:09 Armstrong (onboard): You want me to take your checklist, Mike, and kind of skim through it?

000:52:16 Collins (onboard): It says here, coming up on Carnarvon LOS at...

PAO: This is Apollo Control at 52 minutes and the station at Carnarvon, Australia is about to acquire Apollo 11. We'll stand by live through this pass.

000:53:03 McCandless: Apollo 11, this is Houston through Carnarvon. Over.

000:53:08 Aldrin: Houston, Apollo 11. Loud and clear. Over.

000:53:11 McCandless: Roger, 11. We're reading you the same. Both the booster and the spacecraft are looking good to us. Over.

000:53:26 Aldrin: Houston, Apollo 11. Would you like to copy the alignment results?

000:53:31 McCandless: That's affirmative.

000:53:35 Aldrin: Okay. Noun 71, we used 30 and 37; four balls 1; Noun 93, plus 00016, plus 00033, plus 00152; GET 00:48:15; check star 34. Over.

000:54:02 McCandless: Roger. Say again check star.

000:54:06 Aldrin: Check star 34.

000:54:09 McCandless: Roger. We copy. And the angles look good.

000:54:13 Collins: And tell Glenn Parker down at the Cape that he lucked out.

000:54:17 McCandless: Understand. Tell Glenn Parker he lucked out.

000:54:22 Collins: Yes, he lucked out. He doesn't owe me a cup of coffee.

000:54:26 McCandless: This is Houston. Roger, we'll pass it on.

[In his well-regarded autobiography, Carrying the Fire, Mike describes how he had a bet with Glenn Parker on how accurately he could mark on two stars using the spacecraft's optical system. A figure of 00001 (four balls-one) represents an error of only 0.01° as given by Noun 05.]

000:57:27 McCandless: Apollo 11, this is Houston. One minute to LOS Carnarvon. AOS at Honeysuckle 59:33. Over.

000:57:37 Armstrong: Apollo 11. Roger.

000:57:40 McCandless: Roger. And we request you turn up S-Band volume for the Honeysuckle pass.

PAO: This is Apollo Control. We've had loss of signal at Carnarvon. However, the station at Honeysuckle in Australia will acquire Apollo 11 in approximately a minute. We'll continue to stand by through the Honeysuckle pass.

001:02:48 McCandless: Apollo 11, Apollo 11, this is Houston on S-band. Radio check. Over.

001:02:55 Armstrong: Roger, Houston. Apollo 11 reads you loud and clear.

001:02:58 McCandless: This is Houston. Roger. Reading you the same. Out.

PAO: That was Neil Armstrong in the radio check.

001:04:24 McCandless: Apollo 11, this is Houston. A little over 1 minute to LOS at Honeysuckle. You'll be AOS at Goldstone at 1:29:02. LOS at Goldstone 1:33:55. Over.

001:04:44 Collins (onboard): Let...let me tell them about the TV...

001:04:47 Collins: Roger, Bruce. Thank you. We expect TV. We've got it all hooked up. We have not yet turned it on. We're ready to do that now.

001:04:55 McCandless: Roger. We copy. We'll be configured and waiting for whatever you want to send down.

PAO: This is Apollo Control at 1 hour, 6 minutes into the mission of Apollo 11. Honeysuckle has lost signal. Mike Collins reported just prior to LOS here that the crew would check out the TV camera at the Goldstone station. Goldstone will acquire Apollo 11 at 1 hour, 29 minutes, 2 seconds; and will lose the spacecraft at 1 hour, 33 minutes, 55 seconds. We'll come back up just shortly prior to acquisition at Goldstone. This is Mission Control, Houston.

001:05:02 Collins (onboard): Okay, you think we can do that?

001:05:04 Aldrin (onboard): That's fine with us.

001:05:05 Armstrong (onboard): This one here?

001:05:17 Aldrin (onboard): Tell them that we've got nothing to do here but re-check it here for the next 20 minutes or so.

001:05:26 Aldrin (onboard): Okay. I'm ready to turn the TV on. Play with it...flashlight... hook it up...

001:06:00 Armstrong (onboard): Want a - ...? Mike?

[Neil seems to be passing around sweets.]

001:09:21 Aldrin (onboard): Let's get into the Hasselblad... get the right settings on it.

[About now, Buzz turns to his left and takes a somewhat blurred color photo of Neil with the Hasselblad camera, AS11-36-5291. Then he turns towards Mike and photographs him also, AS11-36-5292. Mike is seen holding the TV camera which they have just been discussing.]

001:09:32 Armstrong (onboard): Yes, that's all. That's the only one that's got a scanner converter. We've only got about 4 minutes, looks like.

[The scanner converter takes the returned TV images from the spacecraft and converts them into a format suitable for domestic television receivers. Equipment had also been installed at the major ground stations in Australia and Spain but Goldstone in California is the only station during the spacecraft's pass over the American continent that can handle TV.]

001:18:09 Collins (onboard) [May be Aldrin]: Say, we got the rookie with us. He hasn't seen so many of those.

[This is a jocular reference to the brevity of Armstrong's abortive flight on Gemini 8. Despite being the commander of Apollo 11, he has the shortest duration orbital experience of the crew, albeit the greatest experience of handling in-flight emergencies, when he piloted the malfunctioning Gemini 8 back to Earth.]

001:25:10 Aldrin (onboard): Yes, go ahead and take a picture. Keep your... down.

[About now, Collins takes photo number AS11-36-5293 of the cloud-speckled Earth, looking east towards the Sun. Having lost the camera 5 minutes earlier, he has missed a sunrise photo, but he captures the glaring sun in the sky above the ocean, rising rapidly as a result of their orbital motion. He takes a further 8 photos at this point, through to AS11-36-5301. AS11-36-5298 is the best one showing the low pressure cell.]

001:27:50 Aldrin (onboard): Oh, shoot! They're going to... Let's see, they're going to have to send us up a TLI PAD, TLI abort, and a P37 PAD. They're all right here in this little book. Don't forget to remind me of that.

PAO: This is Apollo Control at 1 hour and 28 minutes into the mission. We're about 10 - 12 seconds away from acquisition at Goldstone at which time we expect a check-out of the color TV camera. We'll then continue live through the United States pass.

001:28:02 Collins (onboard): Okay, that's good.

001:28:14 Aldrin (onboard): How do you think we can...?

001:28:17 Armstrong (onboard): Yes, you can fold it flat. Would that help you?

001:28:19 Aldrin (onboard): Yes.

001:28:20 Armstrong (onboard): That's pull...pull...

001:28:28 Collins (onboard): See that, Buzz? You're a TV expert.

001:28:48 Collins (onboard): Now, the next big thing we got to do is, after the attitude reference check, is extend the docking probe. No big thing. Copy down a bunch of PADs and then you got your RCS hot-fire.

001:29:08 Collins (onboard): That booster, when that thing...

001:29:09 McCandless: Apollo 11, this is Houston through Guaymas. Over. [Guaymas is in Mexico.]

001:29:14 Armstrong: Roger, Houston. Reading you loud and clear.

001:29:17 McCandless: Roger. Reading you the same. Coming up on AOS Goldstone.

001:29:20 Armstrong: Roger.

001:29:21 Armstrong (onboard): It should be right now, Buzz.

001:29:27 Collins: Cecil B. DeAldrin is standing by for instructions.

[A humorous reference to the legendary film director Cecil B. DeMille, 1881-1959.]

PAO: We have no downlink yet at Goldstone. We're standing by.

001:29:40 Armstrong (onboard): Okay, and I got PADs, need to extend the probe, and do an SM RCS hotfire.

001:29:49 Collins (onboard): That's right, that's the same way I read it. I don't know what this is, coming up.

001:29:53 Armstrong (onboard): When you, when you come up on this SECS Logic, and MSFN Go for pyro arm, don't forget to get an Okay from them before you send the... out.

001:30:09 Aldrin (onboard): Wow, I hope they get that. That's pretty.

001:30:11 Armstrong (onboard): With the sun glaring like it is, you're, you're correct on the f:22, I'm sure. It might be part of the...

001:31:15 McCandless: Apollo 11, this is Houston. We're not receiving your FM downlink yet. We're standing by.

001:31:56 McCandless: Apollo 11, this is Houston. We're receiving your FM downlink now. We're standing by for TV modulation on the signal.

001:32:23 McCandless: Apollo 11, Apollo 11, this is Houston. Radio check. Over.

001:32:27 Armstrong: Roger. Loud and clear. We think we're transmitting to you.

001:32:31 McCandless: Okay. We are not receiving it yet, 11, although we have confirmed presence of your FM downlink carrier.

001:32:39 Armstrong: Which switches do you want us to confirm?

001:32:42 McCandless: Stand by.

001:33:11 McCandless: Apollo 11, this is Houston. You were just on the fringes of coverage from Goldstone. We have just had LOS at Goldstone, and we'd like to push on and get the PAD messages read up to you here shortly.

001:33:26 Armstrong: Roger. We are ready to copy.

001:34:33 McCandless: Apollo 11, this is Houston. I am ready with your TLI-plus-90-minute abort PAD.

001:34:55 McCandless: Apollo 11, this is Houston. I'm ready with your TLI-plus-90-minute abort PAD.

001:35:00 Armstrong: Roger. Apollo 11 is ready to copy TLI plus 90.

001:35:03 Collins: Go.

001:35:05 McCandless: Roger. TLI plus 90, SPS G&N: 63481, minus 1.53, plus 1.32; GETI, 004:10:25:38; Noun 81, minus 0476.1, plus 0000.1, plus 5336.1; roll, 180, 193, 000; HA is NA; plus 0020.3, 5357.3, 6:33, 5334.9; sextant star 33, 157.8, 12.2. The boresight star is not available. Latitude minus 02.52, minus 025.80, 1188.7, 34345, 016:03:50. GDC align, Vega and Deneb, roll 071, 291, 341. No ullage, undocked. I have your P37 for TLI plus 5 hours. Over.

001:37:08 Collins: Go ahead, TLI plus 5.

001:37:11 McCandless: Roger. P37 format, TLI plus 5: 00744 6485, minus 165, 02506. Readback. Over.

001:37:31 Collins: Roger. TLI plus 90, SPS G&N: 63481, minus 1.53, plus 1.32; 004:10:25:38; minus 0476.1, plus 0000.1, plus 5336.1; 180, 193, 000; not applicable, plus 0020.3; 5357.3, 6:33, 5334.9; 33, 157.8, 12.2; not available; minus 02.52, minus 025.80; 1188.7, 34345, 016:03:50. Vega and Deneb, 071, 291, 341. No ullage, undocked. P37, TLI plus 5: 00744 6485, minus 165 02506. Over.

[This is similar to the form that Mike is copying the data into.

The PAD is interpreted as follows:

Purpose: This PAD is a contingency in case of abort for a return to Earth with an ignition time approximately 90 minutes after TLI.

Systems: The burn would be made using the large SPS (Service Propulsion System) engine at the rear of the Service Module, under the control of the Guidance and Navigation system.

CSM Weight (Noun 47): 63,481 pounds (28,794 kg). Strictly speaking, a more appropriate term to use would be "mass" rather than "weight". Weight is defined as the force the object exerts when acted upon by gravity whereas mass is a measure of the quantity of matter an object contains. A 1-kg mass exerts 9.81 Newtons on Earth but we would tend to measure that force with a spring balance and call it 1 kilogram. On the Moon, it exerts 1.62 Newtons but its mass is still 1 kilogram so spring balances would have to be recalibrated to read properly. In space, without engines running, it exerts essentially no force at all yet still has 1 kilogram of mass.

Pitch and yaw trim (Noun 48): -1.53° and +1.32°. The SPS engine is mounted on gimbals and can be aimed so that its force vector (the direction in which it pushes) acts through the spacecraft's centre of gravity. These angles represent an initial direction for the engine. Once the burn begins, the spacecraft's control system continually adjusts the angle as the centre-of-gravity shifts. Two thumb wheels on the left of the Main Display Console allow adjustment of these trim angles.

Time of ignition (Noun 33): 4 hours, 10 minutes, 25.38 seconds. This is about 90 minutes after TLI.

Change in velocity (Noun 81), fps (m/s): x, -476.1 (-145.1); y, +0.1 (+0.03); z, +5,336.1 (+1,626.4). The change in velocity is resolved into three components which are quoted relative to the LVLH (Local Vertical/Local Horizontal).

LVLH is a frame of reference that is relative to a line drawn from the spacecraft to the centre of the body it is orbiting, or whose sphere of influence it is in.

Imagine the point where this line intersects the planet's surface. We can further imagine a flat plane at this point parallel to the horizontal. Obviously, as the spacecraft moves across the planet, the absolute orientation of this plane keeps changing but it provides a useful reference for orbital velocity computation. In this arrangement, the plus-Z axis is along the vertical line towards the planetary centre, the plus-X axis is in the direction of orbital motion parallel to the local horizontal and the plus-Y axis is perpendicular to the orbital plane.

Spacecraft attitude: Roll, 180°; Pitch, 193°; Yaw, 000°. The desired spacecraft attitude is measured relative to the alignment of the guidance platform.

H_A, expected apogee of resulting orbit (Noun 44): Not applicable. If this abort burn were to be made, the apogee of the resulting orbit would be over 9999.9 nautical miles, beyond the limit of the computer's display.

H_P, expected perigee of resulting orbit (Noun 44): 20.3 nautical miles (37.6 km). The perigee distance is so low, it intersects the Earth's atmosphere. What this really means is that the spacecraft will re-enter.

Delta-V_T: 5,357.3 fps (1,632.9 m/s). This is the total change in velocity the spacecraft would experience and is a vector sum of the three components given above.

Burn duration or burn time: 6 minutes, 33 seconds.

Delta-V_C: 5,334.9 fps (1,626.1 m/s). Delta-V_C is really about giving the crew another method of controlling their engine. If all goes well, the Guidance and Navigation system will monitor the burn and, taking into account the extra thrust imparted by the engine after it is shut down, it will stop the burn at the right time to give the required total Delta-V. Should the G&N system fail to shut down the engine, the EMS can do it as it contains an accelerometer that measures Delta-V along the X-axis. However, the EMS does not take into account the tail-off thrust. For this reason, and to a lesser extent because the SPS thrust axis is not exactly in line with the X-axis, the figure for Delta-V_C is slightly lower than Delta-V_T. The crew enter it into the EMS Delta-V display prior to the burn. When it reaches zero, a command is sent to stop the engine.

Sextant star: Star 33 (Antares, Alpha Scorpius) visible in sextant when shaft and trunnion angles are 157.8° and 12.2° respectively. This is part of an attitude check.

Boresight star: Not available. This is a second attitude check which is made by sighting on another celestial object with the COAS (Crew Optical Alignment Sight). In this case, no suitable object would be available on that side of the spacecraft.

The next five parameters all relate to re-entry, during which an important milestone is "Entry Interface," defined as being 400,000 feet (121.92 km) altitude. Another important point is when atmospheric drag on the spacecraft imparts a deceleration of 0.05 g's.

Expected splashdown point (Noun 61): 2.52° south, 25.8° west; in the mid-Atlantic.

Range to go: 1,188.7 nautical miles (2 201.5 km). To set up their EMS (Entry Monitor System) before re-entry, the crew need to know the expected distance the CM would travel after Entry Interface.

Expected velocity at Entry Interface: 34,345 fps (10,468 m/s).

Time of Entry Interface: 16 hours, 3 minutes and 50 seconds GET. This is the predicted time at which the spacecraft would be at 400,000 feet (121.92 km) altitude.

GDC align stars: The stars to be used for GDC align purposes are the north set, Vega and Deneb. The align angles are roll, 71°; pitch, 291°; yaw, 341°.

The PAD includes some additional notes. The SPS propellant tanks are full, so there would be no need to perform an ullage burn to settle their contents. If it were to be made, the crew should not be docked to the LM.

In addition, Mission Control sent up a second, short PAD which is intended for use in P37, a 'Return-to-Earth' programme.

The data is intended for an abort that would be burned five hours after TLI. The parameters required are:

Time of ignition: 7 hours, 44 minutes.

Delta-V: 6,485 feet per second (1,977 metres/second)

Longitude of splashdown: 165° west; in the mid-Pacific Ocean.

Time of Entry Interface: 25 hours, 6 minutes GET.

With these requested values, P37 would then work out the preliminary parameters for an abort burn.]

001:39:29 Armstrong: I confirm that that is the configuration we're in.

001:39:33 McCandless: Roger. Let us do a little more detective work here and we'll see if we can come up with something.

001:39:38 Armstrong: Okay.

001:39:54 Armstrong: Houston, Apollo 11 is ready to go ahead with the - extend the docking probe, and ready to go with the RCS hot fire when you're ready to monitor. Over.

001:40:06 McCandless: Roger. Go ahead with the probe, now.

001:40:13 Armstrong: Roger.

001:41:33 Armstrong: Okay. We're ready to - for the hot fire check when you're ready.

001:41:39 McCandless: Roger. We're ready 11. Go ahead.

001:41:48 Armstrong: Roger. Here's the pitch.

001:42:13 McCandless: Apollo 11, this is Houston. We are seeing the pitch hot firing and it looks good.

001:42:18 Armstrong: Roger. Be advised that we are unable to hear them.

001:42:22 McCandless: Roger. We copy.

001:42:24 Armstrong: Have you seen all three axes fire?

001:42:31 McCandless: We've seen pitch and yaw; we've not seen roll to date.

001:42:36 Armstrong: Okay. I'll put in a couple more rolls.

001:42:42 McCandless: Okay. We've got the roll impulses, and you're looking good here.

001:42:48 Armstrong: Roger. Houston, Apollo 11. We're standing by for a Go for sequence logic On.

001:43:03 McCandless: Apollo 11, this is Houston. Go ahead and we'll watch you on TM.

001:43:07 Armstrong: Okay. Sequence logic, two of them. (Pause.) Sequence logic 1 and 2 coming up and On.

001:43:36 McCandless: Apollo 11, this is Houston. You are Go for Pyro Arm.

001:43:40 Armstrong: Roger. Thank you.

001:43:57 McCandless: Apollo 11, this is Houston. If you can give us P00 and Accept, we have a state vector update for you.

001:44:04 Armstrong: Roger.

001:44:17 Armstrong: You have P00 and Accept.

001:44:19 McCandless: Roger. It will probably be another 10 or 15 seconds. We're going to go up through the Vanguard. When you're ready to copy, I have your TLI PAD.

001:44:26 Collins: Roger. Ready to copy TLI PAD.

001:44:30 McCandless: Roger. TLI: 2:35:14; 179, 071, 001, burn time 5:47, 10435.6, 35575. Roll for Sep 357, 107, 041; 301, 287, 319. TLI 10-minute abort pitch, 223. Readback. Over.

001:45:23 Collins: Roger. TLI PAD: 2:35:14; 179, 071, 001; 5:47, 10435.6, 35575; 357, 107, 041; 301 287 319. TLI 10-minute abort pitch, 223. Over.

001:46:03 McCandless: Apollo 11, this is Houston. Roger. Would you read back Delta-V_c prime again? You were cut out by some noise.

001:46:09 Collins: Okay. Roger. I'm picking up the squeal here, also. Delta-V_c 10435.6. Over.

001:46:25 McCandless: Apollo 11, this is Houston. Readback correct. Out.

[This PAD is structurally different to the others as the TLI maneuver is controlled by the IU (Instrument Unit) on the launch vehicle, and not the computer in the CM. it therefore goes into a different form.

The timings for events relating to the launch vehicle are defined relative to a number of time bases, each of which start with a particular event. This allows controllers to move complete sequences of events relative to the overall mission time. The restart sequence for the S-IVB's single J-2 engine is called time base 6. When it begins, all subsequent events to restart the engine such as tank repressurisation, engine chilldown, ullage, etc., follow on, leading to the engine start command 9 minutes, 30 seconds later, and actual ignition 8 seconds after that.]

[The crew also have tasks to perform in the minutes leading up to the TLI burn and they use their event timer to help them. They will preset it to read 51:00, to give them a nine minute count-up to ignition. Then around 002:35:14, the light will come on for ten seconds to announce the start of TB-6. Thirty eight seconds later, the event timer is started and counts up towards (1:)00:00 and beyond. Items in the checklist are therefore shown with times from 51:00 onwards.]

[The PAD is interpreted as follows.

TB-6 predicted start: This is calculated from current tracking data to be at 002:35:14, which implies that engine start will be commanded at 002:44:44 and that Tig (time of ignition) will be at 002:45:52. The actual start time is based on the solution to trajectory equations which depend on the vehicle's state vector.

Attitude for TLI: is 179°, 71°, 1° in roll, pitch and yaw respectively. This is with respect to the orientation the guidance platform has held since launch.

Burn duration: 5 minutes, 47 seconds.

Delta-V_C prime: 10,435.6 fps (3,180.8 m/s). This is the figure they will enter into the EMS to allow them to monitor the burn.

Inertial velocity at engine cut-off, (V_I): 35,575 fps (10,843.3 m/s).

Attitude for separation of the CSM from the launch vehicle: 357°, 107°, 41° in roll, pitch and yaw respectively. Among the criteria for adopting this attitude is solar illumination of the S-IVB to allow the crew to practice maneuvering relative to it.

Attitude for the extraction of the LM: 301°, 287°, 319° in roll, pitch and yaw respectively.

If the crew decide they need to abort the mission soon after TLI, they should adopt a pitch angle of 223°.]

001:47:16 Armstrong: Roger. That's verified. The probe is extended.

001:47:19 McCandless: Roger. About 2 minutes to LOS on this state-side pass. AOS Canaries at 1:50:13. Over.

001:47:28 Armstrong: Roger. 1:50... [13]

PAO: This is Apollo Control. The tracking ship, Vanguard, has had loss of signal. However, the Canary Island station will acquire Apollo 11 in less than a minute. We'll continue to stay up live through the Canary station. The ignition time for the Translunar Injection burn; an elapsed time of 2 hours, 44 minutes, 14 seconds. Duration of the burn expected to be 5 minutes, 47 seconds. We're acquiring at Canaries now. We'll stand by.

001:50:42 McCandless: Apollo 11, this is Houston. Over.

001:50:45 Armstrong: Roger. Houston, Apollo 11. Loud and clear.

001:50:49 McCandless: Okay. On your service module RCS quad Bravo package temperature, we're showing it running a little low. Looks like about 20 degrees low - lower than the rest of the quads. Would you confirm that your RCS heater switch for quad Bravo is in Primary? Over.

001:51:09 Armstrong: You're correct. It was not in Primary. It was off. It's on now. Thank you.

001:51:16 McCandless: Roger. Thank you.

PAO: And the temperature on that Reaction Control System quad is coming up to normal now that the heater's on.

001:53:50 McCandless: Apollo 11, this is Houston. Over.

001:53:54 Collins: Houston, Apollo 11. Go ahead.

001:53:56 McCandless: Roger. We've checked over the spacecraft and the launch vehicle guidance. They're both looking to be in good shape. We estimate you have better than a 99-percent probability of a guidance cut-off on the launch vehicle, so things are apparently holding in very well. For your information, MILA received approximately 1 minute of a usable TV picture, so apparently the system is working. And you're a little over a minute from LOS at Canary. AOS Tananarive is 2 hours, 9 minutes and 18 seconds. Over.

[MILA is the Merritt Island Launch Area in Florida, from where they launched.]

001:54:38 McCandless: Roger. Out.

001:54:39 Armstrong (onboard): Okay.

001:54:40 Collins (onboard): Now, let's see. We want to go to the suit circuit...

001:54:44 Aldrin (onboard): Yes, I'll get the suit circuit if I can find that valve.

001:54:50 Collins (onboard): Okay, let's see, that's the EDS Power, On.

001:54:54 Aldrin (onboard): Oh, that thing is hard.

001:54:59 Collins (onboard): What, what do we want here...

PAO: This is Apollo Control at 1 hour, 55 minutes into the mission. Canary has had Loss of Signal. We were unable to use the 1 minute of TV time from the MILA station. There is no longer a converter at MILA. The one formerly there has been sent to the Australian station. Tananarive will acquire Apollo 11 on its second orbit of the Earth at 2 hours, 9 minutes, 18 seconds. We expect the Translunar Injection burn at 2 hours, 44 minutes, 14 seconds. Duration of 5 minutes, 47 seconds and the Delta-V, or the velocity that we will add to the spacecraft, of 10,435.6 feet per second. We'll come back up at Tananarive acquisition. This is Mission Control, Houston.

001:55:00 Aldrin (onboard): Suit's closed.

001:55:01 Collins (onboard): ...on that Verb 48?

001:55:10 Armstrong (onboard): Ready for EDS Power, On, you think?

001:55:13 Collins (onboard): EDS Power, up and On, yes.

[This is the Emergency Detection System, which was switched off during ascent, becoming live. In a moment, Mike will check that the Entry Monitoring System is switched off.]

001:57:12 Aldrin (onboard): EMS Function to Delta-V Test.

[Buzz is checking the Entry Monitoring System, which will be used to monitor the velocity gained during TLI, and again during the Transposition, Docking and Extraction maneuver, when the LM is removed from the top of the S-IVB stage after Translunar Injection.]

001:58:25 Armstrong (onboard): And how about ORDEAL? Does that go back, Buzz?

[ORDEAL is Orbital Rate Display - Earth And Lunar, a device that makes the crew's 8-ball displays turn at a rate that matches their movement around Earth or the Moon. Set up properly, it allows the crew to monitor the spacecraft's attitude with respect to the ground below rather than with respect to inertial space.]

002:07:59 Aldrin (onboard): Suit and cabin pressures both look - I guess we should be cool.

PAO: This is Apollo Control at 2 hours, 8 minutes into the mission. Apollo 11 about to be acquired at the Tananarive station. As expected, this orbit is changing slightly as the S-IVB third stage vents. We are showing an orbit now of 107 by 105.7 nautical miles and an orbital period of 1 hour, 28 minutes, 30 seconds. We've acquired Tananarive now. We'll stand by live through that station.

002:08:06 Armstrong (onboard): Should be about 100... - okay -

002:08:10 Aldrin (onboard): Water... boiling... potable...

002:08:18 Collins (onboard): Fuel cells... water. It goes to potable tank first and then we...we get it.

002:08:24 Aldrin (onboard): Oh... stop there?

002:08:25 Collins (onboard): Yes.

002:08:26 Armstrong (onboard): Coming into the terminator.

002:08:46 Collins (onboard): Gee, I'm really disappointed over those optics; that telescope is horrible. Maybe it'll get better with practice, or adaptation, or what have you.

002:09:17 McCandless: Apollo 11, this is Houston through Tananarive. How do you read?

002:09:38 Armstrong (onboard): Gee, I almost went to sleep then.

002:09:40 Collins (onboard): Me, too. I'm taking a little rest.

002:09:45 McCandless: Apollo 11, this is Houston standing by through Tananarive.

002:09:48 Aldrin (onboard): It's going to be a long day.

002:10:03 Aldrin (onboard): How'd the - is this the first part of the attitude comparison check or the second part?

002:10:03 COMM TECH: Tananarive, Houston Comm Tech Net 1.

002:10:10 Armstrong (onboard): I haven't done the second GDC align yet; it comes up on the next page. About now, I guess.

002:10:12 Comm Tech: Tananarive, Houston Comm Tech Net 1.

002:10:23 Comm Tech: Goddard voice, Houston Comm Tech Net 1.

002:10:25 Collins (onboard): Well, we should have Tananarive. How about going... pressing ahead with the sequence pyro arm?

002:10:27 MSFN: Goddard: Voice, reading you loud and clear.

002:10:29 Comm Tech: Roger. We cannot raise Tananarive.

002:10:31 Armstrong (onboard): Okay, let me align the GDC.

002:10:31 Comm Tech: Houston Comm Tech, Tananarive.

002:10:34 Comm Tech: Roger, Tananarive. Are you receiving Capcom's voice, and are you uplinking it?

002:10:39 Comm Tech: Negative.

002:10:41 Comm Tech: Roger. Monitor again and I'll tell Capcom to make one more transmission.

002:10:46 Armstrong (onboard): Well, they cleverly do this on, just on opposite sides of the world so you always have to pitch - run all the thumbwheels the maximum amount.

002:10:51 Comm Tech: Roger.

002:10:56 McCandless: Apollo 11, Apollo 11, this is Houston standing by through Tananarive. Over.

002:11:04 Armstrong: Houston, Apollo 11...

002:11:06 McCandless: Roger. Reading you loud and clear.

002:11:10 Aldrin (onboard): You get the pyro armed?

002:11:12 Armstrong (onboard): No, I haven't. Just a second, I'll be right with you.

002:11:24 Aldrin (onboard): Get 51 on the event timer?

002:11:34 Collins (onboard): We stopped boiling water.

002:11:37 Aldrin (onboard): That's good.

002:11:41 Armstrong (onboard): Old son of a gun.

002:11:46 Aldrin (onboard): Okay on the temperatures.

002:11:50 Collins (onboard): Looks like the setting on the Auto thing is such that it just runs a little cold.

002:11:56 Armstrong (onboard): Yes, that's right. That's - that's what I think, too.

002:12:05 Collins (onboard): ... have a feeling I have a ball in here.

002:12:09 Armstrong (onboard): Okay, the GDC is - is aligned. Ready to proceed.

002:12:15 Aldrin (onboard): Okay. We've got the Verb 48 in, Verb 83, ORDEAL set, and Sequence Pyro Arm.

002:12:26 Armstrong (onboard): Okay. Stand by for a blast. One's On. Two's On.

002:12:35 Armstrong: Houston, Apollo 11. We have the Pyros armed.

002:12:39 Armstrong (onboard): Okay.

002:12:39 McCandless: This is Houston. Roger. Out.

002:12:41 Aldrin (onboard): Trans Control Power's On. ROT Control Power, Normal, two, AC/DC.

002:12:45 Armstrong (onboard): They're all up.

002:12:46 Aldrin (onboard): Direct? Main A, Main B.

002:12:49 Armstrong (onboard): Direct.

002:12:50 Aldrin (onboard): S-II/S-IVB.

002:12:52 Armstrong (onboard): Check.

002:12:53 Aldrin (onboard): Guidance, IU?

002:12:54 Armstrong (onboard): IU, yes.

002:12:55 Aldrin (onboard): Circuit breakers, Direct Ullage, two, closed.

002:13:01 Armstrong (onboard): Okay.

002:13:02 Aldrin (onboard): And the event timer's set.

002:13:06 Collins (onboard): Now, why don't you - why don't you put ORDEAL on 200/Lunar?

002:13:15 Armstrong (onboard): Alright.

002:13:17 Collins (onboard): Maybe you can start figuring out what the hell that ought to be.

002:13:32 Collins (onboard): I guess...leave them on Inertial for the time being.

002:13:45 Armstrong (onboard): Beyond my ability to...compute here right now.

002:14:10 Armstrong (onboard): ...?

002:14:27 Aldrin (onboard): You're not worried now on that thing?

002:14:29 Collins (onboard): When the motor lights up, he's worried.

002:14:38 Armstrong (onboard):... 190, 110 degrees.

002:14:50 Collins (onboard): Got a long way around, yet.

002:15:23 McCandless: Apollo 11, this is Houston. One minute to LOS Tananarive. AOS at Carnarvon 02:25:30.

002:15:35 Aldrin: Roger.

002:15:36 Armstrong (onboard): 2:25:30

002:15:37 Aldrin (onboard): Yes, 02:25:30.

PAO: This is Apollo Control at 2 hours, 16 minutes. Tananarive has Loss of Signal. The Carnarvon station will acquire at 2 hours, 25� minutes. During the Carnarvon pass, the Go/No Go decision will be made for the Translunar Injection maneuver. That maneuver to occur at about 27 minutes from now, near the - the spacecraft is near the Gilbert Islands, about halfway between Australia and Hawaii. We'll come back up just prior to Carnarvon acquisition. This is Mission Control, Houston.

002:15:58 Collins (onboard): Why did they do that? That should be up here, before 02:35.

002:16:10 Aldrin (onboard): I don't know. It's screwed up in here anyway.

002:16:29 Armstrong (onboard): Well, weren't they giving us two abort PADs before?

002:16:33 Collins (onboard): No, TLI plus 90 and TLI plus 4 hours. And now the TLI plus 4 hours is TLI plus 5 hours, P37.

002:16:44 Armstrong (onboard): Oh, is that right?

002:16:45 Collins (onboard): Yes. Got them on the same page.

002:16:49 Armstrong (onboard): Yes, they're on the same page.

002:16:50 Collins (onboard): Yes, I was expecting them to get something in.

002:17:29 Collins (onboard): Going to have to break your... here. I mean...your LMP handhold.

002:17:35 Aldrin (onboard): Oh, my G&N handhold! Don't do that. ... managed to hang on to it,... up there.

002:17:44 Collins (onboard): Holding against the...the couch.

002:18:13 Collins (onboard): Well, let's see...

002:18:35 Collins (onboard): Think I was that slow punching the clock?

002:18:39 Aldrin (onboard): Huh?

002:18:40 Collins (onboard): I wonder if I was that slow getting everything going? I ought to have given them a second or...

002:18:56 Aldrin (onboard): It didn't seem to me as though there was a tremendous cue; there's no doubt that you were moving, but to say exactly what the precise time was when you started to move, I think you'd call it whenever the thing started vibrating.

002:19:12 Collins (onboard): Yes, I didn't know when the hell we were airborne. I just took his word for it. It was sure shaking, rattling, and rolling, son of a bitch!

002:19:46 Aldrin (onboard): Wake me up at TLI, somebody. 50 CDR. Another 15 minutes, just time to sleep.

002:19:52 Collins (onboard): You need to get out the alarm clock.

002:20:06 Armstrong (onboard): I don't know, I think I'll just put my window guard up.

002:20:12 Collins (onboard): Yes.

002:20:32 Collins (onboard): Whopseedoo, we picked up an S-band. No noise.

002:20:45 Armstrong (onboard): What's Verb 85 going to tell me - if I call that up, Mike?

002:20:50 Collins (onboard): It tells you range - range rate in C, which is the angle between your - optics line of sight and the horizon, depending on what...

002:21:03 Armstrong (onboard): What's that little bump in the... somebody?

002:21:06 Collins (onboard): That's me. I - I'm thrashing around over here a little bit.

002:21:08 Aldrin (onboard): I - if you wonder, I stuffed my launch checklist and - in the little gap between the...

002:21:19 Collins (onboard): You don't have a launch checklist.

002:21:22 Aldrin (onboard): My cue card.

002:21:23 Collins (onboard): Oh.

002:21:24 Aldrin (onboard): In between the - the Y-Y strut and the wall over here, to keep it from bouncing around.

002:21:31 Collins (onboard): Oh.

002:21:32 Aldrin (onboard): ...

002:21:34 Collins (onboard): Yes, that says 58½ degrees, huh?

002:21:40 Armstrong (onboard): Yes.

002:21:42 Collins (onboard): ... 57½ isn't that something like that? Now wait a minute.

002:21:50 Armstrong (onboard): Yes, 57½ degrees.

002:21:52 Collins (onboard): I guess they're... about on the horizon anyway. Yes, okay.

002:21:55 Armstrong (onboard): Huh?

002:21:56 Collins (onboard): Buzz, I put 39.5 volts over here. That's a reminder on the battery check - real good on the wall. Okay, Neil, now TLI: I'm going to write on the wall here - TLI - nominal is 05 plus 47. And 6 seconds later, it's 05 plus 53. And you want me to let you know when that is? I'll yell cut-off at that time.

002:22:27 Armstrong (onboard): Okay.

002:22:38 Collins (onboard): Now, we want to get what that time's going to be up there. Is that alright, Neil?

002:22:43 Armstrong (onboard): Yes, that's right. 05:53, I want it yelled.

002:22:45 Collins (onboard): Okay. I'll yell cut-off, huh?

002:22:57 Armstrong (onboard): Yes, I guess. And I'll cut off if the G&N says...

002:23:04 Collins (onboard): Agreed.

002:23:05 Armstrong (onboard):...we're over-burned.

002:23:06 Aldrin (onboard): That's right.

002:23:39 Collins (onboard): You got that Translunar switched to Inject, huh?

002:23:41 Armstrong (onboard): Yes, to Inject.

002:23:47 Aldrin (onboard): EDS Power, you got On?

002:23:49 Armstrong (onboard): EDS Power is On.

002:23:53 Aldrin (onboard): Pyros are armed?

002:23:55 Armstrong (onboard): Pyros are...four breakers are in, and switches are up.

002:24:06 Aldrin (onboard): Okay, on this thing here, we should be reading 02:41:01, shutdown, and...

002:24:14 Armstrong (onboard): Add 6 seconds to it?

002:24:15 Aldrin (onboard): Yes. At 07, cut-off.

002:24:48 Aldrin (onboard): Block, Block. Spacecraft Control to SCS?

002:24:53 Armstrong (onboard): It is.

002:24:57 Aldrin (onboard): Tank pressures looking alright?

002:25:02 Armstrong (onboard): Tank pressures are looking good.

PAO: This is Apollo Control at 2 hours, 25 minutes; and Carnarvon has acquired Apollo 11. At LOS here at Carnarvon, we will have several ARIAs, Apollo Range Instrumented Aircraft, in the area between LOS Carnarvon and acquisition at the tracking ship Redstone, so we may have the capability of continuous communications between now and the TLI burn. We'll stand by through Carnarvon.

002:25:44 McCandless: Apollo 11, this is Houston through Carnarvon. Radio check. Over.

002:25:49 Armstrong: Roger, Houston through Carnarvon. Apollo 11. Loud and clear.

002:25:53 McCandless: Roger. You're coming in very loud and very clear, here. Out.

002:26:38 McCandless: Apollo 11, this is Houston. You are Go for TLI. Over.

002:26:45 Collins: Apollo 11. Thank you.

002:26:48 McCandless: Roger. Out.

002:30:11 McCandless: Apollo 11, this is Houston. Over.

002:30:16 Armstrong: Houston, 11.

002:30:18 McCandless: Roger. We'll be coming within range of the ARIA aircraft coverage, here, in about one minute. They're going to try uplinking both on S-band and on VHF this time. So if you turn your - make sure your S-band volume is turned up, we'd appreciate it. And we believe that we'll have continuous coverage from now on through the TLI burn. Over.

002:30:42 Armstrong: Very good.

002:32:20 McCandless: Apollo 11, Apollo 11, this is Houston through ARIA 4. Radio check. Over.

002:32:28 Aldrin: Houston, we read you strength 4 and a little scratchy.

002:32:34 McCandless: Roger. We're reading you strength 5, readability about 3. Should be quite adequate.

002:32:42 McCandless: Apollo 11, Apollo 11, this is Houston. We're reading you readability about 3, strength 5. Sounds pretty good. Over.

002:32:34 Armstrong: Roger. We've got a little static in the background now.

PAO: This is Apollo Control. We're 10 minutes away from ignition on Translunar Injection. We want to add 10,435 feet per second to the spacecraft's velocity, looking for a total velocity at the end of this burn of about 35,575 feet per second.

002:37:21 McCandless: Apollo 11, this is Houston through ARIA 3. Radio check. Over.

002:37:26 Armstrong: Roger, Houston, Apollo 11. You are much clearer and adequately loud. Over.

002:37:32 McCandless: Roger, 11, You are coming in five-by-five here. Beautiful signal.

002:37:38 Armstrong: This is a lot better than this static we had previously.

002:37:40 McCandless: Okay.

002:37:48 Collins: And we got the timebase fix indication on time.

002:37:50 McCandless: This is Houston. Roger. Out.

002:40:20 McCandless: Apollo 11, this is Houston. We just got telemetry back on your booster, and it's looking good.

002:40:30 Armstrong: Roger. Everything looks good here.

002:40:34 McCandless: Houston, Roger. Out.

PAO: This is Apollo Control. We are 2 minutes from ignition now.

PAO: We're showing present altitude about 108 nautical miles. We expect to be at an altitude of 177 nautical miles at cut-off. Present velocity, 25,560 feet per second. We're a minute from ignition.

002:43:18 McCandless: Apollo 11, this is Houston. Slightly less than one minute to ignition, and everything is Go.

002:43:25 Collins: Roger.

002:43:42 Armstrong (onboard): Okay, 59:25. And this light will go off at 42.

[That is, when the Event Counter on the main CM control panel reaches 42.]

002:44:18 Armstrong (onboard): Ignition! Call it at 15.

002:44:19 Collins: Ignition.

002:44:22 Collins (onboard): Okay.

002:44:26 Armstrong (onboard): Whew!

002:44:27 McCandless: We confirm ignition, and the thrust is Go.

PAO: Guidance looking good. Velocity 26,000 feet per second.

002:44:33 Armstrong (onboard): Pressures look good.

002:44:37 Collins (onboard): Flashes out window number 5.

002:44:40 Collins (onboard): I'm not sure whether that's...it could be lightning, or it could be something to do with the engine.

002:44:59 Collins (onboard): Continual flashes...

002:45:09 Aldrin (onboard): About 2 degrees off in the pitch...

002:45:12 Armstrong (onboard): Yes, wouldn't worry too much about that.

002:45:14 McCandless: Apollo 11, this is Houston at 1 minute. Trajectory and guidance look good, and the stage is good. Over.

002:45:23 Armstrong: Apollo 11. Rog.

PAO: Coming up on 27,000 feet per second.

PAO: Telemetry and radar tracking both solid. Velocity 27,800 feet per second.

002:45:50 Collins (onboard): Don't look out window 1. If you're... if it looks like what I see out window 5, you don't want to look at it (laughter).

002:45:55 Armstrong (onboard): I don't see anything.

002:45:56 Aldrin (onboard): Why?

002:45:57 Collins (onboard): These flashes out here.

002:45:58 Armstrong (onboard): Oh, I see a little flashing out there, yes.

002:46:03 Collins (onboard): You see that? Buzz is usually looking... just watch window 5 for a second. See it?

002:46:10 Aldrin (onboard): Yes, yes. Damn, everything's - just kind of sparks flying out there.

002:46:14 Collins (onboard): Yes, that's - Oopsedo.

002:46:16 Armstrong (onboard): Man, that really...

002:46:18 Collins (onboard): That's PU shift?

002:46:19 Armstrong (onboard): I don't know, but it sure put a little blip in there at 2 minutes. I think it increased in thrust.

002:46:24 Collins (onboard): Think it's the PU shift?

002:46:26 McCandless: Apollo 11, this is Houston. Thrust is good. Everything's still looking good.

002:46:32 Armstrong: Roger.

002:46:32 Collins (onboard): That's about like a pitch change rather than an acceleration increase. Did it feel that way to you?

002:46:38 Armstrong (onboard): Okay. We got a lighted horizon at 2½ minutes. Pretty horizon.

PAO: We're 2½ minutes into this burn. Still have another three minutes to go.

002:46:48 Aldrin (onboard): A fairly smooth ride, you know. It's just a little tiny bit rattly, but nothing like Stafford's. H-dot looks great. Don't bet you could do any better.

002:46:58 Collins (onboard): I'm sure I couldn't. I'd do worse because I'd be a - a full degree off from where it is right now.

PAO: And velocity exceeds 29,000 feet per second, building up toward 30,000 feet per second.

002:47:14 Aldrin (onboard): Don't sweat that. 3 minutes.

002:47:16 Collins (onboard): 3 minutes. What we got, about one g, Neil?

PAO: Present altitude 115 nautical miles.

002:47:24 Aldrin (onboard): Pressures are good...

002:47:25 Collins (onboard): Yes, we've got 3 feet per second...

002:47:26 Armstrong (onboard): Just under one g.

002:47:27 Aldrin (onboard): Mike, we're within 3 feet per second on the card H-dot.

002:47:32 Collins (onboard): Fantastic. And it's shaking everything a little bit.

002:47:34 Aldrin (onboard): Shaking at 3 minutes.

002:47:35 Armstrong (onboard): Okay.

002:47:36 Aldrin (onboard): I hope that camera doesn't fall on your face.

002:47:38 Collins (onboard): I checked it; it's locked in there pretty well. Won't hurt this visor.

002:47:43 Armstrong (onboard): 03:30 coming up. Should be 5.5, and it is 5.5.

002:47:53 Collins (onboard): Nice ride.

002:47:54 McCandless: Apollo 11, this is Houston. Around 3½ minutes, you're still looking good. Your predicted cut-off is right on the nominal.

002:48:04 Armstrong: Roger. Apollo 11's Go.

PAO: 31,200 feet per second now. Altitude 125 nautical miles.

PAO: Velocity 32,000 feet per second. Altitude 130 miles.

002:48:07 Collins (onboard): I see a bright star out there, must be Venus. Forgot to memorize John Mayer's views out the window well enough to say that's Venus or not, but it's sure bright.

[John Mayer was Chief of the Mission Planning and Analysis Division.]

002:48:32 Collins (onboard): I'm glad you had... you do too, Neil. That was a good idea, a hell of a good idea. I can't see - well, my tapes are... I can't... see very much.

PAO: One minute left to burn. Velocity's 33,000 feet per second. Altitude 142� nautical miles.

002:48:42 Armstrong (onboard): Coming up on 04:30. How you look, Buzz?

002:48:49 Aldrin (onboard): Looks good. Oh, about 14 feet per second right now. The altitude's very good. We ought to get a real good 5-minute cut at the...

002:49:12 Aldrin (onboard): You guys agree with my mark; we'll be 5 minutes?

002:49:14 Collins (onboard): Okay.

002:49:15 Armstrong (onboard): Just a second.

002:49:16 Collins (onboard): Five minutes.

002:49:17 Aldrin (onboard): Mark.

002:49:18 McCandless: Apollo 11, this is Houston. You are Go at 5 minutes.

002:49:22 Armstrong: Roger. We're Go.

PAO: 34,000 feet per second now. Altitude 152.

002:49:23 Aldrin (onboard): Okay, we're just a little bit low on time.

002:49:25 Collins (onboard): Right on it.

002:49:27 Armstrong (onboard): ... yaw.

002:49:33 Collins (onboard): ... do that?

002:49:34 Armstrong (onboard): Yes, we better do that.

002:49:37 Collins (onboard): 5...5 seconds.

002:49:40 Aldrin (onboard): What kind of g we pulling?

002:49:42 Armstrong (onboard): We got a 1.2 or 3. 1.3, maybe.

002:49:46 Collins (onboard): Gee, feels a lot more than that already.

PAO: 35,000 feet per second.

002:49:51 Aldrin (onboard): Okay, 6...okay, about 5 seconds to nominal.

002:50:03 Collins (onboard): Here we go...

002:50:06 Armstrong (onboard): We have cut-off.

PAO: Cut-off. We're showing velocity 35,570 feet per second. Altitude 177 nautical miles.

002:50:09 Aldrin (onboard): 3.3 on the Delta...

002:50:12 Armstrong (onboard): The Delta-V_c on the EMS - 3.3.

002:50:14 Collins (onboard): Beautiful. EMS Function, Off.

002:50:17 Armstrong (onboard): Off.

002:50:19 Collins (onboard): SECS Pyro Arm, two, Safe.

002:50:22 Armstrong (onboard): I got out - I got out of kilter here. Let's go back and let Buzz pick up on it. You're just a little bit ahead of yourself on the checklist.

002:50:29 Collins (onboard): Okay.

002:50:30 Armstrong (onboard): Okay, Houston, you read 11?

002:50:56 Collins (onboard): Why don't you try to get up high?

002:50:59 Armstrong (onboard): SCS TVC Servo Power 1, Off.

002:50:35 McCandless: Apollo 11, this is Houston. We show cut-off and we copy the numbers in Noun 62.

002:50:35 Collins (onboard): Buzz, forget I read anything in the checklist.

002:50:38 Aldrin (onboard): Yes...

002:50:39 Armstrong (onboard): Not getting any answer.

002:50:41 Collins (onboard): Okay, let's go to IU Accept here. Now...

002:50:53 McCandless: Apollo 11, Houston. Do you read?

002:51:00 Aldrin (onboard): Okay.

002:51:01 Armstrong (onboard): You want to get Houston on the radio if you can?

002:51:02 Aldrin (onboard): Yes.

002:51:03 Armstrong (onboard): PCM Bit Rate, Low.

002:51:04 Collins (onboard): PCM Bit Rate is Low.

002:51:17 McCandless: Apollo 11, this is Houston. Do you read? Over.

002:51:21 Aldrin: Roger, Houston. Apollo 11. We're reading a V_I of 35579 and the EMS was plus 3.3. Over.

002:51:31 McCandless: Roger. Plus 3.3 on the EMS. And we copy the V_I.

002:53:03 Armstrong: Hey, Houston, Apollo 11. That Saturn gave us a magnificent ride.

002:53:09 McCandless: Roger, 11. We'll pass that on. And, it certainly looks like you are well on your way now.

PAO: That was Neil Armstrong praising the launch vehicle.

002:53:30 Armstrong: We have no complaints with any of the three stages on that ride. It was beautiful.

002:53:38 McCandless: Roger. We copy. No transients at staging of any significance. Over.

002:53:44 Armstrong: That's right. It was all - all a good ride.

002:53:47 McCandless: Houston. Roger. Out.

[Apollo 11 is now safely out of Earth orbit and on its trans-lunar trajectory. Next, it must separate from the final stage of the Saturn launch vehicle and extract the Lunar Module.]

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