Simviation Forum - In The Event of Moon Disaster

Oct 26^th, 2010 at 10:13pm

Webb Offline
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The podcast

What if Apollo 11 had crashed? Moon Grafitti imagines what it might have sounded like if things had gone a little differently. Based on a contingency speech written by William Safire for Richard Nixon titled “In the Event of Moon Disaster.”

The speech

Quote:

Fate has ordained that the men who went to the moon to explore in peace will stay on the moon to rest in peace.

These brave men, Neil Armstrong and Edwin Aldrin, know that there is no hope for their recovery. But they also know that there is hope for mankind in their sacrifice.

These two men are laying down their lives in mankind's most noble goal: the search for truth and understanding. They will be mourned by their families and friends; they will be mourned by the nation; they will be mourned by the people of the world; they will be mourned by a Mother Earth that dared send two of her sons into the unknown.

In their exploration, they stirred the people of the world to feel as one; in their sacrifice, they bind more tightly the brotherhood of man.

In ancient days, men looked at the stars and saw their heroes in the constellations. In modern times, we do much the same, but our heroes are epic men of flesh and blood.

Others will follow, and surely find their way home. Man's search will not be denied. But these men were the first, and they will remain the foremost in our hearts.

For every human being who looks up at the moon in the nights to come will know that there is some corner of another world that is forever mankind.

A bad day at golf is better than a good day at work.

Jim

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Reply #1 - Oct 29^th, 2010 at 9:52am

Apex Offline
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The very last thing everyone on the planet would have needed at that time in history was a moon landing disaster. But they made it, and for awhile the world was distracted from its ongoing stuff.

I seem to recall reading somewhere that the LEM take off from the moon's surface was not a total, absolute 100% certainty regarding the engines starting up again. Anything on that?

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Reply #2 - Oct 29^th, 2010 at 3:20pm

Webb Offline
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I haven't researched it but as I recall the LM ascent engine was a simple reaction of 2 chemicals. The only thing that could possibly go wrong would be one or both of the valves failing to open.

A bad day at golf is better than a good day at work.

Jim

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Reply #3 - Nov 1^st, 2010 at 6:43pm

B-Valvs Offline
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Apex wrote on Oct 29^th, 2010 at 9:52am:

The very last thing everyone on the planet would have needed at that time in history was a moon landing disaster. But they made it, and for awhile the world was distracted from its ongoing stuff.

I seem to recall reading somewhere that the LEM take off from the moon's surface was not a total, absolute 100% certainty regarding the engines starting up again. Anything on that?

The button that turned the engine on broke. They had to shove a metal pen in the switch to complete the circuit and light it. Wink

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Reply #4 - Nov 3^rd, 2010 at 1:45pm

machineman9 Offline
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B-Valvs wrote on Nov 1^st, 2010 at 6:43pm:

The button that turned the engine on broke. They had to shove a metal pen in the switch to complete the circuit and light it. Wink

Lets see Russia do that with their space pencils Grin

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Reply #5 - Nov 4^th, 2010 at 10:10am

Al_Fallujah Ex Member

Can't they use a Bobbie Pin?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nCl6RCGkPuo

Skip to 06:15.

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Reply #6 - Nov 9^th, 2010 at 9:18pm

DaveSims Offline
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I wonder if there was a contigency plan in case they were stranded on the moon. You know...a way to end it peacefully instead of starving to death on the moon.

Dave

www.flymcw.com

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Reply #7 - Dec 29^th, 2010 at 11:56pm

beaky Offline
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DaveSims wrote on Nov 9^th, 2010 at 9:18pm:

I wonder if there was a contigency plan in case they were stranded on the moon. You know...a way to end it peacefully instead of starving to death on the moon.

They would have run out of O2 or succombed to hypothermia long before they starved to death, I think. Air and electric-powered heat were in pretty limited supply on the LM. The food they had was not very palatable anyway... I don't think they consumed as much of that as was planned, throughout the mission. Grin

I'm sure they would have carried out their planned EVAs and asked for more tasks, to keep them busy until the end... I think I would, anyway.

If I was one of the first men on the Moon, and doomed to die there, I'd want to die outside, on my feet, doing the job I was sent there to do...not huddled in the LEM, and certainly not by my own hand. And as tragic as that would have been, it would have been pure gold to NASA's publicity dept., as cold-blooded as that may sound.
But I'm glad it didn't come to that... all of those missions were remarkable in that they didn't lose anybody.

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