Description
BN PUBLISHING Saturn V Flight Manual by NASA
Designed by Wernher von Braun and Arthur Rudolph at NASAs Marshall Space Flight Center the Saturn V rocket represents the pinnacle of 20th Century technological achievement. The only launch vehicle in history to transport astronauts beyond Low Earth Orbit the Saturn V delivered 24 men to the moon. To this day it holds records as the tallest (363 feet) heaviest (nearly 7 million lbs.) and most powerful (over 7.6 million poundsforce of thrust) launch vehicle ever produced. It also remains one of the most reliable achieving 12 successful launches with one partial failure the unmanned Apollo 6 which suffered vibration damage on liftoff resulting in a substandard orbit. The Saturn series of rockets resulted from Von Brauns work on the German V2 and Jupiter series rockets. The Saturn I a 2stage liquidfueled rocket flew ten times between 1961 and 1965. A uprated version the 1B carried the first crewed Apollo flight into orbit in 1968. The Saturn V which first flew in 1967 was a threestage rocket. The first stage which burned RP1 and LOX consisted of five F1 engines. The second stage used five J2 engines which burned LOX and liquid hydrogen (LH2). The third stage based on the second stage of the Saturn 1B carried a single J2. The Saturn V could carry up to 262000 pounds to Low Earth Orbit and more critically 100000 pounds to the Moon. Created by NASA as a singlesource reference as to the characteristics and functions of the Saturn V this manual was standard issue to the astronauts of the Apollo and Skylab eras. It contains information about the Saturn V system range safety and instrumentation monitoring and control prelaunch events and pogo oscillations. It provides a fascinating overview of the rocket that made one giant leap for mankind possible.show more