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Apollo program hardware

  • Apollo command and service moduleEvery Apollo command and service module mission ended with the larger section burning up on purpose.
  • Apollo Lunar ModuleApollo 13's lunar module became a lifeboat for three astronauts. It was designed to support two men for 45 hours.
  • Command module ColumbiaApollo 11's command module Columbia won its name because it sounded like a Jules Verne space gun.
  • Rocketdyne J-2The Rocketdyne J-2 rocket engine had to light twice on every Moon flight. The second start sent Apollo toward the Moon.
  • Apollo Telescope MountWhen Skylab launched, only the Apollo Telescope Mount's solar arrays survived intact.
  • Saturn VA Saturn V engine test shattered a bank window 15 miles away. The Moon rocket's roar carried across Mississippi.
  • Apollo (spacecraft)Apollo's launch escape system flew on 19 flights and was never needed. It could pull the crew capsule clear.
  • Lunar Roving VehicleApollo 17 astronauts repaired the Lunar Roving Vehicle's broken fender with maps and duct tape.
  • Little Joe IILittle Joe II was an American rocket that flew just five times, between 1963 and 1966, and never carried a single astronaut. Its job was to put Apollo hardware into trouble on purpose. Each flight tested the launch escape system, the…
  • Apollo Guidance ComputerFive minutes into Apollo 11's descent, the guidance computer began throwing alarms.
  • Apollo Lunar Surface Experiments PackageMoon instruments kept sending signals after mission support officially ended in 1977.

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