I discovered "Tindallgrams" on the net (Apollo Program)

[Janderso]

First of all, I'm a space junkie. I love everything, "Apollo Program".
Yeah yeah, SpaceX and all that. We are talking about a time in our history when we were in a true space race.
The United States was given direction, to "put a man on the moon and return him safely to the earth". President Kennedy initiated the challenge in his "We choose to go to the moon", speech, in September 1962 at Rice University.

This speech set the money and the wheels in motion.
I just discovered a complete copy of the, Tindallgrams. Tindall grams were memorandums put out to NASA employees beginning in 1966 to 1970.
He was the Assistant Chief, Mission Planning and Analysis, Division at NASA.

He was tasked to go up to MIT and see what those kids are up to.
Those, kids were just that. They were brilliant young MIT grad students working under Dr. Charles Draper.
Dr. Draper was head of the MIT Instrumentation Lab.

>>>>>

https://www.hq.nasa.gov/alsj/tindallgrams02.pdf

<<<<<

Beginning in March of 1966, Mr. Tindall was tasked to put direction into the software development for a lunar mission that hadn't quite been determined yet. It was technological chaos.
The MIT programmers were initially tasked to write these programs that were so large there was no way we were going to get to the moon.
The computer storage capacity was 1,500 words and I think had about a 1,000 word ROM capacity?
Think of it, Orbital mechanics, leaving the earths orbit, ever changing rates of speed, the moon is moving too!! I just love this stuff!. These MIT programmers wrote this program that made it possible, with help from the astronauts to go to the moon, land and come home.

Anyway, these memos will only be interesting to fellow nut jobs that love the birth of the technology boom that started with the space program, in my opinion.
Enjoy

 

[graham-xrf]

Sadly - my plastic model Apollo Saturn 5 rocket model had to stay in Africa. I am not sure the kid who ended up with it would have thought the same of it as I did.

 

[matthewsx]

When I was a kid my dad ran the test lab for the Saturn V program.
Thanks for posting.

John

 

[Janderso]

Your dad ran the test lab for the Saturn V program??!!!!!!!!
That kind of makes you my hero! Got any good stuff to share?? Like, I never saw my Dad between 1965 and 1968??
The Saturn V was an incredible rocket motor. The fact they built it, fired it, fixed it and sent Borman, Lovell and Anders to the moon on Christmas of 68.. This was only the second time the rocket was flown by humans. (I think I have my facts straight)
There was a pogo affect on the previous flights that could have destroyed the rocket, they added a shock absorber system then fired off Apollo 8.

 

[Janderso]

Sadly - my plastic model Apollo Saturn 5 rocket model had to stay in Africa. I am not sure the kid who ended up with it would have thought the same of it as I did.

You can take that to the bank!

How many of us watched the lunar landing on Apollo 11?
It was a very hot evening in July of 69. Walnut Creek CA. I was sitting with my family watching every minute of the broadcast. I was 12.

 

[gradient]

Small world. My cousin, an aeronautical engineer (deceased) was on the design team for the Apollo ablative heat shield. He had interesting stories to tell when I was a young man.

 

[682bear]

You can take that to the bank!

How many of us watched the lunar landing on Apollo 11?
It was a very hot evening in July of 69. Walnut Creek CA. I was sitting with my family watching every minute of the broadcast. I was 12.

That was almost 4 years before I was born....

-Bear

 

[Dhal22]

When I was a kid my dad ran the test lab for the Saturn V program.
Thanks for posting.

John

My dad and my uncle worked on the Saturn V program. My uncle has several design credits to his name there. He has design credits on 747, 777, space shuttle, a few unknowns (top secret), etc. His name will pull up many patents assigned to Rockwell, Boeing, etc.

 

[matthewsx]

Your dad ran the test lab for the Saturn V program??!!!!!!!!
That kind of makes you my hero! Got any good stuff to share?? Like, I never saw my Dad between 1965 and 1968??
The Saturn V was an incredible rocket motor. The fact they built it, fired it, fixed it and sent Borman, Lovell and Anders to the moon on Christmas of 68.. This was only the second time the rocket was flown by humans. (I think I have my facts straight)
There was a pogo affect on the previous flights that could have destroyed the rocket, they added a shock absorber system then fired off Apollo 8.

 

[matthewsx]

I still have the workbench, bandsaw, and drill press in that photo.