Preparing for a Lunar Holiday: Geological Training for Apollo Astronauts
This is a response posted james_nicoll's blog, and I'd like to repost it here. James writes:
Where should I send someone who wanted to look for instructions, checklists, training documents for the geology conducted by the Apollo astronauts?
It's for someone who wants to recreate Apollo astronaut "amateur geologist" protocols while on holiday.
This is a charming idea, and would be a fine example of what Neal Stephenson once called "Hacker Tourism." (My own thoughts on the subject may be found here.)
The Apollo Lunar Surface Journal is a great starting point.
Schedule for astronaut geology training and list of sites.
Geological field trips and outdoor practice with Apollo equipment are noted in the crew training summaries.
This will be extremely informative for your correspondent, and it's online: The U.S. Geological Survey, Branch of Astrogeology-A Chronology of Activities from Conception through the End of Project Apollo (1960-1973) by Gerald G. Schaber. There are some priceless photos in here.
This site at Northern Arizona University's archives seems relevant:Yet "Grover" sits in Flagstaff at the Science Center, tourists can get some of the Apollo Mission experience at Meteor Crater, and the public can re-live the Apollo training program through photographs and other materials, largely held in Vertical Files and the Paul Switzer Collection.
Another good book is online: To a Rocky Moon: A Geologist's History of Lunar Exploration by Don E. Wilhelms.
Haven't read this, but it seems relevant: Taking Science to the Moon: Lunar Experiments and the Apollo Program by Donald A. Beattie.
Rummage the bibliographies of these for reference documents. Numerous Springer/Praxis books might also have relevant clues.
Troll NASA's now-restored Technical Reports Server. Look over the NASA History Office publications.
Hope this is helpful to James's correspondent. Send us a postcard from the Moon.
Where should I send someone who wanted to look for instructions, checklists, training documents for the geology conducted by the Apollo astronauts?
It's for someone who wants to recreate Apollo astronaut "amateur geologist" protocols while on holiday.
This is a charming idea, and would be a fine example of what Neal Stephenson once called "Hacker Tourism." (My own thoughts on the subject may be found here.)
The Apollo Lunar Surface Journal is a great starting point.
Schedule for astronaut geology training and list of sites.
Geological field trips and outdoor practice with Apollo equipment are noted in the crew training summaries.
This will be extremely informative for your correspondent, and it's online: The U.S. Geological Survey, Branch of Astrogeology-A Chronology of Activities from Conception through the End of Project Apollo (1960-1973) by Gerald G. Schaber. There are some priceless photos in here.
This site at Northern Arizona University's archives seems relevant:Yet "Grover" sits in Flagstaff at the Science Center, tourists can get some of the Apollo Mission experience at Meteor Crater, and the public can re-live the Apollo training program through photographs and other materials, largely held in Vertical Files and the Paul Switzer Collection.
Another good book is online: To a Rocky Moon: A Geologist's History of Lunar Exploration by Don E. Wilhelms.
Haven't read this, but it seems relevant: Taking Science to the Moon: Lunar Experiments and the Apollo Program by Donald A. Beattie.
Rummage the bibliographies of these for reference documents. Numerous Springer/Praxis books might also have relevant clues.
Troll NASA's now-restored Technical Reports Server. Look over the NASA History Office publications.
Hope this is helpful to James's correspondent. Send us a postcard from the Moon.