[NASA Contractor Models]

Originally from the personal collection of Dr. George E. Mueller (1918-2015).

A COLLECTION OF NASA CONTRACTOR MODELS ORIGINALLY FROM THE COLLECTION OF THE FATHER OF THE MANNED SPACEFLIGHT PROGRAM, DR. GEORGE MUELLER

Bendix ST 124-M Model

This model exemplifies one of the most sophisticated elements of Apollo hardware to the historic program possible.

The Stabilized Platform, ST 124-M, guided the iconic Saturn V rocket through the use of an elegant set of gyroscopes and accelerometers. This subsystem allowed the spacecraft to maintain a fixed position in reference to Earth’s gravitational field. The X axis referred to the vertical roll of the spacecraft. The Y axis in the model aligned with gravity, and the Z axis was perpendicular to the launch direction. The Apollo program used a 3 gimbal system in the stabilized platform. Rather than measuring raw acceleration, each accelerometer measured velocity.  

Marquardt Reaction Control Rocket Cluster Model

The Apollo Reaction Control Systems (RCS) were a key feature of the Lunar Excursion Module (LEM) and instrumental in lunar landing, lunar takeoff, and docking with the Command Service Module. The RCS featured four sets of four small, hypergolic (self-igniting) vernier jets arranged around the vehicle in clusters at different points to produce torque. These smaller thrusters provided attitude control and fine control maneuvers that the main engines could not perform as precisely. Both the ascent and descent stages of the LEM featured these rocket clusters and relied on commands from the Apollo Guidance System and direct inputs from the pilot. 

This model commemorates the dedication of the Marquardt Corporation’s Magic Mountain Laboratory, which took place October 30, 1964 in Van Nuys, California. Dr. George Mueller gave the public address celebrating the dedication of the facility. While Marquardt was headquartered in Van Nuys, Magic Mountain was a high-altitude rocket testing facility in the San Gabriel mountain range just over 30 miles away. This distance protected the more populated Van Nuys and surrounding area from the hazardous testing of highly reactive or toxic propellants necessary for the Apollo program. 

AVCO Space Systems Heat Shield

Encased in lucite with a custom stand, this item offers a unique look at the makeup of the Apollo Command Module heatshield. This cross section highlights the marvel of engineering required to return Apollo crews safely to Earth after their historic voyages. 

The Apollo Command Module provided a unique engineering challenge as the first spacecraft designed to re-enter Earth’s atmosphere at lunar-return velocity. The elegant solution engineered by NASA and its contractors involved an ablative heatshield in a brazed steel honeycomb structure. The bolts attaching this structure to the bottom of the spacecraft were then covered by plugs protecting them from the friction of re-entry.  The strata of the heatshield are clearly visible in this substantial fragment presented by AVCO Space Systems Division on a custom base that allows rotation and examination from all angles. The substructure tape, fiberglass honeycomb, machined ablator, sealant, finished heatshield (including its thickness variation) and stainless steel honeycomb substructure are all clearly labeled. This object encapsulates a fragment of the brilliant engineering required to achieve Apollo program mission success, and is originally from the collection of one the leaders who made the entire program possible. 

Bell Rocket Engines Paperweight

The final piece of this lot is a paperweight presented by Bell Rocket Engines celebrating Gemini program milestones. The recto of the paperweight commemorates the “Space Accomplishments of the NASA Gemini Spacecraft and USAF Agena Target Vehicle Utilizing Bell Aerosystems’ Agena Rocket Engines” and features two small models of the Gemini capsule and Agena target vehicles in Earth orbit. The highlights of the Gemini Program achieved through the use of Bell Aerosystems’ engines are detailed on the verso: the first rendezvous and docking of two orbiting spacecraft by Gemini 8 astronauts Neil Armstrong and David Scott on 16 March, 1966; the “switch engine” demonstration of the Bell propulsion systems by Michael Collins and John Young during Gemini 10 on July 18, 1966; the firing of the Bell Agena on September 14, 1966 during Gemini 11 by astronauts Pete Conrad and Gordon Cooper to set a new sace altitude record of 850 statue miles; and the Gemini 12 flight of Jim Lovell and Buzz Aldrin to “complet[e the] program designed to develop techniques necessary for man’s trip to the moon.” The language of the Gemini 12 milestone as “scheduled [for] 9 Nov[ember] 1966” indicates that this commemorative paperweight was created and presented between Gemini 11 and Gemini 12. 

Altogether, the contractor models and mementos in this lot offer a unique view into the historical achievements in engineering made by American contractors as they worked with NASA to triumph in the Space Race. 

REFERENCES

NASA Space Storable Thruster Investigation by C. D. Coulbert and R. J. FioRito, Marquardt Corporation. 11 June 1969. 

NASA Technical Note TJN D-5869: “DESCRIPTION AND PERFORMANCE OF THE SATURN LAUNCH VEHICLE'S NAVIGATION, GUIDANCE, AND CONTROL SYSTEM” by Walter Huenssermunn. George C. Marshall Space Flight Center, Alabama. Published by NASA, Washington, DC. July 1970. 

NASA Technical Note TN D-2983: "A GENERAL DESCRIPTION OF THE ST124-M INERTIAL PLATFORM SYSTEM” by Herman E. Thomason. George C. Marshall Space Flight Center, Huntsville, Alabama. Published by NASA, Washington, DC. July 1965.