Space News
space history and artifacts articles

Messages
space history discussion forums

Sightings
worldwide astronaut appearances

Resources
selected space history documents

  collectSPACE: Messages
  Hardware & Flown Items
  'Project Apollo 21' CM boilerplate restoration

Post New Topic  Post A Reply
profile | register | preferences | faq | search

next newest topic | next oldest topic
Author Topic:   'Project Apollo 21' CM boilerplate restoration
Robert Pearlman
Editor

Posts: 42981
From: Houston, TX
Registered: Nov 1999

posted 05-09-2019 01:09 PM     Click Here to See the Profile for Robert Pearlman   Click Here to Email Robert Pearlman     Edit/Delete Message   Reply w/Quote
Lafitte Maritime Museum release
A 'Project Apollo 21' science and humanities education program

In the very year of the fiftieth anniversary of America's greatest scientific expedition, two young space enthusiasts - students in the Altoona Area school district have discovered an actual NASA Apollo training capsule, abandoned in the weeds behind a barn on a farm in northwestern Pennsylvania.

The capsule had been used in the late 1960s, by NASA, to train our Moon astronauts alongside the U.S. Navy 'frogmen' designated to safely recover the Apollo command modules and their crews, as they returned from the Moon.

This very capsule was almost "lost to history" after it was sold to a Grove City, Pennsylvania man at a U.S. Government surplus-materials auction, conducted one hot Saturday afternoon in a parking lot in Maryland, in 1975.

With permission of the farmer, and with the help of their dad, the girls tracked down and examined the historic capsule, behind that barn, near the city of Sharon, Pennsylvania.

The Sharon-area real-estate developer who bought it at that auction in 1975 removed the capsule's hatch-cover and positioned the space relic in his suburban back yard.

For the next 34 years it functioned as a wonderful playhouse for his own two young daughters.

This full size capsule is exactly the size of the Apollo 11 command module, and it is massive.

Thirteen-feet wide, ten-and-one-half feet tall, and large enough inside to hold a tea party with all their young friends (and their teddy bears).

The girls eventually grew up, the family sold the house, and this capsule was trucked to a scrap metals pile on a nearby farm, to be "recycled."

Recently, Estella and Evie Koch traveled to Sharon with their father Mark, and located the scrap pile where the capsule now rests (rusts?)

All three became fascinated with this incredible relic and its convoluted history.

And, with Mark's help, and after much hand-wringing (and sincere "home-work promises" from the girls), these two young space researchers are now the capsule's new owners.

The girls intend to work with others to bring the capsule to a "workspace" in a community college, or high school near their home in order to restore this enormous, historic space artifact to "museum quality." They intend that this wonderful relic of American ingenuity should one day be the focus a "Project Apollo 21 Education Program."

With the guidance of some of former NASA engineers and others (including their father, of course) the girls hope to re-create the capsule's elaborate interior — including all the switches, gauges and toggles, with a large-screen TV inside (to watch movies like Apollo 13 while seated in the astronaut positions inside the capsule) in style of Apollo command modules.

Estella and Evie Koch would like to use the restoration of the capsule as the centerpiece of a science and arts education program - to inspire other young students to research the story of the American Moon missions and use that story as inspiration for future American scientists, writers and artists.

mode1charlie
Member

Posts: 1169
From: Honolulu, HI
Registered: Sep 2010

posted 05-09-2019 01:23 PM     Click Here to See the Profile for mode1charlie   Click Here to Email mode1charlie     Edit/Delete Message   Reply w/Quote
This is great! I wish the new crew much success on their mission...

denali414
Member

Posts: 593
From: Raleigh, NC
Registered: Aug 2017

posted 05-09-2019 03:34 PM     Click Here to See the Profile for denali414   Click Here to Email denali414     Edit/Delete Message   Reply w/Quote
What a great "barn find"! Stuff of dreams, wish them well on their future projects with the capsule.

Joel Katzowitz
Member

Posts: 808
From: Marietta GA USA
Registered: Dec 1999

posted 05-11-2019 06:51 AM     Click Here to See the Profile for Joel Katzowitz   Click Here to Email Joel Katzowitz     Edit/Delete Message   Reply w/Quote
What an amazing journey it will be for all involved!!!

I hope you'll be able to post periodic updates.

Mike Dixon
Member

Posts: 1397
From: Kew, Victoria, Australia
Registered: May 2003

posted 05-11-2019 04:14 PM     Click Here to See the Profile for Mike Dixon   Click Here to Email Mike Dixon     Edit/Delete Message   Reply w/Quote
Worth the effort but that's a hard road ahead.

Perseverance and worthy of the work.

All times are CT (US)

next newest topic | next oldest topic

Administrative Options: Close Topic | Archive/Move | Delete Topic
Post New Topic  Post A Reply
Hop to:

Contact Us | The Source for Space History & Artifacts

Copyright 2020 collectSPACE.com All rights reserved.


Ultimate Bulletin Board 5.47a





advertisement