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  Mercury - Gemini - Apollo
  Telescopes flown on early manned spaceflights

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Author Topic:   Telescopes flown on early manned spaceflights
Philip
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Posts: 6002
From: Brussels, Belgium
Registered: Jan 2001

posted 05-19-2012 03:07 PM     Click Here to See the Profile for Philip   Click Here to Email Philip     Edit/Delete Message   Reply w/Quote
There was a telescope flown during the Apollo 16 lunar mission, which was positioned in the shadow of the Lunar Module... but the first "high-power" telescope flown on board a manned spacecraft was a Maksutov/Cassegrain Questar during Gemini V in August 1965...

Jay Chladek
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Posts: 2272
From: Bellevue, NE, USA
Registered: Aug 2007

posted 05-20-2012 05:36 AM     Click Here to See the Profile for Jay Chladek   Click Here to Email Jay Chladek     Edit/Delete Message   Reply w/Quote
Salyut 1 I recall reading had some telescopes, although I believe the main instrument was blocked because a launch shroud didn't pull away when the station reached orbit (it was mounted in the opening used for the AGAT camera system on Almaz, for Salyut 1 the opening was flipped towards space instead of the ground). As I recall there was a secondary telescope system as well. Salyut 1 predated Apollo 16 by about a year.

garymilgrom
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Posts: 1966
From: Atlanta, GA
Registered: Feb 2007

posted 05-20-2012 07:05 AM     Click Here to See the Profile for garymilgrom   Click Here to Email garymilgrom     Edit/Delete Message   Reply w/Quote
Don't the sextants aboard the Apollo CM's count?

kyra
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Posts: 583
From: Louisville CO US
Registered: Aug 2003

posted 06-01-2012 09:09 AM     Click Here to See the Profile for kyra   Click Here to Email kyra     Edit/Delete Message   Reply w/Quote
The first that I am aware of is Vostok-2 (August 1961). The scope sat on the right hand side of the cabin near the food locker when not in use. It was for obvious reasons not publicized at the time.

MadSci
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Posts: 230
From: Maryland, USA
Registered: Oct 2008

posted 06-13-2012 03:02 PM     Click Here to See the Profile for MadSci     Edit/Delete Message   Reply w/Quote
Of course the Apollo CM Sextant scope counts. As Neil Armstrong once observed, only a government agency would spend millions of dollars on a 1x telescope.

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