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  Apollo and shuttle comm carrier (Snoopy cap)

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Author Topic:   Apollo and shuttle comm carrier (Snoopy cap)
Jim_Voce
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Posts: 273
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Registered: Jul 2016

posted 11-06-2018 10:46 PM     Click Here to See the Profile for Jim_Voce   Click Here to Email Jim_Voce     Edit/Delete Message   Reply w/Quote
I have seldom seen pictures of the Apollo and shuttle communications carrier ("Snoopy Cap") from behind and so for a long time I never noticed an usual feature — a chord that protrudes from the back of one of the ear pads that loops around from behind the astronaut's head and connects to the other ear pad. Presumably this chord allows for a "stereo" hearing effect for the astronaut, but I do not know.

The first picture below shows Jack Schmitt's head from behind and the chord of his cap clearly visible. I am also of the belief that I have seen other pictures of the cap either on missions or in training where there was no such chord attached to the back of the cap.

The second and third pictures here are unusual ones. It shows a pair of ear pads with the chord attached but without the fabric head coveting that would hold the ear pads in place.

Was this chord a feature of the flight version of the cap? Were there versions of the cap without the chord? Other photographs of the cap might confirm this.

Also, the Snoopy cap for a long time was worn on shuttle EVAs as well. Was this chord in use on the shuttle version?

And here's a question I bet many people have wondered about: Was the Apollo and shuttle caps brown and white or black and white in color?

oly
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Posts: 905
From: Perth, Western Australia
Registered: Apr 2015

posted 11-07-2018 12:26 AM     Click Here to See the Profile for oly   Click Here to Email oly     Edit/Delete Message   Reply w/Quote
Each side has both an ear cup and microphone that are wired into a common connector plug. This serves as redundancy should one ear piece or microphone fail.

The snoopy cap design was not an Apollo specific idea, it can be found in many aviation arenas including hypobaric chambers, aerobatic flying and others.

The Apollo snoopy cap has a few differing designs, many have a section of chamois in the forehead band to absorb sweat, however Neil Armstrong's cap did not have this feature, this is why his cap fits differently over his forehead and why his cap has a dark stripe over the top.

The dark colour is black, made of a material that colour fades to brown. Originals have faded over time, and several replicas can be found manufactured from a brown material, perhaps emulating what can be found in museums. Ryan Nagata discusses this during an interview about some of the costumes manufactured for the movie "First Man." He has also made items for Adam Savage (Mythbusters) and there is a Tested.com video that covers this.

The Historic Space Systems website also has some excellent information regarding this subject and is highly recommended for any Apollo or Gemini fan. They do some amazing work.

Jim Behling
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Posts: 1463
From: Cape Canaveral, FL
Registered: Mar 2010

posted 11-07-2018 06:55 AM     Click Here to See the Profile for Jim Behling   Click Here to Email Jim Behling     Edit/Delete Message   Reply w/Quote
quote:
Originally posted by Jim_Voce:
Were there versions of the cap without the chord?
There always was and still is a cord connecting both sides.

All times are CT (US)

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