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Author
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Topic: My personal Apollo story (Dan Schaiewitz)
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AlanC
Member Posts: 147
From: Scotland
Registered: Nov 2014
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posted 03-15-2016 04:45 PM
   
quote:
Originally posted by Daniel on the Moon:
Sorting through my Apollo memorabilia, I found this photo of Apollo 17 LMP Jack Schmitt and "friends" helping me celebrate my 29th Birthday.
Great informal photo Dan — no wonder you're smiling! |
LM-12
Member Posts: 3208
From: Ontario, Canada
Registered: Oct 2010
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posted 03-16-2016 01:12 PM
Dan, why was there a PLSS backpack stowed in the LM on Apollo 10, and why only one? It was s/n 011 for the LMP, and it was stowed in the recharge station.The two OPS units onboard (006 and 005) were for an emergency EVA, I believe. |
Daniel on the Moon
Member Posts: 354
From: Bronxville, NY
Registered: Jun 2015
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posted 03-16-2016 11:45 PM
The decision to have a PLSS aboard Apollo 10 was decided before the Apollo 9 mission. If there had been a serious PLSS anomaly during Rusty's EVA, Cernan would have performed an EVA on 10. |
LM-12
Member Posts: 3208
From: Ontario, Canada
Registered: Oct 2010
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posted 03-17-2016 12:01 PM
An EVA in lunar orbit, perhaps? Probably not, but that would have been interesting! |
Daniel on the Moon
Member Posts: 354
From: Bronxville, NY
Registered: Jun 2015
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posted 03-20-2016 11:28 PM
The below photo was taken at a party I hosted by the pool in front of my apartment. I was cooking beef ribs on the grill and astronaut Cernan offered to help. Great memories! |
fredtrav
Member Posts: 1673
From: Birmingham AL
Registered: Aug 2010
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posted 03-21-2016 10:29 AM
Dan, you stole my shirt. Or did everyone have one like that? |
carmelo
Member Posts: 1047
From: Messina, Sicilia, Italia
Registered: Jun 2004
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posted 03-23-2016 10:47 AM
quote:
Originally posted by Daniel on the Moon:
Cernan would have performed an EVA on 10.
If the decision to have a EVA on Apollo 10 had been taken, where it would take place? My guess is in lunar orbit, before the separation between command and lunar module. Same scenario of the Apollo 9 EVA, but in lunar orbit. |
Rick Mulheirn
Member Posts: 4167
From: England
Registered: Feb 2001
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posted 03-23-2016 05:59 PM
quote:
Originally posted by fredtrav:
Or did everyone have one like that?
Yes, the psychologists that did the astronaut selection evaluations. I think Gene, bolstered by that beer in his hand may have spotted the same nice young lady that Jim Lovell and others profess to have seen...only this time on Dan's shirt.  |
LM-12
Member Posts: 3208
From: Ontario, Canada
Registered: Oct 2010
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posted 03-23-2016 09:51 PM
Also stowed onboard Apollo 10: two EV Visor Assembly (EVVA) helmets. So perhaps John Young would have done a standup EVA in the CM like Dave Scott.Apollo 10 was on the pad two days before the Apollo 9 splashdown. |
Wehaveliftoff
Member Posts: 2343
From:
Registered: Aug 2001
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posted 03-26-2016 11:56 PM
Actually Dan, you look a little like the comedian, Paul Lynde, wardrobe and all, of "Bewitched" and Hollywood Squares fame. |
Daniel on the Moon
Member Posts: 354
From: Bronxville, NY
Registered: Jun 2015
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posted 03-27-2016 10:59 AM
quote:
Originally posted by Wehaveliftoff:
Actually Dan, you look a little like the comedian, Paul Lynde...
You are very perceptive. Paul Lynde was my idol!!!! |
Wehaveliftoff
Member Posts: 2343
From:
Registered: Aug 2001
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posted 03-29-2016 09:35 AM
Is there a Neil Armstrong nugget just under the surface? |
Daniel on the Moon
Member Posts: 354
From: Bronxville, NY
Registered: Jun 2015
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posted 03-30-2016 11:37 PM
Many, many times I look back to my Apollo days at KSC and I still cannot believe that I was so intimately involved with helping the U.S. land on the moon.Case in point: Looking through my Apollo photos recently, I found the three (3) photos below taken on August 15, 1972 during a final mission simulation to check out the Lunar Rover and all its systems prior to the Apollo 17 mission. How LUCKY was I to be assigned the task of conducting the procedures to check the communications (voice and telemetry) from the astronauts to MSC in Houston. I still get "goose bumps" thinking about it. You must remember that as a youngster, I was a SPACE FANATIC and could never have dreamed that I would end up right "smack dab" in the middle of it all! Getting back to reality, the lunar rover maintained direct radio contact with Earth using its own antennas and the Lunar Communications Relay Unit (LCRU). Voice and telemetry were transmitted via the low gain S-band antenna (identified in photo 2 below). This was the antenna used during the communications test that I conducted. The large "umbrella" antenna was used for TV transmissions. If I recall correctly, I was a nervous wreck and was unable to sleep the night before. However, luckily, the test went extremely well. I consider myself one of the luckiest men alive to have been a part of man's greatest adventure and technological achievement.  
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Daniel on the Moon
Member Posts: 354
From: Bronxville, NY
Registered: Jun 2015
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posted 04-01-2016 08:25 PM
One of my most rewarding assignments during my time at KSC was being invited to speak to elementary students. It was so inspiring watching student reactions to the suit and PLSS related hardware I was able to present to them. The interest and excitement represented to me a positive future for the U.S. space program.Apparently, teachers asked their students to write a letter to me describing their experience. Following are three representative letters I received from the Cape View Elementary School in Cape Canaveral:  
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MCroft04
Member Posts: 1634
From: Smithfield, Me, USA
Registered: Mar 2005
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posted 04-02-2016 07:11 AM
Great job Dan! I'd like to get one of those rock picker upper's, and a big brain as well.  |
Daniel on the Moon
Member Posts: 354
From: Bronxville, NY
Registered: Jun 2015
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posted 04-03-2016 01:03 AM
Astronaut Shepard and Pad Leader Guenter Wendt both had standing invitations to parties at my place ("pad"). |
Daniel on the Moon
Member Posts: 354
From: Bronxville, NY
Registered: Jun 2015
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posted 04-03-2016 03:25 PM
I wonder what it feels like to take that "first step"! I think I'll borrow Neil's suit and find out for myself!That's "One Small Step For A Space Fanatic and One Giant Leap For the Future Of Space Exploration"!  |
Wehaveliftoff
Member Posts: 2343
From:
Registered: Aug 2001
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posted 04-03-2016 03:57 PM
Now that's what I'm talking about! |
Daniel on the Moon
Member Posts: 354
From: Bronxville, NY
Registered: Jun 2015
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posted 04-04-2016 12:32 AM
Going through the boxes of my Apollo photos and files I found the photo below that I knew I had but never knew where it was until today. I could not hold back my emotions and screamed for my wife to come to my office and we both "high fived" each other.The photo represents an extremely unprecedented situation when I was asked to go through the contingency procedures with Armstrong for EV transfer from the LM to the CM if the LM and CM were unable to dock. The procedure involved using the OPSs in a waist mounted configuration for oxygen and suit pressurization. I remember writing the OPS portion of the procedure that involved breaking the stitch of the lower right PLSS adjustable harness (the purpose of the stitch was to keep the strap at the fixed measured strap length for each astronaut for PLSS donning) so that it could be lengthened and be used along with the PLSS lower left fixed length harness to secure the OPS to the PGA in a waist mounted configuration.  |
hlbjr
Member Posts: 475
From: Delray Beach Florida USA
Registered: Mar 2006
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posted 04-04-2016 07:15 AM
I can't get enough of Dan's posts. Dan your photos are a whole new dimension of the space program. I'm really glad you're so generous with your photos and stories. |
LM-12
Member Posts: 3208
From: Ontario, Canada
Registered: Oct 2010
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posted 04-04-2016 07:30 AM
Something doesn't look quite right to me. Compare the "Cernan" suit photo above with the "Armstrong" suit photo on page 1. |
Rick Mulheirn
Member Posts: 4167
From: England
Registered: Feb 2001
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posted 04-04-2016 08:31 AM
I'm loving your photos Dan. Green with envy sums it up to be honest. But I have to agree with LM-12. It looks like Neil's head has been photo shopped in to the image. The illumination to Dan's face (direct flash) looks quite different from Neil's: available light or flash from a slightly different location IMHO. |
LM-12
Member Posts: 3208
From: Ontario, Canada
Registered: Oct 2010
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posted 04-04-2016 08:47 AM
Take a look at photo S69-38677.I don't doubt that you conducted an EV transfer procedure with Armstrong as you say Dan, but I just have a problem with that particular photo. |
R. Wandelt
Member Posts: 11
From:
Registered: Jun 2015
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posted 04-04-2016 08:50 AM
I thought the 'issue' was the name tag on Dan's suit between the two photos. (Armstrong v Cernan) |
Glint
Member Posts: 1040
From: New Windsor, Maryland USA
Registered: Jan 2004
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posted 04-04-2016 12:03 PM
Odd, in the photo above, posted at 04-04-2016 12:32 AM, the only mic casting a shadow on a face is Armstrong's. |
Daniel on the Moon
Member Posts: 354
From: Bronxville, NY
Registered: Jun 2015
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posted 04-04-2016 12:38 PM
 |
JohnPaul56
Member Posts: 180
From: Montclair, NJ, USA
Registered: Apr 2010
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posted 04-04-2016 04:02 PM
OUCH!!!! No doubt about it! I superimposed the image of Neil Armstrong's head onto the black and white shot, they are identical. Of course that doesn't mean it didn't happen. |
Daniel on the Moon
Member Posts: 354
From: Bronxville, NY
Registered: Jun 2015
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posted 04-04-2016 04:44 PM
When historians look back at man's first adventure to another world they should be able to look back and come to the conclusion that the human beings we now call astronauts were not "robots" but men and women like you and I that had their own unique DNA, DNA that not only gave them the intelligence and motivation to pursue and accomplish their dreams, but also DNA that gave them each a "unique personality." Astronaut personalities varied from "fun loving" to "extremely serious and laser focused." I hope that the photos below convey to historians that astronauts were not just "robot Gods" but were human beings with attributes that make us all so unique and special!  
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MCroft04
Member Posts: 1634
From: Smithfield, Me, USA
Registered: Mar 2005
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posted 04-04-2016 08:21 PM
Dan, great pictures! Do you have a "fun loving" photo of Buzz? |
Daniel on the Moon
Member Posts: 354
From: Bronxville, NY
Registered: Jun 2015
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posted 04-04-2016 10:54 PM
Buzz as well as Neil were very serious and focused. No "fun loving" photo of Buzz. However, following is a "serious and focused" photo of Buzz: |
LM-12
Member Posts: 3208
From: Ontario, Canada
Registered: Oct 2010
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posted 04-05-2016 04:52 AM
quote:
Originally posted by JohnPaul56:
I superimposed the image of Neil Armstrong's head onto the black and white shot
Now I'm really confused. You altered an image that Dan had stored away for years? I don't get it. |
Robert Pearlman
Editor Posts: 42988
From: Houston, TX
Registered: Nov 1999
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posted 04-05-2016 05:56 AM
He's saying he overlaid both images after Dan posted to prove to himself that both images were the same.Dan, can you please address the image in question? |
Tomy1
Member Posts: 179
From: Cape Canaveral, FL
Registered: Mar 2001
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posted 04-05-2016 06:24 AM
Dan - unbelievable stories and photos! Just curious where was your apartment in Cape Canaveral? I am very familiar with the area and would like to just ride by and see this very "historic" location. |
Daniel on the Moon
Member Posts: 354
From: Bronxville, NY
Registered: Jun 2015
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posted 04-05-2016 12:46 PM
quote:
Originally posted by Robert Pearlman:
Dan, can you please address the image in question?
Got Ya! This was an April Fools Joke posted two days late. In retrospect, I wish I had it prepared for posting on the 1st. I am extremely impressed with the passion and dedication of the cS family.I'm so glad that I found this forum as a vehicle to provide Apollo program insights and perspectives that I hope will be useful to future historians. |
Glint
Member Posts: 1040
From: New Windsor, Maryland USA
Registered: Jan 2004
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posted 04-05-2016 03:53 PM
quote:
Originally posted by Daniel on the Moon:
April Fools
Dan, when the first questions were raised, I wondered if it was an April Fools joke -- but the timing was off. Thanks for clarifying. Had me worried for a while though, and started to wonder if the critics had been right all along and the whole thing had been faked! 
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Rick Mulheirn
Member Posts: 4167
From: England
Registered: Feb 2001
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posted 04-05-2016 04:53 PM
Keep the pictures coming Dan. Superb stuff! |
Daniel on the Moon
Member Posts: 354
From: Bronxville, NY
Registered: Jun 2015
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posted 04-05-2016 06:38 PM
quote:
Originally posted by Tomy1:
Just curious where was your apartment in Cape Canaveral?
My apartment was located in the Morgan Manor apts. at 7801 Ridgewood Ave. Cape Canaveral, FL 32920. Your post prompted me to look it up on Google and Google Earth.I can't believe it's still there after 48 years. It has not changed much except for the pool area. There was no fence and the grass went to the edges of the pool. The photo I posted reflects the same red doors I remember, however I think I saw a more recent real estate listing with yellow doors. Perhaps you can arrange tourist bus tours to make this "historic" location (your words, not mine) a stop.  |
Daniel on the Moon
Member Posts: 354
From: Bronxville, NY
Registered: Jun 2015
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posted 04-06-2016 02:16 PM
Very little information has been disseminated about Apollo EVA crew training at KSC. Most disseminated information including photos, involve EVA training related to astronauts and "flight hardware," i.e. flight PLSS/OPS's and flight suits.As PLSS/OPS Crew Training Mission Manager, I was responsible for coordinating the PLSS/OPS crew training effort at KSC. I feel that I have a responsibility to document the "behind the scenes" effort required to assure that EVA crew training schedules and milestones were met. To that end, I plan to periodically post "behind the scenes" EVA crew training experiences that I hope will be of interest to cS members and future historians. Okay, let's begin with a story related to EVA prep and post procedural demonstrations in the KSC Crew Training Building: When Apollo EVA crew training was assigned to KSC, MSC Houston sent a memo to KSC with a requirement to build a mockup of the LM PLSS/OPS/PGA donning and doffing "space" (inside the LM) to be used when EVA Prep and Post demonstrations needed to be monitored by multiple NASA and contractor personnel. There was no logistical solution for multiple personnel to monitor prep and post procedural demonstrations inside the crew training building LM mockup and therefore the need for the requested LM EVA prep and post "platform" (as I named it), i.e. a platform that included the LM Ascent Engine Cover, the Cabin Recirculation Assembly and their respective vertical positioning inside the LM. Photo #1 below depicts the LM interior including the LM ascent Engine Cover, the Cabin Recirculation Assembly and the "restrictive" area inside the LM where the prep and post "donning" and "doffing" were conducted. We used Grumman drawings and also measured actual dimensions as a dimensional "double check." I was and still am a perfectionist and the double check paid off as there was a dimensional error on the drawing that if used without confirmation would have resulted in a flawed "platform."  Photo #2 shows the finished mockup platform. The one regret I have is that we should have vertically extended the sides to more accurately represent the restrictive environment when the astronauts were using their arms.  Photo #3 shows Apollo 15 Astronauts Scott and Irwin going through a prep and post procedure with multiple NASA and contractor personnel in attendance. You can see me in Photo #3 with a copy of the procedures. My job was to document crew questions and document requested crew procedural changes and possible hardware modifications for evaluation after the exercise was completed.  Photo #4 shows myself and a NASA Suit Engineer going through the same prep and post procedures that the astronauts had previously completed on, of course, the "platform". Our objective (myself and my fellow "wannabe" astronaut)was to evaluate incorporated approved procedural and/or hardware modifications for validation. If validated, they would be permanently incorporated into the applicable NASA document.  |
davidcwagner
Member Posts: 799
From: Albuquerque, New Mexico
Registered: Jan 2003
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posted 04-06-2016 06:56 PM
Great behind the scenes photos.Any photos of EVA US flag deployment? I have never seen any photos of flag deployment training. |
Daniel on the Moon
Member Posts: 354
From: Bronxville, NY
Registered: Jun 2015
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posted 04-06-2016 11:05 PM
There are in fact very few flag deployment training photos. With the limited time available for EVA training, elimination of simple tasks like flag deployment were necessary to allow time to practice the more complex scientific instrument deployments.As far as I can recall, flag deployments were limited to photo ops when the press and/or crew family members were present as in the below photo of Cernan deploying the flag with his wife and daughter watching.  |
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