This is a very special artifact, the original Apollo Guidance computer display and keyboard (DSKY) unit removed from the primary Command Module simulator at the Johnson Space Center. Neil Armstrong and every Apollo astronaut used this DSKY in training for their mission.
This is the user interface to the Apollo Guidance Computer. Two-digit verb-noun pairs were entered in succession to control the computer’s operation. It’s direct assembly programming with 1.1K FLOPS of processing power.
The DSKY provided the astronauts with critical burn times for engine firings, course corrections, trajectories, and other key calculations vital in getting a crew to and from the moon. It was also the DSKY that almost caused an abort of the Apollo 11 mission, as it was blaring a Program Alarm as Armstrong was trying to land the LM on the lunar surface.
One amazing historical footnote: “When production of onboard computers for the Apollo programme was at its peak, it consumed fully half of the world’s output of integrated circuits, yet only 75 units were constructed between 1963 and 1969. This is not because they were all used in the final machines [three DSKYs per flight], but because NASA bought vast numbers of the tiny devices from the manufacturers and hammered them with a barrage of tests to force ever higher quality control.”
– How Apollo Flew to the Moon, 2nd Ed., p.166.
This DSKY is accompanied by a 1984 letter of provenance from Ron Baker of NASA’s Technology Utilization Support Section which reads: “This specific number has some history behind it. Based upon the I.D. Number from the back of the unit (#186372), I was able to confirm that it had been removed from the Apollo CM trainer that was originally located in Building 5 here at JSC. I was part of the team that disassembled the simulator several years ago… this computer unit was fully functional when it was in the simulator.”
An artifact in the Future Ventures’ 🚀 Space Collection. More images and background below.
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