Past and Future futures

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Some Xmas cheer from Future’s past. And the flag. The flag is the prototype build of the Apollo 11 flag, with amazing stories in its own right:

The flag was such a last minute addition to the flight plan, there was no place for it in the Lunar Module. So it was designed to break apart and fold up into a tube that was strapped it to the leg of the lander, with a protective sleeve to shield it from the 2000° temperature of the descent engine. George Low and team had to take a private jet to the launch site, and they attached the flag to the LM of Apollo 11 at 4am as the spacecraft sat atop its Saturn V rocket ready for launch.

I brought the flag to Buzz Aldrin and his eyes went wide. He shared an amazing revelation about the discussion he and Neil Armstrong had about what to say publicly about what happened to the flag:

“We can say with total certainty that of six flags on the moon, ours was the best looking flag.

Until we lifted off, and it blew over.

Neil saw it [fall down], and he shared it with me. And we decided it wasn’t necessary to inform the public immediately.”

And so, there probably is no Apollo 11 flag on the moon today. The lunar surface swirls in electrostatic eddies, rending the decomposed flag fabric to something unrecognizable. I learned all this after acquiring the beta build, and it makes it seem all the more precious.

One response to “Past and Future futures”

jurvetson

Dec 25, 2019 at 8:59 pm

Melissa brings such a creative touch. Buzz Aldrin salutes the flag, with a different gravity (literally and figuratively)…signature detail, with flag pinned at each end of the horizontal telescoping arm:Hinge detail:detailed description: Flagpole, anodized aluminum tubing, 2 portions each 47 inches long by 7/8 inches diameter. The lower portion with matte section, 2 red-anodized depth markers, and white nylon collar at socket top. The upper portion with another matte section, narrower plug at bottom with sprung ball bearing; at the top is a hinge with a single-action sprung locking device, and narrower-gauge telescopic crossbar extending from 47 to 60 inches. With nylon US flag, 35 x 60 inches, with hem at top through which passes the crossbar.

Here is the NASA MSC preliminary sketch, and details from the NASA Report, Where No Flag Has Gone Before
To make the flag easily accessible during the EVA, it was mounted on the left-hand side of the ladder on the Lunar Module, and surrounded by a protective sleeve to shield it from the 2000° temperature of the descent engine."Because the final decision to fly the flag and attach the plaque was made so close to the launch date, a Lear jet was chartered to fly Kinzler, George Low (Manager of the Apollo Spacecraft Program), Low’s secretary, the flag assembly, and the commemorative plaque to KSC before the launch. The flag and plaque were installed on the LM of Apollo 11 at 4:00 in the morning as the spacecraft sat atop its Saturn V rocket ready for launch.

Even though the event took only 10 minutes of the 2 1/2 hour EVA, for many people around the world the flag-raising was one of the most memorable parts of the Apollo 11 lunar landing."

More recently, the high res photos from the LROC confirm Buzz’s observation:

"From the LROC images it is now certain that the American flags are still standing and casting shadows at all of the sites, except Apollo 11. Astronaut Buzz Aldrin reported that the flag was blown over by the exhaust from the ascent engine during liftoff of Apollo 11, and it looks like he was correct!"

More details and shadow analysis at this NASA site.

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Past and Future futures

One response to “Past and Future futures”

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