1973 July. (Cancelled flight). Crew: Gordon, Brand, Schmitt. Support Crew: Allen, Henize, Parker. Program: Apollo. Apollo 18 was originally planned in July 1969 to land in the moon's Schroter's Valley, a riverlike channel-way. The original February 1972 landing date was extended when NASA cancelled the Apollo 20 mission in January 1970. Later in the planning process the most likely landing site was the crater Gassendi. Finally NASA cancelled Apollo 18 and 19 on 2 September 1970 because of congressional cuts in FY 1971 NASA appropriations. There was also a feeling after the Apollo 13 emergency that NASA risked having its entire manned space program cancelled if a crew was lost on another Apollo mission. Total savings of cancelling the two missions (since the hardware was already built and the NASA staff had to stay in place for the Skylab program) was only $42.1 million. Before the cancellation, Schmitt was pressing for a more ambitious landing in Tycho or the lunar farside. It seems Copernicus, the final program goal as previously set for Apollos 19 and 20, was also considered before the cancellation. Pressure from the scientific community resulted in geologist Schmitt flying on Apollo 17, the last lunar mission, bumping Joe Engle from the lunar module pilot slot.
Apollo 18 Chronology
- 1970 Jan 29 - Ground rules for Apollo service module design and integration established Spacecraft: Apollo CSM.
Ground rules for service module design and integration, established during recent changes in the lunar orbital science program, were reported. The Apollo LM experiment hardware would be installed and tested at KSC. A single scientific instrument module configuration was being proposed for Apollo 16-19 with modification kits developed, as required, to install Apollo 18 and Apollo 19 experiments. An expanded Apollo LM data system would be available for Apollo 16 (spacecraft 112).
- 1970 Apr 21 - NASA might scrap two of its six scheduled Moon flights. Spacecraft: Skylab.
NASA might scrap two of its six scheduled Moon flights, the Washington Daily News said. Apollo 18 and 19 might be scrapped because some NASA planners wanted to use the boosters and spaceships already being built to speed the space base and space station programs. Assistant Administrator George M. Low was reported as saying NASA already was studying ...more...
- 1970 Apr 21 - NASA might scrap two of its six scheduled Moon flights. Spacecraft: Skylab.
NASA might scrap two of its six scheduled Moon flights, the Washington Daily News said. Apollo 18 and 19 might be scrapped because some NASA planners wanted to use the boosters and spaceships already being built to speed the space base and space station programs. Assistant Administrator George M. Low was reported as saying NASA already was studying ...more...
- - 1973 July - Apollo 18 (cancelled) Crew: Gordon, Brand, Schmitt. Spacecraft: Apollo CSM.
The most likely landing site was the crater Gassendi. Before the cancellation, astronaut-geologist Schmitt was pressing for a more ambitious landing in Tycho or the lunar farside. NASA cancelled Apollo 18 and 19 on 2 September 1970 because of congressional cuts in FY 1971 NASA appropriations. Pressure from the scientific community resulted in geologist Schmitt flying on Apollo 17, the last lunar mission, bumping Joe Engle from the lunar module pilot slot.
Bibliography and Further Reading
- Cassutt, Michael and Slayton, Deke, Deke! U.S. Manned Space: from Mercury to the Shuttle, Tom Doherty Associates, New York, 1994. ISBN: 031285918X. Absolutely the best astronaut biography - full inside details on the personalities of the US astronauts from the one who knew them all - and decided who would go to the moon. More at amazon.com...
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