Engineering:Lunar Module Eagle

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Short description: Lunar lander used for Apollo 11

Eagle
Part of Apollo 11
Eagle at Tranquility Base, July 20, 1969.
Neil Armstrong photographs Buzz Aldrin.
TypeLunar module
ClassApollo Lunar Module
Named afterBald eagle
ManufacturerGrumman
Construction numberLM-5
Technical details
Launch mass33,294.5 lb (15,102.1 kg)[1]
Landing mass16,153.2 lb (7,327.0 kg)[1]
Flight history
Launch dateJuly 16, 1969
Launch siteKennedy LC-39A
Owners and operatorsNASA
Landing dateJuly 20, 1969
Landing siteTranquility Base
Total hours130[lower-alpha 1]
Fate
  • Ascent stage: Abandoned in lunar orbit; current location unknown
  • Descent stage: Landed at Tranquility Base; still there
← Snoopy
Intrepid →

Template:Apollo11series Lunar Module Eagle (LM-5) is the spacecraft that served as the crewed lunar lander of Apollo 11, which was the first mission to land humans on the Moon. It was named after the bald eagle, which was featured prominently on the mission insignia. It flew from Earth to lunar orbit on the command module Columbia, and then was flown to the Moon on July 20, 1969, by astronaut Neil Armstrong with navigational assistance from Buzz Aldrin. Eagle's landing created Tranquility Base, named by Armstrong and Aldrin and first announced upon the module's touchdown.

The name of the craft gave rise to the phrase "The Eagle has landed", the words Armstrong said upon Eagle's touchdown.[2]

Flight

Main article: Engineering:Apollo 11

Eagle was launched with Command Module Columbia on July 16, 1969, atop a Saturn V launch vehicle from Launch Complex 39A, and entered Earth orbit 12 minutes later.

Eagle entered lunar orbit on July 19, 1969. On July 20, Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin entered into the LM and separated it from Command Module Columbia.

Eagle was landed at 20:17:40 UTC on July 20, 1969, with 216 pounds (98 kg) of usable fuel remaining.

After the lunar surface operations, Armstrong and Aldrin returned to the Lunar Module Eagle on July 21, 1969.

At 17:54:00 UTC, they lifted off in Eagle's ascent stage to rejoin Michael Collins aboard Columbia in lunar orbit.

After the crew re-boarded Columbia, the Eagle was abandoned in lunar orbit. The location of its impact on the Moon's surface during an orbit decay is unknown, and there is evidence that Eagle may still be in orbit.[3][4]

See also

Notes

  1. ↑ From Earth launch to second CSM undocking.

References

  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 "Selected Mission Weights". https://history.nasa.gov/SP-4029/Apollo_18-37_Selected_Mission_Weights.htm. 
  2. ↑ Cresswell, J. (2007). The Cat's Pyjamas: The Penguin Book of Clichés. Penguin Books Limited. p. 427. ISBN 978-0-14-102516-2. https://books.google.com/books?id=vaB3KEhlUcEC&pg=PT427. Retrieved 2021-10-22. 
  3. ↑ "Location of Apollo Lunar Modules". https://airandspace.si.edu/explore-and-learn/topics/apollo/apollo-program/spacecraft/location/lm.cfm?dom=pscau. 
  4. ↑ Discover magazine website, July 2021

Further reading

  • Benson, Charles D.; Faherty, William B. (1978). Moonport: A History of Apollo Launch Facilities and Operations. Washington, D.C.: NASA. p. 472. SP-4204. https://ntrs.nasa.gov/archive/nasa/casi.ntrs.nasa.gov/19790003956.pdf. Retrieved September 22, 2018. 
  • "Scientific Experiments". https://airandspace.si.edu/exhibitions/apollo-to-the-moon/online/science/scientific-experiments.cfm. 
  • "LRO Sees Apollo Landing Sites". NASA. July 17, 2009. https://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/LRO/multimedia/lroimages/apollosites.html. 
  • Meador, James (2021). "Long-term Orbit Stability of the Apollo 11 "Eagle" Lunar Module Ascent Stage". arXiv:2105.10088 [physics.space-ph].
  • Jones, Eric M., ed (1995). "One Small Step". Apollo 11 Lunar Surface Journal. NASA. http://www.hq.nasa.gov/alsj/a11/a11.step.html. 
  • Jones, Eric M., ed (1995). "Trying to Rest". Apollo 11 Lunar Surface Journal. NASA. http://www.hq.nasa.gov/alsj/a11/a11.posteva.html. 



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