Apollo 4 - NASAs First All Up Test

Apollo 4 - NASA's First All Up Test On January 27, 1967, tragedy struck on the launch pad during a preflight test for Apollo 1 (also called AS-204), which was scheduled to be the first Apollo manned mission, and would have been launched on February 21, 1967. Astronauts Virgil Grissom, Edward White, and Roger Chaffee lost their lives when a fire swept through the Command Module (CM). The accident was the first major mishap in NASAs short history, and it shocked the nation.   Moving Beyond Tragedy NASA made an exhaustive investigation of the fire (as it does with all space mishaps), which resulted in extensive reworking of the CMs. The agency postponed manned launches until officials cleared the new capsule design for use by human crews. In addition, Saturn 1B schedules were suspended for nearly a year, and the launch vehicle that finally bore the designation AS-204 carried a Lunar Module (LM) as the payload, not the Apollo CM. The missions of AS-201 and AS-202 with Apollo spacecraft aboard had been unofficially known as Apollo 1 and Apollo 2 missions (AS-203 carried only the aerodynamic nose cone). In the spring of 1967, NASAs Associate Administrator for Manned Space Flight, Dr. George E. Mueller, announced that the mission originally scheduled for Grissom, White and Chaffee would be known as Apollo 1, as a way to honor the three astronauts. The first Saturn V launch, scheduled for November 1967, would be known as Apollo 4. No missions or flights were ever designated as Apoll o 2 and Apollo 3.    The delays caused by the fire were bad enough, but NASA also faced budgetary cutbacks as it raced to reach the Moon before the end of the decade. Since the U.S. was in a race to get to the Moon before the Soviets could get there, NASA had no choice to but move ahead with the assets it had. The agency did further tests on the rockets, and eventually scheduled the Apollo 4 mission for an unmanned flight.  It was referred to as  all-up testing. Resuming Space Flight After the complete retooling of the capsule, the mission planners for Apollo 4 had four major goals: Demonstrate structural and thermal integrity and compatibility of launch vehicle and spacecraft; confirm launch loads and dynamic characteristics.Verify operation of command module heatshield (adequacy of Block II design for reentry at lunar return conditions), service propulsion system (SPS; including no ullage start), and selective subsystems.Evaluate performance of emergency detection system in open-loop configuration.Demonstrate mission support facilities and operations needed for launch, mission conduct, and CM recovery. After extensive testing, re-resting, and training,  Apollo 4 launched successfully on November 9, 1967 at 07:00:01 a.m. EST from Launch Complex 39-A at  Cape Canaveral FL. There were no delays in the preflight preparations and with the weather cooperating, there were no delays during countdown. During the third orbit and after SPS engine burn, the spacecraft coasted to a simulated translunar trajectory, reaching an altitude of 18,079 kilometers. The launch marked the initial flight testing of the S-IC and S-II stages. The first stage, S-IC, performed accurately with the center F-1 engine cutting off at 135.5 seconds and the outboard engines cutting off at LOX (liquid oxygen) depletion at 150.8 seconds when the vehicle was traveling at 9660 km/h at an altitude of 61.6 km. Stage separation occurred only 1.2 seconds off the predicted time. Cutoff of the S-II occurred at 519.8 seconds. It was a triumphant, if subdued return to space flight, and moved NASAs goals to reach the Moon farther forward. The spacecraft performance went well, and on the ground, people heaved a huge sigh of relief.   A Pacific Ocean landing occurred on November 9, 1967, 03:37 p.m. EST, just eight hours and thirty-seven minutes and fifty-nine seconds after takeoff. The Apollo 4 Spacecraft 017 splashed down, missing its planned impact point by only 16 kilometers. The Apollo 4 mission was a success, all  objectives were achieved. With the success of this first all up test, the Apollo program resumed manned missions and moving toward the eventual 1969 target for the first human landing on the Moon during the  Apollo 11 mission.  After the loss of the Apollo 1 crew, the Apollo 4 mission benefitted from many tough (and tragic) lessons learned. Edited and updated by Carolyn Collins Petersen.

Free Online TOEFL Study Guides

Free Online TOEFL Study Guides Taking the TOEFL is a necessary step for any student not educated in the United States who wishes to study at a North American university. It is also increasingly required from other educational institutions throughout the world as well as a desired or mandatory job qualification. While it is true that the TOEFL is an extremely difficult test there are a number of resources to help students prepare for the test. Luckily the Internet has an ever-expanding treasure trove of study materials. Most of these areas require registration and payment however a number of the sites do offer some free services. If you are interested in taking the TOEFL it will probably be necessary to purchase some of these services. This guide shows you a number of the free services available on the Internet. By using this feature you can get an excellent head-start on your studies without paying a dime. What Is the TOEFL? Before beginning to study for the TOEFL it is a good idea to understand the philosophy and purpose behind this standardized test. Here is an excellent detailed description of the Internet-based test. What Can I Expect From TOEFL? There are a number of resources available to help you discover exactly what grammar listening and reading skills will be expected on the TOEFL. One of the most thorough of these resources is Testwise.Com  which explains each type of question in terms of the grammar or skill required to answer that type of question successfully. Now that you have a good idea of what the test is, what is to be expected, AND what strategies are needed you can begin to practice taking various sections of the test. To help you do just that (for FREE) follow the following links to these  practice tests  and exercises: TOEFL Grammar / StructurePractice TOEFL tests grammar through whats known as the structure sentence. This section includes multiple choice questions which test your understanding of how to put together a sentence.   TOEFL Grammar Practice 1 TOEFL Grammar Practice 2 Exam English Structure Tests Structure Practice Tests  from TestMagic Five Sets of Practice Questions for Section II  at Free ESL.com by Chris Yukna  Practice Section II TOEFL Vocabulary Practice The vocabulary section focuses on understanding synonyms and antonyms, as well as the ability to use a word in the right context.   TOEFL Vocabulary Practice 400 Must Have Words for TOEFL   TOEFL Reading Practice The reading section asks you to read fairly long sections of text that might be found in a textbook or scholarly article. Comprehension of the relationships between ideas and sequencing events is key in this section.   Reading practice tests  from TestMagic by  Chris Yukna  Practice Section II: Boston   Practice: Fuels TOEFL  based on an article in Wired Magazine by Chris Yukna. TOEFL Listening Practice TOEFL listening selections are often based on lectures in a university setting. As in reading, its important to practice listening long selections (3 - 5) minutes of university lectures or similar listening setting.   Exam English Listening Practice Tests How Do I Approach the TOEFL? One of the most important skills to acquire before taking the test is not a language skill. It is TOEFL test taking strategy. To get up to speed on test taking, this  guide to taking tests  can help you understand  general test taking preparation. The TOEFL, like all standardized American tests, has a very particular structure and typical traps for you to fall into. By understanding these traps and structures you can go a long way to improving your score. The writing section of the TOEFL requires that you write an essay based on a set topic. Testmagic.com has a wonderful  selection of sample essays  discussing common mistakes and giving examples of essays with various scores to show you the range expected on the essay. Practicing the TOEFL Obviously, you will need to do a lot more studying (and probably invest a good bit of money) to do well on the TOEFL. But hopefully, this guide to free TOEFL resources will help you begin to understand what to expect when taking the TOEFL.