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January 8, 1974

MEMORANDUM FOR MR. PLUMMER

SUBJECT: DISCOVERER XIV

Dr. McLucas asked for an assessment of the accuracy of

the historical description of the DISCOVERER XIV mission

(TAB A). I have determined that the technical parameters

are generally correct, by consulting the NRO history prepared by Mr. Bob Perry and the CIA Program Office history

published in the CIA Studies In Intelligence Periodical,

Vol 17 No. 1-S. The statement that the capsule carried

in it scientific data on propulsion, communications and

orbital performance collected and stored in space is not

accurate. The inclusion of this statement can probably

be traced back to the cover story and unclassified information which appeared during the early days of the

DISCOVERER program. At TAB B is an article from the June

1961 issue of The Airman magazine, which describes the

DISCOVERER program in terms of its cover without ever

divulging its true photographic mission. At TAB Cis an

extract from the STL Space Log, Volume 1, NO 2, September

1960. This describes the DISCOVERER XIV payload as being

similar to DISCOVERER )I, which did in fact carry a tape

recorder for on-board data collection. DISCOVERER XIII

carried a diagnostic payload only; if this had not proven

successful an additional diagnostic mission would have been

flown as DISCOVERER XIV and would have carried a tape

recorder. Because DISCOVERER XIII was a successful mission,

the decision was made to fly the CORONA camera payload

immediately.

There are very few records left to reflect in detail

the configuration of the various CORONA missions. In

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PAGE 1 OF 2 PAGES
FREDERICK L.

Lt Colonel, U

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searching for the answer for Dr. MbLucas y question I spoke

with both Colonel Paul Worthman and Colonel Clarence (Lee)

Battle, who were sure that there was no tape recorder on

board DISCOVERER XIV. Mr. Roy Burks of CIA, who was part of

the old CORONA team could recall no recorder and referred

me to Mr ,/f General Electric, who reportedly

catalogue a ems returni from space in General Electric

recovery vehicles. ' ecalled no recorder but did

not have ready access to a historical documentation.

Through' n SAFSP, the LMSC people did

go into ted that the total instrumentation in the recovery vehicle for the DISCOVERER XIV mission

consisted of telemetry indicating cold gas nozzle firing,

deployment of the parachute cover, parachute deployment, and

a tracking signal. The LMSC instrumentation records showed

'

that there was no toe recorder in the recovery vehicle.

Mr of Lockheed also confirmed this for

me.

The inscription to accompany the DISCOVERER XIV capsule

can be made correct by deleting that portion of the sentence

which refers to returning scientific data collected and stored

in space. At the right is a retyped inscription which is

correct.

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PAGE_2__CIF 2 PAGES
The Discoverer XIV capsule on display is the first item

to be ejected by a satellite orbiting in space and to be recovered in mid-air. Discoverer XIV was launched into a polar

orbit by a Thor booster from Vandenberg Air Force Base, California at 12:57 P.M. on 18 August 1960. After the Thor had

exhausted its fuel, the Agena atop the Thor separated from it.

The Agena's engine then ignited to increase the satellite's

speed to 17,658 miles per hour, thereby achieving an orbit of

116 miles above the earth at the low point (perigee) and 502

miles at the high point (apogee). As the Agena streaked southward through space high over Alaska on its 17th pass around the

earth, it ejected the capsule from its nose. Retrorockets attached to the capsule then fired to decrease its speed and the

capsule began descending in a long arc towards the earth. After

the capsule had entered the atmosphere, it released a parachute

and floated earthward, carrying in it the scientific data on

propulsion, communications, and orbital performance it had collected and stored while in space. The descending parachute was

sighted by the crew of the C-119 recovery airplane 360 miles

southwest of Honolulu, Hawaii. On the third pass of the C-119

over the parachute and its precious capsule, the recovery gear
trailing behind the airplane successfully snagged the parachute

canopy. A winch operator aboard the C-119 then reeled in the

Discoverer XIV capsule after its 27 hour, 450,000 mile journey

thru space.
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1CIOR ALL WHO WERE ON THE SCENE, and for many,

E many more who were present in spirit only, January

21, 1959, at Vandenberg AFB, Calif., was a black day

for the Air Force. That was the day Thor 160 was to

boost an instrument-packed Agena satellite vehicle into

polar orbit to begin the Discoverer series of experiments. Object: to develop basic techniques from which

a diversified arsenal of satellite systems was to grow.

Thor 160 never got off the ground—that day.

But the research program did. A month and a half

later, on February 28, Discoverer 1, a Thor-A gene combination shouldering a 1,300-pound payload streaked

upwani from launch complex 75 at Vandenberg's

Purisima Point overlooking the Pacific. Obediently on

cue, Discoverer I heeded instructions from Its "linksin-the-bead" brain, the perforated tape program which.

directed its guidance system, and entered a near-polar

orbit.

All doubt that a polar orbit could be achieved vanished with this shot, belying a 1955 Russian pronouncement that such a path was all but impossible. Difficult,

yes, but Discoverer 1 demonstrated that precision equip12

tent in the hands of skilled technicians makes all the

difference in the world—or out of it

Discoverer 1 lived for less than two weeks, playing

bide and seek with ground tracking stations whenever

its stabilization gear became cranky. When in the mood,

which was more often than not, her 30-pound instrument package transmitted data to her ground-hugging

masters as she circled the earth every 95 minutes.

Discoverer 1 was the first in an "open-end" program

to develop a dependable satellite system with the following capabilities:

Launch of earth satellites having on-orbit weights of

1,300 to 1.800 pounds.

Achievement of a high degree of reliability in putting

satellites into exactly the desired orbit—low-altitude

near-circular polar loops.

Stabilization of the satellites on orbit, re-positioning'

the vehicles at will, and re-stabilization in any desired

attitude with respect to the earth. •

A tracking and communications network able to

determine precisely the orbital characteristics of satellites, acquiring data from the vehicles and issuing such

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commands as are necessary to control future actions.

Separation of parts of the vehicles, the recovery capaides, which could successfully re-enter the atmosphere

to be recovered front the sea or snatched in mid-air.

A most ambitious program! As of now, two and one

half years later, how well has the Air Force succeeded

in reaching the target goals? What is the outlook?

A one-sentence reply answers both questions: the

Air Force has exceeded the original aims of the program and has at the same time opened the door to new

frontiers in aerospace science. Since Discoverer I thundered upward toward its place in history, 20 others have

followed' it. More will come.

Seeds of an Idea

The Discoverer story had its beginning some 13 years

before Discoverer I was lit-off in 1959, and long before

ha first-stage booster, the Thor 1RBM, was an engineer's

doodle on a drafting table. It began even some years

before Russia's Sputnik I announced its orbiting presence with its eerie "beep-beep-beep" signal.

Following recommendations sketched out in a series

bun 1H1

of studies et:Inducted under Air Force contract by the

Rand Corp. in 1946-47, Gen. Hoyt Vandenberg, then

Chief of Staff, urged in a 1948 policy letter that: ". . .

research and development of a satellite should be pursued as rapidly as the state of the art permits."

Then, as now, the principal aim of the Discoverer

program was to develop techniques and hardware to

place at will and into precise orbit satellites capable of

performing a variety of military missions. The military

value was the first consideration; if other results of

general scientific interest emerged. fine.

Early in the program the Air Force recognized that

a polar orbiting satellite would produce the most effective military results since the earth, in its east-to-west

rotation, would be turning beneath it, displaying itself

completely with precise regularity every 24 hours.

An east-to-west, or west-to-east orbit would produce

only a very flanked military advantage because the

satellite would over-fly only a narrow strip of the earth's

surface, "seeing" the same ground over and over again.

An equatorial orbit, for example, would place the

satellite in flight over land that is largely uninhabited;

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undeveloped masses of jungle and desert.

It had to he a polar orbit!

But this trick is more easily prescribed than performed. A satellite launch to the east is easiest of all

since the launch vehicle gains adilitional thrust from

the earth's rotation; a westward launch results in a loss

of escape thrust since the rocket is, in effect, "taking off

against the wind."

So it had to be a polar orbit for Disc-overrr!

Faltering Steps

This decided, the next order of business was the

creation of the hardware to do what slide rules said

could be done, and what military necessity said must

be done to preserve national security.

Men make machines and men direct them to their

tasks. Finding the men and welding them into a team

fell to Maj. Gen. Bernard A. Schriever, then Air Force

Ballistic Missile Division commander, now a lieutenant

general and commander of Air Force Systems Command. That he succeeded is a matter of record, scrawlid

across the heavens by a long series of highly successful

missile bunches in a variety of programs.

To a trained athlete the stumbling performance of

a novice is sometimes amusing; to an uninformed public

the groping progress, the abortive starts, and the heartbreaking humiliating failures in the early days of the

U. S. aerospace effort were not amusing. Strident voices,

often without reason, were quick to utter criticism.

To seasoned engineers the U. S. aerospace progress

was no rockier or more hesitant than they expected.

Problems that never existed before demanded immediate solution—solutions that more often than not

created out of thin air other problems unimagined the

day before.

Meanwhile the clock ticked on, the days turned to

weeks, to months, to years. Time and operational capabilities—the hardware and the technique—were the

unrelenting lash. • Before Discoverer I blazed its way to glory a primary,

or first-stage, launch vehicle had to be found, and to

go with it, a satellite vehicle controllable either from

the ground or by pre-set instructions "memorized" on

perforated tape.

As Era Gains Momentum

It should be recalled, of course, that Discoverer I

was by no means the first satellite launched by the U. S.

and that missile and space programs were moving forward on several fronts. Explorer I, put into orbit February I; 1958, Is still swinging about the earth. A small

satellite, weighing only 30 pounds on orbit, this vehicle

discovered and reported the Van Allen radiation belt.

Vanguard 1, launched March 17, 1958, to determine

the earth's shape more accurately, is not only still in

orbit but its solar-powered transmitters still function.

Another Methuselah of the missile age is Vanguard 11,

launched February 17, 1959 and still in orbit.

Heavyweight champ, now deceased, was the modified

Atlas ICBM used in Project Score. Launched December

14

A tense moment? Capt. Donald Jansen checks and.

rechecks subsystems and components of Thor-Ag•nts

combination employed in the Discoverer pri.gram.

18, 1958, the Atlas, minus the half-stage, went into orbit

weighing 8,750 pounds, a figure which included a 150-

pound communication package. In this experiment a

human voice was beamed from outer space for the first

time. It was also the first satellite known to have been

guided into orbit by a radio-inertial system.

Thus hardware and the know-how were gradually

accumulating. The search for Discoverer's launch vehicle centered on two proven boosters. On hand was

Atlas, the U. S.'s first intercontinental ballistic missile,

a stainless steel giant with a take-off weight of 260,000

pounds propelled by a 360,000-pound-thrust, liquidengine powmplant.

Simultaneously, Thor, almost dainty by comparison

with Adas, was striding from drafting table to development shop, to prototype, to captive test, to successful

. launch. Thor, standing 62 feet tall, was 13 feet shorter

than Atlas; her waist, eight feet in diameter, was two

feet narrower; her rated thrust a modest 150.000

pounds, but more than enough to lift her 90,000-pound

take-off weight.

Atlas or Thor, which would get the nod as the firststage rocket to put Discoverer into orbit?

Thor was picked for the very practical reasons that

'she was further along in development, having by this

time several dozen highly successful shots on her record,

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modified to suit Discoverer requirements.

Neither Atlas nor Thor of themselves had the power

to loft a satellite into the precise orbit desired. What

was needed was a sec:aid-stage vehicle, but not one

that was just another simple powerplant. A sophisticated vehicle was required, capable of injecting itself

into orbit at just the right instant, turning itself 180

degrees on its yaw axis, and correcting its relationship

to the earth. In addition, the vehicle would have to be

able to start its own engine, cakulatc the number of

times it orbited the earth, make minor changes in attitude as ordered by self-contained instruments, and fire

the retro-rocket that would separate the data package.

Such a vehicle is Agena. The name is a happy choice

for Agena is the name of one of the 10 most brilliant stars in. the heavens. The celestial Agena is just

east of the Southern Cross which marks the location of

the celestial south pole, the area at which launch crews

mud aim to put satellites into polar orbits.

A Discoverer Comes Home

One of the more spectacular aspects of the Discoverer

series is the recovery of a data capsule after the satellite

has circumnavigated the earth a given number of times.

bum INS

Snatching the device in mid-air as its parachute eased

it to the sea was the obvious answer. How this air snatch

would actually be carried out was not so obvious, but

the Air Force got moving on the project almost three

years ago with the formation of the 6593rd Test Squadron (Special) of the 6594th Recovery Control Group.

Flying C-119 Flying Boxcars, the airborne outfielders

crisscrossed the sky trailing their trolling gear in practice watches for "tame" capsules dropped from highflying planes. The ponderous twin-boomed cargo

planes, never considered aeronautical beauties by even

the most partisan admirers, looked even less handsome

with the addition of the recovery apparatus.

Two 38-foot poles arranged in a sort of "V" with the

apex point forward extend from the gaping mouth of the

loading hatch in the rear. A double loop of nylon cable

with special grappling hooks stretches across the 15-

foot gap between poles to form a trapeze. The nylon

cable passes along one of the poles to the plane where

an ingenious pay-out and "damping" system smothers

the initial shock of snaring the dead-weight of the 300-

pound data package. • A power winch is used to bring the capsule aboard

the aircraft.

In practice sessions aircrews tallied a 95 percent

score in air-snatch techniques. But this was with "tame"

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capsules dropped from plane.. Aids were not literally

flying out of this world. How would the technique work

in snaring a capsule hurled from a carrier rocketing

along at 111,00timiles per hour? Try it and find out, was

the only answer.

Irony was to take a hand in the first recovery of a

- Discoverer capsule. On August 11, 1960, Capt. Harold

E. Mitchell, flying with a crew of eight out of Hickam

AFEt. Hawaii, picked up a signal from Discoverer XIII.

It was beaded for his patrol area. Poor reception made

setting an intercept course impossible; an assist was

asked from a nearby radar control plane. Unfortunately,

something went wrong and by the time Mitchell renew

his route the capsule was observed bobbing in the sea.

A Navy crew recovered it.

Galling as this was to Mitchell and his crew, his sense

of frustration was mild compared to that of another

Air Force officer, the man who had sweated out 12

previous launches at the Tat Controller's console in the

Air Force Satellite Test Center, 140 miles north of the

launch site at Vandenberg. Col. Charles G. "Moose"

Mathison saw eight of the first 12 Discoverers go into

orbit. He was now hovering over the launch of the 13th,

having obtained permission to preside over "just one

more" before moving to higher headquarters and new

responsibilities.

Six of the eight orbited satellites ejected capsules.

One landed near Spitzbergen. Norway: two failed to

emit radio signals announcing their whereabouts: two

overshot the patrol area by several hundred miles. None

bad been recovered.

Immoat* after presiding over the launch of Discoverer XIII at 1:30 p.m., p.d.t., August 10, "Moose"

hustled to a waiting C-I30 and winged off to Hickam,

" - flying the four-engine turbo-prop transport himself part

of the way. He was determined to see that this one did

not get away.

When it was certain the capsule had survived the

-searing temperatures generated on re-entry, Colonel

Mathison rustled up an SA*16 Albatross amphibian

from the Air Rescue Service to have a look for himself

-after being told it was in the water. Advised that, the

Navy had recovered the capsule Mathison returned to

Hickson but his eagerness to get his hands on the first

Discoverer capsule to be recovered put him back in the

air again, this time in a helicopter that deposited him

aboard the recovery vessel. Claiming the capsule, he

loaded it aboard the helicOpter, along with the Navy

r` -; then aerlited with the actual sea recovery, and returned

' — to Hawaii.

_ Discoverer XIII is now on exhibit in the Smithsonian

Insdnstion, Washington, D. C. An interesting sidelight

- marked the try before "Lucky 13." Thar No. 160, the

' - 'cranky booster that was to have launched the Discoverer

series but fizzled an the pad, had been rebuilt and

scheduled for another try. Her designation? Discoverer

Launched June 29, 10 days before Discoverer

she got off the ground this time but burned up

shortly thereafter on re-entering the atmosphere when

she lolled to achieve orbit. For having twice missed a

16

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niche in Air Force history Thor No. 160 slipped into

the archives by a back door—often a bridesmaid but

never a bride.

At Last

For a week Captain Mitchell contemplated the vagaries of fate. But for a navigational error not of his

making he and his crew might very well have been the

first to snatch a data capsule in mid-air. Was he to lose

his chance forever? Were his two years of training to

be added to his already well-stocked fund of experience?

Fate cast a wan smile toward Captain Mitchell when

Discoverer XIV roared from its pad at Vandenberg at

3:15 p.m., e.d.t., August 18 and swent into orbit as

planned. This would give Mitchell and his crew another

shot at "fielding" its capsule--but the "playing field"

was to be an enormous rectangle, 600 miles northsouth, 60 miles east-west Thirty-six thousand square

miles of water. He would not patrol it all, of course,

and when he received his assigned sector, Mitchell realized that Fate was not through playing games with him.

His 8,000-square-mile patch of sky and water was 400

miles from the expected impact area.

As If this were not enough his crew chief, TSgt. Lou

Banniek, brought him the dolorous news that a cylinder

on No. 1 engine would have to be replaced. With Discoverer XIV already in orbit could the engine he put

back in running order in time for Mitchell to be on

station? Mitchell slept uneasily that night as the ground

crew struggled with the engine. The crew delivered the

goods and when final briefing took place the next morning at 7:30 Captain Mitchell and his crew got their

orders.

There would be 10 C-119 recovery craft in the grid,

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Skilled AF paramedics, with full Scuba gear, .

plus one C-130, a much faster plane with a higher cruise

altitude. In addition there would be four control planes

fitted with powerful radar, seven planes with telemetry

receiving gear, and two Navy ships with helicopters and

'frogmen aboard if a water recovery was indicated.

"Pelican" was the code name assigned to the 10

recovery planes, with Mitchell's plane being dubbed

Pelican Nine. By the time Mitchell and the others took

off at 9:10 for their 'station Discoverer XIV's 1,700-

pound satellite was solidly in orbit with its 300-pound

.re-entry capsule. Once every 94.5 minutes it circled

the earth at 17,658 m.p.h. swinging out in an apogee

of 502 miles and in on a perigee of 116 miles.

Pelican Nine droned toward its patrol area at 250

m.p.h. Discoverer XIV Aetna was performing perfectly,

correcting a slight tumbling tendency. Capsule ejection

was set for the 17th pass over Alaska.

The tenseness aloft was matched in the windowless

Satellite Test Center at Sunnyvale, Calif., where men

of Col. Alvan N. Moore's 6594th Test Wing (Satellite),

along with high-ranking Air Force officers and scientists, were keeping a close vigil on Discoverer XIV.

Information from tracking stations at Vandenberg,

Point Mugu, on ocean vessels, in Alaska and New

Hampshire, and the island of Oahu in Hawaii, cascaded

into STC by instantaneous voice lines as well as teletype. Incleinent weather over the recovery area might

make a postponement necessary, for example. All was

well. Discoverer XIV would eject its capsule on the

17th pass as planned.

Fate was fond of Mitchell again. The capsule ejected,

' but it was overshooting its intended impact area and

heading for Pelican Nine, now cruising at about 16,000

feet With Captain Mitchell were Capt. Raymond

Apaka, copilot; 1st Lt. Robert Counts, navigator; TSgt.

bum ./9111

Lou Ratunick, reCOVety team chief; SSgt. Arthur I hint.

flight engineer,. SSgt. Algacuc Ilarmon, A IC George

Dnahou, A2(' Lester Beak Jr., and A2('

all of the recovery crew. SSgt. Wendell King, photographer, rounded out the crew.

At precisely the right time aboard the Agcna satellite

vehicle, explosive bolts and springs separated the reentry capsule from the vehicle. Its parachute opened a

few moments later and with it the automatic radio

beacon put the capsule "on the air." 'Ilse load began

to sink at about 1,600 feet per minute.

Minutes afterward the crew of Pelican Nine sighted

the brilliant orange and white canopy of the capsule.

More than two years of training would now meet the

test.

Pelican Nine's recovery gear was ready, the crew at

positions. More than 600 feet of heavy nylon line was

reeled tightly about the recovery winch; the trapeze

trailed its grappling hooks from a kind of cat's cradle.

All that remained was to swoop down on the parachute

that lay dead ahead. Easier said than done.

It took three passes, each one lower, as the ocean

rushed up to meet the capsule before Mitchell felt the

slight tug that signaled success. In the rear of the plane

hundreds of feet of line played out from its nesting

place before the winch took up the load. The hooks

•

. . . will jump after data capsules that may miss

the "flying trapeze" to land in the ocean below.

•

•
were set, and rood. The eapune, having shed its reentry heat-shield and retm-rocket whom the 'chute

snapped men. was slowly "landed" aboard Pelican

Nine, cruising thousands of feet above the Pacific.

Two more Discoverers were launched before Capt.

Gene W. Jones, flying in Pelican Two, snatched Discoverer XVII on November 14 after its re-entry on its

31st pass in a two-day flight. Three weeks later, on

December 7, Jones and the crew of Pelican Two played

a repeat performance when they took Discoverer XVIII

out of circulation after its 48th trip around the globe.

The three catches put to rout the critics' cry that the

air-snatch scheme was just a stunt.

Scientific Knowledge Accrues

While the Discoverer series remains true to its original concept to devise and explore techniques leading

to a dependable satellite system, other scientific investigations and experiments hat been integrated into the

program.

Discoverer II, launched April 13, 1959, carried emulsion packages to measure radiation, and an environmental package equipped to measure and report on

internal conditions for possible fife-support. The data

capsule was lost when it was ejected prematurely over

Spittenberg. Discoverer II was the first satellite to carry

a recoverable instrument packet.

Discoverer III vanished without a trace soon after

its launch June 3, 1959, carrying with it four black

mice, plus radiation and environmental research dovices.

Discoverer XVIII, the third capsule snatched in midair. contained a wide assortment of physical and biological test materials. Included were algae. bone marrow, membrane from the underside of eyelid, gamma

globulin, spores, gold foil, analinc powder, and other

material for a variety of medical and technical experiments.

Of great concern to Air Force officer-scientists who

kook to inter-stellar travel as something inevitable is the

effect of cosmic radiatkm on human beings, and by

extension, on other living things. Cosmic rays arc particles smaller than atoms traveling with speed approaching the velocity of light. Since these arc actually

solid particles of matter they can be compared with

ultra-microscopitally small bullets.

Can these inlinitesinud particles CHM structural

damage to the body? Could they produce mutations?

Does the body have a tolerance on exposure to these

rays? Or, arc they completely harmless?

Mice exposed to cosmic radiation during high balloon flights have experienced hair color changes. But,

they suffered no other apparent physical damage. One

Air Force authority suggested the rays arc harmless,

that no shielding is necessary. Let the rays pass through,

he says. The experiments go on. • The strange-sounding assortment of specimens listed

above are not an arbitrary selection of odds and ends

which happened to be lying about, convenient to the

scientists. Each was selected after considerable study.

•

•

•

'AM& 4.4• • t • • • • • •••••;

Mid-air catch of data capsule is no grandstand

stunt, but is actually the most efficient way

for recovering the instrument-filled container.

The spores were included because of their light weight,

rapid growth, ready availability, and because a great

deal is already known about their behavior under a

variety of conditions. Seeds arc sometimes included for

the same reason; F.ach substance had to pass a rigid set

of standards before going into the biophysics packet.

The Discoverer experiments, currently expected to

last to the end of this year, have contributed immensely

to technical aerospace lore. AFSC officer-engineers,

working in close cooperation with their counterparts in

industry, arc already far along the road when they will

have a dependable "screwdriver with. a 3(8)-mile handle" to make adjustments in satellites in orbit. Plans

arc afoot to enable ground-hound technicians to make

a variety of repairs in orbiting latches. The satellites

themselves arc toeing gimmicked to make simple repairs

such as switching to alternate circuits when malfunction

or expiration of the normal life of a unit requires the

change.

With the precise polar orbit all but unfailingly within

their grasp, AFSC scientists are talking of removing

ineffectual satellites from orbit and replacing them, in

exactly the same spot, with new ones.

Discoverer XXI, the latest in the series, demonstrated

how close complete remote control of orbiting satellites

is. Launched February 18, 1961, this satellite went in

orbit as planned—and then changed orbit with a progranimed restart of its Agena-B engine. While Agena-Bs

have been in use since Discoverer XVI was launched

October 26, 1960, this was the first attempt at a restart.

The frontiers of space are slowly giving way to the

Discoverer.

• • .

111 Airmen
„mow,• 1

1

•

 .- a a . 4

.1.114?:: •

)

/

;41

.

- .

. •

;

Gotclaa t Data capsule of Discoverer XI V, fret

to be recovered in mid-air, is hauled aboard G119

after completing 17 orbital passes around the earth.

This gold-plated sphere contains a wealth of

scientific information gathered as it whirled

thousends of miles in orbit around the earth.

•

•

WING ATOP A Thor IRBM, the Agena goes into a

1.1 coasting phase immediately after Thor burns

out and explosive bolts separate it from the

booster. During this period a pneumatic control

system is activated. Compressed gas is metered

through a series of external jets to position the

vehicle. Initially, a programmer signals the pneumatic control system what to do. The vehicle

begins to move in its pitch axis to a position

which will be as close as possible to the local

horizontal when It reaches orbital injection altitude. The infrared sensor carried aboard Agena

"looks" for the horizon and sends corrections to

the central system refining the programming

actions.

During this crucial period ground tracking stations constantly monitor the vehicle on radar to

measure velocity. Although ignition of Agenda

15,000-pound-thrust, liquid-rocket engine also is

programmed, the ground .station can compare

actual velocity and position with the nominal

and send radio commands to the programiner,

advancing or retarding the moment of ignition.

Once the ignition adjustment is made, an accelerometer in Agena measures the velocity gained

and signals engine cutoff at precisely the right

instant. •

When the engine fires, the pneumatic control

system is deactivated and a hydraulic system

bun 19911

takes over. Guided by instructions from the

infrared horizon sensor the hydraulic control

linkage makes fine adjustments by gimballing

the engine so that Agena is injected into orbit at

just the right instant, the right place, the right

altitude, the right velocity, and the right angle

to provide the orbit desired.

In the two years the Diumferer program has

been in existence the Agents vehicle has grown in

size, weight, and complexity. The first Agena-A

measured 19.5 feet in length, weighed 1,300

pounds on orbit, and carried no equipment for

stabilization, reorientation, or capsule recovery.

Discoverer XVI saw the introduction of Agena-8,

a sophisticated bird 26.5 feet tall with a weight of

about 2,100 pounds on orbit. As the program

moved ahead the thrust of Thor was increased

from 152,000 to 167,000 pounds and that of Agena

from 15,600 to 16,000. These power increases represent no great engineering changes in powerplants, but were achieved through weight reduction and the use of more efficient fuel. In the

Discoverer XX flight, February 17. Thor was shortened about 10 feet by elimination of the unused

guidance computer compartment with significant weight reduction. Additional thrust was

gained by the use of a new fuel, R.T-1, which is

slightly denser than the standard kerosene base

rocket propellant. NON

19
DISCOVERER XIV

LAUNCHING VEHICLE

Same as Discoverer I, page 23.

GENERAL SHAPE, WEIGHT, AND DIMENSIONS OF SPACECRAFT

Same as Discoverer 11. page 23, except that total weight was 1700

pounds. 300 pounds of which was the complete re-entry vehicle.

SPACECRAFT PAYLOAD

Similar to Discoverer XIII, page 31, except that an additional 10-pound

tracking experiment was carried for Navy's Transit program.

TEST RESULTS

The first air recovery of an object from space, the 114-pound Discoverer

XIV capsule, was accomplished oo August 19, 1960, one day after

launch from Vandenberg AFB in a polar orbit. The retrieval was made

by an Mr Force 0119 Flying Boxcar at an altitude of 11300 feet, 390

miles southwest of Hawaii. MI beacons and telemetry operated as

planned.

PARTICIPANTS

Same as Discoverer 1, page 24.

Ibs Disiererer XP/ gentry thasek first nematode ablest recevered from obit by

otheastch. Am Air Toro none hooked its aoudads in docent This riot shows some

of the instruments that determined meaty conditions and other ohm* iatermation
DISCOVERER XIII

LAUNCHING VEHICLE

Same as Discoverer 1, page 23, with a gross liftoff weight of more than

108.000 pounds.

GENERAL SHAPE, WEIGHT, AND DIMENSIONS OF SPACECRAFT

Same as Discoverer 11, page 23, except that total weight was 1700

pounds, 300 pounds of which was the complete re-entry vehicle.

- SPACECRAFT PAYLOAD

Similar to previous Discoverers. The cylindrical Agena A stage carried a

telemetry system. tape recorder for storing telemetry data. receivers for

command signals from a ground station, a horizon scanner for improving the accuracy of the radio command guidance in pitch and roll, and

a separable capsule, best known as the recovery capsule. This 120-pound

capsule had a configuration resembling a bowl 33 inches in diameter and

27 inches in depth. A conical afterbody extended from the fiat area,

increasing the total length to about 40 inches. The forward surface was

covered by a beat-protective ablative shield until re-entry was completed;

then the shield was jettisoned. A Thiokol retrorocket, mounted at the

end of the afterbody, decelerated the capsule out of orbit. A smoke

signal and two stroboscopic lights were attached to the 30-pound recovery parachute. A 100-pound monitoring system in the capsule reported

selected events, such as firing of retrorocket, jettisoning of heat shield,

andithers. These events were also recorded because of several minutes

of radio blackout during re-entry.

r TEST maims 9

••• • Discoverer XIII lifted off its launch stand at Vandenberg AFB on August

10, 1960, into a polar orbit inclined 82'31' from the equator. During the

17th pass, 27 hours after launch (August II). a timing device initiated

the recovery sequence. This time everything functioned as planned, and

the capsule was picked up from the water, very close to the planned

splash area 300 miles northwest of Hawaii. The monitor system and

telemetered data brought back a large fund of valuable information.

PARTICIPANTS • :

Same as Discoverer 1, page 24.

•
The DISCOVERER XIV capsule on display is the first item

to be ejected by a satellite orbiting in space and to be recovered in mid-air. DISCOVERER XIV was launched into a polar

orbit by a THOR booster from Vandenberg Air Force Base, California at 12:57 P.M. on 18 August 1960. After the THOR had

exhausted its fuel, the AGENA atop the THOR separated from it.

The AGENA's engine then ignited to increase the satellite's

speed to 17,658 miles per hour, thereby achieving an orbit of

116 miles above the earth at the low point (perigee) and 502

miles at the high point (apogee). As the AGENA streaked southward through space high over Alaska on its 17th pass around the

earth, it ejected the capsule from its nose. Retrorockets attached to the capsule then fired to decrease its speed and the

capsule began descending in a long arc towards the earth. After

the capsule entered the atmosphere, it released a parachute

and floated earthward. The descending parachute was sighted

by the crew of the C-119 recovery airplane 360 miles southwest

of Honolulu, Hawaii. On the third pass of the C-119 over the

parachute and its precious capsule, the recovery gear trailing

behind the airplane successfully snagged the parachute canopy.
A winch operator aboard the C-119 then reeled in the

DISCOVERER XIV capsule after its 27 hour, 450,000 mile

journey thru space.
TH S. P

Captain, USAF

HANDLE VIA

111P-SECREI- BYELIAN

CONTROL SYSTEM

-48) NATIONAL RECONNAISSANCE OFFICE

WASHINGTON, D.C.

11010111111P1011

THE NRO STAFF July 30, 1974

NOTE FOR GENERAL KULPA

SUBJECT: CORONA Film

We have been trying to obtain some film clips of Thor

(Discoverer/CORONA) failures to be used in the movie the CIA

is preparing. AVVS had set aside some film clips for review

by an Agency employee traveling under DOD cover. The trip

fell through when it was discovered he had not obtained cover

and his exposure became a distinct possibility. We cannot

send another Agency man out there. We on the Staff cannot

preview the films and make the selection out there. It is

not appropriate to task SAFSP or SAMS° to make the selection.

Our only alternative is to ask AVVS to send the films

here whereupon we will forward them to the Agency. Apparently

an internal AVVS policy precludes sending out repository films.

However, they did agree to send the films then reneged.

The message at the right should serve to start the films

moving our way. Recommend that you sign the message.

HANDLE VIA CLASSIFIED SY INMAN • swan MN

BYENAN EXECUTTIVEOIIDEII1E42 EX al:St Cot: -110P-SE T

CONTROL SYSTEM SONY ma DECLASSIFY ON IND DEL

CONTROL NO Internal

COPY OF COPIES

PAGE_LOF PAGES
RARY ISSU ECEI

SUBJECT:(m) Request for 

PRIORITY ROUTINE iir 

Films•of 

. fted SS

Thor Launch

-1 1 Aug 7 MEM

Failures

PLUMMER: SIGNATURE KULPA: SIGNATURE

CONCURRENCE COORDINATION

INFORMATION ACTION

INFORMATION

TWO OR PRINTED NAM, ORME AMR ORGASM s TO: (Responsible Of leer) 10011. Al nMk•n.n ..ok

UNIT

ow= mods) m as NETURNILD

STOCK NO. DESCRIPTION eumermr

IMMO COST

USAF #

29208

Color film, Launches of Discoverer XV,

XVI, XVII - CONP/DENTE&L Reel 1 1 1

gig?

B/W film,jkethia.a_sq

BUb- Ree

_Discoverer X

Launch - 60NPI-DEREl 1 1 1

USAF #

34224

Color film, Thor Intermediate Range

Progress - UNCLASSIFIED Ree1 1 1 7

SFP # 102 iitigrC: fairggic!LUiefiggiffilitiegpittl 1 1

///////////NOTHING FOLLOWS///////////// //////

I ACKNOWLEDGS RICRIPT

ED ON DATE WIWI,

AND RESPONSIBILITY

ID AMOUR.

FOR ITEM(S) SHOWN IN "QUANTITY ISSUED" COLUMN. WHICH WILL DE RETURNOATS

Aug 20,

MOM OSUE ET
Ni - 61 '7 .14.1

iUNCLASSIF/F

11 01 2041924 PP PP UUUU 2375 231924Z JUL 74

UNCLAS...

1 •

pri.:„J

SAF/SS.--

• ;

. • .1. A to Jr

HQ AVVS NORTON AFB CALIF

Via 4

-.1—N lei

PER TELEPHONE CONVERSATION, REQUEST YOU SEND TO SAFSS, ATTN:

CAPT PEYTON, FOR OUR REVIEW STOCKED FOOTAGES OR WHATEVER IS

AVAILABLE ON EARLY THOR {DISCOVERER} LAUNCH FAILURES. THE

MATERIAL WILL BE REVIEWED HERE AND S ELECTED PORTIONS WILL BE

IDENTIFIED TO YOU. THE INTENT IS TO USE THIS MATERIAL IN A

FILM THE CLASSIFICATION OF WHICH WILL BE AT LEAST DOD SECRET.

WOULD APPRECIATE YOUR ASSISTANCE.

KEITH S. PEYTON, CAPT, USAF cpsi4

ASST DEP DIR FOR PLANS & POLICY

HAROLD S. COYLE, LT COL USAF

UNCLASSIFIED
S

UNCLAS EFT

al or 1.841908 RR RR EEEE 2044 • 031908Z JUL 74

CSAF

HQ AAVS NORTON AFB CALIF

UNCLAS E F T 0

REF MSG FRM SAFSS, 141914Z MAY 74.

UNDERSTAND THAT YOU SELECTED AND SET ASIDE ABOUT SIXTEEN

DIFFERENT STOCKED FOOTAGES OF EARLY THOR LAUNCHES FOR REVIEW

AS UNABLE TO MAKE

THE VISIT TO YOUR FACILITY WE WOULD APPRECIATE YOU FORWARDING

THOSE FILMS TO THIS OFFICE, SAFSS, PENTAGON. POINT OF CONTACT

AT SAFSS IS CAPTAIN • KEITH S. PEYTON, TELEPHONE 695-2594. WOULD

APPRECIATE YOUR ASSISTANCE. MANY THANKS.

SAFSS -

KEITH S. PEYTON, CAPTAIN, USAF

SAFSS, 52594, 25 June 1974 •

KEIT:472N, TAIN, USAF

UNCLAS'EFTO
tpsg•1

.4141

PRIORITY:

DM! MS65155' .PAGE. 01 218 0036:

054788

arrow: •NONE-OS.:

INFO: : sAF ts - I

PTTU2FOl t R UCINAMilli IP 2172114: MTMS-OUUU ..- RUEF NIA.

2NR UUVUU TFD"RUCINAK

P R 0520842 AUG 74:

FRI 14ACtSCOTT I MI ; ILLUPPV

TO! PUNA BA fAAVS

INFO' RUEFHOAVOSA Ali'

EIT

UNCLASP

REF: . SAFSS MSG 0220062 - AUG 74 AND lELECONS. 3 AU6 74. BETWEEN

AAVSICC WAND MACPXPPVi CONCERNING SAFSS REOU es T FOR RELEASE OF 1f .7

STOCKED FOOTAGESI OF -EARLY THOR DISCOVERED, NCH'c. •

FAILURES TO BE FORWARDED! TO SAFSS FOR REV Elf. 1T• S AGREED

MAT! MACE'S 'DESIRE IS. TO PROVIDE SAFSS WITH WHATEVER IS REQUIRED.

MAC RECOMMENDS' FOOTAGE - OF OTHER 15: THOR LAUNCH, FAILURE' SEQUENCES

ONLY! BE PROVIDED ! AS EXPEDITI li5 Y AS' POSSI E.' SUGGEST AAVS

VERBALLY , CONTACT! S AFSS .1 TO DISCUSS REQUIREMENT4. PLEASE *DIME 1111 ISFACTORT COMPLETION

OF REINES%

ST:

14745 -!

PTCUEFOT! RUC IMAARTSC 2172114: 0021-UU0U' 2150036,

SUSDUPE

PRIORITY'
4

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i DI 01 2142006 RR RR UUUU 1,450 022006Z AUG 74

1

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UNCLAS

REFERENCE SAFSS MSG 1419I4Z MAY 74.

SAFSS MSG 211924Z JUL 74.

THE TWO REFERENCED MESSAGES SENT TO HO AVVS ASKED FORS_

SIXTEEN DIFFERENT STOCKED FOOTAGES OF EARLY THOIQpISCOVEREDI

LAUNCH FAILURES TO BE FORWARDED TO SAFSS FOR REVIEW . THIS IS

IN. CONJUNCTION WITH A PROJECT HAVING THE PERSONAL INTEREST AND

SUPPORT OF THE UNDER SECRETARY OF THE AIR FORCE. TO DATE ONE

FILM HAS ARRIVED. IT WAS REVIEWED AND FOUND UNSUITABLE. THE

OTHER FILMS HAVE NOT BEEN RECEIVED. WE WOULD APPRECIATE YOUR

GOOD OFFICES IN EXPEDITING THE RELEASE OF THESE FILMS TO SAFSS.

OSAF/SAFSS

MAC,CC, SCOTT AFB

INFO HO AVVS,
•

DEPARTMENT OF THE AIR FORCE

REAROBARTERS AEROSPACE AUOMARSIIAL SERVICE (itc)

NORTON AM FORCE BASE. CALIFORNIA 1124011

22' August 1974.

NMI/ TO

ATTN Ors Doggy

"IlUaCTI Ildistpiest Ram Of Weald /UMW .

7CM SAFAS

Room 4 c 1000

Pentagon

Washington DC 20330 . Attn: Capt K. S. Peyton

1. The followiag motion picture file one forwarded to you es

A loss basin and Use sot bees returned as. of this date:

ID ESL IOW 10111111: RIP-21.11 ,1101M

USAF-34224 1(imn Comp, 1 • 25 47101 74

Request the above listed motion piiture fibs be rstursed

to Mg AWNS (HOSSY), NortesAFS, California 92409, marked

"MORO OF LOAN", !reject Re. 74/E-1007 

Four cooperation is solicited in seder that this organisation

may expedite to you sad our customers ear service upon request.

' A AW0/19,101"

M•

Deputy D -ctor of Services .

•

iC •

Global in* Minsk* P rotes :Wool in Action
04t,

Te OS- /47 C42 "00 a C-77 D fedg (Pc/IX7--

Please supply 16 MM master positives of the following films:

" THOR INTERMEDITATE RANGE PROGRESS REPORT # 4 "

USAF 34224,

from 000 to 036 ft.

438 to 475 ft.

690 to 750 ft.

.16

USAF 29208, reel 1 of 1, print all the reel.

" PHOTOGRAPHY IN THE AIR FORCE "

SFP 1028, color comp. print, print all the reel.

USAF 33263, color 35MM, silent. Print all the reel.

The 16 MM master pos. should have the same emulsion position

as original ECO, 7252.

"7"-X4-6
7

OFFICE OF THE SECRETARY

DEPARTMENT OF THE AIR FORCE

WASHINGTON 20330

16 September 1974

MEMORANDUM FOR HQS AEROSPACE AUDIO-VISUAL SERVICE (DOSDV)

SUBJECT: Return of Loaned Material

The four films which this office has received on loan

from your organization, are being returned to you with the

following request for duplication. Please send the reproduced material to this office in care of Captain Peyton.

The films are:

USAF-34224 - please reproduce the following footages:

from 0 to. 36 feet, from 438 to 475 feet, from 690 to 750 feet.

This film report has been identified as being declassified;

however, it is the opinion of this office that the material

contained in the film still requires classification at the

SECRET XGDS-3 level. Request you make the necessary change

in classification on this film.

USAF-29208 - please reproduce the entire reel.

SFP-1028 - please reproduce the entire reel.

USAF-33263 (35 mm) - please reproduce this in color

size 16 mm film.

For the above reprint request, please supply 16 mm master

positives having the same emulsion position as original ECO, 7252.

We appreciate the assistance your organization has provided in

this project.

ITH S. PEYTON

Captain, USAF

Assistant Deputy Director

for Plans and Policy

Office of Space Systems
diajZie 8 4b 11 •A 47W1ISCaliar7"4 '4"4

, • '

THE END

4110Riff=

USAF NOTION PICTURE FILM DEPOSITORY WE) OF 1

1 ree1,16mmooloroilentsenedited,592 fpet a1i ty: Oood (Basic: Eas color)

Documentary coverage of Discoverer XV, and XVII launches, including acmes of prelaunch

activities; animation depicting comparison of Agana A. and Agana B; Diacovere • s orbiting

- i o • XVII ca C • • ••• , • i•

Scenes of prelaunch activities and a man in bucket of crane near gantry.

54• IS from stationary camera showing lift-off of Thor-Agana A (Discoverer IV).

1200,

135• Stationary. and tracking camera footage of Thor-Agena A (Discoverer XV), launch and

211 e- :

p limb. (Pair).

: MIS & MS fin left to. Agana A and Agana B on carts at consoles im hangar.

programpeL 

232' Aninationidawing_thec9murif9DALlizAP.

241 • MS of Agena (Discoverer XVI) in horizontal position as transport trailer is

removed.

25a• IS stationary camera showing Thor-Agana B (Discoverer XVI) lift-off.

26 October 1960.

274• Bighimeed and tracking camera footage of Thor-Agena B wognmeneckeliMb . shaving main

engine burnout"-- second stage failed to separate.

380 • necking and high-speed camera footage of Thor-Agena B (Discoverer XVII) launch

and programmed climb and a short clip of prelaunch activites. 12 November 1960.

USAF MOTION PICTURE FILM DEPOSITORY ogissmilk P401

DEAF 33263. Auxim OF DISCOVERER ZLAIZICH, VANDICIBERTAIN , . 19. imam

1960•

•

.

1 ree1,35mm,color,silentounedited,206 feet,quality: Fair (Basics ' Orig color) .

(Photo'd by 1369th) 

Aerial coverage of Thor-Agena/Discoverer X launch and progreemekflight -- Thor e

fishtails during flight showing engine gimbaling from side to side. 
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