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COMPLEMENTARY APOLLO APPLICATIONS AND MOL PROGRAM 

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COMPLEMENTARY LPOLLO APPLICATIONS AND MOL PROGRAM 

INTRODUCTION 

This paper is devoted primarily to manned systems and 

the interrelationship that currently exists between the Apollo 

Applications (AAP) and Manned Orbiting Laboratory (YOL) 

Program plans and future extensions. Included also is a 

brief summary of the unmanned and manned evolutionary program 

considerations of the Apollo Applications Program. NASA's 

efforts and objectives are R&D oriented only while DoD must 

ultimately meet an operational military objective. 

Before discussing the complementary nature of the two 

programs, the current basic responsibilities and objectives 

of each Agency should be stated. 

. NASA has been charged, through the Spaca 

Act, with the responsibility for developing 

space technology, obtaining basic scientific 

and technological information pertaining 

to the Aero Space Environment and for 

carrying out peaceful exploration of space. 

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. DoD has the responsibility for Military 

Missions in Space and for developing the 

necessary systems, weapons, and supporting 

technology. 

13( 1 NASA/AAP and DoD MOL nave very specific objectives. 

NASA's principal objective in the earth orbital part 

of the Apollo Applications Program is to determine the usefulne:'s and effectiveness of man in space. Further objectives 

of the ALT are to devel ,, manned spaceflight technology and 

to carry out selected scientific and engineering experiments 

which depend upon the space environment and require or 

benefit from man's participation. (very broad) 

MOL's principal objective, as presently approved, is to 

secure very high resolution reconnaissance photographs of 

significant targets with systems designed for either manned 

or unmanned operation use. (very specific) 

SYSTEM DESCRIPTION AND HARDWARE UTILIZATION 

Before discussing the effective use both Agercies have 

made of the other's technology, a brief description of the 

AAP and the MOL system is outlined below: 

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AAP MOL 

Crew 3 men 2 men/unmanned-' 

Mission 

Booster 

Re-entry Body 

Orbital Life 

P/L 

First Flight 

No. Flights 

Scientific experiments 

Long life system 

development 

Saturn 111 

Apollo Spacecraft 

28 to 56 days 

(eventually 90 days 

to 1 year) 

Scientific Equipment 

1969-70 

6 Total 

Selected high resolution photography 

Titan IIIM 7 seg 

Modified Gemini 

30 days with growth 

to 60 days 

MO Lab - 1,000 cu. ft. 

press.; 3,500 cu. ft. 

unpress. 

Dorian Optical System 

1971 

3 Manned/2 Unmanned 

Orbital Module 10,000 cu. ft. Orbital 

Wo r-k T• 

*Note: MGL has both Manned and Unmanned Modes of P/L 

Opel Lion 

Both NASA and DoD have made their respective technology 

available to the other. Cooperation between NASA and DoD 

has been of value to both agencies. In many cases, DoD 

technology has gone to NASA, has been further improved by 

NASA experience and developments, and has subsequently been 

readapted to DoD programs. 

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Some specific examples of NASA contributions to MOL 

are listed below: 

1. Verification of man's adaptability in space: 

Ability to remain in o -bit 14 days. 

Ability to function effectively in zero-g 

environment. 

2. Hardware for the MOL Program: 

Use of developed Gemini spacecraft and 

contractor capability. 

Refurbished Gemini GT-2 spacecraft for 

heat shield test. 

Aerospace ground equipment (AGE) for 

Gemini. 

Use of components, subsystems and contractor 

capabilities from Apollo program including 

such items as environmental control 

system, fuel cells and Apollo attitude 

control electronics. 

Use of Gemini flight simulator in training 

MOL pilots. 

Anticipated use for MOL of Apollo instrumented range ships an?. aircraft. 

Continued cooperation between NASA and the DoD in future 

developments which make effective use of man and provide for 

adequate system redundancies will insure the development of 

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truly economical R&D investigations and cost effective operational manned and lanned automatic systems. 

MANNED AND UNMANNED SYSTEMS CONSIDERATIONS 

Considerable effort has been devoted within NASA (AAP) 

and DoD MOL Programs toward defining longer life systems in 

their respective mission areas. To be truly economical, 

operational space systems must operate on-orbit for extended 

staytimes. To be truly cost-effective, future space systems 

must be designed for long orbit life and/or maintainability 

through rendezvous and resupply. 

Long life missions are very demanding and require. 

:v tem design and test if the satellites are to operat, 

reliably. Extensive automation design including extensive 

development and qualification testing must be performed to 

insure that future sophisticated manned and unmanned satellite 

systems will have the needed reliability for long stay-time 

operation. 

Manned systems make maximum use of automation and 

redundancy and they, too, require extensive development and 

qualification testing. Apollo Applications and MOL space 

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systems have the added requirement of being man-rated which 

dictates additional testing to insure high system reliability. 

With a manned space system, however, more mission flexibility 

may exist to extend the mission stay-time since p:riodic 

system maintenance functions can b. carried out tt,rough 

intravehicular and extravehicul; operations and emergency 

maintenance or alternate modes of manual operation could be 

conducted whenever the situation demands. 

Future unmanned systems could also be designed for space 

maintenance b.i manned systems. This technique has not been 

utilized in the past since only recently have we developed 

and demonstrated rendezvous and potential resupply missions 

4 n the Gemini program. Both Apollo Applications and any MOL 

end generation system could make effective use of 

ri,;.iezvous, and resupply to maintain unmanned systems and 

onboard experiments and equipments. 

To be effective, any operational manned space system must 

make maximum use of man's judgment. Man alone or system 

redundancy alone are not adequate. To have a truly effective 

system, maximum use must be made of both system redundancy 

and man. It has been shown through Mercury and Gemini that 

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man and his judgment can be used effectively to maintain, 

adjust, and operate complicated space equipment for staytimes up to two weeks duration. Both the Apollo Applications 

Program and the MOL Program will demonstrate and investigate 

man's effectiveness to perform these functions over longer 

periods of space flight. In addition, AAP will measure man 

as a system or black box in the environment of space. 

Much can be done on earth through simulation and systems 

development to minimize errors in judgment on orbit and to 

familiarize the crew win the proper maintenance and operational requirements of cooperatively designed unmanned or 

sophisticated manned satellite systems and onboard 

experiments. The MOL Program has m ado very effective use of 

partial task simulation to uniquely identify man's role in 

operating a very high resolution camera in a satellite. 

In a similar way, NASA has developed through partial task 

simulation and their mission simulation trainer, a. very 

sophisticated capability to familiarize the astronauts with 

their equipment and mission and thereby minimize the 

possibility of catastrophic system failure and loss of the 

crew on orbit. 

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Considerations of AAP and MOL Alternate Mission Use 

Considerable discussion and comment has been held in 

the press and Congress that suggest that the Apollo 

Applications and MOL Programs are duplicative. Although 

most of these discussions apparently are unknowing of the 

detailed objectives of MOL, the fundamental questions still 

are pertinent. 

Could AAP Perform MOL Mission? 

Could the AAP accomplish the MOL purpose? The answer 

is "yes", if properly qualified. Such utilization of Apollo 

was carefully considered during the contract definition 

phase of MOL, and it was concluded that the resulting system 

would be more costly since the Apollo spacecraft was 

designed for the more critical Lunar return capability than 

MOL. The AAP reconnaissance spacecrafts would, probably 

because of the nature of the mission, become a single 

purpose (DoD only) space vehicle. Assume that the three-man 

Apollo spacecraft were used as the launch and re-entry 

system. A new ground assembled pressurized camera control 

compartment would have to be designed and built. The Apollo 

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spacecraft alone lacks necessary cubage to meet the payload 

need of MOL even ,f the crew were reduced to two men. 

The optical payload development costs would be same. 

The total system would be heavier and would probably require 

a much improved 113 booster or perhaps a Saturn V. The 

orbital workshop could probably be modified to house the 

NUL Dorian optical system, but extensive redesign would be 

required and the flexible scientific use of the workshop 

would be lost. This suggests that there is no unnecessary 

duplication when viewed from Apollo Applications. Penalizing 

the Apollo Applications Program to perform the specific 

MOL mission would defeat he purpose of the Apollo 

Applications Program. Also of great concern would be the 

reversal of NASA's peaceful image if it were to become 

accidentally known that the Agency was even peacefully 

involved in reconnaissance operations. In addition, DoD 

cannot effectively utilize or directly control NASA management to develop the needed technology for military systems 

or to conduct military mission operations without defining 

the detailed military requirements, schedule, and enemy state 

of development. 

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Could MOI. Perform AAP Missions? 

The present MOL system with or without the optical PiL 

aboard could perform many space and earth oriented experiments 

Manned sciau,Ific or Natural Resources experiments closely 

aligned or related to the basic photographic misAon could 

be performed. NASA recently let a contract to the principal 

MOL. spacecraft contractor Olouglas) to study the use of the 

MOM laboratory for extended-lifetime and ether or-orbit 

experiments; the results are now being analyzed by NASA. 

It is highly questionable ,:nether this approach would be 

cheaper than the current plan to use Apollo hardware in earth 

orbit for many of the planned complex scientific experiments 

has not yet been determined -- and possibly may not be 

determined for some time depending on the availability of 

hardware from the basic Apollo Program. 

AAP and MOL Programs Are Complementary 

Careful review of these two programs suggests that they 

are additive and are not competitive in terms of mission or 

equipment. Proper planning and coordination will minimize 

specific use of new technologies in both program areas. 

Considerable discussion has been and should continue to be 

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held between NASA and DoD to make effective use of each of 

their respective technology bases and mission peculiar 

capabilities. Figure 1 lists the objectives for both MASA 

and the Air Firce MOL Program. They are summarized under 

five headings: 

• Lang duration space flight ) 

(with different) specific ) NASA and USAF 

objectives 

• Scientific experiments in ) ) NASA earth orbits 

Military experiments in USAF earth orbits 

Extend lunar exploration ) NASA 

Planetary probes (Unmanned)*) NASA 

*Later manned planetary missions are undefined. 

Figure 1 

As pointed out earlier the objectives of the AAP are 

to turther develop manned spaceflight technology and to 

carry out selected scientific and engineering experiments 

which require or benefit from man's participation. The 

objective of the MOL program is to secure high resolution 

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reconnaissance photography of significant targets. The MOL 

astronaut will both operate and evaluate the high resolution optical system payload and determine the added benefits 

which result from man's participation in their operation in 

space. The nature of these payloads and their use is such 

that they require low earth polar orbit for maximum 

effectiveness. 

If the United States is to have a future cost-effective 

manned earth orbital capability, then both NASA and the 

Air Force need long duration space flights in both their 

R&D and Operational Missions. The work being done by NASA 

in habitability and systems development will be effectively 

used by the MOL Program for their specific military 

application of man. NASA is attempting to extend the ability 

of man to survive in near earth-orbit from 14 days out to 

90 days through a carefully planned and conducted evolutionary 

program. By overlapping resupply missions and crew interchange it may be possible to extend man's stay-time in earth 

orbit to periods up to one year or more. It appears that 

90-day resupply cycle for a system that can fundamentally 

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live and operate on orbit for a year or more, would be 

truly economi.:al. This would be directly applicable to any 

follow-on to the present MOL Program. 

Initially, the MOL Program is designed for 30 days. 

It, too, can effectively use the extension in life support 

and basic biomedical data for long duration stay-time on 

orbit that NASA will develop, experience and evaluate. It 

is assumed that man can improve the quality and quantity of 

photographs taken and can dynamically make choices that 

unmanned systems cannot do. In the minds of the MOL Program 

Managers, there is no question but that the presence of man 

is important to the assurance of achieving 

resolution photography from space, to the early achievement 

of this objective, and to increase the quantity and value 

of photographs taken -- the only open question at this time 

is how hard can man be worked on the latter task in space; 

this can only be determined through flight test in space. 

Many of the developments in life support, electrical 

power, and attitude stabilization that NASA develops through 

their long duration program can be effectively used by the 
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MOL Program. The MOL Program will use man to dynamically 

acquire photographs of highly selected 

world targets. The primary purposes of man in MOL (in order 

of priority) are to "fine tune" the automatic systems, 

manually back up failed or malfunctioning systems and verify 

overall systems performance plus determine the suitability 

for unmanned system use. In addition to this, the program 

will evaluate the usefulness of man to enhance the intelligence content of the photographic mission. 

NASA is going beyond the presently demonstrated capabilities of man in the Apollo Applications Program to 

determine man's usefulness in space for long duration science 

and earth applications missions with man as an evaluator, 

observer, and manipulator of scientific, technical and 

applications experiments. The AAP will obtain information 

on the functioning of man and systems for durations of a year 

and longer. This information, developed in the 1969-74 

time period, will then be available to support potential 

earth orbit space station and planetary exploration activity 

in the mid and late 1970s. Long duration capability in AAP 

will be afforded through minimal modification to existing 

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Apollo hardware and the addition of selected subsystems, 

components and expendables. Concurrent with the long duration flights, basic scientific and technological data will 

be collected with emphasis in the astronomy, biomedical and 

engineering areas. In 1970 and 1971 the AAP plans to 

conduct specific biomedical experimentation for durations 

of 28 to 56 days. 

The work conducted by NASA can be effectively used by 

the MOL Program and many of the partial tasks and very 

specific MOL uses of man will contribute effectively to the 

Apollo Application flights. Typical are the astronauts' 

sleep station, work restraints (i.e., straps), suit development, maintenance tools, partial task loading and work 

rest cycles. 

Both the Apollo Applications Program and the MOL Program 

plan to make effective use of manned and unmanned operational 

satellite technolcgy. Many of the future unmanned systems 

might well be developed and operated through the effective 

use of man performing a logistics, checkout, and 

maintenance role. After the development of this technique, 

the systems then can operate quite independently of the 

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space-based manned development laboratory. Careful consideration must be given to designing systems for total 

replacement or manned maintenance, based on the complexity 

and cost of the entire system. 

Future Areas of Development 

Listed below are some technology areas that both NASA 

and the Air Force should continue to explore to determine 

where common developments might be effectively carried on 

or initiated to meet future mission needs: 

. Communication and range control 

. Boosters 

• High energy upper stages -- nuclear/non-nuclear 

• Uprated Titan and Saturn stages and engines 

• Navigation and guidance and attitude stabilization 

• Space power 

• Space suits and life support equipment 

• Survival and rescue approach and system 

development 

▪ Rendezvous and resupply techniques 

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By careful planning and coordination, these technology items 

can be further developed for effectiv,1 use both with the 

Apollo Applications and MOL programs. 

The Apollo Applications and MOL programs have similar 

planning schedules. NASA is currently scheduled to launch 

some Apollo and AAP flights ahead of MOL. Much of the 

detailed work for long duration flights and life support will 

be available to any follow-on MOL program. NASA's current 

schedules are being formulated to reflect the changes made 

as a result of the fire and budget restrictions. A recent 

modified NASA schedule is shown on Figure 2. The MOL 

schedule is similar. (See Figure 3). Since both programs 

have similar requirements in many technology areas in 

essentially the same time periods, new technology developments 

permit maximum dual usage by both programs. There is one 

significant exception -- namely, the camera systems for MOL 

are entirely an advancement of DoD unmanned satellite 

technology with no parallel development or knowledge in the 

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SUMMARY 

In summary, it can be seen that the Apollo Applications 

Program and MOL Program are different and complementary; 

they are not competitive in mission and are not redundant 

in terms of hardware development. MOL will perform an 

operational mission of national importance with a low technical risk because of the manned space flight technology 

developed within NASA. 

MOL was established primarily to conduct photographic 

reconnaissance from space. It was and still is believed 

that such a satellite capability could be developed and 

coorindated sooner through the use of man on orbit. The 

analysis and simulation work to date has supported the 

thesis that man can effectively improve the quantity and 

quality of the photographs, exercise judgment on targets of 

momentary increased intelligence value, and can generally 

do many of those minor adjustments and alignments that 

would be very difficult to automate. 

Many technologies developed within NASA have been and 

will continue to be effectively used by the MOL Program. 

Many of the results of unique mission peculiar simulations 

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and operational designs that make effective use of man for 

military objectives will be made available to NASA in order 

that NASA may understand and make good use of the information in their own programs. 

There is a definite need to recognize that differences 

exist between the objectives of our military and civilian 

space programs. There exists a close working relationship 

between NASA and DoD for effective use of their current 

common technology and to maximize usage of future new 

developments. The NASA-DoD relationship in space can provide 

the same value as did NACA-DoD relationship in past years 

for Aeronautics. NASA should continue to stress the pursuit 

of advanced technology and techniques in space flight for 

use by DoD in military applications, and for civilian users 

of space technology for non-military applications. 

Recommendations 

o NASA should evaluate and extend man's ability 

to work and function on orbit through a 

very orderly evolutionary series of experiments for more than 30 days with the objective 

of staying for periods of a year or more. 

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o NASA should develop the necessary life 

support and space vehicle subsystems and 

equipments compatible with this longterm man-on-orbit evaluation program. 

o DoD should continue to evaluate specific 

military missions for later operational 

payload deployment in both manned and 

unmanned systems with a full understanding 

of the cost and mission effectiveness of 

both modes of operation. 

o NASA should continue to define a very 

orderly series of earth orbiting experiments 

working closely with the MOL Program to 

maximize the utilization of the information for both any MOL second generation 

program and NASA Natural Resources and 

Planetary Programs. 

o Future optics needs of NASA and DoD must 

continue to be thoroughly coordinated to 

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minimize development costs and prevent 

any unnecessary reinvention of systems 

and components. 

o The existing AACB and MSFPC need to 

continue and perhaps intensify their 

efforts to insure that the MOL/AAP 

programs and supporting technology 

developments are closely coordinated and 

complementary insofar as possible. 

o Quite a lot of review of the future plans 

of both programs for the next five to ten 

years has been completed through joint 

participation in the AACB and the MSFPC. 

Two major areas appear to need additional 

and perhaps special attention: 

- Future plans and growth of the 

T-IIIM booster and Saturn 

booster program. 

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Maneuverable, reusable upper 

stage spacecraft for second 

generation application to either 

an AAP or MOL, operating in 

either a manned or unmanned mode. 
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