Apollo 8

This is Apollo Control at 130 hours, 24 minutes. During our change of shift press briefing, the crew has been primarily involved in some guidance and navigation activities onboard the spacecraft. Frank Borman reported that Bill Anders is sleeping at the present time. And at the present time our spacecraft is traveling at a speed of 6,417 feet per second [1,956 m/s]. Our current altitude is 88,706 nautical miles [155,024 km] and this is how the conversation's been going up to now.

This is Apollo Control at 131 hours, 19 minutes: Our current spacecraft velocity at this time is 6,567 feet per second [2,002 m/s], and we're at an altitude of 85,284 nautical miles [157,946 km]. Since our previous report, it's been very quiet here in Mission Control Center. Most of the activity has involved checking - double checking figures, and beginning preparation to pass up the information to the crew that they will need for their final midcourse correction, 2 hours prior to entry. We've had one or two very brief conversations with the spacecraft. We'll pick those up and then stand by for any live conversation that develops.

This is Apollo Control, Houston at 132 hours, 9 minutes. Apollo 8 is at an altitude of 1 - or rather, 82,111 nautical miles [152,070 km] and our current velocity is 6,712 feet per second [2,046 m/s]. It continues to be very quiet here in Mission Control and aboard the spacecraft. We've had one or two very brief conversations with the crew and we're anticipating a call up to the spacecraft, shortly, from Mike Collins, so we'll pick that up and - and then stay tuned.

This is Apollo Control at 132 hours, 38 minutes. At the present time we're in touch with the spacecraft. We'll pick up that conversation for you and then stand by to follow it as it develops.

This is Apollo Control, Houston at 133 hours, 12 minutes. At this point, Apollo 8 is traveling at a velocity of 6,914 feet per second [2,107 m/s], and our current altitude reading is 77,946 nautical miles [144,356 km]. We've just heard from Bill Anders for the first time in about 3 hours. Bill has been getting some rest and we anticipate that at this time both Borman and Lovell are resting while Bill is on watch. We'll pick up that conversation for you now.

This is Apollo Control, Houston at 134 hours, 11 minutes and at the present time our spacecraft velocity is 7,123 feet per second [2,171 m/s]. Our current altitude reading is 73,952 nautical miles [136,959 km]. Since our last report we've had virtually no conversations with the spacecraft with the exception of a short communications check put in by Mike Collins a few minutes ago and a terse 'Roger' back from Bill Anders. There is nothing showing on the Flight Plan at this time. No scheduled activities. And both Frank Borman and Jim Lovell are scheduled to be getting some rest at this time. We'd like to, at this point, repeat some of the figures that were passed out earlier today at our change of shift briefing on the sequence of events at re-entry. We, at the present time, show 12 hours, 33 minutes, 55 seconds until Entry Interface. That event will occur at a Ground Elapsed Time of 146 hours, 46 minutes, 13 seconds approximately; and we anticipate there could be some change in that number following our final midcourse correction which is to come about 2 hours prior to Entry Interface. Blackout would nominally begin, with the current trajectory, at 146 hours, 46 minutes, 38 seconds; and it would last about 3 minutes. They would come out of blackout at 146 hours, 49 minutes, 41 seconds. Our drogue chutes, the two 16½-foot [5-metre] diameter conical ribbon chutes, that give the spacecraft its initial stabilization and slow it down prior to main chute deploy, that event would come at 146 hours, 54 minutes, 27 seconds. We would be on the drogue chutes for about 47 seconds and then the main chutes would deploy at 146 hours, 55 minutes, 14 seconds. Our nominal splash time would be 147 hours, 0 minutes and 11 seconds. At 134 hours, 14 minutes into the flight of Apollo 8; this is Mission Control, Houston.

This is Apollo Control; 134 hours, 54 minutes into the mission. At the present time we are some 11 hours, 52 minutes from the time of re-entry. Apollo 8 is traveling at a speed of 7,289 feet per second [2,222 m/s] and the current altitude of the spacecraft is 70,989 nautical miles [131,472 km]. Since our last report, we've had very little communication with the spacecraft. We'll play back for you what we - what communication we have, and then stand by for any calls to the spacecraft or any calls down from the spacecraft.

This is Apollo Control. It appears we'll have no further conversations at this point. We'll take the circuit down. At 134 hours, 58 minutes.

This is Apollo Control at 135 hours, 39 minutes and it continues to be very quiet here in Mission Control and aboard the spacecraft. There are no scheduled Flight Plan activities at this time. Two of our three crewmen are continuing in a sleep, or rest period. Bill Anders is awake and minding the duties aboard the spacecraft while Frank Borman and Jim Lovell catch up on their sleep, At the present time Apollo 8 is traveling at a speed of 7,480 feet per second [2,280 m/s]. Our current altitude is 67,744 nautical miles [125,462 km]. The clock here in Mission Control that's been counting toward re-entry now shows 11 hours, 6 minutes prior to that event. This is the communications that we've had with Anders in the past 45 minutes or so, then we'll stand by for any live conversation.

That brings us up to date with the conversations with Anders over the past 45 minutes or so since our previous announcement. At the present time here in Mission Control Center, the large center display map of the world with the spacecraft ground track on it, we're beginning to see a gradual effect of the increaseing Earth's gravitational influence on the spacecraft. That ground track now beginning to swing slowly northward and we'll see it, between now and re-entry, swing even more northward and eventually reverse its direction as the spacecraft plunges back toward Earth. It doesn't appear that we are going to have any further conversation with the spacecraft at this point. We'll continue to monitor and come back up periodically with status reports or in the event that we have any significant communications from the crew. This is Apollo Control at 135 hours, 43 minutes.

This is Apollo Control; 136 hours, 04 minutes into the flight of Apollo 8. At the present time, we're in conversation with the crew. Frank Borman just came on the line. Indicated that he had gotten some sleep and was now joining Anders. Apparently, Jim Lovell is still sleeping at this time. We'll pick up that conversation and stand by to follow it.

This is Mission Control. At the present time, our spacecraft velocity is 7,598 feet per second [2,316 m/s], and we're traveling now at an altitude of 65,851 nautical miles [121,956 km]. Noting that the velocity is beginning to increase more rapidly now and our altitude decrease. At the present time we show 10 hours, 39 minutes, 25 seconds until Entry Interface. We'll continue to stand by briefly for any further conversation from the crew.

This is Apollo Control at 136 hours, 52 minutes. Since our past - our last report, activity here in Mission Control and on the spacecraft has been minimal. We have had a few communications checks with the spacecraft and some routine housekeeping chores being done by the crew. Very little Flight Plan activity scheduled at this time. At the present time, Apollo 8 is at an altitude of 62,413 nautical miles [115,589 km] and our velocity reads 7,825 feet per second [2,385 m/s]. We have one bit of interesting information from our Flight Dynamics Officer, which illustrates the rapid velocity increase we'll see as the spacecraft nears Earth in its final hour of flight. Beginning at 145 hours, 41 minutes; or about 1 hour prior to Entry Interface, we'll have a velocity of 18,013 feet per second [5,490 m/s]. During the next hour, as the spacecraft closes on Earth from an altitude of some 10,445 nautical miles [19,344 km], our velocity will just about double, reaching 36,220 feet per second [11,040 m/s]. We saw much the same sort of thing happen as our spacecraft neared the Moon, where, in the final hour or so of flight, we saw that dramatic increase in velocity. And now returning to Earth, we're seeing the same sort of thing. A gradual build up until just about the last hour of flight and then that dramatic increase in velocity from 18,013 feet per second to 36,220. We have a brief bit of conversation on tape from the past 45 minutes or so. We'll play that back for you now and then stand by briefly for any live conversation.

This is Apollo Control, Houston at 137 hours, 32 minutes. We continue to have a minimum of conversation with the crew of Apollo 8. At this time, the spacecraft is traveling at a speed of 8,029 feet per second [2,447 m/s] and our altitude reading has just now dropped below 60,000 nautical miles [111,100 km], now reading 59,517 nautical miles [110,226 km]. We do have a small amount of conversation which we'll play for you now, and then stand by to pick up live anything that follows.

This is Apollo Control, Houston at 138 hours, 18 minutes. Since our last report some 40 minutes ago, we've had no conversations with the spacecraft. Our Flight Plan shows no activities at this time. We expect that both Jim Lovell and Bill Anders are getting some sleep. Frank Borman is on the watch at the present. And our spacecraft vital statistics, in terms of velocity and altitude, are now 8,309 feet per second [2,533 m/s] for velocity and 55,817 nautical miles [103,373 km] is our current altitude. At 138 hours, 19 minutes; this is Apollo Control.

This is Apollo Control, Houston at 138 hours, 57 minutes. And at the present time our spacecraft is at an altitude of 52,745 nautical miles [97,684 km], traveling at a speed of 8,563 feet per second [2,610 m/s]. We heard from Bill Anders aboard the spacecraft a short while ago, and Bill informed us that there had been a change of watch, that he had relieved Frank Borman. We'll play that conversation back for you and then stand by for any further communications from the spacecraft.

Here in Mission Control Center at the present time, we're involved in a change of shift. Flight Director Milton Windler and his team of flight controllers are coming on, getting updated on the status of the spacecraft, the crew, and preparations for the re-entry. This is the team coming on that will be handling the re-entry, and that event now scheduled to occur some 7 hours, 47 minutes from now. Simultaneously with the change of shift here in the Control Center, we also begin to pick up activity in the Flight Plan related to the final midcourse correction and re-entry. Now we're scheduled to have a platform alignment in about 15 minutes aboard the spacecraft, and that'll be followed by an eat period for the Commander. The Flight Plan shows the Command Module Pilot to continue sleeping until about 141 hours and at the present time it appears that Frank Borman and Jim Lovell are resting or sleeping. We'll continue to stand by for a short while for any further communication from Bill Anders, and then we'll take the circuit down if we don't hear any.

This is Mission Control, Houston. It appears that things are going to continue along quietly, at least for the moment. We would like to advise that we have a change of shift briefing scheduled following this shift. We anticipate that will occur between 2:15 and 2:30 [am, December 27]. This is Apollo Control at 139 hours, 2 minutes.