We're celebrating the life of Arthur A. Collins and his company on this anniversary of one of man's greatest achievements, walking on the moon. Ironically, we note that historians have often written that Collins himself wasn't that interested in the space program. That's probably misreading his motives. Art hated wasting time; he focused his attention where it was needed, and that wasn't on the radios his company was building for the astronauts. He had very good managers overseeing their development, led by Arthur Wulfsberg, Assist. VP Space Systems Division, who also managed Mercury and Gemini.

The Apollo communication system design that NASA settled on transmitted in the microwave S-band, specifically 2.1-2.3 GHz. It was called Unified S-Band or USB; "unified" because all the data was digitally combined and transmitted simultaneously. USB was complex but proven. Engineers saved huge amounts of weight and space by eliminating separate receivers, transmitters and antennas for data, tracking, voice, medical monitoring, remote control, etc. and accomplished it with just one set of equipment. With some stretching and extra design work Collins engineers convinced NASA they could even fit in live television . . . for which we are all grateful. The challenge was building the boxes to NASA specs. The downside of USB was that one circuit failure could take down everything. So designers made the boxes easy to fix in space by simply slipping in spare boards. The modular design, designated Block I, was abandoned after the Apollo 1 fire in Jan. 1967 and replaced with a new approach called Block II. The equipment was made smaller, lighter and totally sealed. That eliminated the possibility of sparking another fire (not that Collins was implicated in the first), but along with it any opportunity to make "roadside" repairs. The new specs called for quadruple redundancy and zero defects. In the event of a circuit failure the equipment switched instantly to a new pathway--4X!

A special area of the factory floor was enclosed at the Collins plant. No one entered without special training and a pass. Everything used in the Apollo was tracked from its origin, right down to the source of the silica sand used in the manufacture of the transistors. The work/schedule pressure was terrific, but the astronauts' lives depended on it, along with hopes and dreams of the entire nation. . . and JFK's deadline was rapidly approaching! Not everyone could take the stress. Those who could were viewed with some awe then at Collins. . . we should do so still. Of course, the equipment performed flawlessly, again, and we, along with the rest of the world, watched in wonder and heard the astronauts over the radios we built here.

Art saw the moon landing from Cedar Rapids, cheered with the rest of us and, as usual, asked the Gazette reporter to credit his workers. Then he jumped on a company plane and flew to Dallas where he celebrated with another group of key Apollo engineers. Their role in the space program is less well known, but continues in large measure still today.

Early in the Apollo program NASA administrators made a decision to take the lowest risk path to the moon. As one put it, "in a Volkswagen rather than a Cadillac," meaning they would not risk a tight schedule trying to develop cutting edge technology. The exception was the Apollo tracking network where there was no falling back on well-tested systems and equipment. Unlike on Mercury and Gemini, the Apollo USB signals were digital and coming in a flood of data 10X anything seen before in manned space-flight. Also the signals would now be coming from the moon--deep space, with the need to distinguish simultaneous transmissions from the command module and the lunar lander.

Collins-Dallas was selected by NASA in 1964 to build a world-wide network of 15 new communications and tracking stations needed for the Apollo mission, and everything to connect them with Mission Control in Houston. Twelve (12) stations employed 30 ft. parabolic antennas for tracking the astronauts in near Earth orbit. Three (3) deep space stations with giant 85 ft. antennas would track the spacecraft to the moon. All the antennas had to be located in remote areas, like Goldstone in the Mojave desert, far from noise interference (and telephone lines, etc.), so there was a lot of microwave transmission work. Collins engineers designed and installed additional stations on USN ships and aircraft to maintain contact during reentry, in all a $50 million effort. Many of the pieces are still in place and the Collins engineers maintaining portions of the vast global network today report feeling a thrill every time they come upon the old Collins "meatball" logo.

Learn more about the Collins role in the manned space program from its earliest days in the current exhibit, The Collins Story: On the 50th Anniversary of the Moon Landing, in collaboration with the Arthur A. Collins Legacy Association. Now Open. Free admission courtesy of the McIntyre Foundation. ... See MoreSee Less

2 days ago  ·  

Four snapshots from Sunday's program offered by Professor Donald Gurnett, From the Dawn of the Space Age to the Edge of the Solar System. What a terrific way to begin this season's schedule of programs! A standing-room-only crowd of 100+. Dr. Gurnett stayed late to answer questions well passed closing. Many thanks! If you get another chance to catch him speak, don't miss it. ... See MoreSee Less

2 days ago  ·