Engineering topics

Irwin, J. B.

Publications and source records attributed to Irwin, J. B..

3 records

NASA NTRS1972

Glass in the bottom of small lunar craters - An observation from Apollo 15.

The origin of glazed rock fragments and glassy splatter in the bottom of fresh, 0.5- to 3.0-m-diameter lunar craters has been the subject of much debate. Evidence presented from Apollo 15 data indicates that one such crater, with an associated glass-coated projectile, is of low velocity, 'secondary' origin. It is shown that, for the crater examined, the glassy material cannot have been formed in situ by impact fusion due to the low energy involved. It is suggested that the glass in many such craters may be carried as a semi-liquid or solidified coating on incoming rock projectiles ejected from local primary impact craters of larger size.

Schaber, G. G.↗

NASA NTRS1972

Crew observations

Crew observations of the Apollo 15 flight are presented. The observations are concerned with the following phases of the flight: (1) translunar and transearth coasts, (2) lunar landing and ascent, (3) standup extravehicular activity, (4) surface experiment deployment, (5) lunar traverse geology, and (6) orbital observations.

Scott, D. R.↗

NASA NTRS1972

Preliminary geologic investigation of the Apollo 15 landing site

The Apollo 15 lunar module (LM) landed on the mare surface of Palus Putredinis on the eastern edge of the Imbrium Basin. The site is between the Apennine Mountain front and Hadley Rille. The objectives of the mission, in order of decreasing priority, were description and sampling of three major geologic features-the Apennine Front, Hadley Rille, and the mare. The greater number of periods of extravehicular activity (EVA) and the mobility provided by the lunar roving vehicle (ROVER) allowed much more geologic information to be obtained from a much larger area than those explored by previous Apollo crews. A total of 5 hours was spent at traverse station stops, and the astronauts transmitted excellent descriptions of the lunar surface while in transit between stations.

Swann, G. A.↗