Saturn V liftoff (Apollo 12)

[jakfuki]

It was hotter than that here in Houston today.

[kittypie070]

Part of the hold down devices were slightly tapered pins mounted on the rocket, that were drawn through...uh....something like drawplates, I guess, for the first few *inches* of liftoff. I can't recall the exact description, but I remember the book, it was Chariots for Apollo.

I think there's a mention of these pins in the wiki about the Saturn V as well.

I also want to say that this was a really magnificent video.

[aeroub]

No, the only hoax is GOD himself.

[bavarikus]

This was your masterpiece, Wernher!!! R.I.P.

I hope that NASA will celebrate his 100th birthday in 2012.

[TheSpiritof1969]

@bavarikus

Von Braun was a vile war criminal and NASA started putting distance between him and themselves a long time ago.

Perhaps they could celebrate his birthday with a memorial service to the 25,000+ slave workers who were worked to death in the underground factory that built the V2 rockets. Research this for yourself. He knew about the death rate (about six humans for every rocket made) and he did nothing to stop it. This SS major should have been hung for the bastard he was.

[bavarikus]

@TheSpiritof1969 - The situation in the 1930s and 1940s was much more complex than you might think. War criminals bombed german cities (women, children, etc.) and didn´t care about war crimes. And von Braun´s duty was to design powerful weapons.

Well, living on the stolen (and still occupied) land of murdered and nearly exterminated Aborigines should make you think about your own situation!

[TheSpiritof1969]

@bavarikus

With respect the genecides against the Aborigines, Native Americans and other races is a different subject and certainly in Australia it is far from a forgotten issue. Area bombing of German cities at the end pf WW2 will be debated for hundreds of years to come and I will not argue it was not a crime.

But to allow Brauns acheivements to outshine the tens of thousands that died in his hell hole factory is the ultimate betrayal of our own humanity and shames us all.

[TheSpiritof1969]

@bavarikus

After the war it was essential that America extracted all the missile technology they could. Times were achanging fast and nuclear weapons needed a delivery system. But Braun should never have been made a golden boy with his past airbrushed. America did not need him long term and, like Russia, they had their home grown very competant scientists every bit as good as Sergei Korelov. Once Brauns knowledge had been understood he should have been tried for his wartime crimes and hung.

[alu209101]

shoot!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!­!!!!!

[tonyny77]

Something that has always interested me is the "hold-down" devices on the pad. Do they not use explosive bolt technology to release the vehicle? I always wondered (and dreaded) the thought of the catastrophe that would occur if all the hold-downs didn't release. Thank God THAT has never happened. Oh, and thanks for posting this video, "Get Off." Many of us appreciate it, of course.

[cajoke]

I am asking a question to those who can answer. I see the engines, I see the bright flames, but what is the state of energy i see between them? and why is it diffrent?

[artwleb]

@cajoke The lower part of the F-1 nozzle was cooled by the turbine exhaust which exited from the circumference of the nozzle. Since it was much cooler it appears darker. Very unique appearance.

[91238673]

The N-1 was far superior. It blew up bigger, destroyed more launch pads, and killed way more people.

[Kenzofeis]

These things street legal? o.O

Ok, done being a brat ^^

[rlsroyce]

When did they finally move to solid rocket fule?

[aceofrpm]

The launch vehicle pitches 1.8 degrees at launch to avoid the tower.Otherwise the wind could just push it into the tower.I just wanted to point out that the vehicle was assembled to such a fine degree that this was a crucial phase because of the possible stress,although thankfully never manifested.The program terminated after clearing the tower.The importance of clearing the tower is that it was then safe to start the pitch and roll program,to get on proper heading.There is your correction.

[rlsroyce]

Wow . Had no idea this existed. Probably one of the most spectacular things i've seen.

[aceofrpm]

The second and third stages have supercooled liquid hydrogen and liquid oxygen, so the Saturn Five has ice on those sections. The top part of the first stage has ice on it because it contains liquid oxygen, the lower part has no ice for it contains kerosene which is not supercooled. The side of the stage actually is the side of the tank. You can also see, in almost all launches, the vehicle lean away from the tower. It is letting the wind push it, instead of fighting it. Big bang otherwise!!!!!!

[RickyboyH]

the saturn 5 is yawing away from the tower. its not the wind. Its how the engines are gimbaled. That yaw maneuver was programmed into the IU of the Saturn 5 :-)

[camilleri63]

The Saturn V initiated a pitch program immediately after launch, in all launches, and it was indeed to keep it away from the tower... just in case the wind was blowing toward the tower. I remember watching Apollo 11 lift off on TV in 1969 and thinking it was going to fall over.

You're certainly right about the big bang - it would have been about a 3 kiloton explosion :)

[kingbonk]

great video. question: i often watch these films and i see all this debris falling all around when the rocket is launching ... what is it?

[marler3125]

In case no one else answered you, that debris is ice. The rocket is full of liquid oxygen, which is a couple hundred degrees (and some change) below zero, causing ice to freeze onto the uninsulated steel side of the rocket. Then the rocket shakes when the engines start, causing the ice to fall off.

They could have insulated the side of the rocket, but that adds a lot of weight and can cause other problems. The space shuttle fuel tank is insulated.

[paratrpr]

i believe most if it is dry ice that forms on the fuel sections. but there's that pesky foam also . one of em . the ice IMO..

[camilleri63]

No, no foam, just ice caused by condensation from the very cold fuel.

[91238673]

The one built was more powerful, but the NSA said I couldn't launch it because it would disrupt stuff.

BIG stuff.

[crazybastard82]

the description claims that the saturn v was the most powerful ever built...i thought that honor went to the soviet n1 rocket...

[jaypharmon]

True, the N1 was more powerful...but the Saturn V actually made it into space. The N1 blew up on the launchpad, ending the USSR's moon shot.

[getoffmybozack]

Well, there are several ways to look at it. You can look at the thrust of each stage, the mass of the rocket, the burn time, the propellants used, and so on, but I think that at the end of the day what matters is how much shit you can launch into low earth orbit. Saturn V could launch 118 metric tonnes, despite weighting over 3 kilotonnes, while the N1 could only launch 75 tonnes while weighting 2.7 kilotonnes. I'd say that makes it fair to claim the Saturn V was more powerful.

[NeverforgetElvis]

Well said. In US terms the Saturn V weighed in at a whisker under 7 million pounds on the pad. To go ballistic, which it did easily, meant that each of the five F1 primary stage engines were pushing over 1.5 million pounds of thrust out the cone. It was juiced. Von Braun and the design team were brilliant to channel that much energy and have it hold together. All 5 engines were set on gimbals to assure balance. Brilliant.

[Odo987]

Only the four outboard engines were on gimbals.  Engine #5 in the center was fixed.

[NeverforgetElvis]

Huh, thanks, I didn't know that. Makes sense.

[RickyboyH]

Thats correct. The center engine was also prone to pogo oscillations (think the motion of a pogo stick) that's what happened during Apollo 13 i think (only that it was in the S-II stage)

[camilleri63]

Pogo nearly caused the failure of Apollo 5, which was unmanned, but the problem was pretty much solved - it was due to propellant surging in the fuel lines. The cause of the Apollo 13 explosion was mainly due to a faulty thermostat on a heater inside one of the Service Module oxygen tanks. At some point the specification for the SM power supply was upgraded, but no-one thought to upgrade the thermostat which basically controlled the pressurisation of the tank. The rest is history.

[MightySaturn5]

Apollo 6

[rajtherat]

@getoffmybozack Haha theres also the small fact that the N1 never actually made it into space, but judging from your knowledge, Im sure you already knew that :P

[MichaelCox]

@getoffmybozack

Very true. The Ares V aims to hit 188 metric tonnes, which would make it even more powerful. Unfortunately it was either Ares or the ISS that would have to take the cut on budget constraints, so it'll be a while before we get to see it in action. I hope we see the Ares program take off again soon enough, but I think our best bet will ultimately come when private spaceflight becomes profitable. When that day comes, we can start talking about colonization of other planets.

[Cam4cha]

@getoffmybozack It's more useful, not more powerful. Power is (obviously) about power and not load. Not that it really matters if you're more than 14 years old, since it's pretty petty to reduce two awesome machines to a number.

[rogelead]

well the n1 never really worked.

[camilleri63]

With 30 engines in the first stage, it's not that surprising that the N1 never worked. Each engine on its own was very reliable - US companies later actually bought a bunch of them - but supplying all those engines was a plumber's nightmare. The USSR never mastered the technology to work with really big engines like the F1.

[MightySaturn5]

factoring in the upper stages the Saturn was more powerful, plus the Saturn weighed more, was taller & could lift more.

The F-1 engine that powered the 1st stage was already on its 2nd generation (the F-1 A) however since they never made a 2nd production run of Saturn V's they never used this engine, considering it had 600 K more thrust per engine the Saturn's lift off thrust would have gone from 7.8 million lbs.(average) to over 10 million allowing the worlds best heavy lifter to up its limits

[Andybucker]

In such case, what do you think about our Ares I? Of course, these are two completely different machines, built in completely different times, but still?

[MightySaturn5]

Hi Andy, I think that a lot of thought went into both the Ares 1 & 5, of course financial concerns played a big role in the final outcome -using somewhat simple solid fuel boosters that are reusable, reliable and safe makes sense from a fiscal point of view so in that regards I'm glad we are moving forward with Ares 1 & 5.

Of course I wish we kept up with the original Saturn V & variations since the potential was amazing however the current reality is that we should be glad to have Ares

[check12345]

@crazybastard82

The N1 rocket was a complete failure, so not sure why you would consider that machine.  I could draw up a booster with 10 million lbs of thrust but without successful operation, well it don't exist!

[jimyjim36]

@crazybastard82 also there is the fact that the N1 never survived a single ascent into orbit, so in a sense had no lifting capability at all

[Polybun]

@crazybastard82 The N1 never did anything but explode.

[ApolloCDR]

No Woodstock II in the 90's was a conspiracy... A conspiracy of GREED!!!

[NeverforgetElvis]

I think the Saturn V needs a muffler. Kinda loud. Of course, ramming a couple million pounds of fuel through the engines may tend to do that.

[nasa0sucks]

:o0

[NOSMOJEFF]

that is hot

[NeverforgetElvis]

Roast weenie hot. All the "hoax" people should stick there head up the tailpipe of an F1 engine at launch. I'll throw the switch . . . gladly.

[MichaelCox]

@NeverforgetElvis

Just tell those conspiracy theorists that

vbo = Isp*ln(Mo/Mf)-(gavg*t)

and about 80% of that 1,000,000lb rocket is fuel. (if that means anything to you)

Yeah, getting to the moon is hard as hell and expensive as hell.

And we FUCKING DID IT.

[GaryW48]

The Apollo-Saturn 5 stack was designed as an 'all weather' launch vehicle. Because of the lightning strike on Apollo 12 at launch and the resulting investigation regarding the plasma stream generated by the heat of the engine exhaust, NASA added lightning arrestors to the launch pad towers, plus tightened launch criteria. More so now with the space shuttles

[Cantupian]

Was there ever a good shot of the ship being hit by the first lightning strike. I have seen stills of the second strike hitting the pad, but never seen actual footage of the first. It still floors me to this day that, as cautious as they were, they still launched with rainstorms in the area.

[skypelt]

Yes the incident is why they changed policies.

[quaheedus]

The only hoax is the one god played on you... and its in your pants!

[britoca]

whatever man, nothing beats bad science, nothing! dogmatic thinking shall prevail in the end, you just wait and se... errr... believe!

[quaheedus]

Nothing beats bad science? Sure it does..Good and real science and facts beat bad science. Every ridiculous Moon hoax conspiracy scenario has been dis proven with legitimate science and facts over and over again..there is not a single shred of moon hoax nonsense that holds up.

[rowanofrin1]

Sorry, sarcasm doesn't transport very well over the intertubes.

[WGST475]

Who let the flat earther in here? He should be out there with OJ, looking for the real killer.

[PC3900]

As many as 1 million people saw the Apollo 11 launch - three times as many as were at Woodstock the next month. All in on the conspiracy...

[mlrs84]

What??! Woodstock was a conspiracy? :P

[NeverforgetElvis]

Geez I hope so.

[Smacked980]

you are a hoax :-)

[VSkwidd]

incredible

[IntermittentSprocket]

Wouldn't want to be underneath that, "toast" that's wonderful slow-motion footage of Apollo 12

[VSkwidd]

thats one toasty platform!

[wavesrcrashing]

AWESOME "getoffmybozack"

thanks for posting this beautiful footage. :)

i was only little at the time by i remember watching avidly everything i could,on the space endeavours the brave astronauts made in these awesome machines.

[Zoomer30]

This video shows why the shuttle tank is covered in foam.....if it were not, all that ice would be falling on the shuttle (the white chunks you see falling are large sheets of ice from the LOX tanks and the Lh2 tanks in stages 2 and 3)

[charlyfox93]

actually that Ice was a cover for LH2 and LOX tanks.Otherwise it would have been a gas when the rocket was launched because the rocket was transported to launchpad a few das before launch and it can be very hot in florida,right?.

[britoca]

no, the ice was water that condensed and froze from the cold tanks.

[artwleb]

The shuttle propellant tank is filled up just hours before launch - not before it is transported the the pad.

[artwleb]

The exhaust you see below the nozzle is black because it is the cooler turbine exhaust vented overboard at the end of the nozzle. Other systems vent the turbine exhaust gases through

a pipe and you see the ragged flame down one side of the rocket.

[billt460]

If you look at about 2:15 into the video you can see what I mean. The exhaust right at the engine bell is very black as it exits. Then, several feet below the flame cone is almost too brilliant to look at. Multiply this X 5 for all 5 engines and you can get some idea of what 15 tons of Kerosene and liquid Oxygen exploding sounds like. It's anything but "smooth". It is literally a controlled explosion for 2 minutes.

[billt460]

I saw a shuttle Launch in person and it sounds the same way. A lot of combustion takes place near the rear of the engine bell. Keep in mind a Saturn V burns 15 TONS of fuel every SECOND! The Shuttle, 7 1/2 tons per second at liftoff. By comparison an F-16 burns about 70 gallons per minute in afterburner.

[getoffmybozack]

I'm pissed off, the Intellectual Property owner of these videos (some website) made YouTube remove the two other such videos. See, the government makes this space program with your parents' tax money, and 40 years later some private company prevents you from freely watching footage from this program because they "own" it. We and the government are the ones who are getting owned.

[USER1138B]

Here's a stupid question: why is the sound of a rocket so staccato? Why isn't it just a smooth roar?

[getoffmybozack]

the video is slown down about 20 times, which means the normal sound is mostly too low to be heard. You'd have to speed up the sound about 20 times to hear what'd you expect.

[getoffmybozack]

There are, lots, you can even find manuals and such. You just have to look hard. You can find a bunch of stuff like very detailed reports about the force output of the engines and such. I know cause I looked for I am working on a Saturn V simulator (although technically the Saturn V is very very simply simulated)

[MightySaturn5]

I understand there is quite a bit of subsonic energy in a typical f-1 acoustic profile (cornered at around 8 hz.), of course there are quite a bit of mids and some highs but to produce the subsonic info correctly I would assume you'd need some form of "shaking device", I've seen them at Sikorsky aircraft for testing purposes and was wondering what type of simulator you'd be making?...even our huge tri-amped PA system couldn't do true justice to a Saturn V launch, anyway just wondering.

[getoffmybozack]

lol, let's say that sound is far from my main concern. My simulator focuses more on the solar system than on the rocket itself, and in case that wasn't clear, that's a computer program, not some sort of sound system designed to reproduce the sound of it... And when it'll come to the sound, I won't care about infrasounds, really.

[mhirtes12]

Ah yes. Remember the good old days when America could afford to fight a war AND still have enough left over to go to the Moon? I guess it was possible in the days before Haliburton.

[RandallFlaggNY]

Brown & Root (bought by Halliburton) was most definitely in Vietnam. The troops called B&R "Burn and Loot", with good reason. Overcharging, fraud, charges of using VC/NVA POW as slave labor.

B&R were big backers of LBJ. Some say Vietnam was a gift to B&R by LBJ.

[noaa62]

The awesome power of the Saturn 5.She has a thrust

of over 7,500,000 pounds at liftoff.

[ghostgeek]

WICKED cool! 'Er HOT I mean. ;)

[chersch5]

What a great way to end the 60's, back when America could show off a little bit here and there. Wish we could have some of these days in the present. Beautiful footage, good job.

[PC3900]

Incredible - how was the camera lens kept clean during this firestorm?

[getoffmybozack]

Well I'll bet that the "winds" are so strong that hardly anything could stay stuck on, I presume, the protective glass isolating the camera.

[MightySaturn5]

PC-There is no camera that could come close to taking heat that extreme. What the engineers at NASA did was to set up a 3" thick piece of quartz glass, behind it a fiber optic bundle which went many feet away to a buried spring suspended metal cabinet which housed the actual camera.

[meowwoof123]

It looks great. I love slow motion.

[springyard]

Love how the iron burns and gantry is red hot