The only visual record of the historic Apollo 11 landing is from a
16mm time-lapse (6 frames per second) movie camera mounted in Buzz
Aldrin’s window (right side of Lunar Module Eagle or LM).
In this image, the Lunar Module descent stage and
astronaut tracks are clearly visible — something Armstrong did not see
during the landing. The incidence (solar) angle on the Narrow Angle
Camera image is within a degree as when Apollo 11 landed (just after
sunrise), so you see the same dramatic shadows. Credits: NASA/Goddard/Arizona State University. Hi-res Image
Due
to the small size of the LM windows and the angle at which the movie
camera was mounted, what mission commander Neil Armstrong saw as he flew
and landed the LM was not recorded. The Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter
Camera (LROC) team reconstructed the last three minutes of the landing
trajectory (latitude, longitude, orientation, velocity, altitude) using
landmark navigation and altitude call outs from the voice recording.
From this trajectory information, and high resolution LROC Narrow Angle
Camera (LROC NAC) images and topography, we simulated what
Armstrong saw in those final minutes as he guided the LM down to the
surface of the Moon. As the video begins, Armstrong could see the aim
point was on the rocky northeastern flank of West crater (190 meters
diameter), causing him to take manual control and fly horizontally,
searching for a safe landing spot. At the time, only Armstrong saw the
hazard; he was too busy flying the LM to discuss the situation with
mission control.
After flying over the hazards presented by the bouldery flank of West
crater, Armstrong spotted a safe spot about 500 meters down track where
he carefully descended to the surface. Just before landing, the LM flew
over what would later be called Little West crater (40 meters
diameter). Armstrong would visit and photograph this crater
during his extra-vehicular activity (EVA). Of course, during the
landing, Armstrong was able to lean forward and back and turn his head
to gain a view that was better than the simple, fixed viewpoint
presented here. However, this simulated movie lets you relive those dramatic moments.
How accurate is our simulated view? We reconstructed
the view from Aldrin's window from our derived trajectory, and you can
view it side-by-side with the original 16mm film. You be the judge!
This video compares film from the landing of Apollo
11 (left) with a simulated reconstruction (right) based on data from
NASA's Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter. Credits: NASA/Goddard Space Flight Center/Arizona State University
Acknowledgement: A time-synchronized version of the original 16mm film (Apollo Flight Journal) and the First Men on the Moon website,
which synchronizes the air-to-ground voice transmission with the
original 16mm film, greatly aided the production of this work. These
sources were played side-by-side with our reconstruction during its
production, allowing us to better match the reconstruction to the 16mm
film and altitude callouts.
Image credits: NASA/Goddard Space Flight Center/Arizona State University
Editor: Karl Hille
