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DESTINATION MOON: A History of the
Lunar Orbiter Program
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- CHAPTER IX: MISSIONS I, II, III:
APOLLO SITE SEARCH AND VERIFICATION
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- Results of the First
Mission
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- [244] Lunar Orbiter I
photography was subjected to numerous analyses, photometric
enhancement processes, and evaluations by technicians and
scientists at the Langley Research Center. Following this a more
extensive screening process of Mission I photography was made by
specialists from Jet Propulsion Laboratory, the Manned Spacecraft
Center, NASA Headquarters, Boeing, the United States Geological
Survey, and Langley. They studied very carefully all
Orbiter I photographs and generated preliminary terrain and
geologic maps and screened photographic data for acceptable Apollo
sites. [245] This effort started the major process of Apollo
site selection and data analysis.33
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- Some of the most significant problems
which the first mission photography revealed were the following:
1) photographic imperfections due to mechanical operation in the
photo subsystem (for example, partial dryout of the Bimat because
of pressure variation of a roller in the processor mechanism
produced a narrow strip of incorrectly processed film); 2) density
variations caused by the Ground Reconstruction Equipment kinescope
tubes; 3) smear of high-resolution photographs caused by
inadvertent triggering of the focal-plane shutter of the 610 mm
lens. This problem has been previously
discussed.34
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