Author Topic: Mariner 2 anniversary  (Read 14825 times)

Offline plutogno

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Mariner 2 anniversary
« on: 08/27/2012 10:15 am »
Mariner 2, the first successful unmanned planetary probe was launched on this day 50 years ago. it flew by Venus returning data the next 14 December

Offline Art LeBrun

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Re: Mariner 2 anniversary
« Reply #1 on: 08/27/2012 03:49 pm »
Here is the 447 pound far traveler before encapsulation and then to LC-12 for Agena mating.  Pioneering flight for the era.
« Last Edit: 08/27/2012 05:18 pm by Art LeBrun »
1958 launch vehicle highlights: Vanguard TV-4 and Atlas 12B

Offline edkyle99

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Re: Mariner 2 anniversary
« Reply #2 on: 08/27/2012 04:50 pm »
Atlas 179D launches Mariner 2 from Cape Canaveral's LC 12 on August 27, 1962. 

An identical Atlas Agena launched Mariner 1 a month earlier, but a faulty guidance program (the infamous missing hyphen) caused the Atlas booster to yaw incorrectly, leading to its commanded destruction just before the Agena was to have staged from the Atlas.

Mariner 2, though, was successful.  According to NASA, "After launch and termination of the Agena first burn, the Agena-Mariner was in a 118 km altitude Earth parking orbit. The Agena second burn some 980 seconds later followed by Agena-Mariner separation injected the Mariner 2 spacecraft into a geocentric escape hyperbola at 26 minutes 3 seconds after lift-off. Solar panel extension was completed about 44 minutes after launch"

Neat to think that Mariner 2 - and its Agena - are still out there somewhere.

 - Ed Kyle
« Last Edit: 08/27/2012 04:55 pm by edkyle99 »

Offline Jim

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Re: Mariner 2 anniversary
« Reply #3 on: 08/27/2012 05:52 pm »
Here is the 447 pound far traveler before encapsulation

I wonder what building is that

Offline edkyle99

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Re: Mariner 2 anniversary
« Reply #4 on: 08/27/2012 06:42 pm »
Here is the 447 pound far traveler before encapsulation

I wonder what building is that

Not sure, but here's a link to a photo claimed to be of Mariner 2 being checked out in Hangar AE.  http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Mariner_2_in_Hangar_AE.jpg

I'm also attaching the Mariner 2 press kit, which doesn't answer this particular question but answers many other unasked questions!

 - Ed Kyle
« Last Edit: 08/27/2012 06:44 pm by edkyle99 »

Offline Art LeBrun

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Re: Mariner 2 anniversary
« Reply #5 on: 08/27/2012 06:42 pm »
Here is the 447 pound far traveler before encapsulation

I wonder what building is that
The caption did not say. I do have a Ranger 3 image captioned as Hanger AE. Don't think Mariner 2 is a JPL location.
I just downloaded from NTRS Mariner Venus 1962 Final Report.

Page 108 pdf (page 92 original document) shows Mariner 2 image captioned as AE.
Next image is at ESA - not sure what the interior looks like there.
« Last Edit: 08/28/2012 04:06 pm by Art LeBrun »
1958 launch vehicle highlights: Vanguard TV-4 and Atlas 12B

Offline Art LeBrun

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Re: Mariner 2 anniversary
« Reply #6 on: 08/28/2012 02:10 am »
In FAR TRAVELERS:THE EXPLORING MACHINES author Oran Nicks notes that the Mariner spacecraft control station was located in Hanger AE.
1958 launch vehicle highlights: Vanguard TV-4 and Atlas 12B

Offline Danderman

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Re: Mariner 2 anniversary
« Reply #7 on: 08/28/2012 05:52 am »
I was told a story about the Mariner 2 launch by a grizzled veteran who was there. Apparently, after liftoff, the Atlas began an unplanned roll, with the speed of the roll increasing at an alarming rate.  The roll was so bad that the integrity of the stack was becoming problematic, and the range safety guy had his finger on the proverbial button.

It turns out that the roll was caused by a loose wire in the avionics.

Fortuitously, the centrifugal force generated by the roll forced the wire back into place, and the mission proceeded.

Anyway, that is the story as I was told, your mileage may vary.
« Last Edit: 08/28/2012 05:52 am by Danderman »

Offline Art LeBrun

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Re: Mariner 2 anniversary
« Reply #8 on: 08/28/2012 12:10 pm »
Apparently one of the two Atlas verniers suddenly moved to and remained at a maximum stop which caused the roll just before Atlas booster staging. The roll supposedly was as high as 1 per second. It did stop finally close to where it started and within the Agena horizontal sensor limits. Never did hear why the other vernier did not counteract the roll.
« Last Edit: 08/30/2012 03:49 pm by Art LeBrun »
1958 launch vehicle highlights: Vanguard TV-4 and Atlas 12B

Offline GClark

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Re: Mariner 2 anniversary
« Reply #9 on: 08/28/2012 12:39 pm »
One of my favorite missions.

After I read the Ranger program history, I really understood the "Just Plain Lucky" quote.  Single-string fault tolerant throughout...

Offline plutogno

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Re: Mariner 2 anniversary
« Reply #10 on: 09/02/2012 01:18 pm »
this is how an Italian  magazine imagined a submarine-like Venus lander, post Mariner 2

Offline Art LeBrun

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Re: Mariner 2 anniversary
« Reply #11 on: 09/03/2012 05:35 am »
this is how an Italian  magazine imagined a submarine-like Venus lander, post Mariner 2
Interesting. Wonder what it might have looked like after Mariner 5.
1958 launch vehicle highlights: Vanguard TV-4 and Atlas 12B

Offline Proponent

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Re: Mariner 2 anniversary
« Reply #12 on: 09/03/2012 06:24 am »
Why?  I wasn't aware that Mariner 5 altered the overall impression of Venus' surface conditions much.

Offline Art LeBrun

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Re: Mariner 2 anniversary
« Reply #13 on: 09/03/2012 07:36 am »
Why?  I wasn't aware that Mariner 5 altered the overall impression of Venus' surface conditions much.
The dense atmosphere was refracting the radio occultation experiment and the signal was still being received almost 7 minutes after Mariner had crossed behind the limb. This gave a pressure value much higher than previously expected which helped the USSR to further develop their Venera landers.
1958 launch vehicle highlights: Vanguard TV-4 and Atlas 12B

Offline Art LeBrun

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Re: Mariner 2 anniversary
« Reply #14 on: 09/10/2012 09:13 pm »
View of Mariner 2 in Hanger AE during processing for flight.
1958 launch vehicle highlights: Vanguard TV-4 and Atlas 12B

Offline Ares67

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Re: Mariner 2 anniversary
« Reply #15 on: 09/11/2012 04:02 pm »

Offline Ares67

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Re: Mariner 2 anniversary
« Reply #16 on: 09/11/2012 04:07 pm »
Why?  I wasn't aware that Mariner 5 altered the overall impression of Venus' surface conditions much.
The dense atmosphere was refracting the radio occultation experiment and the signal was still being received almost 7 minutes after Mariner had crossed behind the limb. This gave a pressure value much higher than previously expected which helped the USSR to further develop their Venera landers.

And here some of Mariner 5 - launched 45 years ago (June 14, 1967)

Offline plutogno

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Re: Mariner 2 anniversary
« Reply #17 on: 09/16/2012 02:26 pm »
A few additional pictures of Mariner 2
- a line drawing (in the folded config for launch). it is a pity that JPL no longer releases this kind of images
- the microwave spectrometer
- the solar wind instrument
- a diagram of Venus as seen during the flyby with the scan points

Offline Art LeBrun

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Re: Mariner 2 anniversary
« Reply #18 on: 09/16/2012 09:21 pm »
From the wonderful world of film emulsions comes two images of the Mariner 2 project..........
« Last Edit: 09/16/2012 09:26 pm by Art LeBrun »
1958 launch vehicle highlights: Vanguard TV-4 and Atlas 12B

Offline simonbp

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Re: Mariner 2 anniversary
« Reply #19 on: 09/18/2012 05:47 am »
Beautiful pictures, Art.

Do you have any of the early Mariners in the JPL high bay?

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