How did NASA get those great film shots of Apollo and the Shuttle?
Why Space Exploration Stack Exchange recommends it
Space Stack Exchange users cite it when they need details on launch-camera systems, specific timestamped facts such as the KTM lenses and pad umbilical protection, and the role of imagery in failure analysis.
Recommended by 1 people across 1 different months, 2018 to 2020.
What it is
A 16-minute Curious Droid episode, presented by Paul Shillito, on how NASA filmed Apollo and Space Shuttle launches. It covers the camera systems, long-lens tracking cameras and techniques used to capture liftoff and booster separation. The evolution of launch-monitoring imagery is traced from Saturn V to the shuttle era.
What people said
Strong rec user12102 · 2018-09 · Space Exploration Stack Exchange · on “Post processing of destruction of a rocket”
See this question [LINK] and answers there for a bit of information on radio tracking. There's an excellent video by Paul Shillito (Curious Droid) How did NASA get those great film shots of Apollo and the Shuttle? [LINK] that describes the evolution of camera systems used to monitor spacecraft on their way up and down. It states that the launch of STS-114 had over 400 cameras for example. Recording of imagery of launches with catastrophic and near-catastrophic events has been a critical step in the analysis of both actual failures and close calls. Without this, telemetry data alone would be insufficient. It is only one step in the process, but without data, there is no further analysis. An e
Cites user12102 · 2018-05 · Space Exploration Stack Exchange · on “Did the medium range KTM tracking cameras for the Shuttle really have a "150 inch lens"?”
The Curious Droid YouTube video How did NASA get those great film shots of Apollo and the Shuttle? [this video] found here [LINK] and linked-to in this comment [LINK] contains the following passage starting at 05:26 : This piece of footage here of the shuttle Discovery at T+40 seconds is shot from a medium distance camera about 3.8 kilometers from the launch pad using a 150 inch lens with a 4,000 mm focal length as the shuttle is accelerating through 20,000 feet. As discovery goes through a 145,000 feet at 123 seconds into flight, the boosters separate, which is captured here by another 150 inch, 4,000 mm focal length lens on a KTM. The weight of the lens alone on these was about 115 kilograms, a
Cites karthikeyan · 2018-11 · Space Exploration Stack Exchange · on “How are the liquid propellant umbilical cord protected from the exhaust?”
The launch pad umbilical cords supply propellant to the rocket, and will definitely have some remaining at the time of liftoff. I remember the Saturn V footage wherein a heavy protection door slams in front of the cord to protect it from exhaust plume (12:40 at this Curious Droid’s video link - How did NASA get those great film shots of Apollo and... [this video] ). But take the Electron Rocket’s launch [LINK] , where the umbilical cord, presumably LOx line, is left dangling. How are these lines protected from catching fire, when the hot exhaust gases hit them? Has there been any incident in past where the umbilical cord caught on fire?
Cites Organic Marble · 2020-12 · Space Exploration Stack Exchange · on “Saturn V launch footage from in/on first S-IC stages”
Not an answer to what was asked, but this video [this video] has some flight footage inside of an LH2 tank; unfortunately it's in the corner of the frame and has a typical youtube commentator yammering on.