Apollo Archeology

[MrChumley]

A video came up recently on my YouTube feed that I learned something from, and was also intrigued.  I felt compelled to share. 

( video by YouTube user Francois Rautenbach)

At the end of the video he said that he was going to publicly release the software contents of the rope memory in hopes of someone deciphering its functions.   Hunting through the comments reveals that François is still active, and "there is more to come".   

The rope memory modules were marked for Apollo launch AS-202.  AS-202 was the second unmanned, suborbital test flight of a production Block I Apollo Command/Service Module launched with the Saturn IB launch vehicle.

I dunno if this subject has been discussed before, but I find it fascinating!

There is another YouTube user named Fran Blanche who has done some "What's inside" work on a Saturn V launch vehicle computer, and even passed it around to other electronic hobbyists.

 

Does anyone else share my curiosity for Apollo Archeology, and/or have any other cool tidbits (videos, pictures, stories.. Etc) that they can share?

[kurja]

Source for apollo guidance computer system is public (github), is this the same thing?

[NSEP]

Never thought of searching the guidance computer on Earth. But instead, landing on the Moon and going back to the Apollo sites. Is this off-topic? Should i go make a seperate thread.

[magnemoe]

44 minutes ago, NSEP said:

Never thought of searching the guidance computer on Earth. But instead, landing on the Moon and going back to the Apollo sites. Is this off-topic? Should i go make a seperate thread.

None on moon, that outside of landers who deorbited and crashed  at orbital speeds some months after crew returned, it would not be in the lower stage of the LEM only upper. 
That is for the LEM. 

the Saturn 5 guidance computer would either be in the service or command module, if not in command you would only find the not launched versions, spares and the ones used for training. 

[NSEP]

Just now, magnemoe said:

None on moon, that outside of landers who deorbited and crashed  at orbital speeds some months after crew returned, it would not be in the lower stage of the LEM only upper. 
That is for the LEM. 

Oh ok. I did not just mean the guidance computers but like, the whole spacecraft and site. Sorry for being unclear.

[Nibb31]

35 minutes ago, magnemoe said:

the Saturn 5 guidance computer would either be in the service or command module, if not in command you would only find the not launched versions, spares and the ones used for training. 

Actually the Saturn V guidance computer was part of the instrument unit that was on the S-IVB stage, so most of them crashed into the Moon or burned up in Earth's atmosphere. A couple of them are floating around in heliocentric orbit, so it might be fun to charter a BFS to go visit them one day... You might even be able to bring one back !

Edited October 19, 2017 by Nibb31

[KSK]

3 hours ago, Nibb31 said:

Actually the Saturn V guidance computer was part of the instrument unit that was on the S-IVB stage, so most of them crashed into the Moon or burned up in Earth's atmosphere. A couple of them are floating around in heliocentric orbit, so it might be fun to charter a BFS to go visit them one day... You might even be able to bring one back !

Slightly tangential to this thread but I heard an interesting podcast about the archaelogical significance of space junk in general. It suggested something similar to @Nibb's suggestion - that if space tourism does take off , then tours of historical satellites, booster stages etc. might be a big thing.