Apollo 8

Apollo Control, Houston here; 81 hours, 43 minutes. We have not yet acquired nor have we put in a call, but since it's about that time, we thought we had better come up and let everybody know we're here. We have acquisition now and we're getting telemetry data. And apparently Mike Collins is going to wait a few minutes before he initiates the conversation. Here we go with the call. Let's bring it up.

And this is Apollo Control. Let's see our cabin temperature. Cabin pressure is 4.9 [psi]. Cabin temperature, 77 degrees [F] and we apparently have the biomed switch on none of the pilots at this point. We're getting no data there. Here goes our call.

And this is Apollo Control, Houston. It sounds like another long, quiet - very much of a working pass. The 81 hours, 51 minutes, the - with Frank Borman up as you heard. He'll be very busy flying the spacecraft. Lovell continues doing Program 22 auto optic exercises. Got just a solid block, one after another to do through this entire rev. Bill Anders is sandwiching - literally sandwiching in an eat period here between additional landmarks, more photography. Here's more conversation.

Ground Elapsed Time, 82 hours to 83 hours, 10 minutes - an hour and 10 minutes - Bill Anders will get a rest, a well deserved one with all his lunch. At 81 hours, 53 minutes this is Apollo Control, Houston. We'll be back up with more action when it occurs.

Apollo Control, Houston; 82 hours, 13 minutes into the flight, and we are in the midst of one of our quieter passes today. We've had very little conversation. Here's what we've had in the last 10 or 15 minutes.

Apollo Control here, that brings us up to the live action. I can't really tell if this conversation will be extended or not. Mike Collins is doing a lot of note taking. Let's hold on for a minute or two and see. Each revolution around the Moon today, the crew has been given a Go approximately about 20 minutes before Loss of Signal. Right now we stand 38 minutes from Loss of Signal on this particular rev. About to pass the navigational updates to the crew. Here it goes.

Apollo Control here. While Mike is passing this update up, we're looking at biomedical data on Jim Lovell. And his mean heart rate is registering 66; his high heart rate over the recent sample period has been 76; his low is - well, we have a new data point here so his low is now 70; his mean rate is 74. He must be moving around a little bit. His respiration rate is up somewhat, 20 to 21, and shows an activity mode as normal. Could be that he just went from the couch down to his G&N station or moved in the opposite direction. Cabin pressure, 4.9; cabin temp, 77 degrees (Fahrenheit, 25°C), where it's been most of the day. Get back now to the update.

Apollo Control here. The crew now is directly opposite the Earth. They're just west the Sea of Tranquillity, just south of the Imbrium Sea, southeast of the big crater Aristarchus, and directly east of the enormous Ocean Procellarum. They're only just a few miles north of a cluster of landing sites which are right along the lunar equator. They're about 8 degrees, 8 lunar degrees north of these sites, four of them that we consider prime sites in that central Apollo zone which is boxed in by an area of about 45 degrees west by 45 degrees east and running 5 degrees north and south of the lunar equator. And that's the area, of course, that the crew have concentrated today on their optics checks as well as their photographic efforts.

This is Apollo Control here. You heard the last transmission from Frank Borman wherein he indicated that he planned a drastic reduction of activities in the next several revs. We've been noting that we - and suggested earlier we had a tired crew. Certainly indicated in Lovell's voice. We've heard very little from Frank, from Bill Anders who is presently in a sleep period. It just could be that it'll wind up our activities in lunar orbit. There's a conference going on, now, around the Flight Director's console, and it will be from that, the ground will make up its mind on what - what, if anything, is needed. What, if anything, we might suggest to Borman. And that undoubtedly will be the subject of a further conference if anything more was needed. Sounded to me like Frank was very definite that he wanted to wrap it up at this point and certainly let Lovell get some rest before Trans-Earth Injection burn. The Trans-Earth Injection burn is planned for 89 hours, 15 minutes; 89 hours, 15 minutes. The major question in our minds on this particular console is whether the spouting off of activities will include the television transmission on the 9th rev, and we don't have the answer to this yet. We should have the answer shortly. At 82 hours, 46 minutes into the flight; this is Apollo Control, Houston.