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Show JFamily Weekly II SSI J tprndJnta-th"passeiigfirffir" partment. All the seatslac frmn "th6 center axis of the ship out toward rows of windows which ring the ship. There are .grab rails along all aisles so that you can pull yourself around the cabin during zero gravity. - - that you experienced on the ascent. Then,- as rapidly as lt'cnieeoelerltipn begins to taper off until the ship-i- falling at a terminal velocity of about 450 mph. (Ter- s .. minal velocity is the maximum speed a body1 will fall through air, depending on its shape, its drag, and altitude. It will not fall any faster than the You are a little less than one-- now, which G makes-yo- u IMiffiOlf disk-shap- ed e 0 some are reading, and some have unfastened their seat belts and pulled themselves over to converse with others. You unfasten your belt and begin to float ...... '"awm3&Em?sFxx.around the cabin. Suddenly you hear the buzzing of mechanisms, and the ship jostles a little. You realize that the motor compartment is turning over. You hear-mo- re buzzing of electric motors and hydraulic equipment in the nose of the ship as therotoraareexa. her ship so thMJLwjlH Soon after BlastOff! you get the eerie feeling of weightlessness. At lift-of- f, ship is 400 miles above the earth, conscious of tilLf ailing Thejotorsdbegin jto:jfoldldown, producing an increase in drag whiclryou feel as an increase in your weight JYour Li aUinjg. speed Jhas dropped Ito 150 The blades will act against the thin.upper layers of the earth's atmosphere to orient the -- 1961 MgM 1c1 board ship on pad 2. Lift-of- f in 10 minutes." You leave the waiting room with other passengers, walk a few steps down and into a short tunnel which leads to pad 2. At the end of the tunnel area turnstile and a retract able escalator which is sliding up from an angled well to provide an connection between tunnel and ship. , As your name is called by the stewardess, you go through the turnstile, up the escala- all-weat- n T f September 3, and-enti- re cross-countr- y trip takes only, 19 minutes. Now : everyone Js aboardjandlhe stewardess closes the airtight dodr as the escalator retracts. You hear the ship intercom come on, and iW pilot says : "Please fasten your safety belts and push the recline button on your arm rest. Lift-of- f in three minutes." The. stewardess checks everyone and then fastens herself in. "X minus 20 seconds," says the pilot. ' "Clack" the release. Out a window you can see the ground power-suppl- y lines drop away from the ship. You begin to rise, and you feel yourself sink gently into your chair cushion. You sink deeper as the increases slowly. At 20,000 feet, the ship tips toward the west at a angle. After six minutes, the motor shuts off. Everything is quiet, you have just experienced the transition from multiple gravities to zero gravity. Then you exuberantly realize your weightlessness. You have been pitched into space by reaction, 'and since gravity does not act on one material any differently than another you cannot feel it when you are not supported, or when there is no action of the ship. Yet gravity is bending the path of you and the ship together into a very accurate precalculated ballistic arc. You can float around in the cabin nir,- even though you are moving up, -but you will not feel weight again until your ship plunges back into the dense layers of atmosphere over San Diego. Some of the passengers are dozing, others are looking out the windows at the earth dropping away or the magnificent heavens ; hold-dow- -- 'Wf' fa ns G-for- ce 45-degr- -- v.. . . ; . l. flu ee moment before hitting the dense layers of air, the blades will be f ully retracted again. You get back into your seat and fasten your belt so that you will not drift away. You are at the peak of the trajectory now, 400 miles up and half way across the continent. "Pleaseiasten your- safety belts ; in five minutes," says the pilot. You get into your chair, the stewardess checks and then fastens herself in. You glance out the window and see the West Coast cloud cover rushing up, at more than 10,000 mph. y starting," says the pilot. You begin to feel weight again, increasing swiftly- as the air in the dense layers ofmosphere packs up against the heat shield. Multi-G- s return and build up rapidly from frictional deceleration on the shield. You sink deep into your cushions as you momentarily reach a which ismore than twice peak of - " - - J&- "Re-entr- -- G-for- ce re-ent- ry mph, you are at 20,000 feet altitude7TheIhip is acting like an autogyro," producing more drag as the rotor blades take increasingly bigger bites on the aif. At 3,000 feetrthepiTot throws the rotor fuel and ignition switch, and thirf our blade- tip jets roar into action. The pitch of the rotors has beerTchangeoTsolhey are produc ing lift now; your weight is normal one-and the pilot is slowly settling the helicopter like ship into downtown San Diego. You press the your arm rest and your chair swings upright. The landing e from the window, legs the building tops, then the control tower of the SahTDiego space portrising into view, then 'thump" you're A mobile" unloading escalator rolls up to the ship, "and-yodisembark. . It has been 19 minutes since lift-of- f, G, up-buttoiH- on extendr-Yoircanse- u iiwy jurubiiuuuw u jumutuu uiy jui uiumuiy uuvuivrt u) luinurww Family Weekly, September 3, 1961 . |