Quizzes & Puzzles0 min ago
Apollo space flights
With all the gagets around now using memory (ram etc) what was the size of the memory taken on the Apollo flights to the moon?
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For more on marking an answer as the "Best Answer", please visit our FAQ.Although seadart's estimate is probably about right one has to keep in mind that the onboard computer and its program didn't have to do much computing. The navigational computing, so essential to a successful mission, was all accomplished in the huge main frame computers at Mission Control in Houston, TX. The data from the computations were then uploaded via telemetry to the onboard computers that simply carried out the instructions. Only a relatively small amount of RAM was required by the on board computer and therefore did not have to store a great deal of guidance data...
Each lunar mission had two 16-bit Raytheon Apollo Guidance Computers (AGC) comprised of 32 kilowords (equivalent to 64kB) of ROM and 4 kilowords (8kB) of RAM, one in the Command Module and another in the Lunar Module as Guidance, Navigation and Control Systems.
The Lunar Module also had an 18-bit TRW Abort Guidance System (AGS) - ROM 2 kilowords (4.5kB) & RAM 2 kilowords (4.5kB) - as a backup to its AGC. The AGS could be used to take off from the Moon, and to rendezvous with the Command Module, but not for landing.
The Saturn V used for orbit insertion had a 28-bit IBM Launch Vehicle Digital Computer (LVDC) with 32 kilowords (112kB) of memory.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Apollo_Guidance_C omputer
The Lunar Module also had an 18-bit TRW Abort Guidance System (AGS) - ROM 2 kilowords (4.5kB) & RAM 2 kilowords (4.5kB) - as a backup to its AGC. The AGS could be used to take off from the Moon, and to rendezvous with the Command Module, but not for landing.
The Saturn V used for orbit insertion had a 28-bit IBM Launch Vehicle Digital Computer (LVDC) with 32 kilowords (112kB) of memory.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Apollo_Guidance_C omputer