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Timeline for answer to Agena docking and RCS Brakes in First Man by Organic Marble

Current License: CC BY-SA 4.0

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May 15, 2019 at 2:33 vote accept penguin99
May 15, 2019 at 2:33 vote accept penguin99
May 15, 2019 at 2:33
May 6, 2019 at 16:59 comment added Organic Marble @kikjezrous if the information in the linked source is not sufficient for you, please ask a separate question.
May 6, 2019 at 16:45 comment added Anton Hengst Why was the mission terminated after the use of the RCS? If RCS propellent was not to be used until re-eentry anyways, why would they have not completed docking and then re-entered using the remaining propellant, as it was evidently sufficient enough to maintain attitude during re-entry?
May 3, 2019 at 15:48 comment added penguin99 Ah, alright. On a side note, it's really nice to be answered by an actual space flight engineer. Thank you so much, sir! :)
May 3, 2019 at 15:44 comment added Organic Marble It didn't have much to do with the earth's gravity (although that is what holds it in orbit). A spacecraft in orbit will accelerate (start to move or rotate) when a force pushes on it. It will continue to accelerate as long as the force acts on it. If the mass of the spacecraft suddenly gets smaller, the acceleration gets bigger. The famous equation F=ma describes this. In this case, the force was the jet firing. They couldn't stop the ship from accelerating because they couldn't shut the jet off.
May 3, 2019 at 15:39 comment added penguin99 Why did the roll over continue for a really long time? Is it because the earth's gravity was causing it to revolve that way without any opposing friction? Like a never ending car drift on a smooth road?
May 3, 2019 at 15:36 comment added Organic Marble Redundant in spacecraft design is not a bad thing. It simply means that there is a backup system. If the primary system never fails, the 'redundant' system may never be used.
May 3, 2019 at 15:35 history edited Organic Marble CC BY-SA 4.0
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May 3, 2019 at 15:35 comment added penguin99 Why do you say redundant?
May 3, 2019 at 15:33 history answered Organic Marble CC BY-SA 4.0