[X] My Assistant

[ilbasso]

I'm interested in hearing about and seeing pictures of the kinds of space-related geegaws, doodads, mementos, and other artifacts that other space nuts have collected!

Here's one to share to start things off. In September 1969, my dad went on a VIP tour of the Manned Spaceflight Center (now Johnson) and Kennedy Spaceflight Center. (He got to see Apollo 12 being assembled in the VAB! I'm trying to get copies of his slides.) Anyway, one of the things he was given was this 15 inch by 22 inch (38 x 56 cm), three-dimensional, vacuformed plastic replica of part of the model used for lunar landing simulator trainers. This is a part of Apollo Site 3, in Sinus Medii. The raised surface depicted is roughly 650 meters on a side, too small to be seen in the Apollo 10 photos of the area. I have not been able to find Lunar Orbiter photos of the area. There is no vertical exaggeration in scale.

[Bob Shaw]

That vac-form is a gorgeous item! Very nice, a real treasure - ephemeral, too.

I have:

o Tomato seeds flown aboard the LDEF
o A badge flown aboard Resurs-500 in 1992
o The Challenger flown philatelic cover

and:

o A range of meteorites and tektites

And some coal from the Titanic debris field.

I believe the chap that went after Gus Grissom's Mercury capsule (I tried to persuade Bob Ballard to go for it back in the 80s!) has expressed an interest in hunting for Apollo-era S-1C debris downrange from Cape Kennedy, which would be a serious opportunity for us memorabilia collectors to have parts of the first manned vehicles to go to the Moon. I really *must* get myself organised and buy one of the Data Acquisition Camera film frames recovered from the ocean, real soon now...

Bob Shaw

[ljk4-1]

That vac-form is a gorgeous item! Very nice, a real treasure - ephemeral, too.

I have:

o  Tomato seeds flown aboard the LDEF
o  A badge flown aboard Resurs-500 in 1992
o  The Challenger flown philatelic cover

and:

o  A range of meteorites and tektites

And some coal from the Titanic debris field.

I believe the chap that went after Gus Grissom's Mercury capsule (I tried to persuade Bob Ballard to go for it back in the 80s!) has expressed an interest in hunting for Apollo-era S-1C debris downrange from Cape Kennedy, which would be a serious opportunity for us memorabilia collectors to have parts of the first manned vehicles to go to the Moon.  I really *must* get myself organised and buy one of the Data Acquisition Camera film frames recovered from the ocean, real soon now...

Bob Shaw

Why didn't Robert Ballard go after Grissom's Mercury spacecraft?

Did you ask him before or after he found the Titanic in 1985?