Mission timeline (as flown)¶

The model records the Apollo 11 flight as it actually happened, separately from the planned operations: an individual mission cut into consecutive timeslices (periods) tied to the planned mission phases, with snapshots (instants) that record mission time and other values, and the functions being performed. This page is for anyone who needs the as-flown record: operations reviewers, analysts comparing plan and actual, and newcomers who want the mission's chronology.

The flight is one example run through the nominal plan of the concept of operations: the concept defines the phases and the constraints that time them (see its trajectory and timing drivers); this page shows how one flight met them.

14

timeslices (flight periods)

28

snapshots (recorded instants)

13

planned phases covered

191.8 h

splashdown, mission elapsed time

195.3 h

planned mission duration

Flight timeline¶

Product Flight timeline
A Gantt chart of the as-flown timeslices against mission elapsed time, each labelled with the planned mission phase it belongs to; diamonds mark the recorded snapshots.
Use it to see when each part of the flight happened and how long it lasted, and relate the flight to the planned mission phases.

The planned phases and their operations are described on the concept of operations page.

The flight is a chain of 14 timeslices from crewIngress to recoveryAndQuarantine; every one is tied to a planned phase, covering 13 planned phases.
The longest periods are the coasts, translunarCoast (72 h) and transearthCoast (58 h); next is lunarOrbitInsertion (22 h).
translunarInjection and transpositionAndDocking share the planned phase TransLunarInjectionPhase.

The lunar module Eagle in lunar orbit, photographed from Columbia — Undocking, 20 July 1969: Eagle, with Armstrong and Aldrin aboard, in landing configuration in lunar orbit, seen from Columbia. The probes below the footpads signalled contact with the surface. NASA, public domain.

Buzz Aldrin standing on the lunar surface beside the lunar module — On the surface, 21 July 1969 (UTC): Aldrin beside Eagle during the moonwalk, photographed by Armstrong with the 70 mm lunar surface camera. NASA, public domain.

The Apollo 11 crew in a life raft beside the command module after splashdown — Recovery, 24 July 1969: the crew, in biological isolation garments, wait in a raft for the helicopter from USS Hornet; the fourth man is a Navy swimmer. NASA, public domain.

Event log¶

Product Event log
Every recorded instant of the flight in time order, with its mission elapsed time, the period it belongs to, and the values recorded at that instant.
Use it to look up when a mission event happened and what the model records about the vehicle at that moment.

MET (hhh:mm:ss)	MET [h]	Event	Period	Description	Recorded values
-002:30:00	-2.50	atIngress	crewIngress	The flight crew begins entering the Command Module 'Columbia'.	commandModule.cabinPressure = 101 kPa; missionSystem.location = Ingressing Command Module 'Columbia'; missionSystem.status = Performing pre-flight checks; commandModule.oxygenLevel = 21 %
-001:00:00	-1.00	atIngressComplete	crewIngress	Crew is secured and the Command Module hatch is sealed.	commandModule.cabinPressure = 34 kPa; commandModule.oxygenLevel = 100 %
000:00:00	0.00	atT0	liftoff	State Activation: LaunchPhase begins with liftoff.	stage1.thrust = 35,100 kN; missionSystem.velocity = 0 m/s
000:02:48	0.05	atSICSeparation	liftoff	Separation Event: The S-IC first stage separates.	missionSystem.altitude = 67 km; missionSystem.velocity = 2,400 m/s
000:09:00	0.15	atSIISeparation	liftoff	Separation Event: The S-II second stage separates.	missionSystem.altitude = 185 km; missionSystem.velocity = 6,800 m/s
002:47:16	2.79	atTLI	translunarInjection	State Activation: TransLunarInjectionPhase begins with the S-IVB burn.	stage3.engineStatus = Burning
002:53:04	2.88	atTLIComplete	translunarInjection	The TLI burn is complete, placing the vehicle on a translunar trajectory.	missionSystem.status = Translunar trajectory established; missionSystem.velocity = 10,840 m/s
003:10:00	3.17	atCSMSeparation	transpositionAndDocking	Separation Event: The CSM separates from the S-IVB/SLA.	csm.status = Separated and maneuvering; csm.relativeVelocity = 0.5 m/s
003:20:00	3.33	atCSLMDocking	transpositionAndDocking	The CSM has turned around and is docking with the LM.	spacecraft.status = Soft docked; commandModule.dockingProbeStatus = Capture latches engaged
004:00:00	4.00	atExtractionComplete	transpositionAndDocking	The docked CSM and LM have been extracted from the S-IVB stage.	spacecraft.status = Docked stack extracted
004:00:01	4.00	atTLCStart	translunarCoast	State Activation: TransLunarCoastPhase begins.	spacecraft.status = Passive thermal control (barbecue roll) initiated
075:51:50	75.86	atLOI	lunarOrbitInsertion	State Activation: LunarOrbitInsertionPhase begins with the LOI burn.	serviceModule.engineStatus = Burning (SPS); serviceModule.fuelRemaining = 18,400 kg
075:57:50	75.96	atLOIComplete	lunarOrbitInsertion	The LOI burn is complete and the spacecraft is in a stable orbit.	missionSystem.status = In stable elliptical lunar orbit; missionSystem.orbitalParameters = 113km x 314km
098:00:00	98.00	atDescentPrep	descentPreparation	State Activation: LunarOrbitOperationsDescentPreparationPhase begins.	lm.powerStatus = Activated on internal batteries
098:05:00	98.08	atLMUndocking	descentPreparation	Separation Event: The LM undocks from the CSM.
100:03:25	100.06	atPDI	poweredDescent	State Activation: PoweredDescentPhase begins with Powered Descent Initiation.	lunarModuleDescentStage.engineStatus = Burning; lunarModuleDescentStage.throttleLevel = 90 %
100:15:40	100.26	atLanding	poweredDescent	The Lunar Module 'Eagle' touches down in the Sea of Tranquility.	lunarModuleDescentStage.engineStatus = Shutdown; lunarModuleDescentStage.propellantRemaining = 45 kg
106:45:00	106.75	atEVAStart	lunarSurfaceOps	State Activation: LunarSurfaceOperationsPhase begins with the first EVA.	spaceSuits.status = Nominal; spaceSuits.oxygenRemaining = 6.5 h
109:15:00	109.25	atEVAEnd	lunarSurfaceOps	The EVA is complete and the crew are back inside the LM.	lm.samplesStowed = true; lm.cabinPressure = 34 kPa
124:22:01	124.37	atLunarLiftoff	ascentAndRendezvous	State Activation: LunarAscentRendezvousPhase begins with liftoff from the Moon.
127:50:00	127.83	atLunarDocking	ascentAndRendezvous	The LM Ascent Stage has completed rendezvous and docks with the CSM.	missionSystem.status = Docked in lunar orbit, preparing for crew transfer
132:55:00	132.92	atTEI	transearthInjection	State Activation: TransEarthInjectionPhase begins with the TEI burn.
132:57:31	132.96	atTECStart	transearthCoast	State Activation: TransEarthCoastPhase begins.	spacecraft.status = Passive thermal control (barbecue roll) initiated
191:10:00	191.17	atCMSMSeparation	reentryAndLanding	Separation Event: The Command Module separates from the Service Module.
191:25:00	191.42	atReentry	reentryAndLanding	State Activation: ReentryLandingPhase begins as the CM hits the atmosphere.	commandModule.gForce = 6.5 gn; commandModule.heatshieldTemp = 2,760 K
191:46:35	191.78	atSplashdown	reentryAndLanding	The Command Module 'Columbia' splashes down in the Pacific Ocean.
192:30:00	192.50	atRecovery	recoveryAndQuarantine	State Activation: RecoveryQuarantinePhase begins with crew retrieval.
193:00:00	193.00	atRecoveryComplete	recoveryAndQuarantine	The Command Module is hoisted aboard the recovery ship.	commandModule.status = Secured on deck of USS Hornet

Flight data¶

Product Flight data
The trajectory values in the flight record: inertial velocity and altitude of the mission system at each event that records them.
Use it to check the ascent profile at staging events and the velocity reached at the end of the TLI burn.

From 0 m/s at atT0 the vehicle reaches 10,840 m/s at atTLIComplete: 98% of the escape velocity at the parking-orbit radius the model's Δv analysis uses (6,563 km, 11,021 m/s, computed by this page). Altitude is recorded at atSICSeparation, atSIISeparation only.

The other 33 recorded values, of 17 attributes (cabinPressure, dockingProbeStatus, engineStatus, fuelRemaining, gForce, heatshieldTemp, location, orbitalParameters, oxygenLevel, oxygenRemaining, powerStatus, propellantRemaining, relativeVelocity, samplesStowed, status, throttleLevel, thrust):

MET [h]	Event	Subject	Attribute	Value
-2.50	atIngress	commandModule	cabinPressure	101 kPa
-2.50	atIngress	missionSystem	location	Ingressing Command Module 'Columbia'
-2.50	atIngress	missionSystem	status	Performing pre-flight checks
-2.50	atIngress	commandModule	oxygenLevel	21 %
-1.00	atIngressComplete	commandModule	cabinPressure	34 kPa
-1.00	atIngressComplete	commandModule	oxygenLevel	100 %
0.00	atT0	stage1	thrust	35,100 kN
2.79	atTLI	stage3	engineStatus	Burning
2.88	atTLIComplete	missionSystem	status	Translunar trajectory established
3.17	atCSMSeparation	csm	status	Separated and maneuvering
3.17	atCSMSeparation	csm	relativeVelocity	0.5 m/s
3.33	atCSLMDocking	spacecraft	status	Soft docked
3.33	atCSLMDocking	commandModule	dockingProbeStatus	Capture latches engaged
4.00	atTLCStart	spacecraft	status	Passive thermal control (barbecue roll) initiated
4.00	atExtractionComplete	spacecraft	status	Docked stack extracted
75.86	atLOI	serviceModule	engineStatus	Burning (SPS)
75.86	atLOI	serviceModule	fuelRemaining	18,400 kg
75.96	atLOIComplete	missionSystem	status	In stable elliptical lunar orbit
75.96	atLOIComplete	missionSystem	orbitalParameters	113km x 314km
98.00	atDescentPrep	lm	powerStatus	Activated on internal batteries
100.06	atPDI	lunarModuleDescentStage	throttleLevel	90 %
100.06	atPDI	lunarModuleDescentStage	engineStatus	Burning
100.26	atLanding	lunarModuleDescentStage	engineStatus	Shutdown
100.26	atLanding	lunarModuleDescentStage	propellantRemaining	45 kg
106.75	atEVAStart	spaceSuits	status	Nominal
106.75	atEVAStart	spaceSuits	oxygenRemaining	6.5 h
109.25	atEVAEnd	lm	samplesStowed	true
109.25	atEVAEnd	lm	cabinPressure	34 kPa
127.83	atLunarDocking	missionSystem	status	Docked in lunar orbit, preparing for crew transfer
132.96	atTECStart	spacecraft	status	Passive thermal control (barbecue roll) initiated
191.42	atReentry	commandModule	heatshieldTemp	2,760 K
191.42	atReentry	commandModule	gForce	6.5 gn
193.00	atRecoveryComplete	commandModule	status	Secured on deck of USS Hornet

Plan versus actual¶

Product Plan versus actual
A comparison of the flown record with the plan: mission duration, the order of the flown periods against the planned phase sequence, and the functions performed in each period.
Use it to spot deviations between the as-flown model and the planned operations, and see which logical components were active when.

195.3 h

planned duration

191.8 h

flown, to splashdown

-3.5 h

difference

yes

timeslice order agrees with recorded times

Planned phase (in plan order)	Flown periods	Start MET [h]	End MET [h]
preparation	crewIngress	-2.5	0.0
launch	liftoff	0.0	2.8
tli	translunarInjection, transpositionAndDocking	2.8	4.0
tlc	translunarCoast	4.0	75.9
loi	lunarOrbitInsertion	75.9	98.0
lunarOpsDescentPrep	descentPreparation	98.0	100.1
poweredDescent	poweredDescent	100.1	106.8
lunarSurfaceOps	lunarSurfaceOps	106.8	124.4
lunarAscentRendezvous	ascentAndRendezvous	124.4	132.9
tei	transearthInjection	132.9	133.0
tec	transearthCoast	133.0	191.2
reentryLanding	reentryAndLanding	191.2	192.5
recoveryQuarantine	recoveryAndQuarantine	192.5	193.0

Plan versus actual

Splashdown is recorded at 191.8 h, 3.5 h earlier than the plannedDuration of Apollo11Mission (195.3 h, i.e. 8 days 3 h 18 min). The record continues after splashdown, up to 193.0 h.
The flown periods visit the planned phases in plan order.

Functions performed during the flight (38 performances by 5 logical components, see the functional architecture):

Period	MET [h]	Logical components	Functions performed (by)
crewIngress	-2.5	GroundSupportSystem	performCrewIngress (launchControlCenter)
liftoff	0.0	Crew, GroundSupportSystem, LaunchSystem	analyzeLaunchTelemetryFromGround (launchControlCenter); guideAscentTrajectory (launchVehicle); observeAscentDataFromCockpit (crew); provideOrbitInsertionThrust (launchVehicle); provideStage1Thrust (launchVehicle); provideStage2Thrust (launchVehicle)
translunarInjection	2.8	LaunchSystem	controlTranslunarInjectionBurn (launchVehicle); provideTranslunarInjectionThrust (launchVehicle)
transpositionAndDocking	3.2	Crew, Spacecraft	connectSpacecraft (crew); executeTranspositionManeuver (crew); mechanicallyLatchModules (spacecraft); provideAttitudeControlThrust (spacecraft)
translunarCoast	4.0	Crew, Spacecraft	monitorOnboardSystems (crew); provideAttitudeControlThrust (spacecraft)
lunarOrbitInsertion	75.9	Spacecraft	controlLunarOrbitInsertionBurn (spacecraft); provideLunarOrbitInsertionThrust (spacecraft)
descentPreparation	98.0	Crew, Spacecraft	performOrbitalSystemCheckouts (crew); prepareLanderForSeparation (crew); separateLanderFromOrbiter (spacecraft)
poweredDescent	100.1	Crew, Spacecraft	executeDescentBurn (spacecraft); manuallyPilotLander (crew); performPostLandingCheck (crew)
lunarSurfaceOps	106.8	Crew, EVASystem	completeExtravehicularActivity (crew); conductSurfaceExploration (commander); deploySurfaceExperiments (commander); gatherLunarSamples (commander); provideIndividualLifesupport (spaceSuits)
ascentAndRendezvous	124.4	Crew, Spacecraft	connectSpacecraft (crew); executeAscentBurn (spacecraft); transferCrewAndMaterials (crew)
transearthInjection	132.9	Spacecraft	executeTransearthBurn (spacecraft)
reentryAndLanding	191.2	Spacecraft	deployDecelerators (spacecraft); guideAtmosphericEntry (spacecraft); performSplashdown (spacecraft); separateReturnCapsule (spacecraft)
recoveryAndQuarantine	192.5	GroundSupportSystem	executeQuarantine (recoveryForces); retrieveVehicleAndCrew (recoveryForces)