MEASURING THE MOON WITH APOLLO 15 
Lawrence A. Schimerman 
USAF AERONAUTICAL CHART AND INFORMATION CENTER 
St. Louis, Missouri 
ABSTRACT 
Apollo Mission 15's entry into lunar orbit on July 29, 1971, 
brought a sophisticated photogrammetric camera system to lunar 
proximity for the first time. The resultant 2,230 frame terrain 
exposures, with companion stellar photographs and laser altimetry, 
provide the means for a new photogrammetric determination of the 
lunar figure. : 
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The United States Air Force Aeronautical Chart and Information 
Center has undertaken the analytical photogrammetric reduction of 
this data for the National Aeronautics and Space Administration. 
Included are development of a basic lunar control system and 
evaluation of spacecraft ephemeris, derived from earthbased track- 
ing data. : : 
The Apollo photogrammetric system characteristics are summarized 
and analytical triangulation techniques described, including use 
of orbital constraints and laser altimeter data. As the full 
solution is scheduled for completion in 1973, results of inter- 
mediate computations bearing on compatibility of triangulated 
photo ray intersections, stellar derived orientations and laser 
‘altimeter defined exposure station heights are presented. Results 
of testing performed with Apollo Metric System photography are 
also reported, including evaluation of attainable accuracies. 
RESUME 
La mesure de la Lune par Apollo 15 
L'entrée de 1a Mission Apollo 15 en orbite lunaire le 29 juillet 
1971 a porté pour la premiére fois en proximité de la Lune un 
systeme trés avancé de chambres photogrammétriques. Les 2.230 
prises de vue du sol lunaire qui en sont résultées, jointes aux 
photographies des étoiles et a l'altimétrie par laser, nous 
fournissent les moyens pour une nouvelle détermination photo- 
grammétrique de la figure de la Lune.