posted 01-25-2014 01:35 PM               

Space Cover #250: 1966 Voyager Test

This cover commemorates the first of a series of high-altitude experiments to investigate parachute designs and techniques that might be incorporated into Voyager (later renamed Viking) spacecraft scheduled for unmanned soft landing on Mars in the planned 1973 missions, The experiment was conducted on August 30, 1966 by NASA from Walker AFB. Walker Air Force Base is a now closed United States Air Force base that was located three miles south of Roswell, New Mexico.

The 15 foot diameter, 1,600 pound disc-shaped flight unit containing a packaged test parachute, instruments to record loads and parachute deployment, and ring of 12 small rockets for acceleration was carried by balloon to between 120,000 and 125,000 feet altitude then released on ground command. Acceleration rockets ignited as planned, propelling unit upward at about 850 miles-per-hour into arching trajectory. The parachute deployed and the system descended in planned recovery area at White Sands Missile Range, New Mexico.

This cover may be the earliest Voyager (Viking) mission cover. Do you know of any other early precursor covers?

posted 01-28-2014 12:41 PM               

Thanks for sharing with others your huge knowledge about astrophilately. And thanks too for opening my mind to new space events. I hope you keep writing for +250 SCOTW at least.

Concerning this topic, your cover bears the earliest date I have ever seen for Project Voyager.

This is the cover I have about this project.

Please pay attention to two lines blue mark "PLANETARY ENTRY PARACHUTE PROGRAM" or simply PEPP.

The use of balloons for testing materials and procedures for future descending/landing in other planets is the real goal of this project.

posted 07-27-2014 12:15 AM               

The 1967 tests were follow ons to the test in August 1966. The only other cover I've seen for these tests is the one Toni posted above.

posted 05-12-2017 03:16 PM               

• add-on cachet (sticker) in German language

• the signature of John C. McFall Jr, PEPP NASA engineer at Langley