


The following comes from the early stage of Apollo 15 EVA-2:
142:51:19 Scott: There. Get the lens brush out. Try to take care of those lens. (Pause) Hey, that works pretty good.The following is from the Apollo 15 Technical Debrief:142:51:31 Irwin: Work good?
142:51:32 Scott: Man, does it ever. Bright and shiny.
[Scott, from the 1971 Technical Debrief - "We used the lens brushes on the cameras, and they were very good."][Irwin, from the 1971 Technical Debrief - "On the TV, also."]
[Scott, from the 1971 Technical Debrief - "On the TV also. That lens brush is really a good brush. It cleaned it off very well. The (large) dust brush to clean off the suits seemed to work pretty good. It got the gross dirt off. It didn't get everything. I guess it also worked quite well on the LRV and the LCRU mirrors. (It) cleaned them off pretty well."]
[Scott, from a 1996 letter - "'Lens brush' and 'dust brush' are specific nomenclature to identify the different brushes."]
The following Table contains all references in the Mission Transcripts, Mission Reports, and Technical Debriefings to the Lens Brush and it's use.
Mission |
Phase or Activity |
Time, Image, or Source |
Notes |
| Apollo 14 |
EVA-2 close-out |
135:24:38 |
Al Shepard cleans the TV lens
after catching the cable with his foot and toppling the camera. |
| Apollo 14 |
EVA-2 MET loading |
131:24:57 |
Al Shepard uses the brush to
clean the traverse map after dropping it. |
| Apollo 14 |
EVA-2 MET loading |
131:29:56 |
Al Shepard uses the brush again
possibly to clean the 16-mm DAC (DATA Acquisition Camera) |
| Apollo 14 |
Mission
Report Page 9-9 |
"The little dust that
accumulated on the modular equipment transporter could easily be
removed by brushing. The lunar map collected dust and required brushing
or rubbing with a glove to make the map useable." |
|
| Apollo 15 |
EVA-1 ALSEP deployment |
124:32:29 |
After Dave Scott parks at the
ALSEP deployment site and turns on the TV, we see that the lens is
dusty. During the 1991 mission review for the ALSJ, Dave
commented that Houston should have told the crew to dust the
lens. That won't happen until they reach Station 6, their first
EVA-2 geology stop. |
| Apollo 15 |
EVA-3 close-out |
167:26:33 |
Joe Allen tells Dave Scott to
take both the large dust brush and the lens brush to the VIP
site. The TV camera is getting hot and they hope that brushing
the radiator and lens will help. |
| Apollo 15 |
Station 1 at Elbow Crater |
122:16:23 |
When Ed Fendell pans the TV
camera up-Sun, the view degrades because of light scattered off dust on
the lens. During the 1991 mission review, Dave Scott commented
that a lens cap might have been appropriate. While reviewing the
TV at 122:26:09, he again commented that Houston should have had them
dust the lens. |
| Apollo 15 |
EVA-2 traverse preparations |
142:51:19 |
Dave uses the lens brush to
clean the Hasselblad lens: "Hey, that works pretty good ... Bright and
shiny." They had not brushed the lenses during EVA-1. The
A16 and A17 crews will check their lenses regularly. |
| Apollo 15 |
EVA-3 traverse preparations |
164:02:07 |
Dave and Jim clean each other's
Hasselblad lens. |
| Apollo 15 |
Technical Debrief extract |
160:25:00 |
Mention of using the lens brush
on the cameras and the TV. Dave said," That lens brush is really
a good brush. It cleaned (the TV) off very well." |
| Apollo 15 |
Station 9a at Hadley Rille |
165:20:46 |
Joe Allen requests that they
dust the TV lens. We see Dave in the TV record doing the
dusting. There was considerable dust on the lens at Station 9, as
can be seen in the TV record at 165:03:09. |
| Apollo 15 |
Station 7 at Spur Crater |
145:32:05 |
Jim cleaned the TV lens at
Station 6 and, since then they have driven only 400-500 meters at low
speed. There doesn't appear to be much dust on the lens. |
| Apollo 15 |
Station 2 |
122:41:58 |
While he and Jim examining the
Station 2 boulder, Dave suggests that, "We ought to check the dust on
the lens of these cameras." Theydon't do so at this time.
At 122:46:50
Dave asks Jim, "Is my (Hasselblad) lens too dirty to use?" Jim
replies, "I don't see any dust on it at all." At 123:16:17,
Jim is about to take a second pan and wonders if there is a lot of dust
on his lens. Dave replied, "Didn't look bad, Jim. I just
looked at it." They are becoming conscious of the need to examine
the camera lenses. |
| Apollo 15 |
Station 6 |
143:55:47 |
Shortly after Dave and Jim
arrive at Station 6, Joe asks them to dust the TV lens but then defers
the request. He will repeat the request until 144:41:42 Jim will dust both the TV and LCRU at 144:48:14 just before they leave Station 6. After checking with Dave, he uses the big dust brush to clean the LCRU and, after checking again with Dave, uses the lens brush on the TV. Fendell gets TV of both. Jim does the TV lens cleaning at about 144:49:43. The improvement in picture quality is significant. |