Oscilloscope Telemetry Control Panel

Oscilloscope Telemetry Control Panel

Tektronix Type RM Oscilloscope, manufactured by Tektronix, Portland, OR.

Metal outer case, 19 X 18^1/2 X 7^1/2 in., with interior electronics having a total weight of 25.6 lbs. VERTICAL and HORIZONTAL positioning, along with TRIGGER, SWEEP TIME/CM, PWR. controls, plus data ports located between dual hand brackets at the front. Blue and silver sticker on front reads "N.A.S.A. 803221", with red red stamp "963-3 / TLM-LAB". Manufacturer label reads "TYPE RM 504 OSCILLOSCOPE / SERIAL 000697". On back, silver tag reads "CONNECTED FOR / 117 V / VOLTAGE RANGE 105-125V / FREQ. RANGE 50-800~", and silver sticker "GENERAL DYNAMICS CONVAIR / MEASUREMENT CONTROL / 03-06-74 / CALIBRATED / 06-06-74 / DUE DATE"

The Type 504 RM contains a simple ground referenced vertical amplifier, and this vintage model still functions when plugged in and turned on.

The stenciled “963-3 TLM-LAB” (for Telemetry Laboratory) and the “General Dynamics Corvair Measurement Control” sticker show that this instrument was used in Hangar J at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station during the earliest days of human space exploration. 

In this building, Atlas missiles were modified into space launch vehicles, and the Mercury spacecraft were attached. During the Atlas missions that carried the first four Americans into orbit, the telemetry receivers were in Hangar J. The Convair division of General Dynamics designed and built the Atlas, and they were responsible for that telemetry.

Oscilloscopes (commonly referred to as O-Scopes) display graphs that show a variation of voltage over time. Engineers use them for testing to monitor signals and verify proper functionality, voltage levels, and proper timing differences in electrical hardware. Based on the manufacture date, this telemetry control panel could have been used in Skylab in the early/mid '70s, the Shuttle era of the late '70s/early 80s, or the Apollo-Soyuz Test Project that launched in 1975. The telemetry control panel's primary use was either in Mission Control to troubleshoot ground systems that supported the aforementioned flights, or it could have been used in a related NASA lab that was responsible for flight hardware testing.

LITERATURE

Additional “TLM-LAB” information on page 10: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1tXRgaOXBAbdWWimdyvEOEJcmt_Tkp4thP9AxaWD4gI0/edit?usp=sharing