Apollo 9 Flown Cue Card from LM-3 "Spider" - CSI PAD Update (Ex. Jim McDivitt; on-orbit annotations by Schweickart).  This ~8.8" CSI P32 Update card flew with aboard LM-3 “Spider” during her maiden flight on 7 March 1969.  This card spent a total of 240.32.55.54 hours in low-earth orbit, completed 151 revolutions of the earth, and was exposed to the hard vacuum of space for 67 minutes during LM and CSM depressurization for Schweickart's EVA outside the Lunar Module—the only EVA in the Apollo Program prior to Neil Armstrong’s historic first steps on the lunar surface in Apollo 11.  
 
This Update Card is of special significance, as it records the data used in the first burn in the coelliptical rendezvous sequence that would be used after liftoff from the lunar surface on the Apollo 11 mission, including time of ignition, velocity, inertial pitch, and burn trajectory solutions for the first firing of the LM RCS (the Lunar Module’s four-thruster plus-X Reaction Control System).
 
The item itself is printed on thick cardboard, with three Velcro attachments on the reverse for attaching to the LM control panel.  The front of the card features a number of fields for entry of both ground and onboard solutions for the maneuvers, as well as preprinted values determined prior to launch (and in some cases, updated during flight).  CDR James McDivitt has signed and certified the card as flown on LM-3, using his trademark green ink.  
 
Update Cards such as this one provided the crew with a simple tool for recording record mission-critical PAD (“pre-advisory data”) required for each powered orbital maneuver in the Lunar Module’s flight profile, including: 1) when it should occur; 2) the amount by which it should change the spacecraft's velocity; and 3) the direction in which the spacecraft should be pointing at the time of the burn.  All data annotations on the card were added in-flight by LMP Rusty Schweickart.  The transmission and recording of the PAD on this card, as well as comments on the burn, can be found in official mission transcripts (see attached photo for actual transmission of the data written on this card).
 
The CSI (“Coelliptical Sequence Initiation”) maneuver recorded on this card was the first burn in the coellipitcal rendezvous sequence.  The goal of this retrograde burn was to lower the LM’s perigree to roughly 10 nm below and 82 nm behind the CSM in a roughly coelliptical orbit.  If executed correctly, this burn would place the LM at the proper phase angle for the subsequent CDH (“Constant Delta Height”) burn. Trajectory data for the CSI burn was calculated onboard using Program 32, and the solutions corresponded closely with the PAD (“pre-advisory data”) that had been transmitted from the ground.  At 96:16:06.54 GET—about 75 miles behind and above the CSM—the crew ignited the LM RCS for the first time, performing a 30.3 second retrograde burn of 40.0 ft/sec. The retrograde CSI burn slowed the spacecraft down, placing it into a roughly circular orbit approximately 10 nm below and 82 nm behind the CSM. 
 
The descent stage was jettisoned immediately after the start of reaction control system thrusting.  At staging, McDivitt and Schweickart heard a loud bang and saw a cloud of small pieces of debris typical of pyrotechnic charges.  Debris from staging caused a tracking light malfunction, which made visual contact between the two spacecraft difficult Radar lock-on was achieved shortly after CSI, but Dave Scott could no longer see the LM’s tracking light from the CSM.  Roughly 44.5 minutes after CSI, the crew prepared for the second burn in the sequence (CDH Maneuver), and the first burn of the Ascent Propulsion System.  After the CSI burn—and before the subsequent CDH maneuver—the relative motion and various relative rates of the two spacecraft were essentially those planned for the lunar landing missions.  The actual flight rehearsals of the coelliptic sequence during the Apollo 9 mission contributed valuable data for the first lunar landing and lunar-orbit rendezvous in Apollo 11.  
 
When preparing for a specific maneuver, Schweickart retrieved the relevant Update Card from a pouch located in the right-hand stowage area, attaching it to the LM’s control panel within easy reach.  As mission-critical PAD (“pre-advisory data”) for the CDH maneuver was read up from Ground Control prior to the burn, the LMP recorded these values on the current Update Card.  The crew also calculated their own onboard solutions for comparison, recording them below the double line printed on the card. Once the maneuver had been completed, Schweickart removed and stowed the Update card, replacing it with the next card in the rendezvous sequence.
 
According to mission transcripts, just before transferring back to the CSM, Schweickart looked around the LM and said to McDivitt: “Let’s take back some souvenirs. If it’s not screwed down, take it back…” They removed several items, including: a utility light, the LM COAS, the radiation survey viewer, a lithium hydroxide canister, as well as the various procedures books and checklists used during the flight.  Included among these items were the various PAD Update Cards we used throughout the LM-active rendezvous and docking maneuvers, including the present CSI Update card.

Comes with full Orbital Artifacts holographic COA documenting provenance and authenticity.  The item itself is flight-certified on the front by Commander Jim McDivitt.

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