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An official mission-planning chart produced in advance of the Apollo 6 mission, the final unmanned test flight of the Saturn V rocket, launched April 4, 1968. This map records the predicted ground track of Revolution 3, one of the low-Earth orbital passes planned for the mission. The chart was issued in two sheets, this being Sheet 2.
Produced under the direction of the Department of Defense and the National Aeronautics and Space Administration, this large-format map exemplifies Cold War-era aerospace cartography, combining detailed terrain data with highly technical orbital tracking information. The blue-plotted line across the equator marks the spacecraft’s orbital path, surrounded by annotations for Apollo tracking stations, including both ground-based and shipborne assets. Key stations (such as Ascension (ACN/ASC), Carnarvon (CRO), Hawaii (HAW), and Guam (GWM)) are shown with line-of-sight arcs representing their telemetry and command range.
The chart legend deciphers symbols used for ground station capabilities, differentiating between Unified S-Band (USB) tracking, C band, and telemetry. These stations formed the core of the Apollo Spaceflight Tracking and Data Network (STDN), coordinated globally to maintain near-continuous telemetry and command contact with the spacecraft.
Though Apollo 6 experienced engine anomalies and deviated from its planned apogee trajectory, this chart reflects the intended flight design and tracking infrastructure. It stands as a historical record of the most sophisticated orbital tracking network ever constructed to that date.
