Actuator, Dye Marker, Apollo

To assist rescue teams trying to locate a Command Module after an ocean landing, the spacecraft was provided with a Dye Marker Actuator in the spacecraft's forward compartment. The actuator was designed to release a packet of dye and a 12 foot-long communications umbilical into the water when a switch was thrown by an astronaut. The dye was sufficient to visibly color 1000 square feet of the ocean surface for 12 hours. The communications umbilical was designed to connect with the microphone headsets worn by rescue personnel, thereby enabling direct two-way communications with the crew inside the Command Module.

This actuator was discovered within a collection of miscellaneous components transferred to NASM following the completion of the Apollo Program. Its precise history has not yet been determined.