Johannes Kepler used simple mathematics to describe how planets move. Kepler [ http://es.rice.edu/ES/humsoc/Galileo/People/kepler.html ] was an assistant to the most accurate astronomical observer of the time, Tycho Brahe [ http://es.rice.edu/ES/humsoc/Galileo/People/tycho_brahe.html ]. Kepler [ http://www.phys.virginia.edu/classes/109N/1995/lectures/kepler.html ] was able to use Brahe [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap960915.html ]'s data to show that planets move in ellipses around the Sun (Kepler's First Law [ http://zebu.uoregon.edu/~soper/Orbits/kepler1.html ]), that planets move proportionally faster in their orbits when they are nearer the Sun (Kepler's Second Law [ http://zebu.uoregon.edu/~soper/Orbits/kepler2.html ]), and that more distant planets take proportionally longer to orbit the Sun (Kepler's Third Law [ http://scruffy.phast.umass.edu/a114/math1/node1.html ]). Kepler [ http://www.kepler.arc.nasa.gov/johannes.html ] lived from 1571 to 1630, during the time of discovery of the telescope. Kepler [ http://www.astro.uni-bonn.de/~pbrosche/persons/pers_kepler.html ] was one of the few vocal supporters of Galileo [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap980913.html ]'s discoveries and the Copernican system [ http://zebu.uoregon.edu/~soper/Orbits/copernicus.html ] of planets orbiting the Sun [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/sun.html ] instead of the Earth [ http://www.seds.org/nineplanets/nineplanets/earth.html ].
Indians Repulse British With
…
Name of Image
Indians Repulse British With Rocket
Date of Image
2004-04-15
Full Description
During the early introduction of rockets to Europe, they were used only as weapons. Enemy troops in India repulsed the British with rockets. Later, in Britain, Sir William Congreve developed a rocket that could fire to about 9,000 feet. The British fired Congreve rockets against the United States in the War of 1812.
Congreve Rockets
Name of Image
Congreve Rockets
Date of Image
2004-04-15
Full Description
The British fired Congreve rockets against the United States in the War of 1812. As a result Francis Scott Key coined the phrase the "rocket's red glare." Congreve had used a 16-foot guide stick to help stabilize his rocket. William Hale, another British inventor, invented the stickless rocket in 1846. The U.S. Army used the Hale rocket more than 100 years ago in the war with Mexico. Rockets were also used to a limited extent by both sides in the American Civil War.
British used Congreve Rocket
…
Name of Image
British used Congreve Rockets to Attack Napoleon
Date of Image
2004-04-15
Full Description
Sir William Congreve developed a rocket with a range of about 9,000 feet. The incendiary rocket used black powder, an iron case, and a 16-foot guide stick. In 1806, British used Congreve rockets to attack Napoleon's headquarters in France. In 1807, Congreve directed a rocket attack against Copenhagen.
Drawing of a Staged Rocket b
…
Name of Image
Drawing of a Staged Rocket by a Polish artillery expert in 1650
Date of Image
2004-04-15
Full Description
In 1650, a Polish artillery expert, Kazimierz Siemienowicz, published a series of drawings for a staged rocket. These drawing were recreated by artist Larry Toschik
First Flight of a Liquid Pro
…
Title
First Flight of a Liquid Propellant Rocket
Full Description
Dr. Robert H. Goddard and a liquid oxygen-gasoline rocket in the frame from which it was fired on March 16, 1926, at Auburn, Massachusetts. From 1930 to 1941, Dr. Goddard made substantial progress in the development of progressively larger rockets, which attained altitudes of 2400 meters, and refined his equipment for guidance and control, his techniques of welding, and his insulation, pumps and other associated equipment. In many respects, Dr. Goddard laid the essential foundations of practical rocket technology. He is considered one of the fathers of rocketry along with Konstantin Tsiolovsky (1857-1935) and Hermann Oberth (1894-1989).
Date
03/16/1926
NASA Center
Headquarters
Five Pioneers with Scale Mod
…
Name of Image
Five Pioneers with Scale Models of Their Missiles
Date of Image
1950-01-01
Full Description
Five pioneers pose with scale models of their missiles they created in the 1950s. From left to right: Dr. Ernst Stuhlinger, a member of the original German rocket team who directed the Research Projects Office, Army Ballistic Missile Agency (ABMA), Major General Holger Toftoy, who consolidated U.S. missile and rocketry development, Professor Herman Oberth, a rocket pioneer and Dr. von Braun's mentor, Dr. Wernher von Braun, Director, Development Operation Division, ABMA, and Dr. Robert Lusser, who served as assistant director for Reliability Engineering for ABMA. This photographis was taken February 1, 1956 by Hank Walker and appeared in February 27, 1956 issue of Life magazine.
Robert Goddard with his Doub
…
Title
Robert Goddard with his Double Acting Engine Rocket in 1925
Full Description
Dr. Robert H. Goddard with his complete rocket with the double- acting engine in November 1925, following more than two years of pump development based on the idea of a separate pump for each propellant. Dr. Goddard made an important change in his pump technique by combining both pumps into a single double acting unit. Though gas pressure, rather than pumps, was used on his first successful liquid-propellant rocket shot of March 16, 1926, the idea of combining both pumps into a single unit led to a successful solution of the pump problem and hence marked a significant advance.
Date
1925
NASA Center
Headquarters
Dr. Goddard Observes Launch
…
Title
Dr. Goddard Observes Launch Site
Full Description
Dr. Robert H. Goddard observes the launch site from his launch control shack while standing by the firing control panel. From here he can fire, release, or stop testing if firing was unsatisfactory. Firing, releasing, and stop keys are shown on panel. The rocket is situated in the launch tower.
Date
11/01/1974
NASA Center
Headquarters
Dr. Goddard at his Launch Co
…
Title
Dr. Goddard at his Launch Control Shack
Full Description
Dr. Robert H. Goddard observes the launch site from his launch control shack while standing by the firing control panel. From here he can fire, release, or stop testing if firing was unsatisfactory. The sandbags on the roof provide protection against possible accident.
Date
03/16/1963
NASA Center
Headquarters
Robert Goddard With Kris, Gu
…
Title
Robert Goddard With Kris, Guggenheim, Lindbergh and Ljungquist
Full Description
Standing in front of the rocket in the launch tower on September 23, 1935, are (left to right): Albert Kisk, Goddard's brother-in-law and machinist, Harry F. Guggenheim, Dr. Robert H. Goddard, Col. Charles A. Lindbergh and N.T. Ljungquist, machinist. Charles Lindbergh, an advocate for Goddard and his research, helped secure a grant from the Daniel and Florence Guggenheim Foundation in 1930. With that money Goddard and his wife moved to Roswell, New Mexico, where he could conduct research and launch rockets while avoiding the scrutiny and criticism of his colleagues and the press.
Date
09/23/1935
NASA Center
Headquarters
Dr. Goddard Transports Rocke
…
Title
Dr. Goddard Transports Rocket
Full Description
Dr. Robert H. Goddard tows his rocket to the launching tower behind a Model A Ford truck, 15 miles northwest of Roswell, New Mexico. 1930- 1932. Dr. Goddard has been recognized as the "Father of American Rocketry" and as one of three pioneers in the theoretical exploration of space. Robert Hutchings Goddard was born in Worcester, Massachusetts, on October 15, 1882. He was a theoretical scientist as well as a practical engineer. His dream was the conquest of the upper atmosphere and ultimately space through the use of rocket propulsion. Dr. Goddard, who died in 1945, was probably as responsible for the dawning of the Space Age as the Wright Brothers were for the begining of the Air Age. Yet his work attracted little serious attention during his lifetime. When the United States began to prepare for the conquest of space in the 1950's, American rocket scientists began to recognize the debt owed to the New England professor. They discovered that it was virtually impossible to construct a rocket or launch a satellite without acknowledging the work of Dr. Goddard. This great legacy was covered by more than 200 patents, many of which were issued after his death.
Date
11/04/1974
NASA Center
Headquarters
Robert Goddard's Rocket Afte
…
Title
Robert Goddard's Rocket After Flight
Full Description
Dr. Robert H. Goddard's rocket after flight in New Mexico on April 19, 1932. Those carrying the rocket are (left to right): Nils Ljungquist, machinist, most likely Charles Mansur, welder, Goddard's brother-in-law and machinist Albert Kisk, and Goddard. The rocket had new guiding vanes controlled by a gyroscope which helped stabilization. In 1930, with a grant from the Guggenheim Foundation, Goddard and his crew moved from Massachusetts to Roswell, New Mexico, to conduct research and perform test flights away from the public eye. This rocket was one of many that he launched in Roswell from 1930-1932 and from 1934-1941. Dr. Goddard has been recognized as the father of American rocketry and as one of the pioneers in the theoretical exploration of space. His dream was the conquest of the upper atmosphere and ultimately space through the use of rocket propulsion. When the United States began to prepare for the conquest of space in the 1950's, American rocket scientists began to recognize the debt owed to the New England professor. They discovered that it was virtually impossible to construct a rocket or launch a satellite without acknowledging the work of Dr. Goddard.
Date
04/19/1932
NASA Center
Headquarters
Dr. Robert Goddard at Clark
…
Title
Dr. Robert Goddard at Clark University
Full Description
Dr. Robert H. Goddard at a blackboard at Clark University in Worcester, Massachusetts, in 1924. Goddard began teaching physics in 1914 at Clark and in 1923 was named the Director of the Physical Laboratory. In 1920 the Smithsonian Institution published his seminal paper A Method for Reaching Extreme Altitudes where he asserted that rockets could be used to send payloads to the Moon. Declaring the absurdity of rockets ever reaching the Moon, the press mocked Goddard and his paper, calling him "Moon Man." To avoid further scrutiny Goddard eventually moved to New Mexico where he could conduct his research in private. Dr. Goddard, died in 1945, but was probably as responsible for the dawning of the Space Age as the Wrights were for the beginning of the Air Age. Yet his work attracted little serious attention during his lifetime. However, when the United States began to prepare for the conquest of space in the 1950's, American rocket scientists began to recognize the debt owed to the New England professor. They discovered that it was virtually impossible to construct a rocket or launch a satellite without acknowledging the work of Dr. Goddard.
Date
1924
NASA Center
Headquarters
Dr. Robert Goddard
Title
Dr. Robert Goddard
Full Description
The Goddard Space Flight Center was named in honor of Dr. Robert Goddard, a pioneer in rocket development. Dr. Goddard received patents for a multi-stage rocket and liquid propellants in 1914 and published a paper describing how to reach extreme altitudes six years later. That paper, "A Method of Reaching Extreme Altitudes," detailed methods for raising weather-recording instruments higher than what could be achieved by balloons and explained the mathematical theories of rocket propulsion. The paper, which was published by the Smithsonian Institution, also discussed the possibility of a rocket reaching the moon-a position for which the press ridiculed Goddard. Yet several copies of the report found their way to Europe, and by1927, the German Rocket Society was established, and the German Army began its rocket program in 1931. Goddard, meanwhile, continued his work. By 1926, he had constructed and tested the first rocket using liquid fuel. Goddard's work largely anticipated in technical detail the later German V-2 missiles, including gyroscopic control, steering by means of vanes in the jet stream of the rocket motor, gimbal-steering, power-driven fuel pumps and other devices.
Date
01/01/1932
NASA Center
Goddard Space Flight Center
Henry Sachs with Robert Godd
…
Title
Henry Sachs with Robert Goddard's Rocket in New Mexico
Full Description
Henry Sachs, machinist, is shown with Dr. Robert H. Goddard's rocket used in the first flight at Roswell, New Mexico on December 30, 1930. The rocket attained an altitude of about 2,000 feet and speed of about 500 miles per hour. In 1930, with a grant from the Guggenheim Foundation, Goddard and his crew moved from Massachusetts to Roswell, New Mexico, to conduct research and test flights. This rocket was one of many that he launched in Roswell from 1930 to 1932 and from 1934 to 1941. Dr. Goddard has been recognized as the father of american rocketry and as one of the pioneers in the theoretical exploration of space. His dream was the conquest of the upper atmosphere and ultimately space through the use of rocket propulsion. When the United States began to prepare for the conquest of space in the 1950's, American rocket scientists began to recognize the debt owed to the New England professor. They discovered that it was virtually impossible to construct a rocket or launch a satellite without acknowledging the work of Dr. Goddard.
Date
12/30/1930
NASA Center
Headquarters
Robert Goddards's Tower and
…
Title
Robert Goddards's Tower and Shelter at Camp Devens
Full Description
Dr. Robert H. Goddard's tower and shelter at the Army artillery range at Camp Devens, in Ayer, Massachusetts in the winter of 1929-1930. Goddard originally began testing rockets on his aunt's farm in Auburn, Massachusetts until the local police, fire department and townspeople became concerned about the noise and menace to the public the rockets created. Although Goddard maintained that the rockets were not a danger, he soon moved to Camp Devens, Massachusetts. There he was able to launch the rockets without attracting attention.
Date
1929
NASA Center
Headquarters
Fourth Flight of a Liquid Pr
…
Title
Fourth Flight of a Liquid Propellant Rocket
Full Description
Dr. Robert H. Goddard's rocket is in the tower, ready for the July 17, 1929, test at Auburn, Massachusetts. This was the fourth flight of a liquid-propellant rocket. Rocks were piled on pipes directly under the nozzle, on a frame suspended from the two 3/8 inch pipe guides to keep the latter as straight as possible by the tension produced in this way. The noise from this particular rocket launch attracted the attention of the entire community. When the public grew concerned over the potential hazards of the rockets, Goddard was forced to conduct his test flights on the Army artillery range at Camp Devens, Massachusetts.
Date
07/17/1929
NASA Center
Headquarters
Dr. Hermarn Oberth, Dr. von
…
Name of Image
Dr. Hermarn Oberth, Dr. von Braun, and Dr. Charles Lundquist
Date of Image
1958-06-01
Full Description
Professor Hermann Oberth and Dr. von Braun are briefed on satellite orbits by Dr. Charles A. Lundquist at Army Ballistic Missile Agency, Redstone Arsenal, Huntsville, Alabama.
American Rocket Society
Name of Image
American Rocket Society
Date of Image
2004-04-15
Full Description
In addition to Dr. Robert Goddard's pioneering work, American experimentation in rocketry prior to World War II grew, primarily in technical societies. This is an early rocket motor designed and developed by the American Rocket Society in 1932.
Goddard Rocket With Turbopum
…
Title
Goddard Rocket With Turbopumps
Full Description
Rocket with turbopumps that inject propellants into the combustion chamber on its assembly frame is shown without its casing at the Goddard shop in Roswell, New Mexico, in 1940. With Dr. Robert Goddard (far left) is Nils Ljungquist, machinist, Albert Kisk, brother-in-law and machinist, and Charles Mansur, welder. Dr. Goddard has been recognized as the father of American rocketry and as one of the pioneers in the theoretical exploration of space. His dream was the conquest of the upper atmosphere and ultimately space through the use of rocket propulsion. When the United States began to prepare for the conquest of space in the 1950's, American rocket scientists began to recognize the debt owed to the New England professor. They discovered that it was virtually impossible to construct a rocket or launch a satellite without acknowledging the work of Dr. Goddard.
Date
1940
NASA Center
Headquarters
Professor Oberth and Dr. von
…
Name of Image
Professor Oberth and Dr. von Braun at ARS Banquet
Date of Image
1961-10-19
Full Description
Dr. Wernher von Braun holds the coveted Hermarn Oberth award presented to him by Professor Oberth during the banquet hosted by the Alabama Section of the American Rocket Society (ARS), on October 19, 1961. The Oberth award was given for outstanding technical contributions to the field of astronautics or for the promotion and advancement of astronautical sciences.
Dr. von Braun with a Model o
…
Name of Image
Dr. von Braun with a Model of a V2 rocket
Date of Image
2004-04-15
Full Description
Dr. von Braun with a model of a V2 rocket.
Dr. Robert H. Goddard and Hi
…
Name of Image
Dr. Robert H. Goddard and His Rocket
Date of Image
2004-04-15
Full Description
Goddard rocket with four rocket motors. This rocket attained an altitude of 200 feet in a flight, November 1936, at Roswell, New Mexico. From 1930 to 1941, Dr. Goddard made substantial progress in the development of progressively larger rockets which attained altitudes of 2400 meters, and refined his equipment for guidance and control, his techniques of welding, and his insulation, pumps, and other associated equipment. In many respects, Dr. Goddard laid the essential foundations of practical rocket technology
Dr. Robert H. Goddard and Hi
…
Name of Image
Dr. Robert H. Goddard and His Rocket
Date of Image
1940-03-21
Full Description
Goddard rocket in launching tower at Roswell, New Mexico, March 21, 1940. Fuel was injected by pumps from the fueling platform at left. From 1930 to 1941, Dr. Goddard made substantial progress in the development of progressively larger rockets, which attained altitudes of 2400 meters, and refined his equipment for guidance and control, his techniques of welding, and his insulation, pumps, and other associated equipment. In many respects, Dr. Goddard laid the essential foundations of practical rocket technology
JATO Flight Test Crew
Title
JATO Flight Test Crew
Full Description
Flight test crew for the Jet Assisted Take-Off (JATO) experimental solid rocket booster. It was later refered to as RATO (Rocket Assisted Take-Off). From left to right are: F.S. Miller, J.W. Parsons, E.S. Foreman, Dr. Frank J. Malina, Capt. Homer A. Boushey Jr. Pvt. Kobe and Cpl. R. Hamilton.
Date
08/12/1941
NASA Center
Jet Propulsion Laboratory
First JATO assisted Flight
Title
First JATO assisted Flight
Full Description
Take-off of America's first "rocket-assisted" airplane, an Ercoupe fitted with a GALCIT developed solid propellent 28 pound thrust JATO (Jet Assisted Take-Off) booster. The Ercoupe took off from March Field, California and was piloted by Captain Homer A. Boushey Jr.
Date
08/12/1941
NASA Center
Jet Propulsion Laboratory
Robert H. Goddard and His Li
…
Name of Image
Robert H. Goddard and His Liquid-Gasoline Rocket
Date of Image
1926-03-16
Full Description
Dr. Goddard's 1926 rocket configuration. Dr. Goddard's liquid oxygen-gasoline rocket was fired on March 16, 1926, at Auburn, Massachusetts. It flew for only 2.5 seconds, climbed 41 feet, and landed 184 feet away in a cabbage patch. From 1930 to 1941, Dr. Goddard made substantial progress in the development of progressively larger rockets, which attained altitudes of 2400 meters, and refined his equipment for guidance and control, his techniques of welding, and his insulation, pumps, and other associated equipment. In many respects, Dr. Goddard laid the essential foundations of practical rocket technology
Dr. Goddard and a 1918 versi
…
Name of Image
Dr. Goddard and a 1918 version of "Bazooka
Date of Image
2004-04-15
Full Description
Dr. Robert H. Goddard loading a 1918 version of the Bazooka of World War II. From 1930 to 1941, Dr. Goddard made substantial progress in the development of progressively larger rockets, which attained altitudes of 2400 meters, and refined his equipment for guidance and control, his techniques of welding, and his insulation, pumps, and other associated equipment. In many respects, Dr. Goddard laid the essential foundations of practical rocket technology
NASA's First Headquarters
title
NASA's First Headquarters
date
10.21.1961
description
The Little White House at 1520 H Street, NW, in Washington, DC served as NASA Headquarters from 1958 until October 1961. Built in 1820 by Richard Cutts, in 1837 it became the home of Mrs. Dolly Payne Madison, wife of President James Madison. Named the Dolly Madison House, she lived there till her death in 1849. In 1886 the Dolly Madison House became the private Cosmos Club. After restoration in the early 1960's, the Dolly Madison House became the offices for the Federal Judicial Center. In 1992 the Federal Judicial Center switched locations and the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit moved into this historic house. In the fall of 1961, NASA moved its headquarters to Federal Building 6 located at 400 Maryland Avenue, SW, in Washington. In 1963 NASA administration expanded into Federal Building 10-B at 600 Independence Avenue, SW and the Reporters Building at 300 7th St., SW. Since 1992, NASA Headquarters has been located at 300 E Street SW. *Image Credit*: NASA
Weick W-1A of 1934
Title
Weick W-1A of 1934
Full Description
Fred Weick's homebuilt W-1A of 1934, one of the first aircraft to employ tricycle landing gear. Weick and a group of nine other Langley engineers built this small experimental airplane in their spare time to study the special needs of the private flyer. The plane was eventually purchased by the Department of Commerce. After leaving the NACA (for a second and final time) in 1936, Weick incorporated many elements of the W-1 into his design of the famous Ercoupe, a small simple- to-fly airplane built first by the Engineering Research and Development Corporation (ERCO) of suburban Washington, DC.
Date
01/01/1934
NASA Center
Langley Research Center
The First Rocket Launch from
…
Title
The First Rocket Launch from Cape Canaveral
Explanation
A new chapter in space flight began on 1950 July with the launch of the first rocket from Cape Canaveral [ http://www.spaceline.org/capehistory.html ], Florida [ http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Florida ]: the Bumper 2. Shown above [ http://grin.hq.nasa.gov/ABSTRACTS/GPN-2000-000613.html ], the Bumper [ http://www.wsmr.army.mil/pao/FactSheets/bump.htm ] 2 was an ambitious two-stage rocket program that topped a V-2 [ http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/V2_rocket ] missile base with a WAC Corporal [ http://www.designation-systems.net/dusrm/app1/rtv-g-1.html ] rocket. The upper stage was able to reach then-record altitudes of almost 400 kilometers, higher than even modern Space Shuttles [ http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Space_shuttle ] fly today. Launched [ http://www.spaceline.org/bumper.html ] under the direction of the General Electric Company [ http://ge.com/ ], the Bumper 2 was used primarily for testing rocket systems and for research on the upper atmosphere [ http://csep10.phys.utk.edu/astr161/lect/earth/atmosphere.html ]. Bumper 2 rockets carried small payloads that allowed them to measure attributes including air temperature and cosmic ray [ http://www.ngdc.noaa.gov/stp/SOLAR/COSMIC_RAYS/cosmic.html ] impacts. Seven years later, the Soviet Union launched Sputnik I and Sputnik II [ http://www.hq.nasa.gov/office/pao/History/sputnik/ ], the first satellites [ http://liftoff.msfc.nasa.gov/RealTime/JTrack/Spacecraft.html ] into Earth orbit. In response, in 1958, the US created NASA [ http://www.hq.nasa.gov/office/pao/History/brief.html ].
Bumper Wac on Launch Pad
Name of Image
Bumper Wac on Launch Pad
Date of Image
1950-07-01
Full Description
A Bumper Wac, a combination the V-2 rocket with a WAC Corporal upper stage, awaits launch on July 24, 1950. It was the eighth in the Bumper Project and the vehicle reached the altitude of 393 kilometers. The Bumper was built by the German Rocket experts at the White Sands Proving Ground in New Mexico. In 1950, the last two Bumper launches took place in Florida, at the Long Range Proving Ground, located at Cape Canaveral.
Von Braun Rocket Team at For
…
Name of Image
Von Braun Rocket Team at Fort Bliss, Texas
Date of Image
1940-01-01
Full Description
The German Rocket Team, also known as the Von Braun Rocket Team, poses for a group photograph at Fort Bliss, Texas. After World War II ended in 1945, Dr. Wernher von Braun led some 120 of his Peenemuende Colleagues, who developed the V-2 rocket for the German military during the War, to the United Sttes under a contract to the U.S. Army Corps as part of Operation Paperclip. During the following five years the team worked on high altitude firings of the captured V-2 rockets at the White Sands Missile Range in New Mexico, and a guided missile development unit at Fort Bliss, Texas. In April 1950, the group was transferred to the Army Ballistic Missile Agency (ABMA) at Redstone Arsenal in Huntsville, Alabama, and continued to work on the development of the guided missiles for the U.S. Army until transferring to a newly established field center of the National Aeronautic and Space Administration (NASA), George C. Marshall Space Flight Center (MSFC).
V-2 Rocket at White Sands
Name of Image
V-2 Rocket at White Sands
Date of Image
1946-01-01
Full Description
A V-2 rocket takes flight at White Sands, New Mexico, in 1946. The German engineers and scientists who developed the V-2 came to the United States at the end of World War II and continued rocket testing under the direction of the U. S. Army, launching more than sixty V-2s.
V-2 at White Sands
Name of Image
V-2 at White Sands
Date of Image
1947-01-01
Full Description
A V-2 rocket is hoisted into a static test facility at White Sands, New Mexico. The German engineers and scientists who developed the V-2 came to the United States at the end of World War II and continued rocket testing under the direction of the U. S. Army, launching more than sixty V-2s.
Monkey Baker in bio-pack
Name of Image
Monkey Baker in bio-pack
Date of Image
1959-05-01
Full Description
A squirrel monkey, Baker, in bio-pack couch being readied for Jupiter (AM-18 flight). Jupiter, AM-18 mission, also carried an American-born rhesus monkey, Able into suborbit. The flight was successful and both monkeys were recovered in good condition. AM-18 was launched on May 28, 1959.
Monkey Able After Recovery
Name of Image
Monkey Able After Recovery
Date of Image
1959-05-28
Full Description
On May 28, 1959, a Jupiter Intermediate Range Ballistic Missile provided by a U.S. Army team in Redstone Arsenal, Alabama, launched a nose cone carrying Baker, A South American squirrel monkey and Able, An American-born rhesus monkey. This photograph shows Able after recovery of the nose cone of the Jupiter rocket by U.S.S. Kiowa.
Sam the Monkey After His Rid
…
Title
Sam the Monkey After His Ride in the Little Joe 2 Spacecraft
Full Description
Sam, the Rhesus monkey, after his ride in the Little Joe-2 (LJ-2) spacecraft. A U.S. Navy destroyer safely recovered Sam after he experienced three minutes of weightlessness during the flight. Animals were often used during test flights for Project Mercury to help determine the effects of spaceflight and weightlessness on humans. LJ-2 was one in a series of flights that led up to the human orbital flights of NASA's Project Mercury program. The Little Joe rocket booster was developed as a cheaper, smaller, and more functional alternative to the Redstone rockets. Little Joe could be produced at one-fifth the cost of Redstone rockets and still have enough power to carry a capsule payload. Seven unmanned Little Joe rockets were launched from Wallops Island, Virginia from August 1959 to April 1961.
Date
12/04/1959
NASA Center
Johnson Space Center
The Rhesus monkey, Sam, with
…
Title
The Rhesus monkey, Sam, with Mercury fiberglass couch
Description
The test subject, a rhesus monkey named Sam, is seen encased in a model of the Mercury fiberglass contour couch. He will be flown on the Little Joe 2 as a test subject.
Date Taken
1963-10-23
The Rhesus monkey, Miss Sam,
…
Title
The Rhesus monkey, Miss Sam, with fiberglass couch, prepared for LJ-1B flight
Description
The test subject, a rhesus monkey named Miss Sam, is seen encased in a model of the Mercury fiberglass contour couch. She is being placed in a container for the Little Joe 1B flight.
Date Taken
1959-12-04
Monkey Baker with a Model Ju
…
Name of Image
Monkey Baker with a Model Jupiter Vehicle
Date of Image
1959-05-29
Full Description
Monkey Baker, payload of Jupiter (AM-18), poses on a model of the Jupiter vehicle, May 29, 1959
U.S. Space Plans
title
U.S. Space Plans
date
07.29.1955
description
An American team at a press confernce announcing plans for the building and launching of the first man-made satellite. The then Presidential press secretary James Hagerty is shown with five scientists during the meeting at which announcement of President Eisenhower's approval of the plan was made. Front, left to right, are: Dr. Alan T. Waterman, Hagerty, Dr. S. Douglas Cornell and Dr. Alan Shapley. Standing, left to right: Dr. J. Wallace Joyce and Dr. Athelstan Spilhaus. *Image Credit*: NASA History Office
Dr. von Braun Received a Fed
…
Name of Image
Dr. von Braun Received a Federal Civilian Service Award
Date of Image
1959-01-21
Full Description
Dr. von Braun received a federal civilian service award from President Dwight Eisenhower on January 21, 1959.
President Eisenhower visits
…
Name of Image
President Eisenhower visits MSFC
Date of Image
1960-09-08
Full Description
Dr. von Braun briefs President Eisenhower at the front of the S1 Stage (first Stage) of the Saturn 1 vehicle at the Marshall Space Flight Center (MSFC) on September 8, 1960. The President's visit was to dedicate Marshall Space Flight Center as a new NASA field center in honor of General George C. Marshall.
Unloading Atlas Launch Vehic
…
Title
Unloading Atlas Launch Vehicle
Full Description
The Atlas launch vehicle is shown being unloaded at Cape Canaveral, Florida. This vehicle was expected to launch a Mercury spacecraft (without any astronauts aboard), built by McDonnell Aircraft Corp., into orbit. The Atlas attempted to place the Mercury spacecraft into its first orbital flight. The spacecraft was supposed to be launched in an orbital flight path and reentry was to be initiated about 90 minutes later as the craft neared the end of the first orbit. Unfortunately, this Atlas exploded at launch. Atlas was designed to launch payloads into low Earth orbit, geosynchronous transfer orbit or geosynchronous orbit. NASA first launched Atlas as a space launch vehicle in 1958. Project SCORE, the first communications satellite that transmitted President Eisenhower's pre-recorded Christmas speech around the world, was launched on an Atlas. For all three robotic lunar exploration programs, Atlas was used. Atlas/ Centaur vehicles launched both Mariner and Pioneer planetary probes. The current operational Atlas II family has a 100% mission success rating. For more information about Atlas, please see Chapter 2 in Roger Launius and Dennis Jenkins' book To Reach the High Frontier published by The University Press of Kentucky in 2002.
Date
04/23/1961
NASA Center
Kennedy Space Center
Launch of Mercury-Atlas
Title
Launch of Mercury-Atlas
Full Description
In this Project Mercury test, a spacecraft booster by a modified Atlas was launched from Cape Canaveral, Florida. The Mercury capsule reached a peak altitude of 107 statute miles and landed 1.425 miles down range. Atlas was designed to launch payloads into low Earth orbit, geosynchronous transfer orbit or geosynchronous orbit. NASA first launched Atlas as a space launch vehicle in 1958. Project SCORE, the first communications satellite that transmitted President Eisenhower's pre-recorded Christmas speech around the world, was launched on an Atlas. For all three robotic lunar exploration programs, Atlas was used. Atlas/ Centaur vehicles launched both Mariner and Pioneer planetary probes. The current operational Atlas II family has a 100% mission success rating. For more information about Atlas, please see Chapter 2 in Roger Launius and Dennis Jenkins' book To Reach the High Frontier published by The University Press of Kentucky in 2002 (in which Dennis Jenkins notes on page 98 that "as a space launch vehicle there is no question that Atlas has made a mark for itself, and a great deal of money for its manufacturers").
Date
02/21/1961
NASA Center
Kennedy Space Center
First Mercury-Atlas Attempte
…
Title
First Mercury-Atlas Attempted Launch
Full Description
An Atlas vehicle is shown as it is raised into its launch gantry. This Atlas attempted to launch a Mercury spacecraft (without any astronauts aboard) into orbital flight. The launch vehicle developed 360,000 pounds of thrust and burned RP-1, a kerosene-like fuel, and liquid oxygen. It was about 60 feet in length and 10 feet in diameter at the tank section. This was the first attempt by NASA to put a Mercury spacecraft into Earth orbit. Unfortunately, this Atlas exploded at launch. Atlas was designed to launch payloads into low Earth orbit, geosynchronous transfer orbit or geosynchronous orbit. NASA first launched Atlas as a space launch vehicle in 1958. Project SCORE, the first communications satellite that transmitted President Eisenhower's pre-recorded Christmas speech around the world, was launched on an Atlas. For all three robotic lunar exploration programs, Atlas was used. Atlas/ Centaur vehicles launched Mariner and Pioneer planetary probes. The current operational Atlas II family has a 100% mission success rating. For more information about Atlas, please see Chapter 2 in Roger Launius and Dennis Jenkins' book To Reach the High Frontier published by The University Press of Kentucky in 2002.
Date
04/23/1961
NASA Center
Headquarters
Sputnik: Traveling Companion
Title
Sputnik: Traveling Companion
Explanation
Sputnik means [ http://www.hq.nasa.gov/office/pao/History/sputnik/index.html ]"traveling companion". Despite the innocuous sounding name, the launch [ http://www.nytimes.com/partners/aol/special/sputnik/ launch.1.jpg.html ] of the Earth's first "artificial moon", Sputnik 1 [ http://www.nytimes.com/partners/aol/special/sputnik/ ], by the Soviet Union on October 4, 1957 shocked the free world, setting in motion events which resulted in the creation of NASA [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap981001.html ] and the race to the Moon [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap970202.html ]. Sputnik 1 [ http://whyfiles.org/047sputnik/main1.html ] was a 184 pound, 22 inch diameter sphere with four whip antennas connected to battery powered transmitters. The transmitters broadcast a continuous "beeping" signal to an astounded [ http://www.sciam.com/explorations/100697sputnik/ hall1.html ] earthbound audience for 23 days. A short month later, on November 3, the Soviet Union followed this success by launching a dog [ http://ham.spa.umn.edu/kris/animals.html ] into orbit aboard Sputnik 2 [ http://asca.gsfc.nasa.gov/docs/StarChild/space_level2/laika.html ].
Sputnik 1
title
Sputnik 1
date
10.04.1957
description
The Sputnik 1 (PS-1) satellite is shown here on a rigging truck in the assembly shop in the fall of 1957 as a technician puts finishing touches on it. When the development of the first advanced scientific satellite, Object D, proved to be more difficult than expected, the Soviets decided to launch a simpler, smaller satellite. PS-1, or Sputnik 1, began development in November 1956. On October 4, 1957, Sputnik 1 successfully launched and entered Earth's orbit. Sputnik shocked the world, giving the USSR the distinction of putting the first human-made object into space and putting the United States a step behind in the space race. *Image Credit*: NASA
