NASA HISTORY DIVISION

Office of External Relations

FROM

THE CHIEF

HISTORIAN

IN THIS ISSUE:

volume 25, number 1 February 2008

As mentioned in past newsletters, the year 

2008 will be a year of 50th anniversaries for 

space exploration. On 31 January 1958, following in the wake of Sputnik I and Sputnik 

II, the United States launched Explorer 1 

on the Army’s Jupiter-C (Juno) rocket. The 

Navy’s Vanguard followed on 17 March. On 

29 July, President Eisenhower signed legislation creating the National Aeronautics and 

Space Administration (NASA), which became 

operational on 1 October 1958. During this 

anniversary year, I will write on each of these 

events for this newsletter, beginning in this 

issue with Explorer 1.

One way to approach Explorer 1 is through 

one of the most iconic images of the Space 

Age. That image is not the launch itself from 

Cape Canaveral, spectacular as it was as a 

nighttime event (10:48 p.m.) and as a new 

kind of event that was therefore fresh to 

the American mind. Nor is it the image from 

Huntsville, home of the Redstone Arsenal, 

its Army Ballistic Missile Agency, and the 

von Braun rocket team. Rather, it is the photo 

snapped a few hours after launch showing 

William H. Pickering, James Van Allen, and 

Wernher von Braun holding up a model of the 

satellite at an early morning news conference 

in Washington, DC. The image captures the 

triumph those men, and many others around 

the United States, felt with the launch of the 

first American satellite less than four months 

after Sputnik I had delivered its “shock of 

the century.” Let us contemplate for a few 

moments the context, the details, and the significance of that photo.

continued on page 3

History of the Scientif

Exploration of Earth and S

Contract

by Amelia Lancaster

The NASA History Division is very pleased to announce the selection of 12 

new projects in the History of the Scientific Exploration of Earth and Space 

(HSEES) program, funded jointly by the Science Mission Directorate (SMD) 

and the History Division. SMD assembled an independent review panel to 

evaluate history proposals that were submitted in response to a broadranging solicitation. These selected projects are mostly to produce books or 

shorter monographs and are mostly three-year projects. The NASA History 

Division, together with the Science Mission Directorate, will oversee these 

projects. Synopses of the selected HSEES projects are below. 

William Clancey, of Ames Research Center, has been awarded a contract 

to research the Mars Exploration Rover (MER) scientists, focusing on their 

professional and personal experience as part of a multiple-year, collaborative mission with a virtual presence on Mars. The monograph is based on 

personal observations of the MER Spirit and Opportunity science teams 

at the Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) in 2004 and data gathered by the 

human-centered computing team led by the principal investigator.

Henry Dethloff has been contracted to research and write a history of scientific ballooning. The work will briefly review balloon flight and will focus 

continued on next page

From the Chief Historian . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1

History of the Scientific Exploration of Earth and Space Contracts. . . . . . .1

News from Headquarters and the Centers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .6

New NASA History Publications . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10

Other New Aerospace History Publications . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11

New Online Resources. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15

NASA History Fellowships. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .16

New Contracts. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .17

NASA Historic Preservation. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .17

Other History News. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21

Awards and Recognition. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23

Call for Summer Interns . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 24

Kennedy Space Center Lab Works with Customers To Deliver

New Technologies . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .24

Calls for Papers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26

Upcoming Meetings. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 27

Recent Images . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 28

Image in Aerospace History. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 30
NASA HISTORY DIVISION

on the past quarter century of NASA scientific ballooning, which has provided an 

enhanced understanding of both Earth and planetary environments.

W. Henry Lambright will write a book on the history of NASA’s robotic Mars 

Exploration Program (MEP). Chronicling the history of the MEP program, the 

book will discuss the Mariner, Viking, and Observer missions of the 20th century, 

as well as the Mars advocacy coalition. 

Chris Impey will write a book on the history and cultural impact of those NASA 

space science missions that have powerfully shaped popular imagination regarding 

our place in the universe. Using a wide range of scholarly and popular information, 

the author aims to reach a wide audience with information about the impacts and 

achievements of astronomy and planetary science.

Shaida Johnston and Darrel Williams of Goddard Space Flight Center have been 

contracted to research and write a book on the Landsat satellite missions. The project will document the technical and operational history of the Landsat program and 

its archive by describing the evolution of the program from a remote sensing system 

into a global observing system. The book not only will be used as a basic reference 

document, but also will provide insights and lessons for those entrusted with the 

planning of future archives and global observing systems.

Susan Neibur has been commissioned to write a book on the 10 missions undertaken 

since the launch of the Discovery Program. Her work will study how quickly each 

mission was able to respond to and resolve unforeseen challenges, along with how 

management at NASA Headquarters responded to those challenges and whether 

lessons learned have increased the probability of success of later missions. The book 

intends to inform and inspire general audiences and provide a solid analysis for 

those involved in the administration, planning, and execution of future missions. 

James Acker has been awarded a contract to write a book on the history of NASA’s 

leading role in ocean biological remote sensing, termed “ocean color.” Ocean color 

is the ability of microscopic oceanic plants to appear as different colors because of 

their chlorophyll concentrations. Visible through satellite imaging, it offers largescale views of ocean biological dynamics. This history will provide the scientific 

community and public with insight into the exciting science behind iconic views of 

the world’s oceans.

Roger Launius of the National Air and Space Museum has been commissioned to 

write a book on the history of robotic planetary exploration. The purpose of this book 

is to consider, over the 50-year history of the Space Age, what we have learned about 

the other bodies of the solar system and the process whereby we have learned it. The 

project seeks to capture, in one place, a set of broad studies of the history of robotic 

solar system exploration and to open opportunities for greater involvement of social 

scientists in a topic that has not attracted them heretofore.

Roger Launius also has been granted support to research and create an atlas of space 

exploration. This work will depict the history of the Space Age through text, photographs, and specially executed cutaway and other types of illustrations, as well as many 

maps. It will include stupendous images from NASA and other sources. A critical collaborator in this project is Andrew Johnston, a geographer with considerable experience 

in developing maps and other scientific visualizations for planetary exploration.

History of the Scientific Exploration of Earth and Space Contracts (continued)

continued on page 5
VOLUME 25, NUMBER 1 February 2008



First, the context. Why are Explorer 1’s three most important people in Washington, 

DC? As you might have guessed, it has little to do with technical duties and everything to do with publicity. Having seen the media circus surrounding the failed 

“4-foot launch” of the Navy’s Vanguard the previous month, von Braun, Pickering, 

and Van Allen were sent to Washington, much to their dismay, for a planned press 

conference intended to divert some of the attention from the launch site itself. The 

hours before launch found them in the Pentagon, where they kept track of events 

via teletype at the Army communications center. After the successful launch, they 

crossed the Potomac in a chauffeured car on a cold, rainy Washington night and 

arrived at the National Academy of Sciences building, site of the 1 a.m. press conference. It was now 1 February; the stage was set for the iconic photo.

Let us take a look in more detail at the photo itself. The eye is drawn first to the 

three men, each the subject of a biography in 2007: Michael J. Neufeld’s Von Braun: 

Dreamer of Space, Engineer of War (Alfred A. Knopf, 2007); Abigail Foerstner’s 

James Van Allen: The First Eight Billion Miles (University of Iowa Press, 2007); and 

Douglas J. Mudgway’s William H. Pickering: America’s Deep Space Pioneer (NASA 

SP-2007-4113, 2007). As von Braun, Van Allen, and Pickering held the model of 

Explorer 1 aloft in the early morning hours of 1 February 1958, each had come to the 

moment by diverse personal pathways. 

Von Braun was born in 1912, and his path originated in Germany, where he developed the world’s first large rocket, the V-2, in the context of Hitler’s Nazi Germany. 

The story of the transfer of 120 Germans to the United States as part of Project 

Paperclip, their time at Fort Bliss and White Sands testing V-2 rockets, and their 

arrival and work at the Army’s Redstone Arsenal in Huntsville, Alabama, developing a more powerful ballistic missile, is well known. Von Braun and his team 

provided the Jupiter-C (Juno) first stage that launched Explorer 1. As von Braun 

had hoped all along, what was once a weapon was turned toward the exploration of 

outer space. 

Pickering (born in 1910) was a New Zealander who was intrigued by radio communication at an early age, came as a student to the California Institute of Technology 

(Caltech), and joined its faculty in 1936. Both as a graduate student and as a faculty 

member, he worked with Nobelist Robert Millikan on the new field of cosmic rays, 

developing instrumentation for determining their directional characteristics using 

an array of Geiger counters. He also developed lightweight instrument packages 

for high-altitude balloons, good practice for what was to come. During World War 

II, Pickering worked on rocket technology for the Army at Caltech’s Jet Propulsion 

Laboratory. He became its Director in 1954 and oversaw the development of its 

early Corporal and Sergeant rockets. During this time, he met Wernher von Braun. 

In addition to its role in the Sergeant rockets in the upper stages of the Explorer 1 

launch vehicle, Pickering’s group would provide the satellite itself. Pickering would 

remain Director of JPL until 1976, the year before von Braun’s death.

Van Allen, born in 1914, was the all-American boy from Iowa. His interest in science 

was stimulated at Iowa Wesleyan College, where he helped prepare instruments for 

the second Byrd Antarctic Expedition. He also did work on magnetism with an eye 

toward geophysical applications. After graduate work at the University of Iowa, 

as well as wartime work at the Carnegie Institution of Washington’s Department of 

Terrestrial Magnetism and the Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory, 

From the Chief Historian (continued)

continued on next page
NASA HISTORY DIVISION



in 1946 Van Allen became involved in using von Braun’s captured V-2 rockets for 

cosmic-ray research. In 1951, he returned to the University of Iowa as the chairman 

of its physics department. In furtherance of his cosmic-ray research, he pioneered 

balloon-launched rocket sondes, and the launch of Sputnik found him on a research 

ship in the Pacific carrying out his “Rockoon” program. Because of their previous 

work, Van Allen and his group were well placed to develop a scientific payload for 

America’s first satellite, which was supposed to be the Navy’s Vanguard. But Van 

Allen had hedged his bets by keeping in contact with Ernst Stuhlinger in von Braun’s 

Huntsville group and made sure the payload would also fit on the Army’s Jupiter-C 

rocket. With the launch of Sputnik and the failure of Vanguard, Van Allen’s experiments indeed first flew on America’s first satellite—Explorer 1.

Each of these three men thus represented a component of Explorer 1’s success: the 

rocket, the satellite, and the science payload. Each represented an institutional 

underpinning crucial to the fledgling American space program: the Army, the Jet 

Propulsion Laboratory, and scientific research as represented by the University of 

Iowa. Each had followed his own path to converge in the singular moment depicted 

in the triumphal image.

In that image, after the men, the eye is 

drawn to the object they are holding, the 

satellite itself. On Pickering’s end is the 

scaled-down fourth-stage Sergeant rocket 

that he had helped develop. On the right 

side, over von Braun’s head, is the instrumentation section of the satellite. It is made 

of stainless steel only a fraction of a millimeter thick. The stripes are not for decoration. Rather, they are the passive thermal 

control system, the alternating eight white 

stripes allowing the instrument compartment to maintain a temperature between 

43 and 104°F. Inside the instrument package are three types of experiments: Van 

Allen’s cosmic-ray experiment (a Geiger 

counter), two types of micrometeorite 

detectors, and temperature sensors. Van 

Allen’s experiment was used in conjunction with subsequent satellites to detect 

and map what became known as the Van 

Allen radiation belts. The micrometeorite 

detectors were intended to characterize 

the space environment for future satellites and to help gauge how they might be 

endangered by high-velocity small particles 

in the new, uncharted ocean of space. The 

third experiment, the temperature sensors, measured temperature around the 

From the Chief Historian (continued)

Shown here are the three men responsible for the success of 

Explorer 1, America’s first Earth satellite, launched 31 January 

1958. At left is Dr. William H. Pickering, Director of JPL, which 

built and operated the satellite. Dr. James A. Van Allen, center, 

of the University of Iowa, designed and built the instrument on 

Explorer that discovered the radiation belts that circle Earth. At 

right is Dr. Wernher von Braun, leader of the Army’s Redstone 

Arsenal team, which built the first-stage Redstone rocket that 

launched Explorer 1. (Image Number GPN-2000-000478)
VOLUME 25, NUMBER 1 February 2008

spacecraft. Also important were the wires extending off the satellite; they were used 

in conjunction with the radio transmitters, which carried the first transistors ever 

into outer space, to send data to the newly formed Mini-track stations below.

On the table in front of this scene is a model of the launch vehicle, reminding us of the 

intense rivalry between the Navy’s Vanguard and the Army Ballistic Missile Agency 

rocket built in Huntsville. Its first stage is a Juno rocket, a modified Jupiter-C from the 

Redstone Arsenal, with a V-2 pedigree going back to World War II. The second stage 

is a ring of 11 modified Sergeant solid-propellant motors, with three more for the third 

stage. These upper stages include the cylindrical “spinning tub,” started 10 minutes 

before launch and revolving at 750 revolutions per minute (rpm) during launch, to 

help even out the thrust of the clustered motors and provide gyroscopic stability. The 

fourth stage is that single scaled-back Sergeant rocket. The first-stage engine delivered 

83,000 pounds of thrust; each Sergeant rocket, 16,500 pounds. All of this to launch 

a payload of 31.5 pounds, including the attached burned-out fourth stage, 1

∕20 of 1 

percent of the initial mass. It was awesomely wonderful and awesomely inefficient at 

the same time—a problem still with us today, even with much larger engines.

Many elements thus came together to compose this iconic image—the setting, the 

people, the technology, the politics, and the media itself, present in the knowledge 

that the event was bound to be of historic proportions. No one knew quite how historic. All things have a beginning, and for the United States’ presence in space, this 

was it, eight months before NASA even became operational. Out of small beginnings 

grew great things. One could hardly have known what this singular event would set 

off during the next 50 years. For some visionaries, it has been a disappointment; for 

others, an inspiration; for yet others, a diversion of resources better used on Earthly 

problems. But like the railroad and the airplane, spaceflight has impacted society 

in ways that even the visionaries could not have foreseen and that we cannot fully 

fathom even today.

Steve Dick

David DeVorkin has been granted support for a project that is to examine how 

arrangements between academic research institutions and government patrons have 

stimulated pure research. As an example, DeVorkin studies the transformation of 

the Smithsonian Astrophysical Observatory and the Harvard College Observatory 

into the Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics. In doing so, he shows how 

deeply NASA influenced what became a true transformation in scope and direction 

for the combined Center for Astrophysics.

Neil Maher has been contracted to write Ground Control: An Environmental History 

of NASA and the Space Race. The book will examine the changing relationship 

between nature and American science and culture. It will bring attention to the 

historic significance of NASA science and the way in which the space race and 

nature’s unexplored role within it shaped the politics and culture of post–World War 

II America.

History of the Scientific Exploration of Earth and Space Contracts (continued)

continued on next page
NASA HISTORY DIVISION



NEWS FROM HEADQUARTERS AND

THE CENTERS

Headquarters

Headquarters Historical Reference Collection 

Jane Odom continues to evaluate and acquire new material for the Historical 

Reference Collection. She appraises material and directs the subsequent processing 

of collections. Jane continues to answer reference requests and facilitates the entry of 

international visitors into the building. She and other members of the archival staff 

are still working with the information technology (IT) staff on a modification to the 

database that will allow thousands of Portable Document Format (PDF) files in the 

database to be published to an external Web site accessible to all.

Colin Fries and John Hargenrader have completed the scanning of the Administrator’s 

speeches. They are now working their way through the Deputy Administrator’s speeches, 

scanning and adding them to our database. A project John and Colin began a year ago 

has finally come to fruition—the processing of the National Advisory Committee for 

Aeronautics (NACA) Collection, 1915–58. Those interested in using this collection will 

find subject files, biographical files, photographs, patent files, reunion files, and oral 

history interviews.

Colin, John, and Liz Suckow shared in fact-checking a number of forthcoming 

publications—a new art book by Bert Ulrich, a dictionary of the Space Age by Paul 

Dickson, and a revision of our monograph on U.S. human spaceflight. Additionally, 

all three share reference duties such as answering inquiries sent to the public e-mail 

account on the History Division Web site and assisting walk-in researchers. Everyone 

from the History Division attended sessions at the “Remembering the Space Age: 50th 

Anniversary Conference” held 22–23 October 2007 in Washington.

Individually, Liz completed the processing of two life sciences collections, one dated 

1991–2002 and the other a collection of source materials, 1958–77, for an unpublished 

book on the topic by Mae Mills Link. In November, Liz began appraising several 

dozen boxes of Viking Program History files recalled from the Federal Records Center. 

She is copying historically significant items from those boxes and adding them to the 

Historical Reference Collection. In addition, she began processing a collection of 

Equal Employment Opportunity (EEO) files.

Colin completed the reorganization of the History Division book series Web page and 

added a section describing our flagship publications. He continues to find and correct 

errors on the History Web site. John is currently processing a collection of source files 

Christine Beckman has been awarded a contract to explore how managers and 

organizations successfully manage innovation in the face of uncertainty. The study 

explores the formal and informal structures that give shape to emerging ideas, the 

way in which technical and scientific uncertainty interact with financial and political 

uncertainty, and the way in which new structures emerge to deal with uncertainty 

during projects of long duration. The study examines the Spitzer Space Telescope 

program as well as the social and technical changes that arose during its inception.

History of the Scientific Exploration of Earth and Space Contracts (continued)
VOLUME 25, NUMBER 1 February 2008



continued on next page

collected by Dill Hunley for his recently published book on propulsion technology 

development for U.S. space-launch vehicles.

Welcome to Amelia Lancaster

The NASA History Division welcomed Amelia Lancaster as a new intern in January. 

Amelia is from Northern California and is a student at the University of California, 

Davis. She is a junior majoring in political science and economics.

Ames Research Center (ARC)

To celebrate NASA’s 50th anniversary, the NASA Ames Contractor Council prepared its 2008 calendar to honor the 12 inductees in the Ames Hall of Fame. It sold 

rapidly. Preparations are under way at Ames to select a new class of honorees. 

April Gage remains busy with a tremendous variety of acquisitions. Throughout 

2007, she acquired and inventoried 19 donations to the History Office archives, which 

included 61 cubic feet of records, books, and small- to medium-sized artifacts, as well 

as 85 linear feet of framed items and large artifacts. Of these acquisitions, 18 were 

accessioned and 10 were fully processed, totaling 34.5 cubic feet and 5.5 linear feet. 

Items of note include artifacts from the Pioneer Project era, such as a full-scale model 

of Pioneer 6–9 spacecraft and several original paintings depicting artist’s conceptions 

of planetary encounters by various Pioneers. A wooden, full-scale mockup of the interior components of the Galileo descent probe and a wind tunnel model of the probe 

also stand out among spacecraft models acquired in 2007. Remarkably, a complete 

Hycon HR-732 9-by-18-inch-frame reconnaissance camera for the U-2 aircraft, one 

of several aerial cameras used in the airborne science program when it was based at 

Ames, was rescued from disposal for placement in the History Office artifact collection. Additionally, a cache of documents on Ames-based Earth system science, mission analysis, and computer systems and research was donated by Robert Slye, a gifted 

and versatile scientist who has been continuously employed by the Center since 1958. 

April also brought a renewed focus on preservation to the Ames archive. She reviewed 

actual storage conditions in the N207 high bay and drafted a requirements plan anticipating a proposed relocation of the archive in 2008. She identified ways to implement 

basic, broad preservation measures to improve the storage conditions across all the 

collections. Further, she relocated, cleaned, rehoused, and performed other preservation measures to 36 cubic feet of material, including artifacts, records, books, and 

photographs from multiple acquisitions dating from 2004 to 2006; furthermore, she 

either created or updated finding aids for the items. 

Working with NASA Ames Historic Preservation Officer Keith Venter, April completed 

a major redesign of the Ames historic preservation Web site (http://historicproperties.arc.

nasa.gov). An encyclopedic compilation of documents relating to the history of Ames 

facilities, it is proving an excellent resource for historical researchers. 

The History Office would like to extend a hearty thank-you to its emeritus archivist, 

Leilani Marshall. Much to the office’s good fortune, Leilani has generously donated 

abundant amounts of her time to archives projects here. Of note was her completion 

of the conversion of the last several cubic feet of legacy material, including records, 

scrapbooks, audiovisual media, and books, into the Archives Reference Collection 
NASA HISTORY DIVISION

(AFS1070.8A), a large collection that she designed. Leilani has provided valuable 

advice, appeared when needed, and magically helped make piles of work disappear. 

Allison Sundaram, a senior at Santa Clara University, will join the History Office as 

an intern for the spring semester. To further her interest in museum studies, she will 

catalog artwork in the archives and prepare some small exhibits. Ruth Dasso 

Marlaire, on detail to the History Office, has been researching and writing a biography of space scientist James Pollack. 

Jack Boyd has prepared a complete new presentation for NASA’s 50th anniversary 

from the perspective of the NASA Ames Research Center and has been using it for his 

many outreach efforts. He and Glenn Bugos are writing up a version of it for presentation at the American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics (AIAA) “Space 2008” 

conference.

Glenn Research Center (GRC)

The Plum Brook Reactor’s Decommissioning Project’s Annual Community 

Information Session was held on 17 October at Sandusky High School. The event 

was very well attended by local citizens hoping to learn more about the reactor and 

the progress of the decommissioning. Glenn’s History Officers Kevin Coleman and 

Anne Power, as well as archivist Bob Arrighi (RSIS), were on hand to answer questions about the reactor’s history. Additionally, the reactor documentary Of Ashes 

and Atoms was shown on Toledo’s local Public Broadcasting Service (PBS) station 

in December.

Archivist Bob Arrighi and Records Specialist Deb Demaline (RSIS) are working 

with Galen Wilson and Scott Forsythe of the National Archives and Records 

Administration (NARA) in identifying original architectural drawings to be 

transferred to the NARA Regional Archives in Chicago. It was decided to retain 

all drawings from the initial 1941–45 construction period; those documenting the 

overall structure and major changes to each 

building; and all original, significant operational, and major modification drawings for 

each major test facility. 

Contract archivist Nora Blackman has 

resigned her position in the GRC History 

Program Archives effective 11 January 

2008 and is now an archivist in the Special 

Collections Department at Case Western 

Reserve University Libraries in Cleveland, 

Ohio. In her new role, Nora will continue to 

work with primary sources in the history of 

science and technology. She will be missed!

In early fall 2007, Scott Marabito, a Glenn 

maintenance worker, discovered the original groundbreaking tools used to mark the 

beginning of construction of the Center in 

1941. The special nickel-plated pick and 

News from Headquarters and the Centers (continued)

Recently discovered in an old storage building at GRC, the original pick 

and shovel used to break ground at the NACA Aircraft Engine Research 

Laboratory on 23 January 1941 in Cleveland Ohio, is now prominently on 

display in the Dr. Edward R. Sharp Employee Services building.
VOLUME 25, NUMBER 1 February 2008



shovel were also later used at the groundbreaking for Plum Brook Station in 

Sandusky. The tools had previously been thought to be lost. On 23 January, the 

67th anniversary of the groundbreaking, a ceremony was held to commemorate 

the event and to unveil a new permanent display of the groundbreaking tools in the 

Edward R. Sharp Employee Center. 

Goddard Space Flight Center (GSFC)

Barbara Thompson has agreed to serve as the history point of contact at Goddard 

Space Flight Center; she will be replacing Jane Riddle, who has retired. Barbara 

graduated from the University of Pennsylvania in Philadelphia with degrees in physics and mathematics. She worked as a research assistant doing theoretical modeling 

of auroral activity and magnetic storms, and she completed her doctoral thesis on 

auroral particle acceleration in 1996.

She began work at GSFC after graduate school and served as a research scientist 

on the recently launched Solar and Heliospheric Observatory (SOHO). She worked 

primarily on the Extreme Ultraviolet (EUV) Imaging Telescope (EIT) and the Large 

Angle Spectrometric Coronagraph (LASCO) instruments, serving as operations 

and research scientist.

She has authored or coauthored over 150 scientific papers, primarily concerning 

coronal mass ejections, the solar wind, and space weather. She currently serves as 

an astrophysicist with the Solar Physics Branch at Goddard, working on the Solar 

Dynamics Observatory and Solar TErrestrial RElations Observatory (STEREO) 

missions, as well as the International Heliophysical Year (IHY). 

Barbara is now setting up a History Committee at GSFC in preparation for their 

50th-anniversary activities. The new History Committee is meeting on a monthly 

basis to determine history needs and serve as a point of contact for historical efforts. 

There are approximately 20 members, and GSFC is close to achieving a good balance of participants through all of the Center’s directorates. We have established 

liaisons with the American Geophysical Union History Committee, the GSFC 

Public Affairs Office, and the Goddard Retirees and Alumni Association.

The members of the GSFC History Committee are already very active, particularly 

since 2009 will be Goddard’s 50th anniversary. The History Committee is joining 

efforts with the Public Affairs Office to support the activities celebrating the anniversary. Other activities include the planning the 50th anniversaries of the Explorer 

and Vanguard programs, arranging a Yuri’s Night celebration of the flight of Yuri 

Gagarin, organizing historical speakers at GSFC, and supporting efforts such as 

those of the GSFC library.

The History Committee is already busy with many requests from individuals and 

programs requiring information on GSFC’s activities and successes. We hope that 

the interest will continue and that this effort will be fruitful.

Marshall Space Flight Center (MSFC)

A full-scale, newly restored Saturn V rocket at the U.S. Space & Rocket Center 

(USSRC) in Huntsville is now housed in the new 68,200-square-foot Davidson 

Center for Space Exploration. 

continued on next page
NASA HISTORY DIVISION

10

The restoration of the Saturn V and the opening of the Davidson Center represent 

the first stage in a USSRC plan to better showcase NASA and MSFC contributions 

to historical, current, and future space exploration.

The Davidson Center will also serve as a new front door for the USSRC complex, 

housing its visitor ticketing area and a 350-seat auditorium, along with the Saturn 

V rocket.

The USSRC, NASA’s first visitor center, opened in 1970 and has served over 12 

million visitors to date. As the Official Visitor Information Center for Marshall, the 

USSRC educates the public and students who attend Space Camp about the work 

being done at MSFC, particularly in the area of propulsion, where MSFC has made 

significant contributions to the Apollo and Shuttle programs and is again on the 

forefront with the Ares rockets.

Dorothy Davidson, a Huntsville businesswoman who is a member of the Saturn V 

Restoration Executive Committee, secured the naming opportunity for the building with her leadership gift. Through this naming opportunity, Mrs. Davidson 

is recognizing the contributions of her husband, Dr. Julian Davidson, and other 

Alabama engineers who worked in the early days of missile and rocket development 

in Huntsville, many of whom joined Dr. Wernher von Braun’s team to create the 

rocket that transported human beings to the Moon.

Stennis Space Center (SSC)

Rebecca Strecker, History Office point of contact at SSC, will be moving to Kennedy 

Space Center to take a new position in strategic communications. We wish her well. 

Linda Theobold will be replacing her as the new History Office point of contact 

at SSC.

New NASA History Publications

New Books

Wind and Beyond: A Documentary Journey into the History of Aerodynamics in 

America, Volume II: Reinventing the Airplane (NASA SP-2007-4409), edited by 

James R. Hansen with Jeremy Kinney, D. Bryan Taylor, Molly Prickett, and 

J. Lawrence Lee. Following up on volume 1’s account of the invention of the 

airplane and the creation of the original aeronautical research establishment in 

the United States, volume 2 explores the airplane design revolution of the 1920s 

and 1930s and the quest for improved airfoils. To order this book, please contact 

the NASA Center for AeroSpace Information, 7121 Standard Drive, Hanover, 

MD 21076, 301-621-0390, help@sti.nasa.gov; online order form: https://www.sti.

nasa.gov/cgi-bin/ordersti.pl. The price code is EA7 (within the U.S., $35 plus $2 

shipping and handling; outside the U.S., $70 plus $17 shipping and handling). 

William H. Pickering: America’s Deep Space Pioneer (NASA SP-2007-4113), by 

Douglas J. Mudgway. A thoroughly researched, insightful biography of William 

Pickering, a pioneer of U.S. robotic spaceflight and a significant actor in the 

Explorer 1 project. To order this book, please contact the NASA Center for 

AeroSpace Information, 7121 Standard Drive, Hanover, MD 21076, 301-621-

News from Headquarters and the Centers (continued)
VOLUME 25, NUMBER 1 February 2008

11

0390, help@sti.nasa.gov; online order form: https://www.sti.nasa.gov/cgi-bin/

ordersti.pl. The price code is EA5 (within the U.S., $25 plus $2 shipping and 

handling; outside the U.S., $50 plus $17 shipping and handling). 

Facing the Heat Barrier: A History of Hypersonics (NASA SP-2007-4232), by T. A. 

Heppenheimer. Hypersonics is a study relating to supersonics that has enabled 

thermal protection during atmospheric reentry and advanced high-speed propulsion. Facing the Heat Barrier examines this science and its importance in 

the fields of aeronautics and spaceflight. To order this book, please contact the 

NASA Center for AeroSpace Information, 7121 Standard Drive, Hanover, MD 

21076, 301-621-0390, help@sti.nasa.gov; online order form: https://www.sti.nasa.

gov/cgi-bin/ordersti.pl. The price code is EA4 (within the U.S., $20 plus $2 shipping and handling; outside the U.S., $40 plus $17 shipping and handling).

U.S. Human Spaceflight: A Record of Achievement, 1961–2006 (NASA SP-2007-

4541), compiled by Judith A. Rumerman and updated by Chris Gamble and 

Gabriel Okolski. Interested readers may obtain a free copy of this monograph by 

sending a self-addressed, stamped 9-by-12-inch envelope ($2.84 domestic first-class 

postage for 13 ounces) to the NASA Information Center, NASA Headquarters, 

Washington, DC 20546, or by coming in person to the NASA History Division 

in room CO72 of NASA Headquarters. We expect to post a PDF version of this 

monograph soon.

The Societal Impact of Spaceflight (NASA SP-2007-4801), edited by Steven J. Dick 

and Roger D. Launius. The first in a new subseries for societal impact studies, 

this large volume contains the edited papers from a conference that was held 

in September 2006. The essays cover a wide range of topics including ideology, 

turning points in history, and applications satellites, as well as social, cultural, 

and economic impacts. To order this book, please contact the NASA Center for 

AeroSpace Information, 7121 Standard Drive, Hanover, MD 21076, 301-621-0390, 

help@sti.nasa.gov; online order form: https://www.sti.nasa.gov/cgi-bin/ordersti.pl. 

The price code is EA5 (within the U.S., $25 plus $2 shipping and handling; outside 

the U.S., $50 plus $17 shipping and handling).

Other New Aerospace History 

Publications

Compiled by Chris Gamble

The History of German Space Policy: Ideas, Influences, and Interdependence, 1923–

2002, by Niklas Reinke, translated by Barry Smerin and Barbara Wilson (Paris: 

Beauchesne Editeur, January 2008). Niklas Reinke’s book describes, for the first 

time, the concepts, the influencing factors, and the interdependencies that had an 

impact on Germany’s postwar program in space. The book provides an in-depth 

look into the different phases of space activities in Germany over the years (and, to a 

large extent, also those elsewhere in Europe), at the personalities involved, and at the 

numerous projects carried out within the national program or as bilateral programs 

with the U.S. and France.

continued on next page
NASA HISTORY DIVISION

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The Skylark Rocket: British Space Science and the European Space Research 

Organisation, 1957–1972, by Matthew Godwin (Paris: Beauchesne Editeur, January 

2008). By the time the last Skylark rocket was launched in 2005, nearly 450 launches 

had been carried out from sites in Europe, Australia, and South America in the 

nearly 50-year lifetime of the program. The Skylark is a largely unsung hero of the 

U.K. space program—in fact, its use went far beyond the U.K.; it also was used 

by NASA, the European Space Research Organisation (ESRO), and German and 

Swedish space organizations. The book charts the first 15 years of the development 

of the Skylark program, from its genesis to its extensive use by ESRO. 

To the End of the Solar System: The Story of the Nuclear Rocket, 2nd edition, by 

James A. Dewar (Apogee Books Space Series/Collector’s Guide Publishing, Inc., 

January 2008). Jargon-free and ideal for scientists and laypersons alike, this study is 

a comprehensive history and analysis of nuclear rocket propulsion systems. Detailing a two-decade period—spanning the 1950s through part of the 1970s—by profiling the U.S. government’s Rover and Nuclear Engine for Rocket Vehicle Application 

(NERVA) programs, the book provides a complete history of the development of 

nuclear propulsion capabilities for space exploration. Eyeing future possibilities, 

this reference identifies the technological requirements necessary to perform the 

deep space missions now being planned by NASA and presents a discussion on the 

political and social issues surrounding nuclear rocket development.

The Space Economy at a Glance 2007, published by the Organisation for Economic 

Co-operation and Development (OECD) (Paris: OECD Publishing, 2007). The 

space industry itself is relatively small compared to other manufacturing sectors, 

but its technological dynamism and strategic significance mean that it plays an ever 

more critical role in modern society. This book provides a compilation of statistics 

on the space sector and its contributions to economic activity. 

50 Years of Space: A Global Perspective, edited by P. V. Manoranjan Rao (Universities 

Press, 2007). To commemorate the 50th anniversary of the launch of Sputnik I, 50 

Years of Space gathers, in a single volume, brief histories of all of the major space 

agencies of the world written by top space program officials. The essays illustrate 

the means by which each space agency has explored outer space, showcased its 

technological advancements, and solved social problems. They also depict advances 

in international cooperation with predictions for the future. 

History of Rocketry and Astronautics, Volume 28, edited by Frank H. Winter, 

American Astronomical Society History Series (IAA History Symposia, volume 

19, 2007). This volume contains the proceedings of the Thirty-Third History 

Symposium of International Academy of Astronautics in Amsterdam, The 

Netherlands, 1999. 

History of Rocketry and Astronautics, Volume 27, edited by Kerrie Dougherty and 

Donald C. Elder, American Astronomical Society History Series (IAA History 

Symposia, volume 18, 2007). This volume contains the proceedings of the ThirtySecond History Symposium of International Academy of Astronautics in Melbourne, 

Australia, 1998.

State of the Universe 2008: Images, Discoveries, and Events, by Martin Ratcliffe 

(Praxis, December 2007). This annual provides a yearly astronomy review suitOther New Aerospace History Publications (continued)
VOLUME 25, NUMBER 1 February 2008

1

able for the popular science level, covering all major astronomical news on topics 

beyond the solar system and placing them in the context of the longer term goals 

of astronomers and astrophysicists around the world. It also includes Web links for 

all major news stories, providing a bridge between the public news stories and the 

actual research Web sites. The set of appendices at the end of the book includes a 

list of launches of major astronomical observatories/satellites during the past year, 

a list of planned future astronomical satellites, and basic data on all astronomical 

observatories currently in operation, with Web links for the reader who wishes to 

find out more.

How Apollo Flew to the Moon, by W. David Woods (Praxis, December 2007). Out 

of the technological battlefield of World War II came a team of gifted German 

engineers and designers who developed the vengeance weapon, the V-2, which 

evolved into the powerful Saturn V rocket that would take men to the Moon. David 

Woods tells this exciting story, starting from America’s postwar astronautical 

research facilities that used the V-2 for the development of the robust, resilient, and 

reliable Saturn V launcher. He describes the initial launches through piloted orbital 

spaceflights, comprehensively detailing each step in this massive technical accomplishment, including computer configuration, the role of ground control, trajectory 

planning, orbiting the Moon, the separation of the lander, walking and working on 

the Moon, retrieving the lunar astronauts, and returning to Earth.

The Far Side of the Moon: A Photographic Guide, by Charles J. Byrne (Springer, 

December 2007). The far side of the Moon, also called the “dark side of the Moon,” 

was unknown to humanity until the Luna and Lunar Orbiter pictures were returned 

to Earth. Until now, the farside Lunar Orbiter photos have been available only with 

strong reconstruction lines, but they appear here for the first time as complete photographs, unmarred by imaging and processing artifacts. The book also explains in 

detail how the far side was deeply covered by ejecta from the Near Side Megabasin 

and modified by later impacts.

Robots in Space: Technology, Evolution, and Interplanetary Travel, by Roger D. 

Launius and Howard E. McCurdy, New Series in NASA History (Baltimore: Johns 

Hopkins University Press, December 2007). Given the near-incomprehensible 

enormity of the universe, it appears almost inevitable that humankind will one 

day find a planet that appears to be much like Earth. This discovery will no doubt 

reignite the lure of interplanetary travel. Will we be up to the task? And, given our 

limited resources, biological constraints, and the general hostility of space, what 

shape should we expect such expeditions to take? In Robots in Space, Roger Launius 

and Howard McCurdy tackle these seemingly fanciful questions with rigorous 

scholarship and disciplined imagination, jumping comfortably among the worlds of 

rocketry, engineering, public policy, and science fantasy to expound upon the possibilities and improbabilities involved in trekking across the Milky Way and beyond. 

They survey the literature (fictional as well as academic studies); outline the progress 

of space programs in the United States and other nations; and assess the current 

state of affairs to offer a conclusion startling only to those who have not spent time 

with Asimov, Heinlein, and Clarke: to traverse the cosmos, humans must embrace 

advanced robotic technologies.

continued on next page
NASA HISTORY DIVISION

1

Apollo Moon Missions: The Unsung Heroes, by Billy Watkins (author) and Fred 

Haise (foreword) (Bison Books, December 2007). In 1961, President John F. Kennedy 

challenged the United States to land an astronaut on the Moon and return him safely 

to Earth before the end of the decade. It seemed like an impossible mission and one 

that the Soviets—who had launched the first satellite and put the first man into 

Earth orbit—would surely achieve before the Americans. However, the ingenuity, 

passion, and sacrifice of thousands of ordinary people from all walks of life enabled 

the space program to meet this extraordinary goal. This is the story of 14 of those 

men and women who worked behind the scenes, without fanfare or recognition, to 

make the Apollo missions successful.

James Van Allen: The First Eight Billion Miles, by Abigail Foerstner (Iowa City: 

University of Iowa Press, 15 November 2007). Astrophysicist and space pioneer 

James Van Allen (1914–2006), for whom the Van Allen radiation belts were named, 

was among the principal scientific investigators for 24 space missions, including 

Explorer 1 in 1958, the first successful U.S. satellite; Mariner 2’s 1962 flyby of Venus, 

the first successful mission to another planet; and the 1970s Pioneer 10 and Pioneer 

11 missions, which surveyed Jupiter and Saturn. Although he retired as a University of 

Iowa professor of physics and astronomy in 1985, he remained an active researcher, 

using his campus office to monitor data from Pioneer 10—on course to reach the 

edge of the solar system when its signal was lost in 2003—until a short time before 

his death at the age of 91. Now Abigail Foerstner blends space science drama, 

military agendas, Cold War politics, and the events of Van Allen’s lengthy career to 

create the first biography of this highly influential physicist.

We Came in Peace for All Mankind: The Untold Story of the Apollo 11 Silicon Disc, by 

Tahir Rahman (Leathers Publishing, November 2007). Next to the first boot prints 

left by Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin is a package containing a silicon disc with 

messages from 73 world leaders. This vividly illustrated and inspiring book reveals 

the story of those messages as well as the historic lunar plaque and U.S. flag that 

were left on the Moon.

Our Changing Planet: The View from Space, edited by Michael D. King, Claire L. 

Parkinson, Kim C. Partington, and Robin G. Williams (Cambridge: Cambridge 

University Press, November 2007). Since their launch in the 1960s, satellites have 

been used to observe Earth on local, regional, and global scales. These observations have given us unique insights into the often detrimental effects that human 

activity is having on the planet. Led by a team of editors from the NASA Goddard 

Space Flight Center, the world’s top remote sensing scientists showcase spectacular 

satellite imagery combined with an accessibly written text that explains the science 

behind these images. This is a stunningly attractive and informative volume for 

anyone interested in environmental issues and the magnificence of our Earth. It also 

provides inspiration for students, teachers, environmentalists, and scientists.

The Lunar Exploration Scrapbook, by Robert Godwin (Burlington, Ontario: Apogee 

Books/Collector’s Guide Publishing, Inc., November 2007). From single-seat landers 

to rocket backpacks and lunar bulldozers, this study takes readers into the imagination of the world’s top aerospace engineers by presenting NASA’s lunar spacecraft 

research. A unique blend of history and imagination, this resource not only covers 

the actual exploration of the Moon conducted during the Apollo program of the 

1960s and 1970s, but also includes a presentation of dozens of spacecraft that were 

Other New Aerospace History Publications (continued)
VOLUME 25, NUMBER 1 February 2008

15

never built. Vivid, colorful renderings of the conceptual craft—many of which are 

not available anywhere else—are also included, providing a visual progression of 

NASA’s technological advancements.

Apollo Training, by Robert Godwin (Burlington, Ontario: Apogee Books/Collector’s 

Guide Publishing, Inc., November 2007). This 168-page book was originally compiled for astronauts and NASA internal staff in 1968. It includes 166 pages of 

diagrams of Apollo systems, trajectories, and basic procedural information. This 

extremely rare black-and-white collectible with a full-color cover is now available in 

its entirety for the first time since 1968. 

New Online Resources

NASA History Web Sites

Thor Hogan’s Mars Wars: The Rise and Fall of the Space Exploration Initiative 

(NASA SP-2007-4410) is now available at http://history.nasa.gov/sp4410.pdf online. 

The book is about the Space Exploration Initiative, an ambitious project that sought 

to return humans to the Moon as well as complete a mission to Mars. It was unsuccessful due to budgetary and, the author argues, decision-making constraints. 

Other New Electronic Resources

Retro Space Images provides high-resolution versions of historic NASA imagery in 

an easy-to-use format. To obtain a CD or DVD-R containing pictures, visit their 

Web site at http://retrospaceimages.com. Questions or comments about Retro Space 

Images titles or material can be addressed to J. L. Pickering at Roverpick@aol.com.

The Web site http://www.TodayinSpaceHistory.com publishes important and interesting information about space history, especially space exploration, in relation to 

the date on which the event occurred. 

The Society for the History of Technology (SHOT) has moved its online database 

for the History of Science, Technology and Medicine to http://firstsearch.oclc.

org/. The database contains citations for journal articles, conference proceedings, 

books, book reviews, and dissertations in the history of science, technology, medicine, and allied historical fields.

The Society for History in the Federal Government is pleased to announce the 

establishment of H-FedHist, which promotes the study and discussion of the history of the United States Federal Government by scholars, teachers, researchers, 

and other interested parties. It also supports the exchange of ideas and information 

between scholars on related H-Net networks. To join H-FedHist, please send a 

message from the account where you wish to receive mail to listserv@h-net.msu.edu

(with no signatures or styled text, word wrap off for long lines) and only this text: 

sub H-FedHist <firstname>, <lastname>, <institution>. Example: sub H-FedHist 

Leslie Jones, Pacific State U. Alternatively, you may go to http://www.h-net.org/lists/ 

subscribe.cgi to perform the same function as noted above. Follow the instructions you receive by return mail. If you have questions or experience difficulties in 

attempting to subscribe, please send a message to help@mail.h-net.msu.edu.
NASA HISTORY DIVISION

1

NASA History Fellowships

The NASA History Division is pleased to announce two new fellowships in the 

history of space science and technology. The History Division continues to sponsor the American Historical Association Fellowship in Aerospace History. Please 

see http://www.historians.org/prizes/NASA.htm for more details. The deadline for 

applications is 1 March 2008. 

The new NASA History of Science Society Fellowship in the History of Space 

Science funds a nine-month research project that is related to any aspect of the history of space science, from the earliest human interest in space to the present. The 

program is broadly conceived and includes the social, cultural, institutional, and 

personal context of space science history. Proposals of advanced research in history related to all aspects of the history of space science are eligible. Space science 

and sciences affected by data and concepts developed in connection with space 

exploration include astronomy, Earth science, optics, meteorology, oceanography, 

and physiology. The fellowship is open to applicants who hold a doctoral degree 

in history or a closely related field, or students who have completed all requirements except the dissertation for a Ph.D. in the history of science or a related field. 

The stipend is $17,000; the fellowship term is nine months and must fall within 

the period of 1 July 2008 to 30 June 2009. Please see http://www.hssonline.

org/profession/support/detail.lasso?-Search=Action&-Table=Events%20web&-

Database=hssguides&-KeyValue=3504 for more details. The deadline for applications is 3 March 2008.

The new NASA Fellowship in the History of Space Technology will be 

administered by the Society for the History of Technology (SHOT). This 

$17,000 fellowship will fund one predoctoral or postdoctoral Fellow, for up 

to one academic year, to undertake a research project related to the history 

of space technology. This fellowship may support advanced research related 

to any or all aspects of space history and should lead to publications on 

such topics as the history of space technology broadly considered, including 

cultural and intellectual history; institutional history; economic history; 

the history of law and public policy; and the history of science, engineering, 

and management. The fellowship’s stipend will be paid quarterly; funds may 

not be used to support tuition or fees. Applicants must possess a doctorate 

degree in the history of technology or in a closely related field, or be enrolled 

as a student in a doctoral degree program and have completed all requirements except the dissertation for a Ph.D. in the history of technology or a 

related field. Eligibility is not limited to U.S. citizens or residents. Application forms and further information will be available soon from http://www.

historyoftechnology.org/ online; meanwhile, questions may go to SHOT 

secretary Amy Bix at shot@iastate.edu. The deadline for applications is 1 

March 2008.
VOLUME 25, NUMBER 1 February 2008

1

New Contracts

NASA Aeronautics Research Mission Directorate

NASA’s Aeronautics Research Mission Directorate (ARMD) is developing a series of 

case studies to help foster the transfer of lessons learned from real-world aerospace 

programs to the future aerospace workforce. ARMD is looking for manuscripts suitable for a higher education audience on topics related to aeronautics research and 

technology development. Manuscripts should be about 50,000 words and should be 

accompanied by any relevant supporting materials such as photos, tables, or other 

graphics. There is an ongoing selection process with varying amounts awarded to 

those selected. Please contact Lynn Bondurant with Paragon Tec at 216-361-5555, 

ext. 213, or neslynn@paragon-tec.com for more information or to submit proposals

NASA Historic Preservation 

By Tina Norwood 

While NASA’s historic accomplishments in aeronautical research, science, and space 

exploration are well documented, less is known about the buildings and structures that 

supported and enabled these accomplishments. This article is the second in a series that 

provides a brief review of the real property 

assets that NASA owns and operates across 

the country. Of the many assets that are listed 

or eligible for listing on the National Register 

of Historic Places (NRHP), 20 are National 

Historic Landmarks (NHLs). 

The National Park Service (NPS) manages 

the NRHP. The NRHP contains approximately 2,500 NHLs: the buildings, districts, 

structures, and objects that are significant to 

America’s history nationally. This series provides an overview of NASA’s 20 NHLs. This 

issue features NASA’s Dynamic Test Stand, 

one of four NHLs at Marshall Space Flight 

Center (MSFC) in Alabama.

NASA Dynamic Test Stand

Marshall Space Flight Center, Alabama

By Ralph H. Allen 

Marshall Space Flight Center 

Historic Preservation Officer (HPO)

Strap an engine or vehicle into most of 

NASA’s test stands and you get smoke, fire, 

and thunder. Yet at one major test stand, you 

get silence. Marshall Space Flight Center’s 

Dynamic Test Stand is designed to determine 

continued on next page

The left side of the solid rocket booster (SRB) is stacked in the 

Dynamic Test Stand at Marshall Space Flight Center. The SRB 

was attached to the external tank (ET) and, later, to the orbiter 

for the Mated Vertical Ground Vibration Test (MVGVT), which 

resumed in October 1978. The purpose of the MVGVT was to 

verify that the Space Shuttle would perform as predicted during launch.

continued on next page
NASA HISTORY DIVISION

18

how various stages and configurations of launch vehicles bend and vibrate in flight. 

These tests require hundreds of accelerometers to measure vibration induced by 

dynamic shakers at various locations on the test article. 

The 424-foot-tall test stand (counting the upper derrick crane) is currently being 

modified for testing of the new Ares I, and the first time that the Ares I will be fully 

assembled and mated with all major components will be at this stand for tests in 

2011. A few years later, the Ares V will also see time in this stand before it is certified 

for flight.

Previously known as the Saturn V Dynamic Test Stand, the stand was constructed 

from 1963 to 1965 to test the fully assembled Saturn V rocket. It is one of NASA’s 

20 National Historic Landmark structures nominated under the 1984 Man-in-Space 

Theme Study. Modifications such as those required to change the stand from the 

Space Shuttle testing configuration to a new Ares I configuration must follow the 

steps required by Section 106 of the National Historic Preservation Act (NHPA) of 

1966. The implementing regulations of this federal statute 

require federal agencies to 

consult with the State Historic 

Preservation Officer (SHPO). 

That means that NASA must 

take into account the historic 

nature of the structure when 

making changes, allow the 

Alabama SHPO to comment 

on the planned work, and 

take those comments into 

consideration. 

Because the Dynamic Test 

Stand is a unique historic 

structure and major interior 

changes will be required to 

reconfigure the platforms that 

permit access to the vehicle 

being tested, a team from the 

Historic American Engineering 

Record (HAER) was brought 

in to survey, document, and 

interpret the stand and its history. This documentation was 

the mitigation action proposed 

in Marshall’s Section 106 submittal to the Alabama SHPO.

HAER and its sister organization, the Historic American 

Building Survey (HABS), are 

programs of the National Park 

NASA Historic Preservation (continued)

Orbiter Enterprise being lifted by crane into the Structural Dynamic Test 

Facility in 1978. (Image Number NASA MSFC-7890776) 
VOLUME 25, NUMBER 1 February 2008

1

Service that have been recording America’s significant historic structures since the 

1930s. Their documentation is considered the highest level of recordation available 

for historic and industrial structures, and the drawings, photos, and history that 

they produce are placed in the Library of Congress and are made available online at 

http://memory.loc.gov.

NASA’s program and facility managers recognize that HABS and HAER provide 

permanent recordation of NASA’s unique buildings and structures before major 

modifications are made. The MSFC Historic Preservation Officer was able to initiate Section 106 consultation even before Constellation Program managers had exact 

definitions of the alterations to the Dynamic Test Stand that would be needed to 

support Ares. In accordance with the programmatic agreement governing NASA’s 

20 NHLs, the Secretary of the Interior, National Park Service, was also consulted in 

the Section 106 process.

The HAER team assembled to document the Dynamic Test Stand at Marshall 

Space Flight Center in 2007. Architectural historians worked on-site through the 

summer to measure, analyze, interpret, and draw the stand. Their drawings, history, 

and photos will give NASA and the country a permanent record of the stand and 

define its significant place in the testing and development of the Saturn V and Space 

Shuttle vehicles. This proactive approach to recording the Dynamic Test Stand was 

critical to completing the Section 106 process with the Alabama SHPO to support 

the proposed alterations.

The following is an excerpt from the HAER package, which is currently being finalized by historian Sara E. Wermiel:

The Saturn V Dynamic Test Stand represents an important element in the 

program of research and development that created the enormous Saturn 

V/Apollo space vehicle that in July 1969 allowed humans to make the 

first landing on the Moon (Apollo 11). The stand also is significant as an 

engineering landmark, because it used a novel means to create free flight 

conditions for the 363-foot tall, 6.2 million-pound Saturn V/Apollo. The 

facility was built to determine how various stages and configurations of 

this multi-stage launch vehicle would bend and vibrate in flight. Engineers 

needed this information in order to design the vehicle’s flight control 

system and confirm the overall integrity of the structure. Dynamic tests 

had been used in the development of missiles and aircraft, but creating 

test facilities and testing procedures became increasingly challenging 

as the size and complexity of space vehicles grew. In 1960–61, Marshall 

Space Flight Center staff and contractors built the first tall (204-foot) 

steel-skeleton dynamic test stand; this was used for dynamic testing of 

the Saturn I launch vehicle and its payload. In that case, the vehicle was 

suspended, using cables attached to springs, and shaken to simulate its 

dynamic characteristics in flight. For the taller and heavier Saturn V, a new 

stand and different kind of support system were needed. Marshall Center 

engineers invented special hydraulic supports that went under the frame of 

the vehicle. Each of the four supports consisted of an ingenious, virtually 

frictionless bearing on a vertically floating piston in a cylinder. Oil forced 

into the base of the piston pushed up a float, which in turn increased pressure on nitrogen gas in the piston, forcing the bearing, and thus the Saturn, 

continued on next page
NASA HISTORY DIVISION

20

to rise a few inches. In its “free-free” test condition, the vehicle could move 

in all directions when it was vibrated by shakers. Tests were conducted on a 

model vehicle, the SA-500D, built especially for dynamic testing. Both the 

test vehicle and the Saturn V Dynamic Test Stand are National Historic 

Landmarks (nominated in 1986). The results of dynamic tests at this stand 

helped engineers make the Saturn V a successful launch vehicle. The stand 

was modified in the mid-1970s so it could be used for vibration testing of 

the Space Shuttle vehicle.

For Centers with significant structures, consideration should be given to having 

HAER documentation done for those that are of national importance. By working 

directly with the National Park Service, HAER Office, MSFC now has permanent 

HAER recordation of all four of their NHLs.

Kennedy Space Center Names New Historic 

Preservation Officer

By Tina Norwood

In October 2007, Barbara Naylor was designated as the Historic Preservation 

Officer (HPO) for Kennedy Space Center (KSC), Florida. She replaces Mario 

Busacca, who joined NASA in 1984 and served as KSC’s first HPO. Barbara has 

been a NASA employee at KSC since 1973 and has supported Cultural Resources 

Management (CRM) issues for the past three years in the Environmental Program 

Branch. Barbara has been involved in the recent KSC and Agency-wide Space 

Shuttle Program Historic Property Surveys and the removal of the Shuttle Cargo 

Integration Test Equipment Stands and the Apollo Test Mount Clean Room in the 

Operations and Checkout Building/High Bay, as well as the demolition activities 

at Launch Complex 34/Engineering Support Building. She will oversee the CRM 

requirements involving the removal of the Launch Control Center Sun louvers and 

windows and the proposed demolition of the Mission Control Center. She has worked 

in several organizations throughout her career, including the Space Shuttle Program 

Office, the Space Station Project Control Office, the Resources Management Office, 

the Executive Staff to the Center Director, the Design Engineering Directorate, 

and the Biomedical Office. Barbara has been working in the Special Projects and 

Planning group within the Environmental Program Branch since 1994. 

The NASA historic preservation community welcomes Barbara to NASA’s team 

of 13 HPOs. She states, “I look forward to working more closely with Barbara and 

appreciate the tremendous job Mario Busacca has done in managing Kennedy’s 

historic resources.” HPOs oversee CRM compliance activities in support of NASA’s 

mission. More information on NASA’s CRM program can be found at http://www.

hq.nasa.gov/office/oim/oia/emd/crm.html.

For more information, please contact Ralph Allen, MSFC HPO, at Ralph.H.Allen@

nasa.gov or Tina Borghild Norwood, NASA Federal Preservation Officer, at

tnorwood@hq.nasa.gov.

NASA Historic Preservation (continued)
VOLUME 25, NUMBER 1 February 2008

21

Other History News

News from the National Air and Space Museum

Michael Neufeld (Space History Division) has been promoting his new biography, 

Von Braun: Dreamer of Space, Engineer of War (New York: Alfred A. Knopf, 2007), 

including giving public talks and radio appearances. The book was reviewed by, 

among other publications, the New York Times, the Los Angeles Times, the Boston 

Globe, the Washington Post, the New Yorker, and the New York Review of Books. He 

also gave a paper in November at the workshop “Who Is Making Science? Scientists 

as Makers of Science Policy” at the Universitat Pompeu Fabra, Barcelona, Spain, 

entitled “Wernher von Braun, Science, Technology and Defense Policy in Germany 

and the United States, 1932–1977.” Allan Needell of Space History also presented a 

paper on Lloyd V. Berkner at this conference. 

Roger Launius (Space History) participated as a featured speaker in the Council 

on Foreign Relations event “The Legacy of Sputnik” on 15 October 2007. The event 

took place at the Council’s New York facilities and involved, in addition to Launius, 

Garrick Utley, formerly of ABC News and currently president of the Neil D. 

Levin Graduate Institute of International Relations and Commerce, and Matthew 

Brzezinski, former Moscow correspondent of the Wall Street Journal and author of 

Red Moon Rising: Sputnik and the Hidden Rivalries That Ignited the Space Age.

Additionally, Roger Launius has published “Viewpoint: A Significant Moment for 

the Space Age,” Space Policy 23 (August 2007): 141–143. Abstract: Anniversaries 

offer not only opportunities to celebrate and commemorate a significant event, but 

also to reflect on larger meanings and consider the place of the events and their 

actors in the larger fabric of modern society. On 4 October 2007, the world will 

commemorate the 50th anniversary of the launch of Sputnik I, the first spacecraft 

placed in orbit. What has this 50-year history brought us? This essay reflects on this 

event and its meaning. It suggests that humanity may appropriately conclude that 

this Earth is not a cage and that humanity may venture beyond it. It also invokes the 

possibilities both of living more fully on this small and precious world we call home 

and of leaving it behind for other planets beyond.

Roger Launius has also been named a Fellow of the American Association for the 

Advancement of Science (AAAS). This rank is awarded in recognition of an individual’s efforts toward advancing science applications that are deemed scientifically 

or socially distinguished. The AAAS said that this elevation was “for distinguished 

scholarship and leadership in the field of space history, and for demonstrating the 

relevance of history to public policy.” He will be formally inducted as an AAAS 

Fellow on Saturday, 16 February, at the Fellows Forum during the 2008 AAAS 

Annual Meeting in Boston.

At the American Historical Association (AHA) convention in Washington, DC, in 

January, David H. DeVorkin (Space History) received the 2008 Herbert Feis Award 

continued on next page
NASA HISTORY DIVISION

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recognizing distinguished contributions to public history during the previous 10 

years. This award, created with an initial endowment from the Rockefeller 

Foundation and offered by the AHA, is named in memory of Herbert Feis (1893–

1972), public servant and historian of recent American foreign policy. Previous 

scholars recognized by this award have included Victoria A. Hardin, Rachel P. 

Maines, Pete Daniel, Robert Hughes, and Larry E. Tise.

Also in January, at the American Astronomical Society (AAS) conference in San 

Antonio, the Historical Astronomy Division of the AAS awarded David DeVorkin the 

sixth LeRoy E. Doggett Prize for Historical Astronomy. This prize was given for “his 

seminal work in illuminating the origins and development of modern astrophysics and 

the origins of the space sciences during the twentieth century.” His citation reads: “Dr. 

DeVorkin’s many research papers, books, and monographs have provided a detailed, 

scholarly and yet interesting history of twentieth century space science and astrophysics and the roles of the military, religion, government, the world wars and the power 

brokers in the development of these fields. His 2000 biography of Henry Norris 

Russell was critically acclaimed and resulted in two major exhibitions as well as 

several smaller ones. Based upon a wide variety of well documented sources, including archival correspondence and oral histories, this landmark biography illuminated 

much of the history of astrophysics in the first half of the 20th century. His popular 

historical articles have engaged the public, and through his curatorial role at the 

Smithsonian Institution’s National Air and Space Museum he has made astronomy 

come alive for millions of interested museum visitors.”

Martin Collins (Space History) is succeeding John Krige as the editor of History 

and Technology, an international journal that aims at integrating technology into 

the broader field of historical inquiry. Research on aviation and spaceflight fits 

squarely into the journal’s portfolio. For more on the journal, including submission 

guidelines, see http://www.tandf.co.uk/journals/titles/07341512.asp.

Richard Hallion (Aeronautics Division) has been elected to the grade of Fellow of 

the American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics, one of 30 Fellows and 3 

Honorary Fellows elected for 2008. AIAA Fellows are selected for “notable and 

valuable contributions to the arts, science, or technology of aeronautics or astronautics.” Dr. Hallion currently serves as the 2007–08 Alfred Verville Fellow at the 

National Air and Space Museum, where he is studying the role of NACA Technical 

Representative John Jay Ide in air intelligence and the transfer of technical information between Europe and America.

News from the American Astronautical Society’s (AAS) 

History Committee

The AAS History Committee (HistComm) has many tasks and publications for 

2008. They include the following:

• Work with Univelt to publish three volumes in the AAS History Series, plus an 

index of IAA History Series papers, 1967–2000, which was prepared by the IAA 

History Study Group.

Other History News (continued)
VOLUME 25, NUMBER 1 February 2008

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• Complete editorial work on ABC-CLIO encyclopedia effort.

• Select the recipient of the 2007 Emme Award for Astronautical Literature. 

• Assess the HistComm charter and implement recommendations of the Doyle 

Working Group.

• Produce three editions of Explorer.

• Provide Space Times with four book reviews.

• Add two new members to the HistComm (nominations welcomed). 

• Support activities to celebrate the 50th anniversary of NASA.

• Initiate compilation of college space history courses and programs available 

nationally, eventually to include sample syllabi and other information.

• Expand the AAS awards program to include an annual award for the best published article on astronautics or spaceflight history.

• Support the efforts of Space Times by encouraging members to provide articles to 

Space Times for publication. 

The AAS History Committee publishes its Explorer newsletter quarterly. To receive 

Explorer via e-mail, send a message to michael.l.ciancone@nasa.gov. You will receive 

confirmation that your e-mail address has been added to the AAS History Committee’s 

e-mail list for the newsletter.

Awards and Recognition

The History Division is pleased to announce that Douglas Mudgway, author 

of William H. Pickering: America’s Deep Space Pioneer, has been awarded the 

American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics 2008 History Manuscript 

Award. The book is a biography of William Pickering, an instrumental figure in 

the Explorer 1 Program and a pioneer in the field of space exploration. As Director 

of the Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Pickering’s decision to affiliate with the newly 

formed NASA brought about NASA’s ambitious program for the exploration of the 

solar system. With his guidance, missions to explore Venus, Mars, and the Moon 

came to actualization. Explorer 1, America’s first satellite, became another iconic 

mission under his direction. The book’s publication date is significant because it 

coincides with the 50th anniversary of the Explorer 1 program. The book is now 

available for public sale.
NASA HISTORY DIVISION

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Call for Summer Interns

The NASA History Division sponsors internships for undergraduate and graduate students year-round. We are currently looking for interns for summer 2008. 

The deadline for applications is 14 March 2008. Our internships are quite substantive and are opportunities for students to learn and contribute significantly. 

This summer, we unfortunately will be unable to pay interns directly. However, we encourage students to apply for stipends or other funding through 

the national network of state space grant consortia (http://calspace.ucsd.edu/ 

spacegrant/contacts/directors/dir_directors.html), their home educational institutions, or other corporate or nonprofit sources. Students will need to exercise 

initiative to find out about the different application criteria, procedures, and 

deadlines from these various organizations. In any event, interested students 

should follow the NASA History Division’s application procedures and deadlines, as outlined on http://history.nasa.gov/interncall.htm. 

Kennedy Space Center Lab Works 

with Customers To Deliver New 

Technologies

By Svetlana Shkolyar, Student Intern

Although the main mission of Kennedy Space Center’s Applied Physics Laboratory 

(APL) may be to deliver gadgets to support launch operations, it is the verdict of the 

end users of these technologies that dictate which ones make it into the field. 

For example, the Water Extraction Tool (WET), a vacuum system for drying multiple 

orbiter tiles, “is a case where hardware is needed for contingencies,” said Dr. Robert 

Youngquist, physicist at the APL. The tool was designed to remove water from orbiter 

tiles after a 2001 mission, when the orbiter was subjected to rain after its landing. 

WET was developed as a five-times-faster method than that used for Atlantis, drying 

by heating. WET works by sucking water out through the waterproofing holes in 

each tile.

The Thermal Protection System team liked the tool, but when lab personnel delivered it, they “kindly asked us to keep our hardware,” said Youngquist, because 

Shuttles are rarely rained upon. Four years later, Discovery landed in California 

and was also rained upon. A request for the tool was sent to the lab, and within two 

weeks, WET was being used in the field.

The Gaseous Oxygen Vent Alignment Tool, which is positioned on the External Tank 

spike, came to be used also because the end user, engineer Jorge Rivera, accepted it 

for use in the field despite management’s concern that it needed additional capabilities. Jorge recognized that it would meet the need as it was and accepted it for use. 

Other APL technologies that would not have made it into the field without the end 

user’s active involvement include the Reaction Control System (RCS) nozzle inspec-
VOLUME 25, NUMBER 1 February 2008

25

tion tools for checking the RCS chambers for defects, as well as the Surface Light 

Optimizing Tool (SLOT) for inspecting the orbiter windows for hazardous defects 

by light reflection using a prism. 

According to Youngquist, “The best case is when the end user wants to work with 

you and develops a vested interest.” Just like NASA Orbiter Maneuvering System 

engineer John Peters, who “took a hands-on interest” in the RCS project, lead window inspector Robin Floyd took a similar interest in developing the SLOT. Floyd 

conceived the idea for SLOT independently but had no means of fabricating a field 

version of it; he and the APL jointly produced the tool when a “meeting of the minds 

occurred,” said Youngquist. 

The SLOT will soon be adapted for use by the International Space Station (ISS) and 

the Constellation project. The tools allow work to be completed in much less time 

than that required by previous methods. Three RCS tools are used today at four sites, 

including the White Sands Test Facility, which refurbishes thrusters.

“Technology is a function of how ardent the customer is on getting the product; it 

is need and personality driven,” said Youngquist. This may be the secret to how 

innovation impacts the Shuttle Program here at KSC.

Technician Steve Parks of Arctic Slope Regional Corporation 

(ASRC) is testing the vacuum through the system for the WET 

tool. This Plexiglas sheet has holes drilled into it to simulate 

the waterproofing holes on the Shuttle tiles.

Quality assurance inspector James Allen Atwell is using the RCS fuel hole 

inspection device to look into a nozzle in bay 2 of the Orbiter Processing Facility. 
NASA HISTORY DIVISION

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Calls for Papers

2008 Annual Conference of the Society for the History 

of Technology

The Society for the History of Technology will hold its annual meeting in Lisbon, 

Portugal, 11–14 October, to continue the celebration of the 50th anniversary of the 

founding of the Society. This year’s theme will be “SHOT@50: Looking Beyond.” 

The Program Committee seeks papers or session proposals for the 2008 meeting that 

concern the history of technology as it may or ought to be practiced in the future. 

The Committee also appreciates papers or panels reaching out beyond SHOT’s current disciplinary boundaries, as well as papers of high quality on any aspect of the 

history of technology, broadly defined. 

The Committee welcomes proposals for individual papers or sessions, as well as 

works in progress from researchers. Proposals for individual papers must include a 

one-page abstract (maximum 600 words) and a one-page curriculum vitae, including 

current postal and e-mail addresses. Proposals for complete sessions must include 

a description of the session that explains how individual papers contribute to an 

overall theme; the names and paper titles of the presenters; a one-page summary of 

each paper’s topic, argument(s), and evidence used for each presenter; and a onepage curriculum vitae for the commentator, chair, and each presenter. The deadline 

for submission is 14 March 2008.

Quest: The History of Spaceflight Quarterly 

David Arnold, editor of Quest: The History of Spaceflight Quarterly, is seeking 

articles for publication. For more about the journal, see http://www.spacebusiness.

com/quest/. Dr. Arnold sent a note to the editorial board indicating that he has a terrific issue coming together for the 50th anniversary of the Space Age but is looking 

for additional items relative both to the anniversary and to other non-anniversaryrelated topics for upcoming issues. If you have possible articles for publication or 

know of people who might have articles for publication, please contact Dr. Arnold 

at historyofspace@aol.com. 

International Test and Evaluation Association Journal 

The Journal of the International Test and Evaluation Association (ITEA) is looking 

for history articles. Each quarter, there is a column entitled “Historical Perspectives” 

involving short historical sketches of up to 1,200 words, with three or four photographs to accompany them. Longer historical pieces have also been published in the 

main part of the journal about subjects of special interest to the association. 

The subject matter for these columns has been intentionally broad. The editors 

are appealing to a wide range of test and evaluation (T&E) practitioners—not so 

much professional historians—so it is important to publish subjects that are varied 

and novel to keep the readers interested. The journal has done one article about an 

incident involving flight testing during World War I, another on truck fairing tests 

designed to increase fuel economy during the energy crisis of the 1970s, and a third 
VOLUME 25, NUMBER 1 February 2008

2

on the human factors—not just the machinery—involved in the near-fatal crash of a 

pilot of one of the NASA lifting bodies. All have endnotes and, although short, offer 

good scholarship to pique further reading and fresh perspectives. 

All periods of history are open, and T&E is defined liberally: in the modern sense 

of complex, computerized experiments, but also the much less complex T&E as 

understood in earlier periods. For example, articles can be about specific aircraft (or 

subsystem) tests, influential individuals in the field of testing, technological turning 

points, or unique supporting subjects (for instance, the T&E of airline food!). It can 

also be a first-person account. Moreover, submissions need not be dominated solely 

by test and evaluation; ideally, they will feature T&E in some broader context. 

Finally, the journal is informal in its editorial process. The journal gives the historical editor wide latitude to find submissions, so once he makes contact with a potential author and hashes out a subject, it is very likely that it will indeed be published. 

For more information, please contact Michael Gorn, Ph.D., NASA Dryden Flight 

Research Center, at michael.gorn@dfrc.nasa.gov.

Space Times

Space Times, the bimonthly article of the American Astronautical Society (AAS), is 

in search of articles for publication. Articles may cover virtually any topic involving 

space science, technology, exploration, law, or policy. Articles that touch on issues 

relevant to the civil, commercial, military, and intelligence space sectors alike are 

also welcomed. Articles should be written for a well-educated audience that has a 

great interest in space topics but may not necessarily be familiar with the author’s 

specific topic. They should therefore be written in active voice, with a clear explanation of technical concepts provided. Submission of photos or other visual support 

is encouraged, but not required, and must be provided in high resolution (at least 

300 dpi) and in JPG, TIF, or GIF format. Please provide proof of permission from 

the owner of any photos or visuals; if permission has not already been obtained, 

provide contact information for the owner. For more information, visit http://www.

astronautical.org.

Upcoming Meetings

5–6 March 2008, the annual Goddard Memorial Symposium, sponsored by the 

American Astronautical Society, will be held in Greenbelt, Maryland. Please see 

http://www.astronautical.org for more information.

13 March 2008, the Society for History in the Federal Government (SHFG) annual 

meeting will be held at the National Archives and Records Administration (NARA) 

in College Park, Maryland. For more information, please see http://www.shfg.org or 

e-mail shfgannualconference@yahoo.com. 

29 March–1 April 2008, the next Mutual Concerns of Air and Space Museums 

Conference will be held in Washington, DC. The meeting will be held at the L’Enfant 

Plaza Hotel, with a day of sessions at the National Air and Space Museum’s Steven 

F. Udvar-Hazy Center. For more information, please see http://www.nasm.si.edu/ 

getinvolved/mutualconcerns/. 

continued on next page
NASA HISTORY DIVISION

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10–13 April 2008, the National Council on Public History will hold its annual 

meeting in Louisville, Kentucky. Please see http://www.ncph.org/Conferences/2008/

tabid/301/Default.aspx for more information. 

8–10 May 2008, a conference is being planned in Dayton, Ohio, at Wright State 

University, for the centennial of the Wright brothers’ international flight demonstrations. Conference organizers are seeking paper and panel proposals focusing 

broadly on the international nature of the history and development of flight from 

1908 to 2008. The conference will be held throughout the day, with guided tours of 

the National Museum of the U.S. Air Force and trips to Dayton Aviation Heritage 

National Historic Park, Carillon Park, and Hawthorne Hill. For more information, 

please e-mail Francois Le Roy, Chair, Program Committee, at Leroy@nku.edu. 

The National Academy of Sciences and National Research Council’s Space Studies 

Board (SSB) is sponsoring an international public seminar series through 2007 

and 2008 to commemorate the 50th anniversary of the International Geophysical 

Year and the establishment of the SSB. Please see http://www7.nationalacademies. 

org/ssb/International_Public_Seminar_Series.html for more information.

Recent Images

Clockwise from left are Douglas 

Mudgway, author of the recently 

published biography of William 

Pickering; Beth Pickering Mezitt, 

daughter of Pickering; and Inez 

Chapman-Pickering, Pickering’s 

widow. This image was taken 

at the 28 January 2008 dinner 

in Flintridge, California, that 

marked the publication of the 

biography and kicked off the 

week celebrating the 50th anniversary of the launch of the 

Explorer 1 spacecraft.

Upcoming Meetings (continued)
VOLUME 25, NUMBER 1 February 2008

2

Sergei Khrushchev, Paul Dickson, and Steve Dick converse at an event commemorating the 50th anniversary of the launch of Sputnik I.

Steve Dick and Fred Singer at the First International Conference on the Exploration of Phobos and Deimos. 

Phobos and Deimos are the two moons of Mars, which were discovered in 1877.
NASA HISTORY DIVISION

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The first meeting of the National Advisory Committee for Aeronautics (NACA) in the Office of the 

Secretary of War, 23 April 1915. Pictured seated from left to right are Dr. William Durand, Stanford 

University; Dr. S. W. Stratton, Director, Bureau of Standards; Brigadier General George P. Scriven, 

Chief Signal Officer, War Department; Dr. C. F. Marvin, Chief, United States Weather Bureau; and 

Dr. Michael I. Pupin, Columbia University. Standing, left to right, are Holden C. Richardson, naval 

instructor; Dr. John F. Hayford, Northwestern University; Captain Mark L. Bristol, Director of Naval 

Aeronautics; and Lieutenant Colonel Samuel Reber, Signal Corps. George P. Scriven was elected temporary Chairman of the NACA.

Image in Aerospace History

Center: Ames • Center Number: A-6786 • GRIN Database Number: GPN-2000-001571
VOLUME 25, NUMBER 1 February 2008

3

The NASA History Division, under the Office of External Relations, NASA 

Headquarters, Washington, DC 20546, publishes News and Notes quarterly.

To receive News and Notes via e-mail, send a message to majordomo@hq.nasa.gov. 

Leave the subject line blank. In the text portion, simply type “subscribe history” 

without the quotation marks. You will receive confirmation that your account has 

been added to the list for the newsletter and for receiving other announcements. For 

more information about our listserv, please see http://history.nasa.gov/listserv.html on 

the Web. We also post the latest issue of this newsletter at http://history.nasa.gov/nltrc.

html on the Web.

Do you have more questions about NASA history in general? Please check out 

our NASA History Division Home Page at http://history.nasa.gov on the Web. For 

information about doing research in the NASA History Division, please e-mail us at 

histinfo@hq.nasa.gov or call 202-358-0384. 

We also welcome comments about the content and format of this newsletter. Please 

send comments to Steve Garber, newsletter editor, at stephen.j.garber@nasa.gov.

NASA Headquarters History Division Staff Contact Information:

Steven J. Dick, Chief Historian steven.j.dick@nasa.gov

202-358-0383

Nadine Andreassen, Program Support Specialist nadine.j.andreassen@nasa.gov

202-358-0087

Colin Fries, Archivist cfries@mail.hq.nasa.gov

202-358-0388

Stephen Garber, Historian stephen.j.garber@nasa.gov

202-358-0385

John Hargenrader, Archivist jhargenr@mail.hq.nasa.gov

202-358-0387

Jane Odom, Chief Archivist jane.h.odom@nasa.gov

202-358-0386

Elizabeth Suckow, Archivist elizabeth.suckow-1@nasa.gov

202-358-0375

Created and produced by the following:

Steve Garber, NASA Headquarters History Division

Lisa Jirousek, Editor, NASA Headquarters Communications Support Service Center

Steve Bradley, Designer, NASA Headquarters Communications Support Service Center

Dave Dixon, Printing Specialist, NASA Headquarters Communications Support Service Center

Trenita Williams, Mail Coordinator, NASA Headquarters Mail Room

Carl Paul, Distribution, NASA Headquarters Communications Support Service Center
NASA HISTORY DIVISION

3

National Aeronautics and

Space Administration

NASA HISTORY DIVISION

Office of External Relations

Washington, DC 20546

http://www.nasa.gov

http://history.nasa.gov