Aug 21 1975
From The Space Library
The Titan-Centaur launch vehicle for the Viking- B had been moved to the pad at Launch Complex 41 just 24 hr after the successful launch of Viking 1. Technicians would mate the spacecraft to the launch vehicle on 27 Aug., preparing for the scheduled launch on I Sept. (KSC Release 174-75)
The Space Shuttle was, in many ways, the "ultimate recycling program," Robert Anderson, president and chief executive officer of Rockwell International Corp. said on Transportation Day at the Canadian National Exhibition in Toronto. Anderson said that the Shuttle program, with its international scope and emphasis on reusability, was the first major step toward economical and effective use of space.
More advanced Shuttle-launched satellites would benefit the world by aiding crop control; locating new sources of minerals and fossil fuels; monitoring weather, pollution, and localized disasters such as oil slicks and forest fires; mapping oceans and urban areas; and improving communications. "For the job of transportation is not just to move people and goods from point to point-it is to also move history forward by enabling the pioneers to explore the new frontiers and by enabling society to capitalize on their discoveries." (Text; Rockwell Intl Release R-42)
NASA announced appointment of Herbert J. Rowe, chairman of the board of PEMCOR, Inc., as Associate Administrator for External Affairs. Rowe would coordinate activities, of the Office of Industry Affairs and Technology Utilization and the Office of Public Affairs, the offices that oversee NASA interactions with external organizations and individuals and disseminate information about NASA programs. (NASA anno, 26 Aug 75)
NASA announced retirement from military service of NASA Skylab 4 (16 Nov. 1973-8 Feb. 1974) astronauts Gerald P. Carr and William R. Pogue effective September 1. Carr, a Marine Corps colonel, would remain with NASA as a civilian astronaut. Pogue, an Air Force colonel and an astronaut since April 1966, would leave NASA to become a vice president of High Flight, an interdenominational evangelistic foundation founded by former astronaut James R. Irwin. As crew members on Skylab 4 Pogue and Carr, along with Dr. Edward G. Gibson, share the world record for individual time in space of 2017 hr 15 min 32 sec. Pogue's departure would reduce the number of NASA astronauts to 31. (NASA Release 75-233)
The Knights of Columbus, a U.S. Catholic fraternal organization, had agreed to pay for worldwide satellite coverage of three live 90-min Vatican events, the Washington Post reported. Four INTELSAT satellites would telecast the midnight mass at Christmas, the Stations of the Cross from the Roman Colosseum on Good Friday, and the Pope's Easter Sunday message. Each broadcast would cost an estimated $25 000. (W Post, 21 Aug 75)
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