Aug 30 1971
From The Space Library
Election of Apollo 11 Astronauts Neil A. Armstrong, Edwin E. Aldrin, Jr., and Michael Collins to International Aerospace Hall of Fame was announced by Hall of Fame President Martin R. Engler, Jr. Awards for 1971 would be presented to astronauts in San Diego, Calif., Oct. 23. Astronauts had been nominated "in view of their epic flight and its representation as one of the greatest single scientific achievements in the history of man." (Letter to NASA Historian)
Dr. Eberhard F. M. Rees, MSFC Director, announced establishment of temporary IIEAO Office in MSFC's Program Management Directorate to plan High Energy Astronomy Observatory. Office would replace IIEAO Task Team formed in spring 1971. (MSFC Release 71-148)
FAA certification of 201 series Guppy cargo aircraft and sale of one air-craft to Airbus Industries of France, European cargo airline, were announced by aircraft's manufacturer, Aero Spacelines, Inc. New aircraft was sixth in Guppy series, created to airlift space booster components for NASA. With fuselage 7.6 m (25 ft) in diameter, new Guppy could lift 24 500 kg (54 000 lbs) of cargo and fly it for 3200 km (2000 mi) nonstop at 470 km per hr (290 mph). First 201 series Guppy would move wing and fuselage assemblies of Concorde supersonic transport and 300-passenger European airbus from points of manufacture to Toulouse, France, for assembly. (C Trib, 9/2/71)
Response by Soviet Ambassador Anatoly F. Dobrynin to National Space Club letter of condolence to Soviet government on death of Soyuz cosmonauts was published in NSC News Letter; "We highly appreciate your expression of respect for the heroic endeavour of the space explorers who died for the progress of all mankind." (NSC News Letter, 8/30/71, 2)
Yugoslavia was urging other East European countries to participate actively in INTELSAT, Aviation Week & Space Technology reported. Discussions had been held with Romania and Hungary on possibility that they would use ground terminal that Yugoslavia expected to be operational in 1974. (Av Wk, 8/30/71, 11)
Time magazine reviewed Secret Sentries in Space by Philip J. Klass. "No one else has written in comparable detail out spy satellites," Time said. Klass had described latest U.S. SAMOS (satellite and missile observations system). "Big Bird" was 10 900-kg (12-ton) space-craft capable of operating in orbit for several months. It could transmit high-quality pictures by radio and eject capsules of exposed film, which then dropped by parachute. Big Bird also included infrared heat-sensing equipment that allowed it to "see" through ice and snow to locate Soviet underground weapons. Klass had reported heaviest concentration of long-range Soviet missiles in Siberia and behind Ural mountains in Central Asia. (Time, 8/30/71, 26)
Mrs. Irene Bolam, named in book "Amelia Earhart Lives" as being missing aviatrix Amelia Earhart, filed $1.5-million libel suit against authors Joseph Klass and Joseph Gervais. Mrs. Bolam claimed book damaged her reputation by depicting her as bigamist, spy, and traitor. Book claimed Amelia Earhart had disappeared in 1937 while flying U.S. spy mission, was captured by Japanese, and might have been World War II Japanese propagandist Tokyo Rose. (UPI, W Post, 9/1/71, D5)
Washington Daily News editorial commented on Aug. 25 resignation from NASA of Apollo 11 Astronaut Neil A. Armstrong : "Offhand, it is regrettable to see any of the accomplished men leave the program they helped make such a smashing success. But Mr. Armstrong will be teaching engineering and it will be no surprise if some of his students wind up in future space exploration. So count his `defection' to education as another spinoff benefit of the space program." (W News, 8/30/71, 22)
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