Aug 17 2000
From The Space Library
Robert R. Gilruth, "an aerospace scientist, engineer, and a pioneer of the American space program during the glory days of Mercury, Gemini, and Apollo," died at the age of 86. Gilruth had specialized in flight research, and in 1945 he had organized an engineering team to study experimental, rocket-powered aircraft, leading to the establishment of the Pilotless Aircraft Research Division and the creation of the National Advisory Committee for Aeronautics's Wallops Island launching range. In 1952 Gilruth had become Assistant Director of the Langley Laboratory, investigating high-temperature structures and dynamics loads, and conducting hypersonic aerodynamics research at Wallops Island. His focus shifted to spacecraft in 1957, after the Soviet Union launched Sputnik. When NASA began in 1958, Gilruth had become Director of the Space Task Group at Langley, ultimately devising all the basic principles of Project Mercury. In 1961 Gilruth had become Director of the Manned Spacecraft Center, later Johnson Space Center (JSC), where he directed 25 human spaceflights over the course of 10 years. George M. Low, Director of the Apollo Lunar Landing Program, once remarked in an interview that the Mercury, Gemini, and Apollo programs would never have existed without Robert R. Gilruth. NASA Administrator Daniel S. Goldin commented, "his courage to explore the unknown, his insistence on following strict scientific procedures, and his technical expertise directly contributed to the ultimate success of the American manned space program and the landing of a man on the moon.”
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