Dec 2 1965
From The Space Library
NASA launched an Aerobee 150 sounding rocket from White Sands Missile Range to peak altitude of 115 mi. (185 km.), Objectives were to photograph the solar disc and to measure solar flux, Parachuted payload was recovered without observable damage; development of film was in process. (NASA Rpt. SRL)
Dr. Hugh L. Dryden, NASA Deputy Administrator since 1958, died of cancer at age 67. He was a former Director of the National Advisory Committee for Aeronautics, a former Associate Director of the National Bureau of Standards, and-for forty-five years-an ordained minister in the Methodist Church. An internationally renowned scientist-engineer who once said he and the airplane grew up together, he was recognized for his leadership in the development of aeronautics and astronautics. He generally was regarded as the man who guided the United States into the space age. Dr. Dryden served the U.S. Government with distinction since 1918 in science and technology, as an administrator, and more recently as a skilled diplomat in negotiating international agreements for cooperative efforts in the peaceful exploration of space. The recipient of many awards and honors, Dr. Dryden was especially known for his scientific contributions to fluid mechanics and boundary-layer phenomena. At Johnson City, Tex, President Johnson said that the death of Dr. Dryden "is a deep personal loss and a reason for national sorrow. . . No soldier ever performed his duty with more bravery and no statesman ever charted new courses with more dedication than Hugh Dryden. Whenever the first American space man sets foot on the moon or finds a new trail to a new star, he will know that Hugh Dryden Was one of those who gave him knowledge and illumination." From Great Falls, Mont., Vice President Humphrey, Chairman of the NASC, said: "The death of Dr. Hugh Dryden is a sad loss to all of us, and especially to those of us who have been guided by his wisdom, experience, and great common sense in planning the nation's space program, "We shall miss him sorely as we plot our course for the decade ahead. So much of what this nation has been able to do in aeronautics and space over the past 40 years we owe to the creative science and the confident, skillful leadership of this great public servant, I know of no finer example of modern man in all his versatility than Dr. Hugh Dryden, whose vision, courage, and lifetime of service have helped to lead the way into the Space Age..." NASA Administrator James E. Webb said: "Dr. Hugh L. Dryden was a man of his time-of the air age, of the nuclear age, of the space age, with all the implications of modern science and technology for the accomplishments of his time, He was also a man for all times because his courage in undertaking the conquest of air and space, his scientific, engineering, and administrative competence and his qualities of humanity and leadership mark him as one of the truly great men who have contributed over the years to these fields. He will be sorely missed in NASA, in the nation and, indeed, in many nations," Dr. Edward C. Welsh, Executive Secretary of the National Aeronautics and Space Council, said: "The country has lost one of its greatest scientists and one of its most dedicated citizens. The country will have to continue with its space and aeronautics programs without him -but will not be able to carry on as well without his inspiring leader. ship and ability." (Texts)
Tass reported that U.S.S.R.'s VENUS II had covered 6,540,000 km. (4,062,111.8 mi.) ; VENUS III, 5,310,000 km. (3,298,136 mi.). Both spacecraft were in trajectories close to those calculated; all onboard equipment was functioning normally. (Tass, 12/2/65)
President Johnson named Dr. Finn J. Larsen, Honeywell vice president, as Principal Director of Defense Research and Engineering for , succeeding Dr. E. G. Fubini, who left the job July 15. (AP, NYT, 12/3/65, 22; Pres, Doc., 12/6/65, 546)
Lt. Frank K. Ellis (USN), double-amputee pilot whose name was among astronaut candidates submitted to NASA by Chief of Naval Operations Adm. David L. McDonald, had been nominated for "special capacity" work in the space program, unidentified NASA sources revealed. While not nominated to become an actual astronaut. Ellis would be considered for work that would use his aeronautical knowledge. He lost both legs in a jet crash in July 1962. (CNS, San Diego Eve. Trib, 12/3/65)
65-ton [[Saturn S-IVB "battleship" tankage and associated vehicle equipment were shipped from San Francisco by MSFC to USAF Arnold Engineering Development Center, Tullahoma, Tenn., for use in high-altitude tests of the stage's J-2 engine. (MSFC Release 65-291)
A new alloy of hafnium and tantalum had been developed which could withstand temperatures as high as 4000° F. It would raise temperature limits formerly placed on such engine components as nozzles and throat inserts by the lack of reliable protective coatings. Application of the alloy was developed on a NASA contract by the IIT Research Institute. (NASA Release 65-365)
Physicist and author Dr. Ralph E. Lapp said at Central Connecticut State College that the space budget would decline from $5 billion to about $2 billion by 1970 unless new space projects were proposed and approved soon, He was pessimistic about the possibilities of finding worthwhile proposals among those now being considered by NASA and suggested that (1) Presidential science adviser Donald Hornig issue a report which would be "an accounting and a forecast" of the possibilities in space, and (2) the National Academy of Sciences poll its 700 members for their views on how Federal funds for research and development should be allocated for space and other projects. Lapp said "near-earth" projects such as manned earth stations offered some possibilities, but not enough to fill the gap which would soon appear in the aeronautics and space industry. (Garwood, Wash, Post, 12/3/65, A8)
Need for creation of a "Buck Rogers rescue squad" with trained men and equipment to give aid on short notice to spacemen stranded or stricken in orbit was discussed by William Hines in the Washington Evening Star, Hines said a persuasive case had been made by Michael Stoiko of the Martin Co,: "Stoiko estimated that in the next 20 years there will be about 280 manned space flights involving about 800 men, Half of each-men and flights-will be American, half Russian. Total flight time will be about 2.4 million man hours, compared with the world-wide total of about 1,200 man hours to date," Stoiko projected "a 62 percent probability of at least seven emergency situations involving 22 men in the next 20 years; a 58 percent probability of two or three emergencies in the coming decade." Hines said that now "astronauts stranded in orbit would have no hope of rescue and only a melancholy choice between two fatal alternatives: to sweat it out until the oxygen finally was gone, or to make a quick end of it by explosively decompressing both spacecraft and suit." (Hines, Wash. Eve, Star, 12/2/65)
Sir Francis Vallat, acting director of McGill Univ.'s Institute of Air and Space Law, told a news conference that if a piece of a satellite were to hit an individual on the head, he could sue the government that launched it and probably win the case. (AP, Wash. Eve, Star, 12/3/65, A8)
Avco Corp. was issued a $1,600,000 increment to a previously awarded contract for design, development, fabrication, test, and evaluation of Minuteman Mark IIA reentry vehicles for AFSC. (DOD Release 871-65)
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