Aug 21 1967
From The Space Library
President Johnson signed $4.86-billion NASA FY 1968 authorization bill (S. 1296) into law. Noting that on Aug. 18 House Committee on Appropriations reported $4.6-billion NASA FY 1968 appropriation bill, $516.6 million less than NASA had requested, the President said: "Under other circumstances I would have opposed such a cut. However, conditions have greatly changed since I submitted my January budget request. . . I recognize-as also must the Congress-that the reduction in funds recommended by the House Appropriations Committee will require the deferral and reduction of some desirable space projects. Yet, in the face of present circumstances, I join with the Congress and accept this reduction.' (PD, 8/28/67, 1192-3)
Two-stage Nike-Cajun sounding rocket launched from Natal, Brazil, failed when rocket strayed from planned trajectory. Failure was first in Brazil's space program which opened Dec. 15, 1965, with the launch of a Nike-Apache sounding rocket. (Reuters, W Post, 8/23/67)
NASA Arcas sounding rocket launched from Point Mugu, Calif., carried Naval Ordnance Test Station experiment to 33-mi (53-km) altitude to flight-test internally modified version of standard ROCOZ payload, designed to measure ozone distribution for support data on Ogo IV satellite. Rocket and instrumentation performed satisfactorily. Scientific data were usable. (NASA Rpt SRL)
Charles W. McGuire, formerly an aerospace engineer in the test directorate of NASA's Gemini program, became Director of Safety for the Apollo Program. He would be on the headquarters staff of and report directly to the Apollo Program Director while being administratively assigned to the Safety Office, OMSF. (NASA Ann, 8/7/67)
Maj. William J. Knight (USAF) flew X-15 No. 2 to 3,409 mph (mach 5.10) and 90,000-ft altitude in first flight with a new ablative coating and sealer designed to permit aircraft to fly at mach 7.4 without basic airframe modification. Flight also tested: (1) stability and control with dummy ramjet and ablative; (2) Hycom phase-II camera (KA-51A); (3) ramjet local flow; (4) ramjet separation characteristics; and (5) wing tip accelerometer. (NASA Proj Off; Av Wk, 8/28/67, 33)
Special NSF panel to screen radio astronomy proposals advised NSF Director Leland J. Haworth to accept immediately only two of the six recommendations presented to the panel during July hearings: (1) Cornell Univ.'s proposal to improve accuracy of the surface of 300-m antenna at Arecibo, Puerto Rico; and (2) Cal Tech's proposal to add seven dish antennas to one already in existence at Owens Valley Observatory. Panel rejected or deferred: (1) National Radio Astronomy Observatory's (NMO) proposal for a very Large Array (VU) consisting of 36 25-m dish antennas distributed along three arms of a Y; (2) Northeast Radio Observatory Cop's (NEROC) proposal for 135-m fully steerable dish antenna under plastic steel-ribbed radome; (3) Associates for Radio Astronomy's (AM) proposal for 100-m fully steerable dish antenna without radome; and (4) Committee on Institutional Cooperation's proposal for a device to study upper atmosphere and ionosphere. Eight-member panel was chaired by Princeton Univ. physicist Dr. Robert H. Dicke. (McElheny, Science, 8/18/67, 7824; 8/25/67, 907-10)
Rep. William L. Hungate (D-340.) expressed on the House floor concern about NASA's FY 1968 budget request "at a time when the Nation's economy is threatened by inflation and when we are spending $24 billion annually on the war in Vietnam.. . . "As an example of untimely NASA spending, $21,100,000 of the funds requested are to be devoted to research directly applicable to the supersonic transport project. Before more millions are poured into supersonic transport consideration should be given to solving the problems created this far by this costly innovation. . . (CR 8/21/67, H10888)
ComSatCorp would issue RFPs in 1968 to build a 10,000-channel satellite, Intelsat IV, Electronics reported. Procurement of four or more of the satellites would have to be approved by INTELSAT, but "chances of a go-ahead look good." ComSatCorp's plan was based on design studies recently completed by Hughes Aircraft Co. and Lockheed Aircraft Corp. for a high-capacity, multipurpose satellite [see March 23]. (Electronics, 8/21/67)
A space rescue blanket for campers and sportsmen was being manufactured by National Research Cop., using a superinsulation material it had developed to store cryogenic materials in spacecraft, Douglas W. Cray reported in the New York Times. Made of a plastic base one half of one thousandth of one inch thick with an aluminum coating one millionth inch thick, blanket weighed two ounces, measured 56 by 84 in, and could be folded into a cigarette-pack size. It was waterproof and wind-proof, remained flexible at temperatures as low as -60° F, and could reflect 80% of user's natural body heat. (Cray, NYT, 8/21/67,45,48)
Lewis Research Center's Quiet Engine Program should produce a significant reduction in jet-engine noise and reverse the rising noise levels which had created serious problems at major airports, Michael L. Yaffee reported in Aviation Week. Expected to cost $50 million, program was seeking to develop a new turbofan demonstrator engine that would show a reduction of 15 PNdb (perceived noise in decibels) on takeoff and 20 PNdb on landing, below noise of current transport engines. Definition phase of Quiet Engine Program began under $458,000 contract LeRC awarded United Aircraft Corp.'s Pratt & Whitney Div., July 13. Remaining $750,000 allotted to program for FY 1967 was being used to purchase supporting services and hardware. (Yaffee, Av Wk, 8/21/67, 38-9)
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