Dec 15 1961
From The Space Library
NASA's Explorer XII satellite returned voluminous data revising previous information on the Van Allen radiation belts and showing them to be no substantial problem to manned space flight. Launched on August 15, 1961, and transmitting until December 6, 1961, Explorer XII returned information amounting to 5,636 telemetry tapes (2,400 feet each). Of principal interest was its finding that the Van Allen belts consist of a preponderance of protons over electrons in a ratio of 1,000 to 1. Since the protons are of less than 1 million electron volts energy, they do not themselves offer a serious radiation problem and serve to slow the velocity of other radiation.
S –IB stage of the Advanced Saturn launch vehicle would be built by the Boeing Co., NASA announced. The $300 million contract, to run through 1966, called for development, construction, and test of 24 flight stages, plus several for ground tests. Assembly would take place at the NASA Michoud Operations Plant, New Orleans, La. The S–IB would be the first stage of the vehicle that would launch the three-man Apollo spacecraft for direct circumlunar flight or, with rendezvous, for lunar landing.
In a ceremony at Edwards Air Force Base, Calif., the USAF graduated its first class of five pilot-engineers from its school for space pilots. Graduates were awarded advanced technical degrees.
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31
