Jan 14 1965
From The Space Library
MARINER IV had functioned in space for more than 1,100 hr. on its 6,000-hr. flight to Mars, and had flown 81.3 million mi., leaving some 245 million mi. to be travelled before the spacecraft would encounter Mars next July. The earth-MARINER distance was 8,342,946 mi. at 9 a.m. EST with the spacecraft travelling 9,276 mph relative to the earth and 69,462 mph relative to the sun. (NASA Release 65-12, 1/14/65)
Vincent R. Lalli of NASA Lewis Research Center described to the 11th National Symposium on Reliability and Quality Control in Miami Beach the R&QA procedure applied at Lewis to engine subsystems of the Sert-I (Space Electric Rocket Test) spacecraft to establish reliability standards for equipment never flown in space before. He said an experimental assembly of components, or "electrical breadboard," was built for electrical stress measurements; once the analysis of stresses during operation was complete, safety factor could be defined. "Stress" did not refer to mechanical stress but to all physical factors-fatigue, corrosion, current, temperature, etc.-that could degrade or destroy equipment. Lalli pointed out: "The real uniqueness of this process is revealed in the stress analysis area where the role of the reliability engineer is extended beyond the analytical approach into obtaining transient experimental stress data." (LRC Release 65-4)
Houston Chronicle reported that preliminary funds for the unmanned exploration of Mars would be included in the NASA FY 1966 budget. On Oct. 30, 1964, the Space Science Board of NAS had recommended to NASA that Mars be the next goal because it was the likeliest of the planets to be inhabited by living things and would therefore be of greater scientific importance than the moon or proposed manning orbiting laboratories. (Mackaye, Houston Chron., 1/14/65)
The Enrico Fermi Medal was conferred on Vice Adm. Hyman G. Rickover (USN) by President Johnson. Adm. Rickover, the first nonscientist to receive the award, was cited for "engineering and administrative leadership in the development of safe and reliable nuclear power and its successful application to our national security and economic needs." He was also credited with almost single-handedly convincing Congress and DOD to start the nuclear submarine program. (UPI, NYT, 1/14/65, 14)
In London, 10,000 British aircraft workers marched to protest the rumored intention of the Labor Government to curtail production of British military planes. Defense Minister Denis Healey reportedly recommended that development and production of the TSR-2 (tactical strike-reconnaissance) aircraft be canceled and that Britain buy F-111's from U.S., thus cutting defense costs. Two other projects subject to cancellation were the P-1154 vertical-takeoff fighter and a short-takeoff fighter, both at a less advanced stage of development than the TSR-2. Leaders of the British aircraft industry, which employed slightly more than one per cent of the nation's work force, said such a cutback would cause widespread unemployment in the industry. (Lewis, NYT, 1/13/65, 9; Lewis, NYT, 1/15/65; Farnsworth, NYT, 1/16/65)
MGM Studios in Los Angeles signs a deal with director/auteur Stanley Kubrick to produce a space travel movie tentatively entitled "Journey Beyond the Stars." The budget is set at $6 million. This will become 2001:A Space Odyssey.
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