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73-648: Northrop Corporation built the HL-10 and Northrop M2-F2 , the first two of the fleet of "heavy" lifting bodies flown by the NASA Flight Research Center. The contract for construction of the HL-10 and the M2-F2 was $ 1.8 million. "HL" stands for horizontal landing, and "10" refers to the tenth design studied by engineers at NASA's Langley Research Center , Hampton, Virginia . Main gear was a modified T-38 system retracted manually, and lowered by nitrogen pressure. Nose gear

146-474: A Charlie Chaplin moustache" and that he perceived him as "another Napoleon " who was "wholly without scruples, a godless man who thought himself the only god". Later examination of von Braun's background, conducted by the United States Federal Bureau of Investigation, suggests that his background check file contained no derogatory information pertaining to his involvement in the party, but it

219-637: A catalyst . Von Braun's engines used direct combustion and created fire, while the Walter devices used hot vapors from a chemical reaction, but both created thrust and provided high speed. The subsequent flights with the He-112 used the Walter-rocket instead of von Braun's; it was more reliable, simpler to operate, and safer for the test pilot, Warsitz. SS General Hans Kammler , who as an engineer had constructed several concentration camps , including Auschwitz , had

292-733: A Bachelor of Science Degree in Mechanical Engineering from Technische Hochschule Berlin (now Technische Universität Berlin ), Germany. During a period in 1931, von Braun attended the ETH Zürich in Switzerland. During this time in Switzerland, von Braun assisted Professor Hermann Oberth in writing a book concerning the possibilities of creating and manufacturing liquid-propellant rockets. Shortly after this, von Braun founded his own private rocket development business in Berlin, and through which he made

365-482: A French resistance fighter who was a prisoner in Dora, testified in 1995 that, after an apparent sabotage attempt, von Braun ordered a prisoner to be flogged, while Robert Cazabonne, another French prisoner, stated that von Braun stood by as prisoners were hanged by chains suspended by cranes. However, these accounts may have been a case of mistaken identity. Former Buchenwald inmate Adam Cabala stated that von Braun went to

438-476: A Goddard patent". This was independently confirmed. He wrote that statements that he had lifted Goddard's work were the furthest from the truth, noting that Goddard's paper "A Method of Reaching Extreme Altitudes", which was studied by von Braun and Oberth, lacked the specificity of liquid-fuel experimentation with rockets. It was also confirmed that he was responsible for an estimated 20 patentable innovations related to rocketry, as well as receiving U.S. patents after

511-563: A copy of Die Rakete zu den Planetenräumen (1923, By Rocket into Planetary Space ) by rocket pioneer Hermann Oberth . In 1928, his parents moved him to the Hermann-Lietz-Internat (also a residential school) on the East Frisian North Sea island of Spiekeroog . Space travel had always fascinated him, and from then on he applied himself to physics and mathematics to pursue his interest in rocket engineering. In 1928

584-497: A diploma in mechanical engineering. His early exposure to rocketry convinced him that the exploration of space would require far more than applications of the current engineering technology. Wanting to learn more about physics, chemistry, and astronomy, von Braun entered the Friedrich-Wilhelm University of Berlin for doctoral studies and graduated with a doctorate in physics in 1934. He also studied at ETH Zürich for

657-419: A landing on one of the lakebed runways on Rogers Dry Lake at Edwards. A circular approach was used to lose altitude during the landing phase. On the final approach leg, the pilot increased his rate of descent to build up energy. At about 100 feet (30 m) altitude, a "flare out" maneuver dropped air speed to about 200 mph (320 km/h) for the landing. Unusual and valuable lessons were learned through

730-675: A picture of himself standing behind Himmler, von Braun said that he had only worn the SS uniform that one time, but in 2002 a former SS officer at Peenemünde told the BBC that von Braun had regularly worn the SS uniform to official meetings. He began as an Untersturmführer (Second lieutenant) and was promoted three times by Himmler, the last time in June 1943 to SS- Sturmbannführer (Major). Von Braun later stated that these were simply technical promotions received each year regularly by mail. In 1932, von Braun received

803-546: A reputation for brutality and had conceived the idea of using concentration camp prisoners as slave laborers in the rocket program. Arthur Rudolph , chief engineer of the V-2 rocket factory at Peenemünde, endorsed this idea in April 1943 when a labor shortage developed. More people died building the V-2 rockets than were killed by it as a weapon. Von Braun admitted visiting the plant at Mittelwerk on many occasions, and called conditions at

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876-497: A rescue helicopter that seemed to pose a collision threat. Distracted, Peterson drifted in a crosswind to an unmarked area of the lake bed where it was very difficult to judge the height over the ground because of a lack of guidance (the markers provided on the lake bed runway). Peterson fired the landing rockets to provide additional lift, but he hit the lake bed before the landing gear was fully down and locked. The M2-F2 rolled over six times, coming to rest upside down. Pulled from

949-402: A reserve airfield in the event of war), one of these latter aircraft was flown with its piston engine shut down during flight by Warsitz, at which time it was propelled by von Braun's rocket power alone. Despite a wheels-up landing and the fuselage having been on fire, it proved to official circles that an aircraft could be flown satisfactorily with a back-thrust system through the rear. At

1022-418: A small area near the ambulance shed, inmates tortured to death by slave labor and the terror of the overseers were piling up daily. But, Prof. Wernher von Braun passed them so close that he was almost touching the corpses. Von Braun later stated that he was aware of the treatment of prisoners, but felt helpless to change the situation. When asked if von Braun could have protested against the brutal treatment of

1095-457: A spaceship and that they felt the war was not going well; this was considered a "defeatist" attitude. A young female dentist who was an SS spy reported their comments. Himmler's unfounded allegations branding von Braun and his colleagues as communist sympathizers and accusing them of sabotaging the V-2 program, coupled with von Braun's regular piloting of a government-provided airplane that could facilitate an escape to Britain, led to their arrest by

1168-867: A stability augmentation control system. When the M2-F2 was rebuilt at Dryden and redesignated the M2-F3 , it was modified with an additional third vertical fin —centered between the tip fins to improve control characteristics. The M2-F2/F3 was the first of the heavyweight, entry-configuration lifting bodies. Its successful development as a research test vehicle answered many of the generic questions about these vehicles. Data from General characteristics Performance Aircraft of comparable role, configuration, and era Wernher von Braun Wernher Magnus Maximilian Freiherr von Braun ( US : / ˈ v ɜːr n ər v ɒ n ˈ b r aʊ n / VUR -nər von BROWN , German: [ˈvɛʁnheːɐ̯ fɔn ˈbʁaʊn] ; 23 March 1912 – 16 June 1977)

1241-467: A term from June to October 1931. In 1930, von Braun attended a presentation given by Auguste Piccard . After the talk, the young student approached the famous pioneer of high-altitude balloon flight, and stated to him: "You know, I plan on traveling to the Moon at some time." Piccard is said to have responded with encouraging words. Von Braun was greatly influenced by Oberth, of whom he said: Hermann Oberth

1314-715: The Apollo spacecraft to the Moon. In 1967, von Braun was inducted into the National Academy of Engineering , and in 1975, he received the National Medal of Science . Von Braun is a highly controversial figure widely seen as escaping justice for his awareness of Nazi war crimes due to the Americans' desire to beat the Soviets in the Cold War . He is also sometimes described by others as

1387-597: The HL-10 , both built by the Northrop Corporation. The "M" refers to "manned" and "F" refers to "flight" version. "HL" comes from "horizontal landing" and 10 is for the tenth lifting body model to be investigated by Langley. On March 23, 1966 the M2-F2 made its first captive flight—attached to the B-52 carrier aircraft throughout. The first free gliding flight of the M2-F2 was on July 12, 1966, piloted by Milton O. Thompson . He

1460-455: The Raketenrummel or "Rocket Rumble" fad initiated by Fritz von Opel and Max Valier was highly influential on von Braun as a teenage space enthusiast. He was so enthusiastic after seeing one of the public Opel-RAK rocket car demonstrations, that he constructed his own homemade toy rocket car and caused a disruption in a crowded sidewalk by launching the toy wagon, to which he had attached

1533-622: The V-2 . In 1963, von Braun reflected on the history of rocketry, and said of Goddard's work: "His rockets ... may have been rather crude by present-day standards, but they blazed the trail and incorporated many features used in our most modern rockets and space vehicles." Goddard confirmed his work was used by von Braun in 1944, shortly before the Nazis began firing V-2s at England. A V-2 crashed in Sweden and some parts were sent to an Annapolis lab where Goddard

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1606-541: The V-2 rocket at Peenemünde during World War II . The V-2 became the first artificial object to travel into space on 20 June 1944. Following the war, he was secretly moved to the United States, along with about 1,600 other German scientists, engineers, and technicians, as part of Operation Paperclip . He worked for the United States Army on an intermediate-range ballistic missile program, and he developed

1679-562: The "father of space travel", the "father of rocket science", or the "father of the American lunar program". He advocated a human mission to Mars . Wernher von Braun was born on 23 March 1912, in the small town of Wirsitz in the Province of Posen , Kingdom of Prussia , then German Empire and now Poland. His father, Magnus Freiherr von Braun (1878–1972), was a civil servant and conservative politician; he served as Minister of Agriculture in

1752-661: The Baltic Sea. In 1933, von Braun was working on his creative doctorate when the Nazi Party came to power in a coalition government in Germany; rocketry was almost immediately moved onto the national agenda. An artillery captain, Walter Dornberger , arranged an Ordnance Department research grant for von Braun, who then worked next to Dornberger's existing solid-fuel rocket test site at Kummersdorf . Von Braun received his doctorate in physics ( aerospace engineering ) on 27 July 1934, from

1825-558: The Foreign Office in the 1970s, and a younger brother, Magnus von Braun , who was a rocket scientist and later a senior executive with Chrysler . The family moved to Berlin , Brandenburg , in 1915, where his father worked at the Ministry of the Interior. After his Confirmation , his mother gave him a telescope , and he developed a passion for astronomy . Von Braun learned to play both

1898-501: The German army until its publication in 1960. By the end of 1934, his group had successfully launched two liquid fuel A2 rockets that rose to heights of 2.2 and 3.5 km (2 mi). Von Braun continued his guided missile work throughout World War Two, and met with Adolf Hitler on several occasions, being formally decorated by Hitler twice, including being awarded the Iron Cross. At

1971-572: The HL-10 made its first flight on December 22, 1966, with research pilot Bruce Peterson in the cockpit. Although the XLR-11 rocket engine (same type used in the Bell X-1 ) was installed, the first 11 drops from the B-52 launch aircraft were unpowered glide flights to assess handling qualities, stability, and control. In the end, the HL-10 was judged to be the best handling of the three original heavy-weight lifting bodies (M2-F2/F3, HL-10, X-24 A). The HL-10

2044-498: The HL-10 serial number 804 is identified as the aircraft flown by Col. Steve Austin when he crashed, leading to his transformation into a bionic man, and the HL-10 is also featured in this episode. Other episodes and Martin Caidin 's original novel, Cyborg , contradict this, however, by identifying Austin's aircraft as a fictional cousin of the HL-10, the M3-F5. Further confusion is added by

2117-551: The HL-10. The now space-rated vehicle would have then been launched in the space for the Lunar Module on a Saturn V launch vehicle with an Apollo CSM. Once in Earth orbit, it was planned that a robotic extraction arm would remove the HL-10 from the rocket's third stage and place it adjacent to the crewed Apollo CSM spacecraft. One of the astronauts would then spacewalk from the Apollo and board

2190-639: The National Socialist Party. At this time I was already Technical Director at the Army Rocket Center at Peenemünde (Baltic Sea). The technical work carried out there had, in the meantime, attracted more and more attention in higher levels. Thus, my refusal to join the party would have meant that I would have to abandon the work of my life. Therefore, I decided to join. My membership in the party did not involve any political activity. It has not been ascertained whether von Braun's error with regard to

2263-721: The Nazi regime, Himmler was conspiring to use Kammler to gain control of all German armament programs, including the V-2 program at Peenemünde. He therefore recommended that von Braun work more closely with Kammler to solve the problems of the V-2. Von Braun stated that he replied that the problems were merely technical and he was confident that they would be solved with Dornberger's assistance. Von Braun had been under SD surveillance since October 1943. A secret report stated that he and his colleagues Klaus Riedel and Helmut Gröttrup were said to have expressed regret at an engineer's house one evening in early March 1944 that they were not working on

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2336-470: The Nazis using slave labour to manufacture these rockets. In 1936, von Braun's rocketry team working at Kummersdorf investigated installing liquid-fuelled rockets in aircraft. Ernst Heinkel enthusiastically supported their efforts, supplying a He-72 and later two He-112s for the experiments. Later in 1936, Erich Warsitz was seconded by the RLM to von Braun and Heinkel, because he had been recognized as one of

2409-591: The Party on 12 November 1937, and was issued membership number 5,738,692. Michael J. Neufeld , an author of aerospace history and chief of the Space History Division at the Smithsonian's National Air and Space Museum , wrote that ten years after von Braun obtained his Nazi Party membership, he signed an affidavit for the U.S. Army, though he stated the incorrect year: In 1939, I was officially demanded to join

2482-642: The University of Berlin for a thesis titled "About Combustion Tests." His doctoral supervisor was Erich Schumann. However, this thesis represented only the public aspect of von Braun's work. His actual thesis, entitled "Construction, Theoretical, and Experimental Solution to the Problem of the Liquid Propellant Rocket" (dated 16 April 1934), detailed the construction and design of the A2 rocket. It remained classified by

2555-577: The V-2 rockets, but there were victims on both sides...A war is a war, and when my country is at war, my duty is to help win that war." The engineer who designed the V2, Wernher von Braun, came to be feted as a hero of the space age . The Allies realised that the V-2 was a machine, unlike anything they had developed themselves. — V-2: The Nazi rocket that launched the space age , BBC, September 2014. In response to Goddard's statements, von Braun said "at no time in Germany did I or any of my associates ever see

2628-481: The book "Wingless Flight", by project engineer R. Dale Reed , the HL-10 was considered to fly into space in the early to mid-1970s. Following the cancellation of the Apollo moon project, Reed realized that there would be substantial Apollo hardware left over, including several flight-rated command service modules (CSM) and Saturn V rockets. The proposal was to add an ablative heat shield, reaction controls, and other additional subsystems needed for crewed spaceflight to

2701-490: The cello and the piano at an early age and at one time wanted to become a composer. He took lessons from the composer Paul Hindemith . The few pieces of von Braun's youthful compositions that exist are reminiscent of Hindemith's style. He could play piano pieces of Beethoven and Bach from memory. Beginning in 1925, he attended a boarding school at Ettersburg Castle near Weimar , Free State of Thuringia , where he did not do well in physics and mathematics. There he acquired

2774-412: The concentration camp to pick slave laborers: ... also the German scientists led by Prof. Wernher von Braun were aware of everything daily. As they went along the corridors, they saw the exhaustion of the inmates, their arduous work and their pain. Not one single time did Prof. Wernher von Braun protest against this cruelty during his frequent stays at Dora. Even the aspect of corpses did not touch him: On

2847-473: The controls, the M2-F2 suffered a pilot induced oscillation (PIO) as it neared the lake bed. At the core of this problem was the fact that the wings of the M2-F2 (essentially the body of the aircraft) produced considerably less roll authority than most aircraft. This resulted in less force available to the pilot to control the aircraft in roll. The vehicle rolled from side to side in flight as he tried to bring it under control. Peterson recovered, but then observed

2920-569: The fact that both the HL-10 and the M2-F2 are featured in the opening credits of the television show. Aircraft of comparable role, configuration, and era Related lists Northrop M2-F2 The Northrop M2-F2 was a heavyweight lifting body based on studies at NASA 's Ames and Langley research centers and built by the Northrop Corporation in 1966. The success of Dryden's M2-F1 program led to NASA's development and construction of two heavyweight lifting bodies based on studies at NASA's Ames and Langley research centers—the M2-F2 and

2993-517: The federal government during the Weimar Republic . His mother, Emmy von Quistorp (1886–1959), traced her ancestry through both parents to medieval European royalty and was a descendant of Philip III of France , Valdemar I of Denmark , Robert III of Scotland , and Edward III of England . He had an older brother, the West German diplomat Sigismund von Braun , who served as Secretary of State in

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3066-516: The field of astronautics. According to historian Norman Davies , von Braun was able to pursue a career as a rocket scientist in Germany due to a "curious oversight" in the Treaty of Versailles which did not include rocketry in its list of weapons forbidden to Germany. Von Braun was an opportunist who joined the Nazi Party to continue his work on rockets for Nazi Germany . He applied for membership in

3139-564: The first rocket fired by gasoline and liquid oxygen. In 1932, having caught wind of von Braun's rocket business, the German Army connected with von Braun to pursue basic missile research and weather data experimentation. Von Braun said that the German government financed the development of test stands and facilities for experimentation in Darmstadt, Germany. In 1939, von Braun was appointed a technical advisor at Peenemünde Army Research Center on

3212-496: The following year. In 1940, von Braun joined the SS and was given the rank of Untersturmführer in the Allgemeine-SS and issued membership number 185,068. In 1947, he gave the U.S. War Department this explanation: In spring 1940, one SS-Standartenführer (SS-Colonel) Müller from Greifswald, a bigger town in the vicinity of Peenemünde, looked me up in my office...and told me that Reichsführer-SS Himmler had sent him with

3285-762: The largest firework rockets he could purchase. He was later taken in for questioning by the local police, until released to his father for disciplinary action. The incident highlighted the young von Braun's determination to "dedicate his life to space travel". In 1930, von Braun attended the Technische Hochschule Berlin , where he joined the Spaceflight Society ( Verein für Raumschiffahrt or VfR), co-founded by Valier, and worked with Willy Ley in his liquid-fueled rocket motor tests in conjunction with others such as Rolf Engel , Rudolf Nebel , Hermann Oberth or Paul Ehmayr . In spring 1932, he graduated with

3358-403: The late 1930s and early 1940s was complex. He said that he had been so influenced by the early Nazi promise of release from the post–World War I economic effects , that his patriotic feelings had increased. In a 1952 memoir article he admitted that, at that time, he "fared relatively rather well under totalitarianism ". Yet, he also wrote that "to us, Hitler was still only a pompous fool with

3431-486: The lifting body to perform a pre-reentry check on its systems. It was planned that there would be two flights in this program. In the first, the lifting body pilot would return to the Apollo and send the HL-10 back to earth uncrewed. If this flight was successful, the second launch would be involve a piloted landing at Edwards AFB. Reportedly, Wernher von Braun was enthusiastic about the mission, offering to prepare two Saturn Vs and Apollo Command Service Modules. However, he

3504-454: The matter was of highly political significance for the relation between the SS and the Army, I called immediately on my military superior, Dr. Dornberger. He informed me that the SS had for a long time been trying to get their "finger in the pie" of the rocket work. I asked him what to do. He replied on the spot that if I wanted to continue our mutual work, I had no alternative but to join. When shown

3577-503: The most experienced test pilots of the time, and because he also had an extraordinary fund of technical knowledge. After he familiarized Warsitz with a test-stand run, showing him the corresponding apparatus in the aircraft, he asked: "Are you with us and will you test the rocket in the air? Then, Warsitz, you will be a famous man. And later we will fly to the Moon – with you at the helm!" In June 1937, at Neuhardenberg (a large field about 70 km (43 mi) east of Berlin, listed as

3650-425: The opening credits of the series showed the later HL-10 model, during release from its carrier plane, a modified B-52 . Four pilots flew the M2-F2 on its 16 glide flights. They were Milton O. Thompson (five flights), Bruce Peterson (three flights), Don Sorlie (three flights) and Jerry Gentry (five flights). NASA pilots and researchers realized the M2-F2 had lateral control problems, even though it had

3723-457: The order to urge me to join the SS. I told him I was so busy with my rocket work that I had no time to spare for any political activity. He then told me, that...the SS would cost me no time at all. I would be awarded the rank of a[n] "Untersturmfuehrer" (lieutenant) and it were [ sic ] a very definite desire of Himmler that I attend his invitation to join. I asked Müller to give me some time for reflection. He agreed. Realizing that

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3796-480: The plant "repulsive", but stated that he had never personally witnessed any deaths or beatings, although it had become clear to him by 1944 that deaths had occurred. He denied ever having visited the Mittelbau-Dora concentration camp, where 20,000 died from illness, beatings, hangings, and intolerable working conditions. Some prisoners state that von Braun engaged in brutal treatment or approved of it. Guy Morand,

3869-451: The program. During a typical lifting body flight, the B-52—with the research vehicle attached to the pylon mount on the right wing between the fuselage and inboard engine pod—flew to a height of about 45,000 feet (14,000 m) and a launch speed of about 450 mph (720 km/h). Moments after being dropped, the XLR-11 was lit by the pilot. Speed and altitude increased until the engine

3942-502: The rockets that launched the United States' first space satellite Explorer 1 in 1958. He worked with Walt Disney on a series of films, which popularized the idea of human space travel in the U.S. and beyond from 1955 to 1957. In 1960, his group was assimilated into NASA , where he served as director of the newly formed Marshall Space Flight Center and as the chief architect of the Saturn V super heavy-lift launch vehicle that propelled

4015-554: The same time, Hellmuth Walter 's experiments into hydrogen peroxide based rockets were leading toward light and simple rockets that appeared well-suited for aircraft installation. Also, the firm of Hellmuth Walter at Kiel had been commissioned by the RLM to build a rocket engine for the He-112, so there were two different new rocket motor designs at Neuhardenberg: whereas von Braun's engines were powered by alcohol and liquid oxygen, Walter engines had hydrogen peroxide and calcium permanganate as

4088-617: The slave laborers, von Braun team member Konrad Dannenberg (a member of the Nazi party since 1932) told The Huntsville Times : "If he had done it, in my opinion, he would have been shot on the spot." According to André Sellier, a French historian and survivor of the Mittelbau-Dora concentration camp, Heinrich Himmler had von Braun come to his Feldkommandostelle Hochwald HQ in East Prussia in February 1944. To increase his power-base within

4161-461: The successful flight testing of the HL-10. During the early phases of the Space Shuttle development program, lifting bodies patterned on the HL-10 shape were one of three major types of proposals. These were later rejected as it proved difficult to fit cylindrical fuel tanks into the always-curving fuselage, and from then on most designs focused on more conventional delta wing craft. According to

4234-480: The time, Germany was highly interested in American physicist Robert H. Goddard 's research. Before 1939, German scientists occasionally contacted Goddard directly with technical questions. Von Braun used Goddard's plans from various journals and incorporated them into the building of the Aggregat (A) series of rockets. The first successful launch of an A-4 took place on 3 October 1942. The A-4 rocket became well known as

4307-550: The vehicle by Jay King and Joseph Huxman, Peterson was rushed to the base hospital, transferred to the March Air Force Base Hospital and then the UCLA Hospital. He recovered but lost vision in his right eye due to a staphylococcal infection. Portions of M2-F2 footage including Peterson's spectacular crash landing were used for the 1973 television series The Six Million Dollar Man though some shots during

4380-520: The war concerning the advancement of rocketry. Documented accounts also stated he provided solutions to a host of aerospace engineering problems in the 1950s and 1960s. On 22 December 1942, Adolf Hitler ordered the production of the A-4 as a "vengeance weapon", and the Peenemünde group developed it to target London. Following von Braun's 7 July 1943 presentation of a color movie showing an A-4 taking off, Hitler

4453-461: The year was deliberate or a simple mistake. Neufeld wrote: Von Braun, like other Peenemünders, was assigned to the local group in Karlshagen; there is no evidence that he did more than send in his monthly dues. But he is seen in some photographs with the party's swastika pin in his lapel – it was politically useful to demonstrate his membership. Von Braun's later attitude toward the Nazi regime of

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4526-469: Was dropped from the B-52 carrier aircraft's wing pylon at an altitude of 45,000 ft (14,000 m) and reached a speed of about 450 mph (720 km/h; 390 kn). Before powered flights were undertaken, a series of glide flights were conducted. On May 10, 1967, the sixteenth and last glide flight ended in disaster as the vehicle slammed into the lake bed on landing. With test pilot Bruce Peterson at

4599-565: Was a German-American aerospace engineer and space architect . He was a member of the Nazi Party and Allgemeine SS , the leading figure in the development of rocket technology in Nazi Germany , and later a pioneer of rocket and space technology in the United States . As a young man, von Braun worked in Nazi Germany's rocket development program. He helped design and co-developed

4672-509: Was a modified T-39 unit, retracted manually and lowered with nitrogen pressure. Pilot Ejection System was a modified F-106 system. Silver zinc batteries provided electrical power for the control system, flight instruments, radios, cockpit heat, and stability augmentation system. To assist in pre-landing flare, four throttleable hydrogen peroxide rockets provided up to 400 lbf (1.8 kN) of thrust. After delivery to NASA in January 1966,

4745-498: Was doing research for the Navy. If this was the so-called Bäckebo Bomb , it had been procured by the British in exchange for Spitfires ; Annapolis would have received some parts from them. Goddard is reported to have recognized components he had invented and inferred that his brainchild had been turned into a weapon. Later, von Braun said: "I have very deep and sincere regret for the victims of

4818-411: Was flown 37 times during the lifting body research program and logged the highest altitude and fastest speed in the lifting body program. On February 18, 1970, Air Force test pilot Peter Hoag piloted the HL-10 to Mach 1.86 (1,228 mph or 1,976 km/h). Nine days later, NASA pilot William H. "Bill" Dana flew the vehicle to 90,030 feet (27,440 m), which became the highest altitude reached in

4891-417: Was found that he had numerous letters of commendation for outstanding performance of duties during his time working under the Nazi party. Overall FBI conclusions point to von Braun's involvement in the Nazi Party to be purely for the advancement of his academic career, or out of fear of imprisonment or execution. Von Braun joined the SS horseback riding school on 1 November 1933 as an SS- Anwärter . He left

4964-489: Was launched toward England on 7 September 1944, only 21 months after the project had been officially commissioned. Doug Millard of the Science Museum, London states: The V-2 was a quantum leap of technological change. We got to the Moon using V-2 technology but this was technology that was developed with massive resources, including some particularly grim ones. The V-2 programme was hugely expensive in terms of lives, with

5037-534: Was overridden by the Flight Research Center director, and nothing came of the proposal. Launching a Saturn V to low Earth orbit with a light payload would not be an efficient use of capability, and the Apollo program was ended mainly on cost grounds. The HL-10 is currently on display at the entrance of Armstrong Flight Research Center at Edwards, CA. In the pilot movie, and an episode of The Six Million Dollar Man series, titled "The Deadly Replay",

5110-521: Was salvaged and most of the engineering team remained unharmed; however, the raids killed von Braun's engine designer Walter Thiel and Chief Engineer Walther, and the rocket program was delayed. The V-2 became the first artificial object to travel into space by crossing the Kármán line with the vertical launch of MW 18014 on 20 June 1944. The first combat A-4, renamed the V-2 ( Vergeltungswaffe 2 "Retaliation/Vengeance Weapon 2") for propaganda purposes,

5183-419: Was shut down by choice or fuel exhaustion, depending upon the individual mission profile. The lifting bodies normally carried enough fuel for about 100 seconds of powered flight and routinely reached from 50,000 to 80,000 feet (15,000 to 24,000 m) and speeds above Mach 1. Following engine shutdown, the pilot maneuvered the vehicle through a simulated return-from-space corridor into a pre-planned approach for

5256-540: Was so enthusiastic that he personally made von Braun a professor shortly thereafter. By that time, the British and Soviet intelligence agencies were aware of the rocket program and von Braun's team at Peenemünde, based on the intelligence provided by the Polish underground Home Army . Over the nights of 17–18 August 1943, RAF Bomber Command 's Operation Hydra dispatched raids on the Peenemünde camp consisting of 596 aircraft, and dropped 1,800 tons of explosives. The facility

5329-429: Was the first who, when thinking about the possibility of spaceships, grabbed a slide-rule and presented mathematically analyzed concepts and designs... I, myself, owe to him not only the guiding-star of my life, but also my first contact with the theoretical and practical aspects of rocketry and space travel. A place of honor should be reserved in the history of science and technology for his ground-breaking contributions in

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