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1 January - 1 million pound engine demonstrated. - Rocketdyne demonstrated 1-million-pound-thrust liquid-propellant rocket combustion chamber at full power....
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1959 January - Balloon flights planned for Mercury. - Balloon flights were planned for high-altitude qualification tests of the complete spacecraft, including all instrumentation, retrorockets, drogue parachute system, and recovery. Later balloon flights would be manned to provide as much as 24 hours of...
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1959 January - Development of the Mercury pressure suit was started. - ...
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1959 January - Honeywell named subcontractor for the Mercury stabilization system. - McDonnell, as prime contractor, selected Minneapolis-Honeywell as subcontractor for the Mercury stabilization system. At that time, other subcontractors were under consideration for the fabrication of various components: Bell Aircraft Rockets Divisio...
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1959 January-February - Study contracts for tracking instrumentation for Project Mercury. - Study contracts were awarded to Aeronutronics, Space Electronics, and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology Lincoln Laboratory for assistance in developing plans for tracking and ground instrumentation for Project Mercury....
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1959 During the Year - TMK Heavy Piloted Interplanetary Spacecraft - In 1959 a group of enthusiasts in OKB-1 Section 3 under the management of G U Maksimov started engineering design of this first fantastic project for manned interplanetary travel. The requirements for executing this project would shape the specificat...
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2 January - Von Braun predicted manned circumlunar flight within ten years - In a staff report of the House Select Committee on Astronautics and Space Exploration, Wernher von Braun of the Army Ballistic Missile Agency predicted manned circumlunar flight within the next eight to ten years and a manned lunar landing and return...
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2 January - Luna 1 - Lunar probe; passed within 5,995 km of moon but did not hit it as planned due to a failure of the launch vehicle control system. Went into solar orbit. First manmade object to attain of escape velocity. Also known as ...
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5 January - Mercury pilot selection qualifications - Qualifications were established for pilot selection in a meeting at the NASA Headquarters. These qualifications were as follows: age, less than 40; height, less than 5 feet 11 inches; excellent physical condition; bachelor's degree or equivalent; gra...
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6 January - NASA Large Booster Review Committee - The Army Ordnance Missile Command (AOMC), the Air Force, and missile contractors presented to the ARPA-NASA Large Booster Review Committee their views on the quickest and surest way for the United States to attain large booster capability. The Commit...
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8 January - Redstones ordered for Mercury suborbital launches. - NASA requested eight Redstone-type launch vehicles from the Army to be used in Project Mercury development flights....
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9 January - McDonnell selected to produce the Mercury spacecraft. - The Source Selection Board at NASA Headquarters composed of Abe Silverstein, Ralph Cushman, George Low, Walter Schier, DeMarquis Wyatt, and Charles Zimmerman, completed their findings and reported to Dr. T. Keith Glennan, the Administrator. McDonnell...
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12 January - McDonnell awarded contract for Mercury project - 12 capsules to be built. Other leading contender was Grumman. Original schedule was for manned flights from January - August 1960....
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14 January - Preliminary negotiations with McDonnell on the Mercury spacecraft - Preliminary negotiations were started with McDonnell on the technical and legal aspects of the Mercury spacecraft research and development program....
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16 January - Eight Redstone and two Jupiter launch vehicles for Mercury - NASA requested the Army Ordnance Missile Command, Huntsville, Alabama, to construct and launch eight Redstone launch vehicles and two Jupiter launch vehicles in support of Project Mercury manned and unmanned flights....
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19 January - Contract with Rocketdyne for development of the F-1 engine - NASA signed a definitive contract with Rocketdyne Division, NAA, for $102 million covering the design and development of a single-chamber, liquid-propellant rocket engine in the 1- to l.5-million-pound-thrust class (the F-1, to be used in the Nova su...
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21 January - The screening of records for prospective Mercury astronauts began. - ...
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25 January - Mercury pilot egress trainer received. - The pilot egress trainer was received from McDonnell and rough water evaluation of the equipment was started immediately by Space Task Group personnel....
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26 January - NASA completed negotiations with McDonnell for the Mercury spacecraft. - NASA completed contract negotiations with McDonnell for the design and development of the Mercury spacecraft. At that time, McDonnell estimated that the first 3 spacecraft could be delivered in 10 months. Spacecraft refinements slipped this estimated...
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27 January - NASA National Space Vehicle Program - After consultation and discussion with DOD, NASA formulated a national space vehicle program. The central idea of the program was that a single launch vehicle should be developed for use in each series of future space missions. The launch vehicle wou...
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30 January - Navy candidates for Project Mercury. - Admiral Arleigh Burke, Chief of Naval Operations, advised Dr. T. Keith Glennan that Navy candidates for Project Mercury had started in the first selection process....
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1959 February 1-14 - 110 US military pilots appeared to qualify for Mercury - Some 508 records were reviewed for prospective pilot candidates of which about 110 appeared to qualify. The special committee on Life Sciences decided to divide these into two groups and 69 prospective pilot candidates were briefed and interviewed i...
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1959 February - NASA/USAF responsibilities for the first two Mercury Atlas firings. - During a meeting between personnel of the Space Task Group and the Air Force Ballistic Missile Division, the responsibilities of the two organizations were outlined for the first two Atlas firings. Space Technology Laboratories, under Air Force Balli...
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2 February - Booster name changed from Juno V to Saturn - The Army proposed that the name of the large clustered-engine booster be changed from Juno V to Saturn, since Saturn was the next planet after Jupiter. Roy W. Johnson, Director of the Advanced Research Projects Agency, approved the name on February 3...
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5 February - Working Group on Lunar Exploration established by NASA - A Working Group on Lunar Exploration was established by NASA at a meeting at Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL). Members of NASA, JPL, Army Ballistic Missile Agency, California Institute of Technology, and the University of California participated in th...
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6 February - Formal contract for 12 Mercury spacecraft with McDonnell. - Following industry-wide competition, a formal contract for research and development of the Mercury spacecraft was negotiated with the McDonnell Aircraft Corporation. The contract called for design and construction of 12 Mercury spacecraft, but it did...
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7 February - Medical tests for the Mercury astronaut selection started. - At the Lovelace Clinic, Albuquerque, New Mexico, the medical tests for the Mercury astronaut selection were started....
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10 February - Wiind tunnel tests of Project Mercury configuration models were started. - By the end of the year, over 70 different models had been tested by facilities at the Air Force's Arnold Engineering Development Center and the NASA Langley, Ames, and Lewis Research Centers....
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1959 February 12-13 - Atlas launch vehicles in Project Mercury. - Discussions were held at Langley Field between the Space Task Group and the Air Force Ballistic Missile Division covering aspects of the use of Atlas launch vehicles in Project Mercury. Specifically discussed were technical details of the first Atlas...
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15 February - NASA Booster Development Plan for 60's - NASA issues plan for development in next decade of Vega (later cancelled as too similar to Agena), Centaur, Saturn, and Nova launch vehicles. Juno V renamed Saturn I....
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15 February - Final medical examinations of the Mercury astronauts started. - The medical examinations at the Wright Air Development Center for the final selection of the Mercury astronauts were started....
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17 February - Exploration of the moon a NASA responsibility - Roy W. Johnson, Director of the Advanced Research Projects Agency (ARPA), testified before the House Committee on Science and Astronautics that DOD and ARPA had no lunar landing program. Herbert F. York, DOD Director of Defense Research and Engineeri...
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20 February - Long-range objectives of the NASA space program - In testimony before the Senate Committee on Aeronautical and Space Sciences, Deputy Administrator Hugh L. Dryden and DeMarquis D. Wyatt described the long-range objectives of the NASA space program: an orbiting space station with several men, operati...
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1 March - OKB-1 preliminary work on circumlunar spacecraft - The first design sketched out was known as Sever (North). The reentry capsule had the same configuration as the ultimate Soyuz design but was 50% larger. By summer 1959 Feoktistov had reduced the size to that of the later Soyuz, while retaining the...
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1959 March - Heatshield test of Mercury at lunar reentry speeds - H. Kurt Strass and Leo T. Chauvin of STG proposed a heatshield test of a fullscale Mercury spacecraft at lunar reentry speeds. This test, in which the capsule would penetrate the earth's radiation belt, was called Project Boomerang. An advanced versi...
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6 March - Thrust chamber of the Saturn F-1 engine successfully static-fired - The thrust chamber of the F-1 engine was successfully static-fired at the Santa Susana Air Force-Rocketdyne Propulsion Laboratory in California. More than one million pounds of thrust were produced, the greatest amount attained to that time in the Un...
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8 March - Mercury abort test conducted at Wallops Island - An abort test was conducted at Wallops Island on a full-scale model of the spacecraft with the escape tower, using a Recruit escape rocket. The configuration did not perform as expected (erratic motion), and as a result, the Langley Research Center w...
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9 March - Tests on several ablating materials for Mercury heat shield. - Tests were in progress at Langley and Wallops Island on several types of ablating materials under environmental conditions that would be experienced by a spacecraft reentering from orbit....
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10 March - Lack of a DX priority delaying Project Mercury. - The Space Task Group was notified by McDonnell that several of its subcontractors were experiencing difficulties in procuring material necessary to fabricate Project Mercury components. This delay was being caused by the lack of a DX priority procure...
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11 March - First full-scale test simulating a Mercury pad-abort situation. - Langley's Pilotless Aircraft Research Division conducted, at Wallops Island, the first full-scale test simulating a pad-abort situation. A full weight and size spacecraft was used. For the first 50 feet the flight was essentially straight, indicating...
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13 March - Saturn System Study - The Army Ordnance Missile Command (AOMC) submitted the "Saturn System Study" which had been requested by the Advanced Research Projects Agency ARPA on December 18, 1958. From the 1375 possible configurations screened, and the 14 most promis...
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16 March - Purchase of five developmental pressure suits for Project Mercury. - Purchase approval in the amount of $125,000 was requested by the Space Task Group from NASA Headquarters for the procurement of five developmental pressure suits for Project Mercury....
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1959 March 17-18 - Mercury mock-up inspection. - A Mock-Up Inspection Board meeting was held at the McDonnell plant to review the completed spacecraft mock-up. As a result of this meeting, the contractor was directed to restudy provisions made for pilot egress; rearrange crew space to make handles,...
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23 March - DX priority procurement rating in support of Project Mercury. - As of this date, the McDonnell Aircraft Corporation listed some 32 items that required a DX priority procurement rating in support of Project Mercury. This highest national priority procurement rating had been requested by NASA on November 14, 1958....
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26 March - Hypersonic flight tests for the Mercury spacecraft. - The Langley Research Center received approval for funds to conduct hypersonic flight tests for the Mercury spacecraft. Langley's Pilotless Aircraft Research Division would conduct tests on heat transfer rates at a velocity of mach 17, and dynamic beh...
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30 March - Space Task Group personnel observe Jupiter launch vehicle firing. - Space Task Group personnel visited the Atlantic Missile Range at the invitation of the Army Ballistic Missile Agency to observe a Jupiter launch vehicle firing and the procedures followed on the day preceding the firing. The group toured the blockhou...
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1959 April 1-8 - Goett Committee to study advanced manned space flight missions - John W. Crowley, Jr., NASA Director of Aeronautical and Space Research, notified the Ames, Lewis, and Langley Research Centers, the High Speed Flight Station (later Flight Research Center), the Jet Propulsion Laboratory, and the Office of Space Fligh...
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1959 April - Mercury parachute design unsafe for operation. - In the recovery landing system, the extended-skirt main parachute was found to be unsafe for operation at altitudes of 10,000 feet and was replaced by a 'ring-sail' parachute of similar size. This decision was made after a drop when the main parachut...
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1959 April 2-5 - Advanced manned space program to follow Project Mercury - The advanced manned space program to follow Project Mercury was discussed at a NASA Staff Conference held in Williamsburg, Va. Three reasons for such a program were suggested: ...
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2 April - Seven astronauts selected for Mercury project. - Seven astronauts were selected for Project Mercury after a series of the most rigorous physical and mental tests ever given to U.S. test pilots. Chosen from a field of 110 candidates, the finalists were all qualified test pilots: Capts. Leroy G. Coop...
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2 April - Bidders briefing for Project Mercury worldwide tracking range - A preliminary briefing was conducted for prospective bidders on construction of the worldwide tracking range for Project Mercury. This meeting was attended by representatives from 20 companies. At this time the preliminary plan called for an orbital ...
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1959 April 2-16 - Project Mercury animal payload program. - NASA and the military services conducted meetings to draft final plans for the Project Mercury animal payload program. The animal program was planned to cover nine flights, involving Little Joe, Redstone, Jupiter, and Atlas launch vehicles....
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9 April - First group of US astronauts announced - At a press conference in Washington, D.C., NASA Administrator T. Keith Glennan announced the seven pilots had been selected for the Mercury program....
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1959 April 9-10 - Escape configurations for Mercury spacecraft - Investigations of two escape configurations for Mercury spacecraft were conducted in a 16-foot transonic circuit at the Arnold Engineering Development Center, Tullahoma, Tennessee, for determination of static stability and drag characteristics of the...
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10 April - Mercury escape-motor canting-angle tests completed at Wallops Island. - Escape-motor canting-angle tests were completed at Wallops Island. Tests were conducted in 5 degree increments between 10 degrees to 30 degrees, and visually it appeared stability was better at the larger angle....
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12 April - Space Task Group conducted the second full-scale Mercury beach abort test on Wallops Island. - A deliberate thrust misalignment of 1 inch was programed into the escape combination. Lift-off was effected cleanly, and a slow pitch started during the burning of the escape rocket motor. The tower separated as scheduled and the drogue and main para...
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12 April - Mercury impact tests - Tests were in progress at Langley in which an aluminium honeycomb structure was used partially to absorb the spacecraft impact load. Robert R. Gilruth, Project Mercury Director, had stated his belief of this requirement on January 16, 1959....
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13 April - Mercury small-scale escape-tower combinations launched - Two small-scale spacecraft escape-tower combinations were launched successfully at Wallops Island. On the next day a full-scale spacecraft escape system was launched. The complete sequence of events - escape system firing, escape tower jettisoning, p...
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15 April - Use of Titan for Saturn upper stages - In response to a request by the DOD-NASA) Saturn Ad Hoc Committee, the Army Ordnance Missile Command (AOMC) sent a supplement to the "Saturn System Study" to the Advanced Research Projects Agency ARPA describing the use of Titan for Saturn ...
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16 April - TF-102B and T-33 aircraft for Project Mercury astronauts. - NASA requested that the Air Force furnish two TF-102B and two T-33 aircraft to be used by the Project Mercury astronauts. One of the requirements in the astronaut training program was to maintain proficiency in high performance aircraft....
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22 April - Tower configuration best escape system for the Mercury spacecraft. - In a meeting at Langley, NASA officials concluded that the tower configuration was the best escape system for the Mercury spacecraft and development would proceed using this concept. However, limited studies of alternate configurations would continue...
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27 April - Mercury search and rescue procedures developed. - Meeting of DOD working group on Project Mercury search and recovery operations was held at Patrick Air Force Base, with major emphasis placed on the first two ballistic Atlas shots, and command relationships....
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27 April - Project Mercury was accorded the DX priority procurement rating. - ...
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27 April - Project Mercury astronauts reported for duty - The seven Project Mercury astronauts reported for duty. A tentative schedule of Mercury astronaut activities for the first months of training was issued. Actual training began the next day. Within 3 months the astronauts were acquainted with the vari...
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1 May - Unmanned Lunar Soft Landing Vehicle - The Army Ordnance Missile Command submitted to NASA a report entitled "Preliminary Study of an Unmanned Lunar Soft Landing Vehicle," recommending the use of the Saturn booster....
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3 May - First H-1 engine for the Saturn delivered - The first Rocketdyne H-1 engine for the Saturn arrived at the Army Ballistic Missile Agency (ABMA ). The H-1 engine was installed in the ABMA test stand on May 7, first test-fired on May 21, and fired for 80 seconds on May 29. The first long-duration...
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6 May - Jastrow Committee on lunar exploration created. - NASA created a committee to study problems of long-range lunar exploration to be headed by Dr. Robert Jastrow....
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6 May - Pigs not to fly in space in Project Mercury - Pigs were eliminated as Little Joe flight test subjects when studies disclosed that they could not survive long periods of time on their backs. However, McDonnell did use a pig, 'Gentle Bess,' to test the impact crushable support, and the test was su...
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9 May - High-resolution photographs of the moon using Vega rocket - Milton W. Rosen of NASA Headquarters proposed a plan for obtaining high-resolution photographs of the moon. A three-stage Vega would place the payload within a 500-mile diameter circle on the lunar surface. A stabilized retrorocket fired at 500 miles...
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17 May - Scale model of Mercury for launch from Wallops Island to mach 18. - The Langley Research Center was in the process of preparing a one-fourteenth scale model of the Mercury spacecraft for launch from Wallops Island on a five-stage rocket to a speed of mach 18....
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21 May - Specifications for Tracking and Ground Instrumentation System for Project Mercury - Langley Specification Number S-45, entitled 'Specifications for Tracking and Ground Instrumentation System for Project Mercury,' was issued. Proposals were received from seven contractor teams by June 22, 1959, and technical evaluations were started....
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22 May - The Project Mercury balloon flight test program was canceled. - The Space Task Group oficials determined that the spacecraft could be tested environmentally in the Lewis Research Center's altitude wind tunnel. This included correct temperature and altitude simulations to 80,000 feet. The pilot could exercise the ...
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1959 May 25-26 - National booster program, Dyna-Soar, and Mercury discussed - The national booster program, Dyna-Soar, and Project Mercury were discussed by the Research Steering Committee. Members also presented reviews of Center programs related to manned space flight. Maxime A. Faget of STG endorsed lunar exploration as the...
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1959 May 25-26 - Tentative manned space flight priorities - Tentative manned space flight priorities were established by the Research Steering Committee: Project Mercury, ballistic probes, environmental satellite, maneuverable manned satellite, manned space flight laboratory, lunar reconnaissance satellite, l...
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26 May - First H-1 engine for Saturn I fired. - ABMA static fired a single H-1 Saturn engine at Redstone Arsenal, Ala....
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27 May - STG staff discusses the possibility of an advanced manned spacecraft - Director Robert R. Gilruth met with members of his STG staff (Paul E. Purser, Charles J. Donlan, James A. Chamberlin, Raymond L. Zavasky, W. Kemble Johnson, Charles W. Mathews, Maxime A. Faget, and Charles H. Zimmeman) and George M. Low from NASA Hea...
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28 May - First two Mercury Little Joe booster airframes delivered - North American Aviation delivered the first two Little Joe booster airframes, and noted that the four remaining were on fabrication schedule. The planned program was moving smoothly, for rocket motors to be used in the first flight were available at ...
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28 May - A quick-release, side exit hatch was designed for the Mercury spacecraft. - The design consisted of a continuous double explosive train to assure that all bolts were actually broken upon activation of the device....
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1959 June - Recoverable Interplanetary Space Probe study - A report entitled "Recoverable Interplanetary Space Probe" was issued at the direction of C. Stark Draper, Director of the Instrumentation Laboratory, MIT. Several organizations had participated in this study, which began in 1957....
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1959 June - Northrop to fabricate the landing system for Mercury. - McDonnell selected Northrop as the subcontractor to design and fabricate the landing system for Project Mercury. Northrop technology for landing and recovery systems dated back to 1943 when that company developed the first parachute recovery system f...
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3 June - Construction begins of the first Saturn launch complex - Construction of the first Saturn launch area, Complex 34, began at Cape Canaveral, FIa....
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4 June - Post-Mercury program using maneuverable Mercury spacecraft - At an STG staff meeting, Director Robert R. Gilruth suggested that study should be made of a post-Mercury program in which maneuverable Mercury spacecraft would make land landings in limited areas....
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5 June - Saturn I launch complex construction starts. - ...
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5 June - Flight instrumentation necessary to support the Mercury-Atlas program. - Space Technology Laboratories and Convair completed an analysis of flight instrumentation necessary to support the Mercury-Atlas program. The primary objective of the study was to select a light-weight telemetry system. A system weighing 270 pounds w...
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8 June - Mercury Big Joe spacecraft for the reentry test was delivered to Cape Canaveral. - ...
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1959 June 14-27 - Mercury spacecraft being designed to withstand 149 decibels. - A visit was made to McDonnell and it was learned that the Mercury spacecraft was being designed structurally to withstand 149 decibels overall noise level. McDonnell, however, anticipated that the actual maximum level would not be above 128 decibels....
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18 June - Luna failure - inertial system failed at T+153 seconds - ...
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18 June - NASA funded study of a lunar exploration program based on Saturn - NASA authorized $150,000 for Army Ordnance Missile Command studies of a lunar exploration program based on Saturn-boosted systems. To be included were circumlunar vehicles, unmanned and manned; close lunar orbiters; hard lunar impacts; and soft lunar...
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18 June - Centrifuge program to investigate the role of a pilot in the launch of a multi-stage vehicle. - A centrifuge program was conducted at Johnsville, Pennsylvania, to investigate the role of a pilot in the launch of a multi-stage vehicle. Test subjects were required to perform boost-control tasks, while being subjected to the proper boost-control a...
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1959 Summer - STG worked on advanced design concepts of earth orbital and lunar missions - Members of STG - including H. Kurt Strass, Robert L. O'Neal, Lawrence W. Enderson, Jr., and David C. Grana - and Thomas E. Dolan of Chance Vought Corporation worked on advanced design concepts of earth orbital and lunar missions. The goal was a manne...
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22 June - Preliminary design of a two-man space laboratory. - H. Kurt Strass of Space Task Group's Flight Systems Division (FSD) recommended the establishment of a committee to consider the preliminary design of a two-man space laboratory. Representatives from each of the specialist groups within FSD would work...
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24 June - Eight Mercury Redstone launch vehicles final cost $20.1 million. - Against an original estimated cost of $15.5 million for eight Redstone launch vehicles in support of Project Mercury, the final negotiated figure was $20.1 million....
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1959 June 25-26 - Lunar mission studies under way at the Army - During the Research Steering Committee meeting, John H. Disher of NASA Headquarters discussed the lunar mission studies under way at the Army Ballistic Missile Agency (ABMA)....
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1959 June 25-26 - Projected manned space station - A report on a projected manned space station was made to the Research Steering Committee by Laurence K. Loftin, Jr., of the Langley Research Center. In discussion, Chairman Harry J. Goett expressed his opinion that consideration of a space laboratory...
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1959 June 25-26 - Research Steering Committee briefed on technical studies - Alfred J. Eggers, Jr., of the Ames Research Center told the members of the Research Steering Committee of studies on radiation belts, graze and orbit maneuvers on reentry, heat transfer, structural concepts and requirements, lift over drag considerat...
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1959 June 25-26 - Study and research areas for manned flight to and from the moon - Members of the Research Steering Committee determined the study and research areas which would require emphasis for manned flight to and from the moon and for intermediate flight steps:...
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1959 June 25-26 - Steps toward a manned lunar landing - At the second meeting of the Research Steering Committee on Manned Space Flight, held at the Ames Research Center, members presented reports on intermediate steps toward a manned lunar landing and return....
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25 June - Mercury recovery airdrop test. - Navy surface vessels and aircraft were used in a recovery operation after an airdrop of a spacecraft off the coast from Jacksonville, Florida. The spacecraft was purposely dropped 40 miles away from the predicted impact point and 45 miles away from t...
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28 June - Ablation materials for the Mercury Little Joe flights. - Between June 28 and July 11, 1959, 12 heat-transfer tests were made in the Preflight Jet Test facility at Wallops Island on several ablation materials being considered for use on the spacecraft afterbody (not heat shield) for the Little Joe flights. ...
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1 July - Mercury astronaut MASTIF training. - Project Mercury astronauts completed disorientation flights on three-axis space-flight simulator, the MASTIF (Multiple Axis Space Test Inertia Facility), at NASA Lewis Research Center....
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1 July - Kiwi-A first experimental nuclear rocket tested. - The first experimental reactor (Kiwi-A) in the nuclear space rocket program operated successfully at full temperature and duration at Jackass Flats, Nev....
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1 July - Jupiter launch vehicles in Project Mercury canceled - The order for Jupiter launch vehicles in support of Project Mercury was canceled because the same or better data could be obtained from Atlas flights....
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1959 July - 1/14th-scale model of Mercury spacecraft tested at Mach 3.5. - The Pilotless Aircraft Research Division of the Langley Research Center launched a 1/14th-scale model of the Mercury spacecraft at Wallops Island to a speed of Mach 3.5 and at an altitude of 40,000 feet. The model spacecraft went into a continuous tu...
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1959 July - First automatic stabilization and control system for the Mercury spacecraft delivered - Minneapolis-Honeywell delivered the first automatic stabilization and control system for the Mercury spacecraft to McDonnell....
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1959 July 1-2 - Mercury pressure suit compatibility evaluation. - A pressure suit compatibility evaluation in the Mercury spacecraft mock-up was performed in suits submitted by the David Clark Company, B. F. Goodrich Company, and International Latex Company. Four subjects participated in the tests....
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8 July - Jupiter deleted as Mercury launch vehicle. - As developmental planning for Project Mercury evolved, NASA notified the Army that to reduce the variety of launching vehicles to Jupiter missile would not be used for Project Mercury tests....
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12 July - Instrumentation to measure noise level during the Mercury Big Joe-Atlas launching. - An agreement was made with the Air Force for Space Task Group to place microphone pickups on the skin of the Atlas launch vehicle as a part of the instrumentation to measure noise level during the Big Joe-Atlas launching. Distribution of the micropho...
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20 July - Mercury tracking station contractor selected. - NASA selected Western Electric Co. to build worldwide network of tracking and ground instrument stations to be used in Project Mercury....
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20 July - Western Electric Company selected for the Mercury tracking network. - Negotiations for construction of the Mercury tracking network were started with the Western Electric Company and their subcontractors (Bendix Aviation, International Business Machines, Bell Telephone Laboratories, and Burns and Roe), and a letter con...
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22 July - Goodrich selected for the Mercury astronaut pressure suit - The B. F. Goodrich Company was selected as the contractor to design and develop the Mercury astronaut pressure suit. Company technology in this field dated back to 1934, when it developed the first rubber stratosphere flying suit for attempts at sett...
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22 July - Mercury boilerplate pad abort flight - A successful pad abort flight of a Mercury boilerplate spacecraft with a production version of the escape tower and rocket was made. The escape rocket motor was manufactured by Grand Central Rocket, and the flight was the first operational test of th...
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28 July - Second beach abort test leading to the Mercury Little Joe test series. - A boilerplate spacecraft, instrumented to measure sound pressure level and vibration, was launched in the second beach abort test leading to the Little Joe test series. The purpose of the instrumentation was to obtain measurement of the vibration and...
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30 July - Contract to Western Electric for the Mercury tracking and ground instrumentation system. - Letter Contract NASA 1-430 was awarded to the Western Electric Company for construction of the Mercury tracking and ground instrumentation system....
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1 August - Static firing of the first Saturn planned for early 1960 - The Advanced Research Projects Agency (ARPA) directed the Army Ordnance Missile Command to proceed with the static firing of the first Saturn vehicle, the test booster SA-T, in early calendar year 1960 in accordance with the $70 million program and n...
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6 August - F-102 for Mercury astronaut flight proficiency - Four F-102 aircraft were made available for use by the Mercury astronauts to maintain proficiency in high performance vehicles....
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12 August - NASA's future manned space program - The STG New Projects Panel (proposed by H. Kurt Strass in June) held its first meeting to discuss NASA's future manned space program. Present were Strass, Chairman, Alan B. Kehlet, William S. Augerson, Jack Funk, and other STG members. Strass summari...
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14 August - Negotiations for the fabrication of six additional Mercury spacecraft. - NASA Headquarters approved a Space Task Group proposal that negotiations be undertaken with McDonnell for the fabrication of six additional Mercury spacecraft....
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15 August - Mercury astronauts began their initial centrifuge training - The astronauts began their initial centrifuge training at the Aviation Medical Acceleration Laboratory. During the first part of the month Space Task Group personnel had installed and checked out Mercury spacecraft simulation equipment at the Aviatio...
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18 August - First major new NASA project to be a second-generation reentry capsule - At its second meeting, STG's New Projects Panel decided that the first major project to be investigated would be the second-generation reentry capsule. The Panel was presented a chart outlining the proposed sequence of events for manned lunar mission...
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21 August - Mercury LJ-1 - During the countdown of the first programed Little Joe launching (LJ-1 beach abort test) at Wallops Island, the escape rocket fired prematurely 31 minutes before the scheduled launch. The spacecraft rose to an altitude of 2,000 feet and landed about ...
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28 August - Additional Atlas launch vehicles in support of Project Mercury. - NASA Headquarters authorized the Space Task Group to enter into negotiations with the Air Force Ballistic Missile Division for the procurement of additional Atlas launch vehicles in support of Project Mercury. The authorization was to be incorporated...
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31 August - Lunar flights to originate from space platforms in earth orbit - A House Committee Staff Report stated that lunar flights would originate from space platforms in earth orbit according to current planning. The final decision on the method to be used, "which must be made soon," would take into consideratio...
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1959 September - MIT study of the guidance and control design for a variety of space missions - A study of the guidance and control design for a variety of space missions began at the MIT Instrumentation Laboratory under a NASA contract....
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1 September - Mercury spacecraft modified to withstand lunar reentry conditions - McDonnell Aircraft Corporation reported to NASA the results of several company-funded studies of follow-on experiments using Mercury spacecraft with heatshields modified to withstand lunar reentry conditions. In one experiment, a Centaur booster woul...
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2 September - Mercury LJ-1 - Launching of Mercury capsule mockup from Wallops Station to test the escape and recovery systems; emergency escape rocket accidentally fired 30 minutes before scheduled firing of the Little Joe booster....
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9 September - Mercury BJ-1 - NASA boilerplate model of Mercury capsule successfully launched on an Atlas (Big Joe) missile from AMR and recovered in South Atlantic after surviving reentry heat of more than 10,000°F....
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1959 September 10-11 - Mercury spacecraft mock-up review - At a spacecraft mock-up review, the astronauts submitted several recommended changes. These involved a new instrument panel, a forward centerline window, and an explosive side egress hatch....
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12 September - Luna 2 - First probe to impact lunar surface. Delivered a pennant to the surface of the Moon and conducted research during flight to the Moon. Impacted Moon 13 Sep 1959 at 22:02:04 UT, Latitude 29.10 N, Longitude 0.00 - Palus Putredinis, east of Mare Serenita...
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1959 September 16-18 - Plans for advanced launch vehicles - The ARPA-NASA Booster Evaluation Committee appointed by Herbert F. York, DOD Director of Defense Research and Engineering, April 15, 1959, convened to review plans for advanced launch vehicles. A comparison of the Saturn (C-1) and the Titan-C booster...
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21 September - Effects of sustained acceleration on the pilot's ability to control a vehicle. - Between September 21 and October 10, 1959, a research program was carried out by the Aviation Medical Acceleration Laboratory to measure the effects of sustained acceleration on the pilot's ability to control a vehicle. Various side-arm controllers w...
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28 September - Lenticular-shaped vehicle proposed for the lunar mission - At the third meeting of STG's New Projects Panel, Alan B. Kehlet presented suggestions for the multimanned reentry capsule. A lenticular-shaped vehicle was proposed, to ferry three occupants safely to earth from a lunar mission at a velocity of about...
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1959 October - Mercury air-supplied launch-vehicle control system. - North American Aviation and Minneapolis-Honeywell were notified to proceed with the production of hardware for an air-supplied launch-vehicle control system....
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1 October - Funds approved for major changes to the Mercury spacecraft - Funds were approved by NASA Headquarters for the following major changes to the Mercury spacecraft: egress hatch installation (CCP-58-1), astronaut observation window installation (CCP-73); rate stabilization and control system (CCP-61-2), main instr...
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1959 October - McDonnell received the first Mercury ablative heat shield - McDonnell received the first ablative heat shield, designated for installation on Spacecraft No. 1. This particular heat shield was based on the Big Joe design, and was manufactured by General Electric....
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4 October - Luna 3 - Luna 3 was the third spacecraft successfully launched to the Moon and the first to return images of the lunar far side. It was launched on a figure-eight trajectory which brought it over the Moon (closest approach to the Moon was 6200 km) and around ...
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4 October - Spacecraft Test mission - NASA Little Joe launch vehicle carrying a boilerplate Mercury capsule with a dummy escape system successfully launched from Wallops Station, Va....
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13 October - Explorer VII - Explorer VII achieved orbit and began providing significant geophysical information on solar and earth radiation, magnetic storms, and micrometeorite penetration. This satellite also successfully demonstrated a method of controlling internal temperat...
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21 October - Transfer to NASA of the Army Ballistic Missile Agency's Development Operations Division - After a meeting with officials concerned with the missile and space program, President Dwight D. Eisenhower announced that he intended to transfer to NASA control the Army Ballistic Missile Agency's Development Operations Division personnel and facil...
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1 November - Mercury spacesuit delivered. - Prototype Goodrich full-pressure Mercury astronaut suits (modified Navy Mark IV) were delivered to NASA. Navy Air Crew Equipment Laboratory (NACEL) of Philadelphia fitted suits and indoctrinated the astronauts on their use....
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1959 November - Mercury full-pressure suits delivered. - Between November 1959 and January 1960, 10 developmental Mercury full-pressure suits were delivered. These suits were used in various Mercury training and development programs. Several problem areas were denoted. One involved stretching which compli...
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1959 November - Mercury first manned development system tests - The first manned development system tests were completed at the AiResearch Manufacturing Division, Garrett Corporation. Tests were conducted in the altitude chamber to determine proper functioning of all system valves and components. A McDonnell subj...
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2 November - Transfer of Saturn I project to NASA announced. - President Eisenhower announced his intention of transferring the Saturn project to NASA, which became effective on March 15, 1960....
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2 November - Planning of advanced spacecraft systems begun - At an STG meeting, it was decided to begin planning of advanced spacecraft systems. Three primary assignments were made: ...
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4 November - Mercury LJ-1A - Little Joe 1-A (LJ-1A) was launched in a test for a planned abort under high aerodynamic load conditions. This flight was a repeat of the Little Joe (LJ-1) that had been planned for August 21, 1959 (escape rocket fired 31 min before the intended laun...
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5 November - Mercury astronauts fitted with pressure suits. - The astronauts were fitted with pressure suits and indoctrinated as to use at the B. F. Goodrich Company, Akron, Ohio....
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8 November - Design of the Mercury Control Center was completed. - Between this date and December 5, 1959, the tentative design and layout of the Mercury Control Center to be used to monitor the orbiting flight of the Mercury spacecraft were completed. The control center would have trend charts to indicate the astro...
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27 November - Study group to recommend upper-stage configurations - While awaiting the formal transfer of the Saturn program, NASA formed a study group to recommend upper-stage configurations. Membership was to include the DOD Director of Defense Research and Engineering and personnel from NASA, Advanced Research Pro...
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1959 December - Mercury astronaut F-100 weightless flying training program - A weightless flying training program was started by the Mercury astronauts in the F-100 aircraft at Edwards Air Force Base, California. Eating, drinking, and psychomotor tests were conducted while the astronauts were in a weightless state....
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4 December - Mercury Little Joe 2 (LJ-2) - LJ-2 was launched from Wallops Island to determine the motions of the spacecraft escape tower combination during a high-altitude abort, entry dynamics without a control system, physiological effects of acceleration on a small primate, operation of th...
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6 December - Plan for transferring the Army Ballistic Missile Agency and Saturn to NASA - The initial plan for transferring the Army Ballistic Missile Agency and Saturn to NASA was drafted. It was submitted to President Dwight D. Eisenhower on December 1 1 and was signed by Secretary of the Army Wilber M. Brucker and Secretary of the Air ...
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7 December - Engineering and cost study for a new Saturn configuration - The Advanced Research Projects Agency ARPA and NASA requested the Army Ordnance Missile Command AOMC to prepare an engineering and cost study for a new Saturn configuration with a second stage of four 20,000-pound-thrust liquid-hydrogen and liquid-ox...
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1959 December 8-9 - Configurations for manned lunar landing by direct ascent - Several possible configurations for a manned lunar landing by direct ascent being studied at the Lewis Research Center were described to the Research Steering Committee by Seymour C. Himmel. A six-stage launch vehicle would be required, the first thr...
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1959 December 8-9 - Army Ballistic Missile Agency mission possibilities - H. H. Koelle told members of the Research Steering Committee of mission possibilities being considered at the Army Ballistic Missile Agency. These included an engineering satellite, an orbital return capsule, a space crew training vehicle, a manned o...
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1959 December 8-9 - Steps to manned lunar flight and capsule-laboratory spacecraft - At the third meeting of the Research Steering Committee on Manned Space Flight held at Langley Research Center, H. Kurt Strass reported on STG's thinking on steps leading to manned lunar flight and on a particular capsule-laboratory spacecraft. The p...
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9 December - Goett Committee - Committee formed to recommend post-Mercury space program. After four meetings, and studying earth-orbit assembly using Saturn II or direct ascent using Nova, tended to back development of Nova....
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15 December - Saturn upper stage study. - NASA team completed study design of upper stages of Saturn launch vehicle....
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19 December - NERVA development roles AEC/NASA. - The Chairman, AEC, in a letter to the Administrator of NASA, proposed a flight test objective be established for the nuclear rocket program and proposed a technical program and division of agency responsibilities to achieve those objectives....
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22 December - Redstone for Mercury MR-1 installed on the interim test stand. - The Redstone launch vehicle for the first Mercury-Redstone mission (MR-1) was installed on the interim test stand at the Army Ballistic Missile Agency for static testing....
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31 December - NASA approval of Saturn development program - NASA accepted the recommendations of the Saturn Vehicle Evaluation Committee Silverstein Committee on the Saturn C-1 configuration and on a long-range Saturn program. A research and development plan of ten vehicles was approved. The C-1 configuration...
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31 December - Nuclear propulsion work abandoned. - Korolev abandons work on nuclear-powered rockets. Future launch vehicles to be based on conventional lox/keroesene propellants....
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31 December - Mercury astronauts complete classroom training. - Mercury astronauts completed basic and theoretical studies in their training program and started practical engineering studies....
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