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From page 93... ... He led the United States in the Mercury, Gemini, and Apollo efforts and directed the greatest engineering achievement in history: the safe voyages of humans to the Moon. I worked for Bob as Director of flight operations and succeeded him as Director of the Johnson Space Center. Read the entire page →
From page 94... ... Bob Gilruth's first engineering experiences came from watching his grandfather carve little boats to sail on the Minnesota lakes. Gilruth's parents were both teachers. Read the entire page →
From page 95... ... R O B E R T R . G I L R U T H 95 as many boys did. Read the entire page →
From page 96... ... During his fellowship at Minnesota, Bob Gilruth met and married Jean Barnhill, a fellow engineering student and an aviatrix who flew in cross-country races. Read the entire page →
From page 97... ... R O B E R T R . G I L R U T H 97 tip vortices that are naturally produced there. Read the entire page →
From page 98... ... As a result of the project Gilruth wrote a report titled "Requirements for Satisfactory Flying Qualities of Airplanes,"18 which abstained from pilot jargon and put numbers to the qualities that made an airplane's characteristics good or bad. For the first time Gilruth used his concept of "stick force per g," which compares the pilot's actions to the airplane's reactions. Read the entire page →
From page 99... ... According to Gilruth, "When I saw the dog go up, I said, `My God, we better get going because it's going to be a legitimate program to put man in space.' I didn't need somebody to hit me on the head and tell me that."22 After the dog flew in space Gilruth and his colleagues considered manned space flight. "We started scheming about what you could do."23 To Gilruth "the problems of putting a man in space [and] Read the entire page →
From page 100... ... . and that's a lot more than you need for reentry."24 At Wallops Island Gilruth's teams had already studied the heat generated by high-velocity re-entry. Read the entire page →
From page 101... ... R O B E R T R . G I L R U T H 101 Langley largely had been an in-house operation, but NASA would work differently. Read the entire page →
From page 102... ... So the Apollo program was born: the most audacious engineering challenge in history. Bob Gilruth was to lead it from the new Manned Spacecraft Center to be located a few miles south of Houston, Texas. Read the entire page →
From page 103... ... Then, on January 27, 1967, a fire during a ground simulation in an Apollo spacecraft test killed the Apollo 1 prime crew: Gus Grissom, Ed White, and Roger Chaffee. Bob Gilruth was in Washington, D.C., meeting with contractors. Read the entire page →
From page 104... ... Gilruth's wife, Jean, died in 1972 after the last Moon landing and during the period of his trips to Russia. He had left the Manned Spacecraft Center to work in Washington, D.C., as NASA's head of personnel development. Read the entire page →
From page 105... ... He was such an interesting personality, a beautiful man, a true leader, and a mentor. When I succeeded Bob as Director of the Johnson Space Center, I was fully ready. Read the entire page →
From page 106... ... 106 B I O G R A P H I C A L M E M O I R S respect because he had such an all-encompassing knowledge of his field and what he was doing, and a great capacity to inspire confidence in people around him." Kenneth Kleinknecht: "I never remember Bob Gilruth telling anybody what they should do or how to do anything. He just talked with them long enough that they thought his idea was their idea and they went and did it the way he wanted it." Dorothy Lee: "I'm in my little corner. Read the entire page →
From page 107... ... Louis Medal by the American Society of Mechanical Engineers 1966 Honorary Member of the Aerospace Medical Association Daniel and Florence Guggenheim International Astronautics Award of the International Academy of Astronautics 1967 1966 Space Flight Award by the American Astronautical Society 1969 NASA Distinguished Service Medals (after Apollo 8 and Apollo 11) One of the first 10 persons installed in the National Space Hall of Fame Rockefeller Public Service "At Large" Award 1970 Honorary doctor of laws from the New Mexico State University ASME Medal from the American Society of Mechanical Engineers 1971 James Watt International Medal from the Institution of Mechanical Engineers National Aviation Club Award for Achievement 1972 Robert R Read the entire page →
From page 108... ... Requirements for Satisfactory Flying Qualities of Airplanes. Report 755, GWS Oral History Project, working history files, National Air and Space Museum, Washington, D.C. Read the entire page →
From page 109... ... 30. Fourth Gilruth oral history interview, p 25. Read the entire page →
From page 110... ... 1943 Requirements for Satisfactory Flying Qualities in Airplanes. Report 755, GWS Oral History Project, working history files, National Air and Space Museum, Washington, D.C. Read the entire page →
From page 111... ... The Royal Aeronau tical Society, GWS Oral History Project, working history files, National Air and Space Museum, Washington, D.C. 1971 To the Moon and beyond. Read the entire page →
From page 112... ... Madison Photography, of Department Wisconsin of University the of Courtesy Read the entire page →

From page 93...

... He led the United States in the Mercury, Gemini, and Apollo efforts and directed the greatest engineering achievement in history: the safe voyages of humans to the Moon. I worked for Bob as Director of flight operations and succeeded him as Director of the Johnson Space Center.