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Aviation History
1961
1961 - 1426.PDF
530 FLIGHT, 5 October 1961 Missiles and Space flight. . . MAJOR NASA REORGANIZATION Important changes in the organizational structure of the National Aeronautics and Space Administration, together with new high- level appointments, were announced on September 24. The main effect is to place new emphasis on four major areas: (1) Manned spaceflight, including lunar exploration.(2) Space sciences, in terms of unmanned scientific investigation of space, the Moon and the planets.(3) Practical applications of space technology, including operational weather and communications satellites. (4) Advanced research and technology in both aeronautics andspace. The names of three of the four men who will be responsible for these areas, with effect from November 1, were announced as: Mr D. Brainerd Holmes, general manager of the Major Defense Systems Division of RCA, to be director of the Office of Manned Spacefiight Programs; Dr Homer E. Newell, deputy director of the NASA Office of Spacefiight Programs, to be director of the Office of Space Sciences; and Mr Ira H. Abbott, director of the Office of Advanced Research Programs, to be director of the Office of Advanced Research and Technology. The fourth appointment has yet to be made. Programme office directors will report to NASA's associate administrator, Dr Robert C. Seamans, Jr. Within his particular programme area the director of each of these four offices will have overall responsibility for the various projects being carried out by the space administration. The programme directors will establish technical guide-lines, budget and programme funds, schedule each project and evaluate progress. The Office of Manned Spaceflight Programs will be responsible for overall systems engineering and evaluation of the various manned space- flight projects, including spacecraft, launch vehicles, ground- support equipment, tracking stations and communications network. The present responsibilities of NASA's Office of Life Sciences will be integrated into each of the four programmes. NASA Administrator James E. Webb said that the changes were keyed to the accelerated US civilian space programme, including manned lunar exploration, and had two major objectives. These were the realignment of the headquarters technical programme offices to provide a clearer focus and greater emphasis on the major programmes, and to provide the directors of NASA's research and development centres a greater voice in policy-making and pro- gramme decisions. Other new appointments announced at the same time included Thomas F. Dixon as deputy associate administrator, Dr Abe Silverstein as director of the Lewis Research Center, and Robert R. Gilruth, currently director of the Space Task Group at Langley Field, as director of NASA's new Manned Spaceflight Center at Houston, Texas (see news item in column 2). Directors of the major research and development centres will report directly to the asso- ciate administrator. As deputy associate administrator Mr Dixon will "assist in overall direction of the centres, and will have respon- sibility for launch vehicles other than Saturn class and larger." The latter launch vehicles will come under the Office of Manned Space Flight. As reported on this page, the Hughes HM-55 (left) and HM-58 Falcon air-to- air missiles are to become standard ar- mament of the Royal Swedish Air Force's Saab J-3SF Draken. Developed by Hughes at Culver City, Cali- fornia, the missiles— seen here with Bert Warren, Hughes en- gineering test pilot— will be manufactured in Sweden HUGHES MISSILES FOR SWEDEN Two types of air-to-air missiles developed by Hughes Aircraft Co have been selected for use with the Swedish J35F Draken all- weather fighter. Designated the Hughes HM-55 and HM-58 (known respectively as the RB-327 and RB-328 to the Royal Swedish Air Force), the missiles will be manufactured in Sweden from Hughes designs. The main differences between the two missile types, which are illustrated in an accompanying picture, is that the HM-55 is radar- guided while the HM-58 carries an infrared guidance system. The two together will form complementary weapons for the Draken. with a particular type being used to advantage according to the tactical situation. NEW MANNED SPACEFLIGHT CENTRE Following recent announcements by the US National Aeronautics and Space Administration of a launch-site expansion at Cape Canaveral and a new launch-vehicle manufacturing plant at New Orleans, the location of a third major facility has been decided. This will be NASA's manned spaceflight laboratory, which is expected to cost some S60m and will be built in Houston, Texas. The new laboratory will be the NASA command centre for the manned lunar landing programme and all subsequent manned spaceflight missions. The Project Apollo spacecraft and all its sub-systems will be designed, developed, evaluated and tested at the centre, and the spacecraft crews will be trained there. Under Fiscal Year 1962 appropriations the site will be developed and four main facilities will be provided: a flight project facility, an equip- ment evaluation laboratory, a flight operations facility and an environmental testing laboratory. The site of the new centre covers approximately 1,000 acres of land, which is being made available to the US Government by Rice Internal details of the Ford Aeronutronics lunar capsule (right) and capsule payload are shown for the first time in these company drawings. Due to be carried by Ranger spacecraft after launch by Atlas-Agena jB during 1962, the 25in diameter capsule will land on the Moon, the I2in diameter instrument sphere being protected by a balsa wood shell and flotation fluid. Scientific data will be transmitted back to Earth from the spherical payload FLOTATION FLUID ANTENNA BLOCK UPPER H2O CHAMBER BATTER LOWER H2O CHAMBER OUTER INSULATION SHELI PLASTIC OUTER SHELL ELECTRONICS 'COMPARTMENT THERMAL CONTROL VALVE CRYOGENIC INSULATION PUNCTURING DEVICE SEISMOMETER PRE-IMPACT CAGING PIN ELECTRONICS^ CRYOGENIC-TYPE INSULATION BATTERY. SEISMOMETER PROPELLANT GRAIN SPIN MOTOR IGNITION WIRES NOZZLE PLUG FUSING SIGNAL WIRES SPIN ROCKET COMBUSTION CHAMBER -ANTENNA BLOCK FIBERGLASS SHE1 .FLOTATION FLUII ..WATER .CAGING AND UN! DEVICES -SEPARATION CLAI .IGNITER .EPARATION CLi
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