Tag Archives: cold war
Wednesday’s Book Review: “New Weapons, Old Politics: America’s Military Procurement Muddle”
New Weapons, Old Politics: America’s Military Procurement Muddle. By Thomas L. McNaugher. Washington, D.C.: Brookings Institution, 1989. A muck-raking analysis, the author uses case studies to illuminate concerns at the heart of the ongoing debate over defense acquisition, especially a … Continue reading
Three Canopies into the Pacific: Coming Home during Project Apollo
Since July 24 is the 48th anniversary of the return from space of Apollo 11, here is a short account the return via parachutes of the Apollo spacecraft. For all of the earlier work on the Gemini Earth landing system … Continue reading
Announcing a Forthcoming Conference: “NASA in the ‘Long’ Civil Rights Movement”
When: Thursday March 16 – Friday March 17, 2017 Where: United States Space and Rocket Center, Educational Training Facility, 1 Tranquility Base – Huntsville, Alabama 35805 On March 16-17, 2017, the NASA Marshall Space Flight Center History Office and the University … Continue reading
Apollo 13 and Nostalgia for an Earlier Time
A cultural debate has raged during the first part of the twenty-first century over the meaning of the Apollo program. Much of the recollection of Apollo’s legacy revolves around ideas of ‘progress’ for the American nation. At the same time, Apollo … Continue reading
The Antarctic and Outer Space Treaties after the Cold War: Are They Still Valid?
The two separate treaty regimes—The Antarctic Treaty of 1960 and the Outer Space Treaty of 1967—worked relatively well in the context of the Cold War environment between World War II and about 1990. The sudden collapse of the Soviet Union, … Continue reading
Wednesday’s Book Review: “Defense Acquisition Reform, 1960-2009: An Elusive Goal”
Defense Acquisition Reform, 1960-2009: An Elusive Goal. By J. Ronald Fox, with contributions by David G. Allen, Thomas C. Lassman, Walton S. Moody, and Philip L. Shiman. Washington, D.C.: Center for Military History, United States Army, 2011. Written by the … Continue reading
A Brief on the Apollo 1 (Capsule 204) Fire on its 50th Anniversary
What happened? The Apollo 1 (204) Command Module was on the ground at the Kennedy Space Center on January 27, 1967 when a fire broke out in the capsule. The three crew members (Virgil “Gus” Grissom, Roger Chaffee, and Edward … Continue reading
A Truly Hilarious Cartoon on the Apollo/Saturn Stack
This cartoon from the XKCD website helps explain with considerable humor the awesomeness of the Saturn V. It uses onlty the most common words in English to rescribe the stack. You may find the original here. Enjoy!
Chronology of Key Space Anniversaries for 2017
1942—75 Years Ago 3 October—Germany launched its V-2 rocket and is the first spacecraft to cross the Kármán line (100 km). 1947—70 Years Ago 20 February—The United States sent fruit flies into space. 1952—65 Years Ago 1 April—The U.S. Army … Continue reading
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