July 22, 1963

July 22, 1963

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APOLLO

Preliminary Design Frozen on Lunar Bug

GEMINI/MERCURY

Man’s Capabilities Affect Design, Mission of Gemini

Air Force Will Have Small Role in Gemini

X-20 Will Probe Piloted Lifting Re-entry

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APOLLO

Preliminary Design Frozen on Lunar Bug

Bethpage, N. Y.—Preliminary design of Grumman Aircraft Engineering Corp.’s Apollo Lunar Excursion Module (LEM) has been frozen, paving the way for major subcontractors to begin designing subsystems. Six major subcontractors have been chosen and seven more contracts are being definitized.
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GEMINI/MERCURY

Man’s Capabilities Affect Design, Mission of Gemini

Houston—Conviction that man is the best controller is the foundation for design, manufacture and mission philosophy of the two-man Gemini spacecraft, and it has had a significant effect on the reliability and simplicity of the hardware in this program.
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Air Force Will Have Small Role in Gemini

X-20 Will Probe Piloted Lifting Re-entry

Dayton—Boeing X-20 (Dyna-Soar) boost glider, a second generation space vehicle intended to explore piloted lifting re-entry, is expected to begin laying the scientific, technical and industrial groundwork that would enable the Air Force to counter any future military challenge in space.
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APOLLO

Critical Apollo Test Modules Produced

Downey, Calif.—Well-established aircraft manufacturing techniques being used to build Apollo boilerplate command and service modules have permitted North American Aviation’s Space and Information Systems Div. to cut the estimated manufacturing time of initial test vehicles by as much as 50% and allow the company to meet a tight production schedule.
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Future Programs

Nova Studies Focus on Radical Designs

Los Angeles—Nova super-booster for future planetary exploration will remain in the conceptual study phase for at least another year. Studies will focus on radical vehicle design and propulsion concepts that promise greater operating economy and smaller size than would be possible with state-of-the-art engines that could be developed by 1975.
7677
Future Programs

Nasa Building Space Station Technology

National Aeronautics and Space Administration has begun to develop a broad technological foundation for a manned space station, which it feels certain will be the next major project to be initiated. The effort at this time revolves around two concepts, which can be categorized as small laboratory vs. large station.
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GEMINI/MERCURY

Gemini Evolves Into Operational Program

Houston—Project Gemini has now evolved into an independent program that will give the U.S. its first operational equipment and experience for a wide variety of manned space missions, both civilian and military. The two-man Gemini vehicle is both an extension of Mercury and a step toward the three-man Apollo lunar landing mission.
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SUPPORT

Astronauts Trained to Be More Than Pilots

Houston, Tex.—Astronaut training in the U. S. is oriented towards broadening the pilot’s usefulness in the manned space flight program beyond his primary role of flying the spacecraft. Just as Project Mercury proved an invaluable tool in providing baseline engineering data for future spacecraft and systems, the Mercury astronauts developed the human factors pattern which will help determine how useful man can be in space.
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APOLLO

Apollo Reflects Technical Skill of U. S.

Apollo manned lunar landing program is rapidly unfolding into a measure of the total technical competence of the nation through the engineering and scientific advances it requires and the industrial and management capabilities that must be marshalled to carry it out.
162163
APOLLO

Logistics Version of Lunar Bug Proposed to Nasa By Grumman

Bethpage, N. Y.—Proposed configurations for a logistics version of the Lunar Excursion Module (LEM) and a development schedule designed to draw on the basic LEM program but not interfere with it, have been given to National Aeronautics and Space Administration by Grumman Aircraft Engineering Corp.
July 151963 July 291963